Letter from Wilhelm de Severy, Lausanne, to Lord Sheffield, 1794 April 8 : autograph manuscript signed.

Describing the contents and state of Edward Gibbon's apartment after his death, mentioning "a few manuscripts, several books writen [sic] by him who [sic] appear to be extracts of history he wrote in his youth," several unfinished manuscripts, "The Antiquities of the house of Brunswick [published by Sheffield in 1814] & a history of Mr. Gibbons own life [published by Sheffield in 1796 as Memoirs of My Life and Writings], but as much as I can judge, neither of the two is finished. I left them exactly in the same order I found them, mixed with several separate & writen [sic] Sheets who appear to have been torn out of a bound book. The Library remains as it was, Monsieur de Montagny having consented to its remaining in the house, but as it is likely he will hire it soon, I am afraid I shall be obliged to remove it unless your Lordship & Mr. Darell take any determination with regard to selling it. There is a catalogue here, but Levade told me it was very incomplete & Mr. Gibbon had taken the good one to England; in that case, I would beg your Lordship (as you will probably have it printed) to send me an exemplar of it, in order that I may be able to verify all the books mentioned in it. As to the picture of your Lordship according to his desire Mr. Levade shall pack it up with all the care possible, but I beg leave to add that Mr. Gibbon, mentioning in his will that it was a point of delicacy I should settle with the original & I knowing the generous & sensible way of thinking of your Lordship, having experienced it so often, I think I may beg him to let me have a coppy of it, as well as of Mr. Gibbon's portrait who is in the Library at Sheffield...When we are obliged to remove the Library, I shall lay aside the books your Lordship mentioned, belonging to him. As to the books, Mr. Gibbon might have interlined, Levade & I know it was not at all in his way & I never saw him do it but nevertheless I shall take the greatest care to find them if there are;" discussing the best way to transport the library to Lord Sheffield and saying that he will give a full accounting of the money he has spent on servants and bills since Gibbon's death; discussing this feelings on the loss of Gibbons; saying "I can not say how painfull it was to us to do all that related to our late friend, it made us feel every moment the loss we had made. I could not enter the Library without horror, & when the books are taken out of it I shall never visit it again. We shall never get the better of it. Poor Mr. Gibbon, he might have lived fifteen years longer & made us all happy, when I wake in the morning, I still think him alive."