Evening star., 1934-05-18

America, and by the Times. London. every
where else.)
"O SAY that one could have
foretold, from the letters
Charles Dickens wrote to his
L wife, the ultimate disaster OF
their separation, would be to
be too wise after the event.
But one can say this much-that
though the correspondence which has
been presented in this series is one
sided, there can be read between the
lines of the husband much of the
character of the wife.
We all know how, as far as in us
lies we write amusing and sympa-
thetic letters to those who amuse and
are in sympathy with us. Dickens
was always the inimitable' could
write nothing that was without in
terest or without his characteristic
f1avor-but from these letters his tru-
est raciness and spontaneity are for
the most part absent.
II we compare them. by way Of
example, with his letters to just one
woman friend, Mrs. Watson of Rock
ingham Castle, we can see the differ
ence all too plainly. Here is one OF
those ebullient, effervescent missives
written to Mrs Watson in 1859:
My Dear Mrs. Watson:
You surprise me by supposing
that there is ever latent a defiant
and reused expression in the
undersigned lamb! Apart from this
singular delusion Of yours, and
wholly unaccountable departure
from your usual accuracy in all
things, your satisfaction with the
portrait is a great pleasure to me.
1t has received every conceivable
pains at Frith's hands, and ought
on his account to be good. 1t is
a little too much Ito my thinking)
as if my next door neighbour were
my deadly foe. uninsured, and I
had just received tidings Of his
house being afire; otherwise very
good
1 cannot tell you how delighted
we shall be If you would come to
Gad's Hill. You should see some
charming woods and a rare old
castle, and you should have such
a snug room looking over a Kent
ish prospect, with every facility
in it for pondering on the beauties
of its masters beard! Do come,
but you positively must not come
and go in the same day.
We retreat there on Monday, and
shall be there all the Summer.
My small boy is perfectly happy
at Southsea, and likes the school
very much. I had the finest letter
two or three days ago from another
of my boys-Frank Jeffrey-at
Hamburg In this wonderful
epistle he says: Dear papa. I
write to tell you that have given
up all thoughts of being doctor.
! My conviction that 1 shall never
| get over my stammering is the
cause; all professions are barred
against me. The only thing I
should like to be is a gentleman
farmer. either at the Cape, in
| Canada, or Australia. With my
passage paid, IS pounds, horse,
and a rife. l could go two or three
hundred miles up country, sow
grain, buy cattle, and in time be
very comfortable"
Considering the consequences Of
executing the little commission by
the next steamer, I perceived that
the first consequence of the Is
pounds would be that he would be
robbed of it-of the horse. that it
would throw him-and of the rifle,
that 1t would blow his head of;
which probabilities l took the
liberty of mentioning, as being
against the scheme.
With best love from all, ever be-
lieve me. my dear Mrs. Watson,
your faithful and affectionate.
No Inspiration Felt.
But in the letters Dickens wrot
his wife he is not most happily in
spired. because he feels. perhap
without knowing it, that his letter
will not be fully appreciated. Their
is an air of doing what he never di