Capri, Dublin Friday May 22 1925 Dearest Ma:-- Your letter of May 7th has come to me here and I am delighted to have it. I suppose some of the mail has been lost here in Europe too--I got a few letters from E. when I was back in Anacapri in April that she had sent me in January. Capri P.O. probably has others--for it's a place of many visitors and [END PAGE ONE] [BEGIN PAGE TWO] short visits and mail would be held up. So we're quits! I am glad the winter proved a fairly easy one. We had a glorious time of it in Capri--at least E. did and I used my raincoat almost not at all in my travels. The spring is very late and my travels have kept me among apple blossoms almost continually since March, for I've come north steadily and slowly. Scotland seems less likely now and Somersetshire or Nor- [END PAGE TWO] [BEGIN PAGE THREE] way more likely. Christiania perhaps, while I do a school in Norway and a school in Ireland if there are boats. You must be getting accustomed to the nomadic appearances of our plans, but they never will hold for longer than two months so it's hardly more than a speculative value that attaches to them at the distance of 6 months from their realization. I have had two large letters [END PAGE THREE] [BEGIN PAGE FOUR] from Richard. He is having, I gather an extraordinarily happy time and I'm not surprised. Getting what you want always makes you firmer at rejecting all that isn't what you want--and Richard always seemed to me to suffer from taking what he didn't like, too much. If he's as critical of his new friends as of his old there's not much to worry about. I am finding work very much easier and more agreeable here than in Italy, of course, [END PAGE FOUR] [BEGIN PAGE FIVE] and am really thoroughly enjoying it. I've finished 3 Dublin schools, and a school in Cork and in Galway. Tomorrow we go to Belfast and then back to Paris. Eleanor and Jo are coming sooner than I had expected and I've only about 10 days more without them, for they sh'd be getting up by June 1st at the latest. She's sent you some pictures I presume: I only have single copies and I'm [END PAGE FIVE] [BEGIN PAGE SIX] loath to miss any of them. I shall then be as content as I am busy: now it's mostly busy. Ireland is settling down rather remarkably. Yesterday I had an audience with the President of the Free State Mr Cosgrave. He was very young and natural in his manner, and seemed not at all the wild Irishman of song and story. It's a wonderfully green place and it seems to rain all the time. In Cork last Sun- [END PAGE SIX] [BEGIN PAGE SEVEN] day I went on a run out to Blarney Castle and it amused me to think of the pleasure Fanny Smith would have taken to see me kissing the stone! The country has flavor--there's no doubt of that--a Priest who'll wink at you and suggest a bit o' whiskey at 10 AM . . . and many amusing stories. [END PAGE SEVEN] [BEGIN PAGE EIGHT] I'll be sending you a check for $100 in June. I enclose a telegram blank to show you the fuss and pother they make over the Irish language. I feel as though a letter in one more language over my desk in Paris would bring down the salt tears. I'm hoping that a little present to the Grandmother's may turn out [END PAGE EIGHT] [BEGIN PAGE NINE] successfully--some movies of the baby which you could have a whack at and then pass them on to Mrs Barrows on the other coast. Her address by the way is: 2821 Hillegass St Berkeley. I'd get Faith to take them back if they come out decently I must stop to go look at another hospital-- [END PAGE NINE] [BEGIN PAGE TEN] Your loving son Alan.