18 Manor Road, Beckenham 2.1.18.
My dear David,
This year has come in cold. You must be frozen. How do you manage? I do want to know what you do all day, and if you can keep warm enough at night. I am sure you have a bad cold and cough. How are you off for food? What do your Red Cross and Harrod’s parcels contain, and is it sufficient, to keep you strong? Do you get that pain in your side again? You want to know everything about me, and all my letters are about myself, but you do not say anything about yourself. What books can I send you now? Don’t guess you have your woolly waistcoat yet, and you must want it dreadfully badly.
There is no news. I am still on my first pair of stockings, which I hope to finish to-night, and in the train I am reading the “Lure of a Soul”. It is beautifully creepy. I ought to be able to raise demons by the time I have finished the book; not that I am going to attempt anything so absurd and time-wasting. As I belong to the visible world I don’t think it is right to interfere with the invisible world. Like Brer Tarrapin I say “You go your way and you go yours, and don’t you interfere.”
My constant companion and I have had our first quarrel. We have quite forgotten what it is about, but we are still making it up. Lost my early train purposely this morning so that we could continue the making up all to ourselves as far as Catford, which we did. By the time we have finished we shall be thoroughly reconciled, but like that complaint of yours it will take 50 years of the present treatment to be a cure.
We have had a very busy day. I have been getting out my last year’s records, and comparing them with the previous year. They do not compare well, and yet we seem to have worked harder. If I could only get all my own girls back we should get through more work in much less time. The supers’ idea is to do as little as possible for the money, it is, my belief, – but it is not my idea. I have my most expensive super (£2. 4/- a week) sitting by the side of me, and she thinks I am killing her. I told her today we are about to have a busy month, and that she would then have some work to do. You should have seen her look at me.
It is now 5.20, and everyone has gone, so I think I will go too.
By the bye, now that we have started a new card for your investments there is no more filling in to do, so Mrs. Taylor is going by herself to put in your monthly cheque. She is so pleased to do it.
Goodbye. May.