Correspondence from Leah Hirsig to Aleister Crowley

Cefalù,

Sicily

14 January 1924

My beloved Beast,

Your scheme worked and Eymon [the owner of the hotel] fell for my near tears—so here I am. I reached Palermo with 17 lire but the Palmes fed me and I borrowed 50 lire to get home with.

Amatore [their supplier of drugs] says 'I cannot.' Your letter did not impress him very much and he repeated the above, adding that he can only give [drugs] on an Italian Dr's prescription. No H[eroin] either. He must have taken fright. I couldn't get him to say any more.

My spirit is willing but I am thoroughly tired out.

Murray [Adam Murray] is typing the Comment on LXV and it is too cold for Asana. Besides children are always about more or less. The roads are very muddy. I think some little suggestion from you will buck him up—he has had no one to talk to except Ninette [Ninette Shumway] from whom however he has learnt a great deal about Thelema. We are starting [ritual of] Pentagram and I have suggested that he take charge and perform some of the ceremonies that he has been working on with Windram [James Windram].

We are freezing here and our cash about finished. We sent our last bit to O.P.V. [Norman Mudd].

I am very tired. I love you very much and I hope O.P.V. will be OK. I left him with 30 centimes and of course the MSS which I could not take owing to the rush. I had 1/2 an hour to wheedle the money out of Eymon, pack and let O.P.V. know that I was leaving. I had wisely kept him out of the way so that Eymon thought I was alone.

Much love from Shummy [Ninette Shumway] and the Big Four [the children] and V.L. [Adam Murray].

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