1, rue Pot Trinquat, Cahors20 April [1920]Dear Mr RussellHere is the geometry of the ?sh, as you said you liked it. It will appear inthe autobiography of bertrand russell 382the Revue du Métaphysique, but I cannot refrain from sending it to you now as aprolongation of our talk. I hope you will look through it, but please do notfeel bound to write to me about it. I know you are very busy.It was so nice of you to stop. When I heard that you were to come, itseemed like the realisation of a dream. This day with you has been a greatjoy to me.Yours very sincerelyJeanI do not want the MS. back.Campagne SaunexPrégny, Genève22 Sept. 1921Dear Mr RussellDo you know that your death was announced in a Japanese paper? I senta telegram to the University of Peking, who answered ‘Recovered’ – but wewere terribly anxious. We hope you are quite well again now.I shall leave this o?ce in February or March, with some money, and donothing till next October at the very least. I do hope that I shall see you.Yours a?ectionatelyJean Nicod70, Overstrand MansionsPrince of Wales RoadBattersea, S.W.112.10.21Dear NicodI have sent your query to Whitehead, as I have forgotten his theory andnever knew it very thoroughly. I will let you know his answer as soon asI get it. I am glad your book is so nearly done. Please let me see it when it is. –I know about the announcement of my death – it was a fearful nuisance. Itwas in the English and American papers too. I am practically well now butI came as near dying as one can without going over the edge – Pneumonia itwas. I was delirious for three weeks, and I have no recollection of the timewhatever, except a few dreams of negroes singing in deserts, and of learnedbodies that I thought I had to address. The Doctor said to me afterwards:‘When you were ill you behaved like a true philosopher; every time thatyou came to yourself you made a joke.’ I never had a compliment that pleasedme more.Dora and I are now married, but just as happy as we were before. We bothsecond marriage 383send our love to you both. It will be delightful to see you when you leaveGeneva. We shall be in London.Yours a?.Bertrand Russell31 Sydney StreetLondon, S.W.313.9.23Dear NicodI have been meaning to write to you for the last eight months, but havesomehow never done so. Did Keynes ever answer your letter? He is now sobusy with politics and money-making that I doubt if he ever thinks aboutprobability. He has become enormously rich, and has acquired The Nation. Heis Liberal, not Labour.Principia Mathematica is being reprinted, and I am writing a new introduc-tion, abolishing axiom of reducibility, and assuming that functions of propsare always truth-functions, and functions of functions only occur throughvalues of the functions and are always extensional. I don’t know if theseassumptions are true, but it seems worth while to work out theirconsequences.What do you think of the enclosed proposal? I have undertaken to try toget articles. I asked if they would admit Frenchmen, and they say yes, if theywrite in German or English. Will you send me an article for them? I want tohelp them as much as I can. Do.All goes well with us. Dora expects another child about Xmas time, andunfortunately I have to go to America to lecture for three months at theNew Year.The world gets more and more dreadful. What a misfortune not to havelived ?fty years sooner. And now God has taken a hand at Tokyo. As yet, hebeats human war-mongers, but they will equal him before long.Yours everBertrand RussellFrom Moritz Schlick, founder of the Vienna CirclePhilosophischesInstitut der Universit?tin WienVienna, Sep. 9th 1923Dear Mr RussellThank you most heartily for your kind letter. I was overjoyed to receiveyour a?rmative answer. I feel convinced that the future of the magazine isthe autobiography of bertrand russell 384safe since you have consented to lend your help by being one of the editors. Itis a pity, of course, that you cannot send an article of your own immediatelyand that you have not much hope of getting contributions from your Englishand American friends during the next months, but we must be patient andshall be glad to wait till you have more time. I am sure that the scheme willwork very well later on. It already means a great deal to know that we haveyour support, that your name will in some way be identi?ed with the spiritof the magazine.Thank you for your further suggestions. In my opinion contributionsby M. Nicod would be most welcome, and I have no doubt that none ofthe editors would object to French articles, but unfortunately the publisher(who of course takes the business standpoint) has declared that at presenthe cannot possibly print anything in French, but I hope he will havenothing against publishing articles by French authors in the German orEnglish language.I have written to Reichenbach about your suggestion concerning thePolish logicians at Warsaw; I do not think there will be any political di?cul-ties in approaching them. I believe we must be careful not to have too manyarticles dealing with mathematical logic or written in symbolic form in the?rst issues, as they might frighten away many readers, they must get used tothe new forms gradually.I have asked Reichenbach to send you some o?prints of his chief papers;I hope you have received them by the time these lines reach