A character

Monday, November 5th., Cadogan Square, London.

Took one of the new 6-wheel buses, just to try it, to the Ritz, and walked up Bond Street to the Queen's Hall to look at programmes.

Odd encounter in the street. I was accosted, apropos nothing at all, by a rather disreputable looking character who was doing some sort of work at the front of a business. He asked me if I was a poacher! This in the middle of London! I said I was not, and he explained that my coat and the bag I was carrying looked to him like the sort of things poachers affected. "I was a poacher myself" he said with a knowing wink. Feeling in the mood to humour him I asked why he said was? Apparently because the gamekeepers were wise to him, and he had been in some sort of trouble (he made a gesture suggesting violence) which made it vital that he should not attract the attention of the law. He shrugged philosophically. He then went on to tell me how his senses were more finely attuned than those of the average person (meaning me), due to years of successful poaching, and that he believed himself to be descended from Viking stock. From his general appearance I thought he might be right! Then he said "Well guvner, got to be getting on", and seemed to dismiss me from his attention. I walked on. All this in about five minutes.

At 3 p.m. I was at the Board Meeting of the New Statesman to discuss scheme for getting a push on sales. I promised to write a booklet, to sign it, and to find £200 towards the outlay required for the push, such sum and any further sums to have a prior claim on previous loans.

War stories

Thursday, March 1st., Yacht Club, London.

Clifford Sharp, editor of the New Statesman, lunched with me at Reform Club. I seemed to be wandering about all day in search of ideas for novel. Went into the R.C. cathedral. Also Lanchester's Bond Street shop, clubs etc. By about 6.30 I had got them all. Whether they will prove to be good ideas is another matter. A Lieutenant Bayne (Gordon Highlanders, lost his left arm) dined with me and Shufflebotham at Cafe Royal - very well. I wanted to ask Bayne about the loss of his arm, how he felt about the war, loss of life, injuries, that sort of thing - but it didn't seem appropriate. 

Shuff told me that when he went into factory for lachrymatory shells at Walthamstow, the water poured out of his eyes and filled a jug. He does tend to exaggerate a bit.

Bayne told the tale of an Irish Company Sergeant-Major in the Gordon Highlanders, with a strong Irish accent, who said to him in the midst of the Loos affair (in reply to his question as to how he was getting on) - with enthusiasm, "Man, it's grand to be a Scotchman!" 

Marguerite has some daft idea in her head about 'closing up' Comarques. The problem is she hasn't got enough to do and she wants to be interfering in my business. She doesn't seem to realise that I cannot carry on my work without my books and without an office, and that to close Comarques would cause me grave inconvenience, quite apart from my health. Anyway, it will not be closed as long as I can afford to keep it open. I wonder what she will turn her mind to next? Somebody should warn you about this sort of thing before you marry!

Jaegerish

Monday, December 8th., Comarques, Thorpe-le-Soken.

I finished the second yachting article for the Century on Friday afternoon. Saturday morning je bricolais, arranging books etc. Enjoyable. Something I don't do often enough. There are few things in life more satisfying than arranging one's books.

J.C. Squire came on Saturday. Long hair, Jaegerishly dressed. But sound, competent, honest in argument. He was highly in favour of Webbs etc., and said the New Statesman was going on excellently, as to finance. He is from a wealthy background, but joined the Social Democratic Foundation which had been led by figures like Eleanor Marx. He met his wife through the SDF. At the time New Statesman was launched, he was a working literary journalist, and he became its first literary editor. He could not appreciate Tailhade's verse. Left this morning. Very Jaegerish.

To day I went to Dereham in Norfolk to take possession of a Fitzroy barometer I had ordered from a scientific instrument maker there. I went myself, on invitation, so as to see over the factory, and it was extremely interesting. All the parts of the barometer are made there, and there is a 'shop' for each part of the process - wood, brass, glass, packing etc. The general manager told me he had started as a civil engineer but had been in the scientific instrument business for over 30 years. Clearly very proud of the standard of workmanship in his factory. And quite right to be. It is a beautiful instrument as well as being useful. I shall enjoy checking it every day when I am home.