Seward House
Badsey
29th September 1898
My dear Kathleen,
While Baby is having her little afternoon nap on the veranda I will write you a few lines, Father & May having written their epistles last night. May has gone to the church to decorate the font for this evening. I took some flowers across this morning & found Mrs Price disconsolate & doing nothing at the side of the south aisle, while ten or a dozen people were all at work. She informed me that May must not put anything inside the font as the Vicar objected, I said May had only thought of putting a floating cross, but she said no, she might cover it with a board & put pots of flowers on that, but nothing inside, did you ever hear anything so silly?
Baby had such a tumble this morning, she was sitting in her low chair in the kitchen. I had just gone to the larder for something & Clara to the back kitchen when she tipped her chair right over & fell on her face, she did cry poor little mite, I couldn’t comfort her, till at last I gave her the bottle & put her to bed. We received the school report this morning, it does not appear however to be the whole thing, but only a sort of epitome of it & not very interesting. I wrote to Miss Pollard on Tuesday & told her next Saturday was your visiting day. I don’t know if she will manage to go & see you. I am glad Ethel seems to be settling down pretty well. 7th was a fair place to begin with & hope she will get higher soon & be moved into another form at Xmas. I hope they are not overdoing you with work, mind you ask for tonic if you feel at all below par. Fancy Arthur working for the Higher Certificate, he says he has to leave off French for the present, but means to try to keep it up a little by himself. I heard from Aunt Polly yesterday, she is home again & seems to have enjoyed her visits very much; May goes to stay at Byfleet today & Anna goes to Folkestone soon to help Auntie in a Bazaar so Fanny Walton & her husband are going to stay at Marshgate House while they are away. I went to Aldington yesterday to help Mrs Savory with her rummage sale, tell Ethel that she will be delighted to hear that Jack’s black overcoat was sold also & various old clothes of hers which she left hanging up in her room. Mrs Savory took about £7 or £8 I think. They are going soon taking Joyce with them. Cynthia is now with the Park Hall Savorys.
With much love to Ethel & you
Your loving mother
Eugénie N. Sladden
