BRACERS Notes

Record no. Notes, topics or text
131301

BR's response to a postcard and an excerpt of a letter are found in Lord Rothschild's book, Random Variables, page 19. 

Rothschild sent a postcard to BR asking whether he likes claret with the options "Yes" and "No". BR had answered the postcard, crossing out "No", and leaving "Yes". BR added a note to the postcard, "but it disagrees with me and I have had to give it up."

In a further undated letter, BR said, "Mercifully I can still drink whiskey".

131302

Excerpts of a letter from BR to Antonia, found in Susan Chitty's Now to my Mother, a memoir of Antonia White, page 27.

BR was in "proletarian bondage" to writing "an outline of philosophy for the Middle West".

BR asked about her "convent memoirs" and told her to read "that delicious book, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes".

BR suggested dinner in "a Soho restaurant. I will try to epitomise the readings of Philosophy."

BR wrote that the daughters of a coal miner, who attended Beacon Hill, were "horrid little prigs, lady-like, unenterprising, greedy, untruthful and given to petty theft in the intervals of going to chapel. I don't like the proletariat any better than their enemies do."

On Antonia's trip to Paris with Yvon, BR wrote, "I am amazed at your strength of mind in resisting him. I should have wanted to see what were the bad things he could do, and whether I couldn't do worse."

131303

Susan Chitty suggests that BR slept with Antonia after a Monday evening lecture on Kant in 1928, even though Antonia insisted that she never slept with BR. The letter BR sent to Antonia is found in Susan Chitty's Now to my Mother, a memoir of Antonia White, page 28.

"I was quite intoxicated by your kindness to me yesterday, and have been wondering ever since what I had done to earn it ... I keep wondering whether it was just a mood, or whether you feel the same way still ... I find that I can be free on Monday—after all ... will you stay with me 'til morning? Or is that asking too much? And if it is, what is the most you will concede? ... You know how much I have wanted you and now hope makes me dumb and shy."

131304

An excerpt of a letter BR sent to Antonia, after she expressed a lack of maternal feeling on the birth of her daughter, found in Susan Chitty's Now to my Mother, a memoir of Antonia White, page 32. 

"I shouldn't worry, if I were you, over not feeling the correct emotions as per copy book. Very few women do, especially with a first child. They lie about it as a form of boasting. You will find that affection will grow; it is a result, not a cause, of the care one takes of the child."

131305

A description of BR's letter to Antonia, on Jane Carlyle, found in Susan Chitty's Now to my Mother, a memoir of Antonia White, page 64. 

BR had two unpublished letters between him and Jane Carlyle. One of the letters told of how the cook conceived in the room next to where the Sage was working.

BR wished to renew his friendship with Antonia and meet his goddaughter, Susan.

131306

An excerpt of a letter from BR to the Dial, found in "Notes on Contributors", The Dial, Vol. LXXI, No. 6.

"Your letter of October 6 reached me in Peking, and before I had time to answer it I began to die. I have now finished with this occupation, although the Japanese journalists first announced my death and then tried to make the announcement true by mobbing me as I passed through Japan when I was convalescent."

131307

An excerpt of a letter from BR, on Wohlgemuth and his work on Freud, found in A. Wohlgemuth's "The Freudian Psychology", The Literary Guide and Rationalist Review, no. 393, March 1929, page 60.

Wohlgemuth notes BR's change in opinion.

After the publication of Wohlgemuth's book, A Critical Examination of Psycho Analysis, BR expressed his satisfaction that the "Freudian bubble had at last been pricked".

BR also wrote, "... experience with young children has led me to think that much of what appears fantastic in his [Freud's] psychology is nevertheless largely true."

131308

An excerpt of a letter from BR to Dyn, found in "Inquiry on Dialectical Materialism", Dyn, a Review of Art and Literature, Volume 2, 1942, page 52.

The letter is included in a questionnaire regarding the scientific validity of dialectical materialism, where BR answered the first two questions "No" and answered the third question, "I think this nonsense".

"I think the metaphysics of both Hegel and Marx plain nonsense—Marx's claim to be 'science' is no more justified than Mary Baker Eddy's. This does not mean that I am opposed to Socialism."

