Empire Nursing Home, Vincent Square, London, S.W.1. - Is getting on very well now [after his operation] with little discomfort. Bessie reads Trollope to him most afternoons, and he usually has visitors each day: T[homas] S[turge] Moore is coming to tea today. Hopes Bessie will go to Paris next week, then on to Holland: no reason for her not to now Bob is 'so well' and go to the C.A.s [Clifford Allens] for the first couple of weeks after he leaves the nursing home. He works through chess games in the papers, and has just been looking at the tournament between Cambridge and Oxford, in which the marks were equal; Bronowski, whom he supposes is Julian's friend [Jacob] 'lost his game rather disastrously'. Terence Gray wants to do Bob's [translation of Euripides'] "Medea"in May, which he has agreed to but now regrets; Gray is trying to get [Maria] Germanova for Medea, but 'wants her to do it for nothing'; Bob has telegraphed to her saying she should 'on no account... accept the engagement. It is too monstrous'; Gray probably wants him to step in and pay Germanova himself, which he will not, as he will not be able to get to rehearsals and go through the part with her; Gray is also intending to put Medea in a mask, which is 'the height of folly' regarding Germanova. Unlikely Germanova would have been able to take the part with her husband [Aleksandr Kalitinsky] so ill. Wonders if [Hasan Shahid] Suhrawardy has gone to India yet and whether he has finished his book. Hopes Julian is getting on well with his work; frescos must be 'fun to try', though expects Julian is 'likely to make rather a mess at first'. [Étienne Adolphe?] Piot was 'technically quite competent' but artistically bad. Asks to be remembered to [George] Reavey, and to [Jean] Marchand if Julian sees him. Hopes Bessie will come to Paris next week, and see the Luce family. He and Bessie had hoped to see the Sykes family this month, but had to put it off; supposes [Hugh]'s exams are coming up anyway.
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.
Furzen Wood, Abinger Common, near Dorking. - Has been sent some money for Julian's furniture, which he has paid into the account at Drummond's. Elizabeth has had to put off her visit to the Netherlands because of her 'nose-bleeding', which is 'not serious but a nuisance'; expects she will be able to go in a week or two. Is 'fairly right again' now himself, though gets tired if he does too much. They went to London on Wednesday for Donald [Tovey]'s first concert with Adila [Fachiri], who played a Bach sonata with Donald's new Dolmetsch harpsichord - though this could not be heard at all, 'as Adila would not play softly, though she said she did', and the Wigmore Hall 'swallowed up the poor harpsichord's jangling in its unacoustic maw'. The rest of the concert went well. Sorry to hear that Shahid [Suhrawardy] is ill and hopes it is not serious; supposes this may prevent him going to India. Hopes [Aleksandr] Kalitinski is better. Is going to see his [translation of Sophocles'] "Antigone" 'performed, or misperformed, by Terence [Gray]' at Cambridge; has kept away from rehearsals so is 'not responsible'. Has begun work again on an epistle to [Arthur] Waley and 'plugging away at [translating] Lucretius'. Must write to [Hugh?] Sykes soon to see when he can come to talk about it. He and Bessie are 'both quite cheerful, in spite of noses and operations'; the Allens [Clifford and Joan] also seem all right, though they have to take [their daughter] Polly up to London every other day for eye exercises. Hopes Julian's 'frescoe [sic] project will flourish'; warns him not to fall off the scaffold 'like Barna [da Siena] at San Geminiano [San Gimignano]'. Asks to be remembered to [George] Reavey, and hopes he has recovered.