Are doing at present the reaction of the French Revolution in the History class. It is very interesting. I have determined to work very hard at French, maths and Irish, with Harmony and violin, this term, and during the hols if possible, as I am weak in these. – Had to wipe the school stairs to-day for Dr. Scannie, as I was one of those who did not put on their house-shoes, and dirtied the stairs. – Nannie brought photographs of Uncle Xavier and his wife to us to-day. Uncle Xavier ((Franz Xaver Swertz (1885-1951), went to the Presentation Brothers College until 1905, studied Engineering in UCC, graduating in 1909, then emigrating to the USA. In 1927 he was living in New York. During the Depression he was to go through very bad times. In the mid 1940s he was to try to get Aloys´s works performed in New York.)) was not heard of during the war, and we had begun to fear he was dead, but a few weeks ago Nannie got a letter from him, saying that he had had a terrible time in South America, and was shut off from the world. To-day she got a long letter, and photographs of himself and his wife. – Did well at my piano lesson. The Mozart sonata I have just finished, and the Mendelssohn Prelude are glorious. I am going to do another Mozart sonata before I do Philip Emmanuel Bach.
