[No surviving envelope]

T. S.Eliot
EmilyHale
TS
Faber & Faber Ltd
16 March 1948
My Dear,

When I wrote very briefly a week ago I was still in the middle of a fortuitous cluster of engagements. I found five public occasions in nine days rather much! as any public speaking is a great strain. So, when I was able to relax, at the weekend, I found myself in a state of torpor; and, fatigue coinciding with a sudden spell of warm – almost hot – weather (and one dare not leave off clothes in such a spell at this time of year), I spent all my time dozing in an arm chair, instead of sitting at the typewriter – except for church on Sunday andFry, ChristopherThe Lady's Not for Burning;a2 having to go onFry, Christopherhis diction;a1 Sunday afternoon to aBrowne, Elliott Martinand The Lady's Not for Burning;e5 new play at the Arts Theatre – or Theatre Arts – Club to please Martin Browne, as the play was by a protégé of his, one Christopher Fry – able but very over-written, I thought, in a kind of pseudo-Elizabethan luxuriance of language which was tiring to the ear and mind.1 ITillyard, Eustace Mandeville Wetenhall ('E. M. W.')lures TSE to Jesus College;a1 had arranged, someJesus College, CambridgeTSE addresses students of;a1 time ago, to spend a weekend in Cambridge, and'Edgar Poe et la France'repeated at Jesus College;a7 acceded to a reiterated request from Ernest Tillyard2 that I should talk to a group of his young men at Jesus: this only involved reading them a paper I had written for Aix on Edgar Poe, and did not seem much to do. But'Sermon Preached at Magdalene College Chapel, A'as preached;a2 then theMagdalene College, Cambridgesermon preached at;b2 chaplain of Magdalene asked me to preach the evensong sermon on the Sunday, and I did not like to refuse, out of loyalty to the college, though I detest sermons by laymen.3 And the rest of the weekend was pretty busy, as I had not seen Cambridge for so long. Saturday morning advising Martin Browne’s son who wanted to drop medicine and take up the History Tripos; tookFaber, Thomas Erle ('Tom', TSE's godson)treated by TSE in Cambridge;c1 Tom Faber, my godson at Trinity, out to lunch and a couple of friends of his; thenSociety of the Friends of Little Gidding;a2 had to attend a meeting of the Friends of Little Gidding, and an exhibition of manuscripts, in the college library; then go to tea with Tom in his rooms; then back to Magdalene where a group of undergraduates had been invited to sherry to meet me (including a sweet little black prince from Uganda) andWillink, Henry;a1 then to dine with the new Master.4 And on Sunday, the usual services in the college chapel, lunchPickthorns, thewalk on the Backs with;a4Pickthorn, KennethPickthorns, the with the Pickthorns – a long walk, but the backs were full of crocus – thenInnes, Margaret Bird;a2 to tea withMorley, Christina (née Innes);d1 Old Mrs. Innes, Christina Morley’s mother, who is very infirm, and then back to robe for evensong – afterGermanyTSE urges renewed cultural relations with;c1 that dine in hall, spend the evening with a few of the fellows whom I know best, and at eleven o’clock go over to talk to the Master about an idea of mine for inviting German scholars over from time to time. And up early every morning. ThenBooks Across the Seaabsorbed into English Speaking Union;c3 on the Tuesday take the last meeting of Books Across the Sea – of which I thankfully cease to be president because no president is now needed, theEnglish Speaking Unionabsorbs Books Across the Sea;a5 organisation having been taken over by the English Speaking Union – and make a speech at that;5 andInstitut Françaisand subsequent Fluchère lecture;a2 onFluchère, Henrilectures on Apollinaire;a8 ThursdayApollinaire, GuillaumeTSE chairs lecture on;a1 take the chair at the Institut Français for Henri Fluchère giving a lecture on Guillaume Apollinaire. So that’s five speeches, if you count them. The worst, because the one with no precedent in my experience, was the sermon. To remember not to begin ‘Ladies and Gentlemen’ but with the invocation. And the disconcertingness of getting no applause or any sort of reaction from that blank sea of undergraduate surplices and decorously expressionless faces; and wondering what was the fate of one’s lighter touches: whether they were amused and concealed it, whether they thought them in poor taste, or whether the witticisms merely fell on stony ground. I hope I never have to do that again; and indeed, I cannot imagine agreeing to do so except for a college of which I was a fellow.

YouRoyal Horticultural SocietyTSE makes presentation to;a1 will have seen thePerkins, Edith (EH's aunt)which TSE does;i1 letter I wrote Aunt Edith – I have since sent her the notes for what I said. Although I did pile it on a bit, I really thought that it went off well, and the audience were really appreciative; andMcLaren, Henry, 2nd Baron Aberconway;a1 Lord Aberconway6 did say that they intended to exhibit them all from time to time in sections, and send selections of them to be shown about the country. TheAmericaPetersham, Massachusetts;g5Edith Perkins gives lecture at;a4 ones shown – about 60 – included a surprising proportion of those shown in the last lecture at Petersham, of which I have very poignant memories. None of the yew tree garden or Stamford House. TheBennet-Clark, Elizabeth Constance;a1 one slightly comic touch was Mrs. Bennett Clarke’s [sc. Bennet-Clark’s] combination of pride in the fact that her own garden was in the collection (of which she informed Lord Aberconway) and her discomfiture that the slide of it was not shown.7 The man who showed them seemed very competent. I should like to have seen more than one of Hidcot [sc. Hidcote] House, which was a garden I particularly fancied; but the choice was very good. I hope I may see them all eventually.

