Showing 32 results

c/o G. Bottomley, The Sheiling, Silverdale nr Carnforth. - Is very sorry if her letter gave the impression that she was not in 'wholehearted sympathy' with Russell's anxiety over the divorce; it is 'inconceivable' to her that anyone should wish to deprive Russell of his children. She was under the impression that Dora wanted to share the custody of the children with Russell, having heard this through Ted Lloyd and C[lifford] Allen. Has not seen Dora for almost a year. The 'situation seems full of sadness' to her. Hopes that some solution will be reached; could not bear the thought of Russell being entirely separated from the children.

Has received a letter from Bertie Russell asking the Trevelyans to send a statement that they consider him to be a good father, and that there is no lack of affection between him, his children, and Miss Spence, to Llewelyn Davies. They hardly know her, but are prepared to do so, and encloses a more formal statement [see 5/291]. They are very sorry for all concerned, and hope that Dora and Bertie will come to an arrangement to share custody of John and Kate.

The Shiffolds, Holmbury St Mary, Dorking. - States the Trevelyans' belief that Russell is an 'excellent and most devoted father' to his children, and there is 'no lack of affection between them and him and Miss Spence'. Hopes that the arrangements made for the children's custody will satisfy both parents; this last statement is corrected from the hope that 'the parents may equally have a share in the custody of the two children'.

Casa Cuseni, Taormina, Sicily. - Julian seems very contented, works all day, talks and laughs a lot in the evening, and they find him 'very charming'. This is an ideal place for him; the house is full of people, all 'very friendly and companionable'. Knows it is hard to guess how people are really feeling, but it seems he is being 'soothed and rested'. She came out here without the doctors' permission and is feeling better than she has for months.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - Apologises for not thanking her sooner for the face-towels; 'sick-room routine' seemed to take up all her time when she was in bed, and she has been looking after Conrad for the last week which seems 'almost a whole-time job'; though now she is getting used to it and enjoying it. Is pleased because he seems to do better with her than the nurse. Sorry she was 'so distraught' when Bessie visited; the nurse was 'cross and rather negligent' because of something in her private life, but once she was soothed down they got on well. Found her 'stories of East End midwifery' fascinating, but her methods 'not quite adequate for Conrad'. Conrad's additional names are Sebastian, after Bach, and Robert.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - Peter Russell hanks Bessie for the little jackets; was short of these, and since she plans to knit a large shawl was worried about not getting enough done. It is 'very warming and encouraging to have the baby welcomed like this'; Bessie is already being as kind to it as she always has to John and Kate. The children are 'both so grown up' and have been making things for the baby.

Bertrand Russell adds that it would suit him to bring John and Kate to visit on April 9, as long as the baby does not come then. Is not going to Holland this spring, though this was talked of. Is glad she agrees with what he said to the Lords.

Penralltgoch, Festiniog, Merioneth. - Has returned from Taormina; much enjoyed making friends with Julian, who reminded him strongly of Bob. He and Peter are 'parting amicably'; she is in London for the moment and he is in Wales. He has to come to London for B.B.C. presenting and would like to spend a night at the Shiffolds: would prefer May 19 but could do May 18.

27 Dorset House, Gloucester Place, N.W.1. - Would very much like to come to the Shiffolds, but can only make May 8 or 15: knows this 'sounds proposterous', but those are his only free dates before the autumn. Will be in Wales for vacations, and in term-time has the 'B.B.C., various meetings, deputations, & God knows what', so 'not even the prospect of a radiator' can bring him. Sees Bessie's brother-in-law, the Master of Trinity [G. M. Trevelyan] once a week. John and his family are in Richmond, all goes well with them; Kate is engaged and will be married quite soon, to 'an American whom I don't know but believe to be nice' [Charles Tait]. Peter has had an operation to remove her gall-bladder and gone to Wales to convalesce; Conrad is with her. Would love to see Bessie in London.

27 Dorset House, Gloucester Place, N.W.1. - Asks if he may come to visit from 24-26 May: Peter will not be able to come, as she is busy with town planning: at the moment she is on the way to Harlow. Has just realised that weekend is Whitsuntide, but has no other weekend he can come: going to France at the beginning of June, then to Wales. Very much wants to come.

