Letter to Kazimierz Twardowski written 11.07.1931

Lviv, 11/7/1931

Most Honourable Professor!

            Having received Dr Mehlberg[O1] ’s paper, I immediately started to read it, so as to be able to give it to you before I leave. (I’m going to Orawka tonight, where my family’s been since Tuesday.) I finished reading a while ago; here’s my opinion of Mr Mehlberg’s paper:

            I’m fundamentally opposed to the practice of epistemological research as applied by Mehlberg. I don’t know whether the assertion from logic that, if n objects exist, the number of ‘independent adverbs to which they are entitled is at least 22n’ is true and indeed proven in logic. The value of Mr Mehlberg’s conclusions depends on the truth of this assertion. I think, however, that the current edition of Mr M’s paper is significantly better than previous editions: the dissertation is uniform, concisely constructed, and clearly written. At the same time, it doesn’t set itself such far-reaching objectives as previous editions. Thus I have nothing against this dissertation being printed in the Commemorative Book. It’d be a good thing, however, to be completely safe, if Prof. Ajdukiewicz [O2] were to read it, with the aim of checking the correctness of particular bits of reasoning, since I didn’t have time to do that today.

            Along with returning Mr Mehlberg’s paper, I’d like to send you fervent wishes for the speediest possible recovery and the greatest possible enjoyment of your summer holiday. At the same time I wish to explain why I haven’t visited you, either at home or at the clinic. This was only because Prof. Ajdukiewicz, to whom I’ve turned several times in this regard, dissuaded me each time from visiting. He did so because it’s evidently permitted to visit patients only twice per week during extremely limited designated hours and because apparently during these hours you always have so many visitors that one more person may be only a hindrance rather than a pleasure, especially in the clinic’s tiny rooms. I witnessed this myself when visiting you two or three years ago. Accordingly, I was hoping that your stay at the clinic would soon be over and therefore that it’d be better to wait and visit you at home when your state of health permitted it. I didn’t count on the fact that I’d go on holiday. Meanwhile, both my wife and my mother insisted on the necessity to send the children somewhere in the mountains, to the point that I finally decided to do it. Since it’s more economical to go with the whole family, I have to go too, as soon as I’ve finished the most urgent work. And so it has fallen out that I’m leaving before your return home. However, as I learned from Dr Dąmbska[O3] , your condition has improved significantly of late. Accordingly, I hope that in the next few days you’ll return home and that, upon returning from my holiday, I’ll find you already in completely good health and at full strength physically (I don’t speak of psychically, because I know that it’s always the same, i.e. indefatigable).

            I enclose expressions of the most profound respect and once again send the warmest wishes for the immediate resolution of all complaints.

                                                                                                               Roman Ingarden

My address: the post office, Jabłonka Orawska, Orawka, poste restante. I’ll try to send a more exact address once I arrive!

[O1]Henryk Mehlberg (1904‒79)
[O2]Kazimierz Ajdukiewicz (1890‒1963).  NB: w poprzednich listach Ingarden odnosi się do niego jako Kazik.
[O3]Izydora Dąmbska (1904‒83)