Showing 19 results

50 Gordon Square, W. C. - Was 'heroic' of Bob to 'battle through' his book about Po Chu-aloud; very glad that Bessie has got to know it, as he thought of them both when writing it. Thanks him for the 'very impressive hymn to Demeter' [in the latest "From the Shiffolds"]. Beryl [de Zoete] is 'rather souffrante', no doubt because of 'privations in India'. They both look forward to visiting later.

13 Hanover Terrace. - Glad that Trevelyan and [Gordon] Bottomley have 'managed to get some fun out of the No play'; it is not a good one, and he translated it only as an appendix to his book on Po Chu-I; this may get written now, as he has just been rejected again byy the army and hopes he will have a 'quiet six months'; will also translate some more No plays. Went to hear [Thomas] Sturge Moore read his Viking play [Tyrfing] yesterday; thought it 'very well done' and intellectually judged it 'a fine thing', but 'somehow' was not interested by it; this may have been because Sturge Moore's reading was 'downright bad', as he thinks it 'would act rather well'. Read the 'magnificent exordium' to the seventh book of Pliny's "Natural History" recently and quotes in Latin at length from the passage about man. Does not want Hakurakuten at present. Looks forward to seeing Trevelyan, perhaps in June. Hears Mr Ch'eng [see 17/3, 17/5?] 'made a great oration' recently at the Japan Society 'rather mocking at the self-satisfaction of the Japanese', which people say was a 'great success'. Asks whether Trevelyan has seen [Roger] Fry's exhibition of "Copies and Translations" from the old masters; some of those he saw in his studio were 'great fun'.

Returns to the letter on 11 June: has 'just discovered the later parts of Piers Ploughman [sic: Plowman]"; it is 'brilliant' from canto 16 onwards, but 'the beginning is so boring that no one ever gets as far'. The best canto is 18; expects Trevelyan 'found that out long ago'. Has translated a short, slight No play called "Hatsu-yuki, or Early Snow", about 'a court lady who loses a pet bird'; has not had time to do a longer one as he has been 'so immersed in exploring (in books) the Gobi Desert on behalf of Sir Aurel Stein'. Adds a handwritten postscript to say he would like to come for a weekend visit, if the Trevelyans could have him.

13 Kutchery Road, Karachi (Pakistan) - Read Trevelyan's Homeric Hymn [in that year's "From The Shiffolds"] with great pleasure; praises his diction, not 'Wordsworth's language of the people but the language cultivated people should use'. Has to write an inaugural address for Wordsworth's centenary, organised by the British Council. Agreed to do this, even though he is 'shy of writing', because Wordsworth has never been a favourite of his and he wanted the chance to read up and clarify why to himself. Finds him 'too much of an Englishman'; every experience seems to be 'of equal value' to him, and there are 'long passages of bathos'. However, the "Solitary Reaper" is great, and as Suhrawardy grows older and nostalgic for 'England and her scenery', Wordsworth has become 'close & more acceptable'. Has not read Po-chui's life [translated by Arthur Waley]; the bookshops only have 'political controversial' literature; thanks Trevelyan for offering to send it. His life is 'routinal, dull & lazy' and he is depressed by the situation in India and Pakistan: it is all very different from what was dreamt of. Sends love to Bessie and regards to Mrs [Catherine] Abercrombie.

British Museum, London, W.C.1. - Has just heard that Oswald Sickert has lost his job with the Encyclopaedia Britannica and will be in England in about a fortnight looking for work. Corrects an impression given by his last letter: only met Adrian [Stephen: see 17/25] once and liked him, does not know him well. Asks if Bob could translate Aeschylus's "Prometheus" for the Art Theatre" as requested by [Vera ] Donnet; thinks his way of doing the chorus would 'work very well' for recitation. Was greatly bored by the first performance by the Art Theatre [George Farquhar's "The Beaux' Stratagem"]: everybody 'connected with it is completely Philistine', and he does not think that any good will come of it, though it will be no worse than 'the Stage Society, Pioneers, Plough, Bel Espoir, Paddington Players, Malleson's Mimes or anything of the rest'.

