Andrew Dickson White papers microfilm reel 25, June 1879-November 1879

Abstract

The unofficial duties of White's new post are detailed in the summer correspondence. There are petitions for assistance from stranded Americans, requests for invitations to court functions, and letters of introduction brought by young scholars and travelers who sought White's advice or sponsorship. Russel's reports to White reveal a growing misunderstanding between the two men. White's business activities in a rising stock market were discussed in letters to and from his brother and their associates in Syracuse. Mrs. White's letters from Paris and Homburg present an intimate view of the diplomatic household. Willard Fiske's tour of Iceland was reported in his letters through the autumn, and Jennie McGraw was a guest in the White home at the resort city of Homburg. There is a series of letters from George Walker, who had been sent by President Hayes to make a special inquiry into opinions in Paris, London, and Berlin on the silver question. Two prominent names that appear on this reel are Clarence King and Francis Parkman. George Lincoln Burr, Spencer Baird Newberry, and Jacob Gould Schurman, who were to become closely associated with White and the university, were introduced. See National Archives, Record Group 59 for the official instructions, dispatches, and notes. This material is also available as National Archives Microfilm Publications, Microcopy Nos. 38, 44, and 77.