| Letter Reference | T120 (M722): W.T. Stead Papers/37- pages 161-164 |
| Archive | National Archives Depot, Pretoria |
| Epistolary Type | Letter |
| Letter Date | 8 March 1904 |
| Address From | 6 Tamboerskloof Road, Gardens, Cape Town, Western Cape |
| Address To | |
| Who To | William Thomas Stead |
| Other Versions | |
The manuscript of this letter by Olive Schreiner belongs to the Archive referenced above; its ownership of the original should be acknowledged by referencing the letter as indicated:
Copyright transcription: © Olive Schreiner Letters Project. This transcription can be freely used as long as copyright is acknowledged and it is referenced using the following citation: ‘Olive Schreiner to William Thomas Stead, 8 March 1904, National Archives Depot, Pretoria, Olive Schreiner Letters Project transcription’. Please also supply letter line numbers for specific quotations.
Legend
The Project is grateful to the National Archives Repository, Pretoria, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Micofilm Collections.
1: 6 Tamboer’s Kloof Rd
2: Tamboer’s Kloof
3: March 8th 1904
4:
5: Dear Friend! It has indeed been delightful to see you. I shall call
6: this afternoon at four & see if you would care for the drive in the
7: train round the Kloof: though after the marvellous motor car I hardly
8: like to propose it.
9:
10: Please, dear friend, be sure & mention nothing that has passed between
11: us in writing to England, (in this country of course I know you will
12: not). I had resolved not to refer to the war, Rhodes, or South African
13: public matters in speaking to you, but you see I didn’t keep my
14: resolve. There is nothing gained about things; it only makes my heart
15: bad & we have so much in common on which we are entirely agreed.
16:
17: It may seem strange but with the exception of that man you sent out to
18: see about your paper, I have not exchanged one word with any English
19: person once since the peace & even with the Africanders except with a
20: very small number of ones closest friend. - It is a time when speech
21: can do no good; can do only harm, & as I cannot speak politically in a
22: way, I do not feel it is much better to remain perfectly silent – for
23: my self.
24:
25: I am looking forward so much to seeing you this afternoon. I hope you
26: are both feeling fit.
27: Olive Schreiner
28:
Notation
While Stead was in South Africa, his son Alfred was sent the letter below by T. Fisher Unwin (T120 (M722): W.T. Stead Papers/pages 37-8). Unwin had published various of Schreiner’s books, to her increasing unhappiness. It shows very clearly that, in spite of his protestation of
Trooper Peter Halket of Mashonaland being ‘not a great business success’, Unwin was very keen to publish something else by her:
Cable and Telegraphic Address – “Century, London.”
P.O. Telephone No. – 181 Central.
T. Fisher Unwin,
Publisher
11, Paternoster Buildings,
London,
E.C.
March 17th 1904
Alfred Stead Esq,
“Review of Reviews”
^My dear Mr Stead^
I heard from our friends the Milhollands that your father is in Cape Town and that he is better; I am very glad indeed to hear this; he needed rest after all his labours.
I feel quite sure that he will meet out mutual friend Olive Schreiner. I wish when you are writing to him you would ask him to talk to her on my behalf and make some brilliant literary suggestion. Why should we not collaborate, you running a book by her as a serial and I issuing it in volume form. Some plan might be organised by which we would work together. At any rate I should be very glad if your father would tell her that I am always ready to publish for her. As you may know I have published most of her work. My last venture was “Peter Halket” which unfortunately was not a great business success for its publisher. However, I paid the author four figures and am quite prepared to pay four figures again if she will give me a good long novel.
^Yours truly
T. Fisher Unwin^
