From E. M. Bonham Carter to H. E. Darwin 15 and 17 June 1869

Dear Hen.

I had yr kind invite this morning & much pleasure t'wd give me , to go to Cardeon alas I can't possibly—It was considerably difficult to arrange to come here & I told you I did not think Alice very well just now so I do not wish to leave her alone at home more than I shal have to do for the Exam in July besides this she is going to Bath for 2 or 3 days soon & that cant be interfered with. Even without this I should not like be out of the way so near the Exam on wh. is July 5^th. Thank you all much for wishing to have me, it wd have been very nice indeed—but one cant have everything—I am annoying myself very much here. The Turners are () much finer than those in the S.K Museum & such a heavenly nice place to copy in with a table & everything all to meself—& only 2 minutes walk from here. At present you will be glad to hear I dont think Ox. so pretty as Cambridge but then I have not seen much havg only arrived yesterday & it is so denomically cold, I scarce kno how to bear it & have imprudently come without a sealskin on June 15^th. The wind is fearfully biting—of course as it is vacation I shant see much people, but it is all the better for my drawing wh. I shall be able to devote myself to—We go of afternoons to a little croquet ground close to the new museum I played today with some fogies—but twas so cold it was no fun I can walk all quite alone & unmolested. Miss E.S. has 3 sweet persian cats that assemble at every meal & are very funny. Prof. HS is entertaining but rather too busy just now. Goodnight I'm too sleepy to writer more on tho'so glad yr journey () well got over.

I am very low at my Clifford's being over, the last was very good, & he did put such laudatory remarks on my paper, that I shd become conceited only that I'm sure tis only that he did not think the female mind capable of taking in a Geometrical idea before he gave these Lectures, for there was nothing much in what I did. I do think he is a wonderful lecturer tho' to make me understand what he does at one go so to say, without one's having to dig it out of books besides. I'm afraid he'll never get any more becos there was not a large class