Letter from Frances Hodgkins to Amy Krauss
Date
01 Oct 1940
See transcription
Catalogue number
FHL317
Date
01 Oct 1940
Transcript
Croft. Oct 1st Tuesday
My Dearest Amy
Much relieved by your letter & to hear all is well & you are safe & sound as it leaves me. Your letter took 4 days on the way. We are not so cut-off as you. London letters & papers are fairly normal. D S has gone, a week ago, gone back to trouble & almost continuous sirens. She stayed 2 weeks 3 days a longish visit in wartime. Catering such as it is. Tradespeople don't come so often. Food had to be ordered days ahead. I grew haggard. We patched up the domestic break down & did the best we could with Mrs C's help. Minor affliction like the chimney sweep for a smoking chimney (-birds!) and the break down of my super wireless set, faulty valves, now in Taunton, goodness knows when I'll see it again, are mere pin pricks beside E B’s fire fighting on Studland Heath. Hope she has found a subject & that she is no worse for her fright. It must have been alarming.
D.S spent sometime looking at houses round about in case she has to turn out of her Kentish Training College but the W O is snapping up all big buildings & now there are none to be had. A shadow cast on her holiday by the defaulting of her trusted next in command who quitted after a bad raid in the City & joined her young husband & fled to safety regardless of her responsibilities. Nasty shock for D.S.
Likewise her 2 Irish maids quitted. I say no wonder. They were left in the basement praying to the Blessed Virgin to blast Hitler & to the Mother of Mary to save them. Their Missis laughing at them. Who can blame them for seeking peace in the Welsh Mnts.
D.S. seems herself absolutely fearless & without imagination. I have never known her so full of pep & energy it sapped me of every particle of life. Courage & hope are slowly seeping back but I still feel rather a poor thing. It is good of you to say I may find a bed waiting if I came back. I can't yet make a decision but if I decide to act quickly I'll take yr advice & phone you. Have put your no. in book. At present have only a village girl sleeping at night & Mrs C for an hour during day. Living very austere & frugal on mostly slops, for the good of my health. Must get right in my inside before returning to C. Have been making my will. Have appointed Mrs Gorer & Geoffrey joint executors to dispose of my Paintings & Drawings, if any survive. Proceeds of sales to go to N Z nieces. The box of studio properties old clothes etc my only other possessions I'll leave for you to scatter among the poor, if you kindly will.
About windows! These here are small leaded panes & are said to stand a lot of breaking. No need to treat them.
Lefevre closed for duration. Reid gone back to engineering. My contract wound up. Leicester Galleries will sell for me on com/- No work alas! but am hoping to get busy before winter comes.
Thanks for N.S. Much love Frances
My Dearest Amy
Much relieved by your letter & to hear all is well & you are safe & sound as it leaves me. Your letter took 4 days on the way. We are not so cut-off as you. London letters & papers are fairly normal. D S has gone, a week ago, gone back to trouble & almost continuous sirens. She stayed 2 weeks 3 days a longish visit in wartime. Catering such as it is. Tradespeople don't come so often. Food had to be ordered days ahead. I grew haggard. We patched up the domestic break down & did the best we could with Mrs C's help. Minor affliction like the chimney sweep for a smoking chimney (-birds!) and the break down of my super wireless set, faulty valves, now in Taunton, goodness knows when I'll see it again, are mere pin pricks beside E B’s fire fighting on Studland Heath. Hope she has found a subject & that she is no worse for her fright. It must have been alarming.
D.S spent sometime looking at houses round about in case she has to turn out of her Kentish Training College but the W O is snapping up all big buildings & now there are none to be had. A shadow cast on her holiday by the defaulting of her trusted next in command who quitted after a bad raid in the City & joined her young husband & fled to safety regardless of her responsibilities. Nasty shock for D.S.
Likewise her 2 Irish maids quitted. I say no wonder. They were left in the basement praying to the Blessed Virgin to blast Hitler & to the Mother of Mary to save them. Their Missis laughing at them. Who can blame them for seeking peace in the Welsh Mnts.
D.S. seems herself absolutely fearless & without imagination. I have never known her so full of pep & energy it sapped me of every particle of life. Courage & hope are slowly seeping back but I still feel rather a poor thing. It is good of you to say I may find a bed waiting if I came back. I can't yet make a decision but if I decide to act quickly I'll take yr advice & phone you. Have put your no. in book. At present have only a village girl sleeping at night & Mrs C for an hour during day. Living very austere & frugal on mostly slops, for the good of my health. Must get right in my inside before returning to C. Have been making my will. Have appointed Mrs Gorer & Geoffrey joint executors to dispose of my Paintings & Drawings, if any survive. Proceeds of sales to go to N Z nieces. The box of studio properties old clothes etc my only other possessions I'll leave for you to scatter among the poor, if you kindly will.
About windows! These here are small leaded panes & are said to stand a lot of breaking. No need to treat them.
Lefevre closed for duration. Reid gone back to engineering. My contract wound up. Leicester Galleries will sell for me on com/- No work alas! but am hoping to get busy before winter comes.
Thanks for N.S. Much love Frances
Sender's address
Croft
Credit Line
E
H
McCormick
Archive
of
Frances
Hodgkins'
Letters,
E
H
McCormick
Research
Library,
Auckland
Art
Gallery
Toi
o
Tāmaki