IPerkinses, thetheir health;m6 am very much distressed by your report of the Perkins’s. You do not hazard a guess as to which is the feebler; but speak as if one would not long survive the other. Thank you for telling me about Abbott [sc. Abbot] Academy. I only hope that you will not find the shuttling to and fro, the endless packing and unpacking, and all the details of living in two places, very exhausting. It sounds interesting and agreeable for a term or so (I am glad that you did not do it in the very severe weather when travelling must have been very difficult) but impossible to keep up for very long. It would have been very surprising to have had you appear suddenly in London – you would have notified me in advance I hope! – and if and when you do, remember that it is essential to fix some definite accommodation for the first few days at least, as hotel accommodation is not always easy to come by now. MarionEliot, Marion Cushing (TSE's sister)abortive 1948 summer in England;f5;a2 andSmith, Theodora ('Dodo') Eliot (TSE's niece);c3 Theodora are thinking of coming by air if no sea passage can be had; but I am rather worried about the strain for Marion – it is indeed very fatiguing, and one should be prepared to do nothing, and if possible stop in bed for a day or so, on arrival. I am in fact rather worried about Marion coming at all, in case it is cold, or the coarse food does not agree with her; yet I do not want to dissuade her at this stage. Perhaps at the back of my mind is the anxiety I felt about them, and about you and the Perkins’s, all through that unforgettable summer of 1939, when I was wondering just how many weeks it would be before war broke out. I don’t think that will happen this summer; but one is never sure now when some sort of trouble may not arise, to make things particularly difficult for visitors. Itravels, trips and plansTSE's 1948 trip to America;g5;a4 believe that aOppenheimer, J. Robert;a2 passage has been taken for me for the 24 September on the ‘America’, through the offices of Dr. Robert J. Oppenheimer.

Meanwhiletravels, trips and plansTSE's postponed 1948 trip to Aix;g4;a1 I shall probably go to Aix about the 15th April for five or six days. I am no more anxious to go than I was before, though the time of year is more favourable. ICocktail Party, Thebeing written;b5 have drafted scene 1 of a play; must now try to work out a second scene, which means developing two characters so far not thought out, in a kind of reverse situation to that of the first scene. Afterwards, each scene will have to have the dialogue developed, with attention to proportion between the different moods and characters, and timed; and then the musical scheme of the versification will have to be elaborated. It rather looks like three acts of two scenes each; and I think I can use all the characters who appear at the beginning, except possibly one who seems so far to have no serious possibilities whatever. But I don’t like to waste characters, or introduce any for one scene only.

ThereBritish Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)broadcasts Gielgud's Family Reunion;d8 was aFamily Reunion, TheBBC Gielgud broadcast version;i6first aired;a1 broadcast version of ‘The Family Reunion’ which I did not have the opportunity to hear.8 The B.B.C. are rather arbitrary, and cut up a play for broadcasting without consulting the author: I was told that they omitted the role of the chauffeur altogether – to me rather an important part.

But I shan’t show anybody any of what I am trying to write now, until I can show enough to give them a fair idea of what I am trying to do – and I am not sure of that myself yet.

I am glad you were not at the Horticultural Hall – unless I could have seen you several times beforehand. It was painful as it was, though I did not have any idea who was in the audience. ICresswell, Euphemia ('Effie');a3 was glad however to see Effie Cresswell9 afterwards, though, owing to the crowd, and the officials, and Mrs. Bennett Clark who could not be evaded, and a few strangers who wanted to speak to me, and her own retiring nature, I could do no more than greet her.

Your loving
Tom.

1.Christopher Fry, The Lady’s Not For Burning.

2.E. M. W. TillyardTillyard, Eustace Mandeville Wetenhall ('E. M. W.') (1889–1962): Fellow in English of Jesus College, Cambridge, 1926–59; Master, 1945–59. Works include The Personal Heresy: A Controversy (with C. S. Lewis, 1939); The Elizabethan World Picture: A Study of the Idea of Order in the Age of Shakespeare (1943), Shakespeare’s History Plays (1944) and The Muse Unchained: An Intimate Account of the Revolution in English Studies at Cambridge (1958).

3.‘A Sermon Preached at Magdalene College Chapel’, CProse 7, 111–16.

4.HenryWillink, Henry Willink, MC, PC, KC (1894–1973): barrister and Conservative politician; Member of Parliament, 1940–8; Minister of Health, 1943–5; Master of Magdalene College, 1947–68; Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, 1953–5. Created baronet, 1957.

5.‘Presidential Address to Books Across the Sea’ – given on 9 Apr. – CProse 8, 117–23.

6.HenryMcLaren, Henry, 2nd Baron Aberconway McLaren, 2nd Baron Aberconway (1879–1953): politician, horticulturalist, industrialist; President of the Royal Horticultural Society.

7.ElizabethBennet-Clark, Elizabeth Constance Constance Bennet-Clark (1902–76), of Darby’s House, Chipping Campden, was a gardening friend of Edith Perkins.

8.TheGielgud, Johnas Harry in BBC broadcast;a7n BBC Home Service production by John Richmond, with John Gielgud as Harry, was broadcast on 16 Feb. 1948.

9.Effie Cresswell lived at Charingworth Manor, Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire.

