2110-3-11-3

August 12th [1921]

Robin Ghyll Langdale Ambleside

Dear and Ghostly Godfather

This is to tell you that we are reading "Prester John" aloud in the evening, and though we have all read it before, some of us twice, we simply gloat over the prospect of reading it again. We had "The man on the Kirkcaple Shore" last night. But I like "The Path of the King" best of all your books, and truly it ranks with "Westward Ho!" and "Pride and Prejudice" (queer mixture) among my very particular favourite books. I like "Eyes of Youth" best of the stories in it, and "The Maid", and "The Englishman" are ripping too.

Daddy and I do mediaeval English History every other day (he teaches Humphry Roman on the other days) using Green's Short History, which is very good on the Middle Ages.

You see, I get nothing but modern history at school, and my soul longs with a great longing for old times, and armour, and battles, and the thrilling germs and gropings that blossom through the dust of centuries into the institutions and customs and laws that we have today.

I am reading "Don Quixote", and Daddy has promised me a pound if I read it all! I am afraid I shall not get the pound, but I do like it very much indeed; one gets so fond of the dear old idiot. I am going just to finish the first volume, and then I shall read "The Antiquary."

We are having fine fun here; some day you must come and see us in our little Noah's Ark, for truly we have enough rain here sometimes to float us off our foundations. The weather has been on the bad side this year, but we had one glorious day which we used to the full in going a tremendous bike-ride over the Kirkstone Pass (! some hill) into Patterdale, and along the shores of Ullswater and then over into the Vale of St John and the Thirlmere Valley by a rough track that runs across Matterdale

Common. That Common is a wonderful place, for, being right at the northern edge of the Lakes, it looks straight down into Troutbeck and the Plain of Carlisle, and further still you see the blue lines of the Pennines with Cross Fell for the highest, and furthest of all the Bewcastle Fells. The splendid mass of Saddleback, with its screes and ridges threw the valley of Troutbeck into fine relief, and gave strength to the whole thing. There was heather too on that moor, and since I just worship heather you can imagine how I revelled in it. I first learnt to love it properly last year in your Scotland, when I was staying near Inverness, and the love of it has grown on me and in me ever since. There were herds of deer too on some of the fells we passed, and I thought Ullswater was the most beautiful lake I had ever seen, with the steep walls of Place Fell on one side, and the long green valleys leading up into Helvellyn on the other. Going up into Matterdale Common we met an old farmer's-wife, loaded with bags and baskets, who was coming up from

her monthly walk into Patterdale to get her stores. She lives up on Matterdale somewhere, 10 miles away from the village, and walks in once a month to get her groceries. The tradesmen also visit her once a month.

I am very sorry you couldn't come to my christening as I feel sure you would have liked it, and Mr. Shepphard too. Would you have minded that I defied St. Paul, and wore nothing on my head? And I am afraid Mr Shepphard encouraged me!

Please come and see us when we get back to Pen Rose. Your very affectionate god-daughter

Mary Trevelyan.

[ST: John B became her god father]