III.
_August 19th._
During this season of splendid weather you may be sure that we in
Totland Bay have not been idle. We swim, men, women and children, and we
perform great feats of diving from the moored rafts which the
authorities have kindly provided for that purpose. And we toil off on
the usual picnic parties and inhale great draughts of health as we lie
on our backs on the heather-clad slopes of the hill. But even while we
pursue these simple pleasures our thoughts are with the great warships
in their ceaseless vigil in the North Sea or with the gallant fellows
who slipped away under cover of the night and are now taking their place
in the fighting line with our French and Belgian friends. England, too,
it seems, can perform a great operation of war on sea and land, and can
do it with a swiftness, a precision and a silence that no other nation
could surpass. So we hold our heads high and are proud to reckon
ourselves the fellow-countrymen of JELLICOE and KITCHENER. We have begun
well. May we have strength and resolution to endure without faltering to
the end.
I am glad to say that the sewing brigade, which I mentioned in my last,
shows an ever-increasing activity. All good female Islanders are busy
about the manufacture of pyjamas for the soldiery. One of the marks of
patriotism amongst our ladies is the possession of a pair of pyjama
legs. No picnic party is complete without them. When the men light their
cigarettes the women bring out their pyjamas and add stitch upon stitch.
Pyjama legs are awkward things in a breeze, being apt to flap about, but
they are resolutely tucked round arms or otherwise restrained, and the
needle continues its deft work in spite of all difficulties. Pyjama
jackets, too, are of course made in the proper number, but they are not
so dramatic in their movements as the legs, and I have not noticed them
so much.
I revert once more to KITCHENER'S triumphant feat in transporting our
army to France. We are not very far from Southampton, whence some of the
troops must have sailed, but beyond the merest vague rumours we heard
nothing. One lady, a fortnight ago, had word from some one that a
Belgian _padre_ had seen trucks full of British soldiers in Belgium. A
gentleman had heard from a school friend of his daughter that
motor-'buses of the General Omnibus Company had been seen in Brussels in
all their bravery of scarlet, apparently bound (if their painted
announcements might be trusted) for Cricklewood _viâ_ Brussels with a
full complement of soldiery and stores. Another lady knew, she said,
that her nephew, an officer, had already sailed for an unknown
destination. These were the reports, and they left us all guessing.
I am still in trouble about my tame alien, the children's maid, Maria
Hasewitz. Her permit, obtained at Newport with some labour, authorises
her to reside at Totland, but not to move more than five miles from the
limits of that place. Having decided to leave Totland with family and
household on Monday I have suddenly been brought up against the stone
wall of Maria's alienship. It was obviously necessary to secure
permission for this forlorn German girl to travel home with us. The idea
of dropping Maria into the sea five miles from here could not be
entertained, in spite of the fact that she is technically an enemy. So I
applied, stating the facts, to the Chief Constable, who, with a
promptitude and a courtesy which I desire to acknowledge, sent a
sergeant to interview me. Struggling against that sense of general and
undefined guilt which the propinquity of a police officer always
inspires and striving to assume an air of frank and confident honesty, I
approached the sergeant and learnt from him that, this being a
prohibited area, the Chief Constable could not give the required
permission to travel without the express authority of the HOME
SECRETARY, to whom he begged to refer me. I urged that it would be a
profound relief to the Chief Constable to get rid even of an alien so
harmless as Maria; but this plea the sergeant at once put aside. I have
therefore written to the HOME SECRETARY. If he refuses I wonder what
will happen to Maria.
P.S.--The Home Office has replied authorising Maria to embark at Ryde
and land at Portsmouth. This is like telling a Londoner to embark at
Hull and land at Bristol on his way to Windsor. I have telegraphed.
_Later._--The Home Office permits Maria to embark at Totland and land at
Lymington. All is at last well.