To John Hall Wheelock
Via Santo Stefano Rotondo, 6.
Rome. June 28, 1952
Dear Mr. Wheelock,
Without frightening you more by rashly writing a long letter, let me say that, apart from my advanced age, there was nothing serious about my accident. No bones broken, a few bruises to be patched, only one that had bled visibly. The shock, until injections began to normolize my consciousness, was the chief danger. When Sister Angela (the housekeeper) asked me if I wished to summon Cory, I said no: but the Head probably thought it safer to call him, I suppose by telegraph. He immediately came, having a return-ticket by the best air-line, and kept me company almost every afternoon in the extreme heat which prevailed. No doubt he was glad to find that I was all right; but also enjoyed the excitement and the journey, and is looking forward to the next, early in September.
My old friends Mrs Mercer (Martha Dana) and the Marchesa Origo (Iris Cutting) have given or lent me (before the accident, or not having heard of it) modern French books which I have not liked particularly: too modern for me!
Yours sincerely
G Santayana
From The Letters of George Santayana: Book Eight, 1948–1952. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2008.
Location of manuscript: Department of Rare Books and Special Collections, Princeton University Libraries, Princeton NJ.