on the other hand , if your apology was merely intended for a gentle hint to me , to restrain my own pen , then i fear you have gravely overestimated my powers of inference : i remain blithely confident , that you live with no other thought in your head , than wondering when my next report will be delivered to you , and that you would not wish to be deprived of even one lively phrase , no , not if it meant you had to bargain away your putative firstborn in order to pay the postage .