James White to Towne, 4 May 1781

Exeter May 4 1781

Once more I take up my Pen to thank you for the Great Entertainment which your last letter gave me. I take it for granted that our Letters met upon the Road possibly upon the Alps - those wonderful Mountains of whose Form & Magnitude I trust I shall have a perfect Idea when you return & lay your Sketches before me For I cannot help fancying that your Present Tour is only a Welch Expedition upon a grander Scale, and that your daily & hourly Employments are of the same Kind as when we were travelling together - Possibly you may have met with some Companion by this Time, who Inclination and Disposition may sometimes call to your Remembrance your absent English Friends - If my last letter has come to your Hands, tis probable my Arguments for your extending the Time of your Return may have had some weight but whether they shou'd be attended to or not, you alone must be the Judge; however I cannot help saying that my Opinion remains unaltered. - All your Friends here are quite delighted with the accounts you give of your Expedition which you know is the principal Pleasure they can receive - till your Return when your Drawings and Descriptions will go hand in hand together and mutually illustrate & explain one another. - I am fully persuaded you have done yourself great service by being so particular in your Journal. It is the only method to gain that Impression which every object shou’d make on you, and which will continue equally strong and clear in you during the Whole of Life. By this means you may at any time renew your Travels and taking all the pleasantest parts of your Expedition, live over again almost every minute of that Time which has been so delightful to you in the Passing. What surprizes me most is to think how indefatigable you must have been in every respect, not only to have attended to the more immediate objects of your Pursuit with so much Care as I am satisfied you must have done - but that in the midst of such rapid Travelling & thro’ Countries where every object was new to you shou’d have found the Time and Resolution to keep so exact an account of your Proceedings. - By the way your Journey hitherto has been much more extensive than I imagin'd it had been ‘till I received your last letter. I had not the least Idea of your having taken Geneva in your Way to Rome - but I am very glad you did so, as I shou’d think the Expedition from Lyons thither must have been as fine a Part of your Tour as any you have gone through. - With us it has been as forward & delightful a Spring as I ever remember & if there is that real difference of Climate between England and Italy, which we are taught to believe you must long ere now have enjoyed all the coolness of Frascati & Tivoli, studying the beauties of their Woods & Rocks & Waters with all the Genius & under the immediate Influence of Gaspar himself. While you are thus enjoying yourself amid such delicious Scenes I have been immersed in all the tumult & Confusion of contested Elections - I just mention this Circumstance that you may compare the Situation & be thankful for the difference of your Employment [space, indicating illegible words]

From yr affectionately & Sincerely
James White

A Montr
Monsieur Towne
a la Caffé d’Angleterre
Piazza d’Espagna
Rome