Description:

Hoover Herbert

H. Hoover WWII Fantastic Peace Content TLS Regarding The Problems of Lasting Peace

 

2pp typed letter signed by former 31st U.S. President Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) as "Herbert Hoover" at the center of the second page. Written on April 6, 1943 at the Waldorf Astoria Towers hotel in New York City. On watermarked cream stationery with "Herbert Hoover" embossed in black at top. Expected light paper folds. Else near fine. 7.25" x 10.5". Accompanied by a copy of Hoover's correspondent's follow-up letter, further discussed below.

 

Ex-President Herbert Hoover wrote to Dr. Robert Alway Peers of Colfax, California, his friend, frequent correspondent, and fellow political junkie, about a peace settlement to end World War II.

 

In part:

 

"I receive constant demand or expression of hope for the formulation of more adequate, more realistic and more definite bases of peace policies…The subject should not be partisan, but the constructive views of Republicans would be helpful to the whole country…

 

Some twelve months ago Mr. Gibson and I published a book advancing some new ideas upon the subject. Those ideas received extraordinary support from all sections of the press, Democratic as well as Republican. The distribution of the book now exceeds by ten times any other peace book…

 

We proposed wholly new approaches to the machinery for making lasting peace so as to avoid another debacle like Versailles. And we proposed new approaches to the long-view peace settlements…The road to lasting peace is one of hard realism with foundations of experience and ideals…"

 

In the spring of 1943, Europe had been at war for over three and a half years, and the United States had been involved in the international conflict for seventeen months. While everyone's immediate focus remained winning the war, the question of peace terms was not far behind. The idea of drafting a peace while the war was still on-going was novel; historically, peace treaties were composed by the victors after the war had ended.

 

In 1942, Hoover, along with career U.S. diplomat Hugh Gibson (1883-1954), co-authored a monograph entitled The Problems of Lasting Peace (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, Doran). The book examined the long-term causes of World War II--still ongoing--and considered how to achieve the best possible outcome. The book was large in its scope and considered a broad historical context. Hoover and Gibson evaluated the merits of other peace agreements throughout history, including the Treaty of Versailles which ended World War I.

 

Hoover and Gibson's book emphasized a more concrete approach to peace, in sharp contrast to what they viewed as the Democrats' idealism and irresolution. Hoover's condemnation of the Treaty of Versailles as a "debacle" in this letter was at least in part informed by the fact that the Treaty was orchestrated by a Democrat, President Woodrow Wilson.

 

The lot also includes Dr. Peers's reply to Hoover's request for a book review.

 

Including:

 

1. 3pp typed carbon copy of Dr. Peers's response, dated May 1, 1943. In part: "'The Problems of Lasting Peace' points the way. It is a grand book and its influence will doubtless be felt at the Peace Conference." Very good condition overall, with light expected wrinkles and a few chipped edges.

 

Hoover's correspondent, Dr. Robert Alway Peers (1875-1970), was a Canadian émigré who relocated to Colfax, a town in northern California located about halfway in between Sacramento and Carson City, Nevada, in the early twentieth-century. Dr. Peers became a world-renowned specialist in tuberculosis treatment. He also served as the mayor of Colfax between 1922-1945.

 

Hugh Gibson, the co-author of The Problems of Lasting Peace, was a career diplomat who served in Europe, the Caribbean, and Central and South America during his 30-year long diplomatic career. Gibson was also involved in food relief administration, publishing, and radio.

 

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

 

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE!

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

We do our own in-house worldwide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses who proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with signature required, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice, unless you inform us otherwise, immediately upon your receipt of invoice***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third Party Shipping Option: If a third party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third party Please copy and paste this following link into your browser: http://universityarchives.com/UserFiles/ShippingInfo.pdf. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third party shippers.


After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 5 business days following receipt of full payment for item.


Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Westport, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000