BR TO CONSTANCE MALLESON, 30 SEPT. 1920
BRACERS 19704. ALS. McMaster
Edited by S. Turcon. Reviewed by K. Blackwell

Between Singapore and Saigon1
Sp. 30, 1920

My Beloved

Your letter to Singapore2 reached me safely — the place is full of Conrad3 — I went to Raffles Hotel for lunch, where lots of events happen in his books — It is blessed getting your letters, but Oh I shall be glad when I begin to get news of you. I want so much to know what is happening to you. You would not believe how constantly my thoughts are with you — or how often I long for your arms and your lips —

The heat gets on one nerves, makes one ill and jumpy and short-tempered — but now in a few days we shall get away from it. I knew after Astrakhan4 that I can be too hot, but on this boat it has lasted very long —

The night before Singapore they got up a fancy dress dance — I can’t dance but I got myself up as a Chinese philosopher of 2000 BC by the help of a very magnificent mandarin’s cloak lent me by an Annamese passenger — I was a great success — The day before, at the request of the English passengers, I gave an address on Bolshevism and was nearly mobbed.

There is great tension between the English and French passengers — the English have not discovered the nature of my relations with Dora,5 but the French have. Nevertheless the French are much nicer to us than the English. Evidently people mind Bolshevism more than free love. The French on the boat are much nicer people than the English, who are a stupid drunken crew —

Heat keeps one from sleeping and makes one quite stupid so I haven’t been able to make any letters for our book,6 but I expect I shall in China. Dearest, I hate this long separation — but I believe we shall be able to meet as if no time had passed since we said goodbye at Charing <X>.a Visions of Ashford7 float before me constantly —

Goodbye my dear dear love —

B

• 1

  [document] Document 200705.

• 2

  letter to Singapore Colette wrote six letters on the 14 August. One letter was supposed to await BR at each port of call between Marseilles and Shanghai. See BRACERS 113221 to 113229.

• 3

  Conrad Joseph Conrad (1857–1924), the novelist. BR named both his sons after Conrad (John Conrad, born 1921 and Conrad Sebastian Robert, born 1937). BR, who first met Conrad in 1913, admired him immensely.

• 4

  Astrakhan In The Practice on Theory of Bolshevism (London: Allen & Unwin, 1920, pp. 26–7; B&R A24), BR wrote that he was stayed longer on the Volga river boat than planned because Clifford Allen was too ill to get off. Thus he saw Astrakhan, which is in the south of Russia, near the Caspian Sea.

• 5

  Dora Dora Russell, neé Black (1894–1986). She and BR were married from 1921 until 1935. For further information on her, see BRACERS 19506, n.3.

• 6

  letters for our book Their literary letters project which he had first suggested on 22 November 1919. For information, see BRACERS 19584, n.6.

• 7

  Ashford Colette and BR had vacationed in a house, The Avenue, near Ashford Carbonel in Shropshire three times. For information, see BRACERS 19217, n.4.

Textual Notes

• a

  Charing The letter is torn at this point; presumably the missing fragment contains an “X”.