September 11th—Portsmouth

Rather overly chubby and excessively cheerful John Franklin

Finished off the naval museum, went to Dickens' birthplace and wandered round the streets by the old port, which gave a good sense of the early Victorian time, if you ignored the cleanliness and street lamps! I leave with many fascinating snippets of information and stories to add richness to the novel, not to mention several ideas for other novels. Up to Cambridge tomorrow.