1876.05.05 English

In the upper left corner:

A drawing of the Writing Ball

 

 

 

At the centre:                  R. MALLING HANSEN’s

 

                                                Writing Ball

 

                                       COPENHAGEN, DENMARK

 

 

 

                                             MAY 5, 1876

 

 

 

                        MY DEAR BROTHER!

 

 

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR QUICK TRANSLATION AND FOR YOUR DEAR LETTER. UNFORTUNATELY LITTLE JOHANNE HAS CAUGHT SCARLET FEVER, HOWEVER VERY MILDLY, AND HAS BEEN BED-RIDDEN SINCE SUNDAY. TODAY KAREN HAS CAUGHT THE SAME DISEASE, ALTHOUGH WITHOUT VERY BAD SYMPTOMS. IT IS TO BE EXPECTED THAT MORE OF US WILL BE AFFECTED, BUT I HOPE IT WILL CONTINUE TO BE IN A LENIENT MANNER. MY DEAR SWEET CÄTHE HAS NEVER HAD SCARLET FEVER AND I SUPPOSE I HAVN’T EITHER; BUT THEN AGAIN IT IS PROBABLY VERY RARE FOR ADULTS TO BE AFFECTED. YESTERDAY WE WERE TO HAVE ATTENDED A BIG FAMILY CELEBRATION AT DEAN HEIBERG[1] IN HELSINORE ON THE OCCASION OF DEAN RÖRDAM IN LYNGBYE TURNING 70 YEARS ON THAT DAY. NEXT TUESDAY WE WERE TO HAVE ATTENDED A MAJOR WEDDING, ONE OF STOCKBROKER LONRENTZEN’S DAUGTHERS IS TO MARRY A VICAR. MY DEAR SWEET CÄTHE HAD LOOKED FORWARD SO MUCH TO GETTING OUT; BUT NOW WE WILL BE IMMENSELY HAPPY IF THE GOOD LORD WILL PROTECT AND PRESERVE ALL OF OUR DEARLY BELOVED GIRLS AND ALL OF US. WE ARE ALL LONGING TO HEAR REALLY GOOD NEWS FROM DEAR SWEET MOTHER. PLEASE WRITE SOON.

 

 

KINDLY TRANSLATE THE ATTACHED LETTER, BUT ONLY EXCERPTS. THE GOOD DENSMORE IS A BIT OF A CHATTERBOX; IT IS NOW FOR THE THIRD TIME THAT HE IS TELLING ME ABOUT HIS INCOMPETENCE IN THE GERMAN LANGUAGE. THE OTHER DAY I HAD THE PLEASURE OF SEEING MY MACHINE BEING HANDLED WITH EXCELLENT ELEGANCE, SKILL AND SPEED BY A BLIND, A GERMAN CONSUL WOLLF IN CARLSKRONA. HE HAD 3 THREE WEEKS BEFORE BOUGHT A WRITING BALL, HAD PRACTISED IN CARLSKRONA AND WAS NOW TRAVELLING TO BERLIN, PASSING THROUGH COPENHAGEN, HE BROUGHT HIS MACHINE AND SHOWED ME HIS SKILL AT A DEMONSTRATION AT THE HOTEL. HAN WAS DELIGTHED WITH HIS WRITING BALL.

 

 

MAY 6

 

 

BOTH TODDLERS WITH SCARLET FEVER ARE NOW VERY WELL. WARMEST REGARDS TO DEAR MOTHER AND TO BOTH OF YOU DEAR BROTHERS      FROM

 

 

 

                                               YOUR DEEPLY DEVOTED BROTHER

 

 

 

                                                             R.     MALLING HANSEN

 

 

 

YESTERDAY I RECEIVED AN AMERICAN VISITOR, WHO ALSO ASSESSED MY MACHINE TO BE FAR SUPERIOR TO THE “TYPE WRITER”. AS REGARDS THE VERY CLEVER AND APT INSTRUCTION FOR AGENTS[2] PLEASE DON’T BOTHER TO TRANSLATE IT. I UNDERSTAND MOST OF IT. I AM MERELY ATTACHING IT BECAUSE I THINK IT MAY INTEREST YOU.

 

 

THE WRITING ON THE FIRST SIDE OF THIS LETTER IS A LITTLE BIT IRREGULAR, BECAUSE I HAD HAD THE BALL PIECE ON ANOTHER MACHINE AND THEN WHEN IT WAS MOVED BACK TO THIS ONE, I HAVN’T HAD THE TIME YET TO GET IT PROPERLY ADJUSTED.

 

 

IN THE LETTER FROM THE AMERICAN YOU WILL SE MANY AND EVIDENT SIGNS OF HIS WOBBLING PISTONS, WHICH NO ADJUSTMENT CAN CURE. I ATTACH A SAMPLE OF THE BAD TYPE-WRITER SCRIPT, THAT ALWAYS – AND TO AN EVEN WORSE DEGREE – IS DELIVERED FROM ELSEWHERE.[3]

 

 

[1] Sverre: This must be Cathrine’s brother Frederik Heiberg, who had trained as a theologian just like another brother, Johan Heiberg, who was in Chicago at this time. Frederik Heiberg became the director of the Royal Institute for the Deaf-mute when RMH died. The dean Rørdam referred to must be Peter Rørdam, born May 6, 1806, the brother of Cathrine’s mother, Engelke Marie Rørdam and (later) step-mother and aunt Emma Rørdam. The same Rørdam is referred to in an earlier letter as uncle Peter from Jutland!

[2] As far as I understand this, someone has sent him an instruction for the use of the Type Writer – and apparently he is able to understand it.  Wonder what kind of instruction followed the Writing Ball? – We simply have no idea! &(CB)

[3] Are we to understand that RMH receives samples of writing from the Remington Type-Writer from other sources? (CB)