Re BR's Autobiography, which Davies asks to read. He encourages its early publication.

Enclosed are documents .133399, .133400.

Re Earl Russell deceased.

Miss Otter is anxious that negotiations with BR "... should be brought to a swift conclusion, both because she is very anxious to obtain cash for her estate and also because your client is understood to be leaving England on 4th July."

Enclosed with document .133398.

Re Earl Russell.

"Lord Russell, we have every reason to believe, is anxious to assist Miss Otter and will enter into any agreement which is equitable to both sides, but we do not want to agree with you that any definite scheme has been put forward whereby Lord Russell can securely purchase for a considerable sum of cash down the reversionary interest in the war stock included in the settlement."

Enclosed with document .133398.

Enclosed is document .133402.

Re Lord Russell [and] the executrix of the late Lord Russell.

Davies quotes BR's letter of 27 June 1931, document .133396, in regards to helping Miss Otter: "I am prepared to lend Miss Otter £3,500 on any security that is in your opinion adequate, provided that she either pays me interest or an adequately increased lump sum after Mollie's death...."

Enclosed with document .133401.

Re House of Lords.

Davies is going to the House of Lords office to try to come to an agreement on the form of declaration. The enclosed document, .133404, is the declaration form Davies settled with the House of Lords. Agatha Russell is to declare that Elizabeth did not give birth as a result of her marriage to Frank Russell.

[The declaration is an important source of ancestral facts, including Mabel Edith's death date.]

Re Telegraph House.

BR responds to Davies' various letters sent 29 June 1931. "I am on quite good terms with her [Elizabeth], and the only thing I did not like asking her was whether she was over 58." There is no point "in troubling my poor Aunt Agatha".

Re the furniture removed by Miss Otter.

Re Aunt Agatha, who is apparently blind.

Even if Aunt Agatha were dead, "there must be some method of establishing my claim" to the earldom.

Enclosed is document .133412.

Re the furniture removed by Miss Otter.

Enclosed with document .133411.

Re the estate arrangement with Miss Otter.

Re Frank Russell and BR.

Enclosed with document .133413.

Re Earl Russell.

Enclosed with document .133413.

Also enclosed is document .133416, which is a proposed financial agreement between Earl Russell and Miss Otter.

Re Mollie Countess Russell's trust. Withers agrees the furniture in question should be sold.

Enclosed with document .133417.

Re Miss Otter.

Enclosed document, .133420, is the returned (and altered in red ink), "proposed arrangement between Earl Russell and Miss Otter", sent by Vandercom Stanton & Co.

Also enclosed is a copy of the draft Johnston refers to in his letter (record 115325).

Aunt Agatha continues to be involved in the declaration.

Regarding the draft of declaration.

Enclosed with document .133422.

Also enclosed is document .133423, which is a copy of the draft declaration Johnston refers to in his letter.

Re Earl Russell and the executrix of the late Earl Russell.

Davies cites a letter just received from BR, who wishes to be protected in the event that he himself becomes poor. £400 a year for Telegraph House is "a fancy price to which he agreed out of consideration for his brother."

Re the Telegraph House lease, the cottage, and financial aid to Miss Otter.

Re Miss Otter.

Re Earl Russell and Miss Otter.

Enclosed with document .133426.

Re lease of the cottage—Telegraph House.

Davies encloses a draft of the lease (not present) sent to him by Withers.

Re Miss Otter and Countess Russell's (Mollie's) settlement.

Re Earl Russell, Countess Mollie's settlement.

Enclosed with document .133429.

Re the loan to Miss Otter and, importantly, BR's final detailed conditions for the loan. BR asked for a copy of his letter.

Enclosed with document .133429.

Re Telegraph House and lands.

Re Telegraph House and lands adjoining, Schedule A, assessment. Enclosed with document .133432.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's trust. Lord Russell and Miss Otter. It is time to prepare a formal agreement between BR and Miss Otter.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's trust.

Buckland worked for Vandercom Stanton & Co.

Re Mollie Countess Russell's trust. Lord Russell and Miss Otter. Re the discrepancy over the war stock valued at £4,365.4.0.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's trust. Lord Russell and Miss Otter. The schedules of the deed of 2 November 1929 are referred to.

Re Telegraph House. Lease of cottage. Re keeping the grass mown.

Re Telegraph House cottage.

Enclosed with document .133434, record 115341.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's trust. Arrangement with Miss Otter. The war loan could be sold by Withers to provide an annuity for Mollie.

She agrees to BR's suggestions. Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan dined with her and she gave him BR's message and one of BR's books from Frank Russell's library.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's settlement. Earl Russell and Miss Otter. Death duties.

