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The Shiffolds, Holmbury St. Mary, Dorking. - Thanks his father for his letter. Bessie's shoulder is now recovering, and she can 'use her arm fairly well'. They are going to Bedales at the weekend; Julian 'seems to be enjoying his summer term'. They have been reading Carlyle's Cromwell in the evenings, 'a serious undertaking'; it is the 'only important book of Carlyle' which he has never read before. Julian will 'soon be old enough to read The French Revolution; when Robert was about fifteen or sixteen, he 'used to read it over and over again, especially the last books'.

Hopes Booa [Mary Prestwich] is 'keeping fairly well'; she wrote him 'a very nice letter, and quite a long one', last week. The weather is quite chilly; today is 'dark and threatening' though there has not been any rain yet. Will perhaps manage to get to Winchester from Bedales on Monday, where [the Balliol Players] are doing the last performance of his Aeschylus translation [The Curse of the House of Atrueus, using Robert's translation of the Oresteia]. Thinks they are acting in in Old Sarum today.

The Shiffolds. - Went to London on Thursday for the [Apostles'] Dinner, which was a 'great success. George made a good Presidential speech, with an amusing apostolic myth... about why Tomlinson and not Macaulay was founder of the Society'. Sat between Forster and McTaggart. Dickinson 'spoke well and wittily about the O. B. [Oscar Browning]'; Walter Leaf and [Alfred North?] Whitehead were also good. The Vice-President, Thompson [perhaps George Derwent Thomson], 'took the precaution of writing out his speech, which though elaborate was above the average for Vice-Presidential speeches'. There were about twenty-eight or twenty-nine people present, 'rather more than usual'.

Left Bessie at home with a 'strained shoulder', she is recovering, though still has her arm in a sling. Will try to get to one of the performances of the Oresteia by the Balliol undergraduates; from what he hears it is unlikely to be very good. They acted it in various places in the south of England last year, though he did not see any performances himself. Expects they have improved; may go to see them at Winchester on 7 July. They are using his 'complete translation... published in January 1923, not the theatre version which was printed opposite the Greek for the Cambridge performance of 1921'. They do not of course act out the whole trilogy; should think they leave out a third or more. Sends love to his mother.

The Shiffolds. - Very kind of his mother to send him the [birthday] present of three pounds; will 'spend it chiefly on books' and tell her what he gets. May 'spend part on trouser-stretchers, which Bessie is very anxious [he] should have'. His hand is getting better [after a fall on the Lake Hunt, see 46/316], but 'still bandaged, so writing is a little difficult'. They have several guests: Mrs and Mrs Sanger; their daughter, who 'has just left Bedales; and Dickinson, 'who is here still'.

Also here is Rodker, who will publish Robert's Theocritus translation this autumn. This autumn, or next spring, the Hogarth Press will publish 'a small book of new poems' by Robert [Poems and Fables]. Knows little as yet about the performance of his Aeschylus translation by Oxford undergraduates [the Balliol Players]; they performed it 'much in the same way last year', but he never himself saw it. Will try to see a performance this time, maybe the Winchester one; doubts they do it well, from what he hears, 'still it may be an interesting experiment'. Has had nothing to do with it beyond letting them use the translation. Met 'the young man who plays Agamemnon at Athens this year. He seemed a nice fellow', but Robert does not know whether he can act. They use his '1922 edition... not the condensed version... for the Cambridge performance'. Will write to his father when he returns from London; goes there on Thursday for the [Apostles] Dinner. Sends thanks to him for his letter [12/365].

3 press clippings, Jan-Apr 1921: piece on Aeschylus' "Oresteia", put on as the Cambridge Greek Play, by its director J. T. Sheppard from the "Cambridge Review"; brief note from the "Holborn Review" of the text of the trilogy, as presented at Cambridge, with facing English translation by Trevelyan; 'Editorial Notes' from the "Holborn Review" comparing lines from Trevelyan's translation with that of Gilbert Murray.