The Hotel Portmerion, Penrhyndeudraeth, North Wales. - Thanks Elizabeth for her letter. The Russells will be at this address till September 20; they then take Conrad to Dartington, Russell returns to Trinity, and Peter goes to a flat in London; he will often be in London for the night. They will not be able to live in their 'Welsh hermitage' [in Llan Ffestiniog] until Easter at the earliest. Does not think either he or Peter will be able to come to the Shiffolds before the Christmas holidays, if at all.

The Hotel Portmerion, Penrhyndeudraeth, North Wales. - Hopes that they will all come to visit from 7-10 September, but Peter's health 'rather precarious' so she may not be able to come. The Labour election victory made them happy, 'but the atomic bomb brought one back to reality with a bump'.

Apologises for not replying to Bessie's letter: their plans were uncertain, then 'the excitement of the election' put it out of his head. Going to North Wales for a fortnight in August, asks if they could come for the weekend of 9 September; Peter cannot come without Conrad. The election results were 'glorious'.

Grosvenor Lodge, Babraham Rd, Cambridge. - Very much enjoyed his visit, marvels at Bessie's housekeeping: 'a triumph' to deliver 'infinite hot water, enough warmth, & admirable food'. A letter from Bessie dated 23 December arrived today; feels this justifies his preference for telegraphing. Peter sends love and is very sorry she could not come.

Trinity College, Cambridge. - Sat next to Julian's father-in-law [Bernard Darwin] in Hall last night and talked about the Shiffolds. The Russells have bought a small house but cannot move in for another month, so Peter and Conrad are in a boarding house. None of them can visit the Shiffolds at the moment as there is so much to do, but they hope to do so soon. Has not yet heard from her Chinese friend. The BBC does not want him; he is to lecture at Trinity, which he prefers. Enjoyed his visit very much: a 'great joy' to see the Trevelyans again.

Trin. Coll. - Apologises for being vague about when he might visit: is looking for accommodation for Peter and Conrad for the autumn and finding this very difficult. Will hope to come on 11th, wishes he could stay longer.

Little Datchet Farm, Malvern, R.D.1, Pennsylvania. - Agrees that it is difficult to write to distant friends - much unknown and much that cannot be said - but values letters from friends in England more and more. Absurd that Bob's walks on Leith Hill are so restricted. Agrees that ["The Brothers] Karamazov" is a great book, but hates it, and thinks Dostoevsky 'evil': dislikes 'the doctrine that one should sin in order to experience humility'. Has written about John in his letter to Bob [see Russell's "Autobiography"]; Kate is doing very well at Radcliffe, an annex of Harvard; at the moment she is on holiday and they are 'employing her as a servant, because ordinary servants can't be got' (they are all engaged in war work). This is 'terrible slavery' for Peter and she has hardly any time for reading or writing. Conrad is very well, 'a chatter-box, with an enormous vocabulary'; he can read a little, but they have not started him on writing; he is a delight, but it is hard not to wonder 'what sort of world he will have to live in'. Have had a visit from Julian Huxley and several from Ted Lloyd: 'a joy to see friends from England'. Also saw Jos Wedgwood, who was 'quite untamed'. Finds his pupils 'dull', and his employer 'very difficult', but is making a book from his lectures and his research is interesting. Peter 'fairly well', but sad at being exiled from all mental life by house-work'.

Little Datchet Farm, Malvern, R.D.1, Pa., U.S.A. - Was very glad to have Elizabeth's letter: it is hard to avoid "[p]hysical and mental depression', mainly due to the impossibility of doing much to help. Asks her to tell Bob how much he enjoyed his translations: amused to learn that Plato was a comic poet; read Horace's "Odes" when young but nothing else, so it is interesting to 'get at him in English'. Thinks Bob 'shows admirable strength of mind' getting on with work; he himself has 'external compulsion' - the need to lecture' to keep his mind on 'equally remote' Greek philosophy. Has just heard the German assault on Yugoslavia has begun: seems no hope that the war will end quickly. Conrad 'flourishes and is very intelligent'. John is 'intensely scholarly', with classical interests; 'would make an admirable don in quiet times'. The 'friendliness of Americans' is curing Kate of shyness. They are still in California, but will come East in June and probably stay. Asks if all the trees on Leith Hill have been cut down: is 'haunted by the thought of disappearing beauty'.

