[No surviving envelope]
Dearest my Love,
I would have written a letter several days earlier than this; but now that I have learned to look in the Times to see what boats are sailing, I don’t always write, if very busy, until the day before a boat sails. But I wish they were spread out more, over the week; often there seem to be three or four within a day of each other, or on the same day, and then nothing for four or five days. And one doesn’t know their relative speeds, except that the Bremen and Europa are much the fastest. This time I have the choice of the Aquitania and the Ile de France, and I suppose there is nothing to choose between them.
IcommitteesTSE forswears;a3 do accept your admonitions, dear, about the expense of my time. But it is very difficult to apply in practice. One thing I can do is to avoid any further committees or societies. EdwynBevan, Edwyn R.;a3 Bevan has invited me to join the London Society for the Study of Religion, aHügel, Friedrich vonTSE invited to join society founded by;a4 rather interesting interdenominational group founded by Baron von Huegel some years ago; and I am going to a meeting with him this afternoon, but I shall not join, because even a society which meets for a couple of hours one afternoon a month is too much.1 IAll Souls Club, TheTSE joins;a1 did join that All Souls Club, a similar affair, and have not been to one dinner yet. But dealing with individuals is another matter. TheHayward, JohnTSE's only regular acquaintance;e5 only person I see at all regularly, outside of the office, is John Hayward, andMorleys, theone of two regular ports-of-call;f9 I have to go about once every five or six weeks for a weekend at the Morleys. But there always seem to be people with the claim to see one more often than they do, and every week there is someone to see whom I have not seen for a long time – thisLewis, Wyndham;a6 week Wyndham Lewis, andCulpin, Johanna ('Aunt Johanna', née Staengel);b6 next week Jan Culpin, andWoolfs, the;c5 then there will be the Woolfs. IJanes, W. L.;a8 went in to see Janes on Saturday morning, and found that he expected me to lunch, and had got in a joint and Mrs. Webster to cook it, and a bottle of Bass, so I couldn’t bear to disappoint him. InMadge, Charlestreated to meal;a2 the evening I took one of my young men, a promising lad named Charles Madge and his wife, out to dinner. IBrocklebank, Charlotte Carissima ('Cara')Cheetham introduces to TSE;a1 haveGooch, Sir Henry;a1 managed to keep pretty clear of parishioners, but on Sunday, by the vicar’s special request, I went to lunch with a rich old lady named Mrs. Brocklebank,2 who had some elderly people there, a Sir Henry Gooch (?)3 and a Lady Callahan; andUnderhill, Evelyn;b5 in the afternoon paid a call on Mrs. Stuart Moore, who I had not seen for six months. TonightAuden, Wystan Hugh ('W. H.')The Dog Beneath the Skin (with Isherwood);d5 I must go to see The Dog Beneath the Skin, which I had to see sooner or later, because of the author being a protegé of the firm.4 I try not to go out more than two evenings in the week, and when I am at home there is always plenty to do in the evening. I should like to spend all my evenings writing to you; but there is a good deal of other private correspondence – notes to friends, letters to relatives (whichSmith, Abigail Eliot (TSE's cousin);a2 remindsSmith, Rose Greenleaf Eliot (TSE's aunt)dies;a3 me that I have not yet written to Abigail Smith a letter of condolence for the death of Aunt Rose in St. Louis)5 and manuscripts to read. It is difficult to read manuscripts at the office because of interruptions. WhatGilbert, Stuart;a2 I find most fatiguing are business, or semi-business lunches – there are so many authors whom one feels obliged to keep in touch with, e.g. Stuart Gilbert, the author of a commentary on ‘Ulysses’ which we published, is over from Paris for a few days, and is to lunch with me on Saturday; and interviewing authors, especially the young ones who seem to have talent, and need to be nursed along for that reason in the hope of their producing something good, and who are apt to have financial or domestic troubles as well. Of course the other directors have similar difficulties, in having to do work at home because of interruptions and visitors, and I stick to my programme of never going to the office in the mornings, except one Saturday a month, or when there is a press of letters to work off.
