Leonard to the family:

Dear Alec June Susan and Carol

Many thanks for letter received this morning first post and for the one from the girls. Sorry to hear your letters have been arriving second post recently. They are posted before midday for the 1:15 p.m. collection here and if you can say how long since they have been reaching you after first post I will have a ‘pennyworth’ out of the Post Office people as I cannot see why such an early posting this end should not ensure first delivery your end. Can understand the occasional late arrival but [not] a regular one.

Taking all things into consideration there is no doubt you had the better week or so for weather in spite of the high winds. There has been torrential rain here at times since you returned and the weekend was simply atrocious – much more than the previous one when the Benn family were here. The visitors next door with the Bushells were however lucky one day when they went to Burnham. They had a glorious day and very little wind but it was the day we had heavy rain with thunder and lightning here. They were surprised when they got back to hear about it.

Incidentally I meant to have told you previous letter that your suit was duly posted to Hebden Bridge on the Monday afternoon and I expect by this time you have had receipt in acknowledgement. Hope  suit turns out satisfactory. Wonder if you went to Gamages as you had in mind last week. We have only been out locally of course but tomorrow we shall go to Weston after dinner and have the afternoon looking round and meet Mrs Baker at 7:30 pm. Hope she has a good journey down.

Went to Hill Road yesterday and coming home car stopped in Old Church Road opposite Long Avenue – no petrol coming through. Fiddled about with the lead to carburettor a bit and eventually got car moving again and was soon home. Called in the expert last night – he did not get home until after 6:00 p.m. – and he found a fraction of dirt in the carburettor and soon put the matter right. I gather he did not go to Weston again with their visitors so did not see the Hillman in the showrooms. As a matter of Interest I will see if it is still there tomorrow. No I should not be in too much of a hurry to get another car until you find you really are onto a good one. There are a lot of phony dealers about and a dud car can be made to look almost like a new one.

Note your lawns now looking better than ever and that you have been able to cut them once more. I have not touched ours since the day before you all arrived when as you know they had a close shave. Nearly time though I got machine out again. Needless to say I have not yet restarted on the further alterations to pond area and the plots. Am plodding on with essential work on the garden and today managed to get out the last of the potatoes which finishes the plot beyond the hedge. It is literally choked with bindweed and under any circumstances I shall not plant it again. Have also taken down the ‘cattle pens’ intended for use as compost heaps* and brought the wood (very useful) up to site near garage for stacking.

We continue to pick plums and by weight we have well exceeded 1½ cwt. Glad June was able to make use of those you took back and it is noted you do not want any plum jam brought up. Mum will reply to this point as it is not only plum we have available.

A mouse about eh? May be no trace now you are in residence but I should put a trap down for his lordship as he may bring in others.

Noted the outside of house now repainted and that it looks all right. Also that the missing tiles have been replaced with a good match. Now all you want is the greenhouse in position and you will be ready to face the winter in comfort.

Yes we thought it odd that there should be such queues for the Cheddar Caves but put it down to the fresh influx of visitors over the weekend whereas on the Friday where we went those visiting the area that week had already had their fill of caves. Should like a few shares in that lot.

No further news re: land except that the Pearsons have been asked to get their deeds back from the people who have lent them the money to purchase house for inspection by the solicitors for Weston and Plumley the firm buying the land. This is a good sign. Cornish meanwhile has had somebody else in to look at site but it is also known that he went to solicitor last Friday in connection with our scheme so we do not know what he is up to. The other day he (Cornish) had a very long pole with a dirty rag at the end of it stuck upright just inside his front gate but I did not see him or should have asked what time the balloon went up**.

