sad little letter! written in that returned darkness. How can
_you_ ever be sad, looking forward to eternal life with all whom you
love, and God over all?

It is only so far as I lose hold of that hope, that anything is ever a
trial to me. But I can't think how I'm to get on in a world with no
Venice in it.

You were quite right in thinking I would have nothing to do with
lawyers. Not one of them shall ever have so much as a crooked sixpence
of mine, to save him from being hanged, or to save the Lakes from
being filled up. But I really hope there may be feeling enough in
Parliament to do a right thing without being deafened with lawyers'
slang.

I have never thanked you for the snowdrops. They bloomed here
beautifully for four days. Then I had to leave them to go and lecture
in London. It was nice to see them, but my whole mind is set on
finding whether there is a country where the flowers do not fade. Else
there is no spring for me. People liked the lecture, and so many more
wanted to come than could get in, that I had to promise to give
another.

* * * * *

Here's your little note first of all. And if you only knew how my
wristbands are plaguing me you'd be very sorry. They're too much
starched, and _would_ come down like mittens; and now I've turned
them up, they're just like two horrid china cups upside down, inside my
coat, and I'm afraid to write for fear of breaking them. And I've a
week's work on the table, to be done before one o'clock, on pain of
uproar from my friends, execution from my enemies, reproach from my
lovers, triumph from my haters, despair of Joanie, and--what from
Susie? I've had such a bad night, too; woke at half-past three and
have done a day's work since then--composing my lecture for March, and
thinking what's to become of a godson of mine whose----

Well, never mind. I needn't give _you_ the trouble, poor little
Susie, of thinking too.

* * * * *

I'm going to Oxford to-day (D.V.), really quite well, and rather
merry. I went to the circus with my new pet, and saw lovely riding and
ball play; and my pet said the only drawback to it all, was that she
couldn't sit on both sides of me. And then I went home to tea with
her, and gave mamma, who is Evangelical, a beautiful lecture on the
piety of dramatic entertainments, which made her laugh whether she
would or no; and then I had my Christmas dinner in advance with Joanie
an