My dear Miss Addams, I feel, I must write you some lines, before leaving your beautiful country, to thank you once more from all my heart for everything you gave me during my staying here. You scarcely can fully appreciate what this time here meant for me. To do that, your must have lived for ten years in that ever grumbling volcano Europe. The American plan just came at the moment, when my husband lost his position for the second time in five years, without any hope to get a new one, as our state has no money to pay its employees. [And?] we had lost all our fortune by the dropping down of the mark, the situation was [page 2] very hopeless, and I was just on the point, to [lose] my courage. Now all that feeling [weak] and hopeless is gone. We got new courage, new strength, new hope, and returning to Europe, we will do our best to find some work whatever for my husband. I myself are giving music lessons for years, so I hope things will be arranged better for the days to come, than we feared some months ago. All this getting new strength and new hope I thank to America, to the cooperating with all of you, which gives me new courage and suggestions for our peace work in Germany too. I have learned a good deal here, I have learned to understand your work here and to appreciate it much more still than formerly, seeing the difficulties you have to fight against. I have learnt to love your country, and I think there is nothing better in all the world for the mutual understanding of people than to visit each other and to know [page 3] the conditions of life in foreign lands. I never will forget that wonderful time of our Chicago summer school and all the suggestion I got from it. It seems to me a wonderful thing, that all the professors there made us look all around the peace question from a scientific point of view. And I should like to infect our German universities with the spirit of these American scholars. And so I should like to infect all our women's [organizations] with the wonderful spirit of kindness, hospitality and understanding of the womens task to work for peace and freedom, which we met in Chicago and afterwards on our peace trip in all the clubs and [organizations], inviting us. And above all, my dear Miss Addams, I should like to infect my whole country with the spirit of Hull House -- then there would be no need for peace and freedom. I have to thank you once more for your kind letter of introduction to Mr. Spargo. He is not living in New York but in Connecticut. I got his address and wrote to him including your letter some days ago --- and I am still waiting for his answer. I am sure, you got some news of our [page 4] "Pax" special besides the telegram we sent to you. I enjoyed it all very much and I think, it was all very well arranged and a very good propaganda for our ideas. In Detroit, we had 15 churches to speak in, and in the afternoon a very successful mass meeting, in Cleveland very good assembly for luncheon and after dinner an interesting discussion. Of course they asked, if we had some connection with Russia, but when we [proved] as less dangerous than we were suspected, all was right. In Buffalo I think there were hundreds of persons together for lunch, and here and in Cleveland a minister presided. The best meeting we had at Toronto, where more than 2000 persons were present, and I think a good deal of adversaries and about 30 policeman, but all went on very well indeed and especially Mrs Hertzka spoke in a splendid [humor] and so disarmed everybody who tried to oppose. Also at lunch we had good chances to [nice?] persons, my neighbor was a very interesting [well-known] Irish [pastor], who joined our league. Then there was a very good meeting in the "Temple [page 5] of [Labor]," and it gave me great pleasure to speak at a [laborer] meeting here in America. Mrs Woodsworth presided it, and Mrs. Heller, Illova, Johnson and myself were the speakers.
In all towns they had had to struggle with great difficulties before the "pax special" made its appearance, and in all towns, I think, our propaganda was a success. At Montreal I only stayed for one day, so I cannot tell [page 6] you of the mass meeting. I only was at the luncheon in a womens club, it all was very [nice], but according to my feeling, it was hard work, we had to do there, much harder than in the other towns. Miss Woods and Mrs Trimble took care for everything in a splendid manner, I think. I was awfully sorry to hear from Dr. Sahlbom, whom I met in New York in the great museum, that Miss Wood lost her father just in those days. I think, my dear Miss Addams that our Pax special was a very good thing, and I should be glad if you should have got [page 7] new members by this sort of propaganda as a small reward for all the trouble you had from the [Congress] and everything connected with it.
I began my letter at Plainfield early in the morning and now end it at Mount Kisco late in the evening, where I am staying for a day with Miss Carolena [Wood]. She is sending you much love. It is very nice to be with her and her old father of 84, who is a very charming old gentlemen.
[When] I waited for the train at New York central station, I suddenly saw Nina Nitze, who was on the way to her son. We had to take the same [page 8] train and enjoyed it very much to be together once more by a happy chance. I hope, you are quite well, dear Miss Addams, after all the trouble of the last weeks. Please give my love to Dr. Jacobs and all the ladies of Hull House, I met there. If ever I can be of any use for you, I should be very happy. My Bremen address is Aug. Kirchhoff, Graf Moltkestr 54. Very [belligerent], is it not? If you ever wish me to do something for you or anyone else, please write to me.
I am yours very [truly]
Auguste Kirchhoff
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