Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. Letters from the Continent during the years 1822-24. On the 4th September 1821, Captain James Paterson1 was married to David, youngest sister of Mr. Erskine. Captain Paterson on his marriage not only left the army, but consented to take up his residence at Linlathen. This opened the way for Mr. Erskine carrying out a long-cherished intention of visiting and making a prolonged stay on the Continent. In August 1822 he left London and crossed over to the Netherlands. The autumn months were given to North Germany, the mid-winter months to Geneva. The spring of 1823 was spent in Paris; summer saw him in the south of France. From Bordeaux he passed by the foot of the Pyrenees and the coast of the Mediterranean through Montauban, Toulouse, Montpellier, and Nismes, to Piedmont, and thence to Geneva, for a short second visit. Crossing the Alps in October, and lingering for a few weeks in the north of Italy, he proceeded to Rome, where he passed the winter of 1823-24. After a third and longer visit to Geneva he returned to Linlathen in the summer of 1825. The following letters belong to this period :— 1 Youngest son of Mr. Paterson of Castle Huntly. 4. TO DR. CHARLES STUART.1 Hamburg, 2d Nov. 1822 (my brother's birthday). My Dear Friend,—Your letter which I received at Berlin was most acceptable to me. I have often during my journey had you upon my mind, and would have given for an hour's conversation with you what a pilgrim through the desert would give for a draught of water. I have, however, met with many green spots through the desert; and springs and palm-trees, and many hours of pleasing and profitable conversation too, though not with you, my dear friend. I am at present very comfortably situated. My friends are Mr. Merle d'Aubigné, of whom Mr....