1953: McFadden's death (1 of 2)

Continued from scan 19

… file: Curium C. B. H. Hill

April 29, 1953Dr. B. H. Hill Curium House Episkopi, Limassol Cyprus

Dear Dr. Hill:

Many thanks for your letter of the 22nd and for your willingness to go to Cyprus to take charge of things there. I have cabled Rodney to meet you there and I suppose he will have arrived before this letter. Also, I hope you got my cable saying that the Executive Board of the University would authorize you tomorrow, that is April 30, to draw funds from the Curium account. I will ask them to cable the bank directly this authorization so that you will have that by the time this letter arrives also. When you leave Cyprus will you check over the balance of the account to Joe Last so that he can continue to pay the bills there. I understand we have about 800 pounds in the account, and this should hold you for a while until there is some legal solution to George's death. Also, I hope the money there will cover your expenses from Athens and return. If not, please let me know.

Unfortunately, the attornies here do not wish to release the terms of the will until there is proof of George's death. This means I can not forward to you the terms of that will, nor authority from the executors to handle the papers at Episkopi. There seems nothing to do but maintain the status quo until there is a legal solution. Perhaps after an inquest the authorities there will officially support the death. If true, that should be officially sent to John Ewing in Philadelphia, George's lawyer.

In the meantime, I feel sure that there will be some money to maintain the work at Cyprus at a minimum. That is, we must make provisions for publishing the results, and we should maintain the house there, the staff, the guards and so forth, until this is done. Also, I hope you and Rodney can reach some conclusions as to who will go on with the publications. Roger Edwards suggests the John Youngs. Also, I believe Benson will arrive there with funds already supplied by George.