Leonard to the family:

Dear Alec June Susan and Carol

Many thanks for all your letters received this morning. Glad to hear Alec and Susan arrived home safely on Saturday in spite of luggage and umbrella. As you already know we were delighted to have Susan for a few days and I’m sure she enjoyed every minute of it. No doubt though that she was pleased to see Mummie and Carol on Saturday as she was to see Daddie on Friday. it was however a magnificent effort for her on her first time away from home.

What did you think of photograph in the Evening Post?* We thought Susan came out very well. Sent on two papers as we thought June might like to let her father and mother have a copy. I took along some tomatoes for the lady in charge of Mobo toys on Saturday afternoon when I went along to get the papers and thank her for being so kind to Susan. She was delighted. On my way home I went over to the place where the donkeys stand but Punch was not there, Susan – he must have been having a rest day. They all have a day off per week apparently. 

What a difference in the weather this past weekend. Mum and I actually went out at 9 p.m. last night to see the high tide which was due at 9:40 p.m. Fortunately there was no wind blowing but the water was well over the Lower Promenade path running alongside the Swimming and Boating pool.

Noted how busy you both have been on the garden and lawns and that rose cutting has turned out satisfactorily. Your dahlias must be a picture and should continue flowering until the frosts come. 

I made a start yesterday on the collection of things to bring up to you in due course by putting up some mint roots. Walked down the field just now and found birds playing havoc with the elderberries so must get busy with wine making again in a day or two. If you can get blackberries in Burnham Beeches it would be worth collecting some for jam and or wine. Incidentally if weather is kind when we come up we should like to go there and collect leaf mould and bring home – it’s very valuable stuff for seed sowing et cetera. How far is it from Queens Walk? Hope you succeed in getting the heather and beech trees to grow. **

Referring to June’s letter and glad tomatoes and beans came in useful and hope it was not too much of a burden for Alec to carry them home. It was the only opportunity of getting some more to you. Expect you had a nice weekend with Eileen and no doubt Susan and Carol kept her busy. “Read me another one – just one more” says Susan. 

So Pauline has gone to Italy for her holiday – probably scorching there considering what it is like here at the moment. Quite a coincidence that Eileen’s father and mother should visit Burnham-on-Sea whilst on their holiday at Bridgwater. There have been a lot of people in Clevedon these past two weeks the front has been more crowded than I’ve seen it for a long time. It may partly be due to the Bowling Tournament on the green near the Mobo toys. Quite a lot of children about too but Susan had her share of the swings, slide, roundabout etc. apart from the miniature train and Mobo toys, donkeys and bridal coach. I wish you could have seen her sometimes. We have missed her this week and I’ve lost my little shadow. Both of us here have had to get back to normal.

Mum did a big wash on Monday and I’m trying to catch up in garden. Total weight of runner beans to date 250 lbs and tomatoes 112 lbs. Latter selling very well again now to local inhabitants. Today I’ve been taking out the old raspberry canes and tying in the new ones for next year’s fruiting but it got so hot early afternoon that I gave it best for time being. The young married couple (next door) who are on holiday in Cornwall sent us a nice tin of Cornish cream which we much enjoyed.

That train of stock labelled Paddington we saw at Yatton on Saturday Alec, I passed on my way back to Clevedon. It was going in there for a works outing Clevedon to Paddington and formed the 8 a.m. Clevedon as between Clevedon and Yatton.

Did you say what happened to the draws Saturday? If Portsmouth had won instead of drawing*** I should have had 12 results up. Still a miss is as good as a mile.

No further news of Arthur Fewings yet as presumably he is still at Taunton. Mum and I are going to Bristol tomorrow Wednesday to visit the Staceys at Henleaze hence this letter being written today. Note you have put in snowdrop bulbs; that was just a little present from Susan and we went out specially to get them on Friday, Susan watching saleswoman count them out as they were put in bag. Susan also picked out the jigsaw puzzle for Carol in Woolworth as well as the toy writing paper and stamps for herself as well as Carol. The African violet has improved wonderfully.

Must tell you that the gardening gloves you gave me some months ago I had their first really hard work today – on the raspberry canes. Result no thorns in hands or fingers. Have used them on previous occasions but today was the real test.

How did car go since you have had it back from Jackson? Mine will have to go in for servicing sometime in September. It was last in just before coming to you at Easter. It is still quite alright but with a couple of long journeys soon (Exmouth and Ruislip) feel it it must have a once-over and greasing.

Not a lot more to say this time I’m but I can repeat that we were delighted to have Susan, that that she was a very good girl and that all three of us enjoyed every minute of it and we shall look forward to her next visit. Now I will leave Mum to fill up this page I’m sure she will have a lot more to tell you. all our love to you both and lots of kisses for Susan and Carol.

Mum and Dad

Eva to the family on the remaining three-quarters of a sheet of Leonard’s writing paper:

Dear Alec June Susan and Carol

Many thanks for all the letters. I see Susan put in an extra stamp, for me to reply I expect. There is no doubt that Susan enjoyed every minute of the few days and was a very model girl. I’m afraid the needlework did not get a look in beyond finding a needle and threading it, there was so much else to do. I believe it would have been too hot for us this week as it’s simply baking here can hardly bear our clothes on. The thought of going to Bristol tomorrow makes me shrivel. I hope Pauline will have a good time in Italy. Wonder if Geoff etc will find it too ’ot in Spain.

I believe we have another lot of plums coming on trees there are several green ones there so should think it was a second session. Hope you liked the photo in paper the boys were nowhere in that one.

Several more came out from the Mobo place but Jessie only let six have their photos taken. We happened to go along there at the right time. I think Dad bought six copies before the photos appeared.

Hope you are keeping OK lots of love to all and kisses xxxxxxx for Susan and Carol.

From Mum and Dad

[Drawing of a donkey labelled ‘Punch’ with the comment ‘He is too fat’. His tail also reaches the ground!]

*Briefly, the story was this: I was at the Mobo Park when some people came along and took six children outside in order to photograph them for the local newspaper. (I remember two tall men in suits and pullovers – it was a bit of a grey day – but that may be imagination; I was only five, after all.) Being incurably nosy I rode up to the top of the slope to watch, and when one child burst into tears and had to be sent back into the park they saw me there and invited me to take its place. The picture was actually on the front page of the paper, and in recent years I have been trying to track down a copy – not helped by the fact that until I reached this letter in the sequence I did not have anything resembling a date for it, and had also thought it was actually a different newspaper. Now that I have the correct information it should be possible to pin it down and get a copy, although searching local newspaper archives is not as simple as it might once have been. Watch this space, or one very much like it, for further details.

**The distance was about thirteen miles. For more on my feelings of disgust about the planned theft of leaf mould from Burnham Beeches, see previous entry.

***1-1 at home to Halifax Town.