"In losing the friendship of the Republics, England has blown away one of the bulwarks of Empire, when England stands where we stand today let her remember Soouth Africa" Read the full letter
Letter Reference | Letters/559 |
Archive | |
Epistolary Type | |
Letter Date | 1915 |
Address From | London |
Address To | |
Who To | Adela Villiers Smith nee Villiers |
Other Versions | Cronwright-Schreiner 1924: 348 |
Permissions | Please read before using or citing this transcription |
Legend |
When Cronwright-Schreiner prepared The Letters of Olive Schreiner, with few exceptions he then destroyed her originals. However, some people gave him copies and kept the originals or demanded the return of these; and when actual Schreiner letters can be compared with his versions, his have omissions, distortions and bowdlerisations. Where Schreiner originals have survived, these will be found in the relevant collections across the OSLO website. There is however a residue of some 587 items in The Letters for which no originals are extant. They are included here for sake of completeness. However, their relationship to Schreiners actual letters cannot now be gauged, and so they should be read with caution for the reasons given.
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1To Mrs. Francis Smith.
2London (? 1915).
3
4... No, the only feeling I have about my life is that I have thrown it
5all away, done nothing with it. I have only two excuses, that I
6started with everything against me, and that I have always done at the time
7what I felt to be the right thing. But I doubt me whether I have been
8right; I have always felt, do the nearest duty first; so one
9sacrifices all the larger ends. But it's no use weeping over the past
10- one must always live in the present and future while there is any -
11the past one cannot touch.
12
2London (? 1915).
3
4... No, the only feeling I have about my life is that I have thrown it
5all away, done nothing with it. I have only two excuses, that I
6started with everything against me, and that I have always done at the time
7what I felt to be the right thing. But I doubt me whether I have been
8right; I have always felt, do the nearest duty first; so one
9sacrifices all the larger ends. But it's no use weeping over the past
10- one must always live in the present and future while there is any -
11the past one cannot touch.
12