1890 THE POEMS 233 



ungrudgingly, so open-heartedly, that which is clea7 

 to you about our Lord. This must be, please God, a 

 real bit of help to others ; and I trust and pray that 

 it may return in help to you. 



But how dark you were about it ! I should have 

 been furious if I had been in London, and not there. 



Please forgive me this letter ; and do not think it 

 needs any answer. 



Affectionately yours, 



Feancis Paget. 



At the beginning of this year Mr. Eomanes col- 

 lected his various poems and had them privately 

 printed. He writes to his sister : 



February 1889. 



Three weeks before the 11th I was wondering 

 what I should get as a wedding-day present to mark 

 the tenth anniversary. Ethel then chanced to say that 

 she wished my poems were published, so that she 

 could have them in type. This suggested to me the 

 idea of putting them into type for private circulation, 

 when they might serve at once as the required 

 wedding-present, and as a preliminary to publication 

 at any future time either by myself or, more probably, 

 by her or someone else. So I got an estimate from 

 the printer, and with an awful rush he set up the 

 whole in a week. Proof corrections occupied another 

 week, and the binding of a grand presentation copy 

 the third week. Thus I only had my present ready 

 a few hours before it had to be presented. Binding 

 the other copies occupied the time till I sent you 



