19521210 Dorothy
Berry Hall,
Great Walsingham
Norfolk
10th December 1952
Dearest Violet[1]
We received a parcel from you two days ago, & altho’ we thought it was probably for Xmas we felt obliged to open it as it just happened that we had nothing in the house that moment for supper ! So we opened the parcel & found a delicious ham which just saved the situation, & which we very much enjoyed, & yesterday we got Gerard’s letter saying it was your Xmas present to us, & which we are most grateful for. You mustn’t think we are at all short of food really[2], we are much more fortunate than most people as we continually get Pheasants, Pigeons & Rabbits & an occasional Hare from Douglas & Rosie. Ernest has taken a gun in the little shoot they have, it is a help to them as they pay quite a good rent for it to the Elwes’ who are the owners of it. The other gun who pays a share is Peter Heywood – he married Ruth Barclay who used to stay with you, a grand-daughter of Mrs Bond-Cabbell. The Heywoods are great friends of Douglas & Rosie[3], & Ruth &Rosie often beat for them & we all have a picnic lunch together when they shoot. Ernect has given up accepting any shooting invitations as he finds he can’t do the walking & doesn’t like keeping back the other guns, but he enjoys just going out with his gun, & stopping whenever he feels short of breath or is tired.
Now I must say how very sorry we were to hear of the “blackout” Gerard had – it must have been very alarming for you, & horrid for him. We are very glad to hear he seems none the worse now for it, but I expect it means he ought not to drive the car, or take any undue exertion. Ernest hasn’t been too well either lately, & I have had a very slight attack of laryngitis & had a very husky voice in consequence & am told not to use my voice much & not to talk ! Rather a deprivation for me, they all say ! Though I say it is rather nice not to feel obliged to talk !
We have had bitterly cold weather lately, though no fogs, which have been frightful in the West of England & London & the Midlands. What it is to live in Salubrious Norfolk ! Usually considered the coldest part of England, we have had very sunny weather which has counter-balanced the frost. Our moat was quite frozen over, but as we had had no snow the roads were in excellent condition. We had “the Wilfrids[4]” for a birthday[5] luncheon on Monday, & Rosie & Douglas for luncheon on Tuesday – we thought if they all came at the same time Ernest would never hear a word anyone said !
Oh ! How we miss those nice Xmas parties we used to have with you at dear Abbottswood !
There is lots more I want to write about, but having begun on this 6d. letter[6] I feel it had better go today & I will write again shortly.
Very much love to you both from us both
Dorothy
[1] The letter was addressed to Violet “c/o The Boma” (the Government Office) at Broken Hill (now Kabwe) in the middle of the country, to which Violet’s son had been posted – but by the time this letter arrived, he had been transferred to Livingstone, in the South of the country, to which this letter was forwarded, but without any other postmarks. “History doesn’t relate” how this letter reached Violet, who was living in Kitwe. On the North.
[2] Wartime food rationing wasn’t abolished until 4 July 1954.
[3] The only child of Ernest & Dorothy
[4] Ernest’s brother Wilfrid & his wife Maud
[5] Ernest was born on 2 December 1872, so this was his 80th,
[6] This was an “airmail letter”, so a fixed size, rather than paper in an envelope. “6d” is sixpence, the fixed cost to send it. There were 40 sixpenses to the pound, one was worth £7.35 in 2020 values
