GE to Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton, Geneva, [4 February 1850]
Title
GE to Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton, Geneva, [4 February 1850]
Title
GE to Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton, Geneva, [4 February 1850]
Sender
George Eliot
Recipient
Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton
Date(s)
- 1850-02-04
Place
Geneva
Letter Content
GE to Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton, Geneva, [4 February 1850]
MS: Miss Dorothy Evans. Address: Mrs. Houghton | Willenhall House | Coventry | England. Postmarks: GENEVE | 4 | FEVR | 50 | 4s; COVENTRY | FE 8 | 1850 | A. Hitherto unpublished.
Rue des Chanoines | Geneva.
My dear Fanny
I am in horrible anxiety about you for none of the rest of the family seem to know anything of you, and it is five months at least since I heard from you. Are you too ill, or too wretched or too indifferent to write to me? Either of the three suppositions is bad enough, but if I must choose I would prefer the last. In any case I cannot rest longer without satisfying at least my own affection by assuring you that you are just as near to my heart now I am at Geneva as when I was at Coventry. At the end of two months I shall probably be there again, but I confess [I dis]like the idea of remaining tw[o] months [here] in utter i[g]norance about you. Perhaps Chrissey has told you all about me and my change o[f] residence. I have found excellent, kind fri[en]ds, with whom I feel at home. Do not [s]uppose that I feel hurt or angry when you do not write to me -- I am convinced there is some satisfactory explanation to be given -- I am only anxious about your health and comfort. I should be quite contented with only half a dozen lines if they assured me you were well and tolerably comfortable. I am quite unable to conceive that this little boon is impossible to be granted. I have scribbled this letter in three minutes to set you an example. Write to me just as carelessly and you will not find it troublesome. Ever, dear Fanny,
Your affectionate sister
Mary Ann Evans.
MS: Miss Dorothy Evans. Address: Mrs. Houghton | Willenhall House | Coventry | England. Postmarks: GENEVE | 4 | FEVR | 50 | 4s; COVENTRY | FE 8 | 1850 | A. Hitherto unpublished.
Rue des Chanoines | Geneva.
My dear Fanny
I am in horrible anxiety about you for none of the rest of the family seem to know anything of you, and it is five months at least since I heard from you. Are you too ill, or too wretched or too indifferent to write to me? Either of the three suppositions is bad enough, but if I must choose I would prefer the last. In any case I cannot rest longer without satisfying at least my own affection by assuring you that you are just as near to my heart now I am at Geneva as when I was at Coventry. At the end of two months I shall probably be there again, but I confess [I dis]like the idea of remaining tw[o] months [here] in utter i[g]norance about you. Perhaps Chrissey has told you all about me and my change o[f] residence. I have found excellent, kind fri[en]ds, with whom I feel at home. Do not [s]uppose that I feel hurt or angry when you do not write to me -- I am convinced there is some satisfactory explanation to be given -- I am only anxious about your health and comfort. I should be quite contented with only half a dozen lines if they assured me you were well and tolerably comfortable. I am quite unable to conceive that this little boon is impossible to be granted. I have scribbled this letter in three minutes to set you an example. Write to me just as carelessly and you will not find it troublesome. Ever, dear Fanny,
Your affectionate sister
Mary Ann Evans.
Signature
Mary Ann Evans.
Citation
George Eliot, GE to Fanny [Mrs. Henry] Houghton, Geneva, [4 February 1850], 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/93493