"That I may finish that book, 'From Man to Man', being of some use, tragedy & bitterness of woman's fate" Read the full letter
| Letter Reference | HRC/CAT/OS/3b-i |
| Archive | Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas, Austin |
| Epistolary Type | Letter |
| Letter Date | Monday 1 December 1884 |
| Address From | Alexandra House, Denmark Place, Hastings, East Sussex |
| Address To | 24 Thornsett Road, South Penge Park, London |
| Who To | Havelock Ellis |
| Other Versions | Cronwright-Schreiner 1924: 48; Rive 1987: 55; Draznin 1992: 237 |
| 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. Schreiner was resident at two addresses in Hastings from the end of November 1884 to the end of April 1885.
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1Monday
2
3Thankyou for your sweet letter I have told my brother just how I am.
4He doesn’t want to come You mustn’t ask him my darling. If he
5would come & see me & be a little tender to me then I think I would
6live & get well again. But it would be harder to see him if he
7wasn’t
8
9Harry you know I am really dead, I only seem to be alive. You have
10made me live a little. I am so grateful to you. Our love has been such
11a beautiful pure thing, Henry. I feel it so now.
12
13Are there any more dots, my treasure. Take care of your self. Ach,
14Henry one day I shall get well & we will work together in heart & be
15the strength of eachothers lives as we are now.
16
17Don’t be too anxious about me my darling boy. What selfish selfish
18letters I write him. But he likes it so. Other self if I could only
19get to a warm place I should soon be well. I shall be well in the
20spring & go to the Progressive with you.
21
22Olive
23
24You must think my brother isn’t kind to me you don’t know how much
25he has borne for me.
26
27My other self, oh I would like to put my head upon your arm & rest by you.
28
2
3Thankyou for your sweet letter I have told my brother just how I am.
4He doesn’t want to come You mustn’t ask him my darling. If he
5would come & see me & be a little tender to me then I think I would
6live & get well again. But it would be harder to see him if he
7wasn’t
8
9Harry you know I am really dead, I only seem to be alive. You have
10made me live a little. I am so grateful to you. Our love has been such
11a beautiful pure thing, Henry. I feel it so now.
12
13Are there any more dots, my treasure. Take care of your self. Ach,
14Henry one day I shall get well & we will work together in heart & be
15the strength of eachothers lives as we are now.
16
17Don’t be too anxious about me my darling boy. What selfish selfish
18letters I write him. But he likes it so. Other self if I could only
19get to a warm place I should soon be well. I shall be well in the
20spring & go to the Progressive with you.
21
22Olive
23
24You must think my brother isn’t kind to me you don’t know how much
25he has borne for me.
26
27My other self, oh I would like to put my head upon your arm & rest by you.
28
Notation
Draznin's (1992) version of this letter is in some respects different from our transcription. Rive's (1987) version omits part of the letter and is in a number of other respects incorrect. 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. Rive's (1987) version omits part of the letter and is in a number of other respects incorrect. Cronwright-Schreiner's (1924) extract is incorrect in various ways.