GSI
Calcutta 8 May1896
[3]
C258/55 Oldham to La Touche
My
dear La Touche
Griesbach
[4]
has gone on 18 months leave, handing over to me yesterday, and left your letter
of 10th April for me to answer. I
don't quite understand about the photos, G(riesbach) said he had heard nothing
before about them. Are they
private ones you are sending out on spec. or what? Just have been informed that as far as this department is
concerned there is no objection to the extension of leave you want. I signed the letter yesterday after
taking over. I don't think you
will see much difference in the Red Sea, though of course it will be cooler out
there. Your Lushui medal has been
received by the office and I have told the Registrar to send it on to you.
That is all the
business in your letter. I am glad
to hear you have enjoying yourself. Medlicott will be pleased to see you I fancy,
his pretence of liking a hermit's life is merely done to impress & he
really likes it if men will go to see him.
We
have two, or three, new men since you were here. Hayden is a splendid fellow and just what we want. Vredenburg
[5]
is a decent little chap, very polite and good natured, hard working and in his
way enthusiastic, but rather like Warth
[6]
in his helplessness. Grimes
[7]
,
the third, is a truly awful specimen.
I hope your
people are well, remember me kindly to them. You will find my mother
[8]
at Shrewsbury - Windsor House, near the church is the address - and she will be
very pleased to see you if you can find time to visit her.
With kind regards to Mrs La
Touche
Believe
me
Yours sincerely
R. D. Oldham
PS.
I don't know if you have been informed of your destination on return & you
would like to know. I find that
according to a disposition list of the survey for the next four years
sanctioned by government, you are posted to Burma
[9]
for the whole of that period.
Stokesey
29 May 1896 C258/62 to Nancy in
Kingston, Ireland
I
heard from Mr Medlicott yesterday that Mr Griesbach is coming home on furlough
and is probably in England at the present time, He says the furlough was gazetted from 6 May. Mr Oldham is to
officiate. I wonder how we will
get on with him as chief.
Stokesey
4 June 1896 C258/62 to Nancy in Kingston, Ireland
The
extension of leave is all right. Mr Oldham wrote like a good fellow as soon as he took over
charge from Mr Griesbach, and signed the offical granting the leave at
once. They can't make out why I
sent all those photos which is strange considering that Mr. G. asked me to let
him have some of them for the office. I wish he had put it on paper, but I think I have a demi-official in
which he says he would be glad to have them. Mr. O. seeks to be remembered to you. Otherwise there is not much news of
interest in his letter except about the new men, of whom one he says is a good
fellow, Hayden. Vredenberg - the
man I saw in London last year just before he went out, he says is very polite and entusiastic, but as bad as Warth for
helplessness. I suppose he means
in camp. I enclose Mr O's letter -you need not send it back but keep it safely.
Stokesey
11 June 1896 C258/62 to Nancy in
Kingston, Ireland
I
am going to write to Mr Oldham to ask if he knows where we have to go next cold
weather.
Stokesey
20 June 1996 C258/62 to Nancy in
Kingston, Ireland
We
have all been to a concert at Shrewsbury in which Mary was one of the
performers, Mary played her viola
in three pieces and is very much pleased with herself. After
it was over I went to call on Mr. Oldham's mother who is living at
Shrewsbury. She seemed very glad
to see me and is a dear old lady. Mr Oldham's conceit must be original sin I think, he could not have got
it from his mother at any rate.
Ootacamund 31 August 1896 C258/55.2
Geological Survey of India Oldham to La Touche
My Dear la Touche
I have been waiting for a long time to get the govt. sanction for your
disposition but it is not out yet. You will have heard from your brother that I had proposed that you
should go to Rajputana instead of Burma. I thought you would probably be wanting to bring your wife out, and
would like her to go into camp with you, so I said that as there would be only
one man in Burma, while there would be a party in central India and Rajputana,
it would be better to send one of the junior men - Grimes- to Burma, and that
you should go to take charge of the party being a Superintendent. If they had passed the order soon
enough I should have written to you to take your passage to Bombay later, but
no orders have been passed yet and I have your letter saying you have taken
your passage to Calcutta, so I fear it would be too late to change now even if
I get the sanction immediately.
