Lot 488
Keller, Helen (1880-1968) American author, political activist, and lecturer. She campaigned for women's suffrage, labor rights, socialism, and other causes. Her life was depicted in "The Miracle Worker." Typed letter signed, 4 pages, 9½ x 7 7/8 in., Forest Hills (N.Y.), November 10, 1923. To Art Young (1866-1943), the socially conscious artist and cartoonist. In part: "…My teacher and I often speak of our invasion of your 'Summer-Time'--how dear and cordial you were to the gypsy bunch who descended upon you from the north like a flock of hungry birds….That was an unforgetable evening we spent in the quaint little study where you write and make pictures. As you talked to us of your work….there was revealed a hidden Art Yound who dwells apart in a seclusin deep as my own. It is strange…how perverse this hidden self is!….Just now the world is full of tragic premonitions…. Perhaps, though, there is more hope in the situation than we think. Under the turmoil and wreckage the Great Idea may be hastening slowly, with circumspection and invincible tread. May not Russia be the implement shaped by the ages to uproot the jungle which we have made of the earth God gave us to cultivate and to enjoy? Anyway, Russia has become a towering beacon to a world grappling with an unknown destiny.may we not hope, of a new day when 'nation shall not lift up sword against nation any more'….It is surprising, is it not, that we can be happy and full of the joy of life, no matter how deeply tinged with gloom our musings on the misfortunes of mankind may be!…." Keller had joined the Socialist Party in Massachusetts in 1909, and even though she decided after 1921 that her chief life's work would be raising funds for the American Foundation for the Blind, she still felt hoped passionately for a future without war and poverty through the cause of socialism. With vintage photo restrike of Keller and her teacher, Anne Sullivan; AP/Wide World stamp on verso.
Estimated Value $1,500 - 2,000.
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| Realized $1,440 |
