Spencer Heath Archive

Letter to Dr. Frances Ilg, 345 St. Rona Street, New Haven 11, Connecticut

March 1, 1956

Dear Dr. Ilg:

     I have just finished reading and re-reading the little book you so kindly referred to me, Thinking About Thinking, by Cassius Keyser (which Spencer found in a Fourth Avenue book store for me). I am writing to thank you for bringing it to my attention, along with other interesting things you made me acquainted with during our weekend with my daughter in Virginia. I have written over my name and date in the front of this book, “Brilliant and beautiful. Fundamental and sound.”

     It makes me wonder if it is not a rule that the most clear and creative work in the field of intellect is not done by persons who overstep the limits of their parti­cular profession. I am thinking of Schrödinger, the physicist, adventuring into the field of biology, as Keyser, the mathematician, has done so brilliantly in that special division of philosophy — epistemology, which is usually so barren in the hands of its professionals. Don’t you love his good old Saxon name for it, “kenlore”?

     My grandson and I have been making some striking improvements in several portions of my manuscript, Citadel, Market and Altar. The “Prefatory Note,” which you seem to allow as being fundamental, has been better organized and other portions have been considerably refined. We have been very intent on this for the last several weeks, during which Spencer has brought to my attention numerous authorities supplying factual data for my generalizations. Yesterday we put the finally revised material in the hands of a typist for the final draft. Now I have to run down to Maryland for a week or two, but we expect to visit New Haven and Yale with the completed typescript for putting in type shortly after my return.

     Trusting that all things are happening happily with you, and with kindest regards,

SH/m                         Sincerely yours,