John Blackwood to GHL, Edinburgh, 11 March 1857
Title
John Blackwood to GHL, Edinburgh, 11 March 1857
Title
John Blackwood to GHL, Edinburgh, 11 March 1857
Sender
John Blackwood
Recipient
George Henry Lewes
Date(s)
- 1857-03-11
Place
Edinburgh
Letter Content
John Blackwood to GHL, Edinburgh, 11 March 1857
MS: National Library of Scotland. Hitherto unpublished.
Edinburgh | March 11/57.
My Dear Lewes
I have the pleasure of inclosing a cheque £45 in acknowledgment of Parts 2 and 3 of Mr. Gilfil, which hand to the mysterious George Eliot with this note.
I have read over the proof of Pt. III this morning and am deeply moved by the picture of poor Caterina's misery. The painting is so vivid that one sees as it were the woe begone little face, and anyone who has known sorrow will sympathise with her heart and soul in the hopeless wretchedness of her solitary chamber. The air of reality in the whole picture is wonderful.
I have grave doubts about the dagger, 820 beautifully as the impossibility of her using it is indicated. I daresay George Eliot will kick furiously at the base idea of altering a syllable at this point, but I am pretty sure that his dear little heroine would be more sure of universal sympathy if she only dreamed or felt as if she could stab the cur to the heart and I think it would be more consistent with her character than the active step of getting hold of the lethal weapon. I may be wrong however and I daresay many will prefer the dadger. I am puzzled as to whether Capt. Wybrow is dead or not. It is a fine climax to a part.
Wishing you a pleasant expedition and with compliments to George Eliot, I am
always yours truly
John Blackwood.
G. H. Lewes Esq.
By all means let the incognito be kept. Shall I say to anxious inquirers that the Scenes are by one George Eliot of whom I know nothing?
MS: National Library of Scotland. Hitherto unpublished.
Edinburgh | March 11/57.
My Dear Lewes
I have the pleasure of inclosing a cheque £45 in acknowledgment of Parts 2 and 3 of Mr. Gilfil, which hand to the mysterious George Eliot with this note.
I have read over the proof of Pt. III this morning and am deeply moved by the picture of poor Caterina's misery. The painting is so vivid that one sees as it were the woe begone little face, and anyone who has known sorrow will sympathise with her heart and soul in the hopeless wretchedness of her solitary chamber. The air of reality in the whole picture is wonderful.
I have grave doubts about the dagger, 820 beautifully as the impossibility of her using it is indicated. I daresay George Eliot will kick furiously at the base idea of altering a syllable at this point, but I am pretty sure that his dear little heroine would be more sure of universal sympathy if she only dreamed or felt as if she could stab the cur to the heart and I think it would be more consistent with her character than the active step of getting hold of the lethal weapon. I may be wrong however and I daresay many will prefer the dadger. I am puzzled as to whether Capt. Wybrow is dead or not. It is a fine climax to a part.
Wishing you a pleasant expedition and with compliments to George Eliot, I am
always yours truly
John Blackwood.
G. H. Lewes Esq.
By all means let the incognito be kept. Shall I say to anxious inquirers that the Scenes are by one George Eliot of whom I know nothing?
Signature
John Blackwood.
Citation
John Blackwood, John Blackwood to GHL, Edinburgh, 11 March 1857, 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/95355