International Autograph Auctions Ltd.
Lot 608
HOOVER HERBERT: (1874-1964) American President 1929-33. A very interesting T.L., containing several annotations, corrections and insertions in Hoover´s hand, two pages, folio, Paris, 7th April 1919, the historical draft letter being the one sent by President Woodrow Wilson, together with the called "Big Four" to humanitarian Fridtjof Nansen. The "Big Four" being Wilson himself, David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau and Vittorio E. Orlando, contemporary leaders in England, France and Italy respectively. Hoover, in his capacity as Director of the United States Food Administration, tries to get the desperately needed food supplies to starving Russians after World War one and Russian revolution. The typed letter starts saying `Dear Sir, The misery and suffering in Russia described in your letter of April 3rd appeals to the sympathies of all peoples. It is shocking to humanity that millions of men, women and children lack the food and necessities, which may like endurable. The government and peoples whom we represent would be glad to cooperate, without thought of political, military or financial advantage, in any proposal which would relieve this situation in Russia.´ Hoover in one of his insertions adds `The problem of finance would seem to us to fall upon the Russian authorities whose interest should be as great as our own and whose losses have been far less.´ A historical letter and food supply attempt by Nansen and the Big Four, which was first boycotted by French authorities and later by the Bolsheviks´ refusal to stop fighting until they had achieved their objectives and therefore blocked the proposed plan. VG £600-900 Fridtjof Nansen (1861-1930) Norwegian Explorer and Scientist. Nobel Peace Prize in 1922. Former champion Skier he led the team that made the first skiing crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, and won international fame after reaching a record northern latitude during his North Pole expedition. His techniques of polar travel and his innovations influenced a generation of subsequent Arctic and Antarctic expeditions.
