First Visit to England. 119 



wretched health and very sleepless. He is not a great 

 reader. His father and mother see very little of him. He 

 spends but little time in Derby, and, when there, but little 

 at home. Takes long rambles in the country. 



Herbert learned to sing by note after he was a grown 

 man, liked it, and complained of his father for not letting 

 him learn earlier. I stayed an hour and a half, and then 

 invited old Mr. Spencer to call next forenoon on Kitty.* 

 He courteously replied that if it would be agreeable he 

 would accompany me then. So he walked with me a 

 twenty-five minutes' distance to the Queen's Hotel. It 

 was later than I had supposed, and Kitty was in bed, and 

 we separated with the arrangement that he was to meet us 

 at the station next morning, ten minutes to nine, to accom- 

 pany us to Elvaston Castle, the estate of Lord Harrington. 



The following extracts from letters of August i^th 

 and i Qth, give some first impressions of London : 



We have been in this great city a week, and seen a great 

 many sights and heard a great many sounds, the general 

 effect of which has been to put each other out and to pro- 

 duce a meagre impression of confusion. I don't know 

 where to begin or in what direction to write. I am in the 

 same state of mind that I am when I go out of doors to 

 start for some place. We are now established in the city, 

 miles further from the Exhibition than you are from Sara- 

 toga, so we have given but little attention to that yet, in- 

 tending to be located nearer it when we return. We move 

 in omnibuses and cabs. The omnibuses are like our own, 

 save that there is a man on the steps to collect fares when 

 you come out. The currency is very simple. I learned it 

 the first day. Everything is silver and gold. One half the 

 cabs are on four wheels, the other on two. " Hansom's 



* The reference is to Mrs. Youmans. 



