The writings of George Eliot Author:George Eliot Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: MISS HENNELL AND THE BRAYS [foleshill companionship: with Mr. Bray she quarrels, and the humorous side of her nature is brought out. Every good story goes to ... more »him, with a certainty that it will be appreciated. With all three it is a beautiful and consistent friendship, running like a thread through the woof of the coming thirty-eight years. For the next twelve years, as will be seen, it is quite the most important thread; and although later it naturally became very much less important, it was never dropped except for a moment in 1854, owing to a brief misunderstanding of letters, which will appear in its due place. The following letters to Miss Sara Hennell show what was passing from September, 1842, to April, 1843:— utterto How I have delighted in the thought that there are Henneii, beings who are better than their promises beyond the Bpt regions of waking and sleeping dreams. I have not yet accounted for my tardiness in writing, which, I assure you, is no representation of my usual habit, and has been occasioned only by a week's indisposition, the foster-parent to the ill-favoured offspring of my character and circumstances, gloom and stolidity, and I could not write to you with such companions to my thought. I am anxious that you should not imagine me unhappy even in my most melancholy moods, for I hold all indulgence of sadness that has the slightest tincture of discontent to be a grave delinquency. I think there can be few who more truly feel than I that this is a world of bliss and beauty — that is, that bliss and beauty are the end, the tendency of creation; and184] ENJOYING THE jENEID evils are the shadows that are the only conditions of Letter to light in the picture, and I live in much, much enjoy- ment. I am beginning to enjoy the "Eneid," though,! ...« less