Seward House
Badsey
23rd March 1899
My dear Kathleen,
I must write & send you my best wishes for many happy returns of your birthday; fancy you being eighteen, it doesn’t seem possible. I hope you will have a fine day on Saturday for the hockey & that you will all play better & win your match.
We are enclosing a postal order for 10/6, 5/- of it is a joint present from Father & myself, 4/6 is for your blouse & tie, and the extra 1/- you can keep towards your journey money; we had this order by us & so thought we might as well send it.
I suppose Ruth has gone up for her exam, I hope she will be successful this time, I wish her people would let her know about coming here, I rather want to know if she is coming or not.
I don’t know how my spring cleaning is going to be done this year; I meant to have had a week of it this week, but Mrs Nightingale’s son being very ill, she asked me to put it off till next week, so knowing that we should be one day short on account of Good Friday, Clara & I did the glass cupboard on Monday & Arthur’s room on Tuesday & I rather hope Mrs N. will be able to finish the top floor tomorrow. When the ground floor is to be done I don’t know, for with all of you at home & visitors, it will be awkward, yet if I wait till May, the asparagus will be in, & then no charwoman is to be had.
Yesterday, after attending the mothers’ meeting & finding only one woman there, the faithful Mrs Henry Keen, I walked up to the Elm to try & sell some tickets for the theatricals to the Byrchs; I was sorry to find that Mrs Byrch was at a doctor’s in Birmingham, having had to undergo an operation. Conny said she was going on well & they hoped to get her home in about ten days; I hope she may be stronger after this, as she has had very poor health for some time past.
I think the Butlers have moved to Weybridge, but have had no letter from any of them for some time & don’t even know their address, of course the Byfleet address will find them.
Baby has at last got a name for May, for a long time she would only say Mama when we made her try, she runs about nicely now.
Your clock has collapsed, I think it wants cleaning & we must send it up to be done.
Now with much love & best wishes,
I am
your loving mother
Eugénie N Sladden
P.S. I am sending you a cake for your birthday which I hope will turn out satisfactorily.
