Giuseppe Tartini - Lettere e documenti / Pisma in dokumenti / Letters and Documents - Volume / Knjiga / Volume II

252 2. Tartini in Prague to his brother Domenico in Piran Prague, 10 August 1725 I hereby answer two letters of yours, from which I have learned of your hardships to my immense pain. I neither know what to say nor what to do if not to turn to the Lord God, and pray that He may help all of us and help me, as I am no less needy than you all, because if I were to insist on the matter of helping you by staying here where the air, the food and the people are so uncongenial to me, I clearly see that I can live but for a short time, having grown so sickly that I am forced to keep medicines to hand at all times, and what is worse, without profit. If I am here, I am of no use either to you or to myself, therefore I am quite determined to return to Italy as soon as I can, because, my dear brother, life is more important than money. If God had granted me health, I am sure I would have freed you in a few years from all your hardships; God does not wish it so, to punish us, I know not what to do. And what is worse is that I do not see any profit by remaining, as I must spend so much of it on medicines, which here are extremely expensive, which is astonishing and pitiful and makes one cry, because I feel no better for it. Therefore, I am forced to return to Italy against my will. If in Italy, provided that God grants me health again, as I hope due to the climate, I will earn as I am able to; rest assured that I shall never abandon you, your children or the brothers. What I recommend, my dear brother, with tears in my eyes and my heart in the pen is to fear God, and to commend yourself to Him, because I have experienced first-hand that there is nothing good in this world, except to stay with God; and, on the contrary, when we are not in His favour, all misfortunes befall us from every side: old sins, new penitence, but it is better for God to punish us on this side than on the other. If all of us – in agreement, myself first of all, you, the priest (who has been a public scandal) – live in God’s grace, and heartily trust in Him, you shall see, dear brother, that everything will change; of this I am more than certain, because I clearly see that my infirmities are sent by God to prevent me from helping you, and perhaps because in our house there is still some sin in some of us. This is what I can tell you, while cordially embracing [ tear ] our esteemed mother, sister-in-law, brothers, sisters, and nephews and nieces, I remain your most affectionate brother Giuseppe Tartini