2io A Century of Family Letters [CHAP, 



One word more of our clan my dear Emma, I would 

 not upon any account press Jessie to return with John 

 [Allen]. It would be very unfair to Sismondi, and the 

 opportunity is not a reason strong enough to make him so 

 unhappy as I think her coming would do. ... 



Kitty [Mackintosh] is very busy about a number of 

 good things, and she has been in correspondence with 

 numbers of people. Mackintosh has had one or two fits of 

 giddiness but they did not last a minute, but it has very 

 much interrupted the history, which goes on so slowly that 

 I am quite in despair about it. He can't do much at a 

 time now for fear of his head; he will do nothing after 

 dinner, and he generally takes two walks and a ride in the 

 morning, so that when he is best able there is not much 

 time for it. His spirits are cheerful enough, but the 

 mortification 1 has sunk deep, and will not now be cured 

 by anything that is likely to occur. He is in a very amiable 

 humour, and so friendly to me that I have begun to love 

 him. We play a rubber every night, which he enjoys very 

 much, and considering he is a genius, he plays very decently. 

 The Darwins go on Monday. I like them very much, but I 

 shall not be sorry to have our party lessened. There is very 

 little pleasure in what the young ones call a row. Hensleigh 

 is gone, and him we all regret. He and Fanny Mack are 

 great friends and cronies. 



All this autumn Maer must have been full to overflowing. 

 Susan and Catherine Darwin came for a month, and Harry 

 appears to have filled up some spare time in flirting with 

 Susan, although his real love was his cousin Jessie, daughter 

 of John Wedgwood. 



Emma Wedgwood, now nineteen, was leading a happy, 

 girlish life, taking what parties, balls and archery meetings 

 came in her way. Charlotte and Elizabeth were only too 

 happy to retire from all gaieties in favour of the younger 

 girls. My mother used to tell us that at these balls they 

 had white soup and pikelets for refreshments, and she said 

 it was a work of danger to eat slippery buttery pikelets in 

 ball costume. 



1 The mortification of not being given office in Canning's Cabinet. 



