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1 November 1938
20 Maresfield Gardens
London
Dear Jones,
I very much regretted yesterday that your cold obliged you to stay away from me, and then I was greatly dismayed to hear that you would not be able to finish the translation of my Moses before February or March. I know your time is very valuable, your conscientiousness very great, and that you have all sorts of other things to do which are at least just as important. But I remember that you took on this new burden voluntarily, without my requesting you to do so. To be sure, I regarded your undertaking as a special kindness to me and as a mark of respect for the book.
The prospect of a delay is unwelcome to me in more than one respect. First of all, a few months mean more to me than to someone else, when I cling to the understandable wish that I myself may still see the book finished. On the other hand, we have to count on the impatience of the American publisher (Knopf, N.Y.), from whom we have already accepted payment. The general uncertainty of the international situation is a further consideration. I therefore hope that you will find it understandable that I cannot accept a delay of the publication in English without resistance. To