Alice Thacher Post to Hannah Clothier Hull and Lucia Ames Mead, November 8, 1917

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↑Copy for Miss Addams from A. T. Post↓

November 8, 1917.

Dear Mrs. Hull and Mrs. Mead:

This is a joint letter to you both and I will send a copy of it to Miss Addams. It has reference to Mrs. Mead's letter of 3rd to me, which has been only today received. Mails are just now so often greatly delayed that we will have to allow more time than we are accustomed to for our planning.

I like Mrs. Mead's suggestions very much, except that I think we must plan to have the banquet last later than 9:45.

I think we had better not have a main subject more definitely stated than the general subject of internationalism, perhaps. For as I understand it, we want to emphasize our international relationships and obligations at this meeting, and of course peace can only be based on internationalism. I should think that in asking people if they are to be there and will undertake to speak, we should tell them how long a time they will have allotted to them, and ask them what phase of internationalism (if we decide on that) they would like to speak to. I would think we would get more vital results than we would get from assigning special subjects to them. I would suggest six or seven speakers with ten minutes each, and Miss Addams to close.

I think Mrs. Mead has made excellent suggestions in naming Miss Abbott, Mrs. Cothren and Mrs. Andrews. I do not know whether Mrs. Buttenheim is a speaker, but she seems like a fine woman. Who could we ask ↑about that?↓ I think we could not ↑well↓ spare Mrs. Spencer or Miss Breckinridge or Mrs. Mead. I do not think any one from Washington will be going who is a speaker, but I think it might be well to ask Miss Janet Richards if she can be there and would speak in that case, though it is true that she is rather militant at present, I am told. If we actually know of new voices it would be fine to work them in. How would it do to have Mrs. Lucy Biddle Lewis?

Since letters in regard to speaking should be got off soon I should be very glad if you would both of you write me soon giving full list of whom you advise, general subject (or subjects), time allotments, and anything else that seems important.