DIY History | Transcribe | World War I Diaries and Letters | Robert Morriss Browning correspondence to Mabel C. Williams, November-December 1917 | 1917-11-18 Robert M. Browning to Miss Mabel C. Williams Page 1

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Robert Morriss Browning correspondence to Mabel C. Williams, November-December 1917

1917-11-18 Robert M. Browning to Miss Mabel C. Williams Page 1

November 18, 1917,
Dear Miss Williams - 
Your letter reached me about midnight last night on my return from an evening at the Orpheum.
It was good to hear from you again and to know that you approve of the attitude expressed for me by Mr. Wilson. What did Miss Knight say? - A little poem I found in the paper last night set forth the pacifist views very clearly. The idea seeming to be that the pacifists are the only people that don't like war; the allies are fighting because it keeps them out in the open air; if the allies would all stop fighting and begin to sing hymns and turn the other cheek the Germans would quit in disgust, pay for their trespass, and go home. I suppose there's no use talking though. The pacifists fail to grasp the fact that one can't reason with a maniac, and nous autres don't seem to realize the futility of arguing with fanatics.
If it isn't a secret I'd like to know who told you "the lieut. had to fold back his ears to put it on". Will you set my mind at rest?
It's the most beautiful thing I possess. I'm quite mad about it.
I didn't have to practice that sentence much before I got at the meaning. If you

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November 18, 1917, Dear Miss Williams - Your letter reached me about midnight last night on my return from an evening at the Orpheum. It was good to hear from you again and to know that you approve of the attitude expressed for me by Mr. Wilson. What did Miss Knight say? - A little poem I found in the paper last night set forth the pacifist views very clearly. The idea seeming to be that the pacifists are the only people that don't like war; the allies are fighting because it keeps them out in the open air; if the allies would all stop fighting and begin to sing hymns and turn the other cheek the Germans would quit in disgust, pay for their trespass, and go home. I suppose there's no use talking though. The pacifists fail to grasp the fact that one can't reason with a maniac, and nous autres don't seem to realize the futility of arguing with fanatics. If it isn't a secret I'd like to know who told you "the lieut. had to fold back his ears to put it on". Will you set my mind at rest? It's the most beautiful thing I possess. I'm quite mad about it. I didn't have to practice that sentence much before I got at the meaning. If you