This is prodigious news! But ist is just as it should be. A body can’t marry too young, I judge, if he except he be under twenty. I mean, a body whose place, position & vocation are settled, & a comfortable living assured. Without these things, I judge a body can’t marry too late. I lost 15 years of married life from not being “fixed” for matrimony, as Charley is. I envy the young folks their early start, but I tender my blessing & best wishes, anyway. I would vastly like to be present at the marriage, but there will be no such luck for me. I shall either be in the neighborhood of New Orleans, then, or hard at work on a book.

No—come to look at the date, I shall be in Washington, April 25, to superintend the rehearsals of mine & the play of “Ah Sin,” which will be hurled at the public enither May 1st or 7th, as shall seem best. I suppose I shall remain in Washington & Baltimore till the middle of May, if things seem to require it, & I am depending upon Livy’s going with me—but she doubtless won’t, because she would find it burdensome to take the children, and—you catch her leaving them behind! This reminds me that I would lend Susie to you & trust her freely to our Mollie’s auntship; but it ain’t any use of trying to get Livy to sleep apart from Susie a night. That is one of those impossible things, you know. But you are to send Mollie & her father here, never nevertheless. It is the very n thing—a spring visit to Hartford. Will you, now? Won’t you? Speak up, & say you will. I had a wonderful letter from Mollie, & I want to see her. It was singularly compact & well expressed. This is a girl to be proud of. I’m going to write her before long., when I shall have cleared my decks of some of their load of business obstructions. I will grant you the privilege of kissing her for me—& it is no small privilege, I warn you, or one to be lightly scattered around.

The “Scrap-Book?” Well, well, well—& don’t you really know about that yet?—& the newspapers talking about it all the time for the past 8 months & Dan Slote aclmost neglecting all his other business & his family to attend to the selling of it & the bragging about it. You surprise me, you do indeed. I must tell Dan there’s a missionary field in the west.

“Where do I write?” In the billiard room—the very most satisfactory bi study that ever was. Open fire, register, & plenty of light.

I left this page blank for Livy, who wantded to add a line, but there’s an accession of company & so she hasn’t time to turn around hardly, & therefore sends love through me to the Fair Banks household,—aⒶemendation along with that of