Page 10 - Life of Gertrude Bell

Xll INTRODUCTION
library of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, where the
majority of the Gertrude Bell records arc now kept, and she saved
me many a time-consuming journey, as did my daughter Ruth
who similarly delved into the files of the University Library at
Durham. I thank them both.
Finally a note on spellings. For the sake of clarity and read­
ability minor changes to spelling and punctuation have been made
to some quotations from Gertrude’s letters. As for Arabic
transliteration it is quite impossible to achieve absolute con­
formity in narrative and quotations, but in the case of common
words like amiry badawin, sharif and place names, I have sometimes
changed the spelling in an attempt to save the reader from the
most irritating inconsistencies.
London 1978 H.V.F.W.