To Susan Sturgis de Sastre
Oxford, England. July 17, 1901
Dear Susie
I have been in England a week or ten days, waiting to make definite plans for the summer before writing to you. They are hardly made yet, but on the point which most concerns you, whether I shall get as far as Avila or not in my wanderings, I may say that I don’t think it likely. I must absolutely do some solid work, and unless I get fagged and bored, so that work becomes impossible, I mean to stay here and keep at it all summer . . .
. . . I staid in America unusually late this year and had a horrid time. The heat was unspeakable, and after my lectures were over I was bored and restless, longing to get away. What kept me was a function at the Phi Beta Kappa, where they had asked me to read some verses, and as that is locally regarded as an honour, I was obliged to accept and stay. But it will never happen again, so that in future years I may hope to have a longer vacation and more time for a visit to you.
From The Letters of George Santayana: Book One, [1868]–1909. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2001.
Location of manuscript: Alderman Library, University of Virginia at Charlottesville.