I
wrote in July last and after many a month got a copy of some D.O.
correspondence from Buyers who wants some coal in the Mirah (?Mikir) hills
examined for the railway. I said
that it would be inconvenient to send a man unless they meant ultimately to
undertake the systematic survey of Assam with a strong party and a
well-considered scheme of operations, in which case Smith might go in advance
to form one of the party ultimately. I do not know if you would still care to go there but after the grounds
I gave for proposing your transfer to Rajputana I could not propose you to go
there until a party was organized. Since then, Datta has taken furlough & your party ceases to exist
for this year, so I could now let you go there if you like, & Smith to Baluchistan which he
would prefer.
It
is quite possible that no one may go to Assam at all as I said that it would be
impossible to do the work without special arrangments, which I estimated would
cost about 4000Rp for the season & they may stick at that, but if you care
to go I could arrange it and that it would be for some years, unless G
[10]
chooses to upset everything when he returns, which, after his recent
experiences with Govt., I doubt he will attempt to do. Let me know
as soon as possible what your views are & I will do the best to meet
them: either Rajputana or Assam it
will be; unless Govt. refuse altogether to sanction any changes from the Burma disposition, which is
possible but not, I fancy, probable.
I
saw Smith and Mrs Smith at Bangalore both looking well, but Mrs Smith still a
little red about the eyes after her malaria and with marks of boils still on
her face. Foote was there with his
family. Middlemiss is up here with
me, he has taken off his moustache. I think it improves his appearance. Mrs M. is a pleasant little lady but empty-headed and only
thinks or talks of hunting: the children are jolly, sturdy little things,
except the eldest who is a regular hunchback, poor little thing
[11]
. Ooty
[12]
is a charming spot, if it was only more central I would do all I could to get
headquarters transferred there instead of that hole in Calcutta. It is like Shillong but on a much
larger scale and with a proper climate.
I hope this will catch the mail but the lines have a habit of breaking
at this time of the year so it is uncertain.
Yours
sincerely
R.D. Oldham
Ootacamund 3 Sept 1896 Mss
Eur C258/55.3. Geological Survey of India
My dear laTouche
I have just heard
from India that you do not go to Burma this season, so if not too late you had
better book your passage to Bombay as Ajmere will be your headquarters for
starting camp: that is if you do
not want to go to Assam, in which case Calcutta would be more convenient. Let me know about this )i.e. Assam) by
return as I will have to arrange about Smith.
If you still stick to
Rajputana you will need large tents. I have a 12 ft Swiss cottage which ought to do you well, but you will
want a good man to pitch it or they will break the ridge pole, also a 10ft
of the same pattern which Smith will not but if you prefer a single poled
hill tent I will get one for you. You will also want some small tents. Let me know what you prefer if possible I will have them ready
for you, or the nearest we can do.
I forgot to tell you that
Holland is engaged to be married to a Miss Chapman. I hear she is very nice, she has a brother in the civil
service now at Bhamo and a sister somewhere up country. They are to be married about Christmas.
Yours truly
R.D.Oldham
Calcutta 1 Oct 1896 Mss Eur C258/55.4. Geological Survey of India
My dear La Touche
As I did not hear
from you last mail I suppose the letter I wrote to tell you that govt. has
sanctioned my proposal that you should go to Rajputana not Burma did not reach you before starting. They have since wanted a man to go to
Assam and for reasons too long to write now I was not able to propose you, but
Smith. These reasons no longer
exist so if you would like to go to Assam I daresay I could arrange the
change, You would have to survey
the west side of the Dhausiri valley (Namber forest) so I don't suppose you
will care about it.
As regards Rajputana, you
would survey Jodhpore territory. I
have put out the maps which have not been done by Hacket for you, also some
maps of mine with little patches of colour, the result of a traverse of
mine; a set of printed papers and
my progress report. These
constituted all of the previous papers as regards geology.
For tents, you asked for a
14 ft swiss cottage. I don't think
we can run to that and I don't know what you would do with such a white
elephant. There is a 12 ft swiss
cottage in good order which I had in Rewah. It was bought in 1894 and is a very good tent, my one
objection was that it was too big, but that is not such a drawback in the
desert as in Rewah. You are also
entitled to a sleeping tent, field offices Cabul or miniature swiss cottage as
you like, two [?jenants pals] and a necessary tent or extra pal as you choose. These I understand you have, but if not
not you can take them from store, or have new ones ordered. Webb has the necessary instructions.
You should write to the
Resident, Western Rajputana States, in the first instance - you will start working in Jodhpur and I
would recommend your collecting your camp at Ajmere. When I was there it was the only practical place to do so,
though perhaps you might now in Jodhpur itself. You will find it a delightful country up to the middle of
March, when it begins to get hot, and the natives are amoung the best in
India. I used to ride camels
exclusively as there is a lot of heavy sand which is not good for horses. I
tried both hiring and buying. There is not much difference in the matter of cost when you include the
loss of resale but I think one gets a better animal by buying, though there is
less risk in hiring.
