13 & A Century of Family Letters [CHAP, x 



It was delightful and cheerful to behold her. Her dear face 

 now rises before me, as she used sometimes to come running 

 downstairs with a stolen pinch of snuff for me, her whole 

 form radiant with the pleasure of giving pleasure. Even 

 when playing with her cousins, when her joyousness almost 

 passed into boisterousness, a single glance of my eye, not of 

 displeasure (for I thank God I hardly ever cast one on her), 

 but of want of sympathy, would for some minutes alter her 

 whole countenance. 



" The other point in her character, which made her 

 joyousness and spirits so delightful, was her strong affec- 

 tion, which was of a most clinging, fondling nature. When 

 quite a baby, this showed itself in never being easy without 

 touching her mother, when in bed with her; and quite 

 lately she would, when poorly, fondle for any length of time 

 one of her mother's arms. When very unwell, her mother 

 lying down beside her seemed to soothe her in a manner 

 quite different from what it would have done to any of our 

 other children. So, again, she would at almost any time 

 spend half-an-hour in arranging my hair, ' making it,' as 

 she called it, ' beautiful,' or in smoothing, the poor dear 

 darling, my collar or cuffs in short, in fondling me. 



' Besides her joyousness thus tempered, she was in her 

 manners remarkably cordial, frank, open, straightforward, 

 natural, and without any shade of reserve. Her whole 

 mind was pure and transparent. One felt one knew her 

 thoroughly and could trust her. I always thought, that 

 come what might, we should have had, in our old age, at 

 least one loving soul, which nothing could have changed. 

 All her movements were vigorous, active, and usually 

 graceful. When going round the Sand- walk with me, 

 although I walked fast, yet she often used to go before, 

 pirouetting in the most elegant way, her dear face bright 

 all the time with the sweetest smiles. Occasionally she 

 had a pretty coquettish manner towards me, the memory 

 of which is charming. She often used exaggerated language, 

 and when I quizzed her by exaggerating what she had said, 

 how clearly can I now see the little toss of the head, and 

 exclamation of ' Oh, papa, what a shame of you !' In the 

 last short illness, her conduct in simple truth was angelic. 

 She never once complained ; never became fretful ; was ever 

 considerate of others, and was thankful in the most gentle 

 pathetic manner for everything done for her. When so 

 exhausted that she could hardly speak, she praised every- 

 thing that was given her, and said some tea was ' beautifully 



