The Letters of Jane Austen: Selected from the compilation of her great nephew, Edward, Lord BradbourneAusten, Jane
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The Letters of Jane Austen: Selected from the compilation of her great nephew, Edward, Lord Bradbourne
Austen, Jane
Austen, Cassandra, 1773-1845; Austen, Jane, 1775-1817 -- Correspondence; Novelists, English -- 19th century -- Correspondence
_Wednesday._--Yesterday must have been a day of sad remembrance at
Gm.[10] I am glad it is over. We spent Friday evening with our friends at
the boarding-house, and our curiosity was gratified by the sight of
their fellow-inmates, Mrs. Drew and Miss Hook, Mr. Wynne and Mr.
Fitzhugh; the latter is brother to Mrs. Lance, and very much the
gentleman. He has lived in that house more than twenty years, and, poor
man! is so totally deaf that they say he could not hear a cannon, were
it fired close to him; having no cannon at hand to make the experiment,
I took it for granted, and talked to him a little with my fingers, which
was funny enough. I recommended him to read "Corinna."
Miss Hook is a well-behaved, genteelish woman; Mrs. Drew well behaved,
without being at all genteel. Mr. Wynne seems a chatty and rather
familiar young man. Miss Murden was quite a different creature this last
evening from what she had been before, owing to her having with Martha's
help found a situation in the morning, which bids very fair for comfort.
When she leaves Steventon, she comes to board and lodge with Mrs.
Hookey, the chemist--for there is no Mr. Hookey. I cannot say that I am
in any hurry for the conclusion of her present visit, but I was truly
glad to see her comfortable in mind and spirits; at her age, perhaps,
one may be as friendless oneself, and in similar circumstances quite as
captious.
My mother has been lately adding to her possessions in plate,--a whole
tablespoon and a whole dessert-spoon, and six whole teaspoons,--which
makes our sideboard border on the magnificent. They were mostly the
produce of old or useless silver. I have turned the 11_s._ in the list
into 12_s._, and the card looks all the better; a silver tea-ladle is
also added, which will at least answer the purpose of making us
sometimes think of John Warren.
I have laid Lady Sondes' case before Martha, who does not make the least
objection to it, and is particularly pleased with the name of Montresor.
I do not agree with her there, but I like his rank very much, and always
affix the ideas of strong sense and highly elegant manners to a general.
I must write to Charles next week. You may guess in what extravagant
terms of praise Earle Harwood speaks of him. He is looked up to by
everybody in all America.
I shall not tell you anything more of Wm. Digweed's china, as your
silence on the subject makes you unworthy of it. Mrs. H. Digweed looks
forward with great satisfaction to our being her neighbors. I would
have her enjoy the idea to the utmost, as I suspect there will not be
much in the reality. With equal pleasure we anticipate an intimacy with
her husband's bailiff and his wife, who live close by us, and are said
to be remarkably good sort of people.
Yes, yes, we will have a pianoforte, as good a one as can be got for
thirty guineas, and I will practise country dances, that we may have
some amusement for our nephews and nieces, when we have the pleasure of
their company.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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