Letter from Edward Renouf to Anny Schey von Koromla

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Schwaz

11 August 1934

Dear Annerl,

Your enchanting letter made me very happy and also gave me an insatiable appetite for more and more of the same. Your letters – as you do yourself – contain something that somehow waters and refreshes the deepest roots of humanity, so that if everything else is going to pieces, you and your letters must always keep one happy and alive. If a scientist were to ask me what I meant by that, I wouldn’t know how to reply if not perhaps with your two favourite lines from Angelus Silesius.

Beate’s rather laconic letter spoke only of ‘understanding and high wit’ and included a very enthusiastic essay about metaphysics that shows clear evidence of creative thinking. Overall, though, it’s rather complacent and self-satisfied in tone, it doesn’t ask for answers and doesn’t invite me to share her interest in the subject, so it’ll be damn hard for me to respond. The oddities in her writing may be down to the English language; she’s very adept at it, but it’s a lifeless medium in her hands.

My little sister turned up out of the blue three days ago. She was pale but in good spirits. It’s incredibly good fun being able to chat to her about everything under the sun. I light the fire in the kitchen stove. She cooks. Then we feast and natter and laugh together as though there weren’t a single difficulty to overcome in the world. It was just mama who was of the opinion that ‘nothing’s going to work out’. She was already writing ominous, anxious letters to me in Paris, but those she’s written to Schwaz are more ominous and anxious still. In reality, ‘everything will work out’ and my Edda-mouse will be married in October. To mama’s mind virtually everything in the world is difficult or impossible, whereas Edda is actually trying to persuade her Kurt not to worry about earning money and to continue with his studies until he makes the grade as an ‘assessor’. Meanwhile she’s been looking around in Berlin and has already found a publisher who’s agreed to pay her for translations into English. Such a strong woman reminds me of the ideal wife from the Wisdom of Solomon (in the English Bible: PROVERBS, chapter 31, verses 10–31).

I wasn’t able to work in your north room after all, so I just slept there and set the library up as a ‘workshop’. I’ve already finished one American novella there. The day before yesterday Edda dictated the final copy to me, and we sent it off to Paris, to Bradley, that same day. It’s fantastic how easy it is when someone dictates for me: my typewriter was rattling like a goddam machine-gun! Edda thought the novella was good.

Naturally I gave your north room to my sister and I moved into the children’s room. On the first night I slept in Beate’s bed. But the bed wouldn’t have me. It creaked and groaned whenever I so much as scratched one foot with the other. It just wouldn’t let me sleep at all. The following night I rearranged the whole room and moved into Inge’s bed. And Inge’s bed let me sleep in peace, warm and contended.

At this point mama was just arriving in Munich, but she’s coming on the midday train today. The mouse and I have prepared the large west room for her, and it really is looking very nice: flowers, clean sheets and as much fresh air as anyone could possibly want! I’ve also taken a couple of armfuls of books upstairs for them so they can make themselves at home, leaving me in peace to finish a recently started novella down here.

A large armful of greetings and kisses from all of us to all of you!

Goodbye for now!

Etl

PS I haven’t seen Cily yet, but apparently she’s well. Hanni says she’s pretty much ‘unemployed’ and unmarried. I’m sure she’d be over the moon if she could come and do the housework for you again. Hanni is hugely kind and helpful and she often raves about you: and of course she also knows that her eulogising doesn’t fall on deaf ears!

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