Record of a Friendship

[ 1948 ]

Summerhill School

Leiston, Suffolk

My dear Reich,

(^224)
May I, 1948
I am not pleased with the way our relationship is going. Our
letters seem to get more aggressive and argumentative each time, chiefly
over this publicity-recognition business. We'll have to agree to differ
about it. I say that Wolfe's booklet is a waste of time in that it is
diverting creative work to defensive war. You say it isn't. Our methods
differ. I've lost thousands of pounds in bad debts and could not take
any case to law, because the lawyers would simply read out passages
from my books (out of context, of course), and any judge or jury would
conclude I had an immoral school and that sort of publicity would kill
my work. BUT, Reich, against that negative aspect is the fact that my
books appear in Japanese, Scandinavian, and now they are to be pub­
lished in India in native languages. That is what matters to me, although
I grant that your situation is different to mine.
Spending all my time gardening, trying to grow as much food as I
can in these hard times. The kids return from vacation in three days.
I look forward to long talks with you. Just have a vague feeling
that you are critical of me for some reason... it began to arise from
what you said about the press conference and the O. Institute not being
mentioned. But speaking is better than writing.
Orgonon
Rangeley, Maine
My dear Neill:

• I •

May 25, 1948

I received yesterday the copies of your correspondence with

Marika Hellstrom. * I had a feeling before the matter started that it

would not be easy to arrange lectures during vacation time. But some­

how it must be accomplished that you come over with Ena and the child

to visit Orgonon again ...

It will interest you to know that I have worked with Constance for

about two months. She was a bit astonished to find that over the past ten

* Hellstrom was trying to arrange lectures in the United States for Neill.