Wednesday Nov 16.
Off to Mrs. Cliffe’s with Bummy & Arabel. Wd. rather have stayed at home. At number one I shd. think, in the thermometer. Eliza showed us her preparations for lithography—& they gave us luncheon, & wanted us to stay all night—& gave me a history of a disputation of theirs about me in which Eliza had stated that I wd. not marry an angel from Heaven. Certainly if ever I were to make up my mind to marry, I wd. fancy my selection to be an angel, at the very least. But I never never will marry!--
I sent off a parcel to Mrs. Boyd this morning, containing books—a note from me to her—a note from Arabel to Annie—& a letter from me to Mr. Boyd.[1] In it I said that I missed both him & the squirrel very much indeed,—tho’ I was modest enough to believe in the possibility of its being best for both of them, that I shd. I wonder if he will answer my letter. I told him that he need not do so, if he felt disinclined; & he does not care enough for me, to obviate the probability of his feeling disinclined. And yet I shall be certainly pained if he does not write. My letter was written rather in a playful than professing manner. I will write no more professing letters .. till the next time.—
Henrietta went away on Monday with Mrs. Martin & the Miss Biddulphs, to pay a visit to Mrs. Jones. She is now at Ledbury where she will sleep tonight. Bro went with her;— He came here for a few minutes this evening— Back again to the Biddulphs.
A reading evening down stairs!— Bummy over the Quarterly,[2] & I over Camoens, & Moliére!—
1. For the letter, see BC, 2, 330–332.
2. The Quarterly Review, November 1831.
