a correspondence when as the man said all the Letters are on one side. I write with greater ease than I had thought, therefore you shall soon hear from me again. Your affectionate Brother

Mr. Brown is waiting for me to take a walk. Mr[s]. Dilke is on a visit next door and desires her love to you. The Dog shall be taken care of and for his name I shall go and look in the parish register where he was born-I still continue on the mending hand.

(CXXXV) Although this letter has neither date nor postmark, being addressed simply "Miss Keats", there is little doubt that it was written between the 1st and 12th of April 1820, and was intended as an acknowledgment of the due receipt of “ the dog”— probably to go back to Walthamstow by the person who brought the dog. On the 1st Keats wrote to his sister to send her spaniel to Hampstead, and on the 12th that it was "being attended to like a Prince."

CXXXVI.

To FANNY KEATS.

Rd. Abbey's Esq.,

Walthamstow.

Wentworth Place

12 April [1820].

My dear Fanny—

Excuse these shabby scraps of paper I send you -and also from endeavouring to give you any consolation just at present, for though my health is tolerably well I am too nervous to enter into any discussion in

It was probably in reference to a letter of Brown's written about this time to George Keats that the following letter was sent :Louisville June 18th 1820

My dear John

Where will our miseries end? so soon as the Thursday after I left London you were attacked with a dangerous illness, an hour after I left this for England my little Girl became so ill as to approach the Grave dragging our dear George after her. You are recovered (thank [God?] I hear the bad and good news together) they are recovered, and yet I feel gloomy instead of grateful. Perhaps from the consideration that so short a time will serve to deprive me of every object that makes life pleasant. Brown says you are really recovered, that you eat, drink, sleep, and walk five miles without uneasiness, this is positive, and I believe you nearly recovered but your perfect recovery depends on the future. You must go to a more favorable clime, must be easy in your mind, the former depends on me the latter on yourself. My prospect of being able to send you 200£ very soon is pretty good, I have an offer for the Boat which I have accepted, but the party who lives at Natchez (near New Orleans 300 miles only) will not receive information that I have accepted his offer for some weeks since the Gentleman who was commissioned to make it has gone up the Country and not yet returned, the only chance against us is that the purchasing party may change his mind; this is improbable since he has already

which my heart is concerned. Wait patiently and take care of your health, being especially careful to keep yourself from low spirits which are great enemies to health. You are young and have only need of a little patience. I am not yet able to bear the fatigue of coming to Walthamstow though I have been to Town once or twice. I have thought of taking a change of air.

purchased one fifth and to my knowledge is very anxious to obtain mine, but it is not impossible. I will direct my Agent at New Orleans to send you 200£ instantly on receiving the proceeds of the sale and should no unexpected delay occur it will arrive within 2 or 3 weeks of this letter. It shall be addressed to you at Abbey & Co's, the first of exchange directly from New Orleans, the second and third by way of New York and this place. I have no other means of raising anything like that Sum, scarcely a man in the town could borrow such a sum. I might suggest means of raising the money on this hope immediately but Brown being on the spot will advise what is best. Since your health requires it to Italy you must and shall go. Make your mind easy and place confidence in my success, I cannot ensure it, but will deserve it. I have a consignment of goods to sell by commission, which helps me a little, if this parcel does well I shall have more. When I have received the price offered for the Boat I shall have been no loser by the purchase. This considering the alteration in times is doing wonders. George desires her love and thinks that if you were with us our nursing would soon bring you to rights, but I tell her you cannot be in better hands than Brown's, she joins me in grateful thanks to him. I will write to him next post, repeating what is important in this, lest one should miscarry. Our love to Fanny and Mrs. W. and Brothers. Yesterday's Post, with Brown's letter brought us one from Henry Wylie acquainting us with the death of Mrs. Miller. Our love to Mary Miller if you should see her, George will write her in a few days. I will write again soon. I made up a packet to Haslam containing letters to Fanny, Mr. Abbey and Mrs. W: to go by private hand, the Gentleman has postponed his voyage. Take the utmost care of yourself my dear John for the sake of your most affectionate and alarmed Brother and Sister.

I am

Your very affectionate Brother

George.

You shall hear from me immediately on my moving any where. I will ask Mrs. Dilke to pay you a visit if the weather holds fine, the first time I see her. The Dog is being attended to like a Prince.

I have been slowly improving since I wrote last. The Doctor assures me that there is nothing the matter with me except nervous irritability and a general weakness of the whole system which has proceeded from my anxiety of mind of late years and the too great excitement of poetry. Mr. Brown is going to Scotland by the Smack, and I am advised for change of exercise and air to accompany him and give myself the chance of benefit from a Voyage. Mr. H. Wylie call'd on me yesterday with a letter from George to his mother: George is safe at the other side of the water, perhaps by this time arrived at his home. I wish you were coming to town that I might see you; if you should be coming write to me, as it is quite a trouble to get by the coaches to Walthamstow. Should you not come to Town I must see you before I sail, at Walthamstow. They tell me I must study lines and tangents and squares and angles

1

1 In the original letter, ancles is inadvertently written for angles.

1

to put a little Ballast into my mind. We shall be going in a fortnight and therefore you will see me within that space. I expected sooner, but I have not been able to venture to walk across the country. Now the fine Weather is come you will not find 1 your time so irksome. You must be sensible how much I regret not being able to alleviate the unpleasantness of your situation, but trust my dear Fanny that better times are in wait for you.

I went for the first time into the City the day before yesterday, for before I was very disinclined to encounter the scuffle, more from nervousness than real illness; which notwithstanding I should not have suffered to conquer me if I had not made up my mind not to go to Scotland, but to remove to Kentish Town till Mr. Brown returns. Kentish Town is a mile nearer to you than Hampstead-I have been getting gradually better but am not so well as to trust myself to the casualties of rain and sleeping out which I am liable to

1 In the manuscript, fine.