131309

An excerpt from a letter, found in Questions and Answers, No. 27, 1944, page 4.

"I very much like writing for you, because I can say what I like. I am glad of your existence on public grounds as well as for my own sake. Your work is a most useful one."

The copy of the document is missing from the file.

131310

BR's letter to Meredith appears in S. Gorley Putt's "A Packet of Bloomsbury Letters: the Forgotten H.O. Meredith", in Encounter, 59, November 1982, page 83.

"I have just read your poems, and I must write to you about them. I think them extra ordinarily good—best when they are least like other people's. If I had done them, I should feel I had paid my debt to humanity. You have brought poetry back from the fiddle-faddle of literature and culture, and spoken of the things that matter in language that is natural. And you have succeeded in making one feel what you mean one to feel. Hitherto the only democratic poet has been Walt, whose optimism is a blot, and who has not the indignation and the shame. I know of no one else who has done at all what you have done, and I think it very important it should be done. But it makes me wonder whether my pursuits are not worthless."

131311

A card with "G. Spencer Brown"'s printed address was inserted between the front endpapers of Spencer-Brown's Probability and Scientific Inference (Russell's Library, no. 630), saying: "I hope you will accept this copy of 'Probability' from the publishers and me."

131312

A piece of paper, printed in red and brown and torn from a publication or advertisement, was inserted between pp. 68-9 of George Bengescu's edition of Oeuvres Choisies de Voltaire (Russell's Library, no. 555).

131313

A slip of pink paper was inserted between pp. 156-7 of Harringston's Nugae antiquae (Russell's Library, no. 542). The slip has been cut from a large page and is printed with: A.W. Bell & Co., "Milton Press," 393, St. John Street, E.C. The book is inscribed to BR "Christmas 1933 from P." [i.e. Patricia Russell].

131314

A "with compliments" slip was inserted between pp. 102-3 of Robertson's The Reformation (Russell's Library, no. 216).

131315

A form letter, which has been dated ("Porthcurno Cornwall June 9, 1927"), addressed, and signed by hand, is printed at the beginning of Harding's Diary of a Journey from Srinagar to Kashgar (Russell's Library, no. 446). Russell's copy of the book is No. 123. His second copy of the book is No. 25; the form letter is addressed to him a little differently.

131316

On her trip to Spain.

131317

"At my literature class we are doing D.H. Lawrence at the moment and our tutor mentioned that at one time Bertie and D.H. thought of starting a school together—can you imagine that? Fortunately they fell out—".

131318

On Beacon Hill School and discipline.

"The only serious business and I don't know how it started was this difficult older boy who seemed to hate Dora and one day in an argument he struck her. Whereon O'Farrell (Science Teacher) struck the boy—Dora was furious with him and the boy flew up the tower. Dora would not allow anyone to chase after him—even when it was pointed out that he could destroy all the books and valuables of Bertie's. He was left severely alone and eventually came down having done no harm."

131319

On Beacon Hill School and discipline.

"The boy you mention who hit Dora sounds as if it may have been Jason Harvey—does that name ring a bell? I doubt that Dora ever knew or even suspected that Lily used to slap Harriet. Moreover, I think you are right in the belief that Dora would never believe it."

Harley is half-finished the rough draft of his thesis and expects to graduate by Christmas.

131320

On Beacon Hill School.

"It must be marvellous to see the school from its inception—I wonder what conclusion you have drawn from your material about how good the school was, for its time."

131321

On Beacon Hill School.

"As to your questions about the school, it is very difficult to make any specific generalizations about it. I find that it was very much the product of a spirit and temper which is no longer with us in much abundance. The horror of the Great War gave some people a deep sense of purpose in that they believed that society would be reformed for the better and man would progress to a new level of creativity and happiness. To that end, the old order would have to be pulled down and a new one constructed. I think that Beacon Hill epitomizes this wave of energy, optimism and belief in the future."

131322

On Betty Cross.

"She had a very low opinion of BR. She said he was a hypocritical humbug—he maybe was in some ways. She resented his denigrating the school and sending spies—to say the place was dirty and the children neglected—and order to get control of John and Kate. It annoyed me too—at the time. But you have to take the bad with the good and he was admirable in other ways. Probably Dora drove him to it—and Peter Spence egged him on."

