From Emma Darwin to H. E. Litchfield [27 June 1880]

Dearest H—

I think you may really hope that Emmie is safe— I think if the man himself were really good, the marriage w^d be very unsafe. Sir J. came to lunch on Sunday, w. was v—pleasant but entirely did up F—for the rest of the gents when they came later & he c^d not come down—

Conny had a merry & long talk w—Leo—Lady H—& I were not lively & she is v. bad at small talk— Mr Burt looked like an amiable methodist parson & hardly spoke & spread his p. hank—on his knees when he had his tea—

The other gents did v. well w. G. & F—& H. & Ida, & went to see the Kleinostadt.

Yesterday G. & F—went to the M'Lennans, F. meaning to call, but staying to dinner— M' seemed q. as well to F's eye as when he saw him last at Algiers— F's theory is that this slight intermittent fever keeps off the lung affection. Mrs M' was too unwell to appear & the boys must have been a godsend to her by amusing her troublesome man for a whole evg.

How extra—Effie is, freezing up again to you after thawing. I saw a most pleasant long letter from Hope to Snow— James Harrison has not made his fortune there (wishing that fellow Gladston was hamstrung with his rabbit bill but Lucy & Cicely getting on v. well— Hope moralizes on the unfairness of pretty children being also the most engaging— To go back I quite liked my dinner at H. Elms & had a good deal of talk w. Amy, but was chiefly engrossed w. admiring her eyes— I was wondering why it was pleasanter than in Lady L's days, as she was more amusing than either of her daus— Bessy had a long talk w. Conny—

Thanks to M^me de Remusat I had q. enough to say to M^r Spotty I sat by him at dinner—

We have invited Moores & Dyers for the 10. & poss. mt ask the Farrers to meet Moores—or Hookers on 24^th

We had a long talk w. Ida the last evg. & she opened out more than she had done before on the painful scenes she had gone thro. Things were markedly worse after Effies visit to Dilhorn; nevertheless T. H. tells Ida that Hope's advice is v. good—

I am so sorry the Thorleys do not come while Mary Atkin is w. us— It wd have mitigated them to F— I have asked them for 5. to 8. next week; but if the 8^th is the only chance of you I will put them on I think from the 4^th to 7^th.

B. took Mary a drive in Addington *P [symbol for yesterday] *Q w. was just in perfection—

Yours my dear | E. D—