Has arranged to publish his next book ["More Translations from the Chinese"] with Allen and Unwin; Constable's [who published his first book] is 'a nuisance to get to'. [Eugene] Morice has died of illness at Salonika and his bookshop [in Museum Street] is for sale; would be 'great fun' to run it, but he is afraid there is not 'enough sustenance in it for Oswald'. Has translated about thirty more poems of Po Chu-I for the new book, but may 'weed them out a bit', as well as a new version of Ou-yang Hsiu's "Autumn Dirge'. [Gordon] Luce's poems have been 'an appalling blow'; liked some of them at first, but now 'hate[s] them all'. Asks if anyone has seen [Charles] Vildrac and whether he is translating any more of Po Chu-I into French. Does not think he has seen Roger Fry since Bob went away. The Dickinsons [Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson and his two sisters] are soon to move into the upper storey at 13 Hanover Terrace.

26 Addison Avenue, W.11. - Thanks Bob for his Christmas gift "From the Shiffolds", which he and Beatrice have much enjoyed. They both particularly like "Old Aeschylus" and "Two Hundred Years Hence", which he remembers Bob reading to them when he saw them in October; mentions others he liked; supposes "Pusska" was written for Julian when he was small. Bob's recent manner of writing sometimes reminds him of the Chinese poets, particularly Po Chui [Bai Juyi]; does not find it 'at all artificial or exotic', but 'a kind of natural English counterpart to the Chinese way of looking at things, with something of its directness & detachment & coolness'. Feels Bob has thereby developed a style of his own, which he himself finds 'more satisfying than almost anything written today'.

50 Gordon Square, W. C. - Did not 'express a wish' that no more than four poems from each of his books should be authorised to be included [in Bob's collection "From the Chinese"]: [Stanley] Unwin said he was not prepared to authorize so many from 'More Translations' to be included, and in the discussion following Arthur mentioned the original plan to include a maximum of four from each. Thinks Bob's suggested compromise is good, and that Unwin will agree to include Li Po's "The fields are chill" ["Clearing at Dawn"]. Suggests T'ao Ch'ien's "New Corn" and [Bai Juyi's] "Dream of Mountaineering" and "Pruning Trees" as the other three. Sorry Bob is 'having all this bother'.

British Museum, W. C. - Neither Mrs [Marie] Stopes nor [Ezra] Pound know Japanese, so he 'refuse[s] to be put in the same category'. Mrs Stopes 'talks a little colloquial' but there is 'abundant evidence' that the translations in her work were 'done by her Japanese collaborator [Jōji Sakurai]'. Has not met her, but 'you can tell exactly what she is like from reading her book'; Pound 'knows and dislikes her, which is on the whole in her favour'. Nothing happening about the publication of his poems: Squire has not yet 'moved' about putting some in the "New Statesman". Sent a copy of the '"reprint"' to Ka Cox suggesting it might give Constable [& Co, publishers] a 'less tedious impression than typescript', but has not heard from her. Sent a copy to [Bertrand?] Russell, who was 'very kind about it', as were 'Leonard [Woolf] and his wife, who want to print some, & shall - failing everything else'. Is keenest that people should be led to share his conviction that Po Chu-I is 'one of the great poets of the world', but 'perhaps one cannot prove it by 38 translations'. Believes that the 'Opposition consists... of the Stracheys & Alix [Sargant-Florence?], who will not read them till I do them in Popian couplets, with long 's's, bound in calf'. Does agree with them that 'Pope is the only readable translator of Homer'. Also sent his book to [Gordon] Bottomley.