131323

"I think Dora and Bertie were both extremely petty during the divorce, probably due to fear—of losing their children. That trumped-up story of the place being dirty and the children neglected was surely beneath B.R!"

131324

On Beacon Hill School.

"I'm sure Dora did most of the running of the school while Bertie wrote (to make money) and spent his leisure time trying to seduce the staff. If there was any failure in the school it was with the parents not the children and I agree that Dora played a big part in upsetting her own children and leaving them open and vulnerable to the teasing of some of their peers."

131325

On Harley's thesis, which explores Russell's ideas and Beacon Hill School.

"I am forced to conclude as the result of my research that the theoretical foundation behind Beacon Hill at least at the beginning was Russell's despite the fact that he did not take much hand in the actual running of the school. ... His first publication on education in Principles of Social Reconstruction came out in 1916 and can not be attributed to any influence from Dora as they had not even met at the time he was writing it. ... I have also uncovered a letter which Russell wrote in 1896 to his first wife Alys in which he says that he would like to start a co-educational school in order to teach any children he might have a sensible attitude towards sex. This proves that he had considered starting up a school a long time before having met Dora."

131326

On Beacon Hill School.

"... the children you have contacted and who are the prime factor should give some idea of what it was like towards the end. Shortage of money—and the violent struggle in Dora's private life to hang on to the school and her children—with Bertie doing his best to close the school and get his children led to a draining away of enthusiasm."

131327

"I am sure Russell had always been interested in Education but I wonder if he would have started a school if he hadn't had any children. The tutor of my Lit. Class said that Russell and D.H. Lawrence had talked about starting a school—then they fell out—and I'm sure that would never have worked."

131328

"I think that you are right in suggesting that BR would not have started a school had it not been for his children."

"I would like to do some work on H.G. Wells and W.B. Curry after this is finished. I ordered some books by Russell some time ago and as it turned out they had once belonged to Curry and had his signature in them. What a strange and small world it sometimes is! His copy of Marriage and Morals was particularly worn!"

131329

On Dora's second volume of her autobiography, The Tamarisk Tree.

"I have enjoyed reading most of it and remembering some of the names of the children I had forgotten."

"I wonder what you thought of the book. Bertie leaving Dora was obviously a very traumatic experience for her...."

131330

Dora has read Harley's article on Beacon Hill School and "she hates it".

131331

"Dora's book can give you a lot of information about the school. Her time sequence gets a bit muddled at times—or maybe, it's mine that's wrong."

"I think I met H.G. Wells once, only at lunch when he came to the school."

131332

On Dora's second volume of her autobiography, The Tamarisk Tree.

"The book is not very well written too factual—too impersonal and of course an account of what she wants to believe happened—rather than what did."

"I am a little doubtful that Dora didn't teach dogma—I'm sure the children were imbued with her political ideas."

131333

"Actually Beacon Hill was not a free school. It was freer but not like A.S. Neill's."

"I think H.G. Wells came down to the school once when I was there."

131334

Edith notes that the letter arrived "apparently lacking last page or pages".

"Thank you for your comments regarding the Russell 73 talks and I am hoping that I can arrange or prod someone else to arrange a similar venture next year."

131335

"... I have decided that what really needs to be done is a work on his political theories which would unite the writings of his lifetime into a coherent popular account. ... I have begun working on this book and hope to have finished the first draft by the end of this summer. Kenneth Blackwell and myself both feel that this is a project of which your husband would himself have approved and which at present is a need not filled in contemporary publications."

131336

"I have just finished re-reading again the third volume of the Autobiography and found it just as before very interesting and enjoyable. Could you please elaborate on your first meeting with him and your impressions at that time. Another thing which interests me is the matter of your imprisonment in 1961. Did you suffer any hardships while there? I admire very much your courage throughout the whole affair."

131337

On Ronald Clark's biography of BR.

"I am relieved to hear your comments concerning Clark and that you have him very much sized up. My personal disagreement with him centred around the fact that he considered BR to be a mercenary author. He told me that Which Way to Peace? was written only to make money and that the author did not seriously believe what he was writing but had intended it to be nothing but a 'pot-boiler'."

