Tenniel’s letter to Carroll

Tenniel advised Carroll to cut the “railway scene” from the Looking-Glass manuscript

10 Portsdown Road.
April 4.

My dear Dodgson,

I should have
written sooner but I
have been a good deal
worried in various ways.

I would infinitely
rather give no opinion
as to what would be
best left out in the
book—but since you
put the question point-
blank, I am bound
to say—supposing
excision somewhere to be
absolutely necessary—
that the Railway scene
never did strike me as
being very strong, & that
I think it might be sacri-
ficed without much repining—
besides, there is no subject
down in the illustration of
it in the condensed list.

Please let me know to
what extent you have
used—or intend using—
the pruning-knife—my
great fear is that all
this indecision & revision
will interfere fatally with
the progress of the book.
In hast to claim post.

Yours sincerely
J. Tenniel

You shall have some more sizes in a few days.