NAWSA GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE Peck, Mary Gray (Caroline Slade) [*Caroline Slade*] 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET June 2,1950. Dear Mary Gray: This is a wonderful letter from Edna Stantial and really very touching. She is, I think, the real daughter of the N.A.W.S.A. Her idea about your doing the A.S.B. Biography is so wonderful and completely right, but I still hope you will do a further word on Mrs.Catt and the outcome of the L.W.V. I do wish Mrs. Catt's papers could be sent to the Library of Congress as the Blackwell papers will be. We should talk that over when we meet. I am enchanted that you will spend the night before in New York and that we may all go out together. If by any chance Alda Wilson cannot put you up I am sure I could, though my house is so to speak in curl papers, but that you would excuse. My love to you Caroline Slade 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET January 21, 1948. Dear Mary Gray: So many things to say to you. First, we find from the by-laws of N.A.W.S.A. that we may have seventeen members on the board as we thought, but they must be as follows; President, 5 vice-Presidents, Treasurer, Recording secretary, Corresponding Secretary and eight Directors. I therefore appoint you Corresponding Secretary, so that Anna Strauss, elected to the Board at our last meeting, may be the eighth director. Second, I have had a very nice letter from Mr. Wilson regarding your book. I enclose the letter for your information and your opinion as to what you think the best thing to do. You will remember we talked of seeing that a copy of the book was placed in the libraries of the women's colleges. From this letter I am not sure just what we should do, so please give me your advice. As soon as the minutes come from Mrs. Wilson I want to send them out together with a letter telling of the Microfilm, and the other actions taken at our meeting. You can't think what a joy & comfort it was to have you on the 9th. You knew better than anyone how much I wanted & still want that C.C.C. Chair at Bryn Mawr – I am not giving up hope – [but ?] the L.W.V. Memorial on foot I felt there was nothing else to be done. After all Mrs Catt created the LW.V. & it does such splendid work, & should have this chance to develope its highest potentialities– The puzzle about your book here is to know what colleges already have it. Come call when the weather is better you must come in & talk it all over. My love to you always– Caroline [*Ans 4/12/48 Sent Diary Entry 5/20/36 telling of Blue Bowl presentation*] 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET April 1, 1948. Dear Mary Gray: I have just come from a meeting of the Trustees to inaugurate the memorial to C.C.C.. I think Mrs. Heming is doing a good job and that you will approve it. The original central committee is to consist of seven people, four or five of them men of real standing. They are, as far as I know, Mrs. Heming, Mrs. Gellhorn, Anna Lord Strauss, Beardsley Ruml, Professor Chamberlain, Lawrence Duggan, Robert Altschul, and a young lawyer whose name I do not know. I enclose to you a stamp of the official seal. In addition to this there is of course the money raising committee, and the whole thing sounds on a high plane. I think your suggestion to give the Blue Bowl to Iowa State College is excellent and I want to carry it out. Can you give me the history of it? I know it was presented at a luncheon given by the Westchester League and I made the presentation, but who gave the bowl and at what celebration? I think the Bowl was the gift of the N.Y. State League. Do let me know some day when you will come in to lunch– With my love Caroline Slade 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET February [*1949*] Dear Mary Peck: I am so sorry you were not able to be here for the annual meeting of the N.A.W.S.A., but I now enclose to you the minutes. Extraordinary things have happened in this year, beginning with the stamp issued by the Postoffice Department to celebrate the anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention. We did everything we could to secure this stamp, and we are happy at the result. Mrs. Park, as you will see from the minutes, undertook to raise a fund to microfilm the woman suffrage magazines. We promised to stand behind her in any deficit there might be in this fund. The exact amount is not yet known, but if every member of the Board, who has not already contributed, will send me a dollar we believe the deficit will be met. Miss Alda Wilson met with us and told us of her generous wish to have the N.A.W.S.A Board approve and cooperate with her in giving the proceeds of the sale of the Star Sapphire Brooch, given to Mrs. Catt in 1920, to the Carrie Chapman Catt Memorial Fund, for an appropriate project. On December 17, 1948 MIss Katherine Boyles died in Florida and the Melissa Dickinson fund, of which she was the last beneficiary, should now be available to our Association. I shall keep you informed of any progress in the settlement of this estate. My hope is that we may meet once more to make this final distribution, and then the task set for us by Mrs. Catt will be completed. Faithfully yours [signed] Mrs. F. Louis Slade, President National American Woman Suffrage Association And oh how we missed you – Much love– Carolina NATIONAL AMERICAN WOMAN SUFFRAGE ASSOCIATION. 