From H. E. Litchfield to Emma Darwin 1 September [1873]

Dearest Mother

I got your letter of Friday late last night which was a great comfort, for tho’ the account was not much better still every day that it isn’t worse makes me hope that the worst of the attack is over. I believe that a holiday is half wasted unless F. is very bad whilst it is going on. Shall you try & make him go away again or be idle at home? I suppose you don’t know yet.

It seems very quick my getting a letter on Sunday night that you posted at 1.30 on Friday, doesn’t it? Yesterday it rained the whole day without stop or stay & I didn’t go out at all except to go to the other house for meals. R. went a stumper before dinner. After dinner we went for a sit with the Stansfelds. It is funny how quickly one gets to know people meeting them like this. We feel as tame as can be with the lot of them. We had rather an amusing talk last night for we got catechising M^r Stansfeld about what he did at Balmoral—who he mealed with—what he did when he saw the Queen—whether she paid his railway fare etc etc. To the best of his belief, tho’ he doesn’t know, Gladstone wdn’t sit down when he has a talk with her. He, Stansfeld never has except at meals. The first time he ever saw her she stood to talk to him & he asked her to be seated wh. he thinks was probably very infra dig— He gave a funny account of his being sworn in a privy councillor— He went in a batch with D L^d de Tably & someone else. & they were all to kneel at a little round table & swear something & then kiss her hand. Ld de Tably went in first & he got so flabberghasted he couldn’t stop bowing down to the ground at the door—so the next man stumbled over him & he stumbled over him—however at last they all got into the room & then began to kneel, but these two men took up so much room he couldn’t find a place to kneel at his side of the table so he began to go round the table as if he was higher rank than L de T. So Arthur Helps had to frown him back & he had to elbow his way into kneeling space—& then when they’d all done swearing they kept kneeling there waiting to kiss her hand & she quite forgot to put it out, so Arthur Helps said in a stern loud voice “Kiss the Queen's Hand.” & that brought her to herself & they got thro’ this most ridiculous ceremony in broad day light in a commonplace room. He says the Queen is very charming—but I'm sure he is dazzled by royalty. He wont allow it is selfish of her to make the unfortunate Gladstone write an account of each nights parliament before he goes to bed—which account comes in precisely at the same time with the Times Report! He says the worst of being at Balmoral is that the Queen expects you to know everything about anybody elses business if it interests her. He says she keeps herself au courant to the brewing of great measures, but little ones she only knows about as they go on. Also you whisper to your next neighbour when you dine with the Queen—And you play at Battledore & Shuttlecock in the ballroom with the ladies in waiting—And she doesn’t send a carriage to meet you at the station 9 miles off.

Such a lovely day today I mean to go for a little ride & must go & order my horse so Goodbye dear Mother | your HEL

They have just lend me the Exam containing G. It is a poor Review & I don’t like his article being mixed with those people who want marriage altogether done away with of wh. people I guess M^rs Stanfeld is one. At least she said she didn’t at all mind M^rs Lewis living w him without being married. She only minded her calling herself M^rs Lewis.