page 216 — December 1942

… we played silly but amusing games and danced in between. (S)Cylla taught me very patiently (and probably on her part painfully) [the dances], and everyone else I danced with was very kind and patient, and I was doing a good deal better at the finish. Taylor played us some things and Hales did a little act. Then the end came and they went. zso zgn zfr ztc

A lot of people were seeing people home, so I offered to see Cylla home . … [Her mother] brought us some cocoa, and we chatted awhile about our respective families. John is entirely recovered [from his polio] … except for occasional mental blackouts. … zfr zfl zil zmt

Sunday 20^th

[To London in a very crowded night train] D, RJC and myself got into a 1st Class carriage. … we left our luggage and went out to recon (how the hell do you spell it?) make a reconnaissance for 3rd Class seats, and to stretch our legs. We went the length of the train, unlocking about ten doors with penknives, but found nothing. We then … opened one, and came into the mail coach—we shut it quickly, but the guard saw us and gave chase. He took our identity cards, took us to his office and spoke of Newton Abbot jail. D’s HG [Home Guard: he was a senior boy already with military documents] and naval identity cards, and our tact and assurance that we were not mail bag robbers, eventually freed us. We returned, and I took a seat in the corridor and dozed. … ztv zmb zgk zco

to Glatting

Monday 21^st

I was woken by a very drunken sailor, who confided some most unpleasant facts about his recent doings … The train arrived at Paddington on time … by tube to Victoria. There I had a cup of coffee, and after a short wait in which I bought the ‘Daily Worker’ and the ‘Labour Monthly’, I boarded the 9.13 … got to Glatting at 12.15. Daddy looks much better and fatter and is also much jollier. … ztv zsl zgk zop znw zfl