you.I should like to ask you some philosophical questions, but I am extremelybusy just now. Our ‘Internationale Hochschulkurse’ are beginning this week,with lecturers and students from many countries. It would be splendid if youwould be willing to come to Vienna on a similar occasion next year.Thanking you again I remainyours very sincerelyM. SchlickFrom Jean NicodChemin des CoudriersPetit Saconnex, Genève17 September, 1923Dear Mr RussellI should like very much to dedicate my book La Géométrie dans le Monde sensibleto you. It is not very good; but I still hope that bits of it may be worthsomething. Will you accept it, such as it is? I have thought of the followinginscription:second marriage 385A mon ma?treL’Honorable Bertrand RussellMembre de la Société Royale d’Angleterreen témoignage de reconnaissante a?ectionCan I let it go like that? The book is the chief one of my theses. The otherone is Le Problème logique de l’Induction, which is a criticism of Keynes. I thinkI prove there that two instances di?ering only numerically (or in respectsassumed to be immaterial) do count for more than one only; also, that Keynes’Limitation of Variety does not do what he thinks it does. Both books will beprinted in three weeks or so (although they cannot be published till aftertheir discussion en Sorbonne some time next winter).I’ve sent my ms. to Keynes, o?ering to print his answer along with it. Buthe says he is too absorbed by other things; and altogether, I fear that he doesnot take me seriously – which is sad, because I am sure my objections welldeserve to be considered.Physically, I am settling down to a state which is not health, but whichallows some measure of life, and may improve with time.We hope you three are ?ourishing, and send you our love.Jean NicodChemin des CoudriersPetit Saconnex, Genève19 Sept. 1923Dear Mr RussellI got your letter the very morning I had posted mine to you.I should love to write an article for this new review. But I have just sentone to the Revue de Métaphysique (on relations of values (i.e. truth values) andrelations of meanings in Logic) and have nothing even half ready. I have beenthinking of a sequel to my book, dealing with a universe of perspectiveswhere objects are in motion (uniform) and Restricted Relativity applies,everything being as simple as possible. I would set forth what the observer(more like an angel than a man) would observe, and the order of his sensibleworld. What attracts me to that sort of thing is its quality of freshness ofvision – to take stock of a world as of something entirely new. But it may wellbe rather childish, and I don’t propose to go on with it until you have seenthe book itself and tell me it is worth while.Since you are re-publishing Principia, I may remind you that I have provedboth Permutation and Association by help of the other three primitive props(Tautology, Addition, and the syllogistic prop.), where I only changed theorder of some letters. It is in a Memoir I wrote for the ?? degree. I haveentirely forgotten how it is done, but I daresay I could ?nd it again for you, ifthe autobiography of bertrand russell 386you wished to reduce your 5 prim. props to those three (observe there is onewith one letter, one with two letters, and one with three letters).Keynes did answer the letter I sent you. His answer convinced me I wasright on both points; so I went on with my small book. It is a pity he willnot do anything more for the theory of Induction.Your son does look pleased with the stones he holds. His appearance issplendid.We send our love.Yours everJean NicodFrom and to Thérèse Nicodle 18 février [1924]Dear Mr RussellJean has died on Saturday last after a short illness.Je veux vous l’écrire pendant qu’il repose encore près de moi dans cette maison où il a tanttravaillé, tant espéré guérir – et où nous avons été si heureux.Vous savez combien il vous aimait – quelle lumière vous avez été pour lui – vous savez aussil’être délicieux et noble qu’il était. C’est absolument déchirant.Je voudrais avoir des nouvelles de Dora.A?ectueusement à vous deux.Thérèse NicodGenève 22 Juillet 1924Dear Mr RussellPlease pardon me for not having thanked you sooner for the Preface(or introduction, we shall call it what you think best). I do not tell you howgrateful I am to you because I know you did it for Jean.I shall translate it as soon as I get some free time. We are absolutely loadedwith things to do.Of course your preface is everything and more that we could want it to be.I mean to say that it is very beautiful – How could I suggest a single alterationto it.I remember that last winter I wrote to Jean that he was the most beautifultype of humanity I knew. (I do not recollect what about – We had outbreakslike that from time to time) and he answered immediately: ‘Moi le plus beau typed’humanity que je connais c’est Russell.’Thank you again most deeply.Yours very sincerelyThérèse Nicodsecond marriage 38712 Chemin ThuryGenèvele 19 octobre 1960Cher Lord RussellPermettez-moi de m’adresser à vous à travers toutes ces années. J’ai toujours eu l’intention defaire une réédition des thèses de Jean Nicod et je sais qu’aujourd’hui encore, sa pensée n’est pasoubliée. J’ai eu l’occasion de rencontrer dernièrement M. Jean Hyppolite, Directeur de l’Ecolenormale supérieure qui m’a vivement conseillée de rééditer en premier