Читать книгу The Times Great Letters: A century of notable correspondence - James Owen - Страница 9

newspaper of record

1930–39

The constant Reader

12 January 1935

Sir, A letter in The Times of 4 January signed “A Forty Years’ Reader” tempts me to tell you what has led to my having read The Times for over 74 years. In October 1857, at Florence, my father called me into his study and said: “My boy, circumstances beyond my control oblige us to remain in Italy for some years. I want you to be an English boy and to grow into an Englishman. What will do that more than anything else and teach you all about England will be reading The Times. Every morning after breakfast you shall read me one or two paragraphs.” I was filled with pride, and the one or two soon became a goodly number.

In 1862, when my father died, I had no Times; but I managed to obtain a copy when a week old and to keep it for one day. It made a heavy inroad on my slender pocket money. Pride gave way to interest, and I read The Times from cover to cover till I started for England in 1868.