During the next ten months Lord and Lady John were less at the mercy of politics than they were destined to be for many years to come.  They were constantly together, either at Chesham Place or at Endsleigh.  Lord Minto was living near them in London.

    Lord Minto to Lady Mary Abercromby

    LONDON, March 1, 1843

MY DEAR MARY,—­I think you will be glad to have my report of Fanny since I have been established almost next door to her, and the more so as it will be so favourable.  For whatever misgivings I may have had from difference of age, or the cares of a ready-made nursery of children, have entirely gone off.  I really never saw anybody more thoroughly or naturally happy, or upon a footing of more perfect ease and confidence and equality.  I forget if you know Lord John well behind the scenes, but there is a simplicity and gentleness and purity in his character which is quite delightful, and it chimes in very fortunately with Fanny’s.  She has drawn prizes, too, in the children, who are really as nice a little tribe as can be imagined, and I reckon myself a good judge of such small stock.  They are very comfortably housed, much better than I ever hope to be in London, and Fanny seems to govern her establishment very handily.  I don’t know that she has yet quite brought herself to believe that there is anybody in the world so wicked as really to intend to cheat, or to overcharge, or to neglect her work for their own pleasure, but I suppose she will make this discovery in time....

    Adieu, dearest Mary, I have such a craving to see you again that I
    hardly know how I shall keep myself within bounds on this side of
    the Channel.

    Your affectionate,

    MINTO

    Lady Minto to Lord John Russell

    MINTO, March 5, 1842

You can now be pretty well aware of what my delight will be to see my dear Fanny again, and to know her tolerably well; but you have not lived with her five-and-twenty years, and therefore memory has no place in your affection for her, and you cannot even now comprehend the blank she makes to me.  But you can well comprehend the extent of my pleasure in reading her letters, which breathe happiness in every line, and in hearing from everybody of her good looks and cheerfulness.  My only fear for her is an anxiety, natural considering the great change, that her cares and occupations may weigh at times too heavily upon her, and that she will not wish you to see she feels it.  This is the only thing she would conceal from you; but as I know the sort of feelings she formerly endeavoured to conceal from me, it is but too probable she has the same fault still, and nothing but trying to extract her feelings from her will cure her, or at least mitigate the evil.

The next great event in their lives was the birth of their first-born son, John, afterwards Lord Amberley.