of her being gone.

Friday [January 29, 1813].

I hope you received my little parcel by J. Bond on
Wednesday evening, my dear Cassandra, and that you
will be ready to hear from me again on Sunday, for
I feel that I must write to you to-day. . . . I want
to tell you that I have got my own darling child
from London. On Wednesday I received one copy sent
down by Falkener, with three lines from Henry to
say that he had given another to Charles and sent
a third by the coach to Godmersham.

* * * * *

The advertisement is in our paper to-day for the
first time: 18_s._ He shall ask 1_l._ 1_s._ for my
two next, and 1_l._ 8_s._ for my stupidest of
all.[240] Miss Benn dined with us on the very day
of the book's coming, and in the evening we set
fairly at it, and read half the first vol. to her,
prefacing that, having intelligence from Henry
that such a work would soon appear, we had desired
him to send it whenever it came out, and I believe
it passed with her unsuspected. She was amused,
poor soul! _That_ she could not help, you know,
with two such people to lead the way, but she
really does seem to admire Elizabeth. I must
confess that I think her as delightful a creature
as ever appeared in print, and how I shall be able
to tolerate those who do not like _her_ at least I
do not know. There are a few typical[241] errors;
and a 'said he,' or a 'said she,' would sometimes
make the dialogue more immediately clear; but--

I do not write for such dull elves
As have not a great deal of ingenuity themselves.[242]

The second volume is shorter than I could wish,
but the difference is not so much in reality as in
look, there being a larger proportion of narrative
in that part. I have lop't and crop't so
successfully, however, that I imagine it must be
rather shorter than _Sense and Sensibility_
altogether. Now I will try and write of something
else; and it shall be a complete change of
subject--ordination.[243] I am glad to find your
enquiries have end