At work as usual. Finished in good time. Father slightly better again. Went to Grangetown1 social at night. Charlie with me. George and the girl there but we stood apart. Pretty decent but too many children taking part in it. Got home very late. Read some “Defendant” by G.K.C[hesterton].
“Grangetown”: then the southernmost suburb of Sunderland, inland from Hendon Paper Mill. ↩
Got up about 7.45. Busy at work. Signs more peaceful. Father’s pain still bad and I telephoned for the doctor in the morning. George had to go to Newcastle in the afternoon. Went down to annual choir meeting. Mr Chadwick presided. A meeting not very businesslike and nothing satisfactory done. Decided to commence the ½d per week. Played ping-pong for a minute or two.
Dr Blair said Father had gone back a few days, but that he hoped it was nothing serious.
Got up about 7.45. Drilled a bit. Busy all day. A row with Willie and Tom† with regard to * and the masks†. Mr Aitken showed some temper about it and blamed us for making too much nonsense on the invoices. I told Tom and Willie off for swearing and using bad language. Row in the Office. Father’s pain came on bad last thing at night. Went to bed about 12.30. Edward’s brother died at 8 o’clock on Saturday.
Got up about 9 o’clock. Shaved† and at chapel. At School as usual and my turn for the children’s service. Charlie, our Charlie, Joe and I were there, and we managed very well1. Had shorter walks than usual. Very windy. My hat blew off at the top of Vine Place. Better hymns on the sheets. Mr Chadwick preached a picture sermon on “Revelations” in the morning. Joe and Marmie out to dinner. Charlie sang in the Bible class.
“Our Charlie”: ALL’s brother, so called to distinguish him from the other Charlie named – Charles Edward, usually so called in later life, also “Dora’s Charlie” in ALL’s diary: son of Father’s next brother Edward Beauman Linfoot (Beauman, after their grandfather, a local ship’s captain), “Uncle Ned”, whose death in mid-1914 is recorded in the diary; cf. 8 July. ↩
Got up about 7.45. Busy all morning. Finished about 2 o’clock. Sunderland versus Derby County and won 1-0. Had short walk in town in the afternoon with Charlie. Went to lecture on Mohammed. Called at library and went up to see Willie. He was in bed but was up a little bit in the afternoon. Talked until nearly 10 o’clock and then went to the post office again. Bought a rubber horse for Dorothy as she was far from well. Father keeping a bit better. Wrote postcard in reply to the answer we received with regard to the business for sale in Wear Street. Mr Aitken returned from London and in a bad temper.
Got up about 7.20. Fine morning. In a bit trouble at work. Father shows signs of having got over cold. Dr Blair misses the morning. Went to the library and got out G.K. Chesterton’s “Defendant”1. Went to get hair cut. Played a bit and then went to Chadwicks’ and stayed until 10 o’clock. Called at General Post Office with parcel for Ernie. Wrote enquiring about business for sale2 in the Echo3.
G K Chesterton (1874-1936), St Paul’s School & Slade, writer & R. Catholic; best known now for Father Brown detective stories (as seen on TV, 2013). See also: The Defendant and Arthur Linfoot’s Library ↩
“Business for sale”: the family planned to run a corner shop because Father had no wage since his accident. ↩
“Echo”: the Sunderland Echo & Shipping Gazette, the Monday – Saturday evening paper. ↩
The Defendant comprises G.K. Chesterton‘s collected essays on subjects ranging from detective stories and penny dreadfuls1 to heraldry and patriotism.
The essays originally appeared in “The Speaker” but were edited and revised for republication.
Arthur Linfoot borrowed a copy from a public library on 13 February 1914.
Penny dreadful is a pejorative term used to refer to cheap popular serial literature produced during the nineteenth century in the United Kingdom. ↩
Got about in decent time. Busy all day. Had big discussion about the lessened trade and †industrial improvements†. Finished in decent time. Stayed at home and filled in Pelman papers. Went to post office last thing. A lot of strangers calling. Joe sat up with Father until about 4 o’clock. Father still improving. Minnie Bell called.
Busy all day. Father still improving. Went down to clear work at night. Willie not there. Willie Whittaker and I called for him. Went in to see him. His father told us, rather reluctantly, that he had not *. Got home shortly after 10 o’clock. Mr Marshall was putting gramophone records on to amuse Willie, who was in bed. Poor practice. I was the only bass. Directors’ meeting1.
Directors: this would be the Board of the Hendon Paper Works – noted because of the extra work the meeting would have caused for the office staff. ↩