The Young Saki
SIR,—Mr. Graham Greene seems to think from my remark (that some writers on Saki had the extraordinary delusion that he had " a miserable childhood") that such delusions are all based on my own writing. It is rather strange that only in the last two or three years has the theory of " miserable childhood" cropped up. My memory of that childhood is extremely fresh. Saki " was a Puck to the end of his life "—I cannot imagine a miserable Puck. . " Aunt 'Augusta being such an unlovable character, we extended only a lukewarm sort of liking to her." But a miserable boy would have had no liking at all for her. " We lived a life of our own, in which the grown-ups had no part." " We lived our little lives, criticised our elders and betters, and rejoiced exceedingly when Aunt Augusta went to bed for a whole day with a keadache." Those are all quotations from my biography of Saki. Mr. Greene quotes from that biography, " that we slept in rooms with windows shut and shuttered "—though unhygienic, this did not constitute a misery—and " our grandmother was entirely over-ruled by her turbulent daughters "—this was also no misery to us.
A friend who had read the biography said she never noticed any- thing suggesting misery in it. Moreover Saki's remark to me (and his memory of our childhood was as distinct as mine), that in spite of a strict upbringing, and having no other children to play with, he was glad of it, as otherwise we should never have been original, is not what he would have' said if he had had a miserable childhood.—
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