4 - A Wedding and a Funeral: 1922

Summary

Letter from Gibson to Mary Gibson

Warsaw, Sunday, January 1, 1922

… We had the usual New Year's reception to go to in the old Royal Castle. It has now been refurnished with the things the Bolshevists have been obliged to send back under the Treaty of Riga and it made a beautiful setting to all the ceremony. The speeches were read as usual but it seemed to be quite as much Ynès’ party as anything else [although she was not in Warsaw at the time]. The chief of state brushed by everybody else as soon as he had finished his speech and came straight to me to pump handle me with great enthusiasm. He called upon all hands to witness that he hoped I would flourish like a green bay tree. All the colleagues swarmed about and outdid themselves in good wishes and questions. Aguera, the Spanish minister, enjoys a social position because of the fact that he had known Ynès for years and he was surrounded by people hanging on his slightest word. General Carton de Wiart also knows her and made hay by telling everybody about her. I never knew grown men could be so curious and excited. Roman Rzyszczewski made the solemn claim that he had some relatives who had known Ynès’ father, but that was not considered good enough to get him into the front row… .

Weekly Political Report, No. 1006 [HIA]

January 5, 1922

… While Poland is still beset by many problems and dangers, the new year represents an encouraging aspect and offers distinct hope of progress.

This is indicated in a definite way by the determined effort being made to balance the budget by a drastic reduction of expenditures, the collection of taxes, the levying of large contribution on land owners. While the efforts of the government are by no means all that could be desired they are far beyond anything I had dared to hope for and their extent is shown by the violent protest of every branch of the government, for all have been seriously affected.