88
DOCS.
123,
124
OCTOBER
1908
effect
is
due to the
break
spark.
The
moment
I
screen
off
these
light rays,
the effect
is
no
longer present.
Is
it conceivable
that the observation
of
the author
in
question is
based
on
the
same
cause?
Please let
me
know
your
views
on
this matter
before
I set
up
still
more
exact
investigations.
I must
say,
though,
that
such
a
lack of critical
approach
seems
to
me
very
improbable.
How
are
you?
Cordial
greetings
to
all
3
Einsteins![4]
Do
you
have
Habicht
junior's
Maschinerl?[5]
We
met him
by
chance
on
the train
in Basel.
Ad.
Gasser
[
· · ·
][6]
124.
From Paul Habicht
Basel 22
October
1908
Dear
A.
E.,
The
day
before
yesterday
I sent
you
a
postcard
that contained
a
suggestion
for
a
modification
of the
Maschinchen
that
I
built for
you.[1]
Since
you
do
not
touch
upon
this matter in
your
postcard
of
today,
I
assume
that
my
postcard
got
lost.
The
matter is
as
follows:
[gj]
ground
By
connecting
a
movable
charged
part
with the next exciter
at
the
moment
a
grounded part is
in
the
exciter,
one can
bring
it
about that the
voltage
drop
does
no
harm.
To
be
sure,
one
does
thereby
give
up
the
advantage
of the
casing,
but the
attainable transformation
will
not
be much
smaller than the
change
in the
voltage.
movable
part
in
the
condenser, movable
part
free:
This
change
will amount
to
about
4,
which thus makes
44
=
256[2]
it
is
so
easy
to do
the
modification that
it
pays
to
do
it.
But
certainly
not
if
you
already
have
the other
apparatus.
Now
to
the main
thing
(does
the
little
Einstein
know
now
what main
thing?)