America, TSE on not returning in 1915, and TSE as transatlantic cultural conduit, dependence on Europe, TSE's sense of deracination from, and the Great Depression, TSE a self-styled 'Missourian', as depicted in Henry Eliot's Rumble Murders, its national coherence questioned, its religious and educational future, versus Canadian and colonial society, where age is not antiquity, drinks Scotland's whisky, and FDR's example to England, underrates Europe's influence on England, redeemed by experience with G. I.'s, TSE nervous at readjusting to, and post-war cost of living, more alien to TSE post-war, its glories, landscape, cheap shoes, its horrors, Hollywood, climate, lack of tea, overheated trains, over-social clubs, overheating in general, perplexities of dress code, food, especially salad-dressing, New England Gothic, earthquakes, heat, the whistle of its locomotives, 'Easter holidays' not including Easter, the cut of American shirts, television, Andover, Massachusetts, EH moves to, Ann Arbor, Michigan, TSE on visiting, Augusta, Maine, EH stops in, Baltimore, Maryland, and TSE's niece, TSE engaged to lecture in, TSE on visiting, Bangor, Maine, EH visits, Bay of Fundy, EH sailing in, Bedford, Massachusetts, its Stearns connections, Boston, Massachusetts, TSE tries to recollect society there, its influence on TSE, its Museum collection remembered, inspires homesickness, TSE and EH's experience of contrasted, described by Maclagan, suspected of dissipating EH's energies, EH's loneliness in, Scripps as EH's release from, possibly conducive to TSE's spiritual development, restores TSE's health, its society, TSE's relations preponderate, TSE's happiness in, as a substitute for EH's company, TSE's celebrity in, if TSE were there in EH's company, its theatregoing public, The Times on, on Labour Day, Brunswick, Maine, TSE to lecture in, TSE on visiting, California, as imagined by TSE, TSE's wish to visit, EH suggests trip to Yosemite, swimming in the Pacific, horrifies TSE, TSE finds soulless, land of earthquakes, TSE dreads its effect on EH, Wales's resemblance to, as inferno, and Californians, surfeit of oranges and films in, TSE's delight at EH leaving, land of kidnappings, Aldous Huxley seconds TSE's horror, the lesser of two evils, Cannes reminiscent of, TSE masters dislike of, land of monstrous churches, TSE regrets EH leaving, winterless, its southern suburbs like Cape Town, land of fabricated antiquities, Cambridge, Massachusetts, TSE's student days in, socially similar to Bloomsbury, TSE lonely there but for Ada, TSE's happiness in, exhausting, EH's 'group' in, road safety in, Casco Bay, Maine, TSE remembers, Castine, Maine, EH holidays in, Cataumet, Massachusetts, EH holidays in, Chicago, Illinois, EH visits, reportedly bankrupt, TSE on, TSE takes up lectureship in, its climate, land of fabricated antiquities, Chocurua, New Hampshire, EH stays in, Concord, Massachusetts, EH's househunting in, EH moves from, Connecticut, its countryside, and Boerre, TSE's end-of-tour stay in, Dorset, Vermont, EH holidays in, and the Dorset Players, Elizabeth, New Jersey, TSE on visiting, Farmington, Connecticut, place of EH's schooling, which TSE passes by, EH holidays in, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, EH recuperates in, Gerrish Island, Maine, TSE revisits, Hollywood, perceived debauchery of its movies, TSE's dream of walk-on part, condemned by TSE to destruction, TSE trusts Murder will be safe from, Iowa City, Iowa, TSE invited to, Jonesport, Maine, remembered, Kittery, Maine, described, Lexington, Massachusetts, and the Stearns family home, Lyndeborough, New Hampshire, visited by EH, Madison, Wisconsin, Aurelia Bolliger hails from, Ralph Hodgson sails for, EH summers in, as conceived by TSE, who eventually visits, Maine, its coast remembered by TSE, TSE recalls swimming off, Minneapolis, on EH's 1952 itinerary, TSE lectures in, New Bedford, Massachusetts, EH's holidays in, TSE's family ties to, New England, and Unitarianism, more real to TSE than England, TSE homesick for, in TSE's holiday plans, architecturally, compared to California, and the New England conscience, TSE and EH's common inheritance, springless, TSE remembers returning from childhood holidays in, its countryside distinguished, and The Dry Salvages, New York (N.Y.C.), TSE's visits to, TSE encouraged to write play for, prospect of visiting appals TSE, as cultural influence, New York theatres, Newburyport, Maine, delights TSE, Northampton, Massachusetts, TSE on, EH settles in, TSE's 1936 visit to, autumn weather in, its spiritual atmosphere, EH moves house within, its elms, the Perkinses descend on, Aunt Irene visits, Boerre's imagined life in, TSE on hypothetical residence in, EH returns to, Peterborough, New Hampshire, visited by EH, TSE's vision of life at, Petersham, Massachusetts, EH holidays in, TSE visits with the Perkinses, EH spends birthday in, Edith Perkins gives lecture at, the Perkinses cease to visit, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, TSE on, and TSE's private Barnes Foundation tour, Independence Hall, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, surrounding countryside, Portsmouth, Maine, delights TSE, Randolph, New Hampshire, 1933 Eliot family holiday in, the Eliot siblings return to, Seattle, Washington State, EH summers in, EH's situation at, TSE prefers to California, EH repairs to post-Christmas, EH visits on 1952 tour, EH returns to, Sebasco, Maine, EH visits, South, the, TSE's first taste of, TSE's prejudices concerning, St. Louis, Missouri, TSE's childhood in, TSE's homesickness for, TSE styling himself a 'Missourian', possible destination for TSE's ashes, resting-place of TSE's parents, TSE on his return to, the Mississippi, compared to TSE's memory, TSE again revisits, TSE takes EVE to, St. Paul, Minnesota, TSE on visiting, the Furness house in, Tryon, North Carolina, EH's interest in, EH staying in, Virginia, scene of David Garnett's escapade, and the Page-Barbour Lectures, TSE on visiting, and the South, Washington, Connecticut, EH recuperates in, West Rindge, New Hampshire, EH holidays at, White Mountains, New Hampshire, possible TSE and EH excursion to, Woods Hole, Falmouth, Massachusetts, TSE and EH arrange holiday at, TSE and EH's holiday in recalled, and The Dry Salvages, TSE invited to, EH and TSE's 1947 stay in, EH learns of TSE's death at,
see also American Presidential Election
Apollinaire, Guillaume, TSE chairs lecture on,
Bennet-Clark, Elizabeth Constance,

7.ElizabethBennet-Clark, Elizabeth Constance Constance Bennet-Clark (1902–76), of Darby’s House, Chipping Campden, was a gardening friend of Edith Perkins.

