THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

The White Gates,
Westcott Road,
Dorking.

[late July 1934]

My Dear Maud

Thank you so much for your letter.
– I am now sitting up for the 1^st time for a 4^tnight – Its perfectly absurd because I am feeling perfectly well – but I have not been allowed to move for fear of the poison spreading¹ – I am so glad the school went off well & I come to Wargrave (wherever that may be) on Sept 16^th – I was fearfully shocked to hear of M^r Kettlewells death – I only saw about it casually in the EFDS² minutes.
Poor Austria – I wonder what is going to happen – This looks like the break up of everything with Mussolini thundering at the door – the funny thing is that it seems to be our pacifist’s party in England who are crying out for us to intervene!³
Running set is to be done at the Proms (if the world is still there) on Sept 27^th
Yrs
RVW

1. VW had been confined to bed after an abscess turned septic on his ankle.
2. English Folk Dance Society. Mr Kettlewell was Treasurer of the Society.
3. Englebert Dolfuss, Chancellor of Austria, had been murdered by Austrian Nazis on 25th July and Mussolini had moved some divisions up to the Brenner Pass.