Foster family

Overview

An English family Marie meets at Ostend in August 1874 (carnets 023–028: «les gentils Foster», several sons including «Foster 2» who dances with her, a daughter, and «le grand chien des Foster»). The daughter Florence becomes Marie's correspondent and, from 1878, Mme Lacon (FLORENCE_LACON); her brother Arthur Foster («celui du chien», 080.0305; t.11 index «Foster (Arthur) : 259, 260, 263-265») is in Paris with the Lacons in May–June 1878 (080.0322, 080.0360, 080.0373, 080.0383).

Where «Foster» is Florence herself (the 1874–1875 Ostend and Nice paragraphs that name her, call her «Mlle Foster» or «la petite Foster» or use «elle»; and the 1877 letters 072.0407, 072.0412, 072.0422) the tag is FLORENCE_LACON. «Foster» who writes about the dog, Aunt Sally and the horse (024–026, 043; «il», «A. Foster») is her brother Arthur and stays here, as do the undecidable letters of 1876–1877.

Merged entries (Foster I, A. Foster, Arthur Foster, Foster family)

At Ostend in August–September 1874 the family is «les gentils Foster» (023.0215): they dine with the Bashkirtseffs at the Cercle des Bains (023.0347), invite them to Bruges (023.0382), bathe and lunch with them (023.0470, 023.0476). Marie tells the two sons apart as «Foster I» and «Foster 2» (Mon Journal t.4 index «Foster I (fils)», «Foster II (fils)»). Foster I, «très laid» (023.0183), dances and walks with her (023.0334, 023.0344), is said by her mother to court her (023.0354), and in London takes the family to Bill George's to choose a mastiff (023.0638); she sends him the money from Paris (024.0164, 024.0246). By the t.5 index («Foster A (fils)») and t.11 («Foster (Arthur)») he is Arthur Foster, «A. Foster» whom she quotes on a match for Dina (024.0343) and «Arthur Foster (celui du chien)» of 1878 (080.0305); this is an inference from the indexes. «Foster 2» dances with her on 1 and 3 September (023.0440, 023.0478). In January 1876 «les Foster connaissent Prodgers» (052.0216).