September 16, 1863. Cape Town. To “My dear Loui . . .”
A shorter letter from Bleek to Lucy Lloyd in which he refers to his earlier one written after Edith’s birth on September 8th. He gives a brief recap in case they had not received the earlier letter. “Both mother and child are doing well.” He then writes, “We are both very sorry to hear, dear Loui, you were not quite so well, and that you have again over exerted yourself. We are so sorry not to have made it quite clearly understood . . . that of course all the expense regarding Willie’s education for the present, and all expenses incurred with the view to send him to School, were to be borne by us. Dear Loui, you will, therefore, kindly let us know all extra expense besides that to be paid to Mr. Yarwood, which may have been incurred by our causing Willie to leave Mr. Ross’s, etc.”
Of particular importance in this letter is the frank, yet very loving assessment Bleek gives Lucy of how he sees her concern for her half-siblings. After writing, “But, dear Loui, really you must not make new frocks for the little ones, I am sure you are not fit for it, and if they are sensible they will much prefer wearing the very oldest frocks than seeing you worn to death by working for them. Please consider that you do them a serious wrong, by this. Will you excuse me in telling you, dearest Loui, that I am just a little afraid that with regard to the children you fail in one serious, though very, very excusable mistake, i.e. fixing for yourself a certain standard according to which those children ought to be kept. If that standard is not realized, you make yourself unhappy and, in order to reach it, you do yourself and thereby those you wish to help also great injury. Now is not this standard of your own fixing, & have you any real right to fix it? Ought you not rather to take things as they are – just only trying to make the best of them, and when you have done all that you rightly can do, leaving the rest . . . as not being your real duty . . .”