| Description | Letter dated 14 November 1880 to Macdonald from Charles S. Keene, 82 Hammersmith Road, London, regarding illness of Macdonald and of Keene's mother, 'we artists on the staff are all rather ruffled just now our new Editor is a very good sort of fellow personally, but he hasn't much sympathy with our department and we believe has the idea that we must now give place to the Literary Wits', rumour that Jemmy Whistler was back from Venice where 'he had taken a studio with an American which he had gradually monopolised, elbowing out his compatriot - that he had generally 'lorded' it over the craft there, so that they secretly prepared Decorations of Chinese lanterns, &c., for a Festival of Joy, when he had finally departed', Pettie is building a house, Archer is at Pitlochry, 'Marcus Stone went to Italy but got laid up with Typhoid fever in that sunny clime been at Death's door in picturesque but stinking Verona. He's a great Radical too always running down Old England and raving about lovely Italy or France or anywhere'. |