reat
actress, like Wolter whom Mother is always talking of, then I shall
have done something towards helping Vienna to have a great actress and
towards making Ada the happiest creature in the world instead of the
unhappiest.

August 2nd. In my letter I did not say anything to Ada about our having
been ennobled, or as Dora says _re-ennobled_, since the family has been
noble for generations; she will find out about it soon enough when she
comes here. Mother keeps on saying: Don't put on such airs, especially
about a thing which we have not done anything particular to deserve. But
that's not quite fair, for unless Father had done such splendid service
in connection with the laws or the constitution or something two years
ago, sometimes sitting up writing all night, perhaps he would never
have been re-ennobled. Besides, I really can't see why Father and Mother
should have made such a secret about it last winter. They might just
as well have let us know. But I suppose Father wanted to give us a real
surprise. And he did too; Dora's face and the way Oswald cleared his
throat!! As far as I can make out no one seems to have noticed what sort
of a face I was making.

August 3rd. I've found out now why Dora is so different, that is why she
is again just as she was some time ago, before last winter. During the
4 weeks in Fr. she has _found a real friend in Mother!_ To-day I turned
the conversation to Viktor, and all she said at first was: Oh, I don't
correspond with him any more. And when I asked: "Have you had a quarrel,
and whose fault was it?" she said: "Oh, no, I just _bade him farewell_."
"What do you mean, bade him farewell; but he's not really going to
America, is he?" And then she said: "My dear _Rita_, we had better clear
this matter up; I parted from him upon the well-justified wish of our
_dear Mother_." I must say that though I'm _awfully, awfully_ fond of
Mother, I really can't imagine having her as a _friend_. How can one
have a true friendship with one's own mother? Dora really can't have the
least idea _what_ a _true friendship_ means. There are some things it's
impossible for a girl to speak about to her mother, I could not possibly
ask her: Do you know what, _something has happened_, really means?
Besides, I'm not quite sure if she does know, for when she was 13 or 15
or 16, people may have used quite different expressions, and the modern
phrases very likely did not then mean what they mean now. And what sort
o