Austen, Jane . Jane Austen's Letters To Her Sister Cassandra and Others
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Cassandra 1809

   Castle Square : Monday Janr* 30. My dear Cassandra

   I was not much surprised yesterday by the agreable surprise of your letter, & extremely glad to receive the assurance of your finger being well again. Here is such a wet Day as never was seen!-I wish the poor little girls had better weather for their Journey; they must amuse themselves with watching the raindrops down the Windows. Sackree I suppose feels quite brokenhearted.-I cannot have done with the weather without observing how delightfully mild it is; I am sure Fanny must enjoy it with us.-Yesterday was a very blowing day; we got to Church however, which we had not been able to do for two Sundays before.-I am not at all ashamed about the name of the Novel, having been guilty of no insult towards your handwriting; the Dipthong I always saw, but knowing how fond you were of adding a vowel wherever you could, I attributed it to that alone-& the knowledge of the truth does the book no service; the only merit it could have, was in the name of Caleb, which has an honest, unpretending sound; but in Coelebs, there is pedantry & affectation.-Is it written only to Classical Scholars?

   -I shall now try to say only what is necessary, I am weary of meandering-so expect a vast deal of small matter concisely told, in the next two pages.-Mrs.


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Cooke has been very dangerously ill, but is now I hope safe.-I had a letter last week from George, Mary being too busy to write, & at that time the Disorder was called of the Typhus kind, & their alarm considerable

   -but yesterday brought me a much better account from Mary; the origin of the complaint being now ascertained to be Billious, & the strong medicines requisite, promising to be effectual.-Mrs. E. L. is so much recovered as to get into the Dressing-room every day.

   -A letter from Hamstall gives us the history of Sir Tho. Williams' return;-the Admiral, whoever he might be, took a fancy to the Neptune, & having only a worn out 74 to offer in lieu of it, Sir Tho. declined such a command, & is come home Passenger. Lucky Man! to have so fair an opportunity of escape.-I hope His wife allows herself to be happy on the occasion, & does not give all her thoughts to being nervous.-A great event happens this week at Hamstall, in young Edward's removal to school; he is going to Rugby & is very happy in the idea of it;-I wish his happiness may last, but it will be a great change, to become a raw school boy from being a pompous Sermon-Writer, & a domineering Brother.-It will do him good I dare say.-Caroline has had a great escape from being burnt to death lately;-as her husband gives the account, we must beleive it true.-Miss Murden is gone-called away by the critical state of Mrs. Pottinger, who has had another severe stroke, & is without Sense or Speech. Miss Murden wishes to return to Southampton if circumstances suit, but it must be very doubtful.-We have been obliged to turn away Cholles, he grew so very drunken & negligent, & we have a man in his place called Thomas.-


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Martha desires me to communicate something concerning herself which she knows will give you pleasure, as affording her very particular satisfaction; it is, that she is to be in Town this spring with Mrs. Dundas.-I need not dilate on the subject-you understand enough of the whys & wherefores to enter into her feelings, & to be conscious that of all possible arrangements, it is the one most acceptable to her.-She goes to Barton on leaving us-& the Family remove to Town in April.-What you tell me of Miss Sharpe is quite new, & surprises me a little;-I feel however as you do. She is born, poor thing! to struggle with Evil-& her continuing with Miss B. is I hope a proof that Matters are not always so very bad between them as her Letters sometimes represent.-Jenny's marriage I had heard of, & supposed you would do so too from Steventon, as I knew you were corresponding with Mary at the time. I hope she will not sully the respectable name she now bears.-Your plan for Miss Curling is uncommonly considerate & friendly, & such as she must surely jump at. Edward's going round by Steventon, as I understand he promises to do, can be no reasonable objection, Mrs. J. Austen's hospitality is just of the kind to enjoy such a visitor.-We were very glad to know Aunt Fanny was in the Country when we read of the Fire.-Pray give my best Compts** to the Mrs. Finches, if they are at Gm*.-I am sorry to find that Sir J. Moore has a mother living, but tho' a very Heroick son, he might not be a very necessary one to her happiness.-Deacon Morrell may be more to Mrs. Morrell.-I wish Sir John had united something of the Christian with the Hero in his death.-Thank Heaven! we have had no one to care for


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particularly among the Troops-no one in fact nearer to us than Sir John himself. Col. Maitland is safe & well; his Mother & sisters were of course anxious about him, but there is no entering much into the solicitudes of that family.-My Mother is well, & gets out when she can with the same enjoyment, & apparently the same strength as hitherto.-She hopes you will not omit begging Mrs. Seward to get the Garden cropped for us-supposing she leaves the House too early, to make the Garden any object to herself.-We are very desirous of receiving your account of the House-for your observations will have a motive which can leave nothing to conjecture & suffer nothing from want of Memory.-For one's own dear self, one ascertains & remembers everything.-Lady Sondes is an impudent Woman to come back into her old Neighbourhood again; I suppose she pretends never to have married before-& wonders how her Father & Mother came to have her christen'd Lady Sondes.-

   The store closet I hope will never do so again-for much of the Evil is proved to have proceeded from the Gutter being choked up, & we have had it cleared.

   -We had reason to rejoice in the Child's absence at the time of the Thaw, for the Nursery was not habitable.-We hear of similar disasters from almost everybody.-No news from Portsmouth. We are very patient.-Mrs. Charles Fowle desires to be kindly remembered to you. She is warmly interested in my Brother and his Family.-

   Yrs** very affec:ly** J. Austen




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