Okay, here we go, my attempt, with the preface that "Zeitung" in the 18th century parlance doesn't mean newspaper as it does in today's German, it means "news". If anyone ever reads Schiller's Don Carlos in German, it's used there, for example, in this sense. Also, I'm substituting modern depression for 18th century melancholy. And I'm guessing erXüXde stands for some version of "exultation", the French word meaning the same in English. And finally, the last line uses the third person "Er" address which I'm substituting with the second person address common in English.
I don't know anymore whether there have been news about my return until now; I guess it won't happen until the end of November or early December.
The creditors will have to wait until my return, then everyone shall be paid up to the last dime.
I can't escape my depression and I guess I'll carry it with me for years to come.
Regarding the construction, all is well; but I'm so full of anger, burdened with work, affairs and worries that I can't take joy from it but look with very indifferent eyes on it.
Why don't you come here and we'll see whether two can console themselves better than one.
Okay, were it not for the line about the "bau", which made me associate the various building projects of the 1740s, not solely but notably Sanssouci, I would bet on this being a letter from Crown Prince Fritz, not King Fritz, but then again, when Fritz is Crown Prince Fritz Peter is first FW's page and then a part of the Wesel garnison, and in neither case, he can't just show up at will to wherever place Fritz is. So this has to be written when Fritz is already King, and FW is no longer a factor. Unless, wait, we're talking simply about the difference between Potsdam and Berlin. (I'm recalling here how deeply-in-love Lehndorff treats Heinrich going from Berlin to nearby Potsdam with big Bro as the occasion for bursting into tears as if it's the biggest tragedy ever.) So maybe Peter is in Berlin and Fritz is in Potsdam, or the other way around, in which case Peter can make it there and back without getting into trouble with FW. But that still doesn't explain the "Bau".
So: It's definitely a personal "I'm lonely, I'm depressed, come and console me" kind of summons assuming a friendly relationship between the two correspondants. The use of German also points to young Fritz rather than older Fritz, but that's not an absolute rule (see Fredersdorf). If it's written by Crown Prince Fritz, it means enough to Peter that he carried it with him through all the exile years. If it's written by King Fritz, it means there must have been some type of later years event a bit similar to your story where Fritz goes beyond nice monarch, respectful if distant subject and starts to treat Peter like something more of a friend again.
ETA: Creditors: if it's Crown Prince Fritz, this is obviously a concern since he's getting more and more into debt, and of course both Peter and Katte later get blamed for enabling this. If it's King Fritz, he could be talking about Peter's own need for money.
Daughter of ETA: End of November, early December fits with the time of FW leaving Wusterhausen and moving with the family to Berlin. Okay, now I'm favouring "it's from Crown Prince Fritz" as an explanation.
Re: Letter from Fritz...to Peter?
I don't know anymore whether there have been news about my return until now; I guess it won't happen until the end of November or early December.
The creditors will have to wait until my return, then everyone shall be paid up to the last dime.
I can't escape my depression and I guess I'll carry it with me for years to come.
Regarding the construction, all is well; but I'm so full of anger, burdened with work, affairs and worries that I can't take joy from it but look with very indifferent eyes on it.
Why don't you come here and we'll see whether two can console themselves better than one.
Okay, were it not for the line about the "bau", which made me associate the various building projects of the 1740s, not solely but notably Sanssouci, I would bet on this being a letter from Crown Prince Fritz, not King Fritz, but then again, when Fritz is Crown Prince Fritz Peter is first FW's page and then a part of the Wesel garnison, and in neither case, he can't just show up at will to wherever place Fritz is. So this has to be written when Fritz is already King, and FW is no longer a factor. Unless, wait, we're talking simply about the difference between Potsdam and Berlin. (I'm recalling here how deeply-in-love Lehndorff treats Heinrich going from Berlin to nearby Potsdam with big Bro as the occasion for bursting into tears as if it's the biggest tragedy ever.) So maybe Peter is in Berlin and Fritz is in Potsdam, or the other way around, in which case Peter can make it there and back without getting into trouble with FW. But that still doesn't explain the "Bau".
So: It's definitely a personal "I'm lonely, I'm depressed, come and console me" kind of summons assuming a friendly relationship between the two correspondants. The use of German also points to young Fritz rather than older Fritz, but that's not an absolute rule (see Fredersdorf). If it's written by Crown Prince Fritz, it means enough to Peter that he carried it with him through all the exile years. If it's written by King Fritz, it means there must have been some type of later years event a bit similar to your story where Fritz goes beyond nice monarch, respectful if distant subject and starts to treat Peter like something more of a friend again.
ETA: Creditors: if it's Crown Prince Fritz, this is obviously a concern since he's getting more and more into debt, and of course both Peter and Katte later get blamed for enabling this. If it's King Fritz, he could be talking about Peter's own need for money.
Daughter of ETA: End of November, early December fits with the time of FW leaving Wusterhausen and moving with the family to Berlin. Okay, now I'm favouring "it's from Crown Prince Fritz" as an explanation.