Letter from Edward Thomas to his wife, Helen Thomas. Archival reference: 424/1/1/1/1/204
20 viii 12
Earlsdon
Dearest one, we got here to lunch at 1.45 from Seven Oaks, we found no letters and no proofs; and nothing at Davies' either. Why?
I told you Merfyn went to Camden on Saturday and had an afternoon roach fishing with the de la Mares. They were too full up to the Ellises to come on Sunday. Se we went along expecting to be put up at the inn but they made shift and we slept in some boy's bed. We got there at 12.30 without rain but after 2 o clock lunch rain fell at intervals and saved us from a rectory tea. We played pitch and toss etc with the children, led by Hodgson. Tea followed out lunch and then after some languid fishing in a dry interval came dinner. The pond it a little one full growth by the White Horse on Holtbye Common a grassy common almost spoilt by golf. The de la Mares house is a pleasant new one with varying views of Ashdown Forest, first a quite meadow slope then a rising wooded edge with a distant hilltop fir clump eastward and nearer woods more to the West. We talked completely about futurists
animals in till near midnight. De la Mare was tired and irritable and full gwah. The Edinburgh Review has asked him for a [illegible] article on recent books.
But what am I going to do ?

.Monday morning was wet when you left.
But we started in sun at 11.15 and soon got away
hot gardens and orchards at the Kent border and bought 3d worth
Of apples and pears at a farm and ate them in the park of Penshurst place for lunch. The church even shut.
The old hark and his smooth half with sheep feeding round clumps of bracken was very pleasant. We sat against one of the limes that stand in lines on either side.
Then we went into Tunbridge through Leigh and I lost my because Mervyn wanted to buy
'something to read’ while I had some coffee -
which I didn't have. We had a hilly ride up and down from Tunbridge mostly through well known
country , resting at the Shipborne from which has seats on a verandah looking over the gorse and cows of Shipbourne common [illegible]
Then through Ivy Hatch and Stone Street (you remember the 'Rose and Crown') In the beautiful shallow valley with beeches on the upper slopes on either side of the road which goes through it - called the wilderness - to seal and given only - Davis had been expecting us for days, an anxious host.
We had tea. When you went out but did not recognise anything or anybody.She listened to us- Davis talking about his welsh walk-with drink and bed and our supper of fish and stewed plums and undrinkable coolish coffee.
By 10:30 I was sleepy and just wrote [illegible] Baynes.
I shouldnt join him at Carmathen and then to bed.
We had to go and see the Littles who were just back. It had rained all night and again at 8.30 after we had had a stroll with Knole pub? They thought Mervyn looked strong and well. So he does. But we said communicate much. Little told me Morgan and.
his wife are legally separated. The (illegible) are friendly still with both. Morgan is much cut up: probably that accounts for his slackness in answering my proposal for a visit in May. He had a boring tale to tell which left us little time to get here against a strong west wind. But we had no rain. We went along under the downs by Riverhead, Brasted, Westerham, Limpsfield common, Oxted, and Godstone and then up across the Pilgrim's Way northward over the downs by a Roman road to Caterham and Coulsdon common and windmill and ridiculously thin-spired church round the end of Farthing down by the big (illegible) here. Janet is childless and servantless and herself goes away on Saturday. We did eat. Merfyn seems none the wear for his 21 miles against the wind before lunch. Now he is reading Ali Baba in an armchair. The rain has come on again. We have been lucky all day in avoiding