PR

4612

B69
1899

MAIN

THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA

BEQUEST OF ANITA D. S. BLAKE

^a
/

J^/^

THE STORY OF

LEWIS CARROLL
TOLD FOR YOUNG PEOPI
L BY

THE REAL ALICE

.MISS ISA

IN

WONDERLAND

BOWMAN

WITH

FACSIMILE

DIARY AND NUMEROUS LETTERS WRITTEN TO

MISS ISA
OTHERS.

BOWMAN

and

ALSO MANY SKETCHES AND PHOTOS BY LEWIS CARROLL

AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS

-^^i-

E. P.
31

NEW YORK BUTTON ik COMPANY

1900

West Twenty-third Street

Copyright, iSqg
BY E. P.

DUTTON

& CO.

GIFT
Ube
Iftntcfterbocker Pvces, "fflcw

]i)orf5

|t)L^^

ILLUSTRATIONS
Miss Isa

Bowman

(in

Photogravure)
in

Lewis Carroll's Room

C. L.

Oxford

...
. .

Frontispiece

DoDGSON

13

A Chinaman
Beggar Children
St.

......
.
.

17

35

George and the Dragon

-59
65

Lewis Carroll's House at Eastbourne.

Miss Isa

Bowman and
as

Miss Bessie
in

THE Little Princes

Isa

Hatton Tower the

.

as
.

73

Bowman
(in

Duke

of

York

-77
"

Miss Isa

Bowman

as "Alic e in

Wonderland

Photogravure)
.

80
83
95

The Little Princes

"

Dolly Varden

"

"

A Turk

"
.

103

Facsimile of a

Charade

108-109-1 10

137

LEWIS CARROLL
TT seems down
cences
all.

to
at

me
a

a very difficult task to

sit

desk

and write "reminishas gone from us

"

of a friend

who

It is

not easy to
all

make an

effort

and

to re-

member

the

little

personalia of

some one

one has loved very much, and by

has been loved.
one's duty to
tell

whom

one

And

yet

it is

in

a measure

the world something of the

;

inner
roll

life

of a

famous man

and Lewis Car-

was so wonderful a personality, and so

that
if
I

good a man,
slowly,
I

my

pen dragged ever so

tell

feel

that

can at least
is

sometelling.
still

thing of his

life

which

worthy the

Writing with the sense of

his loss

heavy upon me,

must

of necessity colour
I

my

account with sadness.

am

not in the

LEWIS CARROLL
I

ordinary sense a biographer.

cannot set

down
ate

a critical estimate, a cold, dispassionof a

summing-up
was a

man

loved

but

can write of a few things that happened

when

little
I

girl,

and when he used

^'

to say to

me

that

was

his little girl."

is

The

gracious presence of Lewis Carroll

with us no longer.

Never again
I

will

his

hand hold mine, and

voice

shall

never hear his

I

more
and

in this

world.

Forever while

live that kindly influence will

be gone from
Children
"

my
has

life,

the "

Friend of

little

left us.

And

yet in the

full

sorrow of

it all

find

some note

of comfort.

He was
more

so

good and

sweet, so tender and kind, so certain that

there was another and

beautiful

life
if
I

waiting for

us,

that
it

know, even as

heard him telling

I

to me, that

some time

shall

meet him once more.

the noise and excitement of Lonall

In

all

don, amid
I

the distractions of a stage

life,

know

this,

and

his presence

is

often very

LEWIS CARROLL
near to me, and the kindly voice
is

often at

my ear as it was in the old days. To have even known such a man
was
is

as he

an inestimable boon.

To have been
all

with him for so long as a child, to have

known
a

so intimately the

man who above

is

others has understood childhood,

indeed

memory on which

to

look back with

thanksgiving and with

tears.
'*

Now
now

that

am no

longer

his little girl,"

that he

is

dead and
life

my

life is
I

so differfeel

ent from the quiet

the old charm,
I

he

led,

can yet

can

still

be elad that he

has kissed
Little
girl

me and
and

that

we were
!

friends.
it

grave

professor

is

strange combination.
little

Grave professor and

it

girl

how
little

curious
it

sounds

yet

strange and curious as

so,

and the

girl,

may seem, it was now a little girl no

well.

longer, offers this last loving tribute to the

friend

and teacher she loved so

is still
;

For-

ever that voice

be
of

it
it.

mine

to revive

some ancient memories

4
First,

LEWIS CARROLL
however, as
I

have essayed to be
I

some
I

sort of a biographer,

feel that

before

let

my

pen run

easily over the tale of

I

my
his

intimate knowledge of Lewis Carroll

must

put
life.

down very

shortly

some

facts

about

The Rev.
died

Charles

Lutwidge
" Alice in

Dodgson
and

when he was
his

sixty-six years old,

when
land,"
years.
shire,

famous book,

Wonderin

had been published

for thirty-three

He was
and

born at Daresbury,

Che-

his father

was the Rev. Charles

years of his
life

Dodgson.

The

first

were

spent at Daresbury, but afterwards the family

went

to live at a place called Croft, in

Yorkshire.
in

He went

first

to a private school

Yorkshire and then to Rugby, where he

spent years that he always remembered as

very happy ones.

In 1850 he went to Christ

till

Church, Oxford, and from that time

the

year of his death he was inseparably con-

nected with
college
is

"

The House,"

as Christ

Church
Latin

generally called, from

its

LEWIS CARROLL
name
"

yEdes

Christi,"

which means,
of Christ.

hter-

ally translated, the

House
great

There
scholar

he
of

won

distinction

as

mathematics,

and wrote many

abstruse and learned books, very different

from "Alice
tale that

in

Wonderland."

There

is

when the Queen had read " Alice in Wonderland " she was so pleased that she asked for more books by the same author.
Lewis Carroll was written
to,

and back, with

the

name of Charles Dodgson on the titlepage, came a number of the very dryest
can imagine.
Still,

books about Algebra and Euclid that you

even

in

mathematics

his whimsical

fancy was sometimes suffered to peep out, and

little crirls

who

learnt the rudiments of calcu-

lation at his

knee found the path they had

imagined so thorny set about with roses by

reason of the delightful fun with which he

would turn a task Into a

fun was over the
little

joy.

But when the

o-'irl

would

find that

she had learnt the lesson

(all

unknowingly)

LEWIS CARROLL
Happy little girls who had The old rhyme
is

just the same.

such a master.

" Multiplication

vexation,

Division

is

as bad,

The

rule of three doth puzzle me,

And

Practice drives

me mad,"

would never need

all

to

have been written had

arithmetic lessons been like the arithmetic

lessons given
little friends.

by Charles Dodgson

to his

As
was
deft

a lecturer to his

grown-up pupils he
and under
his

also

surprisingly lucid,

treatment the knottiest of problems

were quickly smoothed out and made easy

for his hearers to

comprehend.

*'

always

hated mathematics at school," an ex-pupil of

his told

me
to

little

while ago,
I

''

but when

went up

Oxford

learnt from Mr.

Dodg-

son to look upon

most delightful of

my mathematics as the His lectall my studies.

at

ures were never dry."

For twenty-six years he lectured

ford,
finally

Ox-

giving up

his

post

in

1881.

LEWIS CARROLL
From
in

that time to the time of his death he rein his college,

still

mained

taking no actual part

the tuition, but

enjoying the Fellow186 1.

ship that he

had won
official

in

This

is

an

account, a brief sketch

life.

of an intensely interesting

It tells little

save that Lewis Carroll was a clever mathematician and a sympathetic teacher
;

it

shall

be

my work

to present

him

as he

was from

a more

human

point of view.

Lewis Carroll
height.

was a man

of

medium
was a was the

When

knew him

his

hair
it

silver-grey,

rather

longer than

fashion to wear, and his eyes were a deep

blue.

He

was clean shaven, and, as he

little

walked, always seemed a

his gait.
figure.

unsteady

in

At Oxford he was a well-known

He

was a

little

eccentric

in

his

clothes.

In the coldest weather he would

never wear an overcoat, and he had a curious

habit of always wearing, in
year, a pair of grey
all

seasons of the

and black cotton gloves.

it

But

for the whiteness of his hair

was

8
difficult to

LEWIS CARROLL
tell

his

age from his

it.

face,

for

there were no wrinkles on

curiously

He

had a

womanish

face, and, in direct con-

tradiction to his real character, there

to be little strength in
it.

seemed
paints

One

reads a ereat
life

deal about the lines that a man's

in his face,

and there are many people who

character
is

believe that

indicated by the
I

curves of flesh and bone.

do

not,

and

never

shall,
is

believe

it

is

true,

and Lewis
instances to
as firm

Carroll

only one of
theory.

many

support

my
to

He was
man may
in his face.

and

self-contained as a

be,

but there

was

little

show

it

Yet you could

in

easily discern

it

in

the

way
had was

which he met and talked with

his friends.

When

he shook hands with you

he

firm white hands, rather large

his grip

strong and steadfast.

Every one knows the

it

kind of

man
soft
"

of

whom

is

said " his

said,
'

hands

were

all

and flabby when he

How-

do-you-do.'

Well, Lewis Carroll was not

a bit like that.

Every one says when he

^^
O

lo

LEWIS CARROLL
of his

shook your hand the pressure

of strength,

was

full

and you

felt

here indeed was a

man

to

admire and to

love.

The

expression

in his

eyes was also very kind and charming.

He

used to look at me, when we met,

in

the very tenderest, gentlest way.

Of course

on an ordinary occasion
terested glance did

knew that his innot mean anything of any

I

extra importance.

Nothing could have haplast, yet,

pened since

had seen him

at the

same

time, his look

was always so deeply

sympathetic and benevolent that one could

hardly help feeling
it

meant a great deal

of the

more than the expression

man.

ordinary

He was

af^icted with
''

what

believe

is

known as Housemaid's knee," and this made his movements singularly jerky and Then again he found it Impossible abrupt.
to

avoid stammering

in in

his

speech.

He

would,

when engaged

an animated con-

versation with a friend, talk quickly and well

for a

few minutes, and then suddenly and

LEWIS CARROLL
gin to stutter so much, that
difficult
It

n
was often
very

without any very apparent cause would be-

to

understand him.

He was

conscious of this Impediment, and he tried

hard to cure himself.

For several years he

read a scene from some play of Shakespeare's

every day aloud, but despite this he was

never quite able to cure himself of the habit.

Many

people would have found this a great

affairs of
it

hindrance to the

ordinary

life,

and

would have

felt

deeply.

Lewis Carroll
life

was

different.

His mind and

were so
in

simple and open that there was no room

them

for

self-consciousness, and
jest at his
it.

have often

heard him

own

misfortune, with

a comic wonder at

The
his

personal characteristic that you would

notice most on meeting Lewis Carroll

was
of

extreme

shyness.

With

children,

course, he
in

was not nearly so reserved, but

In his

the society of people of maturer age he

was almost old-maldlshly prim

manner.
reserve

When

he knew

a child well this

12

LEWIS CARROLL
it

would vanish completely, but

needed only

a slightly disconcerting incident to bring the

cloak of shyness about him once more, and

close the lips that just before

had been

talk-

ing so delightfully.
I

shall

never forget one afternoon when

in

we had been walking

dows.
the

Christ Church mea-

On

one side of the great open space

Cherwell runs through groves
I

little

river

of trees towards the

sis,

where the college

"

boat-races are rowed.

We were going quietly

Cher,"

along by the side of the

when he

began to explain to

me

that the tiny stream

"

was a
of the

tributary,

''

a baby river

he put

it,

big Thames.

He
how

talked for

some

minutes, explaining

rivers

came down
to the sea,

from

hills

and flowed eventually

a brother

when he suddenly met

turning
in

Don

at a

the avenue.

He was my lesson
ness

holding
in

my hand

and giving

me
the

geography with great earnest-

when

the other

man came round

corner.

C.

L.

DODGSON

13

14

LEWIS CARROLL
He
greeted him
in

answer to

his saluta-

tion,

but the incident disturbed his train of

thought, and for the rest of the walk he

became very

difficult

to

understand,

and

talked in a nervous and preoccupied manner.

One

strange

way

in

which

his

nervousness

affected

him was

peculiarly

characteristic.

When, owing to the stupendous success of " Alice in Wonderland " and Alice Through
''

the Looking-Glass," he became a celebrity

many people were anxious to see him, and in some way or other to find out what manThis seemed to him ner of man he was.
horrible,

and he invented a mild deception

or curi-

for use

when some autograph-hunter

ous person sent him a request for his signature on a photograph, or asked
silly

him some

question as to the writing of one of his

books,

how long
person

it

took to write, and

how

many
third

copies had been sold.

Through some

he

always represented that

Lewis Carroll the author and Mr. Dodgson

the professor were two distinct persons, and

LEWIS CARROLL
Oxford
at
all.

15

that the author could not be heard of at

On

one occasion an American

actually wrote to say that he

had heard that

a garden to

Lewis Carroll had

represent

laid

out

some

of the scenes in

"Alice

in

Wonderland," and that he (the American)

was coming right away

of of
it.

to take

photographs

Poor Lewis
for a

Carroll, he

was

in terror

Americans

week

Of being photographed he had a

and despite the
fact that

horror,

he was continually
sit

and importunately requested to

before

the camera, only very few photographs of

him are
self

in existence.

Yet he had been him-

a great amateur photographer, and had

taken

many

pictures that were remarkable

in their
It

exact portraiture of the subject.

this exactness that

was

he used to pride

himself on in his camera work.

said that

He

always

modern

professional photographers

spoilt all their pictures

by touching them

up absurdly

to flatter the sitter. for

When

it

was necessary

me

to

have some pictures

r6

LEWIS CARROLL
me
to Mr.

taken he sent

H. H. Cameron,
artist

whom

he declared to be the only

who

dared to produce a photograph that was

exactly like
its

subject.

