156
DOCS.
158,
159
NOVEMBER-DECEMBER
1915
158. From
Michele
Besso
[Berlin,
after
30
November
1915][1]
My
pastoral
manner
permits
me
to make
you
aware
of
things you obviously
already
know-that
you
will not
seriously
take
any
offense at
the
boy,[2]
nor
allow
yourself
to
be
disturbed
by
it,
which
naturally
has,
aside from
him,
an
additional
source
hostile
to
you-that
this
additional
source
also
is
made
not
only
of
meanness
and troublesomeness
but
of
goodness
tipped off balance
by
the
mix
of
social
circles,
which
had
to
become
even more
unstable
by your
stance
on
religion,
but
also
on
duty
and
truth. It
is
more
difficult
for
her
to
understand
you
than
you
her-and it
always
has
been
more
difficult for
her,
if
only
because
the
role
as
the
wife of
a
genius
never
is
easy.-
All this
just set
against
decisions
arising
out of
the
emotions.
Now
you
will
probably
have
written
to
the
effect
that
now
you
cannot
come;[3]
but
through
communication
by
letter,
which
is
your
undeniable
right
and
a growing responsibility, you
can
prove
to
your
son
what
he
has in
you
this
way
as
well
and avoid
having
him
reply
to
you
inappropriately
again
(the
next
time).
159. To
Mileva Einstein-Maric
[Berlin,
1
December
1915][1]
D[ear]
Miza,
A string
of
misunderstandings
has
prevailed.
I
was
also
a
bit
disappointed
that
I’d not
get
Albert
to
myself
but
only
under
Besso’s
protection,
as
it
were.
Since
the
thought
did
not
occur
to
me
at
all
that this
had been
on
Besso’s
sole
initiative,
but
assumed
as
obvious
that
this had been
arranged
between Besso
and
you all,
I
consented,
for
God’s
sake.[2] So I
was
altogether disappointed
yesterday
by
Albert’s
letter,
which
was
really very unfriendly.
For
this
reason
I
immediately
wrote him to
cancel.[3]
But
your
letter
leads
me
to
think,
on
the
other
hand,
that
the
unfriendliness
was
more
childish clumsiness
than
nasty
intent.
Well,
this
is
how
the
matter
stands. In
any
case,
I
cannot make
the
long
jour-
ney only
to
spend
two
or
three
days
with
Albert. The
meeting
is
only
worthwhile
if it
lasts
at
least
one
week. I
must
go
to
Berne
anyway
at Easter,
now,
in order
to
be
present
at
an
important
meeting.[4]
So
it
would
be
preferable
to
me
if
I could
be
together
with
Albert around
this
time,
so
that
I
don’t have to take
the
long
and
presently
somewhat
inconvenient
trip
twice within
a
few
months. Should his
vacation not be such
that
he is
on
holiday
just then, we’ll
take him
out
of school
for
a
couple
of
days.