July 28 Thursday

Rewrote seven poems on lines suggested by Laura. Laura with interruptions doing Aristotle1. A new drink: cold tea & cider.[RG]
The strangest day. The bees were not in the log but in the chimney. We lit huge fires of cypress-branches and killed great numbers. At last a honey comb (with young bees but no honey) tumbled down. Thousands of bees buzzed over the roof & we lit fires in Laura's workroom, Dorothy's bedroom, mine. But they persisted. Then Alan went to nail[RG] board up holes in loft against bats. Beryl &[RG] I went up too. Mice and bats. We took up the kitten. Found a nest of ten bats & killed them, jabbing with boards. It was fearfully hot.
Stuffed green peppers with rice. Yesterday there was a breadpudding situation. Laura went over more poems – another bat in kitchen.

Editorial Notes

Hands Referenced

    • Annotation: ink correction
    • Character: regular
    • Ink: black

People Mentioned

  • Alan

    Hodge, Alan
    Oxford history graduate. Became close friends with LR & RG. First husband of Beryl Graves. CP & WG

  • Laura

    Riding, Laura
    (1901-91) American poet. Laura Riding (née Reichenthal; then Laura Gottschalk).

  • Beryl

    Pritchard, Beryl
    daughter of Harry and Amy Pritchard, R.G.'s second wife. Formerly married to Alan Hodge. Robert and Beryl had four children: William, Lucia, Juan and Tomas. eds

  • Dorothy

    Simmons, Dorothy
    Sculptor associated with the Graves-Riding inner circle (1938-39). Married to Montague Simmons. eds

Bibliography

    • Title: Lives of Wives [prose]
    • Author: Riding, Laura
    • PubPlace: London, Toronto, Melbourne & Sydney
    • Publisher: Cassell and Co. Ltd.
    • Idno: A39
    • Date: 1939