THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

[8th January 1926]

Dear Maud

I’d much rather not take anything – only if its a principle I suppose I must agree.¹
Only, on principle, I will certainly not accept more than the market price of my work, which cannot conceivably come to more than  £10-10-0- 
viz       6 singing lessons £6-6-0
attending 1 rehearsal   £1-1-0
arranging 2 dances      £3-3-0
– & this is the top price!
I therefore return £15-15-0
Yrs

R. Vaughan Williams

1. Maud Karpeles, Secretary of the English Folk Dance Society, had written on 7 January l926: ‘I am requested by the committee to ask you to accept the enclosed cheque for twenty-five guineas as an honorarium for your services in connection with the Christmas Vacation School and Festival.  The committee realise that the sum in no way represents the value of your work, and they offer it merely as an expression of the principle that some financial return should be made for professional services.  They will be very grateful if you will accept the honorarium on this understanding and so assist in establishing the principle.’  All the prices are in fact in guineas (one guinea was 21 shillings or £1.05p)  Maud Karpeles responded with a further letter including payment for a lecture by VW – the correspondence is on file with the letter from VW.