November 25, 1926.
My dear Miss Balch:
Your letter about Miss Addams alarm regarding the International financial situation has come.
Before Madeleine Doty went away I wrote her and I also had a long conversation with her about the unpaid international dues. I suggested at that time that she let me send out "dues reminder" to all the unpaid up international members so that by the time she arrived in Geneva we would get in some returns. I told her at the time that I would send out such a letter from this office on November 1st and those who did not respond a second letter December 1st and also one for three or four months until we should bring up the membership again. She responded by telling me that this was very kind but that she would prefer to do this from Geneva and took with her a list of all the members which we had listed in our cabinet and which I had run off for her on the addressograph machine the week before she sailed.
In the meantime Miss Addams wrote me and asked me if I did not think it would be a good thing for her to write such a letter and sign it and have me send it off from this office. I replied that if she wrote such a letter and signed it we would get it out immediately, but also told her of Miss Doty's desire to do this from Geneva. Now, I do not know what to do. Personally, I think it would be much more effective if it did go out under Miss Addams name from this office. We certainly would get quick returns and I should think the postage would be cheaper. However, I think it would be very unfortunate to send one out and find that Miss Doty had done the same. [page 2]
My suggestion would be that Miss Addams send Miss Doty a deferred cable stating that she wanted to do it here from this office, in order to check such a [possibility] as I have suggested. Then, if Miss Adams would write such a letter to be signed by her it could go in a sense as Christmas letter or a Christmas appeal and if written over Miss Addams name I should believe might be very effective.
I am sending a carbon of this letter to Miss Addams in order to avoid delay. If it is decided to send out the letters from this office I can assure you that we will do it in the quickest possible way.
I am in the throes [at] the moment of sending out about two hundred appeal letters to names I was given of persons in New York and on December first we will send out our 4th letter reminding unorganized members of lapsed dues.
You will see that my only hesitation is the fact that Miss Doty was so insistent on doing it from Geneva that I feel that she may have already undertaken this and a duplicate of a reminder might have unfortunate effects, but if you decide to do it in spite of this we shall get it out immediately upon Miss Addams request.
Faithfully yours,
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