Feels he must write to Leonard 'a few words of sympathy in your unhappiness' [Virginia Woolf committed suicide on 28 March; her body was not recovered until 18 April]: knows it is of 'little use', but all the Woolfs' friends would like Leonard to know how they feel. He and Bessie know 'what a perfect and loving friend and helper' to Virginia Leonard has been over many years. Feels sure she had 'much happiness in her life - as a creative artist she must have had that - but without [Leonard] she would have had far less happiness, and given far less to others by her writings and by her personal genius'. Virginia was a 'great spirit', one of the 'finest' he has known, and that would have been true if she had written nothing. Even during this 'time of calamity', nothing could affect him more. Nobody has a 'finer courage and wisdom' than Leonard, which is the 'only thing that can help'.
34 cuttings of announcements and reviews from newspapers and journals, including a cutting from 'New Statesman' containing a review, 'Golden Branch Amid the Shadows' by Leonard Woolf (Item 94/8); other reviews are clipped from 'The New York Times', 'Glasgow Herald', 'Times Literary Supplement' (2 copies), 'Nature' (4 copies), and an issue of the 'St. Columba's Church Magazine'; also includes an advertisement referring to Frazer as 'The greatest literary figure of our time' (Item 94/2)
Hogarth House, Richmond. - Thanks Bob for the 'correction in N.W'; thinks he is right and will alter it; is 'altering Op 112 to 111 [in the American edition of "The Voyage Out"], the 'goats certainly are mysterious and she thinks something 'must have dropped out', but does not 'see what to do with them now'. Leonard bought Bob's "The Death of Man" at Unwin's yesterday; it looks 'very well printed and bound'. Hopes Bob will 'take to prose', though this does not mean abandoning poetry; likes "Wind", the only poem in the new book which she has read yet, 'very much'; also if Bob can keep Desmond [MacCarthy] 'supplied' he may 'keep his spirits up': thinks Desmond 'is already a little burdened' since Jack Squire has now 'left the whole thing [editing the "New Statesman"] to him. Asks to be remembered to 'Mrs. Trevelyan, whom I dare not call by her Christian name'.
52 Tavistock Square, W.C.1. - Should have thanked Bob before for her 'share in [his] collected poems'; she and Leonard have been abroad, and moved house. Did not 'realise how much [she] liked' the poems, which 'come through... as though all superfluities had been consumed and what's left is very satisfying'; she admires that very much, and does not find it 'often among the moderns'. Also often finds in them a 'special colourless (perhaps I mean unexaggerated or impersonal) beauty' which is 'lasting and possessing'. Particularly likes to 'trace the character of the writer, the peculiar humour and idiosyncracy [sic] of his mind', which she finds more often in prose. Wanted to thank him now, as she has 'just been made angry - tho' that's too strong a word - by a silly review by Stephen Spender'. Leonard is out, or he would also thank Bob.
52 Tavistock Square. - Read Bob's stories 'with great enjoyment'; perhaps liked 'the unchristened one on Love best'. Thinks they are 'full of interesting and subtle things and beautifully smooth and finished'; knows her doubt about the 'dialogue form' comes from her 'novelists [sic] prejudice', since when characters are brought in she wants to 'know quantities of things about them' but in Bob's method of using them here they are 'kept severely to the rails'; with, as she also used to feel about Goldie [Lowes Dickinson]'s dialogues, 'something too restricted, too formed'. She does however appreciated the 'subtlety of the thought, and the melody of the expression', and is 'puzzled' as to what other form could 'carry the idea'. Always wants Bob to 'break through into a less formed, more natural medium', and wishes he could 'dismiss the dead, who inevitably silence so much and deal with Monday and Tuesday': the present, perhaps in a 'dialogue between the different parts of yourself'. She and Leonard are 'just off to tour in Ireland'.
Signed by Leonard Woolf for the Hogarth Press and by R. C. Trevelyan.
Monk's House, Rodmell, Lewes. - Returns Percy Lubbock ["Earlham", see 17/88] with thanks. Cannot make out why 'in spite of every appearance to the contrary' and Logan [Pearsall Smith?]'s recommendation, she thinks it 'a thoroughly bad book'. Percy is 'obviously intelligent, scrupulous [a long list of his virtues follows]' and his style is 'by no means despicable [another list of virtues follows]'. Suspects there is 'something hopelessly prosaic, timid, tepid, in his goal. The spirit of Earlham is undoubtedly the family butler'; detects a 'conspiracy to misrepresent the human soul in the interests of respectability and... of the defunct Henry James' and wonders why Percy, 'who is comparatively young' has ended it; it makes her 'long for glaring suburbs, brass bands - Brighton Piers'. Acknowledges she exaggerates, but it is strange how good and bad the book is; wonders whether 'Percy himself is corrupt'; has just met him. She and Leonard return to Richmond on Monday, and hopes Bob and Bessie will soon visit; wants to discuss his Aeschylus [translation of the "Oresteia"]; accepts his spelling of 'quire'. Would not 'yield to Logan. If he thinks "Earlham" a masterpiece, he is not to be trusted about the letter K'. Hopes Robert is writing a poem; is 'dipping into "Georgian Poetry [1920-] 1922"' [edited by Eddie Marsh] and getting 'bored to death with apple trees and acorns'. Notes in a postscript that she and 'Bertha Ruck' are now 'great friends' [Berta Ruck was offended by Virginia's near-use of her name on a tombstone in "Jacob's Room"]; 'Tom Gaze [a typing error for Tom Gage, another tombstone name?] turned out to be Lytton [Strachey]-Carrington'.
