My dear Emma

I am tired with having been all day at Business work,—but I cannot let a post go by, without writing to tell you Gower St is ours, yellow curtains & all.—¹ I have to day paid some advance money, signed an agreement & had the Key given over to me & the old woman informed I was her master henceforth. The minute I put the whole affair into the Solicitors hands, he arranged all the difficulties, about Colonel Irvine’s absence & made the Agent come to terms directly.— I am delighted with the house, the more I see of it; I have just been going over all the furniture with the inventory.— We shall not have much to buy,—even the crockery & glasses are very perfect.—

I am also delighted to say that the Solicitor, (having some minutes to spare) looked at the furniture of the rooms & he said he had just been furnishing his own house with care & knew the prices of things, & he maintains the furniture is cheap at 550£ & the rent extraordinarily low— He examined all the tables & chairs & said they are made of excellent wood & must have cost a great deal of money.— In fact I am convinced we have been most fort⁠⟨⁠unat⁠⟩⁠e & I am in great triump at having come to so good an end.— M^r Stewart, (my present landlord) says he will let me off part of the hire of my lodgings, if I choose to move soon, & as I want a little diversion of body & mind, I think, it very likely I shall begin moving all my sundry rattle -traps on Monday.—

I long for the day when we shall enter the house together; how glorious it will be to see you seated by the fire of our own house— Oh that it were the 14^th instead of the 24^th .—²

Goodbye, my own dear Emma | Most affectionately yours.— Chas. Darwin

The Cook from Shrewsbury is a failure as she cannot cook, & has a drunken husband. I am fearful of getting a converted Jewess from Miss Farrer; but we will hope for the best— I am going to have an interview with Margaret tomorrow to see how her health is, I wish the other maid from Cambridgeshire was arrived to institute a comparison about their merits.—

I was thinking of calling on Miss Martineau to enquire whether she knew anything of a Cook.—

I find I must wait in town till the latter end of next week, on account of the lease & paying the money.—& I suspect I must attend the Geolog Soc on the 9^th. so my plans are hampered— But what does anything signify to the possessor of Macaw Cottage?³