131338

"I have managed to get enough money to bring Dr. Kate Tait up from America to give a few talks on B.R."

"P.S. I note that you rode horses bareback in a circus in Paris?"

131339

Harley quotes from Shelley's "Ode to the West Wind".

He has received a letter from the editor of the Humanist in Canada. The editor is considering Harley's suggestion of a regular column on BR.

"Dr. Elizabeth Ramsden-Eames is coming to give a talk shortly. I have a copy of her book Bertrand Russell's Theory of Knowledge, the contents of which I discussed with her last year when she was at the Archives. She is a singularly able woman who strikes me as being very fair in her presentation of B.R."

131340

"I have been exchanging letters with Lady Constance Malleson for the last few months. She is a remarkable woman in every respect. Ken Blackwell and I were able at last to arrange a meeting of the Russell Society here this year and were fortunate in enticing Katharine Tait up with two of her children. She was charming and her talk was very well received."

"I was very sorry to hear of the tragic death of Lady Lucy. It must have been a terrible shock to the Russell family."

131341

"I exchanged letters with Lady Constance for about a year. It was a wonderful experience and from it grew a deep admiration and respect for her. Presently, I am attempting to gather as much information about her as possible for a possible biography."

131342

Harley is writing his thesis on "The Beacon Hill Experiment: Freedom for Responsible Citizenship".

Harley has had contact with Dora about his thesis. "When she heard of my project she told me that she did not see how I could complete it and that she was writing a book on Beacon Hill now."

131343

"I have received another letter from Mrs. Grace in which she has complied to my request for a list of names and addresses of those she knows who had anything to do with B.H. School."

"I find her an extremely difficult person to write to since she is so very sensitive on what is her work and what was B.R's and where her contribution begins and his ends.... All in all I feel very much like a tightrope-walker in this matter."

"But I should like to know whether or not B.R. thought that the school was no longer representative of his views once Dora took over."

131344

On his thesis concerning Beacon Hill School.

"A large number of ex-teachers, students and their parents have been very generous in offering help. I thought that you would like to know how high a regard they have all expressed for B.R. Contrary to his sense of failure, B.R.'s excursion into the world of education seems from all these accounts to have been a genuine success—except of course in so far as John and Kate were concerned."

"I was wondering if you could tell me a little about B.R.'s smoking habits. Out of the impulse of 'pure curiosity' I was wondering what types of pipes he smoked and was he exacting about them."

131345

A wedding invitation.

131346

"I did know that his birthday was the 18th of May, (mine is on the 7th of the same month) but I did not know about the roses. Did you ever meet Wittgenstein? he has always struck me as a 'queer' sort of person. I would also be interested in your account of the first time that you met B.R. and what struck you the most about him."

131347
131348

On the death of Lucy Russell.

"It sounds like a shocking affair and one which is probably liable to raise scandal. From what I know about John Conrad Russell, which is little owing to the veil of silence which surrounds him, I suspect that he did little to influence her upon a more rational and balanced outlook upon life. ... I came to the conclusion some time ago that the fear of insanity had a great impact upon B.R.'s life and that the warnings of his grandmother before his marriage with Alys did little to abate this. If he had anything to say to you concerning this, it would be a help to me."

131349

"Did B.R. ever mention to you a book he was writing called Prisons?"

131350

"It seems difficult to believe that B.R. married Dora because she was the only woman he could find who wanted children."

"The book Prisons was supposed to have been written by B.R. I think in the period around 1914 and was along the lines of A Free Man's Worship. At present its existence is still a legend."

131351

Harley has read Colette's article, "Bertrand Russell: Philosopher of the Century".

"Also have just read a book called The Loving Friends: a Portrait of Bloomsbury which has just came out by David Gadd. What was your impression of Ottoline? Gadd refers to her as a 'disguised nymphomaniac', I think that B.R. would have found this amusing."

131352

"My opinion of Ottoline was always quite high especially in light of her having raised money for B.R. when he came out of Brixton."

"I have always wondered what effect your relationship with Russell had on Miles Malleson's attitude towards him. I know that they remained good friends but I am interested to know if there were in any way subtle changes in their interactions."

