Beschreibung:

ARTHUR, Chester A. Autograph letter signed ("Chester A. Arthur"), to Edwin D. Morgan, Washington, D.C., 24 April 1882. 3 pages, 8vo (4 7/8 x 7 15/16 in.), Executive Mansion stationery, light matburn, glue remains from mounting at edge of final blank page . ARTHUR TO HIS POLITICAL MENTOR: "I HAD HOPED TO HAVE YOU HERE LONG BEFORE THIS TIME" Arthur writes to his first political patron, Edwin D. Morgan, Governor of New York, extending an invitation to visit the White House. "It will give me great pleasure, if Mrs. Morgan & yourself will come & make me a visit. I had hoped to have you here long before this time; but my children with a party of their young friends have been with me for nearly a month and have but just now returned home having extended their visit much longer than they expected. Please fix any time for your coming convenient to yourselves--after this week; or rather after next Monday, as I expect to be at Fortress Monroe on Thursday & Friday of this week and in Philadelphia on Monday..." Arthur and Morgan first worked together during the Civil War when the former rose from Engineer in Chief in the New York State militia to the rank of Quartermaster General. Morgan said of his service: "He was my chief reliance in the duties of equipping and transporting troops to munitions of war. In the position of Quarter Master General he displayed not only great executive ability and unbending integrity, but great knowledge of Army Regulations. He can say No (which is important) without giving offense" (Thomas Reeves Gentleman Boss: The Life of Chester A. Arthur , p.30). Their friendship persisted after the war, and Morgan served as a behind-the-scenes advisor to Arthur in the wake of Garfield's assassination. Arthur was a widower when he assumed the office of the President. This letter gives an intimate glimpse into his personal life, emphasizing his role as single parent of a teenage son and ten-year-old daughter. "Arthur's autograph is among the scarcest of any post-Civil War president," comments John M. Taylor, and autograph letters of presidential date are among the rarest, especially with important personal and political association (See John M. Taylor, From the White House Inkwell , Santa Monica, 1989, pp.125-127).