Robby to Violet, 10 March 1950
March 10th
1950
My dear Violet
Thank you so much for your
very kind letter & for the excellent photograph.
I expect by now you have heard from [?]
that I paid a second visit to Dr. Brigdon-
the heart specialist at the London, having made
an appointment to see him previously without
waiting in queues most of the day. Miss D. paid his 3 guineas fee, & also hired a car to
take me there, & bring me home about an hour
after I got there. She is very generous to myself &
for others in those ways. But her prolonged visits
are a great trial, as she abuses nearly everybody,
& rakes up small things they did as children about
20 years ago. I often tell her that she does not be-
lieve in “the Forgiveness of sins” to which she replies she must do, because she goes to Confession. To which I modify my remark by saying that at all events she
does not believe in the forgiveness of other people’s sins.
I saw the Doctor for my second interview a week ago,
& this week & next week I [?] him of my intention
to stay in bed absolutely, except for a much cur-
tailed day on Sunday. He said that I had
better get up for a few hours every day, so I
have been having tea at 6 a.n., breakfast at
9:30, lunch at 1:30 all of those in bed, & I
get up about 3 or 4 in the afternoon. He said, if
I did not get up at all, I should feel so very
weak by the end of the week. So I am taking my
lozenges in the night, now as I was bidden.
It was very kind of you to suggest an electric fire
in my bed-room, but the buildings are over 100
years old, and though the outer walls are strong, the
partitions between the rooms are wood & plaster, &
I think there would be a considerable risk of fire.
My bedroom is very small, and Mrs. Sole gets me a
good fire & a hot bottle before I turn in. Then
Len Rickus looks in just before midnight, & fetches
me more fruit & stokes up the fire, & also refills
my 2 hot bottles. Mrs. Barratt’s Rose brings me
tea at 6 a.m. & refills my hot bottles again. So I
really thoroughly spoilt. I have not been
saying Mass, which gets over the fasting
difficulty, & tomorrow Sat. night, Fr.
Beckett is coming over from Buckingham to
sleep here, & say both the early & late
Masses on Sunday, I really am getting better,
but when I do get these painful attacks, it
is in the middle of the night, when I am
completely relaxed, and the lozenges & early tea
send them away. So don’t worry about me.
Y. darling
AIRMAIL LETTER Written the day before he died.
To:
Mrs. Gerard Clay
Arden
Kitwe
Northern Rhodesia
From:-
Rev, R.S. Thornewill
385A Cable Street
London E1
Postmark:-
LONDON E1
11:15 A.M.
11 MCH
1950
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