Item 11: Miles Franklin pocket diary, 17 February-29 December 1918

JULY -1918.

21. Sunday. Showery day again. Went with A.A. to hear Alfred E. Garvie M.A.D.D. in morning. In afternoon Bambaciones, ['Yousof' crossed out] Yusuf Ali & Mrs Aldridge came to tea. Couldn't endure cold.

22. Monday. Grey showery day again. Worked all day at Minerva home in pouring rain very tired. F.P. rang up twice but I didn't get him.

23. Tuesday. Rain very heavy. Got wet & suffered horribly. Went to bed after getting home from Minerva. F.P. rang up & had a talk.

24. Wednesday. Heavy showers. Went with B. Smith to new Transport Company & home with Mr [Gathè?] for tea. Terribly depressed & in pain.

AUGUST - 1918.

4. Sunday Cloudy Day. Got up at 1 p.m. Went to Mrs French for tea Came back feeling very ill & ghastly depression. Reeled to bed somehow.

5. Monday. Ghastly depression. Cold & dull. Lady Byles took me to dinner & brought me back.

6. Tuesday. Went to Minerva to cook. Got thru day less painfully. Called at Mrs Aldridge's on way home. F.P. called twice but did not get me. Showers.

7. Wednesday. Worked all day at Minerva. Showers & cold & grey In evening Phill Megitt and Fred Post came

AUGUST - 1918

1. Thursday. Was to have dined with Lady Byles but Mrs Green rang up & I met her at A. & Navy tea rooms thence via H. Pk. to St Pancras & had some dinner & saw her on train for Scotland. Fine day - sun sometimes.

2. Friday. Went to see Sir J. Cantlie at 11. He said I was in bad state. flu on top of malaria. Crawled home & got to bed with attack after lunch. Cold & dull & heavy rain.

3. Saturday. Cold wet day. Suffering neuritis. Went to bed after lunch. Mrs French came to see me A.A.S. went away for the week end to Mrs Holmes.

Week-end. [no entry]

JULY - 1918

28. Sunday Finish day no rain. Tea in garden. Mrs Loder & daughter Bambaciones & F. Post present. Worked on patch in morning. Feeling pretty well

29. Monday Fine day. Went to awful Minerva & waited & afterwards poked around looking at places. Crawled home to bed suffering unendurably & the ghastly depression - oh Lord!

30. Tuesday Fine day. Feeling so terrible. Pottered & suffered & tried a little shorthand. Oh to be dead!

31. Wednesday Fine day. Shorthand. Went round to Lady Byles after supper Nina Boyle came & stayed till 11.30. Ghastly depression How can I get thru these days

JULY - 1918

25. Thursday. Went to bank. Met Fred Post at corner. Struggled thru the day & went to a couple of buildings with Mrs Fisher while having attack & temp. Crawled home to bed. Torrential rain.

26. Friday. Heavy showers. Struggled thru day waiting and cooking and crawled home to bed.

27. Saturday. Pelting showers. Wrote letters in morning. In afternoon Nan took me to tea at Lyceum Club to meet Mr Good just back from Scandinavia. I suffered horribly having an attack right there. Temp & rheumatic pains. Stories of atrocities in Finland awful