DOCS.
613,
614
SEPTEMBER
1918 639
When
a
great
scholar from
a
neutral
country
abroad
was
presented
the
men-
tioned
political gospel
with
considerable
eloquence,
he
said, “Perhaps
the
world
is
so,
but then
I
do not want
to live
in
it!”[5]
I
am
firmly
convinced
that
a
“world
teaming
with
enemies”
is
forged
out
of
this
reaction.
I
see
rapid
and radical democratization
according
to
the
model
of
the
western
powers
as
the
only way
to
save
Germany.
For
only
such
a
constitution-great
as
its faults
may
otherwise
be-seems
to
guarantee
such
a far-reaching
decentraliza-
tion
of
the
desire for
power
that
a
repetition of
the
line
of
action of
1914
would
appear
excluded.
Nobody
abroad trusts
the
current
regime
anymore.[6]
This,
in
a
few words,
is
my
conviction. As
one
who
was a pacifist even
before
the
war,
I
am
authorized
to
air
my
views
now.
Very respectfully.
614. From Edgar
Meyer
Zurich, 12
September
1918
Dear Mr.
Einstein,
First
of
all,
many
thanks for
your
letter.
I
tried in vain
to be
able to
reply
quickly
and still cannot
report
anything
final to
you
now.
I
am
doing
the
whole
thing together
with
Mr.
Zangger,[1]
you
see,
and
I
have
not
been able to
get
hold of him
the
whole time.
First,
he
was
not
well,
and
later
he
went
away
to
recuperate.[2]
In
any
event,
though, we
must
speak
with the
authorities.
Now,
this
is
what
I
think
of
your proposal:
It
would be
a crying
shame
if
we
could
not
get you
to
come
here
permanently,
but
if
that
is
how it
is,
I
am grateful
to
you
for
every
hour
you
lecture at
our
institutions. Just
provided
that
permanence
is
out
of
the
question,
I
am very
much
for
your proposal
and shall do
all
I
can
to
get
it
accepted.
I
believe
quite firmly
as
well
that the
local
government,
which
listens
to anything reasonable, will consent
to
your
proposal.
Specifically,
I
imagined
that
then
your
lectures would
not
be vacation
courses
but
would
rather
take
place during
the
semester. At
the
moment,
that
works
out
very well,
of
course,
for
as
I
heard,
in Berlin
you
end
your
semester
already
at
the
end of
January,
whereas
we
do
so
only
at
the
beginning
of March.
Spe-
cialized lectures would
naturally
be
very nice.[3]
I also
quite definitely
think that
everything
will
be
settled
so
that
you
can
lecture in
the
winter term
already.[4]
I would also like to
say something briefly
about
your
notice
in the
Verhandlun-
gen.[5]
I
believe
the
1
mm-wide
dark
stripe is
brought
about
by
a
contrast
effect.[6]
Have
a
look at
the
image
with
a magnifying
glass
sometime and
slowly cover
the
lighter
part
with
a
sheet of
paper starting
from
the
side. All
this with the
light
shining
through.
The
stripe
then
disappears.
It
is
best
to take
a
sheet
of
paper