Letter: Sold off, sold out

MATTHEW SWEET'S "Goodbye to all these" (Culture, 27 June) about literary archives departing to the United States is, sadly, an accurate representation of the situation. The Beckett International Foundation's archive at the University of Reading houses more than 1,500 manuscripts and related items. Although there is no danger of the collection being sold, at the end of this year the lack of a dedicated Beckett scholar to manage the archive, catalogue its holdings and answer specialist queries will inevitably hinder public access. No wonder major literary archives are being sold to American universities.

JULIAN A GARFORTH

Beckett International Foundation

Reading