Lansdowne Cirrus, September 10th.--We have become quite weary of our
small, mean, uncomfortable, and unbeautiful lodgings at Chorlton Road,
with poor and scanty furniture within doors, and no better prospect from
the parlor windows than a mud-puddle, larger than most English lakes, on
a vacant building-lot opposite our house. The Exhibition, too, was fast
becoming a bore; for you must really love a picture, in order to tolerate
the sight of it many times. Moreover, the smoky and sooty air of that
abominable Manchester affected my wife's throat disadvantageously; so, on
a Tuesday morning, we struck our tent and set forth again, regretting to
leave nothing except the kind disposition of Mrs. Honey, our housekeeper.
I do not remember meeting with any other lodging-house keeper who did not
grow hateful and fearful on short acquaintance; but I attribute this, not
so much to the people themselves, as, primarily, to the unfair and
ungenerous conduct of some of their English guests, who feel so sure of
being cheated that they always behave as if in an enemy's country, and
therefore they find it one.
The rain poured down upon us as we drove away in two cabs, laden with
mountainous luggage to the London Road station; and the whole day was
grim with cloud and moist with showers. We went by way of Birmingham,
and stayed three hours at the great dreary station there, waiting for the
train to Leamington, whither Fanny had gone forward the day before to
secure lodgings for us (as she is English, and understands the matter)
We all were tired and dull by the time we reached the Leamington station,
where a note from Fanny gave us the address of our lodgings. Lansdowne
Circus is really delightful after that ugly and grimy suburb of
Manchester. Indeed, there could not possibly be a greater contrast than
between Leamington and Manchester,--the latter built only for dirty uses,
and scarcely intended as a habitation for man; the former so cleanly, so
set out with shade trees, so regular in its streets, so neatly paved, its
houses so prettily contrived and nicely stuccoed, that it does not look
like a portion of the work-a-day world.