Books Across the Sea, TSE unwillingly president of, AGM, letter to The Times for, exhibition, reception for Beatrice Warde, The Times reports on, TSE trumpets in TES, 'Bridgebuilders', TLS reports on, and South Audley Street library, absorbed into English Speaking Union, final meeting of,
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), TSE's committee service for, its future discussed, TSE working on autumn programme for, TSE on educational broadcasting in general, Barbara Burnham production of Murder, lobbies TSE for next play, 'The Need for Poetic Drama', Metaphyical poet broadcasts for, 'The Church's Message to the World', Christmas Day 'Cats' broadcast, dramatic Waste Land adaptation, which is censored for broadcast, repeats 'Cats', plays Parsifal on Good Friday, broadcasts Hawkins interview with TSE, 'Towards a Christian Britain', 1941 production of Murder, Eastern Service broadcasts East Coker, broadcasts Webster talk, Tennyson talk, Dry Salvages, Poe talk, Dryden talk, Joyce talk, European Service broadcasts TSE's talk, TSE declines Christmas broadcast for, wants to record 'Milton II', broadcasts TSE's personal poetry selection, broadcasts Gielgud's Family Reunion, marks TSE's 60th birthday, Gielgud Family Reunion repeated, solicits TSE post-Nobel Prize, TSE's EP broadcast for, records TSE reading Ash-Wednesday, floats Reith Lectures suggestion, approaches Marilyn Monroe to star in Fitts's Lysistrata,
Browne, Elliott Martin, meets TSE at Chichester, production of The Rock, meets TSE over possible collaboration, talks over outline of play, meets TSE with Martin Shaw, delighted with Rock choruses, discusses unwritten pageant scenes with TSE, predicament as The Rock's director, well connected in amateur circles, revising into the night with TSE, argues with Shaw at dress-rehearsal, presented to Prince Arthur, honoured by Rock cast-supper, producing Gordon Bottomley's play, speaks at Londonderry House with TSE, 1935 Canterbury Murder in the Cathedral, approached by TSE to 'produce', consulted throughout composition, goes silent, lunches with TSE and Speaight, directs and acts despite illness, pursues London Murder revival, 1935–6 Mercury Theatre Murder revival, engaged as producer by Dukes, keen that EH attend rehearsals, simultaneously part of BBC production, agrees about Speaight's decline, preferred as producer for TSE's next play, and Charles Williams's Cranmer, in which he plays 'the Skeleton', and TSE attend Tenebrae, taken to Cambridge after-feast, producing York Nativity Play, which TSE thinks Giottoesque, at Savile Club Murder dinner, producing Shakespeare's Dream, and Ascent of F6, and Tewkesbury Festival Murder confusion, 1939 production of The Family Reunion, due to be sent script, weighing TSE's proposal that he produce, enthused by script, suggests TSE see Mourning Becomes Electra, against Family Reunion as title, pleased with draft, quizzed on fire-safety, typescript prepared for, new draft submitted to, rewrite waits on, receives new draft, criticisms thereof, reports John Gielgud interest, mediates between Gielgud and TSE, TSE throws over Gielgud for, secures Westminster Theatre production, steps into company breach, then into still-greater breach, and the play's weaknesses, direction of Family Reunion, receives TSE's Shakespeare lectures, 1938 American Murder tour, re-rehearsing actors for, suffers fit of pre-tour gloom, yet to report from Boston, and Tewkesbury pageant, accompanies TSE to La Mandragola, on Family Reunion's future prospects, and possible Orson Welles interest, war leaves at loose end, advises TSE over next play, war work with Pilgrim Players, unavailable for modern-dress Murder, compared to tempter/knight successor, requests Pilgrim Players' play from TSE, New Plays by Poets series, as director, and This Way to the Tomb, and Family Reunion revival, urges TSE to concentrate on theatre, 1946 Mercury Family Reunion revival, in rehearsal, possible revue for Mercury Theatre, and The Lady's Not for Burning, Chairman of the Drama League, 1949 Edinburgh Cocktail Party, to produce, TSE's intended first reader for, receives beginning, approves first act, receives TSE's revisions, communciates Alec Guinness's enthusiasm, arranges reading, surpasses himself with production, in Florence, EH suggests moving on from, and the Poets' Theatre Guild, 1950 Cocktail Party New York transfer, compares Rex Harrison and Alec Guinness, TSE debates whether to continue collaboration with, suggests three-play TSE repertory, 1953 Edinburgh Confidential Clerk, receives first two acts, designing sets, 1953 Lyric Theatre Confidential Clerk, attends with TSE, 1954 American Confidential Clerk, 1954 touring Confidential Clerk, TSE and Martin Browne catch in Golders Green, seeks Family Reunion MS from EH,
see also Brownes, the Martin

4.E. MartinBrowne, Elliott Martin Browne (1900–80), English director and producer, was to direct the first production of Murder in the Cathedral: see Biographical Register.

Cocktail Party, The, copy inscribed to Miss Swan, Martin Browne's preference for a popular play, plot ruminated, still a distant prospect, deferred by war, at last begun, being written, EH begs TSE to continue, stimulated by the Martin Brownes, titled and nearly drafted, interrupted, attempts to reconcile EH to title, to be discussed with Brownes, to be continued in Princeton, end in prospect, TSE rewriting, alternative titles, its star appeal, 1949 Edinburgh Festival production, Martin Browne to produce, production schedule, the Martin Browne collaboration, 'reading' for, reviewed, cuts made during rehearsal, TSE's opening-night impressions, stage-set for, copy to be sent to EH, EH on, TSE disavows autobiographical basis, post-Edinburgh prospects, 1949 Theatre Royal, Brighton run, its fate, closing, 1950 New York transfer, TSE skeptical of, its fate, being negotiated, fixed, revisions made in mind of, alarmingly successful, royalties from, prospects beyond 1 June 1950, final act still being rewritten, its reception, EH's second opinion on, 1950 New Theatre production, preliminary week in Southsea, its fate, opening night, to close with provinicial tour, comes off at New Theatre, Mrs Nef's reading-group reading, in which TSE reads Reilly, and casting for Confidential Clerk, its first draft, difficult to produce in France, 1954 Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier production, reception, Muriel Spark on, EH detects hidden meaning in,
Cresswell, Euphemia ('Effie'),

4.Herbert PinkneyCresswell, Pinkney Creswell andCresswell, Euphemia ('Effie') his wife Euphemia – ‘Effie’ (a friend at Chipping Campden) – lived at Ardley House (now the Kings Hotel) before moving in 1934–5 to Charingworth Manor, a fine Tudor house (also now a hotel) about four miles east of Chipping Campden. Effie Cresswell liked to hold arty gatherings and tea parties for cultured visitors.

