Barraquer, specialist in electric treatments of nervous disturbances and began by having a private talk of some 12 minutes with his colleague. It is unknown if they spoke of Eric’s wound or of some other topic. When Eric, Eileen and myself were ushered in Dr. Barraquer’s study, Professor Grau explained the case just as if he had never spoken of it before and wanted his friend to investigate any possible nervous lesions outside of the purely laryngic zone out of which he somehow sort of hated to talk.

Dr. Barraquer’s additional diagnostic was: ‘abrasions of the first right-side spinal rachidean nerve,’ which accounts for the pain in the arm. Dr. Barraquer also advocated electrotherapy for both of the nervous lesions and it was agreed upon Eric coming twice a week (on Wed. and Fri.) to have an electrical treatment and once a week (on Fridays) to let Professor Grau look into his throat and hear him saying ‘aaaaaah’ whilst his tongue is maintained stretched out at full length by the Professor.

Both of the doctors concerned with the case are decent, efficient and fully civilised people, with a lot of similar cases having passed before them since war began; the machinery and installations of the General Catalonian Hospital is complete and modern; most of the nurses are brunettes.

Of course, the doctors have not given any definite opinion upon the duration of the treatment and I felt I could not possibly put any questions about it before they can prove by some sittings the effect of electrotherapy on Eric’s nerves. I think that in any case, it would be advisable to let the treatment go at least two weeks and then ask the medical people ‘what about having it continued in England?’.

I advocate you writing to Dr. Barraquer (who speaks a fairly good English) a ‘colleague’s letter’ in the reply to which you may be told something more than we, mere mortals, are admitted to hear.3 Then you would be able to form a reasonable opinion about the case and send Eileen definite instructions which, I am sure she will follow without any reluctance, so high is her admiration for your professional capacities.

With the hope I shall some day have the opportunity of sharing this feeling not only from faith but on experimental evidence, I remain

Yours sincerely
Georges Kopp

1. Kopp meant ‘aphasia’.

2. Presumably 31 May.

3. Kopp provided Barrequer’s address.

[371]

To Cyril Connolly

8 June 1937    Handwritten

Sanatori Maurín,1 Sania, Barcelona

Dear Cyril,

I wonder if you will be in town during the next few weeks. If you will & would like to meet, you might drop a line to that effect to

at. 24 Crooms Hill
Greenwich S.E.10.

If I can get my discharge papers I ought to be home in about a fortnight. I have been nastily wounded, not really a very bad wound, a bullet through the throat which of course ought to have killed me but has merely given me nervous pains in the right arm & robbed me of most of my voice. The doctors here don’t seem certain whether I shall get my voice back or not. Personally I believe I shall, as some days it is much better than others, but in any case I want to get home & be properly treated. I was just reading one of your articles on Spain in a February New Statesman. It is a credit to the New Statesman that it is the only paper, apart from a few obscure ones such as the New Leader, where any but the Communist viewpoint has ever got through. Liston Oak’s article2 recently on the Barcelona troubles was very good & well balanced. I was all through that business & know what lies most of the stuff in the papers was. Thanks also for recently telling the public that I should probably write a book on Spain, as I shall, of course, once this bloody arm is right. I have seen wonderful things & at last really believe in Socialism, which I never did before. On the whole, though I am sorry not to have seen Madrid, I am glad to have been on a comparatively little-known front among Anarchists & Poum people instead of in the International Brigade, as I should have been if I had come here with C.P. credentials instead of I.L.P. ones. A pity you didn’t come up to our position & see me when you were in Aragón. I would have enjoyed giving you tea in a dugout.

Yours
Eric Blair

1. Sanatorium Maurín was run by the POUM.