Hogarth House, Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey. - Thanks Bob for writing; agrees with most of his criticism of "Jacob's Room". The 'effort of breaking with strict representation is very unsettling' and many things were not as 'controlled' as they ought to have been; also expects it is true that the 'characters remain shadowy for the most part', though here 'the method was not so much at fault as [her] ignorance of how to use it psychologically'. Finds it difficult to explain this in writing and hopes they will see Bob. Apologises for 'obscurity' if this belonged to the sentences and 'not only the approaches, and transitions and situations generally'; thinks that 'needless difficulty' in writing has no excuse. Very glad that Bob liked much of the book and thinks it a 'fruitful experiment'; this is an encouragement to go on, as she wishes. Hopes he will soon visit and they can discuss more. Ashamed to send this letter, which she has had little time for, but was 'so pleased' with Bob's that she wanted to answer it. Leonard sends love; after getting through the [general] election [standing unsuccessfully as the Labour candidate for the Combined English Universities], he now has to do jury service at the Old Bailey; they are afraid it is the 'Ilford murder case' [the murder of Percy Thompson, for which Edith Thompson and Frederick Bywaters were convicted and executed].
Monk's House, Rodmell, near Lewes, Sussex. - Was 'delightful' of Bessie to write about Virginia's life of Roger [Fry]; in her comparison of it to a 'piece of music', she appreciated 'exactly what [Virginia] was trying to do'. Virginia is 'not regularly musical', but 'always think[s] of [her] books as music before [she] writes them'; this was particularly true in the autobiography, where there was 'such a mass of detail' that the only way she could manage was by 'abstracting it into themes' which she attempted to 'unite' in the first chapter, then introduce 'developments & variations' before bringing everything together at the end, just as Bessie saw. Thinks she is the only person to have felt what she was trying to do. Was often 'crushed under the myriad details'; found the necessity to mute or only hint at some things difficult; there was also 'always a certain constraint, which one doesn't feel in fiction, a sense of other people looking over one's shoulder'. Very glad that Bessie and Bob, who both knew Roger well, think it is a 'true portrait of him'; Bob 'went all through his life', even though as often happens they did not see each other as often towards the end. Understands Bessie being shy of Roger, she was not 'exactly shy' herself, but 'sometimes felt overpowered, & so, uneasy'. However none of her friends 'made such a difference to [her] life as he did', which she needed to 'keep under' when writing about him.
Hopes they will meet up; they [she and Leonard] will be often in London this winter, but 'everything's difficult now'. Very sorry about Bessie's eyes; asks if it affects her music.
The Hogarth Press, 40-42 William IV Street, London, W.C.2. - He and Ian Parsons have discussed Bob's "Collected Poems" again [see 17/83]. Can only say that they cannot bring the book out 'until the paper situation becomes normal', which is 'obviously a very long time ahead' - at least two or three years. They cannot promise so far in advance to publish a book, but can say only that they are 'highly likely' to do so on commission as Bob suggests.
The Hogarth Press, 40-42 William IV Street, London, W.C.2. - Has discussed Bob's "Collected Poems" with Ian Parsons [at Chatto & Windus, which had taken over the Hogarth Press]; they are hesitant as they 'do not like to pledge [theirselves] to bring out a book so far ahead' but it would be 'unreasonable' for Bob to prepare it with no definite agreement to publish it; would like to consider and give him a 'definite decision' after that.
37 Weetwood Lane, Far Headingley, Leeds. - 'The Wolves' have sent Trevelyan's "Cheiron" [published by Virginia and Leonard Woolf's Hogarth Press]. Discusses it with great praise in detail. Has also recently received a Noh-play from Gordon [Bottomley]: 'just a little bit of a strain'. Is trying himself to get a book together, but of mostly old work. Trevelyan and Bessie's 'sympathy and generosity' has touched the Abercrombies greatly. Mikey has been ordered away from Leeds on health grounds.