This

is

one of the
took,
it

photographs of

me

that Mr.

Cameron

and Lewis Carroll always declared that

was a perfect specimen

of portrait work.
in

Many
this

of the

photographs of children
Carroll's work.
I

book are Lewis

Miss

Beatrice Hatch, to whose kindness

am

in-

debted for these photographs and for much

interesting Information, writes in the

Strand

Magazine (April 1898)

"

My

earliest recollections of

Mr. Dodgson are con-

very fond of this art one time, though he had entirely given it up for many years latterly. He kept various costumes and properties with which to dress us up, and, of course,
at
'
'

nected with photography.

He was

that

added

to

the

fun.

What
Indian
?

child

would not

thoroughly enjoy personating a Japanese or a beggar

child, or

a gipsy

or

an

were excursions

to the roof of the college,

Sometimes there which was

easily accessible from the w^indows of the studio. Or you might stand by your friend's side in the tiny dark room and watch him while he poured the contents of several little strong-smelling bottles on to the

LEWIS CARROLL
glass picture of yourself that looked so

17
its

funny with

black face."

A CHINAMAN

Yet, despite his love for the photographer's

art,

he hated

the idea of

havino-

his

i8

LEWIS CARROLL
picture taken for the benefit of a curious

own
in

world.

The shyness

the presence of

made him nervous strangers made the idea

that
to stare into a

that

any one who cared

shop

window could examine and

trait
I

criticise his por-

extremely repulsive to him.

remember

that this shyness of his

was

the only occasion of anything approaching a quarrel between us.

I

had an
I

idle trick of
child,

drawing caricatures

when
was

was a

and one day when he

I

writinor

some

letters

be^an to make a
of an envelope.
like

picture of
I

him on the back

quite forget
it

what the drawing was

probably

was an abominable

libel

but
I

suddenly he turned round and saw what

was doing.

He

got up from his seat and

turned very red, frightening

me

very much.

Then he took my poor

tearing
fire
it

little

drawing, and
it

into small pieces threw

into the

without a word.

Afterwards he came

suddenly to me, and saying nothing, caught

me up in his arms and kissed me

passionately.

LEWIS CARROLL
I

19
of

was only some ten or eleven years

age

at the time, but

now

the incident comes back

I

to

me

very clearly, and

can see

it

as

if

it

happened but yesterday

ing of

the sudden snatchto

my picture,

the hurried striding across

the room, and then the tender li^ht in his

face as he caught

me up

him and kissed

me.
I

used to see a good deal of him at Oxford,

I

and

was constantly
invite

in

Christ Church.

He
find

would
where

me

to stay with

him and

me rooms
I

just outside

the

college gates,

was put

into charge of an elderly

if
I

dame, whose name,

Mrs.
Buxall.
I

do not

foro^et,

was

would spend long happy

and
the
at nine o'clock
I

days with

my

uncle,
to

was taken over

little

house

in

St.

Aldates and delivered into the hands of the

landlady,

who

put

me
I

to bed.

In the

morning

was awakened by the

"

deep reverberations of

Great

Tom

"

calling

Oxford

to

wake and begin the new

pleasant,

day.

Those times were very

and the

20

LEWIS CARROLL
of

remembrance
Lewis Carroll

them

lincrers

with

me
I

still.

at the

time of which

am

speaking had two tiny turret rooms, one on

each side of his staircase
in

Christ Church.

He

always used to

tell

me

that

when
if

grew

up and became married he would give me

the two
little

rooms, so that

ever

dis-

agreed with

my husband we
till

could each of us

retire to a turret

we had made up our

I

quarrel

And
I

those rooms of his

do not think

there was ever such a fairy-land for children.

am

sure they must have contained one of

the finest collections of musical-boxes to be

found anywhere
big

in

the world.

There were
glass
tops,,

black

ebony boxes with

all

through which you could see

the works.
it

There was a big box with a handle, which

was quite hard exercise

turn,

for a little girl to

and there must have been twenty or

which could only play one
of the musical-boxes
I

thirty little ones

tune.

Sometimes one

would not play properly, and then

always

LEWIS CARROLL
got tremendously excited.

21

Uncle used to

go

to a

drawer

in

the table and produce a

box

of little screw-drivers
I

and punches, and

while
the
lid

sat

on

his

knee he would unscrew

to see

and take out the wheels

matter.

what

was

the

He must

have been a

clever mechanist, for the result

was always

the

same

after a longer or shorter period the

music beean aeain.

musical boxes
-

Sometimes when the

all

had played
in
I

their tunes

he used to put them

the box backwards,

at the
its

and was as pleased as

of the music

comic

effect

"standing on

head," as he

phrased

it.

There was another and very wonderful

toy which he sometimes produced for me,

and

this w^as

known

as

"

The

Bat."

The

ceilinufs of

the rooms in which he lived at

the time were very high indeed, and admirably suited for the purposes of "
It

The

Bat."
of

was an ingeniously constructed toy

gauze and wire, which actually flew about

the

room

like a bat.

It

was worked by a

22

LEWIS CARROLL
It

piece of twisted elastic, and

could

fly for

about half a minute.

I

was always a
it

little

afraid of this toy be-

cause
fearful

was too
joy
in
it.

lifelike,

but there was a

the music-boxes
his

When
me

began to
chair
I

pall

he would get up from

at

and look

with a knowing smile.

always knew what was coming even before

I

he began to speak, and

used to dance up

and down
" Isa,

in

tremendous anticipation.
darling," he

my
!

would

say,

"once

upon a time there was some one

the Bat

called

Bob

and he lived

in

the top left-hand

drawer of the writing-table.

What
?

could he

do when uncle wound him up

I

"

And then would squeak out He could really Fly

!

breathlessly,

Bob

the Bat had

many adventures. There

was no way
its flight,

of controlling the direction of

and one morning, a hot summer's

and alighted

morning when the window was wide open,

Bob
in

flew out into the garden

a bowl of salad which a scout was taking

LEWIS CARROLL
to

23 fellow

some

one's rooms.

The poor
it

was

so startled by the sudden flapping apparition

that he
into a

dropped the bowl, and

thousand pieces.
!

was broken

There

have written

"

a thousand pieces,"

and a thoughtless
thousand pieces
" ?
if

exas^oreration of that sort

"

was a thing that Lewis Carroll hated.

he would have said
"
;

you

know,

Isa, that

the bowl had been broken

into a thousand pieces they

would each have

been so tiny that you could have hardly seen

them.

And
as a

if

the broken pieces had been

get-at-able,

he would have made

me

count

them

means

of impressing

on

my mind

the folly of needless exaggeration.

I

remember how annoyed he was once

at Eastit

when, after a mornincr's sea bathinor

bourne,
I

exclaimed, "

Oh,

this salt water,

always makes

my
it

hair as

stiff

as a poker."

He
no
stiff

impressed

on

me

quite irritably that

little girl's

hair could ever possibly get as

as a poker.
it

"If you had

said, 'as stiff

as wires,'

would have been more

like

it,

but

24

LEWIS CARROLL
then,

even that would have been an exaeeeration."

And

seeing that

was a

httle fright''

ened, he drew for

girl called Isa

me a picture of

The

Httle

whose

hair turned into pokers

because she was always exaggerating things."

That, and
all

the other pictures that he

I

drew

for

me

are,

'm sorry to say, the sole

fishes
in

property of the

little

the

Irish

Channel,

where a clumsy porter dropped

them
head.
"
I

as

we

hurried into the boat at Holy-

nearly died of laughing," was another

;

expression that he particularly disliked

fact

in

any form of

exaggeration

generally

called

from him a reproof, though he was

to
I

sometimes content
stance,

make

fun.

For

in-

my

sisters
" in

and

had sent him

" mil-

lions of kisses

a letter.

Below you

will

find the letter that

he wrote

in return, writ-

ten in violet ink that he always used (dreadfully ugly,

I

used to think

it).

-2/-e>^^

V-*^C

4^

l^^yKxJLB

-^^

JH

2a

(a}-uJ^

25

^tv^^

Ckm^JLJ

^-<^^

""'^^ <fi4M^

JZir ^rr^<-cM. ^ ret

,

^l^MU^^cn^

26

J.

tL..^ -^

~Z^diy<

.3

.x'^-^W>^^>o->^ ^yy^^^^'yc^e^-

'Urf^-i3^~-C^

27

^ ^^ ^^
^*rc^^

'^^'^

^^^^t^

^^^SCvy

o?

CM(

^. ^e.^^

/^/^ ^^^(C^^
28

^^<ftf

LEWIS CARROLL
"
Cii.

29
Ch. Oxford,
14, 1890.

" Ap.

"

My own
" It
's all

Darling,
very well for you and Nellie and Emsie to and kisses, but please con-

write in millions of hugs

sider the time
l)usy
!

occupy your poor old very it would Try hugging and kissing Emsie for a Uncle minute by the watch, and I don't think you'll manMillions' must age it more than 20 times a minute.
'

mean 2

millions at least.
20)2,000,000 hugs and kisses

60)100,000 minutes
12)1,666 hours

6)138 days

(at

twelve hours a day)

23 weeks.
n't go on hugging and kissing more than day and I would n't like to spend Sundays So you see it would take 2j weeks of hard that way.

"I could

12 hours a

work.

Really,

my
n't
I,

dear child,
I

eanuot spare the time.

"Why
Why, how
I

have
eoitld

written

since

my
?

last

letter?

you
tJie

silly silly

child
I

How

could

have written

siiiee

last time

did write?

Now,

you just try it with kissing. Go and kiss Nellie, from me, several times, and take care to manage it so as to have kissed her since the last time you did kiss
her.

Now
'

go back to your place, and

kissed her several times

'11

question

you.
"

Have vou What

'

"' Yes, darling Uncle.'

"
kiss
'

o'clock was

it

when you gave her

the last

;o
"
"

LEWIS CARROLL
'

minutes past
well,
I

lo,

Uncle.'
'

Very
Well
I

now, have you kissed her since?

!

"

'

ahem
!

ahem
'

ahem
I

(excuse

me,
I

Uncle,

've got a

bad cough).

think that

that is, you, know, I " Yes, I see " Isa " begins with " I," and it seems to me as if she was going to end with " I," this time
'
'

n't been because I was a horrid lazy old thing, who kept putting it off from day to day, till at last I said to myself, 'WHO ROAR There's no time to write now, because they sail on the ist of April.' In fact, I should n't have been a bit surprised if this letter had been from Fulhani^ instead of Louisville. Well, I suppose you will be there by about the middle of May. But mind you don't write to me from there Please, please^ no more horrid letters from you I And as for kissing them wlien I do hate them so

"

Anyhow, my not writing has

///,

was

but because

'

get them, wliy,

"

I 'd
!

just as soon kiss

kiss kiss you,

2

you tiresome thing

So there now

Thank you
liked
I

very

much

for those

i)hotographs

say

them hum pretty well. I can't honestly thouglit them the very best I had ever seen.

" Please give

my

kindest regards to your mother,

and and

1^

of a kiss to Nellie,

and

-oio

of ^ kiss to Emsie,
So, with fondest

^TiToijTiroo

of ^ kiss to yourself.

love, I

am,

my

darling, your loving Uncle,

" C. L.

DODGSON."
I

'

This refers to
little

my

visit to

America when,
Richard III."

as a child,

played

the

Duke

of

York

in "

LEWIS CARROLL
And
showed
''

31 of

now,

in

the postscript,

comes one
runs

the rare instances in which

his

Lewis Carroll
It

deep religious

feeling.

I'.S.

I've

asked
you,

me

to write for Nellie

thought about that little prayer you and Emsie. But I would

have the words of the one I wrote for and the words of what they nc?7J say, if they say any. And then I will pray to our Heavenly Father
like, first, to

to help

me

to write a prayer that will

be really

fit

for

them

to use."
I

Again,

had ended one

of

my

letters
It

with "all join

me

in

lufs

and
I

kisses."

was a

letter written

when
I

was away from

there

home and

alone,

and

had put the usual

in haste, for

ending thoughtlessly and

was no one that

knew

in all that in

town who

could have joined

him.

me He answered me
"
7

my

messages to
:

as follows

LusHiNGTON Road, Eastbourne,

Aug.
30, go.
!

Oh, you naughty, naughty, bad wicked little girl You forgot to ])ut a stamp on your letter, and your His last poor old uncle had to pay Think of that. I shall punish you seTwopence So tremble 1 verely for this when once I get you here.

"

TWOPENCE!
to

Do you

hear

Be good enough

tremble

32
"
I

LEWIS CARROLL
've only time for
'

one question to-day. Who in that join you in Lufs and kisses.' Were n't you fancying you were at home, and sending messages (as people constantly do) from Nellie and Emsie without their having given any ? It is n't a good plan that sending messages people have n't
the world are the
all
' '

given.

don't

mean

it 's

in the

least iniU'uihfnl^ be-

cause everybody knows

how commonly
;

they are sent

without having been given

of receiving the messages.

but

it

lessens the pleasure

sisters write to
it

My
I

me
so
I

'with best love from

don't value
it

all.'

know

isn't true

much.

The

other day, the husband of

one of
loving
in
in
')

my

'child-friends'

(who always
'

writes 'your

me and ended with Ethel joins me kindest regards.' In my answer I said (of course fun) I am not going to send Ethel kindest rewrote to

'

gards, so

won't send her any message at all'

Then
writ-

she wrote to say she didn't even

ing
'
!

know he was

Of course I would have sent best love,' and she added that she had given her husband a piece of her mind Poor husband " Your always loving uncle,
!
!

"C. L. D."

These
roll's

letters

are written in Lewis Car-

ordinary handwriting, not a particularly

legible one.

