“I can’t tell you how happy I was over your wonderful album, which came in just on Christmas Eve. As anyone can see from these marvellous etchings, you’re a great artist now; Papa, who understands these things so well, says that you already are one of the great masters, and railed against our government, which drives such men out of the country instead of honoring them. Of course your letter, in which you tell of your great success, made me very happy, and Papa calculated that the thirty thousand francs which you got for this album amount to hundreds of millions of Austrian kronen. For the krone has again fallen very low. But when I read that you attend so many social functions, and can hardly manage your innumerable invitations to the best houses, my heart missed a beat. Won’t you forget your poor little Lotte, surrounded as you are by beautiful Parisian girls? Oh, what will become of us, Leo? When will I be able to put my head on your shoulder again? You know, Leo, the other day a big aeroplane flew westward over the Kahlenberg, and then I thought that if I only could I’d fly straight to Paris to you, whether my parents would consent or no. I’ll tell you--if I knew how to get a passport without anyone’s finding out about it, I’d let you send me the money, and would run away to you. I know that would hurt Papa and Mama terribly, but my longing for you is so great that I’ve become very wicked and cruel. “You ask me to outline for you the state of affairs since the Jews are gone, as the colorless and boring Viennese papers don’t give you a real picture of conditions here. Well, I’ll try to tell you everything I see myself or hear from others; but you mustn’t laugh at me if it sounds silly. “I suppose you read in the papers all about the great rejoicing and the many parades on last New Year’s Eve, after all the Jews had left Vienna and Austria. Well, this mood continued throughout January, everybody was cheerful, there was celebration after celebration, and again and again the people paraded before the City Hall or the Chancellor’s palace, to pay homage to Mayor Laberl or Dr. Schwertfeger. I noticed myself that the people in the tramway were much more pleasant and courteous than before, and Hofrat Tumpel, who comes to see us--you know, the one with the blond beard, whom you never liked--said triumphantly: “‘You see, the sunny Viennese temperament, which was so long overshadowed by all the foreign elements, is coming to the fore again.’ “‘Fiddlesticks,’ growled Papa. ‘That’s only because the whole thing is a big picnic for the Viennese, and because victuals are cheaper and it’s possible to get apartments again.’ But Tumpel retorted: ‘Oh, no, my friend, that’s not all--the Indo-Germanic naíveté of our people is venturing out in the open again!’