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Letter ReferenceOlive Schreiner: F.S. Malan 1000/8
ArchiveNational English Literary Museum, Grahamstown
Epistolary TypeLetter
Letter DateSaturday 10 July 1909
Address FromDe Aar, Northern Cape
Address To
Who ToFrancois Stephanus ('FS') Malan
Other Versions
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Legend
The Project is grateful to the National English Literary Museum (NELM) for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Manuscript Collections. The date has been written on this letter in an unknown hand.
1 De Aar
2 Saturday
3
4 Dear Friend
5
6 Your speech was splendid. One friend writes me that there was hardly a
7woman belonging to us in the audience whose eyes were dry when you
8spoke of the English suffragettes.
9
10 There is one point I wish to write to you about as soon as I am better
11- it your statement that women do not suffer any injustice under men
12made laws. What of the C.D. Acts? What of the laws which even in this
13land shut us out from almost all professions & ways of earning our
14bread - ie. the law, the civil service &c &c. Only the other day a
15woman wanted to be articled as a clerk (There are endless other
16points) I wish we could talk of over the matter. I don't think you've
17given it full consideration. Have you??
18
19 But you speech was splendid, dear friend. I thank you for having done
20such justice to yourself. When you make such a speech on the native
21question I shall go to my grave more restfully, feeling one more dream
22was ^has been^ realized.
23
24 I suppose it was because you stood forward so as our leader, on the
25path of ^towards^ justice & freedom during the war, that I cannot shake
26myself from the feeling you should always stand so in other matters as
27well. I wish the time would come when you & my brother would work
28together. He has such a high admiration for your character. I was
29speaking to him the other day about some of our public men & their
30absolute want of any aim higher than immediate personal success - when
31he said, "But you don't include Malan - surely you understand that he
32is a man of an altogether different & higher calibre!" But he won't
33live long his heart is very bad, & you I hope have a long, long life
34before you. Therefore it matters so much in what direction your start
35it. My dear old brother is only finding his true direction near the
36end of his life - you must find yours now.
37
38 If one can't fix one's hope of ^for^ great, liberal enlightened lines of
39action up you, then there is no public man in South Africa to whom one
40can look with hope.
41
42 Thank you so much for your speech. Love to your dear wife.
43 Olive Schreiner
44
45 ^I am sending you a copy of "Votes for Women" with a very interesting
46letter by Lord Lytton, which you might find it worth while to read.^
47