British Mus[eum], W.C.1. - T[imothy] Richard is Harold Harding's father-in-law. The translation is 'very bad', and Waley thinks Richard knows ''very little literary Chinese', but it is the only one he knows of "Hsi Yu Chi" ["Journey to the West"]. Has read Trevelyan's "Lucretius [on Death]" 'over & over again', and likes it 'better than any [other] translations from the Latin'; [Clifford?] Bax said some unsigned pieces, 'obviously' by Trevelyan, were appearing in "Commonsense"; Waley asks if this is true. Is very busy preparing "A Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems", and has translated about 21 more poems by Po Chu-i

13, Hanover Terrace, Ladbroke Grove, W. - Very sorry that Bob has been 'having such a bad time with this disease', and is sending 'an inhaling apparatus which is an infallible preventative' [see 17/35]; hopes it will reach him in time. Has given the "Summons to the Soul" and the "Pitcher" exclusively to [J.C.] Squire for the "New Statesman"; has only his Po translations and cannot 'stain the pages of "Reconstruction" with such bilge'; would send anything he had gladly, and perhaps by next month will have some more Po Chu-I poems. His elder brother [Sigismund] is getting married on Tuesday 'with oriental pomp'; Hubert is at home with a cold, having a 'very good rest'. Saw Goldie [Lowes Dickinson] at the [1917?] Club on Tuesday, in 'great spirits'; also sees [Eric?] Maclagan sometimes, who is 'still rather washed out'. Asks Bob about a line of poetry, "And my young wife walks up the path alone", which he had thought came from the 'Chinese poems' in [Robert] Bridge's [anthology] "Spirit of Man". Has found a Li Po poem which he thinks is the original of the English line; it ends 'young wife alone mounts tower'.

Sees that [Laurence] Binyon has another volume of poetry out ["The New World: Poems"]; he is currently 'lecturing to soldiers in France on the Civilization of China', and Bob may see him in Paris. [Campbell] Dodgson, the Keeper of Prints [at the British Museum] has received an Order of the British Empire [CBE], but 'did not seem unduly elated'. Must be 'great fun being translated into French'; hopes 'Vildrac will soon get going' on him, and that 'poets are demobilized early in France'; 'Makers of "India rubber Medical appliances" came first on the list in England. Sir Auckland [Geddes] is evidently afraid of an undue increase in the birth-rate'. Sends his love to Francis [Birrell], and asks Bob to tell him Waley has lost his letter about where to get a 'copy of Foy [?]'. Wonders if [his translation of] the letter from Wang Wei to a friend could do for "Reconstruction" and encloses a copy [no longer present], but will not mind if it is no use. Thinks the "Summons" will be in the "New Statesman" and will send Bob a copy (possibly one for B.B. [Berenson] as well); will also send the second number of the Bulletin [of the School of Oriental and African Studies, in which further translations by Waley of Po Chu-'s works appear] when it comes out. Understands that [Thomas] Sturge Moore will continue to come to London [after a move to the countryside], and has organised 'a "poetry reading" for a proximate date'; would be 'harrowing if he were absolutely banished'. W.H. Davies has 'been in a tremendous flutter' due to sitting for a portrait by Augustus John; he has 'a passion for being painted by swells'; afraid that Davies' new poems are not selling well; does not think Fifield are good publishers.

13, Hanover Terrace, Ladbroke Grove, W.11. - Has signed an agreement with Constable & Co. to publish "One Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems" by 1 May [1918]; it will be sold at six shillings. Has not been doing much translation recently, but researching Chinese letters; thinks these would be good. There are only seven of Po Chu-i's surviving. Unfortunately the [British] Museum is 'very poor in this branch of literature', but there is a collection of 'letters by famous men' at the Cambridge University Library. Asks Trevelyan whether he will be in town; perhaps he will see him at the 1917 Club on Wednesday. Copies out a poem he has written, beginning 'On the back of a visiting-card / On a spill picked out of the grate...' which he fears is 'rather absurd'.

50 Gordon Square, W.C.- Thanks Bob for the Christmas book ["this year's "From the Shiffolds"]; thinks he likes "Cortona" best, but was very interested in the Greek play fragments, which he did not know. Copies out a poem by Po Chu-I addressed to Yu'an Chen, which appears in the ninth chater of his book ["The Life and Times of Po Chu-I"?]

Department of Prints and Drawings, British Museum, London, W.C. - Kind of Bob to send the Woitsch so quickly ["Aus den Gedichten Po-Chü-I’s". by Leopold Woitsch] ; thinks he can 'improve on it': Woitsch 'leaves so much unexplained & so consistently transliterates instead of translating that the latter part becomes very dim'; comments on a particular odd translation.