The Hogarth Press, 37 Mecklenburgh Square, London, W.C.1. - which he thinks makes 'a very good book; will move on it as soon as possible and send Bob an agreement. Thinks "From the Shiffolds" is an 'admirable' title; asks Bob to send him the dedication for inclusion.
Metelliano. - Hopes that Trevelyan will come to Italy this summer; if he says when he will be at La Consuma, Morra will arrange to be there at the same time. Asks if he should keep [Woolf's] "The Years" until then; has read it, written his article, and sent a translation and one of part of another article speaking more generally about Virginia to Judith [Stephen] to share with her aunt if she sees fit. Has heard from Iris Origo that Leonard Woolf is careful not to let Virginia see criticism than might upset her, and his opinion of "The Years" is 'not very favourable'. Is going to Venice on the 5th to meet B.B. [Berenson] and Nicky [Mariano] and see the Tintoretto exhibition with them; tomorrow he is hearing [Mozart's] "Nozze di Figaro" in Florence, which sounded very good through the radio.
Monk's House, Rodmell, Lewes, Sussex. - Would not object to [Hsiao?] Chien using the 'extracts from the letters', and would like to look at the letters themselves 'sometime'. Is usually in London for a day or two a week, and would like to see Bob; as however he 'much prefer[s]' being in the country he 'pack[s] everything' he has to do in so tight that he rarely has time for anything else. Will let Bob know when he might be able to see him, but cannot do next week. Would like to come and see Bob and Bessie at the Shiffolds, but finds it 'very difficult to get away'; will let them know when it may be possible.
Monk's House, Rodmell. - Thanks Bob for sending the poem, which he likes very much. Hopes the book will be ready soon, but 'the difficulties of printing and binding now are staggering'.
19 M[anchester] St, W.1. - Is 'sure to be here Wednesday'; asks if a visiting time of 4 pm would suit her. Thanks her for her letter; wants to re-read it, 'but it has fallen on to the floor!'. If 'G[eorge] M[acaulay] T[revelyan]'s morality has gone sour' his own 'sensitivity is certainly doing likewise; as the date of his 'release' from the clinic 'recedes and recedes', he is 'seeing all its faults'. His wound 'went wrong again this morning' and he is back in bed. If her car is free when he is ready to come out, he 'might be very glad of it'; he has offers of transport from both Hilton Young and Leonard Woolf, but seems likely to lose them through delays. indeed he has 'certainly lost Hilton's, as he goes away in it on Thursday'.
Had a good long letter from Bob at Grasse; he seems to be 'enjoying himself' and to be 'entertained by H. G. Wells'. He himself is reading Paradise Lost 'with pleasure': it suits his mood, which is 'gloomy yet unable to contemplate realities. God's frightful muddles: his inability to make either Hell or Eden work:... his readiness to throw Christ into the soup - what a puerile yet what a terrific universe!'. Is also reading [his own] Abinger Harvest, 'though not alas on Worthing Pie'; it is a 'real comfort' to him that it has come out just now, is liked by his friends, and by many of the critics.
May D. [?Dickinson] has been to tea, at a time when Morgan was sitting up. Robin Mayor is visiting again soon: 'what a warm hearted nice chap he is'. Has 'quite lost the feeling of dryness' Mayor used to give him. Is very lucky to have 'friends in various generations', a good fortune which Bessie also shares. Note up the side of the letter saying that her letter has been picked up from the floor; his reply 'is not nearly nice enough for it, but shall go' all the same.
Postscript dated 'Sunday evening' [29 Mar] saying that he has had 'good and surprising news': MacDonald says whatever the state of the wound, he will be able to travel on Thursday; Leonard Woolf could therefore take him in his car. Will see her on Wednesday.
Signed by Leonard Woolf for the Hogarth Press and by R. C. Trevelyan. The work to be published is referred to only as 'Poems by the Author'.
The Hogarth Press, 52 Tavistock Square, London, W.C.1. - Bob need not worry about the copyright of "Poems and Fables": they will not object to them being used [in Bob's "Collected Poems"?]
Monk's House, Rodmell, Lewes, Sussex. - Thanks Bob for his 'Christmas greeting of poems' ["From the Shiffolds"]; particularly likes "Old Aeschylus" and "A Memory". Strange that 'the obscurity of 2500 years ago is transparent to one', while that of '60 years after our birth remains unintelligible'.
The Hogarth Press, 52 Tavistock Square, London, W.C.1. - They have both read [Hasan Shahid] Suhrawardy's poems; there are 'some interesting things in them' and they think some are 'pleasant', but do not agree that they are good enough to make a book. He thinks there is a 'certain weakness about them all' and a 'tendency to be slightly ridiculous'; does not know if this is because Suhrawardy is 'not an Englishman, and therefore is not fully aware of shades of meaning'. They are very sorry. They will be in London now, so Bob would be welcome if he 'care[d] to look in one day'.
