Free Daphne by Justine Picardie

that, the future would at last become clear.

Menabilly,
Par,
Cornwall
    20th July 1957
    Dear Mr Symington,
    Thank you very much indeed for your most interesting letter, and for sending me the two books. I am delighted to have been given the opportunity to add them to my library, and I enclose a cheque for £4, as requested.
    As you can imagine, I have been studying them closely. Several things puzzle me. 'And The Weary Are At Rest' seems somewhat disjointed, and though it is generally held to have been written in the autumn of 1845, after Branwell returned from Thorp Green, several parts of it appear to me akin to earlier fragments of the youthful Angrian tales. I should very much value your opinion on this matter, as you have laboured longer on the juvenile works of the Brontës than anyone else, and I therefore believe your judgement to be the most worthwhile and authoritative, amongst the living, at any rate (but if only the dead could speak, to guide us through this mystery . . .)
    Frankly, it seems to me that other Brontë scholars appear to be so besotted with Charlotte and Emily that it suits them to believe that Branwell never wrote anything worthwhile, yet when one carefully examines the lesser known stories and poems in the Shakespeare Head volume of Misc. Works, several that are attributed to Emily seem very much like Branwell's in style and content. There would, of course, be a scream of protest if one were to dare to suggest such a thing! But I wonder if Emily and Branwell worked more closely with one another than is generally recognised, particularly in the years from 1837 to 1839, when they spent a great deal of time alone at home together, while Charlotte and Anne were living away from Haworth? Certainly, there appears to be an overlap in the characters and plots that they invented for Gondal and Angria, and perhaps in later stories and poems, as well.
    As for your intriguing references to forged signatures appearing on Branwell's manuscripts: naturally, I will treat what you tell me as being confidential, and you can count on my discretion, I assure you. But my mind has been running over this, and I wonder if you might tell me more about the manuscripts that were tampered with?
    Presumably, it would have been profitable to dispose of the juvenile Brontë manuscripts for a good price to wealthy private collectors in the US, especially if they bore the signatures of Charlotte or Emily?
    It is presumptuous of me to ask you so many questions, I know, but you are the only person that I can share this with. I wonder if you would consider selling me any more of the books or manuscripts that you possess in your fine Brontë library? I live so far away from Haworth that I cannot make the journey there as often as I wish, and commitments at home keep me here, so I am forced to rely on borrowing Brontë literature from the London Library.
    Incidentally, have you ever met the widow of the late Clement Shorter? She married again, and lives down in Cornwall, where she is now a Mrs Long. I called on her earlier this year, to ask if she had any Brontë letters or manuscripts still in her possession. But she was most evasive, and gave neither a firm yes nor a no. I wonder if she has any treasures hidden in an attic. The manuscript of Wuthering Heights is bound to be produced one of these days, and imagine what it might reveal!
    Excuse this long letter. I do look forward to hearing from you again soon,
    Yours sincerely,

CHAPTER FIVE
    Newlay Grove, July 1957
    Beatrice had gone out to visit a friend in Leeds for lunch and would not return until the evening. 'It's as quiet as the grave in this house,' she said just before she left, looking accusingly at her husband. She did not call him Alex, his familiar boyhood name; these days, no one ever did, he realised, not even himself, except in his signature, and only then on occasional private letters, such as the one he wrote to Daphne du Maurier. If he addressed himself - which he