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January 22, 1938, Hr. Edward S. Witkowski, President, Manhattan Society, Hotel KcAlpin, Mew lork City. Dear Mr. Witkowski: This is to thank you and Hr. Kroppy for your letter of January 14th inviting me to attend the dinner to be held at the Biltmore Hotel on the evening of February 21st in honor of ay associate, Mr. Ssymcsak. As I endeavored to indicate when this subject was first mentioned, I would be glad to participate in any gathering of the many friends and admirers of Mr. Ssymcsak to pay tribute to his public services and achievements. It has occurred to me, however, that It might be most appropriate if the toastmaster and the principal speaker were drawn from your own society which is paying honor to Mr. Ssymcsak, and if those on the outside whom you may select for guest speakers were to supplement these remarks. The thought I had in mind, apart from my own limitations as a public speaker, is that Mr. Ssymcsak*s friends and my own are aware of ay close dally association with him and my admiration of his abilities and accomplishments so that whatever I would say would be much like one judge on a bench publicly praising another who sat beside him daily. In such a close relation ship the tributes are naturally taken for granted and in ay case would be both spontaneous and genuine. In other words, I assume that your purpose is to have your society do honor to Mr. Ssymcsak rather than to afford merely an occasion for his official colleagues to do so. Accordingly, I am wondering if it would not be better were I to accept your invitation with the understanding that whatever I might be called upon to say would be a brief supplement to such preceding remarks as may be made by those who represent your society. I would appreciate it if you - 2would advise me whether this would accord with your own ideas. In the meantime, I wish to reiterate that I am grateful to you for your kind invitation, the sore so because of the high esteem in which I hold Mr. Ssymczak and ay desire to join in any testimonial to him. Sincerely yours, M« S. Eccles, Chairman.
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