I told you last letter that the two semi-detached houses across road at top of Avenue will costing £3,400 [£86,420 in 2023 money] each. We now hear the builder could have got £3,850 [£97,850] for each but was already committed to the smaller sum. Just shows what houses are fetching nowadays. A later bulletin indicates the new houses to be erected on our plot after be sold for £4,250 [£108,025]. This is for detached houses with garage. I suppose we shall know one day exactly what they will cost to purchase.***

Interested to read about your route through the Bath area. I must try the top road through Bath one day but I’m so used to the Lower Road that I do not care much to change. I like Marlborough for a break. Most useful for a coffee or bit of shopping but you were a little fortunate to get parked so nicely in the middle of road.

Saw Roy Hewitt for a few minutes this morning. He still has not been out and said he has some pain where the operation took place. He will be seeing doctor this week. Latter just back from a month holiday in Scotland. Presumably back with the McClouds [sic].**** Understand Bill Aston going on all right but no news as to when he will be back in Clevedon.

Now over to June’s letter for a minute. Glad you enjoyed yourself June whilst with us. We all had a very happy time and something now to look back on for a few months. Yes can quite understand you have all been at it pretty hard since your return – that’s usually the case after a break. Hope Alec not too cheesed off after his first day back at Liverpool Street. Shall be interested in any work news from that point. Susan and Carol due back to school next Tuesday – a little relief for you. We guessed you would be seeing your mum off on Wednesday – we shall be at the Weston end to meet her and will include in this letter a short note of her arrival. A letter from Lyng this morning says they are looking forward to seeing her next Sunday. Shall leave here about 1:30 p.m. to arrive there about 3 pm and home again I expect by dark.*****

I see Harrow had a bad storm yesterday. We also had thunder and lightning from about 2:30 p.m. – started when I was on ladder picking plums but managed to get to garage before deluge came. The Hoiles (live at bottom of our field) are at Bournemouth and say the weather is awful. A card from Geoff yesterday posted seven days earlier said they were having grand weather – the water was 70 degrees. A good advertisement for a holiday abroad as against the weather experienced here. They are now on their way back and should be home Wednesday evening. Have already written them and suggested October 4th as our day of arrival there for the weekend prior to coming on to you. It is now up to them to confirm or suggest alternative date.

Bad luck for your cousin to get food poisoning in the Channel Islands****** – hope it was not serious. There would have been no need for your mum to bring a hot water bottle – we have some here and in any case can always get a brick and heat up in oven*******.

Did you get the glass (for bathroom) home intact. Have been trying my hand at glass cutting on the glass I brought back from Ruislip but an afraid without success. Could never master the art of glass-cutting.

Called in on Mr Palmer last week with a few plums for Mrs Palmer and found he had made a garden seat for himself so commissioned him to make one for me 4’6″ long. It would work out much cheaper than buying one ready-made. His tomatoes are a failure due I think to try to grow them against a wall. He seems to be keeping up very well now and says he was sorry he did not see you during your visit.

Noted Mr Gray not yet fit for work but that he feels quite all right in the car – will enable him to get about until he as well enough to return to duty. Mrs Cummings and family drove off to Ambleside (Lake District) last Saturday for their holiday but I should think it is a poor place to go in this kind of weather. The Heels are going to the Lake District too next Sunday for their holiday and will be away about five weeks altogether as they are returning to the Derby area to visit relations before coming back here. I hope it keeps fine for them.

*I can only imagine he’d got hold of some old wattle hurdles to section off this part of the garden and was intending to compost them afterwards. That sort of thing was much more readily available in those days and was so much a part of everyday life that it was hardly even mentioned.

**I suspect that this is an allusion to Leonard’s service in France during the First World War but I have no more information than that.

***Three times as much these days, if local listings are anything like accurate.

****I think we must assume the doctor’s name was McCloud.

*****Sunset would have been round about 8 p.m., which suggests setting off for home by 6.30 or thereabouts.

******This can only have been the wonderful Eileen Basham, who is mercifully still on the right side of the grass: she’s the very last member of her generation in the family unless one counts Peter’s wife.

*******Pretty sure this is a joke but wouldn’t put it past him. I certainly had a warming-pan used in my bed at round about this time, but that was elsewhere in the family.

[Letter concludes on Thursday 5th September, 1963.]