When, however, he was

distinctly

writ-

ing for the press no characters could have

been more clearly and

his.

formed than
it

Throughout

his life

he always made

LEWIS CARROLL
to other people.
"

33

his care to give as little trouble as possible

Why should the printers

my
letters

have to work overtime because

are ill-formed

and

my

words run into each

other

"

he once

said,

when
"

a friend remon-

strated with

him because he took such pains

copy."

with the writing of his

As

a speci-

men
this

of his careful

penmanship the diary that

is is

he wrote for me, which

reproduced
an

in

book

in

facsimile,

admirable

example.

They were happy

ford, spent with the

days, those days in

Oxour
to

most fascinating comIn

visits

panion that a child could have.

walks about the old town,
cathedral or chapel or
his friends
I

in

our
our

hall, in

visits to

he was an ideal companion, but

think

was almost happiest when we came

back to

his

rooms and had tea alone

(it

the fire-glow

when was always winter when I

;

stayed

in

Oxford) threw fantastic shadows

about the quaint room, and the thoughts of

the prosiest of people must have
3

wandered

34
a
little

LEWIS CARROLL
into fancy-land.

The

shifting fire-

light

seemed

to

almost aetherealise that

fell

kindly face, and as the wonderful stories

from

his lips,

and

his eyes lighted

on

with the
wore,
I

sweetest smile that ever a

of a love

me man

was conscious
Charles

and

rever-

ence for

Dods^son

that

became
were

nearly an adoration.
It

was almost pain when the

lights

turned up and
life

we came back

to everyday

and

tea.

He was
that
it

very particular about his

in

tea,

which he always made himself, and

order

should draw properly he would walk

about the room swincrine the tea-pot from

side to side for exactly ten minutes.

The
his

idea of the grave professor

promenading

book-lined study and carefully weaving a tea-

pot to and fro

the
minutia

may seem
life

ridiculous, but all

of

received an

extreme
first

attention at his hands, and after the

surprise

one came quickly

to

realise

the

convenience that his carefulness ensured.

LEWIS CARROLL

35

Before starting on a railway journey, for

BEGGAR CHILDREN

instance (and

journeys

in

how delightful were railway the company of Lewis Carroll),

36

LEWIS CARROLL
map out exactly every minute of that we were to take on the way.
of the journey completed, he
of

he used to
the time

The
that

details

would exactly calculate the amount

money

must be spent, and,

in different partitions

of the

two purses that he

carried,

arrange

the various

sums

that

would be necessary

for cabs, porters,

newspapers, refreshments,
It

and the other expenses of a journey.

himself en route by thus

was wonderful how much trouble he saved

making ready

be-

forehand.
half frantic

Lewis Carroll was never driven

on a station platform because he
to

had

to

change a sovereign

buy a penny

paper while the train was on the verge of

starting.

With him journeys were always

that waited on a
little girl

comfortable.

Of the joys
stayed with

who

Lewis Carroll
crive

at

his

Oxford
which

home

can

no better idea than that

follows,

furnished

by the diary that

bit

he wrote for me,

evenings of one of

by

bit,

during the

my

stays at Oxford.

LEWIS CARROLL

zr

^C}i(Xf>.

18S8,

dKo^,:!J^

^/ "Gte.

"

'So.

lis

a^ :^ioL^ cc/tc'l Jso. iJzou^iir

in

fr-ordr h)tre,

rLcdL,CLT^cL ^o-nxekou)

t^e^

jaUtl

u^t^-Ue. jo^otc^r^ l^klrud- ,So Hioct:

:>S

LEWIS CARROLL
coJLJL^
tell
y^ka^re. iiCv vuLtL^kcxS,

you.

foot ^J-

tk^^Gll^ ,'^isire^ ^ae

a.

stfcum-p^kdr
[^ ot

~Tr-Q^?yierLclou.-^

fieuahJr-tfi^ Trails' ^mj^i^

fiCK u^t^is
'na.

oir

p a.rtr

of-

M^

rn^cA^re^

The re- Ua^s

rid

7U)vt; i'>^<^ "ti

i^in^icJ^

^ h^/ ^wio^n^

\*j

sfooJi

"next
doCj

.X'Sd.

^clL^u

tx>

CL^^^e^^i^yu^y,^ J^cCi^
'K^c-^

loo 'k^il

nro u^yxJ^

J uB't' tlow

^^^^

'/^

tike

a.

re.(x.t
'to

^oj,
^1^0

iX^CicL

Sae-

tka.ir l/rvo ou^Ld-t^r^l ^CL-s CccUCn^ '^'

Us

fl^eci

A^eL

Mjx?C)

w tiii:
of-

to

-th-e.

Kouse.

oj-

a^

cLii-u-ne-'T-,

cLri.cL'tuJii

her- c/ic-ldr-e^z^ Ca.llecl

LEWIS CARROLL

39

H-t

"^Itt^^

I^orA-

PaicH;tle'roy. Loo- vJ0i<2JL

rio.\Je

-^e

"Vkojtre^ oUcL not' clIU^aJ Ji-e/r^ ae ekt^lcL rKot i^%ov) 'tfie^ vooris ^ voKCck would Aaye Piad^

If go of-f ircLcLly.JI^a^ I iJ^ecL 'tfuu vokole^ rilo^y Hic^ p a ssioi^uxtl clit Exi't anoi y^ry 7y\ju.clx iJio. c^^ntU JSAI^xe/r- oj- tfie little loj cLiiJ^tK^
-.

droll "Mr. yTa!rlrs']anJ^ clU oftfCa^.

Qdf outr (xt-tktOr 3tvXL0'^'^^ CUnJi Xs^cu a.n(L 'the. A-A^^^. htt'ct'Q^^iz o^-forcL. A kind old l^J ecL ::t\^rs S^h-lo ru^ kcx.L in^ '(-i^cL JTscl. -h CO, drJi she. Co-y^^- dn-cL qXz^p art herhon^e. as/eeo, cLTCj^cLrtcKnrMio^zrlQzr^ ^a^'P ^o^n^ vv>a5
f-l
,

'

sAe- ^^"^^

little^

l^orcL

Th^LLnilcro^ vJ&re aouna

CLncL Vjki'^'t^^'^^ to
a.

a.

cLoj

wko w aS

crv Sicc/x.

h^rru

iz go u.^'tAe^ Tails tka.tr

iiO-

^A/ OU^i

40

LEWIS CARROLL

ne.a.Tly
rUKnTdilu

-fou-r f-e.et
to"

kc^jt Qso
^

^uf Usa,
^>^^^

6 Loop

at" all

'tf qq

fiat UT^ ^^^

alvOcLyc^

ptopie. ccxXV Tom,

Clticx.Ji']^

~Y^u. 'sk:SaU

Qaddra^^U
c^^xi

d' ttl^^I^

/-ee??^ ^^^"^ to 'take

'TutiCQ,

T^urtr L^lr cLo

e^n^6' llUe.

Joeu)^&

CoulleL
'tAeij

naime- On^t/ieor
<^

^y
^

~hCh.ru=,-t Cktcy,,

^^^

tall

n^i^LLTrierd:

iil<e~^^

^p^e

r-tat"

p^

up

Lrx,

mo.rno'ry

oj^uCr^Q^

^^Ao^s^

?^ec^u,5e^LicG. <y^rCsir

^^^ w ou.icL n.oTr lre^f\orKa^^C.a.i;{-Q^

<^A^rcA

was

^a.itir

i^tl

X^^^C,

LEWIS CARROLL

41

TTw. /re ^

L% A^^tcAea LS clrod.-tkt oUest pari- ^TL ha^a Hre, ~jra.t^ ^f^S^ _f-^oua k ^ Toast at- ^^ forX^ le^S of
ifrz

are ^k^L-

oLccken 4o.
,

ytiLCtt^TL.

^^ci^eA^.M^
of
Qui.

Acs Ur.U

^..er^l'^'^s

BodULaix^X^^LiruT^
Ck.

u^

^rociA'^irii^t^

ClTicL^CLS

l/cundL

'^oiS

Jusir CjOLn^

iy

qP

''

a-rL.(L

VOrino^LrLa

Ktr y-ta.n.ds^

Tyie

'Band

teA ~Mi^yy^ in/^

^^

qcxro(-Q.ns

of

"Vv^^/f^,;^

42

LEWIS CARROLL
aoinc^ on.

Cl

School- tr&dL
TvLOTck t7iA
Cl

^ho^^re^
~i^
of-

i^o^S

j^ irst

Tw tee

To^. nd,

Q(Xr4em

UxaTL Aav'vl;^
tn.
(X

^^W

"^fei-

ph-otoc^Tckp/i don-t

'^711, all

(LpjroTrLLG^ of- "^uticIi,

-Ur^

""IBraaJL 'U/atkl IrL~tA^ ev-^yx.Lnj

Siej

foLo^'x^oL

cd

""

:F^vtrSL''^tUL
li^i

X-So^

hal Lo^

'^h^rc

sJiQ.

v^ent

to

and

i.Teain.-el sJe

a,

duck of WtUx^^^u.j(^^,

hhr- 7^eJiiCLna -Ver\j

Iaj'uPl

CLTru-oSlyj^) vOQ-n.tr

^-e^

./\.A,jvr. (^voko

would
o\^r-

c^o u)Llt:

Jie?-^

t^oiiJ^ sAe '^old jLcnu

anlovcr

rat/i&r^ s/lI l^outd

leaLona)i3 ^^J^rde7i6
See

yoht.re. -tko-y dt^J-^it-

Me

ewa.?L(y>^^

LEWIS CARROLL

43

So sAe /outcK lo^

o^^cn^.sAt i.Utkno^
l^S^Sj
KJ/(^re

(ZolLeae,

C tru.'d.lr

Cv^
^

^ai\J_

dclmcTed,
'tA^o^ IS'O

tk^

^a.ro)-Q^

/awn.

-jnoT^.

SiLv-e,r^

\<>2reL

n^oir w) alk

l^'ua

ab-otLtr.

C l^u.d^ u^ 1(9/0) - ank_l^Z^^ T^^u) Mu^enTir.^ U)/iere. X^^ c^Uiibc lost /i.QrCiolLe^e.

KtcLtt to

thai
^A-e.

^ijlffeJi ^-dtLUol^ "^JrtiUct oi^)xr^ f-roni. u alass CaS^,

a, chcx.'no'Li-i'x^

^'n.o

ft Carious tk cn^ tAeu ^^W ih er^

44

LEWIS CARROLL
Looks
-e-Kudlx^

-tiaJr

lik^c^

vo'Jirereil ^e^f^

tJCrou-^k ttei yoalC^ one

o-f-

t^-eforst^^er^

of

CAe.

old.

Ci(rL)"^ails
tte

rwrL^ou/n.ci

6^

stlU Stt Some,

of-

oU ^^rroiV

Kiel's,

thr

K)/iLc/L~t^ ciefenj_rs could ^foot: arrows at irk^^ oCttack^'^^ ^'^ntu \A:>hb aou.il Jtarli^ Sac:2eed Cn. sAootun^
ovio^L

of ^r. P(xo^2t on.^ of-iMJ^<^nmi^ ^f^^-Ci, Tk-en^ afte^ c^ Sorrowful ^^^-eTicn^ Xsa
^

-^ erCt to
iTux-z-i-yu^

Ued

ctncL

Jlreamed

sfle.'VJUS

ai/oui

a'n^Qn(>~tfre 'f'lo\^jers^

CLn\j

Aon&yj

L'i\,'tfiQ7rL.-

Omiu sUces

o-f

LEWIS CARROLL

45

G'Tz,

SckLurdoAj Tsa. na.(L a.M'uj^Ld

v_e2lM. cd. ^//^ cccLt-

nstnr u

m e-nt p lay
~io

0-5
cxifid

T-)OLL

(mL Aav^
:

2o" tu.-r'n^

^ X^^ndte
uk.^

Toauoi

raund^

So sfi^di^^ llr nxc eLj SYaxJu

oj-poufi-er

pjuctr CL ioTL^ jruace,

goes '^rou.^n,

c^

a^z^ ot

rrL(xch.iite.^0L^^ t^e.Aole^

i'nStke f^CLpAyr ?n,cUxe. dij^-pe/r-eAd: TLote^ yO^CKy-L/l-etj /t<X^ 0-71^2- L-K ^roH.j 6^//

Sooyv- foLcncL 'iAe?7seL v-e.Q

\j

lto

"i/te.

clooh i>t-fo re.

9,sb2TdlaAj

So

ikeyi

dcxreJi n6~{r(jo on. for-

-jeojr oj- r^'UxkLOtCj

J^^a.

So (^^^^^
otlIk^

-S/^ \A)ou,l(l^

%6t

b-t

cKUe

to-

talk,, "^Ae.
\^)y{o

A'A^NJa^s
ho U)l
^

Twlt Z^"^e.

vt."&z.75o7^5

Whit
H^aJcb

aet

TecL UrStAe. -j-ace^Jr^oyn.

morrU^c
v^

to

Ck,

XrLthe. CA. rn&cKclovo ^ and

CLfl^r>yt-o o-yCjiTeA^

eM:t"^o c4^(^

5-AW^e -^^rfs

l^io^&i^q

l^~/Ajl^(^otle.^eS^ c^ymL'^on^e./ireti^

46
TAe?i. C^aTcLe/yiS
^te.

LEWIS CARROLL
^ey ^^-^
,

uiTOLLo.k, 'the.
tJre^ 'y-e.a.-r

SoLo^TLtcal
?^o^
.

iru.iL't'

in

i<y

fyd^-Z^ej^
-to

^eve^

w-er^ tuuilt oCt all

Cioile^e.

JndL

tkeix.

