Mr. John G. Neihardt University of Missouri Columbia, Missouri
Dear John:

Many thanks for your good letter of March 23 which arrived during my recent trek to Eastern Oregon. I traveled up the Columbia River Gorge as far as Pendleton and watched a good many of the rivers, including the Snake, empty into the tremendously significant and provocative Columbia.

I certainly appreciated your characteristically good and gracious letter. I share with you the feeling that Lucile must have been sent for the work she is doing. She is certainly giving her complete mind and energy to the task. I am troubled as you are about the difficulties of documentation and about the tendency to error where documentation cannot be provided. That is why I am so deeply concerned that all manuscripts should be safeguarded. Mr. Leslie Bliss of the Huntington LIbrary was here to see us today. He is interested in housing the Neihardt collection, and I am confident that the Huntington would exercise every proper care for all the materials, including some that will deteriorate within a few years. Mr. Bliss was not certain that he could provide photostats. I think he should, and perhaps he will be able to when he consults his ex-chequer. If he is not able to provide the photostats, I would suggest a contact with the New York Public Library which would provide equally meticulous care for the documents. I would have suggested the New York earlier except for the thought that Mrs. Ryskind might be more willing to see her collection in the Huntington than in New York.

But my prime intent is to see that the materials are safeguarded and made available to future scholars. I shall let you know what transpires and of course I shall not do anything without your approval.

Sincerely yours,

Bower
Bower Aly
BA:ml
209 Villard Hall UNIVERSITY OF OREGON DEPARTMENT OF SPEECH EUGENE, OREGON
EUGENE APR 4 730 PM 1958 OREG.

STRIKE BACK AT CANCER GIVE TO AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY

UNITED STATES POSTAGE THREE 3 CENTS

Mr. John G. Neihardt University of Missouri Columbia, Missouri