Letter from Edward Thomas to the poet Gordon Bottomley. Sent from Berryfield Cottage, Ashford, Petersfield, Hampshire. Archival ref: 424/1/1/1/10/75
1. xi. 06

My dear Gordon, Thank you for the
letter & 3 books. I had long been
meaning to write, but reviewing
is too heavy & all my efforts
cannot reduce the length of the
row of review books. I expect
you are buy & wanting to settle
down again at Wellknowe so I
am especially grateful for a letter just
now. And the article! - I
like it & it will do, but if you
think you could do something less
generalized (which is hard in
so small a space), something that
plunges even unreasonably, quickly
into English landscape. I should
prefer it. I had thought of a
paper that might suggest [illegible]
England & the landscape painter's
England have changed since the
first landscapes as illuminations.
What do you think? But if it would
be very hard & if you don't feel
very confident, don't trouble, & in
any case this cannot be altered.
BERRYFIELD COTTAGE
ASHFORD
PETERSFIELD

Thanks too for the melody.
I haven't fairly tried it yet but
tho sweet & emotional enough it
perhaps won't move me exceptionally.
There are very few Irish airs that do.
This one might come from Ulster. But
the Bright Christian Home I admire
without reservation of any kind.
If I include 'Hesperides', which
is still doubtful, I should like you
to look at the proofs.
It is very good of Rathbone
to correct the proofs of the songs.
I couldn't offer any adequate payment,
so I just suggested a copy of one of
my (expensive) books or of
some other book. He wrote first.
By the way, is it possible for
you to write down out of Chappell
the air to 'Somer is icumen in'
with the words so that I could
justifiably put them in my Anthology?
Also, does Chappell anywhere give
the air and words of my version
of 'All round my hat'? I fear not.
words & air seem more than half to
belong to Baring Gould's collaborator
in the 'Garland of County Tune' -
Fleetwood Sheppard. I must
pay a guinea for it.: to Methuen -
I have seen the 1834 costermonger's
version, words useless,
tune corruptly elaborated but
often to me fascinating.
Goodby. I am called
away to Jusserand, Maeterlinck,
Symus, A. E. Waite, Stoppard
Bruolei, Cunningham Graham,
Lord Dunsang & others.
Our love to you &
Emily Ever yours
Edward Thomas