Seward House
Badsey
18th June 1897
Dear Kathleen
You did indeed write me a nice long letter on Sunday & now I have left you rather to the end of the week before answering it. I have had a lot to do for we have no servant yet & Mrs Nightingale till today has only been able to come two half days. I had a girl to see me yesterday who may perhaps do, I have written for her character; I should fancy she is rather rough, but a strong girl & not afraid of work. Saturday and Sunday were most fearfully hot here, I really did not know how to get through any work but it is much cooler this week & the last day or two have been windy & showery. I am so glad for May’s sake that it is not so hot, I wonder how she has been getting on, give her my love & tell her I have thought a great deal about her all the week, now she will be able to have a rather easier time, while you poor child, will still have to work away hard till the middle of July. I will try to write to Byfleet or Richmond & see if I can prevail on some of them to go to Windsor for your prize-giving. Miss Smith wrote to me the other day to ask me to subscribe to a testimonial for Miss Du Pré, I have just written to her & sent a sovereign towards it. I expect Father told May that Arthur is coming home for the jubilee, isn’t it nice that he can do so. I hope you girls will enjoy yourselves next week & see plenty of the grand doings. Jack is going to Tunbridge Wells on Saturday to stay with Aunt Lottie and Uncle till Monday, he talks of trying to see something of the procession on Tuesday & at any rate The illuminations in the evening. I do hope that it will be a fine day, our festivities here are all in the "Stockey", without even a tent, so if it does rain I don’t know what will happen. I must go and give Ethel a science lesson, the fact that she had since I came home ‘extras’ show how unpunctual lessons have been.
With much love,
Believe me
Your loving mother
Eugénie N. Sladden
