d very charitable, she devoted herself to visiting the
poor--a form of philanthropy which was then neither so widespread nor so
fashionable as it has since become; and she founded, in 1850, the first
Training School or Refuge which had ever existed for destitute little
girls. It need hardly be added that Mr. and Miss Browning co-operated in
the work. The little poem, 'The Twins', republished in 1855 in 'Men and
Women', was first printed (with Mrs. Browning's 'Plea for the Ragged
Schools of London') for the benefit of this Refuge. It was in Miss
Barrett's company that Mr. Browning used to attend the church of Mr.
Thomas Jones, to a volume of whose 'Sermons and Addresses' he wrote a
short introduction in 1884.

On February 15, 1862, he writes again to Miss Blagden.

Feb. 15, '62.

'. . . While I write, my heart is sore for a great calamity just
befallen poor Rossetti, which I only heard of last night--his wife, who
had been, as an invalid, in the habit of taking laudanum, swallowed
an overdose--was found by the poor fellow on his return from the
working-men's class in the evening, under the effects of it--help was
called in, the stomach-pump used; but she died in the night, about a
week ago. There has hardly been a day when I have not thought, "if I
can, to-morrow, I will go and see him, and thank him for his book, and
return his sister's poems." Poor, dear fellow! . . .

'. . . Have I not written a long letter, for me who hate the sight of
a pen now, and see a pile of unanswered things on the table before me?
--on this very table. Do you tell me in turn all about yourself. I shall
be interested in the minutest thing you put down. What sort of weather
is it? You cannot but be better at your new villa than in the large
solitary one. There I am again, going up the winding way to it, and
seeing the herbs in red flower, and the butterflies on the top of the
wall under the olive-trees! Once more, good-bye. . . .'

The hatred of writing of which he here speaks refers probably to the
class of letters which he had lately been called upon to answer, and
which must have been painful in proportion to the kindness by which
they were inspired. But it returned to him many years later, in simple
weariness of the mental and mechanical act, and with such force that he
would often answer an unimportant note in person, rather than make the
seemingly much smaller exertion of doing so with his pen. It was the
more remarkable that, wi