'Edgar Poe et la France', prepared for Aix and Rome, too French for the Italians, repeated at Jesus College, finally delivered at Aix, delivered again in Oxford,
see also From Poe to Valéry
Eliot, Marion Cushing (TSE's sister), described, her reading habits, not a suitable confidant, TSE reflects on reunion with, Symphony concerts with TSE, to the cinema with TSE, delighted with first Norton lecture, recommends TSE hairdresser for baldness, attends second Norton lecture, hosts birthday party for Margaret, remembered in St. Louis, worried by Dodo's manner, TSE's pride in, vigilant on TSE's health, on Randolph family holiday, congratulates TSE on separation, 1934 summer in England with Dodo, July arrival anticipated, arrangements for, visit to Chipping Campden, off to Salisbury, walks to Kelmscott, returns from Winchester, forces Regent's Park on TSE, excessively humble, next to Ada in TSE's affections, protects TSE from overbearing Hinkleys, supported Landon over FDR, co-hosts Murder party, 1939 summer in England with Dodo, trip in doubt, Southwold week planned, due 19 June, taken to Dulwich, ballet and dinner with, Southwold holiday with, given to post-lunch naps, sends Christmas supplies to Shamley, as correspondent, easiest Eliot in Ada's absence, experiences crisis, importance as sister, Henry's fondness for, devoutly Unitarian, ignorant of Henry's true condition, undernourished, abortive 1948 summer in England, cancelled, which comes as relief, hosts family dinner-party, letter about Nobel Prize to, TSE leaves money with, 1949 visit to England with Dodo, June arrival anticipated, plans for, EH bids 'bon voyage', visit to Cambridge, return from Southwold, Borders tour, Basil Street Hotel stay, Thanksgiving with, reports on Dr Perkins's funeral, efforts to support financially, tethered to Margaret, joins TSE in St. Louis, 1954 trip to England with Dodo, visit to Ely and Cambridge, in light of Margaret's death, invoked against EH, TSE to Theresa on,

1.Marian/MarionEliot, Marion Cushing (TSE's sister) Cushing Eliot (1877–1964), fourth child of Henry Ware Eliot and Charlotte Eliot: see Biographical Register.

English Speaking Union, absorbs Books Across the Sea, TSE opens library at,
Faber, Thomas Erle ('Tom', TSE's godson), not named for TSE, his photograph on TSE's mantel, sends one-word letter, poem written for, and 'The Naming of Cats', which consoles him, decorates matchbox for TSE, given watch for Christmas, bought telescope, takes TSE to Madame Tussaud's, in school Mikado, win scholarship but splits infinitive, TSE's impotence as godfather to, bought fishing rod, TSE goes fishing with, treated by TSE in Cambridge, now don at Corpus Christi, Cambridge,
see also Fabers, the

4.ThomasFaber, Thomas Erle ('Tom', TSE's godson) Erle Faber (1927–2004), TSE’s godson and principal dedicatee of Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, was to become a physicist, teaching at Cambridge, first at Trinity, then for fifty years at Corpus Christi. He served too as chairman of the Geoffrey Faber holding company.

Family Reunion, The, and TSE as Orestes, plot sought for, progress stalled, referred to as 'Orestes play', written against countdown to war, should be artistically a stretch, plot still not settled on, begun, compared to Murder, TSE on writing, described (mid-composition), and Gunn's Carmina Gadelica, described to GCF, EH questions Harry's entrance, draft read to Martin Brownes, projected autumn 1938 production, depletes TSE, and Mourning Becomes Electra, its Greek inheritance, alternatively 'Follow the Furies', first draft promised to EH, as inspired by Tenebrae, being rewritten, work suspended till summer, fair copy being typed, waiting on Browne and Dukes, 'Follow the Furies' quashed by EH, aspires to be Chekhovian, Dukes keen to produce, criticised by Martin Browne, under revision, submitted to EH's theatrical wisdom, for which TSE credits her, possible John Gielgud production, Gielgud-level casting, Browne's final revisions, with the printers, Henry loaned draft, Donat and Saint-Denis interested, in proof, progress towards staging stalled, Saint-Denis interest tempered, possible Tyrone Guthrie production, possible limited Mercury run, its defects, publication scheduled, first draft sent to EH, Michael Redgrave interested in, March 1939 Westminster Theatre production, waits on terms, rehearsals for, which are photographed, opening night contemplated without EH, last-minute flutters, opening night, reception, coming off, TSE's final visit to, Dukes bullish on New York transfer, EH spurs TSE's reflections on, and Otway's Venice Preserv'd, American reception, and Orson Welles, F&F's sales, 1940 American production, Henry harps on the personal aspect, its cheerfulness, EH acknowledges part in, 1943 ADC production, in Dadie Rylands's hands, described, certain lines expressing TSE's frustrations, EH discusses with pupils, plays in Zurich, 1946 Birmingham production, 1946 Mercury revival, rehearsals for, opening night, TSE attends again in company, Spanish translation of, VHE's death calls to mind, its deficiencies, BBC Gielgud broadcast version, first aired, to be repeated, goes nominally with The Cocktail Party, Swedish National Theatre production, compared to Cocktail Party, EH's response to, more 'personal' than Cocktail Party, performed in Göttingen, 1950 Düsseldorf production, 1953 New York production vetoed, 1956 Phoenix Theatre revival, described, Peter Brook congratulated on, Martin Browne seeks MS of,
Fluchère, Henri, mourns The Criterion, his translation of Murder, TSE takes to, translating Aix lecture, lectures on Apollinaire, as TSE's companion in Aix, TSE's debt to, promised foreword by TSE, on Cocktail Party in Paris, hosts TSE in France, Shakespeare,
Fry, Christopher, his diction, The Lady's Not for Burning,
Germany, and The Road Back, and Triumphal March, needs to cooperate with Britain and France, and TSE's Lloyds war-work, TSE listening to speeches from, its actresses, and its Jewish population, in light of Versailles, Oldham reports on religious resistance in, remilitarises the Rhineland, its territorial ambitions under Hitler, Germans compared to Austrians, under Nazism, Duncan-Jones on religious persecution in, German conduct in warfare, Germans compared to Swedes, TSE's post-war sense of duty to, TSE diagnoses its totalitarian slide, TSE urges renewed cultural relations with, TSE on visiting,
Gielgud, John, TSE takes against, declares interest in Family Reunion, subsequent negotiations with, on Family Reunion, renews interest in Family Reunion, in The Duchess of Malfi, as Harry in BBC broadcast, as Harry again,

2.JohnGielgud, John Gielgud (1904–2000), distinguished actor and theatre director. Knighted in 1953; awarded Legion of Honour, 1960; created Companion of Honour, 1977; Order of Merit, 1996.

