loo A Century of Family Letters [CHAP, vn 



a pleasure than a plague to you. I think we English lay 

 much too great stress on bringing children forward in 

 learning, by which we give them longer lessons than their 

 little heads can take in, and only serve to weary the poor 

 teacher. Mrs Somerville, who taught hers, assured me 

 she never gave lessons longer than ten minutes at a time. 

 She said longer was only pernicious, no child could give 

 undivided attention beyond that period. She then sent 

 them out to amuse themselves as they could, and they 

 always succeeded and were fresh to give her their attention 

 for another ten minutes when she called for them. This 

 could not fatigue any mother, not even Mrs Allen. The 

 learning that profits our understanding is of our own acquir- 

 ing, therefore later. Never mind if your children are dunces. 

 No governess can do what a mother can for their souls, 

 therefore, if possible, my Emma, keep them in your own 

 hands. Could you have learnt anything but good from 

 your nurse, the pious and truthful Molly ? Get such another, 

 only more elegant if you thought necessary. . . . 



I find John 1 has been visiting you: I hope he amused 

 you ; there is something original about him, but I have no 

 hope he can ever win either of the nonpareils Parthenope 

 or Florence [Nightingale]. I think we English are far too 

 shy of the character of matchmaking. As in this free 

 country there is no forcing them, we only put people in the 

 way of being happy, should they suit each other, by throw- 

 ing them together. I have been just answering your sweet- 

 heart's letter, and I think it so pretty a one, I enclose it to 

 you, to show you what you have lost. Seriously it gave 

 me great pleasure and made me wonder still more than I 

 did when I saw him, that you seemed more disposed to 

 laugh at than like " Tom Appleton." 2 Have the Americans 



1 Her nephew, the youngest son of the late John Allen of Cresselly, 



2 Tom Appleton, an American, brother of Mrs Longfellow, was 

 the most kindly of men. He became, in later years, a strong 

 spiritualist. He was the author of the saying that " good Americans 

 go to Paris when they die." Oliver Wendell Holmes called him 

 " the Sydney Smith of the Boston of his day." He was in no 

 possible sense my mother's " sweetheart," but she always liked him. 



