Description
NORMAN THOMAS TYPED LETTER SIGNED, "Norman Thomas", by the six-time Socialist candidate for President of the U.S., 8.5 x 7.5, on League for Industrial Democracy letterhead, December 26, 1929, Thomas writes to Gordon W. Allport, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, In Full: "I am awfully glad to have your final report on The Composition of Political Attitudes . I should have written you long ago to thank you except that I was out of town and then terribly pressed with work. I agree with you that the vote here in New York was more significant than the world thought it. If you follow the New Leader you will know what we are trying to do." The New Leader began in 1924 under a group of figures associated with the Socialist Party of America. These included Eugene V. Debs and Norman Thomas. It was published in New York City by the American Labor Conference on International Affairs. Its orientation was liberal and anti-communist. The report he mentions is by Gordon W. Allport, the recipient of this letter, "The Composition of Political Attitudes," American Journal of Sociology 35, no. 2 (Sep., 1929): 220-238. The letter has one small spot on upper left, mailing folds, otherwise in fine condition.
Norman Mattoon Thomas (1884-1968) was an American Presbyterian minister who achieved fame as a socialist, pacifist, and six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America. In 1928, Thomas made his first unsuccessful run for the Presidency as the Socialist candidate. He also ran and lost in 1932 (lost to Hoover), 1936, 1940, 1944 (lost to FDR three times) and 1948 (lost to Truman), doing best in 1932 when he received 881,951 votes. Thomas campaigned for many measures that he saw become law: unemployment insurance, minimum wage, five-day work week and abolition of child labor.
$150 #11056
