"And had you loved me then, my dear.
I think you are very kind to remember me and to send such a lovely offering to me at Christmas. God bless you! and may this new year be happy for you, and the harbinger of many happier years to follow."
Some years later the Scotch critic, Professor Meiklejohn, sent to Mrs. Moulton a series of comments which he had made while reading "Swallow Flights," "in the intervals of that fearful kind of business called Examination;" and some of these may be quoted before the book is passed for other matters.
"The word 'waiting' in the line
'White moons made beautiful the waiting night,'
is full of emotional and imaginative memory.
"In 'A Painted Fan' the line
'The soft, south wind of memory blows,'
is another instance of a perfect poetical thought, perfectly expressed.