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Letter ReferenceHRC/OliveSchreinerLetters/OS-JohnHodgson/85
ArchiveHarry Ransom Center, University of Texas, Austin
Epistolary TypeLetter
Letter Date After Start: April 1919 ; Before End: September 1919
Address From9 Porchester Place, Edgware Road, Westminster, London
Address To
Who ToJohn Hodgson
Other Versions
PermissionsPlease read before using or citing this transcription
Legend
The Project is grateful to the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, the University of Texas at Austin, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Manuscript Collections. This letter has been dated by reference to when the Hodgsons’ daughter Mary Elizabeth was born, in September 1918, with Joan’s pregnancy likely to have been known about by around April that year. Schreiner was resident at Porchester Place from early April 1917 until August 1920, when she left Britain for South Africa.
1My dear John
2
3Thank you so very much for your letter. Your house looks splendid. It
4is just the exact image of the old Houses as the Cape. Was your house
5perhaps built by a French Huguenot?? If it was one of our ^old^ Cape
6Houses it would have a great central hall as you came in at the front
7door; & in in the most perfect & beautiful type the ^great^ back door of
8the hall, facing the front door opens into a court yard, with the
9house enclosing it on three sides. It looks quite charming & it is not
10too shut in with trees
11
12Thank you both so very much. For asking Ursie to stay with you it
13would have been quite ideal, but she has arranged to go to a place
14called Radlett, I think near St Albans. It is only 20 minutes from
15London, so her husband will be able to stay with her & come in every
16morning to his work in London. Its a country house turned into an
17hotel, standing on its own grounds. Perhaps, if its not too far from
18you you & Joan might drive over & see her some day, which she would
19love. After you come back from your holiday I will come some day &
20spend the day with you. Can one be sure of a Trap from the station to
21your house?
22
23I’m sure Ursula would have loved staying with you. I think Joan & she
24would be great friends.
25
26I’m so glad to hear the good news of what is coming to you & Joan.
27Joan must never worry or over tire herself, but take plenty of gentle
28exercise to keep all the mus-cles strong: thats the great thing.
29
30^I hope you got the wire I sent you today all right. Many many thanks
31I’m so glad go your good news.^
32
33Your small old aunt Olive
34
35^I hope these little ones that are coming will live to see a better
36world than we shall ever see.^
37