T. E. Lawrence Correspondence – Page 185

To: Dr. C. M. Doughty. 5. 1. 20, Dear Mr. Doughty, I fear you will have thought me remiss in not answering you before, but I have been away, and when I got back at last decided that it was so old now, that I had better read Mansoul before replying. I finished today, in London, and I think I like it better than Adam and next to Arabia Deserta, of your books. Of course nothing can replace "Arabia", to me, but Mansoul is very nearly doing so, in parts: though not as a whole. The Arabia is a complete picture of the life of the best sort of Arabs in the desert, and in the markets about the desert, and no picture of our people, by a stranger, has ever been painted like it, in my experience of books. Did I ever tell you of our lunch with Mr. Balfour when the table voted on the best books of travel .... five for you, and two for Marco Polo ? There are some things about Mansoul which I want to ask you about, but I will keep them till I see you. I want to contest one point ..... perhaps because I'm 30 and you 70! Did I tell you about Augustus John: He has to go to Paris at the moment, but will be free perhaps at the end of the month, and will then write to you and try to arrange a date to come down and have a sitting. That is unless something unexpected happens: and it generally does, with John. No news from Cairo yet, of course. Please give my best wishes for the New Year to Mrs. Doughty. Yours sincerely, T. E. Lawrence.