Letter from Frances Hodgkins to Rachel Hodgkins
Date
14 Jan 1915
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Object Detail
Date
14 Jan 1915
Transcript
St Ives Cornwall Jan 14th [1915]
My dearest Mother
It has been almost possible to forget the War so quiet has it been this week & except for the long casualty lists there has been nothing at all dramatic from the Front. Every one is pleased the way things are going. The weather is so atrocious, I suppose it is because of this that the enemy is so quiet. I have been almost festive – quite a number of people at the Studio saying pleasant things & another pupil to the good. The lady of the china collection gave a tea party on Saturday. The Studio was so crowded by the time I arrived I could hardly squeeze in & when in there was hardly room to light a cigarette. Much the most interesting person there was a Submarine man, wounded of course but not badly, a large cheerful person who pulled everybody’s leg & lapped up muffins & compliments with equal relish. His great success was announcing to the company at large that Italy was joined with Austria. Sensation & uproar! Cries of Oh! No! I don’t believe it. Who told you? & so on. Look at the map!! Said the happy submarine man very pleased with himself & feeling an awful hero. A lady with a face like St Augustine’s Mother recited some bad poetry in a sobbing voice & upturned eye – about the War. The S.M. was heard to say it made him sick & wouldn’t help recruiting. People who do real things are so simple in their mode of speech. He was next heard to remark that he hoped a few German shells would fall in St Ives & rouse up the lazy Cornishmen. This cast a slight shadow on the sun of his popularity – but he didn’t seem to mind. I saw him later in the evening at the Art Club take a black bottle from a locker & retire with it while yet we were listening to a humdrum lecture on Burmah by Sir Somebody Something ex Governor of Rangoon. A large breezy soul, entirely undismayed. His boat is now on the bottom of the North Sea after a raid as far up as Borkrun! He came to the Studio one morning & told thrilling tales & incidentally was most intelligent over my Water Colours. I hope my letters are arriving more regularly. Prices are rising alarmingly – coal & bread are the big items. I am eating N.Z. butter with a Wellington brand on it & S. Australian honey, both about 3d cheaper than the local product & much nicer. Cornish butter is filthy stuff – they are too lazy to squeeze the water out of it. Meat is very dear & bad but vegetable plentiful & varied & earlier than elsewhere. I take a sandwich to the Studio & have my one meal at night. I meant to write to Willie this mail but there have been so many compulsory letters to get off. In a mild way I commence to be busy. Many old pupils & friends are finding out I am here & talk of coming in the Spring. Shall we know our Fate by the Spring do you think? The country is drifting towards conscription fast. Ld. Rosebery in a fine recruiting speech says we will “want millions to push back millions”. Sound sense if the country would only realise it.
Such a dear woman, young & so pretty was in my Studio yesterday, she has two boys just off to the Front & her two gardeners & chauffeur, she left with the two young wives & the baby sons. I took a great liking to her – she was so crisp & courageous & cool. She took a fancy to that baby of mine & I think she intends buying it. No more dearest Mother. I am still in dark as to the Election. Have the soldiers voted or are they waiting for the returns from Egypt & elsewhere. What of Geoff? Is he in training? Love to all from your loving Fanny.
My dearest Mother
It has been almost possible to forget the War so quiet has it been this week & except for the long casualty lists there has been nothing at all dramatic from the Front. Every one is pleased the way things are going. The weather is so atrocious, I suppose it is because of this that the enemy is so quiet. I have been almost festive – quite a number of people at the Studio saying pleasant things & another pupil to the good. The lady of the china collection gave a tea party on Saturday. The Studio was so crowded by the time I arrived I could hardly squeeze in & when in there was hardly room to light a cigarette. Much the most interesting person there was a Submarine man, wounded of course but not badly, a large cheerful person who pulled everybody’s leg & lapped up muffins & compliments with equal relish. His great success was announcing to the company at large that Italy was joined with Austria. Sensation & uproar! Cries of Oh! No! I don’t believe it. Who told you? & so on. Look at the map!! Said the happy submarine man very pleased with himself & feeling an awful hero. A lady with a face like St Augustine’s Mother recited some bad poetry in a sobbing voice & upturned eye – about the War. The S.M. was heard to say it made him sick & wouldn’t help recruiting. People who do real things are so simple in their mode of speech. He was next heard to remark that he hoped a few German shells would fall in St Ives & rouse up the lazy Cornishmen. This cast a slight shadow on the sun of his popularity – but he didn’t seem to mind. I saw him later in the evening at the Art Club take a black bottle from a locker & retire with it while yet we were listening to a humdrum lecture on Burmah by Sir Somebody Something ex Governor of Rangoon. A large breezy soul, entirely undismayed. His boat is now on the bottom of the North Sea after a raid as far up as Borkrun! He came to the Studio one morning & told thrilling tales & incidentally was most intelligent over my Water Colours. I hope my letters are arriving more regularly. Prices are rising alarmingly – coal & bread are the big items. I am eating N.Z. butter with a Wellington brand on it & S. Australian honey, both about 3d cheaper than the local product & much nicer. Cornish butter is filthy stuff – they are too lazy to squeeze the water out of it. Meat is very dear & bad but vegetable plentiful & varied & earlier than elsewhere. I take a sandwich to the Studio & have my one meal at night. I meant to write to Willie this mail but there have been so many compulsory letters to get off. In a mild way I commence to be busy. Many old pupils & friends are finding out I am here & talk of coming in the Spring. Shall we know our Fate by the Spring do you think? The country is drifting towards conscription fast. Ld. Rosebery in a fine recruiting speech says we will “want millions to push back millions”. Sound sense if the country would only realise it.
Such a dear woman, young & so pretty was in my Studio yesterday, she has two boys just off to the Front & her two gardeners & chauffeur, she left with the two young wives & the baby sons. I took a great liking to her – she was so crisp & courageous & cool. She took a fancy to that baby of mine & I think she intends buying it. No more dearest Mother. I am still in dark as to the Election. Have the soldiers voted or are they waiting for the returns from Egypt & elsewhere. What of Geoff? Is he in training? Love to all from your loving Fanny.
Pages
4 pages
Sender's address
St Ives, Cornwall
Institutional No.
MS-Papers-0085-29
Credit Line
Letters
from
Frances
Hodgkins.
Field,
Isabel
Jane,
1867-1950
:
Correspondence
of
Frances
Hodgkins
and
family
/
collected
by
Isabel
Field.
Ref:
MS-Papers-0085-29.
Alexander
Turnbull
Library,
Wellington,
New
Zealand.
https://natlib.govt.nz/records/23224416
https://natlib.govt.nz/records/23224416