Letter from Francis T. Cremins to Joseph P. Walshe (Dublin)
(No. 254)

With reference to report regarding the death of Mr. James Joyce, I have to forward herewith some relative extracts from the Swiss press. I received the information which I telegraphed to you¹ from a great friend of Mr. Joyce, Professor Giedion of Zürich, who, with his wife Madame Dr. Giedion-Welcker, appears to have been of great assistance in obtaining the best medical advice, etc. when Mr. Joyce was suddenly stricken ill.

When, a few weeks ago, Mr. Joyce asked me to endeavour to do something to obtain a permit from the German authorities for his invalid daughter to leave occupied France, where she is in a clinic, and to come to a clinic in Switzerland, I communicated, at Mr. Joyce's request, with the Chargé d'Affaires at Berlin.² The difficulty appears to be that Miss Joyce has a British passport, and Mr. Warnock informed me that he could not intervene in such a case without prior instructions from the Department, and that normally it would be a matter for attention by our Minister at Vichy. I knew that Mr. Murphy had, in fact, done all that was possible to do, and had actually in August last obtained the permission from the German military authorities, but before Mr. Joyce could avail himself of the facilities owing to delay in obtaining the necessary Swiss entry permit, the permission was cancelled (in November) by the German authorities. I duly informed Mr. Murphy of what I had endeavoured to do in the matter, and of Mr. Warnock's reply. When I informed Mr. Joyce of the result of my enquiries, he said that he would await the result of efforts which the American Embassy in Berlin were making, before raising the question of obtaining an Irish passport. He added that he would come and see me at an early date.