File:Frances (Appleton) Longfellow to Thomas Gold Appleton, 5 July 1839 (0c6fc462-2bdc-40f3-8f16-0c4b1d9a43dc).jpg

Manuscript letter

Archives Number: 1011/002.001-009#005

Yale Manor – July 5th 1839.
Dear Tommy I confess myself bien méchante not to have written you for so many days but am consoled by the possible result you acknowledge viz bringing you here. Fanny Wright, a tempting loaf of cake & an bottle of claret are by me but I will have naught to say to them till I give you an account of our late proceedings. The arrival of the Liverpool has made happy all Lenox & Stockbridge & there was abundance of letters to satisfy the anxious. We have had the reading of some 4 or 5 – after their migrations from village to village. They were chiefly details of ship-board miseries as they had a most tiresome passage of 34 days of head-winds & tacking, all wretchedly sick & Miss Sedgwick very much alarmed – tho’ they had only one reasonably severe squall. She thinks it was a ‘sorry business’ & even Kate’s82 joyousness – only – came at rare intervals. Miss S- says the expression of misery on Kate’s fair young face reminded her of the Cenci.83 Mr R S- bore up bravely - & they were fortunate in an excellent set of passengers of whom Kate writes a very spirited graphic account dealing less in the pathetic than Miss S. Marioti they say was very tiresome & selfish – thinking himself as usual the worst off. I hope to mercy he wont bore them in London. Kate’s account of passing the Isle of Wight & Portsmouth awoke my reminiscences vividly tho they looked thereal more with your eyes than ours. Capt Basil Hall welcomed them at P- & was vastly kind & civil – offering them assistance from Land’s end to Johnny Groats. Now we are all dying to hear further tho’ this blessed news is not grown stale. By the way ask Father how we are to get letters sent by the steam ships – for unless there is some one to pay their postage in N. York they go not. I have written once to Mrs J. Amory & miss S. that I fear will await the next packet, tho I p’d to N. Y. & wrote carefully ‘for steamer Liverpool.’ [p. 2] Tuesday we set off in an ark-like vehicle for Lebanon – rather a tedious drive from here of 10 miles, enjoyed a delicious bath in that velvety water & dined with just a dozen people in that big hall - like the first men alive – which dinner seemed quite magnificent after our simple fare – the quantity sufficing for so few, tho in full season – the ratio is not kept up. an ‘omelette au confitures’ really smacked foreign. Saw luckily no one we knew – (being disappointed in Jewett as escort.) The only fashionables were a family tout ce qu’il y a de N. York – sporting silver forks & long hair – the dame heard talking down the piazza French to a spaniel – à la Mrs Loundes & her spouse’s brother trying to look English in spurs & a riding coat after dinner. The view & air were delicious as ever & I wish a nice party of our friends would be there for a week or so. I shall tease Emmeline to come. A blue spectacled dame sat next us at table & ½ begged a seat to G. Barrington thinking us wandering damsels from thence – but had to draw in her horns – for another occasion as you shall hear. We clomb the mountain to Pittsfield – where we found Mr & Mrs Gardiner just arrived with poor little Sarah shockingly reduced by a fever of six weeks – which they feared might have ended in a consumption if they had not sailed. She’s [crossed out: got strong] journey fairly over it is probable she will gain daily & got already to speak pretty well, & the day we left actually walked down stairs while we were at table alone. We only wanted you & Tom Wright to have our last summer’s circle of family faces. Grandmother looks quite flourishing. Aunt Mat bien conserve in spite of her divers illnesses & Fanny W- as Romanesquely solid as ever, tho’ she vows her books have retreated an inch. Willie Gold as dapper a little beau as could be found in the Guards – was there with a fellow clerk – a Mr McKee, a tall youth spouting Shelley eternally – to Fanny who gives a deaf ear to verse – therefore finding a more reverential listener in Aunt Mat – keeps her with outstretched mouth. I sh’d not fancy him particularly for an Uncle so hope he wont be-rhyme her into a couplet. The next mng while Mr G- was presiding over the indian-cake (which our landlady makes quite as well) a stage drove [p. 3] up the lane – a trunk & dame were deposited coolly – claiming hospitality by coup de main. She turned out the blue spectacled invalid of Lebanon & the daughter or grand-d-r of Mr Hesekiah Gold – “squatted” on Grandmother for the day & requested to share our vehicle to Stockbridge at night -! after victimizing me with her earliest poetical publication called “young feelings” - & threat’ning the “Destruction of Babylon” after Byron’s Sennacherib”! Having to buy a tub & take Fanny W. home with us – we civilly escaped – this reflationary old-man-of-the seaism. Mr Gardiner wanted you much to whip the brooks with him. Aunt Mat & these youths drove down to Lenox with us - & we have stolen Fanny W- to my great delight till Saturday night as she does not complain of our ‘sofa