GE to William Blackwood, London, 2 October [1867]
Title
GE to William Blackwood, London, 2 October [1867]
Title
GE to William Blackwood, London, 2 October [1867]
Sender
George Eliot
Recipient
William Blackwood
Date(s)
- 1867-10-02
Place
London
Letter Content
GE to William Blackwood, London, 2 October [1867]
MS: National Library of Scotland, 3112, fol. 300. Endorsed: 1867. Hitherto unpublished.
The Priory, | 21. North Bank, | Regents Park.
Wednesday. October 2.
My dear Sir
I wonder what you have been thinking of me all these weeks during which your letter has lain here unopened, and your kind present of grouse unacknowledged! I hope that your charity has suggested some shadow of the fact, namely, that I have been in the depths of Germany whither my letters have not followed me. I really felt ashamed of writing to your uncle to tell him that we were running away again in search of health, but I have sometimes felt fidgetty lest some letter should come from Edinburgh, which required an answer. Our son opens Mr. Lewes's letters, but leaves mine unopened, only describing their physiognomy to me when they seem likely to be of importance.
Your kind intention in sending the grouse was not wholly frustrated, for our cook sent them to Mr. Lewes's mother, an old lady of eighty who still enjoys a bit of game more than all other eating. And it is also very pleasant to me on my return to find that you had thought of me.
I went abroad rather unwillingly but Sir Henry Holland said travel was the right thing for Mr. Lewes's dyspepsia, so I submitted to that raison majeure. We revisited with great delight some spots where we had been thirteen years before, but the unsettled life has sadly hindered some work that I should like to carry on uninterruptedly. But pray tell your uncle from me that I have nevertheless made some progress since he was here. My easily disturbed health makes me wofully dependent on outward conditions for my power of working -- the mere presence of pen, ink, and paper will not suffice for me.
We reached home only last night, and I found some rather amusing requests awaiting me, from unknown correspondents. One asks me what terms she should propose to a publisher for the novel she is writing, and a young lady at school in Scotland sends me some of her school exercises to read, that I may deliver my opinion on her powers!
I conclude that you are at Edinburgh again by this time, and I hope you have laid in a stock of robustness for the winter. Mr. Lewes unites with me in kindest regards and I am
Always yours truly
M. E. Lewes.
MS: National Library of Scotland, 3112, fol. 300. Endorsed: 1867. Hitherto unpublished.
The Priory, | 21. North Bank, | Regents Park.
Wednesday. October 2.
My dear Sir
I wonder what you have been thinking of me all these weeks during which your letter has lain here unopened, and your kind present of grouse unacknowledged! I hope that your charity has suggested some shadow of the fact, namely, that I have been in the depths of Germany whither my letters have not followed me. I really felt ashamed of writing to your uncle to tell him that we were running away again in search of health, but I have sometimes felt fidgetty lest some letter should come from Edinburgh, which required an answer. Our son opens Mr. Lewes's letters, but leaves mine unopened, only describing their physiognomy to me when they seem likely to be of importance.
Your kind intention in sending the grouse was not wholly frustrated, for our cook sent them to Mr. Lewes's mother, an old lady of eighty who still enjoys a bit of game more than all other eating. And it is also very pleasant to me on my return to find that you had thought of me.
I went abroad rather unwillingly but Sir Henry Holland said travel was the right thing for Mr. Lewes's dyspepsia, so I submitted to that raison majeure. We revisited with great delight some spots where we had been thirteen years before, but the unsettled life has sadly hindered some work that I should like to carry on uninterruptedly. But pray tell your uncle from me that I have nevertheless made some progress since he was here. My easily disturbed health makes me wofully dependent on outward conditions for my power of working -- the mere presence of pen, ink, and paper will not suffice for me.
We reached home only last night, and I found some rather amusing requests awaiting me, from unknown correspondents. One asks me what terms she should propose to a publisher for the novel she is writing, and a young lady at school in Scotland sends me some of her school exercises to read, that I may deliver my opinion on her powers!
I conclude that you are at Edinburgh again by this time, and I hope you have laid in a stock of robustness for the winter. Mr. Lewes unites with me in kindest regards and I am
Always yours truly
M. E. Lewes.
Signature
M. E. Lewes.
Citation
George Eliot, GE to William Blackwood, London, 2 October [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/94194