Innes, Margaret Bird,
see also Hugh Inneses, the
Institut Français, TSE chairs Chevrillon lecture at, and subsequent Fluchère lecture,
Jesus College, Cambridge, TSE addresses students of,
McLaren, Henry, 2nd Baron Aberconway,

6.HenryMcLaren, Henry, 2nd Baron Aberconway McLaren, 2nd Baron Aberconway (1879–1953): politician, horticulturalist, industrialist; President of the Royal Horticultural Society.

Magdalene College, Cambridge, claret discussed at, annual Pepys Dinner, makes TSE an Honorary Fellow, feast of St. Mary Magdalen at, Whitsun feast at, TSE's guest rooms at, repository for Eliotana, sermon preached at, houses Lewis portrait of TSE, which TSE pays for,
Morley, Christina (née Innes), and country life, at Joyce dinner in Paris, taken to theatre in Morley's absence, again to Love for Love, knits TSE socks, her Celtic temperament, therefore special affinity with Donald, sleeping at Donald's school, as tennis-player, falls asleep at wheel, entertained at The Berkeley, accompanies TSE to Three Sisters, taken to meet JDH, accompanies TSE to Bulgakov's White Guard, brings Morley boys along to Shakespeare, faced with departure for America, America's effect on, sends Ada's New York Times obituary, TSE writes letter of condolence to, for which she thanks him, in Cambridge,
see also Morleys, the
Oppenheimer, J. Robert, Institute for Advance Study reputedly graced by, apparently a supporter of Wallace,

7.J. RobertOppenheimer, J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–67): American theoretical physicist, known as the ‘father of the atomic bomb’ for his wartime work as head of the Los Alamos Laboratory as part of the Manhattan Project which developed the nuclear weapons that were deployed on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In 1947 he became director of the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton; chair of the General Advisory Committee of the Atomic Energy Commission, 1947–52.

Perkins, Edith (EH's aunt), her relationship to EH queried, to accompany EH to Scripps, asks TSE to dinner, at first Norton lecture, shares pew with TSE, accompanies TSE to Symphony Concert, in audience at Milton Academy, catches cold in Florence, in TSE's private opinion, TSE's occasional poem for, her relationship with EH analysed, dislikes Jeanette McPherrin, explains EH's breakdown to TSE, on the Harvard Murder, as Campden hostess, and TSE's wartime instructions to EH, gives lunch at American Women's Club, gives TSE balsam pillow, requests English edition of Cats, as horticulturalist, without Campden garden, compared to Irene Hale, gives TSE photograph of EH, attends Ada's funeral, reports on EH's Millbrook situation, pressed for ham and pineapple recipe, sight affected in one eye, gives lecture, sight failing, sight deteriorates in other eye, thanked for 1946 hospitality, gives to Books Across the Sea, according to EH, asks TSE to present slides to RHS, which TSE does, on EH and TSE's relationship, and Hidcote House, friendly with Marion, TSE pitches her book to publishers, depressed by the heat, somewhat recovered, approaching 80th, faced with husband's death, letter of condolence to, sent birthday poem, visited in Boston, has sciatica, reports on EH's dramatic activities, Miss Lavorgna on, in her old-age infirmity, suffers 'shock', sacks nurse, EH preserved from, sends funeral tribute to Cousin Will, and the Hale letters, nursing home sought for, moved into nursing home, where TSE writes to her, suffers stroke, deteriorating, relations with EH, her legacy to EH,
see also Perkinses, the
Perkinses, the, likely to be interested in An Adventure, compared to Mary Ware, enjoyable dinner at the Ludlow with, take to TSE, TSE desires parental intimacy with, their dinner-guests dismissed by TSE, who repents of seeming ingratitude, TSE confides separation plans to, too polite, questioned as companions for EH, offered English introductions, entertained on arrival in London, seek residence in Chichester, given introduction to G. C. Coulton, take house at Chipping Camden, as Chipping Campden hosts, given introduction to Bishop Bell, TSE entertains at Oxford and Cambridge Club, TSE's private opinion on, TSE encourages EH's independence from, their repressive influence on EH, buy TSE gloves for Christmas, sent Lapsang Souchong on arrival in England, invite TSE to Campden, move apartment, anticipate 1938 English summer, descend on EH in Northampton, and EH's wartime return to America, temporarily homeless, enfeebled, EH forwards TSE teenage letter to, their health, which is a burden, approve EH's permanent Abbot position,
Pickthorns, the, host TSE in Cambridge, visited, walk on the Backs with,
Royal Horticultural Society, TSE makes presentation to,
'Sermon Preached at Magdalene College Chapel, A', as preached,
Smith, Theodora ('Dodo') Eliot (TSE's niece), 1931 visit to England, described, to lunch with Lucia Joyce and Barbara Hutchinson, TSE's almost fatherly affection for, in contrast to her sister, at Eliot family Thanksgiving, attends second Norton lecture, TSE reports on from Boston, TSE cultivates, and Marion's 1934 visit to England, visit to Chipping Campden, visit to Salisbury, walk with TSE to Kelmscott, Regent's Park visit, TSE on, 1935 visit to England, taken to the ballet, at the Russian ballet's Aurore, to tea with cousins, her way of addressing relations, TSE tells Trevelyan about, 1936 visit to England, ballet outing, taken to Cheetham's pageant, taken to Kensington Gardens, returns to America with TSE, 1938 visit to England, with Chardy, and Marion's 1939 visit to England, in doubt, Southwold week, taken to Dulwich, taken to ballet and dinner, writes to TSE, visited in Baltimore, 1949 visit to England, taken to Cambridge, then to Southwold, tours the Borders with TSE, 1950 visit to England, taken to The Cocktail Party, due for the summer, recovering from operation, arrives from Scotland, 1953 visit to England, in Edinburgh for Confidential Clerk, 1954 visit to England, 1955 visit to England, reports on the American weather, 1956 visit to England,

