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Letter ReferenceOlive Schreiner: Ruth Alexander MSC 26/2.1.10
ArchiveNational Library of South Africa, Special Collections, Cape Town
Epistolary TypeLetter
Letter Date1917
Address From4 Gloucester Place, Portman Square, Westminster, London
Address To
Who ToRuth Alexander nee Schechter
Other Versions
PermissionsPlease read before using or citing this transcription
Legend
The Project is grateful to the National Library of South Africa (NLSA), Cape Town, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Special Collections. The year has been written on this letter in an unknown hand. Schreiner was staying temporarily with Adela Villiers Smith and her husband at 4 Gloucester Place when it was written, but when exactly in 1917 this was cannot be established.
1 My darling Ruth,
2
3 It is all so awful. Oh Ruth its not the fighting its the lying the
4injustice that is the worst of all & you in South Africa hear no truth
5only the lying wires they send out to the papers there.
6
7 Oh the wickedness of this league of curs with Russia. We have just
8carted through England from Northern Russia a vast body of Russians to
9fight in France because we & the French together are only able
10continually to retreat.
11
12 Ruth is it cowardly one wishes so one had died before one saw this day.
13 For three years England has been in league with ^the^ Russia^n^
14^government^ the oppressors of their own & all other peoples. I feel so
15utterly alone here. Oh it is wicked so wicked, & people of whom we
16would expect better things are continuing all this wickedness because
17they are afraid. We ought never to have made a league with France &
18Germany Russia
19
20 Good bye dear
21
22 Olive
23
24 ^Ruth, you, can't think it right we should aid Russia in her terrible war?^
25
26 ^When you write please address my letter on an inner envelope & in the
27an outer one enclosing this one to me address Mrs Smith 4 Gloucester
28Place Portman Sq London. We are under Martial Law here. I do not know
29if this letter will ever reach you.^
30