Holmwood Park Farm, Dorking. - Thanks Trevy for sending him his [poem] "Dream", which is 'full of those almost extinct qualities wisdom & beauty'; thinks 'the mixture of Piers Plowman & Po Chui is perfectly appropriate'. Would like to give him Roger [Fry]'s "Last Lectures", for which Clark wrote an introduction, but 'can't do up parcels' and even if he could it would get lost in the post, so will drop it at the Shiffolds early in the new year. They [he and his wife Jane] are going to Gloucestershire tomorrow for about a month, as their 'three children don't really fit in to this cottage'. Asks if Trevy has any news of BB [Bernard Beresford].

Department of Prints and Drawings, British Museum, London, W.C. - Thanks Trevelyan for reading Hubert's essay [see 17/37]; wishes Trevelyan had come in to see him 'that Monday' and tells him to come and 'propose [himself] for a night soon'. Has just finished translating a 'new lot of Po Chu-i poems' and a ghost story by him. Asks if Trevelyan has read 'the Henry James number of the "Egoist"', where there is an article by [T.S.] Eliot and 'a very short, very bad one' by Waley. Has heard at last from [Oswald] Sickert at Shanghai.

Postmarked Devizes; addressed to Trevelyan in the Annie Zung Ward, Westminster Hospital, Horseferry Road, London S.W. - Had been looking forward to visiting again, but decided eventually to go straight home to Wiltshire on Friday; hopes Trevelyan will be released from Hospital soon anyway. The 'shortages of current postcards has produced some curious results. [He] found this on sale in a stationers in Pimlico'.

Lemon Corner. - Thanks Bob for his 'beautiful gift' [this year's "From the Shiffolds"]; loves the 'autumn-leaf colouring' of the cover; means to read a poem each morning to put her into a 'good temper for the day', but finds that 'one is not enough' and has already almost read them all. "Dream Truth" is 'very, very lovely and touching'; the "Simple Pleasure" is as 'beautiful as any by Po Chui". Hopes Ursula Wood 'feels pround to have inspired such a true poem'.

Poggio allo Spino, Consuma (Prov. di Firenze). - Elizabeth sent Julian's letter giving Belgrade p[oste] r[estante] as an address, so hopes this will be forwarded. Glad Julian has had so good a time; expects he will be in Greece by now. Is at B.B. [Bernard Berenson]'s; [Raffaello] Piccoli is here at the moment talking to Berenson about Sir Thomas Browne, whom he has been translating. He is evidently still 'far from well', but seems better today; if Julian is passing through Naples on his rerun from Greece Piccoli hopes he will visit him there. The Waterfields [Aubrey, Lina and their children] are also hoping Julian will come to Poggio [Gherardo] on his way back; he himself spent 'a very pleasant week in camp with them', doing some work on [his translation of] Lucretius and his own writing; they were all very nice, though Aubrey 'as usual was often very cross, chiefly with Lina, who always takes it very nicely'. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed Julian's visit, and he 'had become more or less legendary': Bob was for instance taken to see the rock which Julian 'had split by painting it', and Aubrey had done a sketch of the incident. Cecil [Anrep], who is 'very nice, and knows English much better' is here for a few days. Bob is travelling to Paris on Tuesday, will spend two nights with [Hasan] Suhrawardy and [Maria] Germanova, then go to London on Friday and the Shiffolds on Saturday. [Aleksandr] Kalitinski and Germanova, and he supposes Rex [the dog], will probably go to Prague for the winter; S[uhrawardy] is going to India after spending a few days in England. Kalitinski seemed much better when Bob was in Paris a month ago; while there Bob went to the Colonial Exhibition and saw the Bali Ballet. B.B. and Nicky [Mariano] would be glad to se Julian if he comes to Poggio. Roger [Fry] seems to have been at Florence and to have 'got on quite well with B.B.'.

