Document Type
Letter
Files
Download Full Text (690 KB)
Date
3-1904
Keywords
John Hay, Francis Mairs Huntington Wilson, Lloyd Griscom, Japan, Far East, Theodore Roosevelt
Description
In this handwritten letter, the Minister to Japan, Lloyd C. Griscom, writes to Secretary of State John Hay on behalf of Huntington Wilson. Griscom asks Hay to find another diplomatic post for Wilson, arguing that he deserves a promotion after spending nearly seven years in the Far East.
Sender
Lloyd C. Griscom
Recipient
John Milton Hay
Corresponds to:
Folder 1-1, Document 3
Transcription
[Dear Mr. Hay]
[Permit me to say a word to you on behalf of Mr. Huntington Wilson, 1st Secretary of this legation.]
[Ever since my arrival here Mr. Wilson has been of such great assistance to me and proved himself so competent, that it may seem strange that I should be the one to ask you to find him another post, but it is because I feel that he really deserves a promotion. Six and a half years in a Far Eastern post is a long time indeed and when a man has done his work well and preserved his keen enthusiasm throughout all this period he deserves well of his government. The record of some of Mr. Wilson's work is in his Department, but what the Department does not know, perhaps, is that he has made himself persona grata with the people to whom he is accredited and his conduct and gentlemanly bearing have done much to raise the level of high esteem in which this legation has been held.]
[When Mr. Wilson was in Washington last winter he had a conversation with the President in which the latter volunteered the opinion that Mr. W. merited a small mission, and twice he assured Mr. Wilson that he would be given a mission the first opportunity that offered. I bring this to your knowledge in order to show that Mr. Wilson has been encouraged to think that his patience would be rewarded with advancement and that therefore his present desire to have his name brought forward is not unwarranted. In fact his whole bearing has been one of great modesty and when the President suggested a small European mission Mr. Wilson said that a First Secretaryship of Embassy was the most he hoped for.]
[Please bear Mr. Wilson well in mind, dear Mr. Hay. As I said before seven years in a Far Eastern post is a very long time. He is going home next February to be married to a beautiful and charming American girl and it would be very hard for him to come back here again. Even though the loss is mine I hope you will find a good place for him before the Spring.]
Language
English
Rights Statement
Please contact the Myrin Library Special Collections Department for permissions to use this document. https://www.ursinus.edu/library/archives-special-collections/
Recommended Citation
Griscom, Lloyd C., "Letter From Lloyd C. Griscom to John Milton Hay, March, 1904" (1904). Early Career Documents. 23.
https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/fmhw_early_career/23