2.TheodoraSmith, Theodora ('Dodo') Eliot (TSE's niece) Eliot Smith (1904–92) – ‘Dodo’ – daughter of George Lawrence and Charlotte E. Smith: see Biographical Register. Theodora’sSmith, Charlotte ('Chardy') Stearns (TSE's niece) sister was Charlotte Stearns Smith (b. 1911), known as ‘Chardy’.

Society of the Friends of Little Gidding, TSE becomes Vice-President of,
Tillyard, Eustace Mandeville Wetenhall ('E. M. W.'), lures TSE to Jesus College,

2.E. M. W. TillyardTillyard, Eustace Mandeville Wetenhall ('E. M. W.') (1889–1962): Fellow in English of Jesus College, Cambridge, 1926–59; Master, 1945–59. Works include The Personal Heresy: A Controversy (with C. S. Lewis, 1939); The Elizabethan World Picture: A Study of the Idea of Order in the Age of Shakespeare (1943), Shakespeare’s History Plays (1944) and The Muse Unchained: An Intimate Account of the Revolution in English Studies at Cambridge (1958).

travels, trips and plans, EH's 1930 trip to England, EH's proposed 1931 England visit, called off, EH's 1932 summer holidays, the Eliots' Derby Day excursion, related, the Eliots' July 1932 Hindhead visit, the Eliots' August 1932 Eastbourne holiday, described, TSE's 1932–3 year in America, Norton Professorship offered to TSE, and the prospect of reunion with EH, which TSE refuses to see as decisive, which angers EH, who writes and destroys a response, TSE's financial imperatives, TSE's itinerary, and the question of discretion, opportunity for adventurous lecture-tours, TSE speculates on attendant feelings, TSE on the voyage over, TSE reflects on, TSE's return from, the Eliot family's Randolph holiday, TSE's 1933 westward tour to Scripps, proposed to EH, and TSE's need to lecture, possibly via St. Louis, TSE's itinerary, possible stopover in Seattle, a shameful source of happiness, still a happy thought, described by Havens and others, TSE reflects on, TSE's return from, TSE wonders at after-effect on EH, EH urged to reflect honestly on, Ada on, and a conversation about divorce, in EH's recollection, possible EH 1933 summer in England, TSE's 1933 Faber summer holiday, set for mid-August, postponed, rearranged, TSE buys summer outfits for, described, TSE's 1933 tour of Scotland, possible itinerary, Morley's preparations for, described for EH, TSE's 1933 trip to Paris, mooted, described, EH's 1934–5 year in Europe, TSE delighted at the prospect, attempts to coordinate with TSE's 1934 summer plans, the Perkinses due in Chipping Camden, EH's itinerary, TSE's initial weekend at Chipping Campden, TSE books rooms in Lechlade, TSE visits Campden again with family, and again alone, which visit TSE reflects on, TSE's plans to entertain EH en route to Europe, EH's continental itinerary, VHE and propriety inhibit pre-Paris arrangements, L'Escargot lunch, weekend in Sussex for EH's birthday, possible London tea-party, second lunch at L'Escargot, EH and TSE's November excursions, a month which TSE reflects happily on, EH's summer 1935 plans, EH departs England, EH in Florence, arrived in Rome, TSE coordinating with EH's return, TSE recommends Siena, EH returns to Florence, EH sails for Riviera, EH returns from France, L'Escargot lunch on EH's return, EH sails for Guernsey, May 1935, EH's June 1935 London sortie, TSE attends Dr Perkins's birthday, TSE's July 1935 Campden week, TSE offers to fund EH in London, where EH joins Jeanie McPherrin, TSE's Campden birthday weekend, prospect of EH spending month at Blomfield Terrace, Thorp theatre outing, TSE's 6–8 September Campden weekend, EH staying at 19 Rosary Gardens, EH to Campden for 15–17 November, EH sails for Boston, EH and TSE's final farewell, TSE and EH's final weeks in London, their excursion to Finchampstead, TSE reflects on, excursion to Greenwich, EH reflects on the final weeks of, TSE's 1934 Faber summer holiday, described, TSE's dream of Cairo, TSE's invitation to Finland, palmed off on Robert Nichols, TSE's 1935 tour of Scotland, proposed by Blake, attempts to coordinate with EH, TSE's itinerary, TSE's 1935 Faber summer holiday, TSE writes from, described, TSE's 1936 visit to Ireland, TSE's itinerary, recounted, TSE's spring/summer 1936 trip to Paris, first contemplated, date fixed, Morleys invited, TSE's itinerary, recounted, TSE's 1936 Faber summer holiday, TSE writes from, TSE's 1936 American trip, spring arrival dependent on New York Murder, if not spring, then autumn, possible excursions, autumn better for seeing EH, and possible Princeton offer, and possible Smith visit, efforts to coordinate with EH, passage on Alaunia booked, TSE's itinerary, Murder to pay for, coordinating with Eliot Randolph holiday, the moment of parting from EH, TSE's birthday during, TSE reflects on, TSE's 1937 tour of Scotland, itinerary, recounted, the Morley–Eliot 1937 trip to Salzburg, contemplated, itinerary, EH receives postcard from, described, as relayed to OM, EH's 1937 summer in England, and Mrs Seaverns, EH accompanies TSE to Edinburgh, itinerary coordinated with EH, dinner at L'Escargot, TSE's 10–11 July Campden visit, TSE's 17–22 July Campden visit, TSE's 21 August Campden visit, EH travels to Yorkshire, TSE reminisces about, TSE's 1937 Faber summer holiday, TSE reports from, leaves TSE sunburnt, TSE's 1938 trip to Lisbon, outlined to EH, TSE advised on, travel arrangements, the voyage out, described, EH's 1938 summer in England, and whether EH should spend it at Campden, EH's arrival confirmed, TSE's July Campden visit, EH's