I will not be in Calcutta when
you arrive and you will find the office shut for the Poojahs, but I shall leave
orders that your letters are to be left out where you can get them when you
call.
If you want to go to
Assam let me know sharp, I shall
be in Simla that I may put the thing through if possible. If not you had better
get away from Calcutta as soon as possible. I want to see you before you start into camp and, as I shall
be in Indore about the 22nd, will arrange to meet you at Ajmere either before
or after I go there. Telegraph me
your movements that I may know.
There is a lot of
survey news, which I will tell you when we meet. With kind regards to Mrs La Touche,
Yours sincerely
R. D. Oldham
Grand
Hotel 13 Oct 1896 Mss Eur C258/93
to
Aunt mary from nancy, Arrived
Calcutta safely but difficult getting off the boat because of the state of the
tide. Mr Oldham (Director) had
sent men to help about the baggage. He himself is away as these are the Puja
days.There is a letter from Mr Oldham we are to go to Rajputana & may get
off by the end of the week
Simla 14 Oct 1896 Mss Eur C258/55.5. Oldham to La Touche
My Dear La Touche
I was just on the point of writing to you to catch you on
arrival when I got your telegram this morning to say that you had arrived.
I have taken a tonga from here on the 17th intending
to go to Indore first and then back to Ajmere to see you , but have had a
telegram from Indore to say that the man won't be there so I shall stop in
Ajmere if you are there by the 19th.
You will find an old bearer of
yours in my service, but I only took him on till my own man got well, and don't
want him any longer. I told him if
you wanted him he was to hand over charge to a chaprassie of mine. If you don't want him and are wanting a chaprassie I can let you have my man, Bhola by name,
who is a capital hand at pitching tents and loading. He understands the tent I have for you thoroughly, and I
have no work for him at present. I
paid him 8/., but in Maruur he should get an extra rupee. I fancy you will have to pay all your
men extra this year, or arrange to feed them, as there is a famine in the land.
As soon as I
get a reply to your telegram I sent to Indore yesterday I will wire you my
movements.
Hoping you had a good
journey and with regards to Mrs La Touche.
Believe me
Yours sincerely
R.D.Oldham
Delhi 18 October 1896 Mss Eur C258/55.6. Oldham to La Touche
My dear LaTouche
I got your note on
Friday evening and as I had heard from Indore that they would make my original
date suit, there was no need to telegraph to you. I shall arrive at Indore on the 20th and shall probably be
four or five days there, so you should be in Ajmere by the time I am able to
get there.
You will I presume be
leaving Calcutta on Monday or Tuesday night, and if this does not catch you
before you start , should reach you in Ajmere the day after you arrive. It ought to not take you more than 10
days at the outside to collect camp. I did mine in 7 and I had not a stick when I landed.
Yours truly, R.D. Oldham
9 Nov 1896 Mss Eur C258/55.7 Geol Survey of India (no town given, probably Calcutta)
My dear La Touche
I got your letters of
6th this morning. The allowing of our letters to be directed here and the
custom we have of taking them in and forwarding them is quite informal and done
for the convenience of the men concerned, so any irregularity could not be
taken up officially. I have,
however, inquired about your letter ; no one knows anything about it, and the
letter could never have been delivered here, being VPP and having no postmark
or reporting. What must have
happened is that the postman came
around on the 24th and found no one here, that the PostOffice put the letter
aside, and sent it round later on when he was informed probably by one of the
servants that you had gone to Ajmere. I do not recognise the handwriting of the
redirection as that of any of the men in the office. I return the envelope for you to make enquiries of the post
office why they sent no intimation; if one had been delivered you would have got it.
I can't quite understand
about the maps. I believe I put
all the unsurveyed sheets there
were. The best thing will be for
you to let me have a list of the maps with you, giving the standard sheet
numbers, and in case they may not be on the maps, I send you a copy of the
Index map, which please return. I
have found a lot of Hacket's old maps and will send you shortly those which lie
along the edge of you working area. They will serve as a guide. I will also send you a copy of the Atlas sheet you ask for.
