My dear Hone, I read the sad accident with a careless eye, the newspaper giving a wrong name to the poor Sufferer, but learn’d the truth from Clarke.  God send him ease, and you comfort in your thick misfortunes.  I am in a sorry state.  Tis the eleventh week of the illness, and I cannot get her well.  To add to the calamity, Miss James is obliged to leave us in a day or two.  We had an Enfield Nurse for seven weeks, and just as she seem’d mending, she was call’d away.  Miss J.’s coming seem’d to put her back, and now she is going.  I do not compare my sufferings to yours, but you see the world is full of troubles.  I wish I could say a word to comfort you.  You must cling to all that is left.  I fear to ask you whether the Book is to be discontinued.  What a pity, when it must have delighted so many!  Let me hear about you and it, and believe me with deepest fellow feeling

Your friend C. LAMB.  Friday eveng.

[Hone’s son Alfred, who had met with an accident, was a sculptor.  The Table Book was to close with the year.]

LETTER 442

CHARLES LAMB TO THOMAS ALLSOP

[No date. ?  Middle Dec., 1827.]

My dear Allsop—­Thanks for the Birds.  Your announcement puzzles me sadly as nothing came.  I send you back a word in your letter, which I can positively make nothing [of] and therefore return to you as useless.  It means to refer to the birds, but gives me no information.  They are at the fire, however.

My sister’s illness is the most obstinate she ever had.  It will not go away, and I am afraid Miss James will not be able to stay above a day or two longer.  I am desperate to think of it sometimes.  ’Tis eleven weeks!

The day is sad as my prospects.

With kindest love to Mrs. A. and the children,

Yours, C.L.

No Atlas this week.  Poor Hone’s good boy Alfred has fractured his skull, another son is returned “dead” from the Navy office, & his Book is going to be given up, not having answered.  What a world of troubles this is!

[The Atlas was the paper which Allsop sent to Lamb every week.]

LETTER 443

CHARLES LAMB TO THOMAS ALLSOP

[December 20, 1827.]

My dear Allsop—­I have writ to say to you that I hope to have a comfortable Xmas-day with Mary, and I can not bring myself to go from home at present.  Your kind offer, and the kind consent of the young Lady to come, we feel as we should do; pray accept all of you our kindest thanks:  at present I think a visitor (good & excellent as we remember her to be) might a little put us out of our way.  Emma is with us, and our small house just holds us, without obliging Mary to sleep with Becky, &c.

We are going on extremely comfortably, & shall soon be in capacity of seeing our friends.  Much weakness is left still.  With thanks and old rememb’rs, Yours, C.L.