Coward, Chance & Co. are still in communication re the draft agreement with Vandercom, Stanton & Co.

Enclosed documents are .133435g, .133435h, .133435i and .133435j.

Document .133435g is a statement of financial aid and return, involving Telegraph House, the war loan, Frank Russell's estate and Mollie, Countess Russell.

Document .133435h is a draft agreement with changes typed in red. Document .133435i is a draft agreement with changes handwritten in red.

Document .133435j is a an early draft of the agreement. It describes attached schedules (not present), namely documents dated 1914, 1925 and 1929. The war loan is described as 1929-47 at 5%.

Re lease of Telegraph House cottage.

Withers has sent a note for their costs, totalling £11.5.0.

Davies encloses a draft of agreement (not present) with alterations, shown in red ink, made by Messers. Vandercom. Possibly this is document .133435i.

Re Telegraph House.

Davies has received BR's cheque for a quarter year's rent of £100 at Telegraph House.

Re the affidavit that Lady Agatha "... should make in order to lead to the issue of a writ of summons to you to the House of Lords." Davies now has all of the documents required and wonders about reaching Lady Agatha.

BR confirms Aunt Agatha's address at Hindhead. "... point out to her that in these stirring times I wish to play my part in the affairs of the nation and cannot do so without her help."

"... Mr. Buckland came to see me to-day and it appears that our calculation of the death duties was about right. He has calculated that they will amount to about £2,400, but he is making some enquiries at Somerset House to confirm this."

Mollie is about 75.

"Your letter of October 5th puts me in a certain difficulty. I am not all sure whether it is possible for me to raise an additional £1,000 now."

BR's upcoming lecture tour will yield only about £1,200. He may have to sell investments at a loss to acquire Miss Otter's reversionary interest in Telegraph House.

See document .133435aa, record 115366, for the draft telegram written on this letter.

Davies has written to Glyn Mills asking for a list of BR's investments with current market prices.

See document .133435ra, record 115367, for the draft telegram written on this letter.

Re Mollie, Countess Russell's settlement trust. Lord Russell and Miss Otter.

"As requested we now write to put into more definite shape the proposals we placed before you on Monday."

Itemized calculations show exactly the working of the reversionary interest that BR is acquiring in Mollie's settlement. Miss Otter would transfer to BR her reversionary interest immediately.

"Buckland telephoned to me this afternoon to tell me he had seen Withers, who said he would be willing to agree to anything reasonable."

The draft Davies sent to BR has reached BR. BR would prefer not to pay the final £2,000 to Miss Otter until mid-January 1932.

This is a typed copy of a letter that has two other versions: the original, document .200005, record 19042; and a literary version, document .052353, record 99802.

This copy was originally numbered "7"; it has been crossed out and replaced with "8" in pencil.

It is not dated. The date is taken from the literary version rather than the original. For more details see the original.

This letter has not been matched to an original letter, unlike all other letters in this "C" grouping.

This letter was originally numbered "8"; that is crossed out and replaced with "9". It is described as a copy because all other letters in the file are copies.

In the letter BR writes: "I have read 'Black 'Ell" and think it splendid—". There is an exchange between Russell and Colette in early October 1916 where Miles Malleson's plays are mentioned. He forgot to get them from her before he left for Abinger Common for the weekend.

The date has been assigned based on its sequence in the numbering of this "C" group of letters. However, the sequence numbering is sometimes out of date order. Thus the day of the month is tentative.

This is a typed copy of document .200015, record 19050.

This copy was originally numbered "9"; it has been crossed out and replaced with "10" in pencil.

This is a typed copy of document .200017, record 19052.

This copy was originally numbered "10"; it has been crossed out and replaced with "11" in pencil.

This is a typed copy of document .200018, record 19053.

This copy was originally numbered "11"; it has been crossed out and replaced with "12" in pencil.

This is a typed copy of document .200021, record 19056.

This copy was originally numbered "12"; it is crossed out and replaced with "13" in pencil.

The original letter has the address written on it by Colette; the typed copy uses "Abinger".

There is a notation on BR's letter (document .133435q) stating "Sent wire 7/10/31".
 

There is a notation on Davies' letter (document .133435r) stating "Sent wire 8/10/31".

Davies confirms receiving the approved draft from BR, and has also been in touch with Buckland, who confirmed Withers has approved the draft also.

Enclosed document is .133435w. The extracted document is a letter sent 15th June 1931.

"The present tenancy of Telegraph House expires in 1937. Of course, a great deal may happen between now and then, and, as trustee, it is impossible to bind myself or my successors, but, as far as I can see, there is no reason why I should not renew the lease when the time comes."

"I have received your letter about your new will, and am putting it in hand."

