31 May, 1958

Dear Mamma,

Would you please write a cheque to the Consumers Union and enclose it with the enclosed letter to them? If you have already written to them about a subscription for me, please cross out and correct parts of the letter and send a cheque for what more is needed, I should think about $ 12.00 for the three back volumes and postage. I am not sure it is worth it for me to get all these back issues but I think so. It is pretty cheap and I must advise American friends all the time about whether they should buy Hi Fi and such here or wait until they get to America.

A friend of ours has offered to send an order to Sears Roebuck for us and to get the stuff in through the Navy, and so I hope to get a few light household goods. It is, I think, impossible to get many things here, for instance, I have not found a stove that is bigger than about 21 by 21 inches in plan, with a corresponding oven. It is preposterous. Still, perhaps I can find one.

We look forward to seeing you. I should not think you want to spend too long in Brussels, I think it is a real rat race. If all the expected visitors go through the atomium, it means about 1500 an hour, including you. Do you want to stay with us when you are here or would you prefer to be separate? We would certainly like very much to have you.

I am sorry I did not think very much about some pillows or pillowslips or both and consequently reported back some nonsense when a thank-you letter arrived. I certainly would like to find a place to live with a garden and more room and the possibility of making a kitchen. I feel very frustrated.

Love from

XXX Peter

[drawings of three people]

31 May, 1958

Dear Daddy,

Thank you for your letter of the 23d. It is good to hear from you and to hear how things are going.

I have not done anything further about the water calculations. I have not finished what I had started on a way to calculate the RDC with a variable Gaussian; I think I should think a little bit about doing the calculation in reciprocal space. Some people seem to think that, the diffraction pattern is a more sensitive test than its Fourier transform.

Would you please send me the money for the next three months, that is July, August, and September now? I probably shall not need it, but we wish to go on our holiday in July, and I think there will be some chances in the near future to get some household consumer goods and so I should like to have it available.

Anita Rimmel, who is Des's secretary, asks that you answer their letters. She also says that I do not deserve a lectureship, but while I believe what she says, I do not pay too much attention to it, or rather, I do not worry about it.

Do you want to go to Dublin for a couple of days to a Faraday Conference on Transition Metals? It is September 9th - 11th. I thought I would go, but if you are going to be here, I expect I shall not.

I have asked Better Books to send off the book.

The TV show with Ed Murrow was shown on the BBC, but I did not see it unfortunately. Several people have mentioned it to me. I think David Green is committed to go to Alex's for this year. However, I think there is a good chance that he would be willing to stay in the United States longer than one year, perhaps permanently, and so you might consider trying to get him to come the following year, 1959 - 60. Just now he is diddling his program to do my P21 3 Fourier. As you have mentioned, it is quite a calculation. I think we shall do it next week or the following week.

I have had a formal offer from the Secretary of the College writing on behalf of the College Committee concerning my appointment. It will take a month or two to get a contract. It begins October 1st and is for five years. Professor Ingold days that never has such a contract not been renewed.

There is a life insurance pension scheme for teachers in this country, that I must join. I pay five per cent of my gross income, and the College pays ten per cent, until I retire at 62. I do not know what the life insurance arrangement is. Some broker has been telling me about student's life insurance schemes, which are slightly cheaper than the ordinary, and I was going to compare them with American. There are a number of disadvantages, in that what one gets back is in Sterling, and also I consider Sterling an unstable currency and liable to devaluation. I shall give an example. Straightforward endowment policy, entered before 28 as a student, without profits, pay for 37 years at 16 pounds per annum equals £592 per £1000 insured. There is a 3% reduction for face value of more than £2500. The same thing with profits would cost £882 all told per thousand. In this country, it is one of the few ways to save money, because you can take the payments off your income tax, saving 17%. I expect the deal for teachers is better than this student deal and also sufficient.

Love from

Peter

[Handwritten note at top right: "F Many people are interested in this sort of calculation."]