China and the West

Brief von Hu Shi an Liang Shiqiu über die Übersetzung von William Shakespeare.
Er schreibt : "Dear Shiqiu, I have received both of your letters, and officially assumed the post in the Translation Committee. The list [Ye] Gongchao has been preparing is almost ready. He has not yet handed it to me as the names of the various editions have yet to be filled in. I discussed the matter with I.A. Richards recently and with Zhimo in Shanghai. The idea is to invite [Wen] Yiduo, [Chen] Tongbo, [Xu] Zhimo, [Ye] Gongchao and you to work out a plan for the translation of the complete works of Shakespeare. We hope that a standard version can be made available within five or ten years' time. Do discuss the matter with Yiduo.
The fundamental problem is to decide on the type of language we should use to translate Shakespeare. My suggestion is to ask Yiduo and Zhimo to try verse, while Dongbo and you try prose. After these experiments we could then decide whether to use prose throughout or both prose and verse.
You'll be paid at the highest rates. This kind of books usually doesn't sell too badly and we may be able to retain the copyright for future reprints.
I invite comments from you and Yiduo. Please consult Jinfu and Taimou as well. I have already written to Zhimo and Dongbe.
On the fifth of January I'll be leaving Peking and going south on the Tientsin-Pu-kou train. I have a meeting on the ninth. In the middle of the month I should be able to travel north again. If I can manage to find enough money for the trip, I'll come to pay you a visit—just to dispell the widespread belief that Tsingtao [Qingdao] is inaccessible."