To Ilona (26 July 1941)

Text in English to type

… Last night Braissford came over from his nearly home, and we discussed the early history of the English Utopians, from Moore to Owen. … Economics have developed into a great science in recent years and unless one keeps up with it one can easily get out of touch with the underlying thinking of the masses themselves which imperceptibly is affected by the new approaches.

[…] Note since 1920 did I have a time so rich in study and development than my last three weeks around Columbia libraries. My sweet Auf-der-Wieden landlady to whom Bözsi managed to introduced me keeps me safe and hale, making my meals myself, from cans and casualness getting up early, and living cheaply, while watching my private affairs maturing in the hot house atmosphere of Bennington's goodwill and my own solitude. GRANDFATHER and Böszi were both invited to her for tea on the night before I left [2] and here was a real occasion for him to develop his genius for the idyllic. We were of course engaged in one of those cross-wise discussions, where his dogmatic militancy … grandfather… Lasswell … David Truman … I will write to David, to make sure that grandfather get's the right type of work with Lasswell. However, Lasswell knows everything about Continental scholarship and is probably better acquainted with Kolmia's work than I myself. It was very high time that something turned up, for things we beginning to look gloomy for grandfather. Bözsi was holding up her end in a splendid way… Ted Newcombe… Gregory Vlastos (…) also is at Columbia summer school; …Paul Lazarsfeld … all this is very much Vorgartenstraße. …

[3] Misi is a queer fish. […] Mausi somehow … Hans and Misi, and Evi is siding by necessity and conviction with her husband.

My own studies fall into three periods… [4] (I forgot to mention my continuous occupation with the subject matter of my seminar − closely related to the book stuff − which kept my busy on the theory of the Balance of Power, Imperialism, and the influence of [Christiani]ty on the development of Western Civilization mainly relying on Max Weber, Troeltsch, Sombart, Tawney, Pirenne and Cunnigham, but eventually having to include the Institutio Christiana of Calvin and other rather out of the way matters).

[…]

[6] I received your charming letter to Leigh which will pass on to him, of course. And also your cable with the permit numbers… […]

A week ago I went to see old Mr Gussich in his summer resort (in Klosterneuburg, as it were). He must have been much younger than your father, for he is certainly far from 70. I liked him very much, and we spent a long Saturday afternoon together on the sea side on Long Island, where they are now staying. […]He like Sandor thought he remembered that your father had taken out his first papers (if not also his second papers, which under the lax at that time were taken out three years after the first, but did not confer American nationality until another two years.) I am now having made inquiries in Washington. […] As to Chicago, where according to both Sandor and Gussich your father died, I have not yet taken up the matter again. Otto is helping me in that direction. In spite of Raoul Blumberg matters are progressing in Washington very slowly.

…

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KPA: 59/05, 1-6