1 July 23 1916 Queen Anne's School,
Caversham,
Reading. My Dear Miss Bannister I have a very sad letter to
write to you, but I am sure you would
rather that I wrote than that you
should hear from anyone else. The Committee feel that it would not
wish that you should come back here
and are, I believe, going to write to you after
next Thursday's meeting. 2 You can't know how hard this is for me
to write like this —- the loss to me and
to the school is very heavy, and I did
everything I could to prevent it.
The fact is that your name has come
out so publicly, that disagreeable
things are being said about the school,
so I have been told. I have never heard
anything of the sort here — and it is
thought that it would be better to ask
you to resign. The Committee I know are going to consider
your salary etc. We are all very sad f; we hoped to
have you amongst us again, but
at the same time we hope & believe that
something good will come to you, and
think that you might have found it
almost impossible to come back as usual. 3 I feel as if I were writing in such
a matter of fact way— but I was very
much upset by it — I am beginning to think
now that God has arranged it, & will
surely do something to help you to
take up your life, & that it will in
the end therefore be a happier thing for you.
I hope I shall see you in the holidays.
We go off on Wednesday— I or Saturday, to Oxford for a
week, & then I don't know where.
Much love to you
Yours affectionately
A. Holmes