2775. EBB to Henrietta Moulton-Barrett
As published in The Brownings’ Correspondence, 15, 236–238.
[Florence]
March 4. [1849] [1]
My beloved Henrietta I cant let this day go by, [2] without the thought of you, which it brings, expressing itself upon paper,—knowing that you care less than I do, for those black squares on the board, which foolishly are apt to fix my eyes on certain occasions of this sort. May God bless you my dear dearest Henrietta, & make you happy as will make me happy to stand by & witness—may God bless you & yours, my dearest Henrietta! When I wrote last, through keeping my letter so long I did not think till it was gone to the post, of the nearness of the fourth. But if I had, I should not perhaps have kept it even a little longer. I should have been afraid of making you uneasy by a prolonged silence. As it is, then, I just send you a brief note .. full of drawn-out wishes & prayers. Henrietta, tell me everything of your “irons.” Sir Robert [3] seems to me rather a cast-iron maker of professions, & I dont trust to him too much. On Surtees’s cousin, my reliance is infinitely greater. If you can begin to keep house, clear of debt, even with a small income, I should be inclined to exact somewhat less than you both seem to look for—only, in such a case, you would be prepared to live quietly & humbly– Still, I dont give any advice, mind! If Arlette, with her income, has to regulate the scale of her expenses with so strict & steady a hand, what would it be in your case? Sir Robert may be better than I imagine, & most earnestly do I hope to have done him gross injustice, indeed. If I were Surtees I would turn up every stone & pebble by the brookside at any rate, & something must be to be found somewhere, & who knows how soon? Keep up your spirits, dearest Henrietta,—for a true heart is rarer than a full purse .. yet you have found the first. So he may, the second, before many days! Give him my love in the meantime. I am always afraid of doing some dreadful harm by saying things in my letters, & this is why I dont say more sometimes– Only all the saying in the world is very vain, while I can do nothing, I who would fain do so much for you my dear, dear Henrietta. You believe it of me, do you not? May God who can do all, satisfy you that He does the best. I love you & think of you, & shall, while I live!
Do you see Susan Cook as much as ever, & how is she? Mrs Martin I meant to write to, but cant this time– Give my love to her & say so if you write. She is on the continent I suppose by this time– With the last week of February, I had to leave off the fire in my bedroom, & one of two blankets– Our Florentine winter is over, the sun beginning to be very powerful. Tell me whether you have not been to hear Jenny Lind, [4] & whether she is the miracle people talk of? I fancied that at least you might have gone to Exeter Hall [5] when she sang there? Did you, Henrietta? Do you see a good deal of the Mintos, of Mary, I mean,—&, upon the whole, do you like their house as well as Arlette’s? They live near together, do they not? And Miss Bayley, do you see her? Tell me if you walk to Hampstead, as used to be? tell me everything. May God bless you in all!– The Bevans, I suppose, wont return to England throughout the summer, since they have been fortunate enough to let their house—but wont Bummy come back to be with Arlette? I have been fancying so. Uncle James’s comparative recovery must be a great joy to her, indeed. How I am with you in spirit today & everyday, & believe it through the blots of this pen—.
Your ever attached
Ba–
Address, on integral page: Miss Barrett.
Publication: Huxley, pp. 103–104 (in part).
Manuscript: British Library.
1. Year provided by reference to the preceding letter, in which this letter was enclosed.
2. Henrietta’s 40th birthday.
3. Robert Price (1786–1857), only son of Sir Uvedale Price, was Member of Parliament for Herefordshire, 1818–41.
4. Jenny Lind (1820–87), a Swedish soprano nicknamed the “Swedish nightingale,” was best known for her performances in the operas La sonnambula, Robert le diable, La fille du régiment and Norma. She sang in a grand performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah at Exeter Hall on 15 December 1848.
5. Erected in 1831 on the Strand, this spacious hall was a popular venue for public lectures, performances, and meetings of philanthropical and religious organizations; the latter were frequently of an evangelical, anti-papal nature. The Strand Palace Hotel now occupies its site.
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