GE to Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon, London, 17 June 1867
Title
GE to Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon, London, 17 June 1867
Title
GE to Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon, London, 17 June 1867
Sender
George Eliot
Recipient
Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon
Date(s)
- 1867-06-17
Place
London
Letter Content
GE to Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon, London, 17 June 1867
MS: Mr. Philip Leigh-Smith. Hitherto unpublished.
The Priory, | 21. North Bank, | Regents Park.
June 17. 67.
Dearest Barbara
I was going to write to you, even if you had not sent me Mrs. Mohl's letter, just to send a word of love and to express my uneasiness that I was not able to enjoy your second visit as I should have done if my mind had not been distrait by the opera going. But thou knowest -- if not all things, at least -- that I love thee.
Tell Mrs. Mohl that what I am doing now is not suitable for translation by her friend, but that when, or if, I write another novel, I will remember her wish and let her know. I refused Hachette's offer for Adam Bede, 635 and he has not applied to me since. It has never seemed to me worth while to be ill-translated for the sake of £25 or £30, and on quite impersonal grounds I object to the encouragement of poor literary work. Poor writing is one of the things that ought never to be done and that everybody is morally the worse for.
Pray tell Madame Mohl that I shall be delighted to see her, and only hope we shall not have left town before she can come to me. Assure her that she is kept in a favourite corner of my memory, and that I am glad of any sign that she ever thinks about me.
Get well, dear thing and love always
Your
M. E. L.
MS: Mr. Philip Leigh-Smith. Hitherto unpublished.
The Priory, | 21. North Bank, | Regents Park.
June 17. 67.
Dearest Barbara
I was going to write to you, even if you had not sent me Mrs. Mohl's letter, just to send a word of love and to express my uneasiness that I was not able to enjoy your second visit as I should have done if my mind had not been distrait by the opera going. But thou knowest -- if not all things, at least -- that I love thee.
Tell Mrs. Mohl that what I am doing now is not suitable for translation by her friend, but that when, or if, I write another novel, I will remember her wish and let her know. I refused Hachette's offer for Adam Bede, 635 and he has not applied to me since. It has never seemed to me worth while to be ill-translated for the sake of £25 or £30, and on quite impersonal grounds I object to the encouragement of poor literary work. Poor writing is one of the things that ought never to be done and that everybody is morally the worse for.
Pray tell Madame Mohl that I shall be delighted to see her, and only hope we shall not have left town before she can come to me. Assure her that she is kept in a favourite corner of my memory, and that I am glad of any sign that she ever thinks about me.
Get well, dear thing and love always
Your
M. E. L.
Signature
M. E. L.
Citation
George Eliot, GE to Barbara [Mme Eugene] Bodichon, London, 17 June 1867, 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/93038