GE to John Chapman, Tenby, 5 July 1856
Title
GE to John Chapman, Tenby, 5 July 1856
Title
GE to John Chapman, Tenby, 5 July 1856
Sender
George Eliot
Recipient
John Chapman
Date(s)
- 1856-07-05
Place
Tenby
Letter Content
GE to John Chapman, Tenby, 5 July 1856
Text: Maggs Bros. Catalogue 337 (Whitsun 1915), item 687.
We are both pleased with Miss Martineau's article, 726 it is at once solid and interesting as most of her articles are. The only thing I regret in it is, that she has not backed her description of the Polynesian missions with a little more evidence. But it is a very valuable article, especially for the excellent spirit in which it is written and I think it quite turned the scale in favour of the Westminster against the [National] this quarter. The scourging of Dr. W. Smith 727 justifies itself and is really a serviceable bit of literary police. . . .
Mr. Lewes's general health seems to flourish and he looks really well; but, in spite of that, his head is rather worse than better since we left Richmond. . . . I wish you would study the diseases of literary men. 728 If their livers and capillaries were all right we should have better writing.
If you have any penchant for the article on Young 729 which I mentioned to you some time ago, I will finish it for you. I didn't think well of what I had written and so was going to give it up, but when I read it to Mr. Lewes he said he thought it would be the best article I had written. . . .
I wonder what the story called [Compensation] is. 730 I have long wanted to fire away at the doctrine of Compensation, which I detest, considered as a theory of life.
M. E.
Text: Maggs Bros. Catalogue 337 (Whitsun 1915), item 687.
We are both pleased with Miss Martineau's article, 726 it is at once solid and interesting as most of her articles are. The only thing I regret in it is, that she has not backed her description of the Polynesian missions with a little more evidence. But it is a very valuable article, especially for the excellent spirit in which it is written and I think it quite turned the scale in favour of the Westminster against the [National] this quarter. The scourging of Dr. W. Smith 727 justifies itself and is really a serviceable bit of literary police. . . .
Mr. Lewes's general health seems to flourish and he looks really well; but, in spite of that, his head is rather worse than better since we left Richmond. . . . I wish you would study the diseases of literary men. 728 If their livers and capillaries were all right we should have better writing.
If you have any penchant for the article on Young 729 which I mentioned to you some time ago, I will finish it for you. I didn't think well of what I had written and so was going to give it up, but when I read it to Mr. Lewes he said he thought it would be the best article I had written. . . .
I wonder what the story called [Compensation] is. 730 I have long wanted to fire away at the doctrine of Compensation, which I detest, considered as a theory of life.
M. E.
Signature
M. E.
Citation
George Eliot, GE to John Chapman, Tenby, 5 July 1856, Complete George Eliot Letters(2026), George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/92802