"Mingling races, my articles, not my husband" Read the full letter
| Letter Reference | Olive Schreiner BC16/Box1/Fold4/1897/10 |
| Archive | University of Cape Town, Manuscripts & Archives, Cape Town |
| Epistolary Type | Letter |
| Letter Date | 30 April 1897 |
| Address From | Grand Hotel, Alassio, Italy |
| Address To | |
| Who To | William Philip ('Will') Schreiner |
| Other Versions | Rive 1987: 310 |
| Permissions | Please read before using or citing this transcription |
| Legend |
The Project is grateful to Manuscripts and Archives, University of Cape Town, for kindly allowing us to transcribe this Olive Schreiner letter, which is part of its Manuscripts and Archives Collections.
|
1
Grand Hotel
2 Alassio
3 Riviera
4 Italy
5 April 30 / 97
6
7 Dear old Laddie
8
9 I’m so glad to see Innes Sauer Merriman &c stood up well in the
10matter of backing your evidence. Do drop me a line to tell me how
11things are going on. In the greatest confidence, of course, I should
12much like to know what you think of the new man, Millner. I’ve been
13reading his book on Egypt carefully. It’s the kind of book Metcalf
14with a few hints from Rhodes might write: very clever, very plausible;
15& you feel – well, he is a man who will take good care that he is
16never on the losing side. It seems to me quite a toss up which part he
17plays in the history of South Africa during the next few years, but
18it’s better on the whole which-ever side he takes that he should be
19keen. I do hope you will be able to pull together.
20
21 I enclose you a letter Cron got from old ^John^ Ellis, he & all other
22liberal politicians seem to have been greatly impressed with your
23evidence, as no doubt you know.
24
25 Good bye my darling Laddie. Much love to Fan & the small folk.
26 Thy little sis
27 Olive
28
29 ^We shall go to Paris at the end of this month & spend a couple of
30weeks there before we go on to England.^
31
32
33
2 Alassio
3 Riviera
4 Italy
5 April 30 / 97
6
7 Dear old Laddie
8
9 I’m so glad to see Innes Sauer Merriman &c stood up well in the
10matter of backing your evidence. Do drop me a line to tell me how
11things are going on. In the greatest confidence, of course, I should
12much like to know what you think of the new man, Millner. I’ve been
13reading his book on Egypt carefully. It’s the kind of book Metcalf
14with a few hints from Rhodes might write: very clever, very plausible;
15& you feel – well, he is a man who will take good care that he is
16never on the losing side. It seems to me quite a toss up which part he
17plays in the history of South Africa during the next few years, but
18it’s better on the whole which-ever side he takes that he should be
19keen. I do hope you will be able to pull together.
20
21 I enclose you a letter Cron got from old ^John^ Ellis, he & all other
22liberal politicians seem to have been greatly impressed with your
23evidence, as no doubt you know.
24
25 Good bye my darling Laddie. Much love to Fan & the small folk.
26 Thy little sis
27 Olive
28
29 ^We shall go to Paris at the end of this month & spend a couple of
30weeks there before we go on to England.^
31
32
33
Notation
'Plausible' in line 14 is underlined three times. The book referred to is: Alfred Milner (1892) England in Egypt London: Edward Arnold. Rive's (1987) version omits part of this letter and is also in a number of respects incorrect.
'Plausible' in line 14 is underlined three times. The book referred to is: Alfred Milner (1892) England in Egypt London: Edward Arnold. Rive's (1987) version omits part of this letter and is also in a number of respects incorrect.