Scope and Content
"At last I am able to get down to a pile of correspondence which has accumulated during the past few months. I can say without any hesitation that since my return from Hoscote and Yorkshire in September, I have had the busiest time I have experienced here in all my nine years' residence. I had a succession of visitors following one on the other; then after a week's pause the rush began again. Mrs.Stavert arrived for her annual visit, and that is always a sign for an outbreak of parties and invitations here, as she is a very popular visitor, and has quite become one of the Castle family. I had to invite people in to meet her, and as I will not let her do any cooking, I had a busy time in my kitchen. Then I had a call from Dover to say that Roy MacGregor-Hastie, the writer I shared my cabin with on the Jesenice, had arrived from Italy and would be with us in an hour. Fortunately, as Sydney Crouch is at Dover during term-time, I have the use of his flat, so I put Roy M-H in there. Then two Swedish girls I also met on the Jesenice telephoned from London to say they were there on a ship for a week, and could they come down. I invited them to lunch the next day, and they arrived and were very surprised to find Roy here. They returned to London the same evening.
Then Mrs.Stavert's husband arrived from Madrid, where he had been on business, quite tired out. He had a nice restful weekend here, and they both left for London on the Tuesday morning. The next day my old friend the Archdeacon of Gloucester arrived for two nights, having skipped the last sessions of the Church Assembly! After a weekend's respite, I left on the Monday morning for a very full week in London. I arrived at my Club with a heavy cold on me, but I got through my Monday night's engagement, a dinner with some doctor friends. The next morning I felt very poorly. However, I got up and went to the Yugoslav Embassy to have my visa renewed, and returned to the Club for lunch. I was then having shivers, and decided to call it a day. I cancelled my Tuesday night engagement, went to my room, called the valet, got hot water bottle and asprins and hot milk and whiskey, and retired to bed, hoping to sweat it out. It was heavenly to be lying in that warmth, instead of crawling about more dead than alive - but I was very apprehensive lest I had 'flu, which would mean stopping in bed some days. However, the next morning I felt definitely better, and my temperature seemed to have dropped; so I got up, met a friend for lunch, and we went to the matinee of the Shakespeare Company, The Hollow Crown, which I enjoyed, and in the evening to Oh What a Lovely War, which brought back memories of my youth and the First World War. On Thursday I went up into the City to call at the Yugoslav Shipping Office, and had a big thrill en route when I saw the newly cleaned West Front of S.Paul's - a Renaissance jewel, a lovely soft amber shade like the churches in Italy - the sun was shining on it too - and what a silent comment it makes on the hideous packing cases rising round it on all sides! That evening I met another friend and we went to the Mermaid Theatre (my first visit) to see The Possessed, Camus' adaptation of Dostoievsky's novel which I have read - strong Russian drama - all rather odd to British minds - but I was held to my seat throughout. On Friday I crossed the river to see my old church S.John the Divine Kennington, now rebuilt. I had lunch with the clergy at the Vicarage, which brought back many memories. In the afternoon, I saw the film Lawrence of Arabia. I was unable to accept O'Toole as Lawrence, though his acting was excellent. Lawrence was a small man: O'Toole is tall and slim; so I felt throughout I was watching an actor impersonating Lawrence. But it is a fine film, and the desert scenes are quite wonderful. On Saturday morning I went to the Queen's Gallery to see the pictures of the royal children; the Van Dyck of Charles the First's children is the star; the modern pictures of present day royalty are appallingly bad. In the afternoon I went with a friend to The Representative, the play about Pius the 12th and the Jews. I think this play suffers badly from cutting; apparently only one-third of it is shown in London. But it is a powerful drama. I thought the film sequences were a mistake; the play should stand on its own merits. There is no doubt that Pius should have spoken out. I always felt this during the war. That deathly silence from the Vatican throughout the long five years was frightful. On Sunday I went down to Croydon to spend the day with my only surviving friend from the first World War, and his wife, and Monday afternoon found me back here, still full of cold; but at any rate I had got through the week.
I leave here on Dec.9th. for Rijeka. I have two or three hours in Paris that evening - time to have dinner with my old Oxford friend Valentin Vindogradoff - then on to the night train arriving in Milan the next afternoon. Did I tell you that my god-daughter Patricia Stavert is now working in Milan, and doing very well? I hope to spend two nights in Milan; then on to Rijeka. The Dresnice is due to sail on Dec.14th. for South America. She is a brand new ship, with every comfort. We stop at Dakar in West Africa, then across the Atlantic to Rio de Janiero, Santos, Montevideo, Buenos Aires; returning by the same route. On arrival in the Mediterannean in April, we touch at Pireaus, the port for Athens (where I have not been); so I may disembark there.
I must thank you for the Beds. Magazine, which I have not had time to look at yet. I still have visitors coming. The Rev. Arthur Higginson is coming for a night before setting out for British Honduras, where he is going to be Dean of the cathedral at Belize - or so I believe. I will send you p.c.s from the other side of the world when I get there. I shall be 65 on my return, and drawing the Retirement Pension, which will be very welcome!
Sydney Crouch is not too well; he had to go and see a heart specialist recently; valvular trouble apparently.
I hope you are well. With best wishes,
Yours sincerely,"