Vienna, March 7th, 1925.
My dear friend,
It is rather a shame when I undertake to reply now
to your letter of December 17th, 1924. Both the delay and my writing
by the help of the typewriter are consequences of the same cause,
namely of my being overburdened with work and troubles of different
kinds, of which not the least are those obligations called " social "
ones, usually crammed into the first two months of the year in this
town. In the meantime, I have got two very kind letters of your
daughter from Paris. I hope she will find there all she expected to
find, although her letters show a certain spirit of criticism of
French life and Parisian university traditions. My dear friend, in
fact, it is very rare to get much out of lectures and the whole or-
ganisation of university studies, if one does not find a special
scholar or academic teacher, who is able to influence the pupil's per-
sonality or his specific scientific character.I really doubt whether
an American student profits much of French academic institutions,ex-
cept if French institutions form the special object of study. I do
think Miss Margaret will enjoy Göttingen more and her uncle in Frei-
burg will be able to do much more for her intellectual or scientific
progress than anyone else. This latter has indeed become one of the few
shining lights of philosophy in whole Germany and his fame is now ex-
tending towards France and will also , no doubt, cross the Channel
soon.
My dear friend,
It is rather a shame when I undertake to reply now
to your letter of December 17th, 1924. Both the delay and my writing
by the help of the typewriter are consequences of the same cause,
namely of my being overburdened with work and troubles of different
kinds, of which not the least are those obligations called " social "
ones, usually crammed into the first two months of the year in this
town. In the meantime, I have got two very kind letters of your
daughter from Paris. I hope she will find there all she expected to
find, although her letters show a certain spirit of criticism of
French life and Parisian university traditions. My dear friend, in
fact, it is very rare to get much out of lectures and the whole or-
ganisation of university studies, if one does not find a special
scholar or academic teacher, who is able to influence the pupil's per-
sonality or his specific scientific character.I really doubt whether
an American student profits much of French academic institutions,ex-
cept if French institutions form the special object of study. I do
think Miss Margaret will enjoy Göttingen more and her uncle in Frei-
burg will be able to do much more for her intellectual or scientific
progress than anyone else. This latter has indeed become one of the few
shining lights of philosophy in whole Germany and his fame is now ex-
tending towards France and will also , no doubt, cross the Channel
soon.