IOld Possum’s Book of Practical Catswritten to relieve political gloom;b4 hope now to settle down seriously at my nonsense book. It may be a matter of no importance, and the book may not turn out good enough to publish anyway, but something has formed inside me (pardon the inelegant metaphor) which I have got to get rid of: I have got to try to do this just for some relief that doing it will afford. Partly perhaps as a means of preservation against the gloom of contemporary politics. Thefascism;a7 more militarised the world becomes the less freedom and civilisation. It’scommunism;a9 not so great a strain, mentally, for those who can whole heartedly believe in communism or fascism, or for those who can complacently accept the kind of disguised fascism or oligarchical, centralised control of everything that we are likely to get: but it’s a hard world for those who cannot accept any of the secular alternatives of the time. Butpoetrynonsense poetry;b4, as I was starting to say, I find that nonsense verse is more difficult to write than any other. One is just as much dependent upon the inspiration of a good idea; and this sort of writing, being away from the direct line of one’s work, has to be nearly perfect to justify its existence at all. And besides the need of inspiration, of happy ideas, the verse needs to be polished and polished: every word must fall into the right place. So it may be a good practice. IMilne, Alan Alexander ('A. A.')not TSE's nonsense model;a2 am not aiming at children’s verse in the usual sense – A. A. Milne or Stevenson – verse written for children (or for the parents who think it is for children) but nonsense verse to please oneself primarily, and if it pleases children, so much the better. ItLear, Edwardyardstick for TSE's own nonsense;a6 won’tCarroll, LewisTSE measures his nonsense against;a3 be up to Lear or Carroll, butCarryl, Charles EdwardTSE's standard for Old Possum's;a1 it may be as good as Charles E. Carryl, the author of ‘Davy and the Goblin’ and ‘The Admiral’s Caravan’.6
‘MurderMurder in the Cathedral1935–6 Mercury Theatre revival;d8its 100th performance;a6’ had its 100th performance on Shrove Tuesday – did I tell you – I did not go, but went in after it was over, about 11.15 to be on the safe side to avoid any undesirable meeting – andDukes, Ashleyat 100th performance of Murder;b4 had a glass of wine with Dukes andSpeaight, Robertat 100th performance of Murder;b7 suchSpeaight, Evelyn (née Bowen);a3 ofBrowne, Elliott Martin1935–6 Mercury Theatre Murder revival;a7;a5 the performers as remained – Speaight and Scheldjrup and Mrs. Speaight7 whom I had not met before, and who made no definite impression on me. Browne was away with a touch of laryngitis. It still goes on to good houses, and apparently will until towards the end of April. DooneDoone, Rupertcraves TSE's next play;b7 has been after me to promise him my next play, but I will not tie it up to anyone until it is ready. IBrowne, Elliott Martinpreferred as producer for TSE's next play;a8 had rather stick to Browne and Dukes, unlessSaint-Denis, Michel;a4 there is something to be done with St. Denis. IGielgud, Val;a1 hadBurnham, Barbarakeen to broadcast TSE's next play;a2 teaBritish Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)lobbies TSE for next play;a7 with Val Gielgud8 and Barbara Burnham at the B.B.C. and agreed to let them see my next play in an unfinished form, to decide whether part of it could be used for a one-hour broadcast play – for which apparently, they would pay a good deal more – for first performance, than they did for ‘Murder’. It would be a waste of time, in the long run, to write a play solely for the B.B.C. – one performance and then it’s over: in any case, I am much more interested in the theatre than in broadcasting. But I think it will be a year before I can hope to complete a play. The summer is always broken up – visits, American relatives, and I should like to get away in the early summer to Ireland or France perhaps, as well as four or five days if possible in Scotland again – and there is the American visit in the early autumn!
