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typed letter written in blue ink also, Lakeside Hotel, 839 N. Dearborn - 642 - 3280 in pencil Miller, Charles H.

                                                % The Newberry,   60 W. Walton,   Chicago 10

                                                                                                                                                                blue ink 18 april

Dear Jack,

               so glad to hear that Noah Conroy stands firm

on the rock apres le deluge. As for keeping mold out of your letters, I have a perfect and perfectly lucrative plan: we'll sell them for a few thousand dollars, with which you can purchase your birthplace, restore it (to dryness) and rent it out to aspiring AND well-heeled writers from Missouri & Illinois who wish to follow in yr footsteps (god help em). Good Idea?

                                                               Or, merely apply

a hare-dryer to the letters, A jumpy idea.

Was in New Yawk. Returned. La Sandiford is about ready to pop. Frank is well, handsome, & suaver than ever, if pos- sible. I bought him a martinini on Mad ave. We had some good talks. He'd like to sell some of his archives, but unluckily in his case, the libraries want all of it, or none of it. I advised him against selling all of it, written in blue ink now.

Your case is different. Your separate collections of Algren letters, Motley letters and materials, Yerby and Bontemps are eagerly sought. I have buyers waiting to get them.

Let me propose this: after you return to Moberly (about May 1st or 2nd?) let me come down and help you get the Algren letters together, and get a bid on them. If you like what I do for you, we can go on. The Mencken let- ters will bring a tidy sum. So will the Motley etc. This will not cheat you out of your archives, but it will give you money to live more freely, easily, and lavishly (almost). You could put half of it in the bank and half in your favorite bar; this is called mutual savings- Mutual benefits to the thirst and the tax col- lectors ( we've got a good plan for evading tio samo's big bite...will tell when see.).

I put this in writing, in order to clarify our dealings, which have been ideal, friendly, amusing, agreeable, and everything profitable! However, the cashier awaitheth, and in any event these things do take time, and if they conclude as happily as they began, I will indeed be tempt- ed to become a registered agent or dealer rather than the mere poetic interloper who amazes curators with fabulous offerings from the navigable cellars of such giants as Conroy, Traven, W.H. Auden, K.A. Porter (blah), of cars, hare-dryers, and tequila!).

                                                       Yours, to the last drop,
                                                               written in blue ink Charlie

left-hand margin P.S. I spoke at Northwestern yesterday. Spender was there. I may speak at Illinois (Urbana) & Indiana, butunderlined its more fununderlined to write then our lines? can sell the letters! What a Biz.

below letter I met Nieholms & sold (to Jens) some Traven material! Nice guy.