x x x i v I N T R O D U C T I O N T O V O L U M E 1 2
a cable from a Zionist colleague in the U.S., stating that “Harvard absolutely de-
clines
Einstein.”[30]
Whether this was due to rising anti-Semitism or to other local
politics or only to news of Einstein’s earlier demands regarding fees is unclear.
Toward the end of his U.S. visit, Einstein focused on the planned medical
faculty. On 21 May, he attended a reception held by the American Jewish Physi-
cians Committee at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. During the banquet, attended
by 800 Jewish physicians, the fundraising goal was set at $1,000,000, of which
$250,000 were subscribed
to.[31]
A formal agreement was also drawn up, signed by
Einstein as well, which laid out the preliminary statutes of the American Jewish
Physicians Foundation, to be established for raising funds for the planned medical
faculty in
Jerusalem.[32]
During the tour, Einstein eventually became somewhat frustrated with his treat-
ment at the hands of the Weizmann camp, who were keeping Einstein mostly in the
dark concerning the internal politics and disagreements. His private meeting with
Brandeis in Washington, D.C., on 26 April and its aftermath show that fundraising
for the Hebrew University, and Einstein himself, had become full-blown political
issues in the clash between Weizmann and Brandeis. By alleging to Einstein that
Weizmann had misappropriated funds, the Brandeis faction apparently intended to
discredit him and inflict major political damage (e.g., Doc. 128).
Einstein’s work on behalf of the Hebrew University ultimately was only modest-
ly successful. The enthusiasm he generated among the Jewish professional classes
of Eastern European background led to effective fund-raising for the planned med-
ical faculty and for the university’s library, although he did not succeed in bringing
about the founding of University Aid Committees. These disappointments do not
seem to have induced any substantial change in Einstein’s devotion to the universi-
ty project, nor in his basic position on Zionism, which he continued to support. And
in spite of his intense interaction with the heads of the ZO, or perhaps because of
it, he also continued to maintain his distance from the movement’s leadership.
The intense schedule of public and private meetings during the six weeks spent
in America led Einstein to some disenchantment with his Stammesgenossen
(Doc. 141). But he relished seeing the large crowds of American Jews, most of
them recent immigrants from Eastern Europe, whom he encountered at meetings
and rallies (see Vol. 7, Appendix D, “An Interview with Professor Albert
Einstein”).
As in volume 10, a small part of the correspondence in this volume reveals how
Einstein viewed his Jewish ancestry, as distinct from his activities on behalf of
Zionist causes, and his role as a highly visible, prominent Jew. In continuation of
his earlier exchanges of 1920 with functionaries of the Berlin Jewish Community
regarding his membership dues, Einstein declared in January 1921 that he would