I am having a quiet Sunday in London. George is staying with the Prime
Minister. I dined last night with the Housmans. Mrs Park was there,
Randall and Miss Housman. Mrs Park is incredible: a magnificent figure,
hair dyed a rich bronze with flaming high lights, dressed in a flowing
robe of peach-coloured satin with a necklace of fire-opals and a large
diamond lyre on her shoulder; the semi-royal manner of an ex-Prima
Donna, at the same time making it quite clear that she no longer mixed
with the artistic world--she had soared to the top of it and out of it.
She said: "Years ago when I was at Balmoral the dear Queen told me she
reminded me of Grisi." I said: "I suppose you mean you reminded her of
Grisi," and she drew herself up stiffly and said she meant what she
said. She told me that Madame Cosima had implored her to sing at
Bayreuth but of course she couldn't think of doing such a thing. Poor
Theodore (her late husband) hated Wagner. After dinner she sang, Miss
Housman accompanied her, a song out of _Cavalleria._ They had a fierce
argument about the time. Mrs Park said she was playing too fast, which
she was, although I don't believe Mrs Park knew this. Miss Sarah stuck
to her guns and played, if anything, faster. Mrs Park then refused to
sing. Housman asked his wife to accompany her, which Mrs Housman most
good-naturedly said she would be delighted to do. This was more than
Miss Housman could bear--she said Mrs Housman was playing too slow and
Mrs Park agreed. Miss Housman tore Mrs Housman from the piano and sat
there herself, and the song was sung to the end. All seemed to be
peaceable but Miss Housman unfortunately couldn't refrain from saying
that Mascagni's music was rubbish, upon which Mrs Park burst into a
furious passion. Who was Miss Housman to judge? she screamed. Miss
Housman said she had studied music for five years under the best
musicians in the world at Leipzig. Mrs Park said she had sung to Patti,
who had said she was the only English artist worthy of the name of
"artist." Miss Housman, in a sardonic voice, said that Patti was so
kind. Mrs Park said that the arrogance of amateurs knew no bounds. She
had sung before the most critical public in two continents. Miss Housman
said she did not consider the Americans a critical public. Mrs Park then
said she would never sing again in the Housmans' house as long as she
lived, not if everyone went down on their knees to her. Housman became
greatly agitated and fussed about the room, saying: "Never mind, never
mind; we are all very tired to-night, it's the east wind." Mrs Park
said she always sang her best in an east wind. I caught Mrs Housman's
eye and we were seized with a fit of uncontrollable laughter. We laughed
till we shook. Randall caught it too. This made things much worse. Mrs
Park said she was being insulted and swept out of the room, Housman
running after her. He came back alone gibbering with agitation, and Miss
Housman then attacked him and said of course if Albert (rolling the "r"
with a rapid guttural) would invite such awful people, what could one
expect? Then "Bert" got really angry and we all sat in dead silence
while he and Miss Sarah abused each other like pickpockets. Then the
door opened and Mrs Park came back saying she had left her fan behind.
She took no notice of us but disappeared with Housman into the Oriental
lounge, and there we heard spirited skirmishes of talk going on in an
undertone. Miss Housman sat down defiantly at the piano and played, or
rather banged, the _Rapsodie Hongroise._ When this was over they both
came back and Housman suggested, with a nervous chuckle, that we should
all have some lemonade. We jumped at the idea and the evening ended
peaceably enough, but Mrs Park ignored Miss Housman, was icy towards Mrs
Housman, and made all her remarks to me and Randall. I then left the
house. Housman followed me nervously to the door and said that Mrs Park
had the artistic temperament and that I mustn't mind, and that it was
too bad of Sarah to provoke her.
Yrs.
G.
_P.S_.--I suppose you read about the Carrington-Smith case in the
newspapers. Mrs Housman and I laughed a good deal about it when "Bert"
wasn't listening, but I am very sorry for Eileen. Aren't you?
_From the Diary of Godfrey Mellor_
_Monday, October_ 18_th._
A. has been staying with the Prime Minister. He does not appear to have
enjoyed himself very much. He asked me if I had seen the Housmans
lately.
