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20 March 1882 — 3 Savile Row | |
Monday. 20th March [1882]. Mrs Willie came & brought Kathleen for me to try & paint her hand in the portrait I had made of her at Consple. I had to work in Henry’s dressing room as the light was better there. Blanche sent me some satin to hem for a dress in my machine so I did it. Maria & Alice came to luncheon but returned home directly after & I went out straight to Blanche’s to give her her work finished for her. I then drove to the Temple to call on Mrs Vaughan & by luck hit upon her day for receiving. A good many ladies were calling & I sat next to a fine old lady with white hair & erect figure who began talking of her “girls” who turned out to be unfortunate girls to whom she provides a home & tries to reform. I think I understood the lady’s name to be Mrs Wilks. She told me something abt her institution & the common belief amongst the girls in their having seen the devil at different times. She said she had once had a girl of abt 13 who had been taken from a life of vice who seemed every now & then to be “possessed” she would shriek & howl in a horrible manner at times when put out or vexed—& she had had to send her to another home in the country. I talked to another lady a Mrs Ross who was with Mrs Wilks & the conversation fell on the English Clergyman at Venice & we agreed in lamenting over Mr Mereweather’s service & she said she would ask Dr Ross her husband whether the Society for Christian Knowledge wd not do something towards sending out a good churchman as chaplain. I went & left cards at the mansion house & was very much amused at my drive thro’ the city of wh I know so little. I came home by 5. Lady Westminster came to call & had tea. After Henry had gone up to his study Kinglake came to see me & sat & had a long chat. We talked abt Mme Novikoff known as O.K. She is a friend of his & had quite got round him– He said she was charming but he disliked her politics & her writings & they were “so contrary to herself.” He said that when once calling on O.K. he found P. Labanoff & also calling. O.K. asked Kinglake if he had read something she had written to wh he answered that he had not & thought that it was a kind thing towards a friend often not to read their writings! wh sent the 2 gentlemen into fits. Castellani (of Venice) & Arthur dined & the latter took the former down to the H. of C. to let him hear a debate. Henry & I played cribbage. | |
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