Eva to the family:

Dear Alec, June, Susan & Carol

Many thanks for your letters to hand. Sorry about the plums having fur coats. probably due to the rain we had also they were in the box over night. Still I expect you could eat some of them. Another time we must send them before they are ripe. Fit for bottling or stewing that is.

The tomatoes are still going strong & selling as quickly as can get them ripe they are down to 1/- lb now though*. Mrs Clarke at the bottom of field calls them the Covent Garden fruit. I say they are better than that fresher in fact. I suppose we shall be on the apple tack soon selling fall downs already. I wish we had all this fruit when we were younger don’t fancy climbing ladders etc.

Dad cleared the coalhouse of the ton of coal yesterday & could have passed for a coal man, he put it in shed in readiness for the men when they arrive.

We are still having lovely weather no rain yet although it is really needed.

Mrs Richings came up on Friday haven’t seen her since Easter Monday when she was up. Went home with tomatoes cucumbers cabbage & apples. Michael goes back to University at Reading end of September, he has finished work at Victoria & they are all going to Spain next week or week after.

I should like to see the children dressing up, it’s a way to keep them from mischief. Boys don’t want that. I used to give Alec a hammer wood & some nails but out of doors.

Old Ching got fed up at Bristol & went off sick August Bank Holiday Saturday & hasn’t been back since. Mr Burge is there instead.

Mr Phillips who used to be at Bristol & married again has a child & they say though I don’t know if it is correct that Mrs Edwards is expecting.

We had a card from Dinard where Geoff is can’t say I was thrilled with the view it looks something like Cornwall suppose they are back by now. Well I think this is all news mustn’t hog it for Dad. Love from us both to all

Mum & Dad

Dad will write later.

*For many summers Leonard and Eva sold fruit & veg to their neighbours. There would be a blackboard at the gate with prices on and people would knock on the door to have their purchases weighed and bagged by Eva. They didn’t need the money, of course, but had more fruit and veg than they could ever have used themselves.