Little Datchet Farm, Malvern, R.D.1, Pa., U.S.A. - Good to have Bessie's letter: hopes things are going as well as is possible for the Trevelyans. Being so far from England, 'one feels ashamed of comfort & safety'; Russell has 'a soft job' with one lecture a week, they have enough to live on, and are renting an old farmhouse in beautiful countryside 25 miles west of Philadelphia. Is giving a four year course on the history of philosophy and likes it very much; Peter has been busy furnishing the house but he hopes will now have some leisure; John and Kate still at the University of California but probably will come east at the end of the academic year; Conrad is very happy to be in the country. Has not yet seen [G.E.] Moore but hopes to soon; wonders what he thinks of America. 'People in the Eastern states are passionately pro-English' and are kind to the Russells. Is not pacifist this time; wonders what the Trevelyans think about it. 'Being away from home makes one more patriotic'; asks if Bessie gets any news from Holland. Seems a very long time since he used to visit the Trevelyans at Westcott: sometimes the past has such a grip on him that he 'find[s] it hard to live in the present', and so many of the people he cared for are dead, it makes him 'feel like a ghost'.

Fallen Leaf Lodge, Lake Tahoe, Lake California, U.S.A. - Not being in England is 'like being absent when some one whom one loves very much is dangerously ill', but it is impossible because of the children and the need to earn money: it is good that Conrad is out of it, and they try not to think about the war; this is easier at present as they are on holiday in the mountains. Has just finished "An Inquiry into Meaning and Truth"; feels that preserving as much as he can of 'our perishing civilisation' is all he can do for the world at the moment, 'in the hope of a Renaissance in a thousand years'. Is still a pacifist inasmuch as he thinks 'peace the most important thing in the world', but does not think there can be peace while Hitler prospers; has 'always thought some [underlined] wars worth fighting'. Is glad of what Bessie says about Julian; his children are also 'a great joy' to him. John feels he must go back if called upon to fight but for the moment he and Kate are both doing well at the University of California; Conrad is 'altogether delightful'. Peter is trying to get British children to safety in America, but this is very difficult; they 'hope the American government will send ships'.

Royal Court Hotel, Sloane Square, London, S.W.1. - The Russells will be delighted to see the Trevelyans on Tuesday. They are at the Royal Court Hotel, as there was 'difficulty about Conrad's needs' at the Lloyds' [Ted and Margaret?]. Is sorry that only Bob will be able to stay to lunch.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. [? On Telegraph House headed notepaper, but probably written at Amberley House, Kidlington]. - Thanks her for the book: is delighted to see his 'old friends' "Gemistus Pletho" [by E. M. Forster] and the rest. Apologises for not writing to say how much he had enjoyed his visit, nor to thank her for sending his pyjamas. This house is very comfortable and Peter has been 'very clever about it'; she got very tired and has been ordered to take bed-rest. She is improving, and Conrad continues to flourish.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - Thanks Elizabeth for her letter: it is not too late to visit; they have this house till 29 September and will be there until about a week before that. John and Kate are currently here but will leave in a few days; they and he 'deserted Peter & Conrad' and went to stay with Lion Phillimore for a holiday in Ulster; they are 'most satisfactory, & Conrad prospers'.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - All is well with Peter: the child is expected on 12 April and she has decided to have it at home. Would be very nice to see her; he is currently away a great deal 'making pacifist speeches' around the country, but will stop when John and Kate come for the Easter holidays and asks if he might bring them to lunch in the second week of April. Agrees that not many people will spend two guineas on the book about his parents ["The Amberley Papers"] but it is large, with many pictures, so could not really have been cheaper.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - Thanks Elizabeth for her kind letter; they [Russell and Peter Spence] are going to the Canary Islands 'as rest seems absolutely necessary'; they return in April and hope to see her then if she will come over for the day.

