9 8 D O C U M E N T 9 7 a A U G U S T 1 9 2 3
97a. To Elsa Einstein
Lautrach Castle, Monday [6 August
1923][1]
Dear Else!
The trip was again a mess, everything else as planned. but the outcome was al-
ways good. The
6h50
train had only sleeping cars and didn’t take me. Only the
9h45
via Leipzig. The trip was pleasant, but I only arrived at one thirty in the afternoon
in Stuttgart, where at first I did not find
Tete.[2]
But another train arrived from Ber-
lin at
2h30,
and my suspicion was confirmed that Tete, who looked cheerful and
well, would pick me up at that time. We traveled at 5 o’clock to Ulm, where we
arrived at 7½. We slept in the Hotel Russischer Hof, where I registered as Adolf
Steinthal. Just the overnight stay cost 570 000
M.[3]
Yesterday morning we first
climbed the church
tower.[4]
Then followed a grand reception at uncle
Adolf,[5]
whom I had already notified Saturday evening. Aunt
Ricke[6]
was again seriously
ill, but she recovered somewhat. In the afternoon I couldn’t avoid family coffee at
Klemele.[7]
I managed the gifts for
Marie[8]
and the former, but am now quite with-
out money. I had to exchange the guldens already in Berlin for the ticket. I gave the
francs to Marie. If I only had taken more with me! Yesterday evening we traveled
here and were met by a car. This here is a castle of great splendor and beauty
(baroque). Albert was here and has behaved very
well.[9]
He was here the entire
time, because
Anschütz[10]
didn’t let him leave, since he is really enamored of him.
Kossel is here, Prof Martin from
Munich,[11]
whom I know from the Zurich days,
a female teacher and some young folks. The sky is radiant and so is Herr Anschütz.
We were not in
Buchau,[12]
because it would have been complicated and because
I—didn’t have enough money.
Telephone
Nernst[13]
at once and ask him whether it would make sense if I were
to travel on Friday for 8 days to Munich. Then I come home again, in order to prob-
ably go with Albert to Kiel in September. Send the children
[14]
more money; oth-
erwise they will get into great embarrassment. Bear in mind that one million is
barely more than 4 peace
marks.[15]
One notices it when one travels!
I went for a walk in Ulm with Paul
Moos[16]
for an hour and we talked pleasantly.
He wears a full beard and is overall dignified, but less bourgeois than Alfred, whom
I saw with his
wife.[17]
The old
aunts[18]
are good together despite everything. Old
Mr. Steiner is suffering quite a bit. Marie has a permanent position as a worker in
a cigarette factory and feels quite satisfied.