Yours sincerely,
R. D. Oldham
Calcutta 16 Nov 1896 GSI C258/55.8. Oldham to La Touche
My dear LaTouche
I got your letter of
13th this morning with enclosures As you have put all the maps on one list, with those geologically
coloured, which I put up for information, and the untouched sheets which were
to be your working maps, the matter is still a bit obscure. So far as my recollection goes you have
only one copy each of the ½ inch sheets Nos. 63, 65, 104 , which were
put up as you might want to refer to them when reading the M.S. report. Sheets 106, 108 had either no rocks on
them or no colors on them so were not put up, as I thought the uncolored sheets
supplied would have more than enough for the seasons work. I will have them sent if you particularly
wish, but the Atlas sheets will serve any purpose of references you require,
and if, after finishing all the unworked sheets I have sent you still have
time, they can go to you.
I particularly do not
want any tearing over the country, or any unsurveyed patches on the
sheets. We know the general
sequence fairly well and what is now required is a steady and sytematic survey
and I would prefer that the southern half of the unsurveyed country should be
done first. As the season is so far advanced you had better begin from near
Jhodpur and work west and south from it over the unsurveyed sheets, leaving the
country to the north of lat 26°15' for future seasons.
Yours sincerely,
R. D. Oldham
Calcutta 2
March 1897 Mss Eur C258/55.9. GSI
My dear La Touche,
You
married men are wonderful; either
you get ill or your wife does, or there is a chance of one or other &
anyway, it means going in to the nearest station and knocking off work for a
while. I dont know any other
department where men can do that sort of thing, but then we are better off than others in many ways, and
what applies to them does not to us. Don't take this as a [ ?dig], for you are all right, it is only a passing thought by the
way, and besides if I can catch you in Jodhpur I have a treat for you. In Dec. last the P.A.
[13]
at Bikaner & Colonel Vincent sent a couple of pieces of a lignite with
specks of resin in it, I asked him
for more, and the locality; he sent 7 lb which assay at 8% ash only, and he
says there is 5 ft 9 inches of it in the bottom of a well 27 ft deep. If there is this thickness in a regular
seam of stuff like what he sent, it would be worth working, as the locality is
only 12 miles from Bikaner. I want
you to go & look at the place, either now, if I can catch you with a
telegram I have sent, or later on. You need not take tents as I will ask the P.A. to let you have some if
necessary, but there is not much surveying to be done there, as there are probably
no rocks at the surface, but you can have a look at the place, see what the
rocks are and whether there seems to be a regular seam of decent stuff, or if
what came to us was picked specimens. You will report to us, not to the P.A. If I get a telegram from you I will send further particulars
& maps to Bikaner, if not I shall wait to hear from you and will send them
to wherever you are.
I have a
letter from one Thomas Walker
[14]
informing me that he has been appointed to the Survey. We have heard nothing of him, but from
his handwriting he does not seen to be the sort of man I hoped to get by
advertising, but then, if the advertisement is deliberately made as attractive
as possible, what can one expect.
Smith
[15]
is still in Assam, he wanted to try and make a T.A. through May and June to go
home on, but he has not been doing so well, and has sent in such preposterous
bills that I would feel not inclined to go out of my way to do anything of that
sort, even if it were possible.
Hayden
[16]
,
I am glad to say, has got the lectureship in geology at the college
[17]
,
I feared that was going to be dropped for want of babus.
From you having sent
specimens down here I suppose you will be coming down after them, but if you
would rather go up to Mussourie till the rains break, do so. It is a question of whether you prefer
May or August in Calcutta, but I don't see the necessity or advisability of
being down here the whole recess, though I do think men ought to come to head
quarters for two or three months each year.
My kind regards
to your wife
Yours
sincerely
R. D. Oldham
PS Has "slating" been the only
interest in our publications of late?
Camp
Kuip 7 March 1897 Mss Eur C258/62 La Touche to Nancy
I had a letter from Mr. Oldham today explaining his telegram. It
does not amount to much after all. He had heard from Bikaner about the discovery of coal there and some
specimens sent down to Calcutta have turned out well , so he wanted me to go up
and investigate it. I am glad I
did not get his telegram at Jodhpur as I don't want to be rushing about on
another job now, and that coal can wait very well until I have done my work
here. He has a friendly jibe at me
about my going into Jodhpur to see you off, but he evidently thought that I
intended to spend several days there. He suggests himself that I should go to Mussourie at the end of the
rains, or before whichever I prefer, as he does not see the necessity of being
down in Calcutta for the whole recess. Of
course it is a great temptation to take him at his word & go up from camp,
but for many reasons my dear, I think it advisable to wait. I really want to work on the
collections I have made and that can only be done in Calcutta
Calcutta 16 March 1897 Mss Eur C258/55.10. GSI Oldham to La Touche
My dear LaTouche,
I have your letter of 7th received on the 11th. You were quite right. I purposely worded the telegram so as
to prevent waste of time in mere marching backwards and forwards. I have not much expectation of that
Bikaner stuff as coal but I am curious to know what it is. It is not a bit like any Gondwana coal
I have ever seen, whether Upper or Lower; it looks more like Tertiary & there is a Nummulitic outlier in
Bikaner. I don't fancy you can do
more than look at it and see this. However, you will be able to decide that when you go there.
