"Sauer's last act, no glimmering of modern truths in South Africa" Read the full letter
| Letter Reference | HRC/CAT/OS/2a-v |
| Archive | Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas, Austin |
| Epistolary Type | Letter |
| Letter Date | Friday 8 August 1884 |
| Address From | Buxton, Derbyshire |
| Address To | 24 Thornsett Road, South Penge Park, London |
| Who To | Havelock Ellis |
| Other Versions | Cronwright-Schreiner 1924: 38; Draznin 1992: 124-5 |
| Permissions | Please read before using or citing this transcription |
| Legend |
The Project is grateful to the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, the University of Texas at Austin, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Manuscript Collections. This letter has been dated by reference to an associated envelope and its postmark, which also provides the address it was sent to.
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1Buxton
2Friday.
3
4I am so glad that exam is over. Even if you haven’t passed it it’s
5something to have got rid of it. But I hope you have.
6
7I think you must come on Tues-day. I have to take Wilfred to Derby on
8Monday afternoon, shall not be back at Wirksworth till late in the
9evening, & I don’t want you to come ^just^ when I am too tired to stand
10or move. I think we had better go to Wirksworth straight.
11
12I didn’t write yesterday because I was very tired. I will explain to
13you about my style when I see you. I never know why I do ^write^ things
14in a cer-tain way when I write them, but I can generally find out if
15think afterwards. I think what you mean is what I called “writing
16ribbed” I don’t know when I invented that term for a certain style of
17writing; I am changing a whole chapter of “From man to man” from what
18I call the plain into the “ribbed” style. Sometimes the plain is right,
19 sometimes the “ribbed.” I think I generally write descriptions in the
20plain, & philosophize or paint thought in the “ribbed.” (You know in
21knitting there are two stitches, one makes a plain surface & the other
22makes ribs; I think I got it from that. Ribbed knitting isn’t smooth
23it goes up & down, up & down).
24
25I wish Dr. A wasn’t at Wirksworth.
26
27Good bye till tomorrow my own friend what a difference you make in my life.
28Olive
29
30If I’m not well enough to go about with you you must go alone for
31walks. I want you to see everything I’ve seen.
32
2Friday.
3
4I am so glad that exam is over. Even if you haven’t passed it it’s
5something to have got rid of it. But I hope you have.
6
7I think you must come on Tues-day. I have to take Wilfred to Derby on
8Monday afternoon, shall not be back at Wirksworth till late in the
9evening, & I don’t want you to come ^just^ when I am too tired to stand
10or move. I think we had better go to Wirksworth straight.
11
12I didn’t write yesterday because I was very tired. I will explain to
13you about my style when I see you. I never know why I do ^write^ things
14in a cer-tain way when I write them, but I can generally find out if
15think afterwards. I think what you mean is what I called “writing
16ribbed” I don’t know when I invented that term for a certain style of
17writing; I am changing a whole chapter of “From man to man” from what
18I call the plain into the “ribbed” style. Sometimes the plain is right,
19 sometimes the “ribbed.” I think I generally write descriptions in the
20plain, & philosophize or paint thought in the “ribbed.” (You know in
21knitting there are two stitches, one makes a plain surface & the other
22makes ribs; I think I got it from that. Ribbed knitting isn’t smooth
23it goes up & down, up & down).
24
25I wish Dr. A wasn’t at Wirksworth.
26
27Good bye till tomorrow my own friend what a difference you make in my life.
28Olive
29
30If I’m not well enough to go about with you you must go alone for
31walks. I want you to see everything I’ve seen.
32
Notation
Draznin’s (1992) version of this letter is in some respects different from our transcription. Cronwright-Schreiner’s (1924) extract is incorrect in various ways.
Draznin’s (1992) version of this letter is in some respects different from our transcription. Cronwright-Schreiner’s (1924) extract is incorrect in various ways.