_Tuesday, October_ 19_th._
A. and I dined with Cunninghame. Miss Wray was there, Mrs Howard and
Lady Jarvis. A. said afterwards that Miss Wray was a charming girl--it
was a pity that she did not marry.
_Wednesday, October_ 20_th_.
I called on Mrs Housman late, but she was not at home. Housman came out
of the house as I was standing at the door. He asked me to dinner on
Sunday. I accepted.
_Thursday, October_ 21_st._
Dined at the Club.
_Friday, October_ 22_nd_.
Dined with Mrs Howard. A. was there, Cunninghame, Miss Wray, Miss
Macdonald, and others. Mr Howard is half-Irish and very boisterous. I
sat next to Miss Wray; she said Mrs Campion was the nicest woman she
knew. Uncle Arthur and Aunt Ruth have come back to London and are
starting their Thursday evenings. They have asked A. and myself to
dinner on Thursday week.
_Saturday, October_ 23_rd_.
A. has gone to the country to stay with a General; a military party.
_Sunday, October_ 24_th._
I had luncheon with Lady Jarvis. She told me she did not think Mrs
Housman would stay long in London, as the London winter was bad for her;
she said she thought she would most likely go to Florence.
I dined with the Housmans. A strange party. Mrs Park was the only
person there I had met before. There was a South African magnate and
his wife, a retired Indian official, and a Mr Perry, an Australian, and
his wife, who were apparently intimate friends of Mrs Park's, at least
she called him Tom. I sat next to Mrs Perry, who told me that Paris had
been a disappointment to her. She told me, also, that the women in
England were, according to Australian standards, dowdy. On the other
side of me was Lady Bowles, the wife of the Indian official. She told me
she was Mrs Park's greatest friend; she said she lived at Cannes and
only spent a few weeks in London every year; they were staying at the
Hyde Park Hotel. She found London dreadfully slow: she was accustomed,
she said, always to smoke between the courses at dinner, and not to do
so was a great deprivation. She also said she was a great gambler and
was used to gambling all night. "Of course I find this exhausting," she
said; "and I always tell Harold I shall take to cocaine some day."
Housman seemed rather embarrassed. Miss Housman was not there. After
dinner Lady Bowles suggested a game of Poker. They all played except Mrs
Housman and they were still playing when I left.
_Monday, October_ 25_th._
I had luncheon with Cunninghame at his Club. He said A. had come back
from the country in a very bad temper and had said that nothing would
induce him to pay a visit anywhere again.
_Tuesday, October_ 26_th._
Went to a concert at the Queen's Hall. Saw the Housmans in the distance,
and to my astonishment I met A. in the interval. He said he had been
dragged there by his sister. I met them again as we were going out. A.
asked me to dinner on Friday.
_Wednesday, October_ 27_th._
Had luncheon with A. He seems in high spirits. He told me that his
sister had come up from London for the winter--she had taken a house
in Pont Street. He said the Housmans and Cunninghame were dining on
Friday and it would be a Cornwall party.
_Thursday, October_ 28_th._
Dined with Aunt Ruth--a large political dinner; the F.O. largely
represented, as usual. A. was there and sat next to the wife of the
French military attache, and on the other side of Aunt Ruth. I am afraid
he found the dinner tedious, but after dinner he talked to Miss Wray: I
sat next to her at dinner. She asked me if I had known A. long. She said
he was so like his sister. Uncle Arthur has not yet grasped I am working
in a public office. He asked me how I was getting on in the city.
_Friday, October_ 29_th_.
Dined with A. at his flat. Mr and Mrs Housman, Lady Jarvis, Miss Wray,
Cunninghame and Miss Macdonald, Mrs Campion was coming but had been
obliged to go down to the country. Mrs Housman said she was very likely
going abroad for the winter.
_Saturday, October_ 30_th._
A. was engaged to go somewhere in the country but he has put off going.
He left a telegram at the office to his hostess but forgot to fill in
the address. Tuke brought it to me. It was to Mrs Legget, Miss Wray's
aunt. She is not in _Who's Who_, but I rang up Lady Jarvis on the
telephone and she knew.
_Sunday, October_ 31_st_.