Martha Carey Thomas to Jane Addams, July 23, 1912

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July 23, 1912.

Dear Miss Addams,

Miss Shaw, Mrs. Dennett, Miss Ashley, Miss Garrett and I are all greatly encouraged by the splendid outlook for money in Chicago. It is wonderful that you and Miss Breckinridge have been able to get Miss Johnson access to just the right people.

I was greatly puzzled by Miss Johnson's telegram asking whether she should follow your advice or my advice. As she perhaps told you I telegraphed back immediately that she was certainly to follow your and Miss Breckinridge's [advice], that I could not imagine any serious conflict. Her letter received this [morning] explains that she misunderstood me when we were talking about the Ways and [Means] Committee. I suggested that it might be well to ask only women to be members of the Ways and Means Committee and she very naturally understood this as meaning that she was not to ask for subscriptions from men. Another misunderstanding seems to have been about the Woman's Journal. After Miss Blackwell sent out her attack on Headquarters' officers it seemed to our Ways and Means Committee that the whole question of the Journal was involved in such great difficulty that it would be better not to beg for the Journal alone but to beg for the expenses of the National and for the expenses of the Journal as part of the expenses of the National. You remember that our first decision was to beg only for the Journal and I had prepared an appeal for the Ways and Means Committee speaking of the Journal alone. In explaining this to Miss Johnson probably I did not take time [enough] to make it clear that of course where people felt like giving to the Journal it was best to ask them to give to the National in order to help out the Journal. I hope very much that you and Miss Breckinridge will not think that I meant [page 2] to give Miss Johnson any instructions that were not in accordance with your instructions to her. When our Ways and Means Committee sent her to Chicago it was with the understanding that while in the west she should work directly under the instructions of you and Miss Breckinridge. As I am particularly anxious that there should be no misunderstanding about this I should be very grateful to you if you would kindly take the time to read my letter to her a copy of which I enclose. I am sending a duplicate of this letter to Miss Breckinridge and also a copy of my letter to you.

With kindest regards and many, many congratulations for what you have been able to do in Chicago,

Cordially yours,