Dearest, there is one point in your letter of Feb. 17th that I must allude to. YouHale, Emilyrelationship with TSE;w9TSE's reasons against marrying;c5 speakEliot, Vivien (TSE's first wife, née Haigh-Wood)the possibility of divorcing;f2in common and canon law;a5 as if there were some tribunal which had the function of handling special cases of unfortunate marriage, and granting dispensation. There is not. All that could even be imagined would be some future legislation would [sc. which] would give relief to a whole class of cases, and such a possibility seems so faint that it is much better for one not to think of it. Even the curia at Rome deals with a different type of case than mine; and that itself would not be valid in this country without a common law divorce as well, which can only be obtained in one way. You speaking of ‘pushing’ me, where there is nowhere to which to push me. I don’t think you have even quite grasped the difference between common law divorce in this country and in America, though I have tried to explain it long ago. So, my dearest, when you speak of these matters, it must cause me such pain – and for you more than for myself. ItHale, Emilyreligious beliefs and practices;x1professes to resent the Church;a6 is painful also to think that you feel resentment, perhaps, against the Church. IChristianityUnitarianism;d9TSE's wish that EH convert from;b2 shouldHale, Emilyreligious beliefs and practices;x1compared to TSE's;a5 not blame you if you did, I should only suffer for you: because you have never been in a position in which it would be possible for you to grasp the whole Christian and Catholic view of life – nor is it possible for you in your present environment. Some day, dear, I still hope to see you baptised – but true conversion, I believe, is self-conversion, not by another person or persons. So I simply wait and pray and love you.
1.Edwyn Bevan (1870–1943), philosopher and historian of the Hellenic world, King’s College London, invited TSE (7 Feb.) to join the London Society for the Study of Religion (founded 1904): ‘It consists of some 30 members, drawn from religious communities, or of no organized religion, and meets normally 6 times a year for the reading of a paper and a discussion.’
2.CharlotteBrocklebank, Charlotte Carissima ('Cara') Carissima (‘Cara’) Brocklebank (1885–1948), only surviving daughter of Gen. Sir Bindon and Lady Blood, married in 1910 Lt.-Col. Richard Hugh Royds Brocklebank, DSO (1881–1965). They lived at 18 Hyde Park Square, London W.2, and at Alveston House, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire: see Biographical Register.
3.SirGooch, Sir Henry Henry Gooch (1871–1959), barrister, educationalist, Conservative Party politician.
4.The Dog Beneath the Skin, by W. H. Auden and Christopher Isherwood, at the Group Theatre. TSE was annoyed that Auden collaborated with Isherwood. He had not greatly admired Isherwood’s translation of Baudelaire’s Intimate Journals (1930), for which he had written the introduction.
5.Abigail Adams Eliot (1900–84), daughter of Rose Greenleaf Eliot (b. 1862), who had died on 14 Feb. 1936.
6.CharlesCarryl, Charles Edward Edward Carryl (1841–1929), American businessman and stockbroker; author of children’s books including Davy and the Goblin (1884) and The Admiral’s Caravan (1892) – inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1862) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871).
7.Speaight’s second wife was the Welsh actor Evelyn Bowen.
8.ValGielgud, Val Gielgud (1900–81), pioneer of radio drama, actor, writer (his output included novels, stage plays, radio plays, works of non-fiction), director and broadcaster; Head of Productions at the BBC (responsible for radio drama) from 1929; Head of BBC Television Drama, 1946–52.
10.W. H. AudenAuden, Wystan Hugh ('W. H.') (1907–73), poet, playwright, librettist, translator, essayist, editor: see Biographical Register.
1.EdwynBevan, Edwyn R. R. Bevan (1870–1943), philosopher and historian of the Hellenic world, taught at King’s College London; elected FBA, 1942.
2.CharlotteBrocklebank, Charlotte Carissima ('Cara') Carissima (‘Cara’) Brocklebank (1885–1948), only surviving daughter of Gen. Sir Bindon and Lady Blood, married in 1910 Lt.-Col. Richard Hugh Royds Brocklebank, DSO (1881–1965). They lived at 18 Hyde Park Square, London W.2, and at Alveston House, Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire: see Biographical Register.
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.
6.CharlesCarryl, Charles Edward Edward Carryl (1841–1929), American businessman and stockbroker; author of children’s books including Davy and the Goblin (1884) and The Admiral’s Caravan (1892) – inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1862) and Through the Looking-Glass (1871).
2.RupertDoone, Rupert Doone (1903–66), dancer, choreographer and producer, founded the Group Theatre, London, in 1932: see Biographical Register.
4.AshleyDukes, Ashley Dukes (1885–1959), theatre manager, playwright, critic, translator, adapter, author; from 1933, owner of the Mercury Theatre, London: see Biographical Register.
