1948

Teles (who is popularly known as Deae, or is it Deke?) has been doing very well in the palace. By the time I leave this fall he will probably have found all the outside walls in the upper section, which leaves almost nothing to do so far as heavy work is concerned. There will still be a good deal of detail work, soundings under late remains attempts to follow earlier walls, etc. The most recent discoveries have been two hypocausts, collapsed, but still with considerable evidence as to their original form. It has made rather trick digging for a beginner, but he seems to have things pretty well in hand. I have not stood over him any more than necessary, or on the theory. My foremen spends an hour or two there daily and reports when anything seems to require my attention. Deke himself usually recognizes a bad spot and asks me to have a look anyway. The result is that I was able to prevent things from getting out of hand the one time there was any danger of it, and that Deke is rapidly learning how to dig. I think that we probably have a good man.

I had a long and unhappy letter from Conrad the other day. I gather (as I should have known) that he has had a good deal more than he could handle. Dow has apparently been pressing him to give half of all his time on the AJA, and has him somewhat intimidated. As a result he has had to drop his Greek and has dropped Fred's course temporarily, though Fred says that he can return later if he finds he has the time. He was feeling terribly apologetic, so I have just finished. I have done my best to cheer him up in a letter. Alice Kober, incidentally, writes in an almost ecstatic vein of the way he has helped her, and he himself mentions the sheer joy of working with her, so I guess that the year is not a dead loss for him. I still think he is a very capable lad, and that we will do well to swing on to him.

I will be very anxious for new of Nippur. I was very much pleased at the decision to resume work there rather than start off on a new site. I wonder if there have been any further developments in the matter of Bob Braidwood. I still think he would be a wonderful addition to our staff.

I seem to have run out of news, and can't think of anything that needs saying at the present juncture. One thing that has been in the back of my mind for a while is that I am firmly convinced that your erstwhile colleagues, fears about Rodney are completely unfounded. I say this after having adopted a decidedly critical attitude, and after several good opportunities to judge reactions. I know him pretty well and I think I am right in this. Regards to our wire as well as to the entire museum; I won't mention names for fear of omitting someone. I often think of you all and wish I could look forward to the day of my return when I will presumably be the four o'clock lion of the Staff Room. My brief hour of glory.

All the best.

P.S. I will see to it that the books in question are returned to the library.