Y. R. Chao and Bertrand Russell (sent to me by a friend)

From B. Russell's Autobiography: "We had an official interpreter assigned to look after us. His English was very good and he was especially proud of his ability to make puns in English. His name was Mr. Chao and, when I showed him an article I had written called "Causes of the Present Chaos," he remarked, "Well, I suppose, the causes of the present Chaos are the previous Chaos."

Cheers!

Ruan Muhua

我的回信：
Dear Mr Ruan,
Chao's wife, Yang Buwei (杨步伟), also wrote an autobiography, Autobiography of a Chinese Woman, which was translated into English by her husband, Chao Yuanren, (赵元任) one of the former chairs of my department. The book is a combination of a strong female character and Chao's terrific English style.

Cheers!
Dun

朋友的回信：

More from Russell's Autobiography:

"I became a close friend of his in the course of our journeys. He was engaged to a Chinese girl and I was able to remove some difficulties that had impeded his marriage. I still hear from him occasionally and once or twice he and his wife have come to see me in England."

So Russell did more than merely help a friend resolve some difficulties--he also ensured the writing of a book. I'll look it up, and thanks for telling me of it.

© by Dun Wang (王敦). All rights reserved. 著作权拥有者：Dun Wang (王敦)。