| Description | She will willingly pay the cost of the two illustrations: one of her father at sixteen, and another of the large centrifugal pump. She explains why she began to write a biographical introduction, which was intended to be used instead of the typewritten version sent by her brother [James Thomson]. She criticises the version written by his wife, who did not know her father well, and the descriptions in which are vague and fanciful. The remembrances are mixed and stories about her grandfather have been spoiled by leaving out the chief points of interest. She gives an example of her grandfather teaching himself to make sundials and stardials, despite an old book on navigation he had being wrong. She gives the original version of the story. She wishes to maintain accuracy, but does not want to give pain to her brother and his wife, who had the best of intentions. She wishes to finish her own version of the biography and she is pushing on with this. She notes that James's engineering at Elswick, and his literary activity, means he is overworked. |