Fitzgerald was the first to publish, it was not till the
middle of the next month that he was able to make preparation for
their joining him. From this letter--written to his Archbishop, to
request an extension of his leave--we learn that while applying for
the passports he was attacked with a fever, "which has ended the worst
way it could for me, in a _defluxion (de) poitrine_, as the French
physicians call it. It is generally fatal to weak lungs, so that I
have lost in ten days all I have gained since I came here; and from
a relaxation of my lungs have lost my voice entirely, that 'twill
be much if I ever quite recover it. This evil sends me directly to
Toulouse, for which I set out from this place directly my family
arrives." Evidently there was no time to be lost, and a week after the
date of this letter we find him in communication with Mrs. and
Miss Sterne, and making arrangements for what was, in those days, a
somewhat formidable undertaking--the journey of two ladies from the
North of England to the centre of France. The correspondence which
ensued may be said to give us the last pleasant glimpse of Sterne's
relations with his wife.
Pages:
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115