Poets

Tuesday, December 18th., Yacht Club, London.

Robbie Ross

To lunch at the Reform Club where I joined Robert Ross who had two young poets, Robert Graves and Philip ------ (I forget his name and am not even sure if he is a poet. I was very pleased with both these youths. Lately I am more and more struck by the certainty, strength, and unconscious self-confidence of young men, so different from my middle-aged uncertainty and also my lack of physical confidence in my own body. As an example of the latter: it has lately been cold and frosty with some light snow; as a consequence pavements have been rather slippy; a decade ago I would have been unconcerned, but now I am anxious about falling.

Ross is of course a homosexual, and remains devoted to the memory of Oscar Wilde. He was Wilde's literary executor and produced the definitive edition of his work. More recently he has worked as an art critic for the Morning Post and has mentored a number of young poets including Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. A cultured and likeable man who has been pursued vindictively by the Marquis of Queensberry and others because of his sexual inclinations which he can no more help than I can help wanting to write. Will there come a time I wonder when homo-phobia is extinct?

This afternoon two and three quarter hours hard in which I wrote 1,200 words of "The Pretty Lady". I am finding it an interesting book to write. Rather a departure for me and I winder how it will be received. Inevitably there will be shock and a certain amount of offence taken. I hope that reaction to the content will not obscure attention to the style because I really think that it is well-written so far. I don't expect it to be a 'success' like my earlier novels, but I hope that it will stand the test of time and will come to be regarded as an important addition to my catalogue of works.