DOCUMENT 104 AUGUST 1915 157
Planck, together
with
Einstein
and
more
than
a
hundred
other
intellectuals,
had
recently
also
signed
the
“Delbruck-Dernburg petition” opposing
annexationist
war
aims
(see
Doc.
94,
note
10).
[4]In
the
spring,
Lorentz had
already suggested
to Planck
that
German intellectuals
might
undo the
damage
created
by
the Manifesto
of
the 93
if
they
found
a means
to “eradicate”
(“beseitigen”)
its
effect. A
nonpolemical
declaration
by
Germans
recognizing
the
equality
of
other cultures and
setting
store
by
future
cooperation
“would
certainly
have
a very salutary
effect”
(“würde
gewiss
sehr wohl-
tuend
wirken.” H. A. Lorentz to Wilhelm
Wien, 3
May
1915,
GyMDM,
NL
056/02482).
[5]Lorentz
was engaged
in
editing
the lectures and
discussions of
the second
Solvay Congress,
which
was
held in Brussels from 27 until
31
October 1913.
They were eventually
published
in French
translation in
1921 (Rapports 1921).
In
1916,
a preliminary printed
edition had been
prepared,
which
was never
disseminated, presumably
because
of
the
war
(a
copy
is in
BBU,
Fonds des Instituts Inter-
nationaux
de
Physique
et de
Chimie
Solvay,
11Z;
see
also Vol.
4,
Doc.
22,
the
descriptive note).
This
latter edition
presents
the lectures and discussion remarks in
their
original languages.
[6]These
are
the
introductory
words
of
Einstein’s revised second discussion
remark
following
Max
von
Laue’s lecture at the second
Solvay Congress (see
Vol.
4,
Doc.
22, p. 553).
Lorentz
appended
to
this
document
[16 438.1]
his
slight
modification
of
the first
paragraph
of
Einstein’s
original
comment
(which
is available in manuscript
form;
see
Vol. 4, Doc. 22,
p. 553):
“Wenn
wir
eine
Nullpunkts-
energie
im
Planck’schen Sinne einführen
wollen,
dürfen
wir,
nach meiner Ansicht nicht in Abrede
stellen,
dass diese in
Bewegungen,
d. h.
speziell
hier in
elastischen
Schwingungen
im
Debije’schen
Sinne bestehen. Damit ist
es
weiter
unvermeidlich,
dass
wir
jener
Energie
einen Einfluss
auf
die
Intensität der
Laue’schen
Interferenzpunkte
zuschreiben.”
[7]The
following paragraph
is
reproduced
verbatim
as
Einstein’s revised first discussion remark
following
Laue’s
Solvay
lecture
(see Vol. 4,
Doc.
22,
p.
553).
[8]See
Dahl
1984
for
a
historical account
of
the
discovery
of
superconductivity by
Heike Kamer-
lingh
Onnes in
May
1911.
104. To
Wander de Haas
[Berlin,]
7.
VIII
15
Lieber
de Haas!
Soeben erhalte ich die Offerte
vom
Spediteur
(Schur).[1]
Er
behauptet,
dass
grosse Verteuerung
der
Speditionen
durch den
Krieg eingetreten sei; er verlangt
to-
tal 590 M. Ich lasse mir einen zweiten
Kostenanschlag von
einem andern
Spediteur
machen,
und nehme
Schur, wenn
der zweite
nicht
billiger
ist.-
Viel Glück für die Arbeit.[2]
Ich versuche
es
jetzt
mit Wechselstrom ohne Reso-
nanz
durch
eine
Verfeinerung
der
optischen
Methode,
fürchte aber Effekte mit
dop-
pelter
Frequenz.
Herzlichen Gruss
an
Sie & die Ihren
von
Ihrem
Einstein.
AKSX.
[70 407].
The
verso
is addressed “Herrn Dr. J. de
Haas
Santpoort
b.
Haarlem
Holland.,”
and
postmarked “Berl[in-Wilme]rsdorf
1
7.8.15. 2-3N[achmittags].”
The
postmark
is
incomplete.
[1]The
firm
of
Paul
Schur,
Kurfürstenstr.
146-147,
Berlin
W 35,
made
a
bid
on moving
the De Haas
household
goods
to
the Netherlands after Einstein
requested
an
estimate
a
month
earlier
(see
Doc.
92).
[2]Further
work
on
the
experimental proof
of
Ampère’s
molecular
currents
(see
Doc.
82).
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