Correspondence with Edith Maryon 1912–1924

GA 263 — 23 January 1922, Hildesheim

Letter from Edith Maryon

Edith Maryon to Rudolf Steiner

Sculptor's Studio, Goetheanum
Jan. 23, 1922

Dear and honored Teacher,

I had intended to write only tomorrow, but Flossie has received a letter from Mrs. Drury-Lavin with a request to show it to me. It seems that she has arrived home to find that a meeting had been convened by Mr. Dunlop and Miss Osmond without her being notified that it was to take place. Some others were also present when Mrs. D.-L. arrived, quiet, tired and dirty from the journey, and was in for a big shock! They have decided that Miss Osmond should rent an apartment for you and the doctor and devote all her time to you while you are in England. Of course, the whole thing would then take on a Theosophical character, and the scientific and educational atmosphere that had been laboriously created would simply be gone!

Mrs. Drury-Lavin protested: at the very least, Mrs. Mackenzie should be consulted, and they finally agreed to wait a week.

I have already told you that Mrs. Mackenzie will in all probability invite you to Barsell Rd., if the other members do not make too many demands. I hope she will send an official invitation now, if that would please you. I have written her a short letter, but I have tried to be very careful. The whole thing looks like a coup on the part of Miss Osmond and Mr. Dunlop; he is almost never in the branch and only wanted, it seems to me, to push through Miss Osmond's plans just then, while Mrs. Drury-Lavin, M. Kaufmann, and the others who are working had all left, and she would have already achieved this if Mrs. Drury-Lavin had left immediately after her visit to me in the studio. Miss O. [Osmond] seems to be engaging in other not very desirable activities, this time on the medical side; Flossie showed me a letter to Miss O., a reply to Mrs. O. about Miss Burnett's illness, because she wanted to know if she had expressed herself correctly in English. It seems to me that Miss O. has not given the doctors a true and accurate picture of how you can only give advice in connection with professional doctors.

I think I will have time to reach you in Hanover. Otherwise there is not much to report. I hope your health is good? It is empty and boring here, but there is enough to do.

With my warmest regards,

Edith Maryon

I thought it better to share the above story; it looks like an intrigue, which is of course unpleasant.