affect his mind and purify his pen?  It is true that to get this good result you must encounter the risk and expense of the injunction and of the argument upon it.  Will you do this?  If I laid the case separately before three of our ablest counsel, and they concurred in as many opinions that it could not be supported, would this equally affect his Lordship’s mind, and also induce him to return you an adequate proportion of the purchase money?  Perhaps nothing but the Court treating him as it treated Southey [Footnote:  In the case of “Wat Tyler,” see Murray’s letter to Byron in preceding chapter, April 12, 1817.] may sufficiently impress Lord B. After the consultation with Bell you will better judge.  Shall I get it appointed as soon as he comes to town?

Ever yours faithfully,

SHARON TURNER.

Mr. Bell gave his opinion that the Court would not afford protection to the book.  He admitted, however, that he had not had time to study it.

The next letter relates to the opinion of Mr. Shadwell, afterwards
Vice-Chancellor: 

Mr. Sharon Turner to John Murray.

November 12, 1819.

Dear Murray,

I saw Mr. Shadwell to-day on “Don Juan.”  He has gone through the book with more attention than Mr. Bell had time to do.  He desires me to say that he does not think the Chancellor would refuse an injunction, or would overturn it if obtained....

Yours most faithfully,

SHARON TURNER.

In the event the injunction to restrain the publication of “Don Juan” by piratical publishers was granted.

Towards the end of 1819 Byron thought of returning to England.  On November 8 he wrote to Mr. Murray: 

“If she [the Countess Guiccioli] and her husband make it up, you will perhaps see me in England sooner than you expect.  If not, I will retire with her to France or America, change my name, and lead a quiet provincial life.  If she gets over this, and I get over my Tertian ague, I will perhaps look in at Albemarle Street en passant to Bolivar.”

When Mr. Hobhouse, then living at Ramsbury, heard of Byron’s intention to go to South America, he wrote to Mr. Murray as follows: 

" ...  To be sure it is impossible that Lord B. should seriously contemplate, or, if he does, he must not expect us to encourage, this mad scheme.  I do not know what in the world to say, but presume some one has been talking nonsense to him.  Let Jim Perry go to Venezuela if he will—­he may edit his ‘Independent Gazette’ amongst the Independents themselves, and reproduce his stale puns and politics without let or hindrance.  But our poet is too good for a planter—­too good to sit down before a fire made of mare’s legs, to a dinner of beef without salt and bread.  It is the wildest of all his meditations—­pray tell him.  The plague and Yellow Jack, and famine and free quarter, besides a thousand other ills, will stare him in the face.  No tooth-brushes, no corn-rubbers, no Quarterly Reviews.  In short, plenty of all he abominates and nothing of all he loves.  I shall write, but you can tell facts, which will be better than my arguments.”