late-July London stay, TSE's 5–21 August Campden fortnight, TSE's 3–6 September Campden visit, EH's September London stay, TSE reflects on, TSE's 1938 Faber summer holiday, TSE's preparations for, TSE reports from, possible EH England Christmas 1938 visit, possible TSE 1939 visit to America, mooted for spring, complicated by Marion and Dodo's trip, shifted to autumn, threatened by war, made impossible, EH's 1939 England visit, TSE's efforts to coordinate with, threatened by war, complicated by Marion's arrival, EH's itinerary, EH's initial London stay, TSE's 7–20 July Campden visit, TSE's 22–30 August Campden visit, TSE's 2–4 September Campden visit, EH again London, EH and TSE's parting moments, in TSE's memory, memory vitiated by EH's subsequent letter, TSE's 1939 Faber summer holiday, TSE writes from, possible wartime transatlantic crossings, contingencies, in case of EH being ill, TSE's reasons for and against, and TSE's New York proposition, following invasion Denmark and Norway, impossible for TSE unless official, TSE's desire to remain in England, TSE's reasons for and against accepting lectureship, given Ada's impending death, TSE's abortive 1940 Italian mission, possible but confidential, lectures prepared for, and the prospect of seeing EP, might include Paris, itinerary, in jeopardy, final preparations for, cancelled, TSE's 1940 visit to Dublin, approved by Foreign Office, in national interest, itinerary, recounted, involves TSE's first plane-journey, TSE's 1940 Faber summer holiday, TSE reports from, TSE's 1941 Faber summer holiday, Kipling and fishing-rod packed for, TSE reports from, TSE's 1941 Northern tour, proposed by the Christendom group, arranged with Demant, itinerary, recounted, TSE's 1942 British Council mission to Sweden, TSE makes cryptic allusion to, as recounted to EH, as recounted to JDH, return leg in London, as war-work, TSE's 1942 New Forest holiday, described, TSE's 1942 week in Scotland, recounted, TSE's abortive 1942 Iceland mission, TSE's 1943 trip to Edinburgh, recounted, TSE's abortive 1943 Iceland mission, TSE's 1943 New Forest holiday, TSE's 1944 trip to Edinburgh, TSE's abortive 1944 North Africa mission, TSE's May 1945 trip to Paris, described, TSE's June 1945 trip to Paris, recounted, possible post-war American visit, and Henry's impending death, ideally ancillary to work, possibly as F&F's representative, waits on TSE's health and Carlyle Mansions, TSE's 1945 September fortnight in Lee, described, TSE's 1945 Christmas in Lee, described, TSE's 1946 summer in America, date for passage fixed, paperwork for, TSE's itinerary, its aftermath, recounted, TSE's 1947 summer in America, dependent on lecture engagements, TSE seeks to bring forward, Henry's condition brings further forward, set for April, itinerary, EH reflects on, TSE's scheduled December 1947 visit to Marseilles and Rome, itinerary, TSE's preparations for, dreaded, Roman leg described by Roger Hinks, EH's hypothetical March 1948 visit to England, TSE's postponed 1948 trip to Aix, itinerary, recounted, home via Paris, TSE's 1948 trip to America, itinerary, TSE's visit to EH in Andover, disrupted by Nobel Prize, TSE's 1948 Nobel Prize visit to Stockholm, itinerary, recounted, TSE's 1949 family motor-tour of Scotland, described, TSE's October–November 1949 trip to Germany, possible itinerary, preparations for, final itinerary, TSE's account of, the return via Belgium, TSE's January 1950 voyage to South Africa, all but fixed, itinerary, described by TSE, recounted by Faber, EH's 1950 summer in England, TSE books EH's hotel room for, TSE's efforts to coordinate with EH's movements, EH in Campden, TSE reports to Aunt Edith on, TSE's 1950 visit to America, and TSE's possible Chicago post, the Chicago leg, November itinerary, TSE's spring 1951 trip to Spain, itinerary, recounted, TSE's September 1951 Geneva stay, itinerary, recounted, TSE's 1951 British Council mission to Paris, recounted, TSE's second 1951 British Council mission to Paris, recounted, TSE's 1952 visit to Rennes and the Riviera, itinerary, recounted, TSE's 1952 visit to America, itinerary, efforts to coordinate with EH's summer, TSE on meeting with EH, TSE's 1952 rest cure in Switzerland, TSE's 1953 visit to St. Louis and America, set for June, to include fortnight in Cambridge, itinerary, EH's 1953 trip to England, EH's Alnwick plans, TSE books hotel for EH, and EH's ticket to Confidential Clerk, TSE's 1953 visit to Geneva, TSE's 1953–4 trip to South Africa, itinerary, described, arrival described to JDH, GCF on, TSE's 1954 Geneva rest cure, Geneva preferred to Paris, TSE's deferred 1955 visit to Hamburg, prospect inspires reluctance in TSE, proposed for spring 1955, dreaded, TSE now returned from, TSE's 1955 visit to America, and contingent speaking engagements, foreshortened, itinerary, Washington described, TSE's return from, TSE's 1955 Geneva rest cure, TSE's 1956 visit to America, passage fixed for April, itinerary, TSE in the midst of, TSE reflects on, TSE's 1956 Geneva rest cure, itinerary, recounted, illness during, EH's 1957 visit to England, TSE and EVE invited to Campden, TSE reciprocates with London invitation, but EH leaves England abruptly, which TSE consults Eleanor Hinkley over, who duly explains, TSE and EVE's 1958 trip to America, as rumoured to EH, EH's 1959 tour of Scandinavia, funded by bequest from cousin, TSE and EVE's 1959 trip to America, TSE and EVE's 1963 trip to America,