From W. E. Darwin to Emma Darwin 28 September [1878]

My dear Mother

I am beginning a letter today but shall not get very far as I am seedy, or what they call slim here, as I caught a severe chill in going to the Norton's on Thursday evening which came out in a bad shivering fit in the night, [illeg], & has delayed my digestion getting straight, but I think I shall be all right in two days, and have been out for two strolls today.

at 6 on Wednesday morning we had breakfast in N. York harbour; it is a magnificent harbour, and I saw it with a most brilliant sun shining so that I was v. much struck by it as well as by the wonderful amount of shipping & tugs & ferry boats of all sizes.

We reached the quay at 9 & Sara soon saw Arthur in the crowd; We soon got all our small goods on shore; We got through the custom house by 11.30, and the Officer was good enough not even to open several of our boxes. I had to pay 3$\frac{1}{2}$ dollars duty on the 2 pairs of boots I brought to send to some one at San Francisco as I felt bound to declare them.

Arthur I found most pleasant and I soon got to know him, he had a carriage [pair] waiting and we just managed to catch the one o'clock train for Boston after a lunch at the great Delmonico's.

Arthur came with us which was very nice; the distance to Boston is 240, and we got there by 9 o'clock and as we managed to get a Sofa for S. to lie down on she was not tired.

I found the journey very interesting   what surprised me most was the wonderful number of small comfortable houses, in fact the whole distance where it was not a town it was a panorama on both sides of the train of comfortable little wooden villas each with their patch of indiv. corn; it was also very pretty in many parts as we here & there had glimpses of the sea; the trees & shrubs being all just unlike the English ones seemed very strange. The very easy & gentlemanlike manners of the conductors amused me, he sat down perfectly comfortable with us in the "drawing room cars" and pulled out a very nice gold watch like any other gentleman. I was very glad S. was fresh on her arrival as it made the pleasure so much greater; they were all delighted to see us and were most cordial to me, we very soon set to work at a heavy tea and with the help of Theo. I felt at my ease almost at once, though Aunt Anne was just a little silent and restrained at first which was natural; she looks very old but is much heartier & more vigorous in her ways than I expected or than Sara expected. I take to her very much she has a very sweet quiet manner, both she and aunt G. are thoroughly English in tone and accent which is surprising after living here almost their whole lives, and they speak with a very refined English accent and Aunt Anne is just a little formal in her way of speaking as I fancy an old lady of the last century to speak . . Sunday Miss Grace is much more brisk and lively and talks very easily and tells some amusing stories, she is a little bustling person who has apparently always had good health

Miss Marie Sedgwick is of a depressed nature, though not quite Brookian as far as I have seen, Aunt Grace, however seldom writes a letter without cheerfully wishing her dead, so that I suppose she has a dismal life, she is rather dried up looking with grayish limp corkscrew curls.

All 3 old ladies are very gracefully & nicely dressed and I think you would envy Aunt Anne's caps.

I have forgotten to mention Theo. she is very happy in having S. but is pale & thin & not very well, & I think has not recovered the August heat; it took her 5 weeks poor thing, to get over the voyage; but she is in good spirits & we have lots of laughing & talking.

I am much better today (Sunday) and have been out a walk with S. this morning making two calls, I am now waiting for the 2.30 dinner and am writing to forget a very empty feeling. We breakfast at 8.30, the extra $\frac{1}{2}$ hour being granted us as distinguished strangers, dine at 2.30 & have tea at 7 o'clock. The place is far prettier than I expected, though I have yet seen very little but Kirkland Stone. The only notion I can give of this part is to imagine Bournemouth on a flat plain and change all the firs for elms of a straggling thin leaved kind and some maples looking like our sycamores and change all the brick houses for wooden ones with comfortable verandahs round many of them. The fences from the road are very slight, and many of the house are not at all fenced from those alongside them. Professor Childs is about 20 yards from this with the same drive in from the street; but it is not so uncomfortable as it sounds as the houses are set back a 100 to 200 yards from the street and there is a feeling of airiness and space about the surrounding. The "other house" or the Norton's is the only house in Cambridge with quite a pretty little porch with a great many finest trees & the house is large & quite pretty. The whole of Cambridge seems to me as crowded with trees as Bournemouth is with fir trees, though they are rarely fine ones.

Monday

We have had crowds of visitors though as I hear numbers have put off calling till this week I suppose we may expect heaps more. I have seen the Agassize's Nortons Olmsteads M^r Gadkin Editor of Nation the Jameses Prof Child & numbers [illleg] you have not heard of

Monday

Today I am much better though languid & coldified and have a very pleasant expedition before me, I was calling yesterday at the Olmsteads & met a Miss Wormley who has a pretty cottage at Newport which is the most beautiful seaside place on this coast, & she has M^r Olmstead going down to spend the night with her and asked me to go with them, so that I leave this afternoon and return tomorrow. Unluckily M^r Agassiz's laboratory will be shut up but he has told me how to get at the Curator so as to look inside it.

Sara is very well and like a good girl is lying in bed this morning so as to be fresh for callers. She sends her love to all.

Goodbye dear Mother this is very untidy but it was written partly under the influence of a stiff cold and partly under the fire of the young Nortons chatter.

The house is in a ceaseless state of door banging from old & young people going in and out from 9 a. m. till 10 p. m. I had no conception what a change of life Sara's was the only thing one can say is that the change is like one from Bedlam to a desert island.

We were very glad to get your nice letters I hope the great dinner was carried through.

Your affect son | W. E. D.

Theodora sends her love, she wrote to Bessy on Thursday