Le problème logiquede l’induction dont il avait gardé un souvenir tout à fait précis et qu’il recommande aux jeunesphilosophes.Parmi ceux qui m’ont donné le même conseil je citerai le Professeur Gonseth de Zurich,M. Gaston Bachelard, Jean Lacroix, etc. J’ai même trouvé, l’autre jour, par hasard, dans un manuelparu en 1959 un passage intitulé: ‘Axiome de Nicod.’L’ouvrage réédité paraitrait à Paris, aux Presses universitaires de France, qui en assureront ladi?usion.Je viens vous demander, si vous jugez cette réédition opportune, de bien vouloir accepter d’écrirequelques lignes qui s’ajouteraient à la première préface de M. Lalande. Qui mieux que vous pourraitdonner à ce tardif hommage le poids et l’envol?Veuillez, cher Lord Russell, recevoir l’assurance de ma profonde admiration et de mes sentimentsrespectueux.Thérèse NicodJe vous écris à une adresse qu j’ai trouvée par hasard dans un magazine et dont je suis si peu s?reque je me permets de recommander le pli.Plas Penrhyn1 November, 1960Dear Thérèse NicodThank you for your letter of October 19. I was very glad to have news ofyou. I entirely agree with you that it is very desirable to bring out a newedition of Nicod’s work on induction which I think is very important andwhich has not received adequate recognition. I am quite willing to make ashort addition to the preface by Monsieur Lalande. I suppose that you are incommunication with Sir Roy Harrod (Christ Church, Oxford) who has beenfor some time concerned in obtaining a better English translation of Nicod’swork than the one made long ago.I was very sorry to hear of the death of your son.If ever you are in England it would be a very great pleasure to see you.Yours very sincerelyBertrand Russellthe autobiography of bertrand russell 388From G. B. Shaw2Hotel MetropoleMinehead, Somerset11 April 1923My dear RussellThe other day I read your laudably unapologetic Apologia from coverto cover with un?agging interest. I gather from your Au Revoir that it is to becontinued in your next.I was brought up – or left to bring myself up – on your father’s plan allthrough. I can imagine nothing more damnable than the position of a boystarted that way, and then, when he had acquired an adult free-thinking habitof mind and character, being thrust back into the P.L. sort of tutelage. You sayyou had a bad temper; but the fact that you neither burnt the lodge normurdered Uncle Rollo is your eternal testimonial to the contrary.No doubt Winchester saved Rollo and his shrine. Your description of theschool is the only really descriptive description of one of the great boys farmsI have ever read.everG. Bernard ShawExtract from Unity, Chicago 19 Jun. 1924Bertrand Russell has returned to England, and one of the most impressivetours ever made in this country by a distinguished foreigner has thus come toan end. Everywhere Professor Russell spoke, he was greeted by great audi-ences with rapturous enthusiasm, and listened to with a touching interestand reverence. At most of his meetings, admission was charged, frequently atregular theater rates, but this seemed to make no di?erence in the attendance.Throngs of eager men and women crowded the auditoriums where heappeared, and vied with one another in paying homage to the distinguishedman whom they so honored. From this point of view, Bertrand Russell’s visitwas a triumph. From another and quite di?erent point of view, it was afailure and disgrace! What was the great public at large allowed to knowabout this famous Englishman and the message which he brought across theseas to us Americans? Nothing! The silence of our newspapers was wellnighcomplete. Only when Mr Russell got into a controversy with PresidentLowell, of Harvard, which gave opportunity to make the eagle scream, did hisname or words appear in any conspicuous fashion in our public prints. Thesame journals which publish columns of stu? about millionaires, actors,singers, prize?ghters and soldiers from abroad, and blazen forth their mostcasual comments about anything from women to the weather, reportedalmost nothing about this one of the most eminent Europeans of the day.But this is not the worst. Turn from the newspapers to the colleges andsecond marriage 389universities! Here is Mr Russell, the ablest and most famous mathematicalphilosopher of modern times – for long an honored Fellow of Cambridge,England – author of learned essays and treatises which are the standardauthorities in their ?eld – at the least, a great scholar, at the most, one of thegreatest of scholars! But how many colleges in America o?cially invited himto their halls? How many gave him degrees of honor? So far as we know, SmithCollege was the only institution which o?cially received him as a lecturer,though we understand that he appeared also at the Harvard Union. Practicallyspeaking, Professor Russell was ignored. A better measure of the ignorance,cowardice and Pharisaism of American academic life we have never seen!From T. S. Eliot9, Clarence Gate GardensN.W.115.X.23Dear BertieI was delighted to get your letter. It gives me very great pleasure to knowthat you like the Waste Land, and especially Part V which in my opinion is notonly the best part, but the only part that justi?es the whole, at all. It means agreat deal to me that you like it.I must tell you that 18 months ago, before it was published