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Correspondence from Ninette Shumway to Leah Hirsig
[EXTRACT]
[17 November 1924]
Mimi [Isabella Shumway] has a very bad stomach upset which I think is getting better but I cannot judge yet. It has turned the poor baby into the most awful crank I have ever dreamed of. Such yelling as goes on here you cannot imagine; the other three of us are as nearly out of our minds as can be. Lulu ran to the Umbilicus [an outbuilding at the Abbey of Thelema] to seek a little peace and Mimi has fallen asleep from exhaustion. Arturo [Arturo Sabatini] keeps on being good to us, sharing what he has and helping us. But he earns so little; and is always on the blink, now with a boil on his foot that impedes his locomotion.
When will we see you again? You will love Lulu [Astarte Lulu]; she is so grown up in some ways and so thoroughly unconscious of her sweetness even though she generally talks of herself as 'sweet little Lulette'. Do you correspond with Alma [Alma Hirsig] and have you given her a piece of your mind? What is she doing with Hansi? Sending him to school? Please give a thought to the idea of my giving up this house by January 1st [1925], rather than paying again the exorbitant price. . . . I should like a smaller place near Cefalù for the end of this pregnancy and confinement. Give me your advice, please.
Well, Hera Jane [Isabella Shumway] has awakened and is at her tricks again, throwing everything within reach across the room, rolling herself on the floor, screeching as though she were being skinned alive. She certainly must be better. Never had I seen such a temper in a child so young—what she will turn out to be heaven only knows—you would be amuse for a while. Spanking does mighty little good: she hits out with the boldness of a fiend; she yields to nothing but force. When she has a good moment, she is very sweet indeed, but always haughty and wilful and ready to take offense. She will be as opposed to our sweet Lulette as their fathers are.
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