Beschreibung:

EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Autograph letter signed ('Papa') to his elder son, Hans Albert, and daughter-in-law Frieda, n.p., 18 March 1949, one page, 4to (minor pencil markings).
EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955). Autograph letter signed ('Papa') to his elder son, Hans Albert, and daughter-in-law Frieda, n.p., 18 March 1949, one page, 4to (minor pencil markings). A birthday hailstorm. Einstein was delighted with Hans Albert and Frieda's letter to him, which he read on his 70th birthday in a hailstorm that felt like being buried alive ('in dem Geburtstagshagelwetter, das so etwas war wie eine Beerdigung bei Lebzeiten'). Once he has got past something rather stressful in the university on the next day, he will have survived the event. As for events in Zurich after Mileva's death the previous August, Einstein considers his son over-optimistic: he himself feels inclined to withdraw his claim for 37,000 francs owed him by the estate, and explains the mechanism by which he and the corporation set up to protect Mileva from bankruptcy are considered liable for a 'profit tax' of an estimated $4-5,000 on the sale of her house, even though the proceeds of the sale were never forwarded to them. Einstein is recovering slowly from his operation [which uncovered an aneurysm in the abdominal aorta] and 'the old work-spirit is being slow about coming back' [Der alte Arbeitsgeist kommt auch langsam zurück]'.