INTERNATIONAL PSYCHO‑ANALYTICAL ASSOCIATION

«IP0,0»                                  5 April 1923  London W1

Dear Professor:

«IP4,0»L & K have confirmed my letter to them and have found a way to keep my name associated with the matter.  Doubtless you will think of getting Martin to arrange for his powers to be transferred in the event of an accident happening to him, otherwise it might now be very difficult to dispose of the money.  (i [I] had foreseen this contingency for myself by instructions first to my wife and secondly to Trotter, to be opened after my death).

I was flattered by your finding some value in my auto‑suggestion paper and thank you warmly for the trouble you took with it, but your remarks about the part on the mechanism of analytic healing do not entirely allay my uncertainty.  I gather that I made no serious error, for otherwise you would have said so.  I know well that the treatment of the matter is far from exhaustive, but I seemed to come to a stop on the lines I was pursuing.  If you think of any alteration or modification I ought to make in the statements in this part, I should be very grateful to hear of them.  I entirely agree with your comment on the Coué adjectives, and had already felt ashamed of them and had struck them out; in fact I did not read the passage at the meeting.  The affect was really misplaced, being directed against William Brown, McDougall's successor at Oxford, who has accepted Coué's work in all its simplicity.  In fact I was stimulated to writing my paper by a very offensive one he read at a previous meeting.«FN1.××Although William Brown wrote widely on the topic of suggestion in psychotherapy, as for example in «MDUL»Suggestion and Mental Analysis«MDNM» (London: University of London Press, 1922), his writings are not mentioned in Jones (1923b); Brown attacked Jones's paper in his "Theories of Suggestion," «MDUL»British Medical Journal«MDNM», 1(1928):251‑255.

»  By the way, please do not trouble to send the MS back, as I have copies here.

I have not yet dipped into MacCurdy's book, but can well imagine its contents.  You will, I hope, be amused by the review I shall write of it in good time.«FN1.××This was not done by Jones, see James Glover, [Review of MacCurdy (1923)], «MDUL»Journal«MDNM», 5(1924):379‑385.

»

Rickman is proving in many ways useful, but it is not too reliable without control.  He has an Oriental idea of time, and turns out to be much weaker in character than he gives the impression of being, very easily influenced; his manner has much of what the Americans call bluff.  So far I think Frink is our best addition, not counting of course the redoubtable Mrs. Riviere.  Strachey has disappeared into the void so far as I am concerned, but his return to England cannot now be long delayed and we shall see what can be done with him.

Is Money‑Kyrle still with you?  I wonder how he has turned out?  This week I met Hermann B., a pleasing and rather able young fellow, perhaps somewhat simple and distinctly self‑centred.

My family are still in the country, which does them all a world of good.  Gwenith's latest «MDUL»bon mot«MDNM» (aged 2 1/2) is the following: on being told that I spent so much time in Harley St. because I had to procure milk and food for the family, she reflected a moment and then remarked "But I must have food".  She even got a little anxious on my holiday until she was reassured that we had a wekk's [week's] supply and that I would soon go back to Harley St.  This in spite of her great fondness for me and desire to be with me all the time.

With my kindest regards to you,  yours always affectionately  Ernest Jones