Ji^cjcUUo^
cc^rvecL
J

Jt

tKe.tfp

o-f tfk.

^o^iy
ar'^/nj^

-j^o^ct

in, <^to'ixe
m.a.n^
act

ATccL

a,

t^ttte,

yo'ctK- O- irrocL ^e. sUe^e^Ael/^n^

0'1^1^'^jCCL

f-OT Aiv-LvOa/rcts

XS^ t^oa^k-tt^-t^-^^^^^t
to

'i:iv\-^

sA^

Lauc^k^ sha.

\;)UL

c^e-tJ^fetWo^

tf keip> her- l^itK^-tu)o pe.ojx.i^tz and Corntrs o-f- ^oc^r^ -mou.tjLfor^^ou.^ pull a/> me.
TVTao^c^Le

/lab

Ol

f^rett^ \^(xik
'

U)itfl 'tries

clL round tt] circhecL ^nct -lAereJ^Cj yi^et a.lacL^

ovei^
"fronx^

/l^jY^vLTrica^'^ (KS -tte i^o^y

^he told,

tjievr^, vdj^o

u)and:eZ td

^^^^

if

"Ad<ii5oo^^s -WoXk''^ a^tcL par,

Xoa^,c,X-tkcd::rLost ofitt Uor^S

anA

U^tfS

a.^llru.{-fo.iot^.rouLnLtK2, meacloxO^,^ere ^act^ ^^JL^riy e,er/aiecL/^eo;.te. s. P^2e amcL-tre7T^LLit^ and^^nei.

.e^e
elie.

'oQ^ of-f-

LEWIS CARROLL
oaw her no
?nore
-

47

o^lu tAeu kearcL

Atr

yoAa haJL A^j)eneJL -^ Aer

/^O.ftaJ^

Called 07x a. tc^d. Called -Mrs J-e.cLii^j (xncL /le-r Ic-ttte^ QJ^ayncL-Iku-A-ier^ calleA ''Nbel^l l/eccLcL5e 5/5^ a^ as- Irvm^ an^ Christ lo^c^s -^<^^^ C'^oU " cs-Me Trend name. jor Ckristnxas'^ J)^^cLtK.erer^ey^ kaJL So
''

OxfonL,

and

TkcTL
doo^

-thex^

)^zyx:t ko7}X^

iovoi-u

a, Icttle,

eLanJlLixcj

;fLxecL cnrtke^

rrxyLcidle^

of-

ZXd,

street'
c^'Tou.ndi

aS
:

'-f-

l^ i tet

iA)<i.-re.

c^lued^

tke.
Co

LAa^ o.^ke(^

\{r Low)

U^xa drTneaicb

Coodd^
Ghe,

''till

'^e.\^eeJ<

cxf^ter^ riejx>-t'-

'^a.S

goc7i^

Tou.ri(L ~NCcKGcLo^LerL

J^TeajjouJ

yjixs
tre.e^

trLL-ffalo-

siCtcn^

kanctirm her a^^5

of-~teoi.

df{h.t^ of^yerj olS she^

48
''tko.

LEWIS CARROLL
C.UJX.S

u^5 cde-dioYjTi

So

tkodri^e tlk.
'To^ dovon^

pjDu.recL ckU

over Aer heaJL

a.n.Ji

To

Sir.

T^ojnTxjs

ch-LLTcJx^^
y

Ci^K iah.

'S'^ree^b

Ttl
to

torVLio^
tTte
07i.

fion^e

^^^-n-'i^ street' ^nle-y-t"

CL haor-

v^Kere^-tko^ kaJi^oaixJL CL-fuKed

uts

^93)~^^^y /^'^'^^ ^ f-^xecK ccut Itttk k'JTeTu^~^o[tkal ^ut ou

-ifiTOiiy^
the,
l/-ci^T

keaJL

o-^

ifAe ceiiar-

\^^nJji-sAj^

cdr

trCo^

ntyCt d^or^
A)

h-iit

Z^e ma-cX- SacJi

i^o,

ce^^cL-r-

(lS

Tit^ir^ -iivJr

Ko use.

aTtdj

Ire-fore

j^a-Ji
i,ts

il7ifLX^cL its KeoJ!

rtack

IrhSii^. this CiM^

^^

or

t^in^r f^o?n, J^rovi^tKe, t-ctrS ^ c^hA haX oone. tkoLco^hL the, o^ivc?7v^ls ct^

kcLve.

o^c^rLoos

i/Jo^

^/ /'^

^!15

-''

^he-n

ioo'h^d

dL CLk^o^nl ^acA. cct a^tot of- cItzS^CS, voX.<.^/4

tKo-j

^^nZ

LEWIS CARROLL

49

^rt^pheX. Some o-f tAe^ Presses Aal u-eerv u 5 eX ^^ ^^ ^1"^ 7^^ ^ 7n^5 aZ^ 2) r^a ry -X <x.7i >f(3;??e ^r(f55 tyo [tea oar- ckilJireoi, ui: i.^;er^ ^^^/ Some Acid Irec')^ ^eYj ^rrtcx^ni/ cce?tir onct^lujt
;

h)ere.
6-f

(AtaT7xo^

itLtt^ oil. cLnL

otL

cLresses^ t/iere ls one.

oicL

sAaU^.Tcdk^nc Cq [[eoe. ck Ox.

-J^rd. So
^ruo

-tha^t-otis n-ot k^ovOr^/oy-

i^-^^ 'twere.

Say

Ur
0-^5

w'CLS
.

iruiUr m^y^e^
^

-irkcin.

1000 years
,~i'Ae

^-h.cL

^yojie^'tfiey

Say 'thU
^YVK^o^t

^eojile

kiAo

live.

LPv^^ot^ey-

resfiedrf^y

^^^

tAe^

vo,-nJc

'~V/ie.

^^"1^

c/ojy

lSa_ SavJ

cl.

^t^ru^u-S
loo/<:

trook
/-Lari

of pietliY^eS
oj^

o>-f

Q^ostl -Xf x^oll

ctt

(^^ f-crr c^cUrL^^

oniy
,

o^ TnuruXTe, ^ cl-kcL ij[en. looA'

If oii..

i:/ie.re
lr\.

-^Ae/i^

yo^ hoLve

ttz,

u~dok ^tlr is

see \7iol^r- ajiosir cl ^^c/c one c^ lojiite one. a-yi, Sfe-

50

LEWIS CARROLL
-

^A^n, 'd~ is ^reen Lrvtk& u-aok^ cex^^A^ it CvS p,lrxJc ^n. tAo^ c e itCn^ Xn^ ^^ ^ri'^dlle o-f-'Pie. cLa.u ^u.s olSllU^
.

w ds
dusk

^r^p-LleTr-

i^/iaTv,

tL5uLal,
"

^ke-re^ vOae

of^^e^rin^o^LLe.6

^Zv(ci is /ircnouL^'Lcei.

i^aJr ^Ae
ail -Me, -r^ooKj

\Aj6ulcL /i<xva. ti^/^eJi to

lC\j^ 0p_tAe77i

rest
(XTicL

of-ke-r
a^

Ufe

Tlx.y iooK

little,

vodk
of-

en

a.fteT.

'Broad ^-i/eet cross Iri^rieA cvt ^^W ~tfie q ro an I ol HJi^^ inhere Vie J\t(xrtx^rs V tt^ nea,r tfe pXace, V)ffe. Ij^Lcr/ted-. ^ke7i:~they \^e^f ckto ^^
cn.t/fe

nr^Mlt

cLTc:L

etis

of-

Tri'-it'Lty

College

CbiiuK^

i'^

IS^S^J^

-^ see.-b^ "-JZ^imaTValk"^

a^ t>TeW^

Crcfn^^'^des"

^^ utC not T6a.l ^ dis

:

^ ^^
^

of-

^^

garde?x.
6x
(me,

o'lxt'

alL

cLono.

pieci^
Cf(X.

ancL-tAe^

c^o

uXl-^lr op.e7v'tkem^e-\^e7u

^o^^

knocked
eraile-

(xU-

Aay .Xs^-^ou^Ait-Uem

nUe

'^'h.nu.

LEWIS CARROLL

51

lAjiPh'ireas

cml
L^
^

daer^

'

'IraiyDc.y^/ci!'

o-f

LL7VS

'tPiat:

^-recorrouus o^
h--/}T^

<^^-^^^nanS

\/)h^c.K

stood

'tA.e/re- >^

TCi^

(Carles

tfUt Vir'ot Wa'b Lix ChcfarA^

cunL Oliver

'Wtttr

Suck treme7^dously
\A)lio

n.c^rro\^ x^CnJowc

t/icdr J-6cL vOae o^frcUct'wi^

-m-^TL'to

^^^^y gentle* Come. t^Bre vOiUfioiri^ ai-U

laaTTLthecr
^e.b6 o7i6jancLuj'dl

-^^e^

to

~vu:e^ at

-7^^6'w

CclUo^e.

anJi kec^rd^

6op?ie

Then
TGol

^c<ok to

<^^.

6k. ^ cnponri/nur'^Cit.
tyij^^%K>Jieiv

tri-^L to- (^0 La{t~i7Le. i-rop.5'.

eke

haJL

COiA.i'Ctti
d

fQuur-rnLlt^onS,

"^r^e^

fiu-rclre^ cL^d

eue?^ty -UojAt'~tAou.5a^^j

52

LEWIS CARROLL

Af-t-tr cLinner-^ J,^cu j6t~ SomeCr-oaiu

or-

otker

C^l^

^^ ^^"^

-:^iyLisk~t/vL6 story

Sure y^ko lIt iA)a&) for k^r. ^hen^ ^/le

to

uJt7it

tkerriUUe

Uie.

cjrouTii

of Oxford^ loctk hrj^aei^asi OLnd ka7-Ae^i ktrt^eeyx^tfie

^

in>JtS

of ^ Cellar- UJ inio vo ux.ou^o-rf; \j: finc/i -ial^Ua^^ Tken 5he drea?7ie/t{e ^r-trauv cc^me Icon, dnd i^e fieo,^

CO.

k^

^Q

^^ ^;^c.7^e
ru^-t

Oaf:

'Ok,

c^ciuz

"Bui sAe crUl ^ 1-6 uj^^U /^ tol

all OV^T-

(lTQ.a.lful i^ -^ave TYLy v cSut

smllei.

c}k.

her steep ^

a 7^1.
,

Sa^ 'hTell,
tfiLTuk

do

T/ou. Atlom^j

(xf'ter c^iL

X
J-

y\)ou2An,lr yYiL7i,iL do

v-f-ry ynLtcft.

cf

did

fiixve

tlr (xll

over (xaain,!''^
XjQv^Cs Cajtrotl

T.-HTE

ENt>

LEWIS CARROLL
This diary, and what
I

53

have written before,

girl,

show how
For

I,

as a

Httle

knew Lewis
he
re-

Carroll at Oxford.
his little girl friends, of course,

served the most intimate side of his nature,

but on occasion he would throw off his
serve and talk earnestly and well to
re-

some

young man
witness to

in

whose

life

he took an
is

interest.

Mr. Arthur Girdlestone

this,

able to bear

and he has given me an

which
reproduce our con-

account of an evening that he once spent

with

Lewis
from

Carroll,

here

notes

made

durino;

versation.

Mr.
at

Girdlestone, then an undergraduate

College, had on one occasion to call
his
I

New

on Lewis Carroll at

rooms

in

Tom Quad.
the soci-

At the time

of

which

am

speaking Lewis

Carroll had retired very

much from

ety which he had affected a few years before.

Indeed for the

last

years of his

life

he was
in

almost a recluse, and beyond dining

Hall

saw hardly any one.

Miss Beatrice Hatch,

54

LEWIS CARROLL
his "girl friends," writes
:

one of

apropos of

his hermit-Hke sechision

"If you were very anxious to get him to

come

to

your house on any particular day,

the only chance was not to invite him, but

only to inform him that you would be at

home.

Otherwise he would

say,

'

As you
I

have invited

me

cannot come, for

have
;

made a rule to decline all I will come the next day.'

'

invitations

but

In former years

he would sometimes consent to eo to a

party
'

if

he was quite sure he was npt to

off'

be 'shown

or introduced to any one as

I

the author of 'Alice.'

must again quote

from a note of
to tea
'

his in

answer to an invitation
!

What

an awful proposition
six

To
!

drink tea from four to

would tax the would

constitution even of a hardened tea drinker

For me, who hardly ever touch

probably be
"

it,

it

fatal.'

All through the University, except in an

extremely limited

circle,

Lewis Carroll was

lived very

regarded as a person

who

much

LEWIS CARROLL
by
himself.
I

55
said

"When," Mr. Girdlestone

to see
I

to me, "

went

him on quite a shght

it

acquaintance,

confess

was with some

shght feehng of trepidation.

However

had to go on some business, and accordingly

I

knocked was
all

at his

door about 8.30 one

to

winter's evening,

and was Invited

come

in.

"He
table,

sitting

working
hlrn

at

a writing-

and

round

were

piles of

MSS.

arranged with mathematical neatness, and

many
threw
me.l

of

them

tied

up with

tape.

The lamp
he greeted
I

his face Into sharp relief as

My

business was soon over, and

was
If
I

about to go away, when he asked

me

would have a
for a
"
little.

o^lass

of wine

and

sit

with him

The
fire

night outside was very cold, and

the

was bright and

inviting,

and

sat

down.

He began

to talk to

subjects, of the things a

me of ordinary man might do at

and the
affection

Oxford, of the place

in

itself,
It.

which
In

he held

He

talked quietly,

and

a rather tired

voice.

