My dear Mrs. Mead:
This is a "Local Arrangements Committee" letter. I shall send carbons of it to Miss Addams, Mrs. Thomas, Miss Breckinridge, and Mrs. Kent, the other original member with Mrs. Odell and myself of the Committee. Mrs. Kent will not be able to be here until just before the Annual Meeting, but I am in touch with her by letter. Mrs. Odell is just now not well, but will confer with us by telephone and otherwise. We have added to the Committee Mrs. Burch, Chairman of the Washington Branch, and have agreed to add further, if they will serve, Mrs. Allender, Mrs. Dales and Miss Goode, our Secretaries, and Miss Needham, our Treasurer.
Washington is to be very full at the very time we have placed our meeting. We cannot get the New Willard at all. So we have arranged for the New Ebbitt, across 14th Street from the Willard, and a little cheaper to stay at. They will give us their "White Parlor" without charge if we will announce the New Ebbitt (14th and F Streets) as our headquarters in our invitations; and of course they are hoping that most of our people will stay there. The White Parlor is low in the ceiling but it lights and ventilates well, or pretty well. It holds 200 chairs, which they furnish, and they will furnish a little platform.
We cannot get Poli's for our mass meeting either Sunday afternoon or evening. We could get the National Sunday afternoon but it would be $200.00. The Belasco is the handsomest [Theater] in Washington, and it costs less than the National, namely, $150.00, so we have taken that, subject to ratification of the contract from New York, which will come Monday. At first it looked as if we might get it for less, but that was afterwards rescinded. We will be permitted to ask for money from the platform. Perhaps we ought to have consulted you and Miss Breckinridge before taking it, but we have been very much afraid of losing our chance. [page 2]
Mrs. Burch is wondering if it would be possible to get in a reception in some time Friday or Saturday. It is not certain that she could manage it herself, but she would be helped in deciding, if you thought you could arrange the time for it. It would be in her own handsome home, and would be intended to introduce our Washington people and others to Miss Addams and the Executive Board, provided Miss Addams could stand it, and would enable the Washington people to meet the outside members also. She had thought of the hours as being from five to seven, but any other suitable time could be considered. I told her I thought it would be difficult to get it in between an afternoon meeting and an evening meeting and give time for necessary dinners. But of course it would be fine if it could be got in somehow.
Do you think of anything else besides badges that the Local Committee ought to arrange for?
What do you think of getting Mrs. [MacKaye] to do the publicity, as she did so splendidly last year? We gave her $25.00 dollars then, and a bonus of $25.00 afterward the work was so unusual. I am suggesting that the Conference of Oppressed Nationalities get her for their publicity work, and if she did ours at the same time it would be a great saving of effort as the one thing runs into the other and better stories could be made. I should think that if each paid her $25.00 it could be well done and would be worth while and no further bonuses would seem to be called for.
Our stenographic work last time was a failure, in my opinion, and I suggest we dispense with that and save a lot of money. But of course you really ought to decide that. Do you want a full report?
Most cordially yours,
Comments