Ernst Toller

c. o. John Lane

Vigostreet

London W. 1.

London, 27. 4. 35.

My dear Missy,

thank you so much for your letter from April 15th. I have found out, that my publisher has not sent you my book “Seven Plays” in spite of my heaving asked him to do so. I cannot find a publisher in America. Is this not amazing and puzzling? The book has been a great success in England.

I am looking forward to hearing from you again. Novemb. would just be the right month for me to come over to America.

At this occasion I should like to do not only literary work but to start a campaign in aid of the destitute emigrants. I enclose the memorandum which I have done in France for the French Government, the letter of the league for the Rights of Men and a copy of my letter to Herriot. You will see all I want to do from these papers. It would be a tremendous help for the cause, if the “Herald Tribune” could bring something on this matter. I am now about to prepare a memorandum for the English Government. In England things are so far easier as here the number of destitute emigrants is much smaller and the amount of invested capital is far bigger (about £ 1 000 000).

Wesemann has written three letters to me. He tried therein to lure me to France, Switzerland and to London for rendezvous. But the letters seemed rather suspicious to me and I did not answer. When I saw in the “Pariser Tageblatt” the handwriting of Wesemann I recognised it as that of the three letters I had got. I really got a shock in thinking that I also could now sit in a Berlin prison like poor Jacob.

I have been very sad and excited over the death of Mathilde Wurm and Dora Fabian. I do not believe that some love-story was the reason for that death. The whole thing seems to me rather dark and doubtful. I think it possible, that Scotland Yard has not yet finished with the research. Dora Fabian has saved for me a big trunk full of manuscripts and letters. I am very grateful for that brave deed. In that trunk I found many finished manuscripts which have not yet been published till now. My publisher intends to publish a collection of my works in 6 volumes.

That the Christian Scientists will be all after my scalp shall not disturb my sleep. As those people have sworn not to use force but to pray instead, they will only kill me from a distance and that is a rather pleasant and harmless death. (My secretary just tells me, that they would be able to pray some beastly disease on me, so it would not be so pleasant after all.)

Now some pleasant news which will interest you. I am about to marry. She is a beautiful young girl, 18 years of age and has left Germany in spite of her having been a member of the Nazi Party.

Her name is Christiane Grautoff. She has been a famous stage and screen actress in Germany. She was discovered by Max Reinhardt when she was 11 years old. So she is an “old” actress and yet just a “kid”, but some people think, that she is more mature than I am. When I come to America Christiane will come with me and we will be very pleased to see you. Under the things which Frau Fabian has saved for me are some short stories and sketches. They are going to be translated and when I get them back, I shall send a few to you for the Herald Tribune.

With every good wish and kind regards

sincerely yours

Ernst Toller