Budapest, August 13th, 1924.
Dear Miss Balch,I admire your clever handling of the confused data in our accounts. I cannot feel up to them and am quite unhappy about it. But I hope that in future things will be all right, because our present book-keeper is really conscientious and I shall have the auditor every three months, without transgressing the amount we budgeted for this purpose.
The difference between the money in hand on December 31, 1922 and January 1st, 1923 most curiously came in when Miss [Wössner] was in the office and I was on my holiday [page 2] last summer; I had not seen it before I went to Dresden. We asked Miss [Wössner] about it afterwards; it was an amount Mme. Métral had forgotten to book in 1922 and which she added afterwards to the money in hand!
I shall look over the entries for rent in the autumn of 1922 when I get back to Geneva. As to the receipts from the Maison Internationale, they came in the two last years in spring, April I think, in one amount. It may have been the same in 1922.
For the contribution of sections I had the intention to send out a circular letter immediately after I got home from Washington. We talked it over on the boat and Mme. Duchêne suggested not to begin by this but to get them started to work before. I shall issue it in autumn.
It is understood that we make the appeal for Associate Membership in Europe, [page 3] the Washington office for the U.S. -- How about South America, Mexico, Hawaii etc. -- We shall send you the copies of what we are sending out.
We used to send a receipt to every A.M. who paid, and these are now printed in a book where we keep a "[souche]," so that we exactly know who has paid and when. This enables us to see when the next fee is due and to ask for it, if we want. We can change this from January 1st, 1925, but not before; I wonder whether Miss Addams will not change her mind after the last letter I sent her before my holiday, showing what a lot of differences arise by the double management of Washington and Geneva.
As to Congress -- arrangements: people resented very much that the preliminary Agenda had been so thoroughly changed. They had prepared [page 4] papers which they thought very important and could not bring forward at the right time, while they were asked to speak on subjects for which they were not prepared and had no material with them. They felt there was not enough opportunity for discussion between themselves; this is curious after the week of discussion we had in Swarthmore at which ↑where↓ almost all the delegates were present.
I shall follow your advice to make things more self-explanatory when I send them out. But you were right in supposing that the letter to Italy went out from Geneva. It was drafted by Mme. Jouve, approved by Mme. Duchêne and signed only by me. It would have been impossible to wait for a vote of the Ex. Comm.
I have forwarded immediately to Miss Holmes the invitation to stay for one year more. I am very glad to know that Dr. Hamilton will arrive already in September; I hope we shall know it in time to provide rooms for her and Miss Kittredge.
I am happy to know that you had some rest and enjoyed your visit with Miss Addams.
Very sincerely yours
Vilma
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