25th July 1935 - Terrick to Mary

35 Nevern Place
S.W.5

25th July 1935


My Darling Mary,

Here are your tickets and Registered Marks.  9.75 Rm are mine, or, at any rate, Eileen's.  Renny owes her 10/- & brought it to me after I had taken out my marks so I added them to your lot.  The rate is 19.50 which is not too good.  I got 20.25 a few days before.

This afternoon Ashe burst into the room & said: "Fitz, I'm afraid I'm going to break your girl's heart".  My first thought was: he's going to try & mess my holiday.  Then he said: "Have you got anything on this evening?" which revived my hopes again.  I said "No" and he said: "Then you may have to catch the 7.30 train to Fort William"

Apparently one of the Assistant Reps, the one who was suffering from "Accumulated Superstition", had gone mad.  The doctor said he must be taken home immediately but he was like to do some damage & must not travel alone.  So Mr Ashe was going to see his father in Wimbledon & if he couldn't go to fetch the fellow I was to go!

It would have meant that I should get back here at 7.30 a.m. on Saturday & have three nights out of bed, but it would have been exciting so I said I was oke.  However the G.M. then had another idea.  Apparently Morris, the loony, hadn't been told that he was mad & mustn't be given the idea that he was going home under escort.  This would of course be pretty obvious if some one from H.O. was sent up to come back with him.  So it was eventually decided that if the father didn't go to him, Paul should say that both the assistants had been recalled to London so that the other fellow should be in charge of Morris.  If the other chap refuses to take on the job Paul is to come back with Morris.

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When I got back here a note from Renny was served up with my dinner.  In it he had said that Joan had invited him to Penywern Rd this evening but he had refused & invited her to West Cromwell Road saying that he "must be in that evening"  Renny then asked me to ring him up at 8.20.  I did so and the number was engaged.  I got on about ten minutes later & was greeted by Renny with the tone he puts on when speaking to girls.  He held a monologue with appropriate pauses, only interluded - but not interrupted - by jocular remarks from me.

He said he would come round to see me (the girl he was supposed to be talking to) tomorrow, [He is in fact coming round here] but should he dress?  No, not necessary.  but what about Sunday? Yes, he'd love to and it was very sweet of me to invite him.  Did I really want him?  Well, goodbye, dear; he would see me tomorrow.  With protestations of brotherly affection we rang off.  I imagine that in coming down to the phone he had left his door wide open.

I have got toothache, so I shall ring up my dentist first thing in the morning to make an appointment.  I don't want my holiday spoilt by an aching jawbone.

Don't forget to sign your Registered Mark cheques in the top corner as soon as you get them, but not in the bottom corner.

Owing to the difficulty of getting to the place where they dish out the Marks at Cologne with the long queues there, I have to take German Mark pieces with me & sell them to the clients on the train so that they shall have something to tip porters with at Cologne.  As the party for Assmanshausen including you numbers ninety-eight I have two hundred marks on me, all in silver except for 20 Rm.  It is as heavy as stone.  I'll try & get rid of it on the way down to Dover.

Can you get yourself a picnic meal made up?  Last time, you remember, we ate the clients' on the boat, but we shan't have that this year (I hope) & it will be necessary to get something at Ostend Station where it is an absolute fight.  otherwise you'll get nothing to eat from lunch on Saturday till breakfast on Sunday.

I have written and typed out half my Schwaneberg scenario, bit I expect you will be able to give me some good ideas to add to it. 

I must stop now & go out & post this.  I'll put 2½d on it which should be ---------------------------  Phone Bell Rings.  The writer waits for the Second Tinkle and then Rushes Precipitantly from the Room.

As I was saying  2½d should be enough, let me know if you have to pay anything extra.

Goodbye dear till the day after tomorrow at 14.00.

By the timetable, this time in two days (forty-eight hours!) we shall be at Ostend Station waiting for the train to pull out.

By the time you get this it will be only about forty hours.

All my love

Terrick        XXX