The new man is to be
out in May, his name is Walker, a Canadian, a PhD of Leipzig, 28 years old and
a man of strong religious conviction and good moral character. I wonder how he will turn out.
GSI Calcutta 23 March 1897 Mss EurC258/55.11.
My Dear La
Touche,
I sent off the maps
of Bikaner yesterday. The
Jaisalmer lignite is no good, merely a piece of fossil wood in the Jurassic
shales. Such finds are made
periodically, we have had one or two sent here before now.
You had better have your
tents and things somewhere handy for next year. I don't believe in shifting about, and unless something very unforseen turns up you will
continue this year's work next year.
I have found that Walker
has written some papers that read very well. One in the last Q. J.
[18]
is praised by Teall, but Bonney says his conclusions are not justified. It seems to me a good bit of work. Griesbach writes from Cape Town, he was
just starting on his way home so should be in London now.
I don't propose going away from
here unless I go up to Shillong for a short time to see what can be done about
Assam. India has no money; perhaps Assam may have.
Yours sincerely
R.D. Oldham
Calcutta
24 April 1897 Mss Eur C258/62
La
Touche arrives from Agra ahead of his portmanteau and has to buy a shirt since
his own is grubby with travel. He is placed in the west side of the Grand Hotel
and hopes to move to a larger, cooler room eventually."After making myself fit to be seen I went to the
museum and found Mr. Hayden there. Today is a holiday so no one else was there. Mr. Oldham, however is living close
by with Dr Anderson, the Supt. of the Museum so I went over and saw him. He had sent a note to the train to meet
me asking me to go live with them for a few days till I found quarters, but I
could not go there without a [?coy] to my back, could I, and besides I would
rather be independent. He was very
friendly, and came across and showed me over the new building, for since
we were here in Oct. the Geol. Survey office and library has been moved to a
new building at the back of the old one. It is certainly a change for the better, for we have much more room. The collections, however, remain in the
old building. Neither Mr. Holland
nor Middlemiss was coming up here this season, for which I am rather sorry, and
Mr. Smith is to stay for the present in Shillong. Mr. Hayden seems to be a very nice fellow and I think we
shall get on well together. He is
in charge of the laboratory now. We are going out tomorrow morning to Tollyganj a few miles off to have a
game of golf. Mr. Oldham has started a sailing boat on the river. He has asked me to dine with him
tomorrow evening. I hope my things
will turn up in time.
Calcutta
28 April 1897 C258/62
---I have been at the museum all day and have just come
home to tea. Mr. O. approved of my
report on the Bikaner coal and will publish it in the Records, It is sleepy work reading there especially
after Tiffin, but I don't like to go entirely without food from 9 to 5:30. I
tried it one year down here and it was not a success, Mr. Hayden is trying it now. I had a long letter from Mr. Smith at Shillong this morning,
asking me some conundrum anout coal in Assam, and about fishing. They have been at Shillong about a
week. I hear that Mrs. Smith had a
very bad time of it with leeches in the jungles. I don't think she cares much for camping. I must send this to post. Mr. O. has put
me up for the golf Club so I hope to get some exercise if I am elected, at present I have nothing to do but
walk, and that is not very pleasant without an object.
Calcutta
29 April 1897 C258/62
My
room is on the 4th story and Mr. O's on the 3 rd
I
am dining with Mr. O again tonight.
Calcutta
30 April 1897 C258/62
The
dinner last night at O's was pleasant enough, A Dr. Prani was there (a botanist
who knew Hooker and was interested in Assam) ….. I like Dr. Anderson, the Supt
of the Museum very well. He seems
to be a very nice fellow and talks well. Mr. O is looking I think much better
than he was when we here in October and is very friendly
Calcutta
3 May 1897 C258/62
---I
have asked Mr. Hayden to come and dine with tomorrow night. Mr. Vredenberg is expected from
camp this week. He is a very
musical little man I believe.
