Rudolf Carnap an Otto Neurath, 1. November 1940

WKA Original (=Vorlage, ASP?)

Cambridge, Mass., Nov. 1, 1940

15 Everett St.

Dear Neurath:

We all were immensely glad to learn of your and Mieze’s escape from Holland. And now we are looking forward to the day when it will be possible for you both to come to this country. I have [already on August 13]1Handschriftlicher Einschub written testimonials for you and Mieze and sent them to Kaempffert. It was most comforting to see that the elephant still bears flowers and grinned quite happily. Some difficulties seem to have developed in the plan to get you in on a non-quota visa via Johnson’s committee for refugee scholars. I do not see clearly in the matter, but Kaufmann’s letters do not sound hopeful. I have also warmly recommended Waismann’s case to the same committee, no action has been taken on his case either. Kaufmann is devoting himself greatly to the task of pressing the cases of our friends, but he does not seem to be very influential. Since Kaempffert planned a different mode of action, we hope very much that he will be successful in your case.

So much has happened since we last heard from each other that it is hard to select a beginning. Perhaps you want to hear about friends. Kotarbinski, Rougier and Peppi Frank have been invited by Johnson to come here – Frank finds it hard to get a visa though, since he does not fulfil the requirement of previous two years of teaching. Jørgensen has been taken into consideration by the committee, likewise Grelling, who is somewhere in a camp in the Pyrenees; nobody has heard from Jørgensen since the invasion. Ness has not been molested so far.

I have finished Semantics II; though the Press would like to bring both volumes, they say they cannot do so without considerable subsidies (something like 2500 dollars per volume). The same applies to the publication of a translation of my Logistics. Meiner has asked me what he is to do with the 60 copies of the Sonderausgabe des Kongreßberichtes and has sent me a copy of the bill for 336 marks. He wrote that Hazebroek does not reply to him. I do not suppose that you will have heard from Hazebroek, but I thought you might like to know about the matter. Meiner writes that he is willing to ship the copies to the individuals for whom they are destined if he gets an order to do so. It becomes clearer from day to day how vital your presence is for the Unity of Science Movement; without you, it simply does not seem to be a movement, but just individuals.

Cambridge is a place full of activities, learned and otherwise. We have two kinds of discussion groups, one on logic, which is necessarily small, and a large one where scientists are participating and which has the purpose of spreading the gospel. Russell is here for this term, also Feigl, Tarski, Wundheiler; Franks live in the same house as we.

\(\vert{}\)2 Russell told me that he wrote to Morrison, Minister of Labor in London, in your behalf. We hope that at the time this letter arrives, you are already released and that you and Mieze are married. Our very best gratulations and good wishes!

Tarski told me that Struik (Prof. of Math. here, an old acquaintance of Frank, perhaps you saw him at the Congress) has some connections with President Cardenas of Mexico; he has succeded in getting a visa to Mexico for a friend. If you have plans for going to Mexico and wish Struik to intervene, please let me know.

I am sending to Miss Stebbing for you: 1. Zilsels MS for Encycl., 2. a reprint of my “Testability”. You will get my Encycl.-monograph together with all the other ones from the publisher. There is no other recent publication of mine. I shall send you the “Log. Syntax” as soon as you are settled down somewhere on this side of the ocean.

To you and Mieze (we hope: Mrs. Neurath) our love and best wishes,

yours,

Carnap