Durlnor

our

56

LEWIS CARROLL
nw
eye
fell

conversation
of a of
its

upon a photograph

little

girlievidently from the freshness

appearance but newly taken

which was
of
it

resting

upon the ledge

It

of a reading-stand at

my

elbow.

was the picture

I

a tiny

child,

very pretty, and

it.

picked

up

to

look at
''
'

Ij

That

is

the baby of a girl friend of

mine,' he said,

and then, with an absolute

'

change of

voice,

there

is

something very

strange about very young children, something

in
I

cannot understand.'

asked him
at

what way, and he explained

some
than

length.

He was

far

less

at his ease

when

talking trivialities, and he occasionally

for a

stammered and sometimes hesitated

word. /
I

cannot remember
still

all

he

said,

but

some

of his remarks

remain with me.)

of very
little

He

said that in the

his"

company

children

brain enjoyed a rest which was

recuperative.

startlingly

\If he

had been
in

working^ too hard or had tired his brain

any way,] to play with children was

like

an

LEWIS CARROLL

57

actual material tonic to his whole system,

([understood hini to say that the effect was

almost physical
[)

"He

said that he found

it

much
his

easier to
into

understand children, to get

mind

correspondence with their

minds when he
and

was fatigued with other work. /Personally,

I

did

not

understand

little

children,

they seemed quite outside

my

experience,
if

and rather incautiously

ren never bored him.

asked him

child-

He
sat

had been stand-

ing up for most of the time, and

when
he

asked him

that,

he

down

suddenly.
said.

'They are three-fourths

i^l

of

my

life,'

cannot understand
little

bored by

how any one could be think when you children. I

come
it. 'J

are older you will

to see

this

hope

you
"

'11

come

to see

After that he changed the subject once

more,
cian

and became again

little

the

mathemati-

formal, and rather weary."

Mr. Girdlestone probably had a unique

experience, for
it

was but rarely that Mr.

58

LEWIS CARROLL
so far

Dodgson

unburdened himself

to a

comparative stranger, and what was even

worse, to a " grown-up stranger."

Now

have

given

you two

different

phases of Lewis Carroll at Oxford

Carroll as

Lewis

the

little

girl's

companion, and
fireside telling

Lewis Carroll
something of
I

sitting

by the

his inner self to a

young man.
life

am

going on to talk about

at

my

with

him

Eastbourne, where

used, year by

year, to stay with

inorton

him

at his

house

in

Lush-

Road.

He

was very fond

of Eastbourne,
I

and

it

was from that place that

charming
is

received the most

letters that
I

he wrote me.

Here
from

one,
I

and

could hardly say

how many
aorain.

times
its

have taken
"

this delio^htful letter

drawer to read throuo^h and throuorh

7

LusHiNGTON Road, Eastbourne,

" September
little
17, 1S93.
!

" Oh, you naughty, naughty

I

culprit
little

If

only

could

fly to

Fulham with

handy

stick (ten

feet long

how
ever,

and four inches thick is my favourite size) would rap your wicked little knuckles. Howthere is n't much harm done, so I will sentence

6o

LEWIS CARROLL

you to a very mild punishment only one year's imprisonment. If you '11 just tell the Fulham policeman about it, he '11 manage all the rest for you, and he '11 fit you with a nice pair of handcuffs, and lock you up in a nice cosy dark cell, and feed you on nice dry
bread, and delicious cold water.
*'

But how badly you do

! '

si)ell

'your words

loas

so puzzled about the 'sacks full of love

full of kisses

and baskets

But

at last I

made

out why, of course,

and a basket full of kittens !' I'lien 1 understood what you were sending me. And just then Mrs. Dyer came to tell me a large sack and a basket had come. 'J'here was such a miawing in the house, as if all the cats in Eastbourne had come to see me Oli, just open them please, Mrs. Dyer, and count the things in them " So in a few minutes Mrs. Dyer came and said, 500 pairs of gloves in the sack and 250 kittens in the
'

you meant

a sack full oi gloves,

'

'

'

basket.'

Dear me

That makes 1000 gloves

!

four times

many but why

as

gloves as kittens

It

's

very kind of Maggie,

gloves
?

did she send so

Jiaiids,

many
'

for I haven't

got 1000
"

you know, Mrs. Dyer.'

No, indeed, you
're

And

Mrs. Dyer said,

' !

998
do,

hands short of that

"

However
I

the ne.xt day

and

took the basket with

school

I made out what me and walked off

to

to the
I

parish

the
?

girl's school,
'

you know
little

and

said to the mistress,

at

How many

girls are

there

school to-day

Exactly 250,

sir.'

LEWIS CARROLL
And have
H
"
(

6i
day
'

they

all

been

2>ery

good

all

As good
I

as gold,

sir.'

So

waited outside the door with

little girl

my

basket, and
little

as each

came
!

out,

just i)opped a soft

!

Oh, what joy there was The hands little girls went all dancing home, nursing their kittens, Then, the and the whole air was full of purring next morning, I went to the school, before it opened, to ask the little girls how the kittens had behaved in And they all arrived sobbing and crying, the night. and their faces and hands were all covered with scratches, and they had the kittens wrapped up in their pinafores to keep them from scratching any And they sobbed out, The kittens have been more.
kitten into her
!

'

''

scratching us

all

night, all the night.

'

" So then I said to myself, What a nice little girl Maggie is. JVoic I see why she sent all those gloves, and why there are four times as many gloves as kittens and I said loud to tlie little girls, Never mind, my dear children, do your lessons lu'rv nicely, and don't cry any more, and when school is over, you '11 find me at the door, and you shall see what you
!

'

'

shall see

" So, in the evening,

when
at

the

ning out, with the kittens

pinafores, there was
I,

still

little girls came runwrapped up in their

!

the door, with a big sack

out,
!

And, as each her hand two

little

girl

came

just

popped
little

into
girl
little

pairs of gloves

And

each

unrolled her pinafore and took out an angry

kitten, spitting

out like a hedgehog.

and snarling, with its claws sticking But it had n't time to scratcli.

62
for, in

LEWIS CARROLL
one moment,
it

found
!

all its

four claws

popped

into nice soft

warm

gloves

And

then the kittens got

quite sweet-tempered and gentle, and began purring

again
"

So the little girls went dancing home again, and the next morning they came dancing back to school. The scratches were all healed, and they told me The kittens have been good And, when any kitten wants to catch a mouse, it just takes off one of its gloves and if it wants to catch two mice, it takes off two gloves and if it wants to catch three mice, it and if it wants to Q,dX<z\\ four takes off three gloves But the moment mice, it takes off all its gloves. they 've cauglif the mice, they pop their gloves on
'
'

again, because they

their gloves.
inside

know we
'

can't love

them without
'

For, you see

's

gloves

'

have got

love

'

them

there

none

outside
'

"So all the and we send

them
"
in

little girls said,

Please thank Maggie,

kisses in return

her 250

loves,

and 1000

for her 250 kittens

and her 1000 loves ! f' And I told and they said they had n't. the wrong order
!

Your loving old Uncle,

"C. L. D.

"

Tove and

kisses to Nellie

and Emsie."

This
writing,

letter takes

up eight pages of close

and

should very

much doubt
fancy
in

if

any child ever had a more charming one

from anybody.

The whimsical

it,

LEWIS CARROLL
the absolute comprehension of a child's
tellect,

63
in-

the quickness with which the writer

employs the slightest incident or thing that

would be

likely

to
I

please a
shall

little

girl,

is

simply wonderful.

never forget

how

the letter charmed and delighted

my
it

sister
"

Maggie and

myself.
letter,"

We

called
I

The

glove and kitten

and as
is

look at the

tremulous handwriting which

side,
it all

lying by

my
like

comes back to me

very vividly

the sound of forcrotten finufers on the latch

to

some
is

lonely fireside watcher,

wailinor

when

the

wind

round the house with a

it

wilder inner note than

has

in

the daytime.

At Eastbourne
seemed more
holiday over
free,

was happier even with

I

Lewis Carroll than

was

at

Oxford.

We
air of

and there was the

it all.

Every day of

my stay

at

the house in Lushington

Road was a

perfect

dream

of delip^ht.

There was one regular and

fixed routine
I

which hardly ever varied, and which

to

came
an

know by

heart

and

will

write

64
account of
reads
it,

LEWIS CARROLL
It if

here,

and ask any

little girl

who

she ever had such a splendid

life.

time

in

her

To

begin with,

early indeed.

we used to get up very Our bedroom doors faced

each other at the top of the staircase.

I

When
might
If,

came out

of

mine

always knew

if I

go

into his
I

when
then

room came Into

or not by his signal.

the passage,

found that

a newspaper had been put under the door,

I

knew

might go

in at
I

once

but

If

there was no newspaper, then

till it

had

to wait

appeared.

used to

sit

down on

the

top stair as quiet as a mouse, watching for

the paper to

come under

the door,

when

would rush

in

almost before uncle had time

to get out of the way.

first

This was always the

pleasure and excitement of the day.

to

Then we used
fast,

go downstairs
that

to break-

after

which we always read a chapter

out of the Bible.

it,

So

should remember

always had to

tell it

to

him afterwards

as a story of

my

own.

LEWIS CARROLL

HOUSE AT EASTHOUKNE

65

66
"

LEWIS CARROLL
Now
me
then,

Isa dearest," he

would

say,

"tell
'

a story, and
time.'
'

mind you begin with

once upon a

story which does

'

not begin with

possibly be
portant."

once upon a time

story.
It
's

can't

good

most im-

When
go
I

had told

my

story

it

was time

to

out.

was

learnlnof

swimmincr

at the

Dev^on-

shire

Park baths, and we always had a bar-

gain together.

He would

never allow
I

me

to

go
in
I

to the
until

swimming-bath
I

which

revelled

had promised him

faithfully that

would go afterwards

to the dentist's.

He

had great ideas upon the importance

of a regular
dentist.

and almost

daily visit to the

He
that

himself went to a dentist as he

to a hairdresser's,

would have gone

insisted
all

and he
sounds

the

little

girls

he knew

should go too.
stranore,

The

precaution

and one mio^ht be inclined

it

to think

that

Lewis Carroll carried

;

to an unneces-

sary length

but

can only bear personal

LEWIS CARROLL
witness to the fact that
teeth,
Hfe.
I

67

have firm strong

in

and have never had a toothache

I

my

beheve

owe

this entirely to those

dally visits to the

Eastbourne
It

dentist.

Soon
rooms

after this

was time

for lunch,
to

and
the

we both went back hand-In-hand

In

Lushlngton Road.

Lewis Carroll
al-

never had a proper lunch, a fact which

ways used
I

to puzzle

me

tremendously.

could not understand

live

how
It

a ble erown-

up man could

on a glass of sherry and

a biscuit at dinner time.

pity

seemed such a

when

there was lots of mutton and rlceI

puddlng that he should not have any.

always used to ask him,
gry, uncle, even to-day ?
"
"

Are

n't

you hun-

After lunch

used to have a lesson

of

In

backgammon, a game
have enough.
the ereat
trial

which he was pass-

ionately fond, and of which he could never

Then came what

of the dav.
little girl In
far.
I

to

me was
afraid
I

am

was a very lazy

I

those days, and

know

hated walking

The

trial

was.

68
that

LEWIS CARROLL

we should walk to the top of Beachy Head every afternoon. I used to like It very much when I got there, but the walk was irksome. Lewis Carroll believed very much
in a

great

amount

of exercise,

and said one

Accordingly
after-

should always go to bed physically wearied

with the exercise of the day.
there was no

way out

of

it,

and every

noon
Head.

had to walk to the top of Beachy

He was
all

very good and kind.

sorts of

He
curi-

would invent

new

orames to be-

guile the tedium of the way.

One

very

ous and strange

trait

in his
I

character was

shown on these
dog or a hedge

walks.

used to be very
also.

fond of flowers and of animals

A pretty
And

of honeysuckle

were always

pleasant events upon a walk to me.

yet he himself cared for neither flowers nor

animals.
ple

Tender and kind

as he was, sim-

and unassuming

in all his tastes,

!

yet he

did not like flowers

confess that even

now

find

it

hard to understand.

He knew

children so

thoroughly and well

perhaps

LEWIS CARROLL
better than any one else

69
is

that

it

all

the

stranger that he did not care for things that

generally attract them so much.

However,

be that as
I

it

may, the fact remained.

When
I

was

in

raptures over a

poppy or a dogrose,
was an

he would try hard to be as interested as

was, but even to

my

childish eyes

it

obvious
invent

effort,

and he would always rather

for us to play at.

some new game

I

Once, and once only,

remember him
that

to

have taken an interest

in a flower,

and that

was because of the

tached to
it,

folic-lore

was

at-

and not because of the beauty

itself.

of the flower

We
trees,

used to walk into the country that

in

stretched,

beautiful

natural

avenues of

inland from

Eastbourne.
tree,

One day

while
of the

we

sat

under a ereat
life

and the

hum

myriad insect

rivalled the

murmur
and told

of the far-away waves, he took a foxglove

from the heap that lay

in

my

lap

me

the story of
;

how

they came by their

all

name

how,

in

the old days, when,

over

70

LEWIS CARROLL
forests, like the

England, there were great

forest of

Arden

that Shakespeare loved, the

folks,"

pixies, the " little

used to wander at

night in the glades, like Titania, and Oberon,

and Puck, and because they took great pride

in their

dainty hands they

gloves out of the flowers.

flower that the "
little

made themselves So the particular

"

folks

used came to

be called

" folks'

gloves."

Then, because

the country people were rough and clumsy

in their talk, the " Fox-gloves," the

name was shortened name that every one

into

uses

now.

When
me
has,

got very tired

we used

to

sit

down upon

the grass, and he used to

show

the most wonderful things

his handkerchief.
I

made out of Every one when a child

the
trick
in

suppose,
is

seen

which

a handkerchief

rolled

up

to look like a

mouse, and then made to jump about by a

movement

of the hand.
I

He

did this better

than any one

ever saw, and the trick was

a never-failing joy.

