Spencer Heath Archive

Item 2877

Carbon of letter to grandson Irvan T. O’Connell, Jr.

No date

 

 

Dear Irvan Jr.:

That was a mighty good letter you wrote me a month or two ago. It was surely good to hear from you. Why do you have to be so far away? Don’t we have Hopkins and other good Universities here in the East where you might teach and also go after that Ph.D. — if that is your aim?

 

 However, I am glad you like to teach. When practiced as a fine art, there is nothing to compare, either from the standpoint of intrinsic interest or the social poten­tialities involved. I wonder if any other fine art was ever more primitive or so badly abused.

 

 I am staying mostly at Elkridge, but still spend a good deal of time in New York. Spencer is here with me for the holidays, putting in some valiant work on behalf of the Foundation. I wish all of my grand-kind were more easily accessible, especially Spencer and you, and could come and go at will.

 

 Your letter was a great temptation to me. At first, I had some commitments more or less detaining me here. And then with Spencer coming back, I thought I might re­turn with him and make you a visit via New Mexico and Southern California. But this book promotion business is still claiming a lot of my attention, and I have got a lot of things to do in New York — investments and so forth, before I can look further abroad.

 

 Have I got any new ideas? Perhaps not. Plato says they are only reminiscent at best. But they are good fun. If you were here, I am sure I could hand you a few. Here’s a book I want you to look up: AFTER UTOPIA: The Decline of Political Faith, by Dr. J.N. Shklar, published by Princeton in 1957. It is an exceedingly scholarly review of the leading social and political thought for 200 years, conclud­ing with an insistent call for “a genuinely radical political philosophy”. The book makes an almost perfect prelude, clear­ing the ground for CMA.

 

 I am sending you a circular and booklet recently pre­pared and already mailed out to some 10,000 selected scholars and scientists, but with only meager returns so far — as might be expected.

 

 Why don’t you hand me a couple of ideas so I would have something specific to which to react?

 

 Well, this is not much of a letter so far, but I think I will send it along with enclosures just the same. It is good that you remember me so well after so long, as I do you. I only hope we can get together oftener as time goes on.

 

                        Affectionately,

 

SH/m