March 21, 1929
Prof. W. L. Bragg
The Physical Laboratories
The University
Manchester, England
Dear Professor Bragg:
I am sorry to say that the Guggenheim Foundation decided not to give
me another fellowship. I should like very much, or course, to come to Manchester to
work with you and I am pleased to learn from your letter that you would like me to
come. In view of this, I am going to make the attempt to come any way. I have just
had an offer of an associate professorship in Chemistry at Harvard University and
I am going ot Cambridge in about a month in order to look over the situation before
deciding. In case I go to Harvard, it will not be possible for me to get a leave of
absence for several years so that I shall have to give up the idea of a long stay
at Manchester but if I stay in Pasadena, there is some chance that I can get a leave
of absence and in addition get money enough from the Institute to spend six months
in Europe. In that case, I shall probably come to Manchester in March, 1930 and stay
there till September, except that I might travel on the continent for a month or
so in the summer.
I am very interested to learn about your projects on the density function
in the crystal cell on each pinakoid base. I feel that you are well on the way towards
developing a satisfactory straight-forward method of determining structures of these
complicated crystals. My work with crystals has been interrupted this spring by spending
two and a half months in Berkeley delivering a course of lectures on application of
the quantum mechanics to the chemists and physicists here. I hope, however, on returning
to Pasadena to carry out the study of an extensive class of oxides occurring as minerals,
for I think that their structures can all be referred to a few simple structures such
as though of rutile and brookite.
I shall know in about two months what my future will be and then I shall
write you again. I hope
Prof. W.L. Bragg -2- March 21, 1929
very much that I shall be able to come to Manchester for I know I should get a great
deal of benefit and inspiration from being with you.
Very sincerely yours