Re the Mollie Countess Russell settlement, Miss Otter and Lord Russell.

Enclosed (not present) is a draft deed of assignment, approved by Vandercom with alterations in red ink.

BR confirms receiving Davies' letter of October 12th.

"There was a clause in the agreement, binding me, in the event of Mollie being alive in 1937, to offer to renew my tenancy at £300 a year until Mollie's death, on condition that I should not be charged for dilapidations."

BR is leaving for America on Sunday. He requests a power of attorney for Dora to use.

Re Badley's mortgage with BR.

Davies encloses (not present) "... a copy of a letter from Vandercoms received this morning, together with the draft of the deed which I sent to you before and in which I have inserted in red ink the amendments and comments now made by Vandercoms on returning the draft with their letter."

"I received this morning the draft of agreement with Miss Otter and the draft of my will. The draft of agreement with Miss Otter is now satisfactory to me."

Lady Mary Murray, who is wealthy, may wish to purchase the portrait of her mother with BR's mother.

BR has executed the will, naming Francis Meynell as his second executor. BR will make a new will upon his return from America.

Davies encloses (not present) engrossment of assignment between BR and Miss Otter for BR's execution.

BR encloses (not present) the deed which has been signed and witnessed, along with a cheque for £950 for Miss Otter. BR mentions that he will be back from America on Christmas day, hoping to have earned £2,000 there.

Davies has placed BR's will into the Coward, Chance & Co. strong room. Davies has informed Buckland that BR approved the draft, and has heard that Miss Otter had executed one part of it.

"Bertie asked me to write to you for the stamp duty £35 which had to be paid upon it."

BR has left for America.

She can come in for a "further talk about the matter on which you last saw me."

Dora encloses a cheque for £35 for the stamp duty.

Re payment of Schedule A Income Tax on North Marden Down, including Telegraph House.

Re Dora's letter of the 17th November.

"... I have been looking through the files and have traced several letters referring to Schedule A. Income Tax, which I now enclose [not present] and which I shall be glad to receive back at your convenience."

Davies has looked into the income tax matter to "... find that previously to January last Schedule A. Income Tax paid by Bertie on the North Marden Down and Telegraph House was deducted from the rent paid to Withers. The tax due in January was not deducted."

Davies thanks Dora for her cheque of £64.15.1 "... in settlement of our charges."

"I have now gone over the correspondence which Mrs. Harrington sent on to you, together with our account books, and I am afraid I am not yet quite clear about the Schedule A. Tax."

Enclosed document is .133435pp, which is a receipt for £7.8.6 paid last January.

Dora has received a demand note for the Down land tax, payable January 1st, 1932 and inquires why it is double the amount from last year.

Note on letter stating, "It is not according to her information to us, a tax paid in 2 installments."

"I write to record the receipt of your letter of the 25th November enclosing $3,000."

Re Dora's letters of the 25th November and 4th December on income tax and insurance.

There is a note on the letter stating, "We expect Bertie Dec. 27 when I will refer various matters to him, but I should think he would consent in the above as to insurance."

Re Telegraph House cottage and insurance.

A demand note from Withers was enclosed (not present).

The Schedule A. Tax, payable in January 1932, will be deducted from March's quarter rent.

Re new insurance of furniture, etc.

There is a notation on the letter stating, "Cheque sent Dec. 28".

The letter thanks Dora for enclosing cheque of yesterday's date, for £4.12.3.

Re Telegraph House and the December quarter's rent.

"I learn to-day that from Feakins that he has sent you a cheque for $3840.44. With luck this should bring in slightly more than the balance due to Miss Otter."

BR confirms that Davies should do as he suggests in his letter to Dora, regarding the Telegraph House cottage's insurance.

BR also inquires when he is to take his seat in the House of Lords.

Davies confirms that he will take the necessary steps for the insurance of the Telegraph House cottage.

Re BR's seat in the House of Lords, "As far as I can gather the only other steps to be taken are to produce, at the appropriate time, the late Earl's letters patent and the certificate by the clerk to the Parliaments that he took his seat.... When these further steps have been taken, you will be in a position to request the Lord Chancellor to summon you to take your seat."

Aunt Agatha made her declaration.

BR does not know where his brother's letters patent are. "Perhaps Miss Otter can find them, but if not, I suppose it will be necessary to ask Withers."

"There is, of course, no violent hurry, as the law thinks that the period of pregnancy is twelve months."

BR has received word that Davies still has not received Feakins' draft for $3840.44, and has asked Davies to cable Feakins.

Davies received Dora's letter of the 6th instant, and encloses a fresh engrossment of her will (not present).

There is a notation on the letter stating, "11/1/32 will sent".