DOCS.
44,
45
JANUARY
1915 57
that the
clarity
of
the
deduction has become
extremely gratifying.
Even
Planck,
who
was
until
recently
still
a
determined
opponent, is close
to
accepting
the
new
interpretation.
It
is just
a
pity
that
studying
the
theory
is
still
quite
difficult.
But
I
console
myself
with
the
fact
that
at
first this
was
also
so
for Maxwell’s
theory
of
electricity
before Hertz
provided
his
simple interpretation.[8] Presently
I
am
preparing
a
very
interesting
experiment
together
with de Haas
with
which
it
will become
possible
to decide whether
it
is
true
that
paramagnetism
can
be
attributed
to
rotating
electrons.[9]
Best
regards, yours,
Einstein.
Paschen’s helium
paper appeals
to
me immensely.[10]
Why
do
you
write
me,
“God chastise the
English”?[11]
Neither to
the
former
nor
to
the latter
do
I
have
any
close
relations.
I just
see
with
great
dismay
that
God
punishes
so
many
of
His
children for
their
ample
folly,
for which
obviously
only
He
Himself
can
be held
responsible;
I
think,
His
nonexistence alone
can
excuse
Him.
45. To
Paolo Straneo
Wilmersdorf, Berlin,
13
Wittelsbacher
St., 7
January 1915
Highly
esteemed
Colleague,[1]
Simultaneously
with this letter
I
am
sending you my
latest
summarizing paper
on general
relativity theory
and
gravitation
theory,
in which
the
difficult
problem
is brought,
in
a
sense, to
a
close.[2]
I
definitely
believe that in
principle
the
path
pursued is correct
and
that later
people
will
wonder
why
the idea of
general
relativity is
encountering
such
great
resistance. If
motion-uniform
as
well
as
irregular-can
be defined and conceived of
only
as
relative
motion,
then this
relative nature
will
surely
be inherent
to
it,
not
only
from
the
kinematic
but
also
from
the
general physical
point
of view.-
I love
science twice
as
much in these times when
I feel
so painfully
for
almost
all of
my
fellows
about their
emotional
misjudgments
and
the
sad
consequences.
It
is
as
if
an
insidious
epidemic
had confused
their
minds! The
circumspect,
and
we
scientists in
particular,
must foster
international
relations all
the
more
and
must
distance
ourselves
from
the
coarse
emotions of the
mob;
unfortunately
we
have
had
to suffer serious
disappointments
even
among
scientists in this
regard![3]
It
seems
to
me
as
though
I
had made
your
personal
acquaintance
once (ca.
19
years
ago)
in
Italy
(Pavia, Casteggio);
at
that
time
I
was
16
years old.[4]