| Description | Letter from Amelia Nyasa Laws, Stetteneck, St. Ulrich in Gröden, Tyrol, Austria, to her relatives, thanking for Weekly Scotsman; criticism of an article on the organ; explaining how it should be done; art has little place in popular life at home; Conan Doyle's daughter, trained in Germany, is unhappy in England; music is a hard taskmaster, and should be combined with something else as the practice is vulnerable to bad health; choirmasters in churches are underpaid; holidays essential for professional singers; her career is very constrained; Fraulein Albrecht should take up teaching rather than sing professionally, as she is not strong enough; real singing teachers are scarce; Frau Wedekind would be the ideal teacher for both a singer and a teacher; Miss Telford pleased at Amelia's success; Miss Telford has suffered from quinsy since going to Prestwick; the Campbells are to contribute to the organ fund; Herr Pfannstiehl wrote to say that Herr Jehnlick wanted a photograph of the church interior to help him make a plan; letter from Miss Gatliff giving details of Mrs. Evans' affairs; the household furniture has been sold for the benefit of the American hospital; Marie (the maid) has received a smaller legacy than expected; disappointed in Mrs. Evans; Mrs. Hoff has employed Alfred and his wife; Mr. Moore died a fortnight after Mrs. Evans; Miss Gatliff has to move house; Aunt Amy's landlady is staying in Millport, which they cannot find on their map; Irving has not enjoyed Pontresina; dispute over church noticeboard; Laing has been in Scotland seeing the committee about the Genoa mission, which is not to be sold straightaway; the Cannes season for the mission is to be divided into two three-month periods; Sutherland is having a hard time in Lausanne because of competition from an American Episcopal church, and now that he cannot take Cannes he wants to take a year's rest for the sake of his wife's health; Uncle supports him in this, much to the amusement of Aunt and Amelia; Harry Cowan, son of the Professor, writes from Old Aberdeen to say that his Swiss holiday has fallen through and his mother wants him to spend the time in St. Ulrich with them; Uncle is reluctant but agrees; his heel is hurting again; he does not want to consult Dr. Kniffler, as Drs. Brock and Bastianelli thought there was nothing wrong with it; Uncle's writing tires him and he is being massaged regularly; card from Irving about Mr. Robertson's arrival and immediate departure; Irving is a candidate for Cannes; he thinks Laing should be appointed to Naples; he has heard that Mr. Guppy, an older man, is to marry a young girl, probably Italian, to the probable distress of his family; Amelia's disgust at it. |