8.ValGielgud, Val Gielgud (1900–81), pioneer of radio drama, actor, writer (his output included novels, stage plays, radio plays, works of non-fiction), director and broadcaster; Head of Productions at the BBC (responsible for radio drama) from 1929; Head of BBC Television Drama, 1946–52.
4.StuartGilbert, Stuart Gilbert (1883–1969), English literary scholar and translator, was educated at Hertford College, Oxford (1st class in Classics), and worked in the Indian Civil Service; and then, following military service, as a judge on the Court of Assizes in Burma. It was only after his retirement in 1925 that he undertook work on Joyce, having admired Ulysses while in Burma. After befriending Joyce and others in his Paris circle (including Sylvia Beach and Valery Larbaud), he wrote James Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’: A Study (F&F, 1930). He helped Joyce with the French translation of Ulysses; and in 1957 edited Letters of James Joyce (with advice from TSE). In addition, he translated works by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Roger Martin du Gard, Paul Valéry, André Malraux, Jean Cocteau, Albert Camus, Jean-Paul Sartre and Georges Simenon.
3.SirGooch, Sir Henry Henry Gooch (1871–1959), barrister, educationalist, Conservative Party politician.
11.JohnHayward, John Davy Hayward (1905–65), editor and critic: see Biographical Register.
5.EleanorHinkley, Eleanor Holmes (TSE's first cousin) Holmes Hinkley (1891–1971), playwright; TSE’s first cousin; daughter of Susan Heywood Stearns – TSE’s maternal aunt – and Holmes Hinkley: see Biographical Register.
4.W. L. JanesJanes, W. L. (1854–1939), ex-policeman who worked as handyman for the Eliots. Having been superannuated from the police force early in the century, he worked for a period (until about 1921) as a plain-clothes detective in the General Post Office. TSE reminisced to Mary Trevelyan on 2 Apr. 1951: ‘If I ever write my reminiscences, which I shan’t, Janes would have a great part in them’ (‘The Pope of Russell Square’). TSE to Adam Roberts (b. 1940; godson of TSE), 12 Dec. 1955: ‘I … knew a retired police officer, who at one period had to snoop in plain clothes in the General Post Office in Newgate Street – he caught several culprits, he said’ (Adam Roberts). HisJanes, Ada wife was Ada Janes (d. 1935).
7.WyndhamLewis, Wyndham Lewis (1882–1957), painter, novelist, philosopher, critic: see Biographical Register.
1.CharlesMadge, Charles Madge (1912–96), poet and sociologist: see Biographical Register.
2.CompagnieSaint-Denis, Michel des Quinze: theatre production company organised by Michel Saint-Denis (nephew of Jacques Copeau), together with the playwright André Obey, at the Théatre du Vieux-Colombier, Paris, 1929–34.
3.AbigailSmith, Abigail Eliot (TSE's cousin) Eliot Smith (1900–84), daughter of Holmes and Rose Eliot Smith, graduated from Wellesley College in 1922, and took her MD at Washington University School of Medicine, 1927. She was Assistant Resident in Medicine, Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, 1930–2; Instructor in Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, 1932–4; Physician to out-patients, Washington University Dispensary, 1936–42; Cardiologist, Out-Patient Department, St. Louis County Hospital, 1942; and Assistant Physician, Wellesley College, from 1942.
1.RoseSmith, Rose Greenleaf Eliot (TSE's aunt) Greenleaf Eliot (1862–1936), andSmith, Holmes (TSE's uncle) Holmes Smith (1863–1937), Professor of Drawing and the History of Art, Washington University; first President of the College Art Association.
9.EvelynSpeaight, Evelyn (née Bowen) Bowen (1911–94), Welsh actor and writer, founder-director of the Welsh National Theatre Company, 1933–6. Her marriage to Speaight ended in divorce in 1939.
2.RobertSpeaight, Robert Speaight (1904–77), actor, producer and author, was to create the role of Becket in Murder in the Cathedral in 1935: see Biographical Register.
1.EvelynUnderhill, Evelyn Underhill (1875–1941), spiritual director and writer on mysticism and the spiritual life: see Biographical Register.