131353

"I have read Dora's book and am unimpressed by it for several reasons. ... Now more than ever I cannot understand why B.R. ever consented to marry her. No number of future progeny could justify such voluntary suffering."

131354

"Your letter of the 4th instant has been handed to us. We regret to inform you of the death of Lady Malleson on 5th instant."

131355

They suggest that Harley contact Phyllis Urch, rather than Clare Annesley, for information concerning Constance Malleson.

131356

"Regarding Lady Malleson, we do not have much to tell you as she kept things to herself and as she was quite deaf, it was difficult to have much conversation with her."

Riley suggests that he contact Violet Chapman, a previous Matron who knew Colette when she first came to the home. He also refers him to Sister K. Matter, Mrs. K.B. Smith and Mrs. N. Bugg (the current Matron).

131357

"Although Mrs. Smith and I looked after the Lady Constance Malleson during her last years, we knew very little about her past. She lent us her books and we learned something about her through them—but nothing that you already don't know."

"Lady Constance led the life of a recluse for many years before she died and would allow only one person to visit her while she was here—Mrs. P. Urch...."

131358

BR and the propaganda committee of the No-Conscription Fellowship approve of Housman's pamphlet but lack the funds to publish it as a pamphlet at this time. The text may be the article "The Mind of To-morrow" published under Housman's name in the next issue of The Tribunal, no. 66 (12 July 1917): 1. No other work by Housman is mentioned in the next four months of The Tribunal.

BR tries to fundraise: "If you know any one who would be willing to contribute to our funds, I should be deeply grateful for your assistance in begging—which is always an odious job!"

131359

Frank Russell acknowledges Housman's report of additional members on the Committee of the Men's League (for women's suffrage). He cannot say how many people support "my House". Russell invites Housman to "come down and see our beautiful house on the Downs in August or September". The reference is to the new building of Telegraph House.

131360

Russell has now read "Mr. Trimblerigg" in order and found a greater understanding of it. Inadvertently, he has plagiarized Housman's idea of "capturing broadcasting" in an enclosed article (not present). He goes on to praise Housman's writing and thanks him for the book, which he will "dip into... again in the future, as I do the Pickwick Papers". He closes with a postscript scolding him for failing to use the full infinitive with "to help make".

 

131361

A business card for the Swedish publisher, Natur och Kultur, was inserted between pp. 38-9 of Aspelin, Wedberg and Tigerstedt's Bertrand Russell, tre studier (Russell's Library, no. 3239). The book was published on the occasion of the award to Russell of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Russell has signed this copy.

131362

A blue sheet of mathematical formulae was inserted between pp. 378-9 of Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica (Russell's Library, no. 924). The note is in an unknown hand; a number of pressed flowers were also at this page. The book had several owners prior to BR, including Ludwig Wittgenstein, J. Hay Beattie, and W. Laing M.D. of Fochabers.

131363

A blank slip of paper was inserted between pp. 554-5 of Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 1 (Russell's Library, no. 916).

131364

A leaflet for books  (including W.S. Churchill's The Malakind Field Force) published by Longmans, Green and Co. was folded and inserted between pp. 548-9 of Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 4 (Russell's Library, no. 919).

131365

A "with compliments" slip was inserted between pp. 48-9 of Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 3 (Russell's Library, no. 918). The slip is for Atheneum Publishers' Western Intruders: America's Role in the Far East (1967).

131366

A pipe cleaner was inserted between pp. 540-1 of Gibbon's The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol. 2 (Russell's Library, no. 917).

131367

"You may remember my visiting you together with Stephen Spender about a year ago, at the time I was secretary of the British Society for Cultural Freedom."

He encloses a draft of a pamphlet, "Russia New Look or Old?" and a previously published work of his, The Communists' New Weapon—Germ Warfare.

131368

A brief unaddressed note, which reads "With thanks for the promised early reply. Would 5000 words do?", was inserted between pp. 50-1 of Urmson's Philosophical Analysis (Russell's Library, no. 1473).

131369

BR argues that current poor conditions are the direct and logical result of past idealistic conditions. Where Ossowski argues that patriotism (especially that of Poland) can be good, BR challenges that ideals do not lead to the ideal.

