Letter #10, Post #1

Tuesday 17 April 2012
There is a letter missing dated Thursday 25 October 1798
Letter number ten was written Saturday 27-Sunday 28 October 1798
To Cassandra, from Steventon, "My dear Cassandra, Your letter was a most agreable surprize to me to day, & I have taken a long sheet of paper to shew my Gratitude. We arrived here yesterday between 4 & 5, but I cannot send you quite so triumphant an account of our last day's Journey as the first & second.-Soon after I had finished my letter from Staines, my Mother began to suffer from the exercise & fatigue of travelling so far, & she was a good deal indisposed from that particular kind of evacuation which has generally preceded her Illnesses-. She had not a very good night at Staines, & felt a heat in her throat as we travelled yesterday morning, which seemed to fore-tell more Bile-. She bore her Journey however much better than I had expected, & at Basingstoke where we stopped more than half an hour, received much comfort from a Mess of Broth, & the sight of Mr Lyford, who recommended her to take 12 drops of Laudanum when she went to Bed, as a Composer, which she accordingly did.-It is by no means wonderful that her Journey should have produced some Kind of visitation;-I hope a few days will entirely remove it." - Jane Austen, Saturday 27 October 1798

It took three days to travel 112 miles from Godmersham to Steventon. The route we would take today is different than the route the Austen's took, but it would take us about two and a half hours.

Just for fun the walking time and distance would be 107 miles and take a day and and twelve hours. I am sure that would be without stopping.

Mr. John Lyford (1740-1829) was the surgeon of Basingstoke. His nephew, Giles-King Lyford was Surgeon-in-Ordinary at the County Hospital, Winchester. He attended Jane Austen during her last illness.

Poor Mrs. Austen. It is miserable enough to be ill at home, much less while traveling.

I hope you had a good day today!
Terrie