Hogarth House, Richmond, Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey. - Thanks Bob for his letter; glad he liked the "[Two] Stories [the first book published by the Hogarth Press]. He himself thought Virginia's ["The Mark on the Wall"] 'extraordinarily good'. Quite agrees with Bob's criticism of the printing; they 'still have a lot to learn', but he thinks they are improving, and it is 'distinctly easier' with their new type. They are also going to get a better machine. Sends Bob a 'rectified' copy and apologises. They took Bob's "Pterodamozels" to Asheham to read; he likes it very much. Notes in a postscript that 'the above' [used for address and telephone number?] is their new type.
Hogarth House, Richmond, Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey. - Letter originally accompanying two copies of 'the little book which we did not print for sale [Virginia's "Kew Gardens"?]'; now it has been reviewed they are getting orders from booksellers, so are charging for it. Peace 'not very pleasant here. Snow & slush outside & no trains, & no coal within'. Virginia has 'not been very well, but is better again'. Will be good to see Bob again if they 'escape the cataclysm of the Social Revolution'.
Hogarth House, Richmond. - Thanks Bob for his 'lists of names', which have been very useful [for finding subscribers for the Hogarth Press's first book, "Two Stories"]; they have sold fifty-five copies so far, from around a hundred notices; thinks this is fairly good. They have begun to print, and it is 'so absorbing' that he foresees they will 'soon be doing nothing else'. Virginia is 'very grateful for the Sturge Moores [books lent by Bob]' and will take care of them.
Hogarth House, Richmond. - Sorry, but does not think he can get away next weekend; asks if he could come and visit one week day.
Hogarth House, Richmond. - Thanks Trevy for his letter; afraid that [Virginia's] illness is 'going to be a very long business again. It goes up & down & nothing that doctors do seems to touch it at all'. Would like very much to visit, but it is impossible to be away for any time at the moment; perhaps he might come down in the day and get a walk with Trevy, returning in the evening. Was glad to learn that Trevy is publishing another book with Allen [and Unwin Ltd: "The Foolishness of Solomon"?]
Furzen Wood. - Glad to hear this morning that Julian is all right; hopes he will manage to see the Abercrombies [Lascelles and Catherine?] and that the Luces [Gordon and Tee Tee] will see them too. Is going into a nursing home in London on Wednesday for an operation, which 'is not at all dangerous' but will mean a stay of around a month; hopes this will not affect Bessie's visit to Paris, as she ought to go while the Luces are still there. Will have to put off seeing [Hugh?] Sykes; asks if St John's College, Cambridge will be enough as an address. Asks Julian to tell the Luces, [Hasan] Suhr[awardy] and [Maria] Germanova not to worry, and not to do so himself. Saw Julian Bell last week at the Woolfs, and 'had some interesting talk with him'.
38 Brunswick Sq[uare], W.C. [on printed notepaper for 13, Cliffords Inn, Fleet Street, E.C, crossed out]. - Their house in Sussex, Asheham, is four miles from Seaford; wishes he could visit them when he comes to Seaford, but there is no chance. Virginia has been 'dangerously ill': he had to bring her up to London from Somerset. The doctors considered her out of danger for the first time today, but 'completely recovery will take a long time'. As soon as she can be moved, expects they will go into the country, but not to Asheham; on Monday there will be a further consultation with the doctors.
13, Cliffords Inn, Fleet Street, E.C. - Thanks Trevy for the letters and trouble taken; has been to see Bruce Richmond [see 17/70], who is going to give him a trial writing reviews and 'articles on industrial questions', Hopes Trevy will find Ceylon 'more beautiful than India', though expects much of it is also 'vastly ugly'; thinks it is necessary to live there to 'see it properly'; he himself likes 'even the bareness & parchedness'. Has just received the first proofs of his novel ["The Village in the Jungle"], which comes out in February and is about Ceylon.
38, Brunswick Square, W.C. - Found many books on his table when he returned which he thinks are a present from Trevy: they are 'extraordinarily nice'. Supposes Trevy is now in the East. his sister [Bella?] leaves Ceylon on 20 November, so that introduction will be no use if he arrives after that. They had a 'splendid time abroad in France, Spain & Italy' [on their honeymoon]. Spain seemed 'the finest & most incompetent country in the world'. Has a temporary job as secretary to the Grafton Galleries for the Post Impressionists [exhibition organised by Roger Fry], where he 'daily explain[s] Picasso to the unending stream of the population of London' and is 'astonished by the honesty of mind of the English public', but wants to get something permanent or writing work. Trevy said he would give Leonard an introduction to Bruce Richmond on their last meeting; asks for this as he thinks it would be a 'great thing' to get work for the times. The are leaving Brunswick Square, and will probably take rooms in Clifford's Inn.