War Trade Intelligence Department.
30 December, 1918.
On leaving the department early in 1919, I saw and heard little of Teixeira until he invited me to collaborate in the translation of The Tour. Occasional divergencies of opinion about translating Latin words in the English rendering of a Dutch novel had the very desirable result of making Teixeira set out some few of the principles which he followed.
Couperus sends me this postcard, he writes, 29.4.18:
“Amice,
“You are of course at liberty to act according to your taste and judgement. I do not however understand the thing: in every novel treating of antiquity the classical word sometimes gives a nuance to the untranslatable local colour. And every novelist feels this: See Quo Vadis, in Jeremiah Curtius’ translation. However, do as you think proper.
“Yours,
“L. C.”
He has us on the hip with his Jeremiah Curtius. And I feel more than ever that you were too drastic in your views and I too weak in yielding to them....
We should always guard ourselves against the bees in our bonnets. When I produced Zola’s Heirs of Rabourdin, the stage-manager said his play-actors couldn’t pronounce Monsieur, Madame and Mademoiselle to his liking: might he try how it would sound with Mr., Mrs., and Miss Rabourdin? He tried!