Page:Life of Octavia Hill as told in her letters.djvu/202

 103, Milton Street, April 29th, 1860. . At last I've returned to my old proper habit of writing once a fortnight to you, I hope. I've been gadding about in the idlest way possible, and yet with my time quite full. You ask me about Good Friday. My dear sister, I'm far more afraid of your plaguing and torturing your conscience than of your doing wrong.

Mr. Maurice and Mr. Da vies seem to me decidedly to think it a mistake to treat going to church as always a duty ; of course you must do whatever you think right. I shouldn't hesitate to give up going to church on one day, or even fifty, for one of you. You dear old thing, I wish I had you here to give you a thorough good rest, and rousing, and refreshing. How I should enjoy it ! I'm as merry as a grig. I greatly enjoyed Miss Baumgartner's visit. Miss J. B. and I are great companions. I'm always doing things with her. You know she's teaching me Euclid. We went to see Holman Hunt's picture. It is very wonderful, in some respects extremely beautiful, exquisitely beautiful as to colour. But I don't feel as if the picture had thrown much light on the subject for me. I have taken a class in the night-school for girls here for three weeks, during the absence of Miss C. S. I am so glad at last to get into parish work. Miss Sterling and Miss J. B. give me almost unlimited money help for poor people ; the only question is how to use it wisely. . ..

We have been twice to Spitalfields and seen much poverty there among the weavers, besides making the acquaintance of a most nice Ragged School master there. He went round with us to the people's houses