This may have been an enclosure for a lost personal reply; the typescript, which has corrections in Russell's hand, lacks the normal features of a letter. It is the delivered copy of record 2429 and is presumably the version published by Antoni Sułek in Stanisław Ossowski w pełnym blasku.

131370

Ossowski's draft of his second letter to BR, record 61742, in which he defends his view of patriotism against BR's reply to his first letter (record 61741).

131371

Alan Wood writes about BR's meeting with Arthur Gask in Australia, misspelling his name "Gasc". Wood notes that BR visited Gask because he was a favourite mystery writer of his, and that "When Russell had to leave Australia, Gasc wrote to him:

"My Dear Master,
"You came like a flash of lightning into my life, and now the sky is very dark and empty...." (Bertrand Russell, the Passionate Sceptic, p. 213).

This letter is not in the Russell Archives. The source for Wood's quotation may have been Russell himself.

131372

An article titled "Biddle—Praying Colonel of the Marines" (torn out of Reader's Digest) was removed from The Arabian Nights, vol. 4 (Russell's Library, no. 1512).

131373

The business card of Col. Ernest A. Loftus was inserted between pp. 562-3 of Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, vol. 3 (Russell's Library, no. 1036).

131374

An invoice for Which Way to Peace? (Russell's Library, no. 3127) was found in that book. The invoice is addressed to BR at 212 Loring Ave., Los Angeles, California.

131375

A short note, in Patricia Russell's hand, was inserted between pp. 270-1 of vol. 1 of Oeuvres de Descartes (Russell's Library, no. 1082). It is written on Telegraph House notepaper and concerns a point in the Méditations.

131376

BR thanks Schwartz for his letter and encloses a requested autograph. The signature on the letter is an imitation by BR's secretary.

131377

A slip of white blank paper was inserted at the title page of Opere varie di architettura prospettive, grotteschi, antichità sul gusto degli antichi Romani (Russell's Library, no. 1296). The enormous volume, inscribed "To Edith from B.R. Christmas 1952", contains two works bound together. The slip of paper marks the divide.

131378

A printed with compliments slip, reading "From the Author", was inserted before the title page of Trevelyan's The Bride of Dionysus (Russell's Library, no. 1268).

131379

BR agrees to add his signature to Goulding's copy of Wisdom of the West, but would not a card suffice?

The addressee's name is obscured in the digital print by a rectangle of white paper. See Goulding's initial letter (record 24031) and reply (record 24033) for the identification.

(The book was sent by Goulding for signature. It was signed and was for sale to the Bertrand Russell Society or a member in May 2016.)

131380

A review copy" slip was inserted between the plate and p. 211 of William Irvine's Apes, Angels, and Victorians (Russell's Library, no. 2824).

131381

Catherine Sutherland (Deputy Librarian (Pepys Library & Special Collections) Magdalene College, Cambridge CB3 0AG) summarized the letter to K. Blackwell on 23 May 2016):

"Patricia Russell thanks IAR for ‘the kind note and invitation’ but she (and Bertrand?) do not go out for lunches because they interfere with work, but they do accept invitations to tea. She then talks at length about titles: ‘of course titles are silly: so few that matter are Gothic cathedrals’ (presumably Richards had commented on this in previous correspondence or conversation), and that ‘Professionally, naturally, he prefers to go on being Bertrand Russell.’"

The letter, an ALS of 2 sheets, is filed in box 56 of the Richards Papers.

131382

Catherine Sutherland (Deputy Librarian (Pepys Library & Special Collections) Magdalene College, Cambridge CB3 0AG) quoted the diary entry to K. Blackwell on 26 May 2016):

"Went 4.30 pm to Russell’s lecture – “4 truisms, 1 radical mistake.  3 Witticisms, 7 pleasantries – great success”.  Huge crowd – grand manner."

The lecture was the first of Russell's series of William James Lectures at Harvard in the autumn of 1940. See Michael D. Stevenson, "'My Personal Ruin Passes Unnoticed': Russell, Harvard, and the 1940 William James Lectureship" (https://mulpress.mcmaster.ca/russelljournal/article/view/2887/2569).

The diary is in the I.A. Richards Papers. Pillay is Richards' wife.

