Lettres de Mme Louis de Freycinet ecrites pendant le voyage autour du Monde de la Corvette l'Uranie (1817–1819) transcribed and edited by Louis-Claude de Saulces de Freycinet, after 1820 and before 1842
SAFE / MLMSS 9158 vol 2
“We
have just had lunch at Mr Field’s place. Upon embracing his charming wife, she
put on my finger a small cornelian engraved with the word ‘Remember’ … there
certainly was no need for that! Her charming qualities have engraved her memory
in my heart even more securely. I certainly need to remember that each step we
are going to take will bring us closer to you, my dear Mother, and to this rest
that you desire for us and to which we certainly have a right. Farewell again.”
Transcription
Nous venons de déjeuner chez Mř.
Field, en m’embrassant son amiable femme m’a mis au doigt une petite cornaline
grave du mot remember… ah! Il n’en est pas besoin! Ses charmantes
qualités ont gravé son souvenir dans mon cœur encore plus solidement. J’ai
grand besoin de me rappeler que chaque pas que nous allons faire va nous
rapprocher de vous, ma bonne mѐre,
et de ce repos que vous désirez et auquel nous aurons bien quelques droits.
Adieu donc encore une fois!
Louis de
Freycinet’s motivation for copying the letters remains uncertain. Perhaps he
was prompted by a sentimental devotion to the memory of his wife after her
death in 1832, or perhaps a wish to have the texts at hand whilst writing his
narrative of the Uranie voyage for
publication or because he may have been contemplating the publication of Rose’s
narrative.
The
Uranie arrived in Sydney under
nightfall and anchored in Neutral Bay. In one of her letters Rose laments the
fact that they entered the port so late that they will have to wait until
tomorrow morning to get her letters!
In
her 14th letter , written in November 1819, Rose describes their first breakfast in the colony as ‘the best
breakfast that we had had in a long time, fruits, fresh eggs and good milk. We
had a very pleasant and delicious meal’.
Not
long after the Freycinets arrived in the colony, they woke to discover their
silverware, table linen and other household items had been stolen while they
slept. Rose writes to her mother ‘You
know the purpose of this colony and what people it is full of; you will thus
not be astonished at this misdeed.’
These
letters were written to Rose’s mother, Madame Pinon during the voyage. The
original letters do not appear to have survived, however Louis copied these out
after Rose’s death in 1832, possibly after realising their value, and to
prepare them for publication.
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