Received Smith's letter of 19 [July]. Pleased Smith's Liverpool lectures are so successful and hopes he will repeat annually. Thinks Liverpool is "one of the most liberal commercial towns", and that William Roscoe's "taste & knowledge in Italian literature" has made it "fashionable". Pleased Roscoe has finished his "[Life and Pontificate of] Leo [X]"; supposes Roscoe used Lord Cork's "envious papers" of the period, he had nothing for Roscoe himself but Mr Shepherd found some "curious letters" of Poggio [Bracciolini (1380-1459), Italian scholar].
Mariamne [Johnes, his daughter] fonder of her gardens than ever and is in good health, and recently danced all evening. In "a most melancholy spectacle", Todd [his gardener], has become an "idiot" [after sustaining a head injury falling from his horse, see RelatedMaterial below] but is wasting away in spite of his appetite, so they hope he shall be quietly die. His farmyard narrowly escaped burning down, and only lost about £150 and no man, beast, or hay were damaged.
Yesterday had the "very considerable gain" of a lay estate in Cardigan, after settlement of a long running Chancery suit, and on selling his other estates shall be "too rich". Hopes his first volume [translation of Jean Froissart (c 1337-c 1405), French chronicler] will be printed by Christmas; there is to be folio edition of 20 and quatro of 300. Rained for the first time this month, does not remember a longer drought.