512
DOCS.
491,
492
MARCH
1918
491. To
Otto
H.
Warburg
Berlin
W.,
5
Haberland
St.,
23 March
1918
Highly
esteemed
Colleague,
You
are
probably
surprised
at
receiving
a
letter
from
me,
because
until
now
we
have
only
walked
past
each
other,
without
actually
ever getting
to know each
other. I must
even
fear
rousing
some
form of
indignation
in
you
with this
letter;
but it
has
to
be.
I
hear that
you are one
of
Germany’s
most
talented
younger biologists
with
great
promise[1]
and
that
presently representatives
in
your
particular
field
are
quite
mediocre here.
I
also
hear, though,
that
you
are
stationed there
at
a very
vulnerable
outpost[2]
so
your
life is constantly
hanging by a
thread!
Now, please
step
out of
your
shoes and into those of
another
discerning
creature
and
ask
yourself:
Is
this
not
madness? Can
this
post
of
yours
out
there
not be filled
by
an
unimaginative average person
of
the
type
that
come
12
to
the
dozen?
Is
it
not
more
important
than
all
that
big
scuffle
out
there
that
valuable
people
stay
alive?
You know it
yourself very
well
and
must
admit that
I
am
right. Yesterday
I
spoke
with
Prof.
Krauss,
who
is
also
entirely
of
my opinion
and
is
also
ready
to
arrange
to
have
you
recalled
for
another
task.[3]
My plea
to
you,
which arises from
what
has
been
said
above, is
therefore
that
you
support
our
efforts
in
securing
your personal safety. Please,
after
a
few
hours
of serious
reflection,
write
me a
couple
of words
so
that
we
here know
that
our
efforts
will not
founder
on
your
attitude.
In the
ardent
hope
that
in this
matter,
for
once,
reason
will
exceptionally
prevail,
I
am,
with
cordial
regards, yours truly,
A.
Einstein.
492. To Felix
Klein
[Berlin,]
24
March
1918
Highly
esteemed
Colleague,
I
thank
you very
much for
your
extensive and lucid
letter.[1] I
shall do
as
all
do;
what
I
like,
I
silently accept,
what
I
do not
like,
however,
this
I mention
...
I
do not concede
that the
equations
d{Kl
+ gQl)
V
dwu
(1)