“As to poor Mrs. Fitzherbert, I wish, as you say, you had some little picture of her. She was the best-hearted and most discreet human being that ever was, to be without a particle of talent. Finding she was in town before Xmas, and dining most days at home with Lady Aldborough, Lady Radnor and others, I made an attempt to be taken into the same party, but entirely failed. Mrs. F. said she had known me formerly, but that I had long ceased to call upon her. My offence I always felt and knew to be my foul language about Prinney when he sought to destroy his wife. Mrs. F. might think that my former intercourse with him should have restrained this vituperation, and that even on her account I shd. have stopt my mouth. Poor thing, I dare say she was right; but it was more than flesh and blood could resist not to have a blow at such a villain in the perpetration of such an act of infamy and oppression. She has left her house in town and her jewels to Mrs. Damer; her house at Brighton and everything else to Mrs. Jerningham. I remember her telling me a great many years ago that she had been offered £20,000 for her town house. She can have left no other property. About a year ago, she deposited all her letters and papers of every description in the hands of the Duke of Wellington and Lord Albemarle, for the purpose of being destroyed by them, as I am told they were; but I shall ask Albemarle for an account of the transaction. She formerly expressed to me great anxiety to have her correspondence published after her death—talked of having two copies made of it for fear of being betrayed by her executors, and at one time I almost thought she would have given me one of such copies. . . . Now then, attend to Albemarle’s account just given to me by him as to Mrs. Fitzherbert’s letters. She gave these letters to Lord Albemarle about fifteen years ago, to be kept by him till further directions; her wish being that after her death they might be published. Upon the death of the late King,* the Duke of Wellington, as his
* George IV. |
| 320 | THE CREEVEY PAPERS | [Ch XIV. |
