LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 October Rare Books & Manuscripts #675  / 

30690

William Randolph Hearst 1910 Typed Letter Signed

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:175.00 USD Estimated At:350.00 - 450.00 USD
William Randolph Hearst 1910 Typed Letter Signed
<B>William Randolph Hearst 1910 Typed Letter Signed</B></I> "<I>W. R. Hearst</B></I>". Two pages, <I>New York American</B></I> letterhead, 8" x 10.75", New York, April 19, 1910, to Mr. George von Utassy. An interesting letter regarding governmental waste and "pork barrel" politics, Hearst writes in part: "<I>...There is no doubt that one of the greatest evils of our popular government is the enormous waste of money due very largely to carrying unnecessary salaries and expending unnecessary monies in an effort to please certain individuals or certain classes, or certain localities, and so gain votes. An interesting statement from Senator Aldrich of Rhode Island appeared a little while ago, in which he said that he could save the government something like three hundred million dollars a year by a reasonably economic business system. This statement has been allowed to pass more or less unnoticed, but to my mind it is one of the most important political utterances of our time.</B></I>" Hearst goes on to propose that von Utassy have someone approach Senator Aldrich to "<I>find how seriously he is contemplating this reform.</B></I>" He then gets to the point of the letter, "<I>What we would like to have from Senator Aldrich is a number of signed articles... in which he will state what the greatest extravagances of the government are, how they can be remedied and what his particular plan is...</B></I>" Hearst is planning to place these articles into his <I>The Cosmopolitan</B></I> magazine which, at the time, was a leader in the muckraking movement. Senator Nelson W. Aldrich was one of the most powerful men in American politics and business and, in 1911, introduced a plan for a more efficient central bank for the United States; the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 was patterned after this vision. Aldrich's daughter married the son of John D. Rockefeller making (future Vice President) Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller his grandson. Very good condition with folds, light soiling, and evidence of a removed staple, punched for a three-hole binder.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Flat Material, Small (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
Sign In to Bookmark Lot