12 April 1877 Dear dear Mammy I am very very sorry you cannot come home. We are having great fun with the little Johnsons. I think I will know my piece, what piece shall I have next. I was so sorry I did not write you a long letter yesterday so I wrote a long letter today. Cootle is such a pet I can not say any more the tea is just ready. I send love to Papa and all I am dear dear dear Mamy your loving Gertrude Dear dear Mamy. The Johnson's are here because of the new baby I was dragging Kootle in the cart all this morning because she had no goloshes on. We picked some flowers and put them in water this afternoon. We get on very well with nurse. I put Walter and the Becoo to bed last night. I mean to say that I folded up their clothes and took them off Yates gave them their bath Kootle did not slepe here and before they went to slepe I gave them each a piece of sugar and a biscuit. It is so fine today. Maurice and I send love to everybody. From your loving child Gertrude Dear dear Mamy, Maggie says the stores have come and been unpacked and only six bars have come instead of six stones of each. I will try and be good dear Mamy. Miss Aitchison is ill in bed so we have no lessons. I am afraid there is nothing more to say except that Cook ...... tapioca. I send love to Papa and everybody. I am dear dear dear dear Mamy your loving Gertrude (16 April 1877) Dear mama I am not going to write you a very long letter because I have a headache. Have you fine weather in London. dear dear dear dear dear dear Mamy I send you a great great great lot of kisses that I dont know where to put them From your loving Gertrude Dear Mamy I am so very very very very very very glad you are coming home. Maurice is going to write. Do get me a doll I have got none do do get me one. Cootle like her doll so much. Dear dear dear dear dear dear Mamy you dont know how glad I am you are coming home. From your very very very loving Gertrude. Dear love to Papa (September 1877) My dear Mamy We are having such fun here. Yesterday we caught an alive eel Horace caught it. Yesterday evening Horace and Maurice caught two fish in the harbour and Horace caught such a big one. Every morning we go to the rocks in our wading suits, our game is to jump off the rocks into the pool, we call it taking headers it is such fun. Give my love to Papa. From your loving child Gertrude Horace sends his love to you and papa. (September 1877) Dear Mammy I caught a fish. It was a little one. I was so pleased to catch it. It is the first fish I ever caught in my life. Give this letter to Papa to read I send my love to you and Papa Your loving Maurice