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31 March 1882 — 3 Savile Row | |
Friday. 31st March [1882]. I felt unwell & got up late. Dr Burton came to see Henry. Mrs Burr came to see me. Fred Layard turned up at the same moment & Alice & Maria. Alice was left with me—& at 12.30 she & I drove to the city to Throgmorton Avenue & at last found the Submarine Tel. Office where we were to meet Sir Arthur Otway. He took us up to see the offices where rows of telegraph clerks sat sending & taking off telegrams wh printed themselves on neat little ribands of blue paper. The sending was done by the touching of a set of keys (on wh were the letters) like piano forte keys– We conversed by telegraph with the clerk at Paris & he answered us as soon as we had asked whether the weather was fine—that it was lovely & he intended to go to the country & sit under a tree & write lovely music in quite a poetic strain. We then went to the Berlin machine & the clerk at Berlin answered that it was warm but dull & at once proceeded to business– Even by telegraph one could see the different characters of the nations. We went down into a kind of cellar where the chemical action went on & Alice had a little shock given her. We then drove to Crosby Hall where Sir Arthur gave us lunch. It is an ancient Royal Palace where Henry VIII used to reside– There are fine halls & chambers & the place had fallen into decay & had been used for a magazine. Some short time ago it was repaired & decorated by public subscription and converted into an eating house. We went up a narrow winding staircase to a large luncheon room with gothic painted walls & windows. We were waited on by young women—in esthetic dress & fuzzy heads– We had an excellent lunch & were thinking of resuming our tourist work & paying a visit to the Towers when we found it was past 3 & we went home promising to make another expedition to the City another time. We came home to tea. Via Templemore & Margaret Ashey came to tea also Miss Browning. Afterwards Alice & I went to Henry’s study and arranged books with Jerry to help us till dinner time. Mr & Mrs Hambro & Nety H, Edward, Blanche & May Ponsonby came to dinner. Just as I was dressing for dinner Arthur came to bid me goodbye as he sails for America tomorrow. I persuaded him to come & dine which he did & Monty was also at home—so we were 10 at table. Arthur left directly after dinner to catch his train for Liverpool. | |
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