By

a sort of consent

LEWIS CARROLL
between us the handkerchief
especially for
trick

71

was kept
tired

the

walk to Beachy Head,

I

when, about half-way,

was a

little

and wanted
to the

to rest.

When we
He

actually got
In
I

Head

there

was tea waiting

the
ate

coastguard's cottage.
far too

always said

much, and he would never allow

me
I

more than one rock cake and a cup

This was an invariable
wished for
it,

of tea.
as

rule,

and much

was never allowed to have

more than one rock cake.

It

was

in

the coastofuard's house or on

I

the orrass outside that

stories.

heard most of

his

Sometimes he would make

ex-

cursions into the realms of

pure romance,

where there were scaly dragons and strange

beasts that sat up and talked.
stories there
forest,

In

all

these
In

was always an adventure

a wood.

and the great scene of each

in

tale al-

ways took place

the phrase, "

The consumnow came

I

mation of a story was always heralded by

The

children

to a

deep

dark

wood."

When

heard

that

72

LEWIS CARROLL
which was always spoken very

sentence,

slowly and with a solemn dropping of the

voice,
I

always knew that the really exciting

I

part

was coming.

used to nestle a

little

nearer to him, and he used to hold

tle closer as

me

lit-

he told of the
not always
I

final

adventure.
fairy
tales,

He
though

did
I

tell

me

think

liked the fairy tale

much

the best.

Sometimes he eave me accounts

which had happened to him.
particularly thrilling story of

of adventures

There was one

how he was
fog,

lost

on Beachy Head

in a

sea

and had to

of boulders.

way home by means This was the more interesting

find his

because
disaster,

we were on
and to

the actual scene of the

be there stimulated the

imagination.

The summer
never met a

afternoons on the great headI

land were very sweet and peaceful.

have

man

so sensible to the influ-

ences of Nature as Lewis Carroll.

When

the sunset was very beautiful he was often

affected

by

the

sight.

The widespread

MISS ISA

BOWMAN AND

MISS BESSIE

LITTLE PRINCES IN THE

HATTON TOWER

AS

THE

73

74

LEWIS CARROLL
in

wrinkled sea below,

the mellow melanfit

choly light of the afternoon, seemed to

in

with his temperament.

I

have

still

mental picture that

the
cliff.

can recall of him on

Just as the sun was setting, and a

cool breeze whispered round us, he

would

take
his

off his

hat and let the wind play with

to
sea.

hair,
I

and he would look out

tears in his eyes,

Once

saw

and when we

turned to go he gripped
tighter than usual.

my hand much

We
change

generally got back to dinner about

earlier.

seven or

He would

never

let
if

me
we

my He

frock for the meal, even

to

were
wards.

oroino-

a concert or theatre after-

had a curious theory that a

change her clothes twice
in

child should not

one day.

He
to

himself

made no

alteration in

his dress at dinner time,

nor would he per-

mit

me

do

so.

Yet he was not by any

means an untidy or slovenly man.

He

had

many
ror

little

fads in dress, but his great hor-

and abomination was hieh-heeled shoes

LEWIS CARROLL
with pointed toes.

/o

No

words were strong

enough, he thought, to describe such monstrous things.

Lewis Carroll was a deeply religious man,

and on Sundays

at

Eastbourne we always

went twice
child

to church.

Yet he held that no

church-iJ^oinof

should be forced into

airainst its will.

child,

Such a

state of

mind

in a

he

said,

needed most careful

treat-

ment, and the very worst thing to do was to

make attendance
sure,
that,

at the services compulsory.

his,

Another habit of

which must,

feel

sound rather dreadful to many, was

should the sermon prove beyond

my

comprehension, he would give

me

little

book

to read

it

was better

far,

he main-

tained, to read, than to stare idly about the

church.

When
He

the rest of the conorreo-ation

rose at the entrance of the choir he kept his

seat.

argued that

risin^r to

one's feet at

such a time tended to make the choir-boys

conceited.
I

think he was quite right.

He

kept no special books for Sunday

76

LEWIS CARROLL
was most emphatically
of

reading, for he

opinion that anythincr tending to

make Sunstudi-

day a day dreaded by a child should be

ously avoided.

He
it

did not like

me

to

sew

on Sunday unless

was absolutely necessary.

expected that a
as

One would have hardly man of so reserved a nature would have taken much
stage.

Lewis Carroll
in

interest

the

Yet he was devoted

to the theatre,
treats

and one of the commonest of the

that he eave his
little
ofirl

friends

was

to

organise a party for the play.

of acting

As

a critic

he was naive and outspoken, and

if

never hesitated to find fault

justifiable.

he thouo^ht
that

it

The
I

following

letter

he

wrote to
ard in."

me
is

criticising

my

acting in " Rich-

when

was playing with Richard

Althoucrh

Mansfield,
I

one of the most interesting that

it

ever received from him.

was

written for a child to understand and profit

by,

and moreover written

it

in

the simplest
strikes

possible way,

yet even

now

me

as

a trenchant and valuable piece of criticism.

^t'

ISA

BOWMAN

AS

DUKE OF YORK

77

y^

LEWIS CARROLL
" Ch. Ch.
''Ap.

Oxford,
4, '89.

" My Lord Duke, The photographs, which Your Grace did me the honour of sending arrived safely and I can assure your Royal Highness that I am very glad to have them, and like them very much, particularly the large head of your late Royal Uncle's little little son. I do not wonder that your excellent Uncle Richard should say off with his head as a hint to the photographer to print it off. Would your Highness like me to go on calling you the Duke of York,
;

'

'

or shall

say
?

'

my own own

darling Isa

?'

Which do
pet about

you

like best

"Now
me
"

I'm going

to find fault with

my

her acting.

What

's

the good of an old Uncle like

?

except to find fault

You do

the meeting with the Prince of Wales

;

very nicely
for his

and lovingly and, in teasing your Uncle dagger and his sword, you are very sweet and playful and but that's not finding fault Isa says

'

'

to herself.
I

Is n't
'

it ?

Well,

'11

try again.
'11
'

Did
say a
If

n't

hear you say

In weightier things you

'

Z^^-^'--

s^ar nay,'

leaning on the word

beggar

so,

it

was a mistake.

My

rule for

knowing which word

to

lean on is the word that tells you something nni\ something that is different from what you expected. " Take the sentence first I bought a bag of apples, then I bought a bag of pears,' you would n't say then I bought a bag of pears.' The bag is nothing new, because it was a bag in the first part of tlie sentence. But \\\Q pears are new, and different from the
'
' ^ '

LEWIS CARROLL
apples.

79

So you would

say,

'

then

bought a bag of
"
?

pears'
"
*'

to Richard amounts to this, With light gifts you '11 say to a beggar " yes " with The heavy gifts you '11 say to a beggar " nay." words you '11 say to a beggar are the same both times But so you must n't lean on any of those words. light is different from heavy,' and yes is different from nay.' So the way to say the sentence would be with with //>/// gifts you '11 say to a beggar ''yes " And the heavy gifts you '11 say to a beggar " nay " .' way to say the lines in the play is
' : ' *
'

Do you understand Now what you say

that,

my

pet

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

O, then

see you

\\\\\

part but with light

'11

gifts

In xveightier things you

say a beggar

nay.''

One more
"
weapon.^ little

sentence.
says,
'

WHiat, would you have my Lord ?' and you reply 'I would, tliat I might thank you as you call me,' did n't I hear you pronounce thank as if it were spelt with an e ? I know it's very common (I often do it myself) to say thenk you as an exclamation by itself. I suppose it's an odd way of pronouncing the word. But 1 'm sure it 's wrong to pronounce it so when it comes into a sentence. It will sound much nicer if you '11 pronounce it so as to rhyme with bank.' "One more thing. ('What an impertinent old uncle Always finding fault ') You 're not as natural, when acting the Duke, as you were when you acted Alice. You seemed to me not to forgot yourself

When Richard

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

8o
enough.
It

LEWIS CARROLL
was not so much a and his uncle
listen

real pri7ice talking to

;

his elder brother

it

was Isa
it

Bowman
all

talking to people she did n't ?/iuch care about, for an

audience to

to

don't

mean

was that

through, but sometimes you were artificial.

Now

don't

I say she was sweetly She looked and spoke like a real Prince of Wales. And she didn't seem to know that there was any audience. If you are ever to be a good actress (as Isa' altoI hope you will), you must learn io forget gether, and be the character you are playing. Try to think This is really the Prince of Wales. I 'm his little brother, and I 'm very glad to meet him, and I this is really my uncle love him very much,' and he's very kind, and lets me say saucy things to him,' and do forget that there 's anybody else listening " My sweet pet, I hope you won't be offended with me for saying what I fancy might make your acting

be jealous of Miss Hatton, when

natural.

'

'

'

better

"

Your loving old Uncle,

"Charles.

X X
X

for
for

Nellie.

Maggie.

for Isa."

for Emsie.

He was
London

a fairly constant patron of

all

the

theatres, save the

Gaiety and the

like,

Adelphi, which he did not

and num-

bered a good

many

theatrical folk

among his

LEWIS CARROLL
acquaintances.
of his greatest friends.

8i

Miss Ellen Terry was one

Once

remember

we made an expedition from Eastbourne to Margate to visit Miss Sarah Thome's theatre,

and especially for the purpose

of seeing

Miss Violet Vanbrugh's Ophelia.

a great admirer of

He was
Of
he had

both Miss Violet and

as
actresses.
too,

Miss

Irene

Vanbrueh

Miss Thome's school of acting,

the highest opinion, and
it

was

his often

expressed wish that

all

intending

players

could have so excellent a course of tuition.

Amonor the male members

of the theatrical

profession he had no especial favourites, ex-

cepting Mr.OToole and Mr. Richard Mansfield.

He

never went to a music-hall, but con-

sidered that, properly managed, they might

be beneficial to the public.

It

was only

when

the refrain of

some

particularly vulgar
his ears in the

music-hall song broke

streets

upon

that he permitted himself to speak

harshly about variety theatres.

82

LEWIS CARROLL
Comic
opera,

when

it

was wholesome, he
visitor to the Sa-

liked,

and was a frequent

voy

theatre.
too,

The good
was a

old style of Panto-

mime,

orreat delisfht to

him, and

he would often speak affectionately of the

pantomimes
of

at

Brighton during the regime

Mr. and Mrs.

Nye

Chart.

But of the
horror,
visit

up-to-date

pantomime he had a
induce

and
one.

nothing would
"

him

to

When pantomimes
said,

are written for children

*'

once more," he
then."

will go.

Not

till

Once when a

friend told

him

that she

was

about to take her

little girls
till

to the panto-

mime, he did not

her.

rest

he had dissuaded

To

conclude what

have

said

about

Lewis Carroll's affection

art, I will

for the

dramatic

give a kind of examination paper,

written for a child

recitation called
"

who had been learning a The Demon of the Pit."

prevented him from
reci::.
r,

Though

his stuttering

being himself anything of a

he Lved

^-

THE LITTLE

I'KINCES

83

84

LEWIS CARROLL
would take any pains

correct elocution, and

to

make

a child perfect in a piece.

all

First of
-graph.

there

is

an explanatory para-

'

As you don't ask any The Demon of the Pit,'

"
it

questions about
I

suppose you

understand

all.

So please answer these

if

questions just as you would do

child (say Mollie)

younger

asked them."
Ethel,
will

Mollie.
this

Please,
to me.
in
it.

you explain

poem

There are some very

dear
first

hard words
Ethel.
Mollie.

What
Well,

are
in

the)',

the

line,

" If

you

chance to make a

sally."

What

does "sally"

mean

Ethel.

Dear

Mollie,

believe sally

means

to take a chance work.^

verse
'

Mollie. Then, near the end

"

of

the

first
"

Whereupon

she

'11

call

her cronies

At

this point the real child's

answers begin, the three or four

lines alone

were written by Mr. Dodgson himself.

Ed,

LEWIS CARROLL

85

what
EtJicl.

does ''whereupon" mean?

?

And

what are cronies

I

think whereupon means at the

same

time,

and cronies means her favourite

playfellows.

Mollie.

"And
To

invest in proud polonies."

"
?

Wliat

's

to " invest

Ethel.
in

invest

means

to

spend money

anything you fancy.

Mollie.

And what

's

"A woman
the

of

the

day?"
Ethel.

A woman
"

of

day means a

wonder

of the time with the general public.

Mollie.

Pyrotechnic
?

blaze

of

wit."

What

's

pyrotechnic
Mollie,
I

Ethel.

think you will find that

pyrotechnic means quick,

HcrhtnincT.

with

flashes of

Mollie.

Then
"

the 8 lines that begin

"

"The
"

astounding infant wonder

" role "

please

explain

and

mise

"

and

" tout

ensemble

and "grit."
Ethel.

Well,

Mollie,

"role" means

so

86

LEWIS CARROLL
different things, but in
Pit
"
I

many

"

The Demon
meant the
"

of the

should think
of

it

leading

part

the

piece,

and

mise

means somethincr extra

and
" " tout "
"

orood

introduced,

means

to seek for applause, but of the parts

ensemble

means the whole

taken together, and grit means something

Q-Qod.

Mollie,
ble."

*'

And

the Goblins prostrate tum?

What 's
I

" prostrate "

Ethel.
cast

believe

prostrate

means

to

be

down and unhappy.

''And
his
?

Mollie.

accents shake a

bit."

What
word.

are " accents "

Ethel.

To
" "

accent

is

to lay stress

upon a

Mollie.

Waits

resignedly
" ?

behind."

What

's

resignedly

Ethel.
yielding.