Telegraph House, Harting, Petersfield. - Thanks Elizabeth for her kind letter; it was 'Peter's feat of memory', not his. Says it would be very nice if Bessie could come to lunch, but this had better be after the 31st since they are away. Did not know Julian had married Ursula Darwin; asks '[w]hat sort of Darwin" she is; he has 'seen no Darwin for 20 years'; supposes 'they are eugenically the best stock in the world'.

Deudraeth Castle Hotel, Portmeirion Peninsula, Penrhyndeudraeth, North Wales. - Thanks Elizabeth for her letter, but thinks she does not quite know the facts: that he and Dora have an agreement which give them equal rights in the children, and he has only asked that this continue, but Dora wants 'sole rights & complete custody'; she is petitioning for divorce and representing herself as a 'completely blameless wife', concealing the existence of Harriet and Roderick [her children with Griffin Barry]. Does not see why Elizabeth talks of both his and Dora's suffering: 'Does the tiger suffer when it kills the deer'?; Dora knows that if she deprives him of John and Kate, 'the whole of the rest of [his] life will be one of unbearable misery', and that to stop her doing so he will probably have to give up hope of divorce. This is very hard on Peter [Spence], 'who wants children, but not bastards', as he himself does. Asks if Elizabeth could let him know 'what version of the facts' she has heard.

Deudraeth Castle Hotel, Portmeirion Peninsula, Penrhyndeudraeth, North Wales. - Dora is claiming all custody of John and Kate in her divorce petition and presenting herself 'as a conventionally innocent wife'. Russell is very anxious to be able to marry Peter [Spence], but they would both sacrifice this in order not to lose the children. Encloses a typed statement explaining the situation: Dora has concealed the existence of her two children by Griffin Barry in her divorce petition, and does not ask the discretion of the court for her adulteries, which she also conceals; a Chancery suit is being brought to determine the question of custody, and it is important that the Judge should have evidence of Russell's fitness as a parent and of the mutual affection of the children and Peter Spence; the Russells have so far 'had equal rights in the children', who spend term time with their mother and holidays with their father; he wishes this arrangement to continue. Asks if she and Bob could make a statement that Russell 'is not an exceptionally bad father' and Peter 'not an abandoned hussy, but good with the children and loved by them'; this should be sent to Crompton Ll[ewelyn] Davies. A postscript: 'I have also written to [John Edensor?] Littlewood' has been crossed through and replaced with instructions to use Russell's title in the statement. Over the page there is a request that the Trevelyans should visit any time in June, signed P.S. [Peter Spence].

47, Emperor's Gate, S.W.7. - Asks whether he, John, and Kate could indeed visit at Easter, as Elizabeth had seemed to suggest this would be all right when they met the other day. Would come from the 17th till the 22nd [April]. Peter [Patricia Spence] cannot come until the 19th if at all.

47, Emperor's Gate, S.W.7. - Thanks Elizabeth for writing; it is too long since he last saw her or Bob. Is sorry that they [Russell and Dora, or his new partner Patricia 'Peter' Spence?] have engagements which prevent them being away for a night between the 12th and 19th, but asks if they could come for the day on the 13th.

24 Maid's Causeway, Cambridge. - Very kind of Bob to send her his poems ["From the Shiffolds"]; unsure which ones she liked best since 'being so various they are difficult to compare'. Also good to 'have a reminder of civilised life', which she gets 'very little' of here, though she does on Sundays at her Aunt Sophy's, whose friend Maud Allen sometimes reads poetry aloud. They tried to arrange a meeting with Bertrand Russell for her, but she could not make the day when he and his wife had lunch with them; hopes to see him sometime. Recently saw Bob's niece Mary for the first time since her wedding; liked her husband 'very much'. Hopes that all at the Shiffolds are keeping well; hears about them occasionally from her mother and others such as Alys Russell, whose letters are 'always full of news in brief of many people', which is good as 'most people seem to have pretty well given up writing letters nowadays". Her colleague has resigned so she is now the only billeting officer for this ward; can manage as 'so many evacuees have gone back'. Is getting a week's holiday at Christmas which she will spend with her mother.