Letter to Jane Senior
1874-12-30

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35 South St
Park Lane W
Dec 30/74
My dear Mrs. Senior
It is I who am sorry that I have been so
"troublesome" in keeping your invaluable paper
so long.
Any publication which of the result your
labours & of the plans which you had formed
is of priceless importance. And all female
England which is worth anything ought to be
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employed, officially & unofficially, in
carrying them out.
I will not prey upon you with any remarks:
but will only say that every woman of
large experience knows that from 16 to
18 is the dangerous age for girls: & therefore
your Association-plan at the end is
peculiarly important.
If there is the least risk of "copies enough"
not "being bespoken" "to publish at all",
pray let me "bespoke" 20, or any larger
number which may help to avert such
a catastrophe.
I will not say either how deeply touched I was
by your former letter: & indeed by your
writing at all.
May God grand us that you have perfect
rest now: & perfect recovery by & bye.
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I prophesy that you will see of the "travail
of your soul": & "be satisfied".
My apology for delay must be that I have
been so unusually ill that the thing I most
dreaded has happened to me: namely that
I cannot get a rather voluminous India
paper out by the middle of January,
when it was asked for: a trial which
I do not bear as you do. But we
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2
have a higher & better hope which
failure & dissapointment cannot take
away: & that is that Perfect Wisdom
will some day complete His work,
whether we live to see it or not.
May He bless you:
Yours ever overflowingly
Florence Nightingale
Tho' I know that all that friends can do is plentiful with
you, I cannot help sending a brace of pheasants, just sent me.