Resignedly

means
tripe

givmg
as
light

up,

Mollie.

"

They have

to

dream

on."

What
" to

does "as" mean here?

and what does

dream on

"

mean

LEWIS CARROLL
EtJiel.

87
Is

Mollle, dear, your last question

very

funny.

In

the

first

place,

have

always been told that hot suppers are not

good

for

any one, and

should think that

TRIPE would not be light to dream on but

VERY

heavy,

Mollic,

Thank now

you, Ethel.

have
of

nearly

finished
;

my
is

little
I

memoir
of

Lewis Carroll
all

that
I

to say,

have written down

that

can remember

my

personal knowledge of him.

it

But

think

is

from the
in this

letters

and the

diaries

published

book

that

my

readers must

chiefly gain an insight into the character of

the

greatest

friend

to

children

who

ever

Not only did he study children's ways for his own pleasure, but he studied
lived.

them
For
to

in

order that he might please them.

is

instance, here
little

a letter that he wrote

my

sister

Nelly eight years ago,

last

which begins on the

entirely

page and

is

written
his

backwards

a kind of variant on

88

LEWIS CARROLL
"

famous

Looking-Glass" writing.
at the last

You have
it.

to begin

word and read back-

wards before you can understand

only ordinary thing about
it

The
It
it

is

the date.
to read

begins
in the

mean

begins

if

one was

ordinary

way

with the characteristic

" N'ov.
I,
1.

monogram,

C. L. D.

891.

Uncle loving your! Instead grandson his to it give to had you that so, years 80 or 70 for it forgot you that was it pity a what and him of fond so were you wonder don't I and, gentleman old For it made you that ///;// been nice very a was he. have must it see you so -.grandfather my was, tJien alive was that, Dodgson Uncle' only the. Born was / Dodgson before long was that, see you, then But. Uncle for pretty thing some make I '11 now,' it began you when, yourself to said you that, me telling her ago years many great without, knew I course of and Me told Isa what from a it made had you said she. was it ? For meant was it who out made I how Lasted has it well how and. Grandknow you do father my for made had you Antimacassar pretty that me give to you of nice so was it, Nelly dear my."
'*

C. L. D.,

'

'

LEWIS CARROLL

89

Bo

cnn

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3d CihB^ ff^^^ d^y^ytA-o^ ^LffKrt

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90

LEWIS CARROLL

a>\j

LEWIS CARROLL

91

Miss Hatch has also sent

letter that

me

an original
in

Lewis Carroll wrote to her

1873, about a large

ofiven
her.
It is

wax

doll that

he had

interestinor to notice that

this letter,

written long before any of the

is

others that he wrote to me, the

identically
It
is

same

in

form and expression.

striking proof
writer's

how

fresh

and unimpaired the

sympathies must have been.

Year

after year

he retained the same sweet, kindly

if

temperament, and,
children

anything, his love for

seemed

to increase as

he o erew older.

92
"

LEWIS CARROLL
My dear
Birdie,

met her just outside Tom and I think she was trying to find her way to my rooms. So I said, Why have you come here without Birdie ? So she said, Birdie 's gone and Emily 's gone and Mabel is n't kind to me And two little waxy tears came running down
I

Gate, walking very

stiffly,

'

'

'

'

her cheeks.

Why, how stupid of me I 've never told you who was all the time It was your new doll. I was very glad to see her, and I took her to my room, and gave her some vesta matches to eat, and a cup of nice melted wax to drink, for the poor little thing was very hungry and thirsty after her long walk. So I said, Come and sit down by the fire, and let 's have a comfortable chat ?' Oh no no ! she said, I 'd much rather not. You know I do melt so very easily
!

"

it

'

'

'

'

'

And

she

made me
it

take her quite to the other side of

:

was very cold and then she sat on my knee, and fanned herself with a pen -wiper, because she said she was afraid the end of her nose was beginning to melt. You 've no idea how careful we have to be,' we dolls, she said. Why, there was a sister of mine would you believe it ? she went up to the fire to warm her hands, and one of her hands dropped right off There now Of course it dropped 7-ight off,' And how I said, because it was the right hand.' do you know it was the right hand. Mister Carroll?' the doll said. So I said, I think it must have been the right hand because the other hand was left.'
'

the room, where

'

'

'

'

'

"

The

doll said, 'I shan't laugh.

It

's

a very

bad

LEWIS CARROLL
joke.

93

Why, even
so

a better joke than that.

common wooden doll could make And besides, they 've made
I

my mouth
try ever so
'

stiff

and hard, that

'

cant laugh
it,' I

if

but

tell

much ?' me this

:

Don't be cross about

said,

'm going

to give Birdie

and the

other children one photograph each, which ever they

choose;
'

don't
'
!

which do you think Birdie will choose?' know,' said the doll you 'd better ask
' ;

her So I took her home in a hansom cab. Which would you like, do you think ? Arthur as Cupid? or Arthur and Wilfred together? or you and Ethel as beggar children ? or Ethel standing on a box ? or, one of yourself? Your affectionate friend, " Lewis Carroll."

Amone
fore me,
I

the bundle of letters and

find written

MS.

be-

on a

half sheet of

note-paper the followinc^ Ollendorfian dialogue.

It is
it

interesting because, slight and

it

trivial as

is,

in

some strange way bears

style.

the imprint of Lewis Carroll's thing

is

The
:

written in the familiar violet ink,

in

and neatly dated

"

the corner 29/9/90

at the
!

Let

's

eo and look

house

want
so

to buy.

Now
What

do be quick

You move

slow

a time you take with your

boots

94
"

LEWIS CARROLL
Don't make such a row about
yet.
it
:

It 's

not
this

two o'clock
house
"
hill.
I

How
it.

do you

like

?"

don't like

It

's

too far
I

down

the
ac-

Let

's

go higher.

heard a nice

count of one at the top, built on an improved

plan."
"
*'

What

does the rent amount to

's

"
?

Oh, the rent

all

right

it 's

only nine

pounds a year."

Over
writing,

all

matters connected with

letter

Lewis Carroll was accustomed

pains.

to
re-

take

great

All

letters that

he

ceived that were of any interest or import-

ance whatever he kept, putting them away

in

old

biscuit

tins,

numbers

of

which he

kept for the purpose.

In 1888 he published a
little

book which

he called
about

"

Eight or Nine Wise Words

Letter Writing,"
of

and as
I

this

little
I
:

book

mine

is

so

full

of letters,

think

can

do no better than make a few extracts

.^^i

DOLLY VARDEN

95

96

LEWIS CARROLL
Write Legibly.

The

average temper of the hu-

if every one obeyed this rule A great deal of the bad writing in the world comes simply from writing too quickly. Of course you reply, 'I do it to save time.' A very good object, no doubt but what right have you to do it at your friend's expense ? Is n't his time as valuable as yours? Years ago I used to receive letters from a friend and very interesting letters too written in one of the most atrocious hands ever
! ;

man

race would be perceptibly sweeter

invented.

It

generally took
!

me about
to carry

a iveek to read
it

one of

his letters

used

about

in

my
in at

pocket, and take

it

out at leisure

times, to
it

puzzle
it

over the riddles which

different positions,
last

composed

holding

and

at different distances,

till

the meaning of

some hopeless scrawl would

flash

upon me, when I at once wrote down the English under it and, when several had thus been guessed, the context would help one with the others, till at last
;

the whole series of hieroglyphics was deciphered.

ail one's friends

If

wrote like that,

life

would be

entirely

spent in reading their letters."

hi writing the last wise word, the author

no doubt had some of his

girl

correspond-

ents in his mind's eye, for he says

"

My

Ninth Rule.

note sheet, and

another piece
the case

When you get the end of a take you have more of paper whole sheet or a scrap,
to

find

to

say,

as

may demand

but,

whatever you do, don't

LEWIS CARROLL
cross!

97

Remember

the old proverb,

'

'Cross writing
say

makes
I

cross reading.'

The
I

old proverb,' you

inquiringly;

'how old?'
In fact

Well, not so very ancient,

must confess.

'm afraid
Still

invented
'
'

it

while writing this paragraph.

a comparative term.
ified
'

you know old is think you would be quite just-

in

addressing a chicken just out of the shell as

' !

Old Boy when compared with another chicken that " was only half out
!

have another diary to give to

a diary that Lewis Carroll

sister

my readers, wrote for my

came
Mignon,

Maggie when, a
Baby."

tiny child, she

to

Oxford

to play the child part,

in " Booties'

He

was delighted with

interest

the pretty play,

for the

that

the

soldiers took in the little lost girl,

and how
till

mere

interest

ripened into love,

of the
I

the

little

Mignon was queen

to his heart.

barracks,

went straight
in full

give the diary

:
"MAGGIE'S VISIT TO OXFORD
June
g

to

13,

1899

When Maggie once to Oxford came On tour as Booties' Baby,'

'

She said

'

I '11

see this place of fame,

dull the

However

day be

98

LEWIS CARROLL
So with her friend she
visited
:

was rich in And first of all she poked her head Inside the Christ Church Kitchen.
sights that
it

The

The cooks around

Stood waiting

that

little
:

child

in a ring

And, every time that Maggie smiled, Those cooks began to sing
Shouting the Battle-cry of Freedom
' 1

Roast, boil, and bake, For Maggie's sake

!

Bring cutlets

fine,
:

For /ler to dine Meringues so sweet, For /ler to eat For Maggie may be
Booties'

Baby

'
!

Then hand-in-hand, in pleasant talk, They wandered, and admired The Hall, Cathedral, and Broad Walk,
Till Maggie's feet

were tired

One

friend they called

upon

her name
!

Was

Mrs. Hassall then

Into a College

Room

they came,

Some savage Monster's Den

'

And, when that Monster dined, He tore her limb from limb

I
?

guess

LEWIS CARROLL
Well, no
in fact, I must confess That Maggie dined with him !
:

99

To Worcester Garden

next they strolled

:

Admired its quiet lake Then to St. John's, a College old, Their devious way they take.
In idle
Its

mood

they sauntered round

flat
:

lawns so green and

And

in that

Garden Maggie found

!

lovely Pussey-Cat

quarter of an hour they spent

In wandering to and fro

And

everywhere that Maggie went. That Cat was sure to go

Shouting the Battle-cry of Freedom
' !

Miaow

Miaow

Come, make your bow Take off your hats,

Ye Pussy Cats And purr, and purr, To welcome her For Maggie may be
!

Booties'

Baby

' !

So back to Christ Church not too For them to go and see A Christ Church Undergraduate, Who gave them cakes and tea.

late

loo

LEWIS CARROLL
Next day she entered, with her guide, The Garden called Botanic And there a fierce Wild-Boar she spied,
'
'

Enough

to cause a panic

But Maggie did n't mind, not she She would have faced alone, That fierce Wild-Boar, because, you The thing was made of stone
!

see,

On Magdalen
That

walls they saw a face

filled

her with delight,

A A

giant-face, that

made grimace
all its

And
little

grinned with

might

friend, industrious,
all

Pulled upwards,

the while.

The

corner of

its

mouth, and thus

!

He

helped that face to smile

'How
If

nice,'

thought Maggie,
a friend

'it

would be

/ could have

To do that very thing for 7ne, And make my mouth turn up

By
pulling at one end
' !

with glee,

In Magdalen Park the deer are wild

With joy that Maggie brings

Some bread a friend had given To feed the pretty things.

the child.

They flock round Maggie without fear They breakfast and they lunch,

LEWIS CARROLL
They
dine, they sup, those

loi

happy deer

Still, as

they

munch and munch,

!

Shouting the Battle-cry of Freedom

'

Yes, Deer are we.

And

dear

is

she

We
We
We

love this child

:

So sweet and mild

all

rejoice
:

At Maggie's voice
all

are fed

With Maggie's bread For Maggie may be Booties' Baby

'
!

To Pembroke
Where

College next they go,

little

Maggie meets
:

The

Master's wife and daughter

so

Once more They met

into the streets.

A
'

a Bishop on their way Bishop large as life

With loving smile that seemed to say Will Maggie be my wife ?

Maggie thought not^ because, you She was so very young, And he was old as old could be So Maggie held her tongue.
*

see,

My

Lord, she 's Booties Baby Are going up and down,'

we

I02

LEWIS CARROLL
Her
friend explained, 'that she

may

see

The

sights of Oxford-town.'
!

*Now say what kind of place it is The Bishop gaily cried. The best place in the Provinces
'

That

little

maid

replied.

Next

to New College, Two players hurl

where they saw

about

A
*

hoop, but by what rule or law

They could not

'

quite

make

out.

Ringo the Game is called, although Les Graces was once its name, When // was as its name will show A much more graceful Game.
'
'

The Misses Symonds next

they sought,

begged the child to take book they long ago had bought

Who
A

gift for friendship's

sake

Away, next morning, Maggie went From Oxford-town but yet The happy hours she there had spent Sbe could not soon forget.
:

The

train

is

gone
's

it

rumbles on
:

The

engine-whistle screams

But Maggie

deep

in rosy sleep

And

softly, in

her dreams,
!

Whispers the Battle-cry of Freedom

T
'

A TURK'

103

I04

LEWIS CARROLL
'

Oxford, good-bye
to sigh,

She seems
*

You dear

old City,

With Gardens pretty. And lawns, and flowers,

And College-towers, And Tom's great Bell

Farewell, farewell
!

For Maggie nay be

Booties'

Baby

Lewis Carroll."
The
in
is

tale has

been often told of how

"

" Alice
it

Wonderland

came
give

to be written, but

a tale so well worth the telling again, that,

I

very shortly,

will
in

it

to

you

here.

