624
DOCS.
598,
599
AUGUST
1918
This Descartian
peace,
as
you
imagine
it,
surely scarcely
exists
anymore-destiny
gave you
a
time
of creative labor.
Good-bye
and
good
air. With
kind
regards,
Zangger
Edgar
Meyer
also sends his
regards.
Dällenbach
is
habilitating.[9]
A military
mobilization would
be
the best
for
you.
599. From Edgar Meyer
Zurich, 11 August
1918
Dear Mr.
Einstein,
In
the
meantime
you
probably
already
received word
that
you
are
wanted here
in Zurich
again.
I
on
my
part
also would
like to
do
everything
to
help
this
plan
become
fine
reality.
Prof.
Zangger
has
probably already reported
to
you
how
exceptionally
ac-
commodating
the
Zurich
government
and
the
Polytechnic’s
Education
Council
demonstrated
themselves to
be.[1]
This
I
can
absolutely
confirm
as regards
the
Zurich
government,
because when
I appeared
there
for
the
first
time with the
plan,
I encountered
such
understanding
and such efforts
to
clear
away
all
possible
difficulties
that
my
breast
was
filled
with
the
finest
hopes.
If
you
want
to
accept
the
offer,
you
can
be
sure
that
you
can
design your position
here
exactly
as
you
wish,
not
only
concerning
the financial
aspect
but also
the
teaching reponsibil-
ities. And
with
regard
to
the latter
point,
I
would
like to
take
the
liberty
of
making a suggestion.
Since,
as
I
know, you
do
not like
giving lectures, you
could
perhaps
organize
instruction in
theoretical
physics
as
follows:
you
read
only
an
introduction
of
a
sort
and leave
the
individual matters
after
your
introduction
for private
lecturers
[Privatdozenten]
to
execute.
Since in all
probability Epstein
will
finally
be here
next
semester,[2]
furthermore,
Meißner and
Tank[3] just
ha-
bilitated,
you
would have
the
help
of
3-4
private
lecturers
and
could therefore
reduce
your
own
lecturing
hours
to whatever minimum
you please.
Whatever
you
would like
could be done
so
that
you
first have
a
good
amount of time to
recover
thoroughly.
Obviously
the
conditions here
are more
modest
than
in Berlin and cannot be
compared.
But
you
would not
be
entirely
without
contacts in
physics
here
either,
and
you
would
anyway
have
Besso,
Weyl,
Weiss, Epstein,
Piccard,
Ratnowsky,
Dällenbach,[4]
and others. Experimental
physics
is
also not
as
equipped
as
you
have
it
there,
of
course.
But this
I
can
guarantee you,
that
I
and
my
entire
institute
will
be at
your disposal.
Whatever
you
wish
will
be
done,
and
I
may