Wallington, Cambo, Morpeth. - Thanks Robert for sending the Theocritus. Encloses a letter from Heinemann; he had written to ask if his firm could spare a copy of the Loeb Pindar, since the booksellers say it is out of print, and one of the Plato death [of Socrates] dialogues for Caroline; it was Heinemann who gave him the five volumes of Ferrero's history [of Rome], 'a noble gift', after he gave a speech after the booksellers', authors' and publishers' dinner. Intends to read some Pindar when he has finished writing 'a bit of literature' [the introduction to Edward Graham's life of Henry Montagu Butler?] which he supposes will be his 'last in this world'; does not think he writes any better or worse than he did, but he 'lie[s] awake at night composing' which he supposes is the reason 'old men leave off writing'.
Veronica, Silverdale, nr Carnforth. - Thanks Bob for sending his "New Parsifal"; will get him to write his name in it when he comes north. Read it with much 'zest and enjoyment' as if he had never done so before; thinks it has all 'come quite fresh and delightful'. Sure it is 'first rate and... will last a long time'; eager to see what the reviewers say, as soon as Bob has a 'bundle of cuttings' he can spare'. The 'Chiswicks [Chiswick Press] have managed the cover very well'; the 'arrangement with Bickers' [printers and booksellers] sounds good, and will probably be 'more efficient' than Longmans or 'liitle [Charles Elkin?] Matthews'. Will remember all this for "Mrs Lear" [his forthcoming "King Lear's Wife"], but thinks he should try Heinemann first as Bob suggests. Thanks Bob for taking the trouble to see [Edward] Marsh and writing; will follow up this opening as soon as he can; unfortunately the typescript [of "King Lear's Wife"] is not yet ready, since he has had a 'few bed-days', and there is an 'Old-Man-of-the-Sea of a plumber here' who makes work 'impossible'. The house is ready to move into; they are going to Allithwaite on Friday, on to Well Knowe for a fortnight, then 'back here for ever. This is a 'damned place, full of old maids collecting for the provision of woollen comforters for deep sea fishermen'.; mentions the suggestion in the local directory that Silverdale is named after 'Soever', a 'hardy Norseman'. Promises Bob that 'Mrs Lear' will be his 'Lenten task', and to get the typescript to Marsh by Easter.
Had a letter from [John] Drinkwater three weeks ago, who said he had seen Bob, and also asked for the 'refusal' of 'Mrs Lear'; have therefore promised to send him a typescript too. Drinkwater sent his [play] "[Oliver] Cromwell....."; Bottomley at length replied he was 'on his side about King Oliver', but that Drinkwater should not 'write poetry like a partisan'. Ernest Newman was 'offensive and vulgar' about [Wagner's] "Parsifal"; loathed' him as Bob did. Wishes he could have seen the opera with Bob. As it has just gone out of copyright, has bought a cheap score; expected it to be 'good but vegetarian and flabby' so was glad to see it 'so much huger' than expected; thinks 'the Amfortas... more moving than anything else in Wagner'. Has got hold of a Bohn edition of the Grimm "Fairy Tales" 'just like' Bob's, and now he and his wife read them out loud in the evening. Very glad that Julian is better: 'suppressed influenza' seems to have been a great danger for children recently, and Lady A[lice] Egerton says her little niece almost died of it. Hopes Sir George is also better. Adds a postscript to say that the French musical review S. I. M. ["Société internationale de musique"] for 1 January has a 'good portrait' of R[alph] Vaughan Williams and a piece on "Les Post-Elgariens" by Marcel Boulestin.