From Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield [25 August 1878]

Dearest H—

I am glad you are going to take 2 days of Worcester— I don't know whether it is a fancy but I thought I never heard music or voices sound the least like what they do at Worcester.

What a week we have had of calm bright sunshine— Fanny gets out a great deal, but the roughness made her her knee ache yesterday & I think she will only sit on the lawn today— W^m came yesterday v. jolly & says he is growing fat. Bessy had arrived prosperously at Basset & will enjoy her 2 quiet days w. Sara. She returns tomorrow. Horace is gone to a lovely old house in Sussex Gravetye the Eastons in spite of W^ms last Sunday, & will only see him & Sara on Thursday when they sleep at Q.A. on their way to Liverpool. Laura comes here on 21^st instead of 23^rd—

Effie writes full of enjoyment from Munich, they are strong people—they see sights without stopping all day, & wind up w. going to the play— Lenny came in saying ""What w^d you have said if you had heard I was to start to Bulgaria next Thursday"" It seems Col.—did ask for him to go w. a set of R. E, to settle boundaries (as L. thinks) but they w^d not let him go from his post— He of course w^d have been delighted to go, & he feels now that he will be kept quite stationary till his time is up— This same Col—asked for him to go to Turkey when he was at Malta— It makes him feel r. flat to know that he w^d have had such good chances, if he had not been fast— G. heard r. a good story from M'Lennan, where he has been dining to meet Mr Dilke—(M'L is better again after an attack of bleeding)— He was in a coffee—room at Worcester full of farmers & bagmen & heard one of them say ""Why Beaconsfield he made Bismarck do just whatever he chose—he came to heel just like a dog""—

Dr Ogle is here & I must soon go & rescue F—