anywhere,Vivien wanted me to send you the MS. to read, because she was sure that youwere one of the very few persons who might possibly see anything in it. Butwe felt that you might prefer to have nothing to do with us: It is absurd to saythat we wished to drop you.Vivien has had a frightful illness, and nearly died, in the spring – asOttoline has probably told you. And that she has been in the country eversince. She has not yet come back.Dinner is rather di?cult for me at present. But might I come to tea withyou on Saturday? I should like to see you very much – there have been manytimes when I have thought that.Yours everT.S.E.9, Clarence Gate GardensN.W.121 April. [1925]Dear BertieIf you are still in London I should very much like to see you.My times and places are very restricted, but it is unnecessary to mentionthem unless I hear from you.I want words from you which only you can give. But if you have nowthe autobiography of bertrand russell 390ceased to care at all about either of us, just write on a slip ‘I do not care to seeyou’ or ‘I do not care to see either of you’ – and I will understand.In case of that, I will tell you now that everything has turned out as youpredicted 10 years ago. You are a great psychologist.YoursT.S.E.The Criterion17, Thavies InnLondon, E.C.17 May [1925]My dear BertieThank you very much indeed for your letter. As you say, it is very di?cultfor you to make suggestions until I can see you. For instance, I don’t know towhat extent the changes which have taken place, since we were in touch withyou, would seem to you material. What you suggest seems to me of coursewhat should have been done years ago. Since then her3health is a thousandtimes worse. Her only alternative would be to live quite alone – if she could.And the fact that living with me has done her so much damage does not helpme to come to any decision. I need the help of someone who understands her– I ?nd her still perpetually ba?ing and deceptive. She seems to me like achild of 6 with an immensely clever and precocious mind. She writes extremelywell (stories, etc.) and great originality. And I can never escape from the spellof her persuasive (even coercive) gift of argument.Well, thank you very much, Bertie – I feel quite desperate. I hope to seeyou in the Autumn.Yours everT.S.E.From my brother Frank50 Cleveland SquareLondon, W.28 June, 1925Dear BertieI lunched with the Aunt Agatha on Friday, and she was even more tediousthan usual. In fact, she gave me the treatment that I think she generallyreserves for you. She began by being very sighful and P.L.y about Alys, andsaid how she still loved you and how determined you had been to marry her.She infuriated me so that I reminded her at last that at the time the P.L. view,which she had fully shared, was that you were an innocent young manpursued by a designing woman, and that the one view was not any truer thanthe other. Then she went on to Birth Control, with a sni? at Dora, andsecond marriage 391aggravated me to such an extent that I was bound to tell her that I did notthink old women of seventy-three were entitled to legislate for young ones oftwenty-?ve. Thereupon she assured me that she had been twenty-?ve herselfonce, but I unfortunately lacked the courage to say Never! You can gatherhow provoking she must have been from the fact that I was driven to reply,which I don’t generally do. She then went on to try and make mischief aboutyou and Elizabeth, by telling me how much you were in love with Elizabethand how regularly you saw her.4She really is a villainous old cat.In order to take the taste of her out of my mouth when I got home I read,or at any rate looked through, three books I had not seen before: Daedalus, Icarusand Hypatia. Haldane’s ‘Test Tube Mothers’ gave me the shivers: I prefer theway of the music-hall song! I liked what I read of Dora’s book, and intend toread it more carefully.Will you tell Dora that I am not the least anxious to go to the Fabianpeople, as it would bore me to tears, and would only have done it to back herup, so I hope she won’t put anyone else on to me. Dora says you are fat, andsomething that at ?rst I thought was ‘beneath consideration’, which gaveme a faint hope that you had ceased to be a philosopher, but on looking at itagain I see that it is ‘writing about education’.Dorothy Wrinch said that she was coming down to see you early inAugust, and I suggested driving her down, but I suppose that means takingold Heavyweight too. The time she suggested, shortly after the August BankHoliday, would suit me if you could have me then. You will no doubt besurprised to hear that I am going to the British Ass. this year, as it is held atSouthampton, quite convenient.Damn that acid old spinster.Yours a?ectionatelyRussell50 Cleveland SquareLondon, W.215 June, 1925Dear BertieThanks for your amusing letter. I was going to write to you anyhow,because I have been reading your delightful What I believe. My word! You havecompressed it, and succeeded in saying a good many things calculated to bethoroughly annoying and disconcerting to the virtuous in the space. I am sodelighted with it that I am going to get half-a-dozen copies and give themaway where I think they will be appreciated. I like your conclusive proof thatbishops are much more brutal than Aztecs who go in for human sacri?ces.