Then, there was the erasure of 'a short name of three or four letters,' which might have opened Lady Byron's eyes to the trick that was being played upon her. Those four letters spelt the name of Mary, and the 'pretty woman' to whom Byron had 'not long ago' attached himself was the Venetian Marianna (Anglice: Mary Anne) Segati, with whom he formed a liaison from November, 1816, to February 1818. Augusta would certainly not have understood the allusion. In this illuminating letter Byron reproaches Mary Chaworth for breaking off her fatal intimacy with him, and for having persuaded him to marry--'that infamous fiend who drove me from my country, and conspired against my life--by _endeavouring to deprive me of all that could render it precious_.' As the person here referred to was, obviously, Augusta herself, this remark could not have been made to her. In speaking of their long separation as a punishment for their sins, he tells Mary Chaworth that, if he ever returns to England, it will be to see _her_, and that his feelings have undergone no change. It will be observed that Byron begs his correspondent _to speak to him only of herself and to say that she loves him_! It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader that Augusta was the intermediary between Byron and his wife--his confidential agent in purely private affairs. It was to her that he wrote on all matters relating to business transactions with his wife, and from whom he received intelligence of the health and happiness of his daughter. Under those circumstances how could Byron ask Augusta to speak to him of nothing but her love for him? To show the absurdity of Lord Lovelace's contention, we insert the letter which Byron wrote to his sister seven months later. Many letters had passed between them during the interval, but we have not been allowed to see them: 'BOLOGNA, '_December 23, 1819_. 'DEAREST AUGUSTA, 'The health of my daughter Allegra, the cold season, and the length of the journey, induce me to postpone for some time a purpose (never very willing on my part) to revisit Great Britain. 'You can address to me at Venice as usual. Wherever I may be in Italy, the letter will be forwarded. I enclose to you all that long hair on account of which you would not go to see my picture. You will see that it was not so very long. I curtailed it yesterday, my head and hair being weakly after my tertian. 'I wrote to you not very long ago, and, as I do not know that I could add anything satisfactory to that letter, I may as well finish this. In a letter to Murray I requested him to apprise you that my journey was postponed; but here, there, and everywhere, know me 'Yours ever and very truly, 'B.'