Dabton <1>
Saturday
5th of May.
My dear Papa,
I am sorry to see from your letter that you don’t intend to go to Edinburgh on the 18th which is extremely naughty of you, especially as the journey and change would have done you all the good in the world, and you might shorten the former by coming to see us on the road – It would also have been a good opportunity of enquiring personally about houses – I am very glad you have such a nice idea of coming to spend some time somewhere rather more within reach of us – and where the distance would not frighten you, and I hear some places spoken of on the Ayrshire coast as being very pretty – There is no agent in Dumfries, but we hope to find out something eligible from the North British Advertiser <2> – we saw a copy today, but the new one comes on Monday, and I will study it before starting for Speddoch – Could you not write also to one of the London Agents, who may have something tempting to offer, especially as you do not want shooting &c?
You see I have so information to give you today, but I hope soon to collect some, and in the mean while I am sure you are expecting an answer. We have had several quite hot, dusty days, but today it has quite clouded over again, and become dull, like rain, so every one is again in hopes of a shower – I hope it will not come this evening, though, for Johnnie is going off for a drill at a village, Penport, three miles off. He is so patriotic, as to go off just at the time when we shall be setting down to dinner – which is at six o’clock, (much too early, in my opinion), and with the drill, and the walk there and back, I think it will be dark before he returns – He sends all sorts of messages to you all. When you next write, please direct to Speddoch – I wrote one or two scrappy notes from here, but as there is nothing particularly interesting, I think I shall wait till I get home before writing again –
Yr affecte daughter
Matilda
Notes:
1. Dabton, Dumfriesshire: home of WHFT’s daughter Matilda.
2. Matilda sent extracts of the North British Advertiser on Monday, 7th May. See Doc. No: 08097, which dates this document to 1869.