“The Brutons, who had recently moved into a house at the far end of our street, had so many children it was nearly impossible to keep them all straight. Billy said it didn’t matter, because they were all bullies, and he was afraid of them. When Martin heard this he said to Billy: “You must be more forgiving. The Brutons are so poor that they have only one bed for all those children to sleep in, so they never get a decent night’s rest. You would be surly, too, if you were one of them.” I have no idea how Martin could have known such a thing, and I doubt it was true, but after that Billy stopped worrying about the Bruton children.” May Lutyens, November 11, 1942. [Although the facts are not entirely clear, I believe that Billy was the child of May Lutyens’ sister Alma, and that during the summer of 1922, when Billy would have been eight years old, he lived with Martin and May while Alma recovered from an illness].
“He had allowed his head to house too many notions; at night, unrestrained by the distractions and business of living, they all jostled for prominence or, failing that, at least a comfortable position in his mind. This has greatly diminished his ability to sleep. He says the nights are so long the stars fall down.” Josef Breuer to Sigmund Freud, February 17 1892, regarding the case of Willem Slappfors.
“The Brutons, who had recently moved into a house at the far end of our street, had so many children it was nearly impossible to keep them all straight. Billy said it didn’t matter, because they were all bullies, and he was afraid of them. When Martin heard this he said to Billy: “You must be more forgiving. The Brutons are so poor that they have only one bed for all those children to sleep in, so they never get a decent night’s rest. You would be surly, too, if you were one of them.” I have no idea how Martin could have known such a thing, and I doubt it was true, but after that Billy stopped worrying about the Bruton children.” May Lutyens, November 11, 1942. [Although the facts are not entirely clear, I believe that Billy was the child of May Lutyens’ sister Alma, and that during the summer of 1922, when Billy would have been eight years old, he lived with Martin and May while Alma recovered from an illness].
“He had allowed his head to house too many notions; at night, unrestrained by the distractions and business of living, they all jostled for prominence or, failing that, at least a comfortable position in his mind. This has greatly diminished his ability to sleep. He says the nights are so long the stars fall down.” Josef Breuer to Sigmund Freud, February 17 1892, regarding the case of Willem Slappfors.