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Correspondence from Wilfred Talbot Smith to Aleister Crowley
[Undated: circa late July 1933]
Christ you are like a child and Regina [Regina Kahl]. Listen, I may write rotten letters as far as spelling and literary style, but I don't misrepresent or exaggerate. I never said or intimated that 80 or 100 people attended the Mass [Gnostic Mass]. I merely said we had two social affairs which that number attended.
My attic temple is 36 ft by 16 ft and at the most, if the floor would stand it it could not contain more than 30 people. I don't sit on my arse all day but leave the house at 8.00 in the morning to return at 5.30 p.m. if I don't stay at the office till 10 p.m. as I did twice last week. In my spare time when not too worn out I endeavour to make social contacts in the hope that they may be of use to US. "My adepts have their head in the highest heavens and their feet in the lowest hells". But, if we are ever going to put things over in the world someone has to be quite practical and deal with matters as they are betwixt heaven and hell.
Three times I have built a temple on this continent. There is nothing to it I know, for any dumb carpenter could have done it if we had had the money to pay him. The point is, we did not have it. So far the happy combination of the mundane ability and interest does not seem to have existed at one and the same time in the same individual. No, I don't have much ability to subtract money from the mutts, which is unfortunate, and no one in all these years has been able to do so either. When I estimated we would get you here in October I intended to do it, but, if you need 1000 dollars for a trip that I figure only costs 250 well, I can't see how I shall do it. However if you do not get here we shall keep on steadily with the Mass. I have nothing to sell of myself, I am trying to sell To Mega Therion and A E Crowley. I am quite aware that I am a poor salesman, but I shall keep right on even after we pick up a better.
You do not seem to understand that if I spend 5 dollars for photographs it takes until the next two weeks pay check comes round to recover from it. Nevertheless, I am endeavouring to save up for your trip, so is Jacobi [Oliver Jacobi], Bamber, and even Max [Max Schneider] said he would try and save something out of the small stipend he gets from his brother. Regina also has sworn to get hold of some cash too, and Leota [Leota Schneider] does double work while Regina works at her one small job.
. . . After several weeks of endeavour Regina made contact with one of the Movie directors and the next day delivered to him "Mortaldello" and "Ercildoune". We are hoping something will come of it. . . .
I get Christly tired too. The Mass is running very successfully in a small way, just because Smith was a handy man, and interested and cooks and washes dishes likewise. Tell Jane [Jane Wolfe] to forget her mystical development and work and Max to quit writing poetry and work. Crowley wrote enough good poetry for the time being and successfully conquered the mystical Path.
Jane's mother died yesterday, and she won't join us for fear we work her too hard.
You have not made much money out of your talent with a pen and paper. I have not made money out of my talent with a hammer and nails, perhaps together we may yet become bloated capitalists for the world's good.
I am working on the process of registering and getting a charter for the Church of Thelema.
93 93/93.
Fraternally.
P.S. I will send the photographs along as soon as finished. This is my first reaction to the first reading of your letter, just jotted down in spare moments at the office. Don't take me too seriously, I understand and we will talk things over this October in Los Angeles.
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