198
DOCS.
276,
277 AUGUST
1911
After
some
time
it will
go
to
its
grandmother.
Your
gift
has not
yet
been
used.[6]
I
will
write
more
about
it
later.
Best
regards
to
you
and
your family
from
your
Albert
[
.
.
.
][7]
277.
From Willem
Julius[1]
Noordwijk,
20
August
1911
Prof. A.
Einstein,
German
University,
Prague
Highly
esteemed
Colleague:
In the interest of
physics
instruction
at
our
university,
I must
take the
liberty
of
putting to
you
an
absolutely
confidential
question.
My
friend
and
colleague,
the
professor
of mathematical
physics
and theoretical
mechanics
C.
H.
Wind,[2]
died
on
7
August.
We
are
now
in
the
middle
of
vacation;
the
faculty
is
scattered
and will in
no
way
be able
to
convene
before
September, perhaps
only
in the
second half of that
month. But
then
we
will have
to
confer
very quickly
about
a
proposal
for
filling
the
vacant
position.
In
my
personal opinion,
the
cause
of
science at
our university
would be served
best
of all if
we
could succeed in
inducing you
to
take
over
this professorship.-Of
course,
it
is
conceivable
that
some
members of
our
faculty
would
bring
up important
objections
against recommending
a
foreigner
for this
chair;
this
is
why
I
emphasize
the
strictly
private
and confidential character of
my
question
whether
you
would
possibly
consider
a
call
to
Utrecht. For
me personally, physical
science
is international,
and I would be
especially
pleased
if
you
could
permit
me
to
report
at
the
faculty
meeting
that there
is
a
chance
of
a
favorable
outcome if
you
were
to receive
a
call
to
Utrecht.
Perhaps
you
know
that
our
professors
receive
a
fixed
salary: initially
4,000
f.,
after
5 years
5,000
f.,
after another
5 years,
6,000
f. annually;
however,
sometimes
it is
possible
to
wring
out
a
start at
the
second
stage.
-
The
usual
weekly
load in math.
physics
and
mech.
together
has been
six
to
eight
hours of lecture.
A
few
months
ago
I
had
the
pleasure
to
attend
your
lecture
in
Leiden,[3]
but, to
my
great regret, I
could not
say
hello to
you
because
I
had
to return to
Utrecht
immediately.
Respectfully
and with
the
best
regards
,
WHJ.