privelege’ [sic] for the sake of our society & seems so happy with us – that I cant bear to part with her. I suppose you had vastly fine doings yesterday – but very flashy I know compared to our intellectual rockets here. No vile braying of guns disturbed the holy quiet of our sequestered shades – but it was a jour de fête notwithstanding the hill sides garlanded with innocent laurel - & a few distant thunder peals by way of deeper – (what’s the word?) – than the fifing of birds &c. We walked down to the village in the morning – meeting wagon loads of fair lassies with white gowns & gay sashes - & swains with cutting gills & pucker coat shoulders – welcomed Mrs Minot - & heard from Mr Field that the vexatious Jewett after keeping us in expectation of seeing him for a week would not accept our tempting invite for the 4th – he writes in intense Carlylism of V. Buren’s entreé [sic] into N. York with all “Jackassery at his heels” - & thinks himself bound “to note every fishermen in our society which is significant” - & so must stay the great day there. We had really a most entertaining & truly Stockbridgeian divertissement in the afternoon – which I wish I could give you in detail. Aunt Mat & her attendant beau Willie & Mr Hee dined with us! us! admiring our spinage (not gettable in Pittsfield) & a ground-rice pudding Mrs Paulding might have been proud to own! The young ladies sewing-circle chose this day for their fair - & were unhappily driven from their chosen spot in “wood so gay” by a slight sprinkling into the se space of the Academy. There we bought night caps & strawberries & at twilight all adjourned to the leafy canopy of Laurel Hill – adorned by Nature as for the day in one shower of bloss- [p. 4] oms - & there-unfolded Autolycus pack – for which all the brains of this writing community have been pricking Ideality & Number for this week past. Young Harry Sedgwick a very handsome boy – was the post-man & delivered letters innumerable – to private individuals among whom I was favored with a very graceful appeal from Mrs Theodore who has written every body & grinds off really very pretty – passable – verse with astonishing facility. A long epistle thought to be by Mr Charles S. recommending reading-rooms & other useful village additions was read à haute voix by Mr Theod: then a spirited address to the carpenters of Mrs Jane’s house – giving such a striking proof of this village family-ship – read & written by young Thod. then very pretty verses of O’Sullivan’s. Mrs Charles’ - &c characteristic of our doings - & surroundings - & finally an auction of the same admirably carried on by young Theod: & Mr Watts – a perfect Liston in expression & manner & full of infinite humour which got bubbling famously. Young Mrs Thed: wrote a capital advertisement of medecine [sic] to cure the afflictions of the weather (which has been delightful but diversified by too many showers) gossip & other village diseases – with certificates of various people – capitally done – the [??] was bid for greatly & turned out sugarplums we got the paper too & also a beautiful poem of O’Sullivans – a bringing in the Indian associations of our “daily walks.” This lasted with great merriment till the dew fell too heavily for the assembled crowd to remain in the woods – but we had enough – to prove among what rare spirits - & useful wits we had fallen – the consumption of ink in this blue community must exceed that of Court St. & Pemberton Hill really! – Tell Father not to be anxious we waste nothing – Jewett began for us in N. York- but I am glad gave out as it would have been something I fear not a very à propos here. I took a very nice sketch for the Fair of the beautiful view from my window. & Mary contributed a few bits of untouched finery. The villagers seemed to relish the wit cracking over their head – in the grove, but resign themselves to reluctantly as usual to be amused. We are going tonight to drink tea with Mrs Theodore & hear read some of the private effusions. Much obliged for the “plea for Tolerance” & Mrs A’s letter – I pity you in dull Boston; here we are as merry as crickets - & as full of occupation as ants. Jewett will be here tonight or tomorrow [p. 1 cross] unless his promises are will o’the wisps. I am fierce for sketching now & have made quite a Johsonian affair of a water course & its trees. Mr Parker the parson & ‘schoollmaisther’ here gave a charming row round our ox-bow at a luminous twilight - & praised my handling of the oar so much & I found it such easy excellent exercise in light water that I am anxious to practise often. Mrs Colford Jones’ son has the boat – Mr P’s pupil. I resign to Mary the ½ sheet. With love to Father & Mrs A – Aunt Sam &c – ever yrs, in haste & after-dinner-ess. –
Fanny.
Has Caroline returned from the South? If so tell her I request a letter about her experiences there which she sh’d have written before.

• Keywords: correspondence; frances elizabeth (appleton) longfellow; isaac appleton jewett; pittsfield; ma; Correspondence (1011/002); (LONG-SeriesName); Letters from Frances Longfellow (1011/002.001); (LONG-SubseriesName); 1839 (1011/002.001-009); (LONG-FileUnitName)