DOCS. 320-322
DECEMBER
1911 233
embarrassing,
and
even
hurtful
to
him,
if I
were
to
refuse
the offer.
You
can
hardly
imagine
how
much
this whole matter
tormented
me;
but
the
knowledge
that
I have not
lost
your
friendship helps
me
to
get
over
this
business.-
With
cordial
and
respectful
greetings
I
remain
your
A.
Einstein
Kindest
regards
to
your
esteemed
family,
also from
my
wife.
321.
From Marcel
Grossmann
Zurich, 12
December
1911
Dear
Friend,
Immediately
after the
receipt
of
your
letter[1] I
took
to
my
heels
&
informed
Gnehm[2]
that the Dutch
seem
to be
making
new
efforts to
bring
you
to
Utrecht,[3]
and
that
it would
therefore
be
good
to
accelerate
the
tempo.
I
learned that
a
letter
was
written
to
you
on
the 8th
of
this
month,[4] so
that
it
evidently
crossed with
yours
in
the
mail. So
the
negotiations
have
been
started,
even
if
quite
cautiously,
as
it
seems
to me,
for
I
was
allowed to
see
the letter. The situation
is
such
that the
year's
end
and the
holidays
prevent
the chairman of
the school
council[5]
from
going
to Prague
before
the
New
Year,
&
even
after
the New Year
it will be
very
difficult
for him
to
do
it. So if
you
want to
expedite
the
matter,
offer to
come
here
to discuss
these
things
in
person;
you
will
certainly
be reimbursed
for
your
travel
expenses,
as
Gnehm
tells
me.
Perhaps
this could
take
place
even
before
Christmas,
and
then
you
would
return
home
with
the
contract
in
your
pocket,
and
the
matter would be
settled
and
finished.-I
would advise
you
to
proceed
in this
manner,
otherwise
our
authorities
will be
dodging
till
doomsday.[6]
Greetings, your
M.
G.
322.
From
Willem Julius
Utrecht, 12
December
1911
Highly
esteemed
Colleague,
At
the
request
of
our
faculty,[1]
which met this
afternoon, I
must
again,
much to
my
regret,
burden
you
with
a
question.
But I
hope
that
you
will not find it
too
troublesome
to
answer
it.
The
request concerns
a
comparison
between
Keesom,
Ornstein,
and
van
Laar,
based
on
their
scientific
accomplishments.[2]
For
reasons
that
I already explained to
you
in
confidence
earlier,
people
on
the
faculty
fear that Keesom
will
get
the
appointment;[3]