4400. RB to Sarianna Browning
As published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 26, 139–141.
Rome, Via di Bocca di Leone 43.
[?8] [May 1859] [1]
Dearest Sis, Yours received—to my joy. Had Reuben told me at once where the obstacle lay what trouble to us all would have been saved. I had written at his desire to the <Partners> [2] direct,—all to no use: I have now written & sent off a letter to Chorley, & no doubt all will be right soon. I daresay you are anxious about us—but we feel just as safe as usual: the English & Americans have been, & are, rushing away with the most stupid precipitation—you must telegraph to Naples weeks beforehand for a place—& after all you get a chance of a strip of bare deck or a mattress there at best—to occupy for three nights before you reach Marseilles! And then the railroads are given up wholly to the passage of troops, we hear. The actual quiet every where is perfect—in Tuscany never was so admirable a revolution, if you can call it one—it is certain the G. Duke, or rather his son, ordered the commandant of the citadel to bombard the city [3] —on his refusing, he would have taken liberal counsels &c—of course the man he called in to advise would do nothing on such a foundation, & bade him go away—so he did—& since then all has gone on perfectly,—every where,—here as well as in Tuscany, the people understand what folly it was to begin proceedings by bonfires, illuminations & noise—they are quiet, & it is such again every way. I have no fear for our funded money. I daresay it is depreciated enough if one wished to sell out—but one doesn’t: they pay the divs 3 months or less in advance, if you prefer paying 3% interest for the advance. But people are so foolish & timid—& no where so much as in England, where I observe the failures have been frightful: if one sold out there, one would lose ten or twelve percent—& it would be no worse here. I hear the prime of the news, knowing the really instructed people– I see Lady William & Odo Russell (our Diplomatic agent) nearly every day—(dined with them on Friday) & have heard all sorts of curious things from Ld Stratford de Redcliffe—(dined with him on Wednesday, after having had a two hours talk & more with him in the morning)[.] I also am a close neighbour of Mr Wreford, the “Times” correspondent—so I am not likely to be surprised by events. We purpose leaving on or about the 25th inst.—at Florence we shall consider what is best to do. I can’t say I am very apprehensive on your account—there will be every method taken to keep order in Paris, of course. I do hope you sometimes get the Ath: I posted at least four since I saw you and there are some three to send– I feel ashamed of this stoppage—it is thro’ the people’s keeping them instead of letting me send them to you—but it will soon be better—try & excuse it now. We will send Ba’s photograph by somebody very soon. I don’t think my portrait (by Talfourd) will be done here, for some reason or other: Leighton’s will, I believe, be photographed—& you shall have a copy also. Both the portraits of Ba are failures, I think– Leighton’s certainly, thinks everybody. Ba is just about to sit once more,—to Lehmann—a clever German painter. [4] I don’t hope for anything good now. In the “Ath.” arrived yesterday there is some more nonsense about ourselves & Miss White [5] —it is strange there should be any possible misconception of the matter—we merely wrote to the readers & circulators of the particular report which spoke of her coming “Highly recommended by the Brownings” [6] —which it is not pretended was true: if we had supposed she knew of, much more wrote, the thing—we should hardly have taken that occasion to declare our “affection & esteem” for her: now she sends a letter from Horace Greeley & others full of prosing quite beside the mark with some slight impertinences to ourselves: we have written (on compulsion) a final word confirmatory of the above, & sent it to the “Ath”—where you will see it in due time. [7] How sorry I am at poor Mrs Bracken’s misfortune! [8] Mr Bracken & Annette are just returned from Naples & are going on at once to Florence & thence in a fortnight or three weeks to Paris. I have told her nothing about the loss, of course: she is in very delicate health, herself. Una Hawthorne is better (miraculously, all considered).
Tuesday) No fresh news of importance—rumours in plenty. Everything as quiet as possible in Tuscany. I got yesterday the engraving of Ba’s portrait [9] —a poor thing, metamorphosed into hardly any likeness at all from what was a very good one—but such as it is it must do for the present—there is some little air of Ba in it that makes it bearable. Write to me directly on receipt of this—& I will certainly reply with even no news at all—for it must be tantalizing for you to know we are in Italy just now. Ba is very well, Peni also. I am happy to find you & Papa continue well– One sees by the permission to Austrians to stay in France that were there even a war with England the resident English need not leave Paris—however unpleasant it might otherwise be to remain. I have other letters to write & must leave off. Love to dear Milsand.
Address: France. / Mademoiselle Browning, / 151. Rue de Grenelle, / Faubourg St Germain, / Paris.
Publication: NL, pp. 113–119.
Manuscript: British Library (envelope); and Lilly Library.
1. Month and year provided by postmark of 10 May 1859, a Tuesday. The day is based on RB’s reference to The Athenæum of 30 April, containing Horace Greeley’s letter, which “arrived yesterday,” and to the Brownings’ reply to that letter, which is dated 7 May.
2. Interpolated above a deleted “Trustees.” RB refers to Messrs. Boddington & Co. (see letter 4360).
3. The Morning Chronicle of 5 May 1859 reported that on the morning of 27 April the Grand Duke’s second son, Charles (i.e. Archduke Karl Salvator, 1839–92), went to “Fort Belvedere, which commands the city. Here, surrounded by the officers of the velites and artillery, of which he was the commandant, he caused a sealed order, left by the Commander-in-Chief, General d’Arco Ferrari, to be opened. It contained a general plan of attack on Florence, with directions for a bombardment. At this announcement, all the officers … declared that they would not fire on the people” (p. 3). See also letter 4433, note 5.
4. Rudolf Lehmann (1819–1905), portrait and genre painter. EBB’s portrait is signed and dated 15 May 1859 (see Reconstruction, F31). Lehmann also drew RB’s portrait, completing it on 22 May 1859 (see Reconstruction, G17). The drawings are reproduced facing p. 209.
7. The Brownings’ joint letter (see letter 4398) appeared in the 21 May 1859 issue of The Athenæum (no. 1647, p. 680).
8. We are unable to explain this misfortune, evidently a death.
9. Sent by William Michael Rossetti (see letter 4403).
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