24 press clippings (plus a few duplicates) , mostly reviews of Trevelyan's full translation of the "Oresteia", Jan 1923-Nov/Dec 1923, from: the "Scotsman"; the "Daily Herald" (two copies); the "Aberdeen Journal"; the "Guardian" (two copies); the "Times" (also reviewing a Loeb Library translation of the "Suppliant Maidens" etc by H. Weir Smyth and a verse translation of Aeschylus by G. M. Cookson), with a following letter by J. T. Sheppard correcting some points about the performances by Cambridge University students; the ""Sheffield Daily Telegraph"; the "Saturday Review"; the "Daily News"; the "Manchester Guardian"; the "New Statesman" (two copies; by 'J.T.S' - J. T. Sheppard - which also reviews G. M. Cookson's "Four Plays of Aeschylus"); the "Saturday Review" (selection of Trevelyan's translation as a prize in a chess competition); the "Highway" (two copies); the "Hallam Review" (also reviewing "Translation and Translations" by J. P. Postgate); the "Yorkshire Post"; the "Liverpool Daily Post and Mercury"; the "Educational Times"; the "Glasgow Herald"; the "Isis" (a review of Gilbert Murray's translation of the "Choephoroe", comparing it favourably with Trevelyan's); piece by Gilbert Murray from the "Nation & Athenaeum", "Thoughts on Verse Translation from the Greek", which mentions Trevelyan's work; the "Observer (also reviewing Murray's "Chorephoroe"); the "Classical Review" (two copies: with other classical translations); the "London Mercury". Also from this span of dates is a piece from the "Daily News", 30 Jan 1923, regarding an argument between Lascelles Abercrombie and Sir Charles Walston on whether Darwin's "Origin of Species" can be considered a work of art.

6 press clippings, June-July, relating to the performance on tour of the "Oresteia" in Trevelyan's translation by the Balliol Players. Most report a special performance given at Thomas Hardy's house, Max Gate in Dorchester, to Hardy and his wife, Granville Barker and his wife, and Sidney Cockerell. From: the "Times"; the "Daily News"; the "Daily Mail"; the "Daily Chronicle"; the "Westminster Gazette".

Press clipping, 21 Jan 1926, from the "Oxford Magazine", reviewing E. S. Hoernle's "Choric Songs from Aeschylus"; Hoernle criticises Trevelyan's translation in the introduction.

21 printed order forms by the University Press of Liverpool for Trevelyan's translation of the "Oresteia".

Most press cuttings sent to Trevelyan by Durrant's Press Cuttings.

Witham, Somerset. - Has been a 'shamefully long time' replying to Trevelyan's letter, and apologises: the letter reached him just before his exams, when he was working very hard and all his spare time was taken up with rehearsals [for the Balliol Players' tour of the "Curse of the House of Atreus", using Trevelyan's translation of the "Oresteia". Now has time for the first time to write, on the way from Wells to Corfe. Hopes that Trevelyan will be able to come and see them at Winchester; thinks they will be performing in the Warden's Garden; does not know the name of the agent, but if Trevelyan is in Winchester he will be sure to see their posters up. The performance in Wadham College, which he regrets was the only one in Oxford, was 'excellent'; they then travelled to Bath a week later. The lorry they had hired broke down at Chippenham, with three of the company: the others had already arrived in Bath and got everything ready, and it was not until the performance time had arrived and they were 'insane with anxiety & fury' that they received a telephone message letting them know what had happened. Explains how they managed to cut the play to perform it 'in flannel trousers and shirt sleeves'; coming on ;again & again in different parts, male & female'. The "Agamemnon" was 'most comic' since the 'poor man who was leading the chorus' could only remember 'about one speech in three' from when he had taken the part last year. The audience were very kind; some of them even came to Wells last night to see the performance done properly. It went very well there and at Glastonbury; the audience at Wells was over 300, though they had been told it was 'impossible' to get an audience there for anything, and the setting in the Bishop's Palace garden was 'perfect'. Is not playing Agamemnon this year as he is 'wanted in the chorus', but is still the lead Choephore as well as Apollo, which was 'thrust' on him at the last moment. The costumes are 'perfectly lovely', and the whole thing is 'infinitely better than last year'. The breeches arrived safely; thanks Trevelyan for sending them.