131383

BR sends Rajput a signed photograph and recommends he contact Mrs. Triska Sundra at "Shangri La", Faridabad N.I.T., to assist the Bertrand Russell Peace Foundation in India.

131384

A greeting card was inserted between the cover and the flyleaf of Philip Hofer's Edward Lear (Russell's Library, no. 5378).

131385

A Christmas tag in Russell's hand to Peter from John was inserted between pp. 152-3 of Digges' The Compleat Ambassador: or two Treaties of the Intended Marriage of Queen Elizabeth (Russell's Library, no. 1054).

131386

A scrap piece of paper was inserted over pp. 3-4 of Agostino Gerli's Opuscoli (Russell's Library, no. 32). Because it is on ballooning, the book probably belonged to Ludwig Wittgenstein but does not bear his signature. The scrap appears to have come from an Italian ledger book. The number 3098 has been written perpendicular to the original text, possibly as a call number.

131387

BR states that quantum theory raises doubts about the complete predictability of behaviour; but that does not confirm freedom of the will. The letter is reproduced in facsimile in The Exploration of Ideas: a Collection of Interviews and Dialogues conducted by Global Scholars on Religion, Mysticism, Literature, Culture, Aesthetics, Philosophy, Human Sciences with Allameh M.T. Ja'fari (2015), p. [468].

BR added the following postscript: "It is not certain that it will rain tomorrow, but this does not imply that it is certain it will not rain."

A typed carbon of this letter can be found at record 1679.

131388

BR explains "x" as a variable and comments on the "search for perfection". The letter is reproduced in facsimile in The Exploration of Ideas: a Collection of Interviews and Dialogues conducted by Global Scholars on Religion, Mysticism, Literature, Culture, Aesthetics, Philosophy, Human Sciences with Allameh M.T. Ja'fari (2015), p. [468].

A typed carbon of this letter is available at record 78578.

131389

An advertisement for Chambers's Encyclopædia was inserted between pp. 338-9 of Mind: A Quarterly Review of Psychology and Philosophy, vol. 65, no. 259 (Russell's Library, no. 3349).

131390

A typed extract from "The Free Man's Worship" was inserted between pp. 416-17 of The Independent Review, Vol. 1, no. 3 (Dec. 1903) (Russell's Library, no. 3464).

131391

A notice announcing the change of the journal's title to The Albany Review, plus an advertisement with further elaboration, was inserted between pp. viii-241 of The Independent Review, Vol. 12, no. 42 (March 1907) (Russell's Library, no. 3495).

131392

A "with compliments" slip was inserted between pp. iv-v of Myra Buttle's The Sweeniad (Russell's Library, no. 3567).

131393

A brief letter was inserted between the cover and half-title page of Sorel's Moon Missing (Russell Library, no. 3565). The letter sends best wishes for Christmas and the New Year as well as admiration for BR's words and work.

 

131394

Not truly a letter  but a list headed "BR" of the travel and dates for his American lecture tour, 20 October to 10 November [1951]. The schedule is filed at the end of BR's letters to Edith. Possibly she made a copy for BR to take with him. Julie Medlock's name and address is written on the top.

131395

A "with compliments" slip was inserted between the front flyleaves of Niels Bohr's The Theory of Spectra and Atomic Constitution (Russell's Ex-Library, no. 3706).

131396

An envelope addressed (not in BR's hand) to Times Book Club with travelling directions in one corner was inserted between pp. 44-5 of Vasiliev's Space Time Motion (Russell's Ex-Library, no. 3704).

131397

A Chatto & Windus leaflet advertising recent books was inserted between pp. 44-5 of Vasiliev's Space Time Motion (Russell's Ex-Library, no. 3704).

131398

A "request for review" was inserted between the front endpaper and flyleaf of Lodge's Atoms and Rays (Russell  Ex-Library, no. 3703).

131399

A "request for review" slip was inserted between pp. 4-5 of Berthoud's The New Theories of Matter and the Atom (Russell's Ex-Library, no. 3702).

131400

A clipping titled "The Defects of English Prose" (a review of L.P. Smith, A Treasury of English Prose, TLS, 15 Jan. 1920, p. 22) was inserted between pp. ii-iii of What is Socialism? (Russell's Ex-Library, no. 3666).