Letter from Hughe Knatchbull-Hugessen, Ankara, to Thomas Balston, 1943 April 13 : typescript signed.

Writing that he has not heard anything from him for a long while and hoping that he isn't in poor health again; he was in England for a "hectic three weeks before Christmas", but had no opportunity to see anyone except Government officials and close family; noting that they had "rather an interesting flight both ways", and describing the desolate landscape he saw from the air while flying over portions of West and North Africa; writing that, in contrast, they have just returned from Syria and Palestine, where the countryside was lovely and full of wild flowers, noting that, however, "A lot of the policing is done by Basutos and they are not discriminating.", and recounting an incident in which his wife Mary was being driven to the train station at Tripoli in an army car where they were stopped by "two Basuto sentries" who "pushed their bayonets in through the window of the car."; discussing the Adana Conference (which took place secretly at Yenice on January 30-31, 1943) and the unsuccessful attempts he made to conceal the planned meeting, remarking that his "movements have been regarded with the greatest suspicion ever since." and that "It so happened that when we went to Palestine von Papen arranged an expedition in the same direction and asked for a special coach to be attached to the very train I was going on.", adding that he "got that put right", but that the press "enquired closely as to whether ... I was going to Adana to have a secret meeting with von Papen", and pointing out the absurdity of the accusation, given that he and von Papen would need only to drive five of ten miles "into the hills where we could picnic together to our hearts' content."; relating a rumor that a meeting was attended by the President of the Republic, The Turkish Prime Minister, King Boris, Ribbentrop, "possibly Hitler", Stalin, Roosevelt and "one of the Antonescus", "not to mention my poor self."