Everyone hopes Julian will be 'very careful about the dogs' if he goes walking in Greece; he [and his friend Ralph Parker] 'should both have big sticks, as long as possible'; B.B. is sure that 'the young man who was lost on Parnassus' was killed by dogs, though Bob thinks it more likely he fell down a precipice. B.B. thinks Mistra [Mystras] is 'much more interesting' as regards art than Athos, though he has not been to the latter; he is 'very much irritated against Biron [Robert Byron]', who is now writing for the "Statesman", and says he 'talks great nonsense about art'; still, 'one might get a good deal from his book ["The Station, Athos"]'.

Wonders whether Julian will come to England before settling at Paris again; he should find the Shiffolds 'more or less in order'. Does not understand the 'political upset in England', and is reserving judgment until he can see C[lifford] A[llen] and others; T.M. [? ie Thomas Sturge Moore?] writes that Allen is also reserving judgement until the facts, which are 'very complicated', are clearer; Bob however thinks it a 'bad business', and that the Labour movement is 'smashed up for some time'; this is not a 'National Government', but a 'Tory-Liberal Coalition, which may, or may not, have been necessary to save the pound from collapsing'. Hopes Allen will not 'take it too tragically'. Encloses a 'poem in Po Chu I's manner', "Comano" which refers to a wonderful view he, Aubrey and Lina discovered one day; dated Aug 1931.

Thanks Julian for his letter; asks him to let them know next time whether [Maria] Germanova, [Aleksandr] K[alitinski] and Rex [their dog] are living in [Hasan] Suhrawardy's rooms or elsewhere, whether they are very uncomfortable, and whether they have heard when Suhrawardy is returning, as he was 'very vague' in his last letter, though he seemed to like Bob's "Epistle" to him. Terence [Gray] and [Frank] Birch seem to want to produce his translation of Euripides' "Medea" at the end of May; thinks this means Birch rather than Terence, and perhaps he will like his production more than he usually does Terence's. Does not know whom they have chosen to play Medea, and fears it will be 'no one adequate'; Germanova is 'out of the question... after the fiasco of Terence trying to get her for nothing last year'; in addition she would need weeks of study and coaching to do it in English, even if she could leave Kalitinski, which she clearly cannot; asks Julian to say how Kalitinski is now. Bessie is distributing the notices for [George] Reavey's book ["Faust’s Metamorphoses: Poems"]; Bob thinks it would be better if they had a sample of the poetry as well as the drawings. Sends his love to [Jean] Marchand, if Julian sees him again. Will not go to Paris at Easter, nor to Wallington for Kitty's wedding, but stay at the Shiffolds. C.A. [Clifford Allen] is 'fairly well', but has 'ups and downs'; Bob is going with the Allens to see René Clair's ["À nous la] Liberté" on Thursday, but otherwise he 'plug[s] away at [his translation of] Lucretius"; will soon have to get in touch with [Hugh] Sykes Davies again. Julian's Mount Athos picture 'looks very well on the floor still'; must put it up over the fireplace. Quotes a poem by Po Chu-I [Bai Juyi] about his study. Things are going more smoothly at Edinburgh now; thinks [his and Tovey's opera "The Bride of Dionysus"] will be better sung and produced than last time.

British Museum, W.C.1. - Sorry he missed Trevelyan, who must stay with them next time he comes to London. Has done some 'miscellaneous T'ang poems', mainly by contemporaries of Po Chu-I, and encloses one [no longer present]. Is going to Tidmarsh [home of Lytton Strachey] on Sunday and is most excited: wants to see 'the education of those patient females' with his own eyes. Is attending a meeting of the Philological Society to hear a paper on 'the Ergonics [sic] of the Japanese Language'; does not know 'in the least what that means'. Asks if Trevelyan heard James Strachey's 'address to the 1917 Club on the Sex Question" on Tuesday evening. Can see 'the unmistakeable figure of [Harry] Norton] from the window, perhaps going from Gordon Square to 'tea with his sister Betty in Grays Inn'. Asks if Trevelyan has read the "Poet's Pilgrimage" by W. H. Davies, which he almost liked better than 'the tramp book' ["The Autobiography of a Super-Tramp"]