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Transcription of Letter
From
J R Derbyshire
62 Friars Avenue
Delapre
Northampton
England
To
John . Derbyshire
14 Legion Drive
Valhalla
New York 10595
U.S.A.
62 Friars Avenue 23-2-77
Dear John,
It was nice to hear from you again & to know are well & have missed the worst of the
awful weather you have had. It must have been frightening in some parts It has been like a spring day here but
everywhere is floods
it has'nt stopped raining since the drought broke last year
It is good of you to be so tolerent to me for my advice which I gave you in good faith. I know
its none of my business & it kind of you not to tell me so, but I couldnt help it as you are falling for the age
old story told every
generation by the other sex & the one you are in now I doubt, if you want to, you could escape. Two things I was
told, & found to be true was
never shit on your own door step, & you never marry the girl you court, they are my last remarks on the
subject its all yours now. I see
what you mean its a works permit you want, its a pity you did'nt get it before you left as
Tom did.
he got his before he left on agreeing to return if he did'nt get a job in 3 months. By the way how is Tom, better I
hope, give him my kind regards
& a speedy recovery. it is always the nice blokes who get these things so now you know why I have nearly reached 78
yrs. These last 2 years I
have slipped downhill. I can eat & sleep well, but if I climb 2 steps on a ladder I fall off.
Its 10 oclock p.m. Mum has just gone to bed & I have
a glass of Whisky as my night cap sometimes it 'Brambuie'[1]
& I sip it on cold
nights I dont bother when the weather is warm, a bottle of each lasts me a year.
I dont know what they think about us in the U.S.A it can't be any worse than what I think. I
have seen it coming for 20 yrs. We where such a great Empire who ruled the world for 200 yrs & made all the rules
to run it It didnt matter
who bought from who settlement had to be made in London & the gold sovering was the world currency, & as world
trade was carried out like
that, it was inevitable when the Empire went the bottom fell out & there was no one to take over the job
Hence disaster. trouble is our
silly little politicians are living in the past & we are sinking fast, & as I see it within the next 20 yrs we
will be a Russian State
the alternate is too bad to contemplate Civil War. So stay where you are & I hope you get your permit &
citizenship
I am sorry to hear the heater in your
car has gone. I hope you did'nt think it would go in the hot weather any I have no doubt the ash tray is full
so its time you had a new
one, although old friends are the best. I am glad to hear you have taken up ice skating its lovely when I
was a boy we used to be on the
pools every winter. there was a big pool close to us & 2 winters out of 3 we had fires on the ice. We called them
rodneys,[2] you build 2 rows of bricks about 5 feet high & put iron bars
across & build your fire on
the bars I have known it freeze for 13 concetive weeks & ice 6 feet thick in the Fen district they used to
hold world championships for
skating on the Broards.[3]
I am pleased you have given up smoking I hope you can stick it out it makes me sick when
I see anyone smoking now I doubt if I would have been alive now if I had'nt given it up, because I have chest
trouble it runs in the
family & it clogs the lungs You think you enjoy food now but after about 2 yrs you will know the taste of
food & enjoy it so keep it
up its a long term job & if I have the will power I am sure you have & when you get to my age you will
feel the benefit. So you have
got another programmer have you I hope you are showing her the right ropes Its a pity you have to leave the
old home I hope you get
some were comfortable & nice it will be costly & would take your carpet as well. I am glad you took the
shares option up & as you
say you should be in a good position to know when to sell I hope they still keep improving.
Well its now 11 p m so I will close & get to bed. we
are always thinking about you & looking at the Photos Mum has some happy memories & if she is happy I am
happy.
Judith & baby are flourishing & Tessa is the
lovelist child I have ever seen she comes & stays week end sometime &
your bedroom she claims as her room.
So Cheerio for now
love
Mum
Dad
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Notes
- He means Drambuie, a whisky-based liqueur.
- So does the OED: "Rodney [Of obscure origin.] 1. Coal-mining. (See quot.)" There follows a quotation from an 1860 English & Foreign Mining Glossary: "Rodney, a roughly constructed platform, with old rails, near the pit's mouth, upon which a large fire is made during the winter nights, to light the bank."
- I.e. the Norfolk Broads, a region of flat marshy land in eastern England.