Item 15 - Peter Elmsley to his sister-in-law [Mary Hallowell?]

Paris. Mary's (PE's niece?) letter arrived for PE in Paris via Milan, apparently enclosing an introduction by Lord Lansdowne to Mr de Brome - but PE could not have fully profited from it, since after arriving in Milan on 29th June excessive heat drove him away on 10th July. Sister-in-law has been preoccupied by a Mrs Gee having to defend a will in court - PE has received threatening letters in his time (which his sister-in-law may find among his papers if she survives him), and is none the worse for them. Arrived in Paris on 28th July, and will stay at least a month; intends to be in Oxford by 10th October. A letter has reached PE via Milan - the government means to engage PE to examine some mss. in Naples. On return to England may land at Brighthelmston (official name of Brighton until 1810). Has bought his sister-in-law some eau de Cologne. 15 night journey from Milan to Paris. Paris said to be full of the English, but PE knows only one (who has a pretty country house just outside the city, but only one cow). Has received a letter from Sotheby explaining a bit more about the Neapolitan expedition (but nothing about the timing). Love to the girls, and thanks to Mary in particular for her letter - short, but exceedingly fairly written. (On the 1st page the letter continues, written interlineally in red - an experiment in how to cram even more onto the sheets. Women are indefatigable scribblers, and have many ways of getting a great deal of matter onto paper. Then a story of an Italian lady, courted by two men - she chose the Englishman by drawing his name from a hat, and said that he must be faithful to her, since if she lost him she would not be able to recover the other man; she was not choosing a husband, however, having one already, but a lover. Some remarks on the attitudes to love of various nationalities, and the story tails off...else PE will lose his dinner.)