Letter from Ernest Jones to Sigmund Freud, May 6, 1921

6 May 1921
The Plat, Elsted

Dear Professor,

I have made three inquiries as to which exact day in May your birthday is,1 but have had to [no] answer to them. Today comes Abraham's letter which shews that the birthday must be in the first week of May. So, although a little late, please allow me to add my warmest congratulations to the others. I hope that the bust, upon which we agreed after anxious discussion, will serve to remind you in a visible form of our devotion to you.2 I wish I could add such a beautiful present as Abraham did in the way of glowing local news of progress, but I have to admit that Berlin is much in advance of London, though there is no reason to complain of the situation in England.

Since my illness I have had to restrict my correspondence to the most urgent matters, chiefly with Hiller, and I have not yet answered your letter of April 12th.

I inquired of Lissa & Kann about the 75 fl. They had withdrawn them from my account, but forgotten to send them on to my Amsterdam one.

The Farnell article is certainly poor, and I accepted it only because he is one of the oldest-standing analysts in America. I adopted the policy of accepting for the first year or two all articles from well-known American analysts until we should feel strong enough to reject them and risk giving offense, but their superficiality and muddle-headedness undoubtedly try one's patience. I am afraid it would be costly now to omit Farnell's article, as it is already corrected in the Umbruch, but please do if you think fit and give the instructions to Hiller.3

I was alarmed at your remark about employing American translators, and would give a great deal to be able to persuade you of how rare it is for anyone to be able to write correct English, of course even rarer in America than in England. Nor is translating a minor matter, for it is by far the chief part of the work for the Journal and Library.