Miranda to Mary Harris.
Octavia and I were at such an interesting open-air meeting at South Lambeth yesterday, to consider the advisability of buying The Lawn (Fawcett’s old house and grounds), and the adjoining grounds, which are large and beautifully wooded, to form a park for Lambeth. The speakers were in waggons, the audience chiefly working men. The appreciation of the Open Spaces was very striking. Octavia said how public opinion on the subject has grown. The working men’s comments that we—being in the crowd—heard, were very interesting. I must say I thought their spirit very good. The only thing was they would not listen to any speakers on the other side, tho’ asked to do so by their chairman—evidently a popular man; and tho’ several of the nicest of the audience said, “Give the man a hearing,” “Let’s hear the other side.” But the desire to gain the park, even at the increase of rates, was very strong, quite unmistakable; also the warm way in which they responded to a speaker who described the temptation to drink, of people who had been sleeping and working in impure air, and who said that drink really took more strength out than it put in. “What is the best tonic after labour?” asked he—and many voices shouted “Fresh air, fresh air.” In fact I thought the Temperance view of the question excited more enthusiasm than any other, except the good the park would do to the children. “If we can’t enjoy it often, the little uns will,” I heard one man say to another aside.
We are so delighted that the Hampstead Vestry has at last voted £20,000 for the purchase of Parliament Hill, by forty-five votes to ten. There was a majority of twenty-one against it on the last occasion.
The Countess of Ducie’s, Tortworth Court,
August 21st, 1887.
Octavia to Miss Ellen Chase.
I hope that you and Miss Terry reached home safely.... You would find some troublesome little scraps of paper about roofs. They were all I could manage before I left. I write now to say that I must ask you to use your own discretion on arriving at Queen Street. My own strong impression is that the downpour probably arose from causes which operated in all sorts of houses, poor and rich; that is, that the arrangements were not calculated to meet such a storm as Wednesday’s. I know the gutters, which run from back to front of houses in Queen Street, are narrow. They are formed of flat pieces of zinc which are turned up at the edges under the tiles—thus.
REFORMS IN DEPTFORD
If the bit which runs up is not wide, the water gets over the edge, if the gutter becomes too full, and enters the house under the tile. For this there is no remedy but a wider gutter. This I do not think it worth while to put for exceptional storms. If this seems to you likely, or if you can elicit from Moore that this is the cause, just say nothing; order the plaster of ceilings, or other urgent internal work to be reinstated. We can take our time as to further radical improvement. If, however, the gutter is itself defective, or Moore distinctly asserts that it is, and that he can patch it up for a few shillings, let him do that; and the sooner the better.... If the E.’s are gone, get on swiftly with repairs required for letting there. Tell French polisher at 33 that we shall have a house when it is done up; but try not to show it, till it looks pretty nice....