Years ago

the great

quadrangle of

Christ Church, opposite to Mr.

lived the little daughters of

Dodgson,
Liddell,

Dean

the great

Greek scholar and Dean

of Christ

Church.
of Mr.

The

little girls

were great friends

Dodgson's, and they used often to

come

to

him and

to plead with

him

for a
teller

fairy tale.

There was never such a

!

of tales, they thought

One

can imagine
little

the whole delightful scene with

trouble.

LEWIS CARROLL
That ble cool room on some summer's
noon,
scents,

105
after-

when

the air was heavy with flower

in

and the sounds that came floating

all

through the open window were

mellowed

by the

distance.

One

can see him, that

his

good and kindly gentleman,

all

mobile face

aglow with Interest and

story.

love, telling the

Immortal

Round him on
ters,

his

knee

sat the little sis-

their
in

eyes wide open

breathless
little

and

their lips

parted
Alice

anticipation.

When
who was

(how the

Alice LIddell

listening

the

must have loved the tale !) rubbed mushroom and became so bie that she
little

quite filled the

fairy house,

one can

almost hear the rapturous exclamations of the

little

ones as they heard of

story, often

it.

The
mer
boat

continued on

many sum-

afternoons, sometimes in the cool Christ

In

Church rooms, sometimes

In

a slow gliding

still

river

between banks of rushes

and strange bronze and yellow waterflowers,

or sometimes in a great hay-field, with the

io6

LEWIS CARROLL
in

insects whispering

the grass

all

round,

grew

in its

conception and idea.

older folk,
ones,
it

Other
from the

folk,
little

came

to hear of

it

and Mr. Dodgson was

Accordingly the
great care and

begged
first

to write

down.

MS. was prepared with

by the author.

illustrated

Then,

in

1865,
"

memorable year for English

appeared
in its

children, "Alice

present form, with Sir John

Tenniel's drawinors.
In

1872

*'

Alice

Through the Lookingand

Glass,"

appeared,
as
its

was

received

as
I

warmly

predecessor.

That

fact,

think, proves

most conclusively that Lewis

Carroll's success

was a success

of absolute

merit,

and due to no mere mood or fashion

I

of the public taste.

can conceive nothing has had a

o^reat

more

difficult for

man who

success with one

book than

to write a sequel
it.

which should worthily succeed

present case that
roll
is
is

In the

exactly what Lewis Car-

did.

"

Throuofh the

Lookins^-Glass

every whit as popular and charming as

LEWIS CARROLL
the older book.

107

Lideed one depends very

much upon
side

the other, and in every child's

book-shelves one sees the two masterpieces

by

side.

A CHARADE
^^^t^^e'ru

To

^Z/>vy

<r7u^

tcT-nl^?

yii

ux^C^-QJl-oc<i

-<yy\^

-e^^^o-c^

io8

Jo i^^^'ifCi

o^ ^cxyrtZZ

y^^ i/Xt^J

^Vf^V/^

*^^^

^^^^/

^^^4^

Jcu^

109

e^

OL-cut^

/fc"

ayn,(>

<p6z,i

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i/f ^H^cu4^^^^^rT^2

'^^ n^^t/TLcC ,

CL

jf^^^^^9 ^ n^ct^ae,
l-^T^caCoCo^

^Ol^fT.ytZ.'i.yjrt^

ayy-^6

tXrV~CC^^^

tCJoJl^^f

-Ty-Ui

Cc^M. ^

LEWIS CARROLL
While on the subject
I will

iii
"

of the

two

AHces,"

put

in

a letter that he wrote mention-

ing his

books.
it

He was

so modest about
difficult to
all

them, that

was extremely
was a

get

him

to say, or write, anything at

I

about

them.

believe

it

far greater pleas-

ure for him to

know
it

that he

had pleased

some

child with

"Alice" or "The Hunting

of the Snark," than

was

to be hailed

by

the press and public as the

for children.

first

living writer

"
*'

Eastbourne.

My own
'

darling
'

Isa,
'

The
:

full

value of a copy

of the French
'

but, as you want tHe you are a great friend of mine, and as I am of a very noble, generous disposition, I have made up my mind to a great sacrifice, and have taken ^3, los. od. off the price. So that you do not owe me more than ^41, los. od,, and this you can pay me, in gold or bank-notes as soon as you

Alice

is

^45

cheapest

kind, and as

ever

nonsense

dear I wonder why I write such Can you explain to me, my pet, how it happens that when I take up my pen to write a letter
like.

Oh

\Q

you

it

won't write sense?

the pen finds
it

Do you
it

think the rule

is

that

when

has to write to a nonsensisets to

?

cal good-for-nothing child,

work

to write a

nonsensical good-for-nothing letter

Well,

now

'11

112
tell

LEWIS CARROLL
you the
So
real truth.

As Miss Kitty Wilson

's

is

dear friend of yours, of course she

of mine.
I

a sort of a friend

my vanity) 'perhaps she from the author, with her name written in it.' So I 've sent her one but I hope she '11 understand that I do it because she 's your friend, for, you see, I had never heard of her before so I would n't have any other reason. " I 'm still exactly on the balance (like those
thought
(in
'

would

like to

have a copy

'

'

'

scales of mine,
as to

when
it

Nellie says

'

it

won't weigh

')

whether

would be wise

to

have

my

pet Isa

down here! how am I to make it weigh, I wonder? Can you advise any way to do it ? I 'm getting on grandly with Sylvie and Bruno Concluded.' I 'm
'

afraid

you
I
'11

'11

expect
if I

me

to

give you a copy of

It

it ?

Well,
" I

see

have one
I

to spare.

won't be out

before Easter-tide,

'm afraid.

wonder what

sort of condition the

book

is

in

you to take to America? ('Laneton Parsonage,' I mean). Very shabby, I expect. I find lent books 7iever come back in good condition. However, I 've got a second copy of this book, so you may keep it as your own. Love and kisses to any one you know who is lovely and kissable. " Always your loving Uncle, " C. L. D."
that I lent

In

1876 appeared the long

poem

called

the "
in

Hunting

of the

Snark

or.

An Agony
we

Eight Fits," and besides those verses

LEWIS CARROLL
called "

113

have from Lewis Carroll's pen two books

Phantasmagoria

"

and

''

Rhyme and

Reason."

The

last

work

of his that attained any-

great celebrity was " Sylvie and Bruno," a

curious romance, half fairy
matical
treatise.
tale, half

mathe-

Mr.
years
part

Dodeson was emon

of
his
*'

ployed

of

late

Symbolic

Logic," only one

which has been

in-

published, and he seems to have been

fluenced

by

his

studies.

One

can easily

trace the trail of the logician in Sylvie

and

Bruno, and perhaps this resulted

lack
of

in

a certain
of

"form."

However, some
in

the

nonsense verses

this

book

were

up

to the highest level of the author's achieve-

ment.

Even

as

write the verse

comes

to

me-

He

thought he saw a kangaroo

a coffee-mill
;

Turning

He

looked again, and found

pill
!

it

was

A
*
'

vegetable
I to

Were
I

swallow you,' he said,

"
ill
' !

should be very

114

LEWIS CARROLL
the

The fascinating jingle stays in when graver verse eludes all

collection.
I

memory
re-

effort at

personally could repeat "

"

The

Walrus and the Carpenter

to

from beginning
I

end without

hesitation, but

should find

a difficulty in writing ten lines of "

correctly.

Hamlet
"

At the beginning
is

of

''

Sylvie and Bruno

little

poem

in three verses

which forms
it

an acrostic on
,<{,"
'

my

name.

quote

." Is all
^'

'

our life, then, but a dream, Seen faintly in the golden gleam Athwart Time's dark resistless stream

Bowed to the earth with bitter woe, Or laughing at some raree-show,

We

flutter idly to

and

fro.

Man's little day in haste we spend, And, from its merry noontide, send No glance to meet the silent end."

You
each

see that
line,

if
if

you take the you take the

first letter

of

or

first

three

let-

ters of the first line of

each verse, you get

the

name

Isa

Bowman.

LEWIS CARROLL

'>^.3-

.^^

^ ^ ^- t^^

?"

ii6

LEWIS CARROLL
in the

Although he never wrote anything

dramatic Hne, he once wrote a prologue for

some

private theatricals, which

was

to be

spoken by Miss
This prologue
is

Hatch and her

reproduced

brother.

in facsimile

on

the preceding page.

Miss Hatch has also sent

(reproduced on pp.
for
her,
1

me

a charade

08-10) which he wrote

with some of his

and

illustrated

funny drawings.
I

have one more

letter,
*'

the

last,

which, as
I

it

mentions the book

give now.

Sylvie and Bruno,"

will

" Christ

Church,
16, 'go,
'

''May
"

Dearest

and Bruno ') out, and it 's

I really

had this (' this was Sylvie bound for you when the book first came been waiting here ever since Dec, 17, for
Isa,
I
'

did n't dare to send

it

across the Atlantic

the whales are so inconsiderate.

sure to want to borrow
it

They'd have been

to the little whales,

to

show

quite forgetting that the salt water would be sure to

spoil
it.

" Also, I 've only to

send Emsie the

in

youngest

been waiting for you to get back Nursery Alice,' I give it to the but I 've given one a family generally
* ;

LEWIS CARROLL

117

to Maggie as well, because she travels about so much, and I thought she would like to have one to take with her. I hope Nellie's eyes won't get quite green with jealousy, at two (indeed three l) of her sisters getting I 've nothing but my presents, and nothing for her love to send her to-day but she shall have something Ever your loving some day. Uncle Charles."
!

Socially,

Lewis Carroll was of strong con-

servative tendencies.

He

viewed with won-

der and a

little

pain the absolute levelling

life.

tendencies of the last few years of his

I

have before

me
I

an extremely interesting
social

letter

which deals with

observances,

and from which two

extracts.

am

able to

make one
is

or

The bulk

of the letter

of a

private nature.
" Ladies

gentlemen
called
'

have to be jnuch more particular than observing the distinctions of what is social position and the lower their own
'
'

in

'

position

is

(in

the scale of

'

lady

'

ship),
it.

the

more
I 've

jealous they seem to be in guarding

...

met with

same thing myself from people several degrees above me. Not long ago I was staying in a house along with a young lady (about twenty
just

the

years old,

should think) with a

I

title

of her own, as
to sit next

she was an earl's daughter.

happened

ii8

LEWIS CARROLL
I

her at dinner, and every time

spoke

to her, she

looked

at nie

more
'

as

if

she was looking

down on me
if

from about a mile up

saying to herself

in the air,

and

as

she were
I
!

How

dare you speak to me

Why,
'

you 're not good enough to black my shoes was so unpleasant, that, next day at luncheon,
as far off her as I

It

got

could

Of course we are all quite equal in God's sight, but we do make a lot of distinctions (some of them " quite unmeaning) among ourselves
!

"

The

picture that this letter gives of the

famous writer and learned mathematician

obviously
rather
in

terror

of

some pert
is

young lady fresh from

not without
its

the schoolroom
side.
girl
if

comic

One cannot
to-

help imagining that the

must have been

very young indeed, for

he were alive

day there are few ladies of any state who

would not

feel

honoured by the presence

of

Charles Dodgson.

However, he was not always so unfortunate

in

his

experience
letter,

of

great

people,

and the following

written

when he
at

was staying with

field

Lord Salisbury
delightfully of

Hat-

House,

tells

his little

LEWIS CARROLL
royal
friends,
:

119

the

Duchess
"

of

Albany's

children

Hatfield House, Hatfield, " Herts, June 8, '8g."

*'

My

darling
if

Isa,

haven't yet had any

letter

hope this will find you, but from Fiilham^ so I can't

you have yet got into your new house. Lord Salisbury's house (he is the father, you know, of that Lady Maud Wolmer that we had luncheon with) 1 came yesterday, and I 'm going to
be sure

"This

is

stay until
in
'
!

It is such a nice house to stay it is n't one do just as one likes Now you must do some geography now it 's time for your sums the sort of life some little girls have

Monday.
let

They

'

to lead

when they

are so foolish as to visit friends

but one can just please one's

"

own dear
'

self.

There are some sweet little children staying in Dear little Wang is here with her mother. By the way, /made a mistake in telling you what to call her. She is the Honourable Mabel Palmer Palmer' is the family name Wolmer' is the title just as the family name of Lord Salisbury is Cecil,' so that his daughter was Lady Maud Cecil,
the house.
'
'

'

'

'

'

till

she married.

Then there is the Duchess of Albany here, with two such sweet little children. She is the widow of Prince Leopold (the Queen's youngest son), so her
children are a Prince and Princess
:

"

the girl
:

is

'

Alice,'

but

I
'

don't

know

the boy's Christian

him

Albany,' because

he

is

the

name they call Duke of Albany.

I20

LEWIS CARROLL
that
I

Now

have made friends with a

titles.

real live little

Princess, I

don't intend ever to speak to any more

children that have n't any

In
I

fact, I

'm so proud,
n't n't

and you
that.

I
if

hold

my

chin so high, that

!

should

even

see

we met
If
I

No, darlings, you must

believe
I

made

friends with a dozefi Princesses,

would love you better than all of them together, even if I had them all rolled up into a sort of child-rolypoly.

"Love
Uncle,

to

Nellie

and Emsie.

Your
I

ever loving
C. L. D."

X X X X X X X

And now
Carroll to

think that

have done

all

that has been in

my power

to present

Lewis

you

in his

most delightful aspect

I

as a
tended

friend to children.
in

have not pre-

any way to write an exhaustive

life-story of the

man who was

so dear to

me, but by the aid of the letters and the

diaries that
I

have been enabled to publish,

I

and by the few reminiscences that

given you of Lewis Carroll as
I I

have
him,
still

knew

hope

have done something to bring

nearer to your hearts the

memory

of the

greatest friend that children ever had.

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