1 0 0 V O L U M E 8 , D O C U M E N T S 5 4 5 a
Vol. 8, 539a. To Max Jakob
[Berlin, 17 May 1918]
[Not selected for translation.]
Vol. 8, 545a. From Mileva Einstein-Maric;
[Zurich, before 23 May
1918][1]
Dear Albert,
I don’t want you to misunderstand me. If in my last letter I raised objections to
securities,[2]
it was certainly not in order to satisfy my greed for money, rather only
out of concern for the
children.[3]
Their youth is already not exactly nice, without
a father and with a sick mother; I’d like them at least not to come to know direct
privation. I’d like to raise a small point now as well; wouldn’t it perhaps be sensible
to have that portion of the deposit which is made in currency, placed under my
name at a German bank, in order to circumvent the loss of
interest?[4]
For if this
loss goes to our account, it would have very bitter consequences for our budget;
groceries, clothes, and everything is so expensive and is constantly getting dearer
that we hardly have anything left
over.[5]
Please consider this.– I don’t want to dis-
cuss a thing with
Michele.[6]
His wife behaved so badly toward me this spring that,
for me, friendship there is out of the question. She tried to meddle in my affairs in
a way that reveals potential human
malice.[7]
I showed letters of hers, in which she
informed me of how she would like to “help” us, to Dr. Zürcher and to
Zangger;[8]
they almost fell over backwards. As far as I know, you’ve been informed about this,
and I hope you’ll understand that I want nothing more to do with her. I receive her
when she visits and that is as far as it goes.– It would be good if you wrote me about
how long the children are supposed to be with
you.[9]
They have holidays in mid-
July; if you should come to Switzerland earlier, they would meet up with you later
at the place agreed upon. They really should get used to taking their responsibilities
seriously, you will surely agree with that. That you are considering Engstlenalp sur-
prises me; that place is only accessible by foot, a walking distance of 4–5 hours ac-
cording to Baedecker; with little Tete, you would have to calculate 8
hrs.[10]
He
mustn’t become exhausted in any way, and also, if something should happen there,
how do you think you can get help? At these remote spots, amenities aren’t
particularly good either, nowadays. Regarding Tete, I would at all events still have
to ask the doctor whether he could come along. It’s surely not the right thing for
you either; since you ought not to walk and need special
food,[11]
a more civilized
region where things are accessible would certainly be better. Why don’t you con-
sider
Rigi?[12]
There are smaller villages also in the
Zuoz[13]
region, where good,