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET November 17, 1949. To the Members of the National American Woman Suffrage Association: The great moment has come. The Dickinson Estate has been settled. The Legacy will be ours to dispose of. The meeting to take action on how this inheritance is to be used and to vote on the dissolution of the Corporation will be held on Mrs. Catt's birthday, Monday January 9, 1950, at 49 East 67th Street, at 11 o'clock and continue through luncheon. Judge Kenyon, our attorney, is preparing the necessary material. Caroline Slade Mrs. F. Louis Slade President. 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET [*ans 1/18*] January 16, 1950. Dear Mary Gray: Your letter this morning touches me deeply and sends me out to face the new week with joy in my heart. Could you take time to think out what we should do with the remaining copies of your Biography and of Victory? I felt sad that Alda Wilson took the decision to give our fund largely to the L. W. V. so hard. She felt it was somehow a lack of respect for Mrs. Catt. I am sure she is wrong about that –– With my love Caroline Slade [*wrote Mr Wilson Jan 27, sent Mrs Slade copy*] 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET January 23, 1950. Dear Mary Gray: I am more than delighted with your idea about the Biography. The National L.W.V. would like 70 copies of the Biography and I have asked Mr. Wilson to send them, and they would also like 70 copies of Victory, but there are not that many left. Will you get in touch with Mr.Wilson and give him directions for sending the Biographies to the various foreign and South American groups as you suggested? That is more direct and probably simpler than to do it through me, though I shall be only to glad to help in any way that I can. Bless you for everything – and my love. Caroline 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET February 9, 1950. Dear Mary Gray: Enclosed is Mr. Wilson's plan for carrying out your idea, and a copy of my reply. Of course you are the only one competent to write this explanatory note as it should be written. Would you come in some day to lunch with me so we could talk it all over? With my love Caroline Slade [*And now I have seen you & you are coming for lunch on Thursday February 23rd – say at 12 45 if that suits you. Don't trouble to answer I shall rejoice when you are here– Caroline (Copy for slip to be inserted in donated copies of CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT) This copy of CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT: A BIOGRAPHY, by Mary Gray Peck is furnished to your library through the courtesy of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. Am sure you can improve on this. I think before these books go this should be pasted in each one. C.S. [*mailed copy for Presentation slip to Mr Wilson 3/8/50*] 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET March 6, 1950. Dear Mary Gray: Such a joy it was to have you here. I really want to wind this business up, but I should willingly keep it on if we could have more nice meetings. In the foreword to the book I wonder if it would be more effective to leave out the last paragraph altogether? Do just as you think best. Harriet Wells and I happened to see Esther Ogden together, and she is in complete accord on the minutes, seconds, and so on. I think you are going to get from Mr. Wilson exactly what we owe him so that we may finish up our account. Bless you for everything. And my love Caroline McC.S. May 31st. 1950 49, EAST SIXTY-SEVENTH STREET Dear Mary Gray– How sad for me & for us all that you could not come. We missed you dreadfully & talked about you & your great book, & of what Dr. [?] [?] was going to do with her precious copies. She sends you many messages of appreciation. Mrs. Wilson writes me that her luncheon for Edna Stantial is now definitely set for Saturday the 10th of June & I am 2/ to have the pleasure of driving you & Alda Wilson & Mabel Russell out to her house. Where can I pick you up en route? Would the 125th Station be a good place for you? I can come wherever you say - She suggests that we leave New York around ten o'clock, but we could go an hour later if that were better for you. My love to you always, Caroline Slade You are such a comfort & pleasure & encouragement to me. Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.