1849-1851]                                                                                      121
 

CHAPTER IX

1849—1851

Life at Down—Malvern water-cure—A tour in Wales—Jessie Sis¬
mondi on F. W. Newman—The Aliens' youthy age—Heywood
Lane—Miss Martineau and Mr Atkinson—A party at the
Bunsens.

Fanny Allen to her niece Emma Darwin.

My dear Emma,                  ^ ^^^- [1849], Heywood Lodge.

I should be grateful for anything that brought me
one of your sweet letters, and I most gratefully thank you
for your affection which has prompted you to send me a
souvenir, and though I have no need of one with regard
to you, yet I am sure it will perform its pleasant office of
putting me in mind of you, whenever I sit down to write,
or indeed whenever I look at it. . . . Your anecdote of
Willy is charming—so much love and patience with Georgy.
Such a character in the eldest child, ensures all the rest
being good. You deserve to be a happy father and mother,
and you have a fair promise. You are very right, no child
can spoil another by kindness. Men and women have great
power in spoiling, as I perceived last week when I was at
Cresselly.

I hope Mrs Nightingale does not bother her daughter to
accept of Monckton Milnes. He is not worthy of her.
Have you seen his life of Keats ? T. Macaulay says he never
knew what rehgion he [M. Milnes] was of till he read his
book. He expects to find an altar to Jupiter somewhere in
his house. We are near the end of Macaulay's History, and
it is very entertaining reading.   I do not see the " new