From J. D. Hooker 18 October 1867
Kew
Oct. 18/67.
Dear old Darwin
I find myself obliged to put off half my visit to you. The Governess has gone away for her holiday, & my wife finds the nurse not to her trust, & what with this & the boys home for the holidays, she wants more help in the house, so I have to go to Bath on Saturday to bring up a friend of her’s, who will help her.1 Moreover she does not like the nurse, with reason I think, & wants to get rid of her, but has not grounds enough for a dismissal; & as I think it not safe to let the nurse have the child after she has warning, I have advised her to take the child to Hastings for change of air, leaving nurse here, & writing up to dismiss her from thence—2 This is an ugly ruse to play, but it must be done & a prudent friend in the house will be a great help to her. The whole thing is a horrid bore
If the weather is fine Willy & I will run down on Sunday morning to Bromley with our nightshirts in our pockets & walk across Holwood park—3
Ever aff | J D Hooker
Footnotes
Bibliography
Post Office directory of the six home counties: Post Office directory of the six home counties, viz., Essex, Herts, Kent, Middlesex, Surrey and Sussex. London: W. Kelly & Co. 1845–78.
Summary
Must cut short visit to Down because of domestic problems.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-5651
- From
- Joseph Dalton Hooker
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Kew
- Source of text
- DAR 102: 180–1
- Physical description
- ALS 3pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 5651,” accessed on 26 September 2022, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-5651.xml
Also published in The Correspondence of Charles Darwin, vol. 15