Calcutta
4 May C258/62
Mr.
Vredenberg turned up today looking very sun burnt. He is to work in the same room with me at the museum so I
shall see a good deal of him. He
is a queer little man I fancy.
Calcutta
5 May 1897 C258/62
I
have been feeling rather tired all day . Perhaps though it was because I did
not get to bed till nearly 12 last night. Mr. Hayden stayed till after 11 so I suppose he enjoyed himself. He is a very nice fellow indeed and not
at all bumptious. By the way I
hear that Mr. Holland is much improved in his manners and no doubt his wife
will have a civilising effect on him. I hear she is very nice.
Calcutta
6 May 1897 C258/62 elected to the Golf club
Calcutta
7 May C258/62
Mr. Oldham came up to talk about some tables and so I have not been able to write to you.
Calcutta
8 May 1897 C258/62
This
morning Mr. Walker, the new acquisition of the survey turned up. He has come from Canada via New York
and Marseilles. He looks rather a
rough specimen but that is partly on account of his clothes. He landed with only warm clothes and
had to go to the bazaar & get himself fitted out with ready made things. He looks very like Mr. Early, but he is
said to have done some very good work in geology.
Calcutta
13 May 1897 C258/62
Now
I am going to have tea and then to tennis at Mr.
Oldham's. I wonder how I shall get
on it is so long since I played. ……. I must be off now to Mr. O's
Calcutta 14
May 1897 C258/62
I got on rather better than I expected at Mr. O's yesterday
evening but I don't like having to borrow a racket. There were three ladies there neither of whom I had
met before, One was Mrs. Bomford,
wife of the principal of the Medical College, another a Mrs. Havelock, and a
Miss Yeates, a rather pretty girl, but I should think not very good
style. Her brother in law escorted
her, a down looking individual, a jute or cotton broker I believe. It was hot playing but each of us only
played about two sets---
Calcutta 15 May 1897
C258/62
Mr. Bose one of our natives returned from Furlough today. He is looking much older than when I
last saw him. He has been at
Darjeeling most of the time with his wife and family.
Calcutta 16 May 1897
C258/62
Just back from playing golf with Mr. Hayden. I won.
Calcutta 17 May 1897
C258/62
I weighed myself yesterday 11.1 which is only 4 lbs less or so
than I ought to be.
Calcutta18 May 1897
C258/62
--- thanks for the racket. Our new man Dr. Walker is down with fever. -- went to sit with him, he has few friends, --- lend him some
books.
Calcutta 19 May 1897
C258/62
Dined with Hayden last night, Walker much better today
Calcutta 20 May 1897
C258/62
Walker much better. He is a quiet unassuming young fellow, but I am afraid he will have a
dull time of it here. He is hardly
the kind of a man one would care to associate with and he plays no games whatsoever. Mr. O calls
him a YMCA style of young man. Another man Mr. Grimes turned up yesterday from Burma, so we are
getting pretty full up at the office. I have seen very little of him, but he does not seem as impossible as I
expected from Mr. O's description of him.---Mrs. Anderson sent me a note asking me to bring my music. I dare say she thinks I play an
instrument. I wish you were here
to play an accompaniment for me if I have to sing,
Calcutta 21 May 1897 C258/62
---the only song Mrs. A could find for me was the "arrow and
the song" and she player the accompt. and made a false note in the most
critical place! I finished the
grinding machine today after working at it the last two or three mornings
Calcutta 22 May 1897 C258/62
That
design of mine I sent you some time ago has been published in Indian
Engineering this week and it looks very well. --- I
wonder if anyone will ever use it
Calcutta 23 May 1897 C258/62
Dinner in the Bengal club with several geologists
Calcutta 24 May 1897 C258/62
meets Mrs. Vredenberg the mother of Mr. Vredenberg who is Dutch or French. Lived in Brazil and W Africa but Calcutta is hotter by
far."
Calcutta 25 May 1897 C258/62 Mr. Oldham is going up to Simla in a few
days & I suppose I shall be left in charge of the office, but I don't think
he will be away long.
Calcutta 26 May 1897 C258/62 ….
I am due to play tennis here at the museum at 5. There is a very good lawn belonging to the house of Dr.
Anderson & Mr. Oldham' s live in, and I have played there more than once already. Dr A is a very keen player I was very
dissipated last night, did not get home till nearly 2 o'clock in the morning so
I am a great deal worse than you