TO SAMUEL G. BLYTHE

Washington, January 6, 1912

My dear Sam,—...  I, too, have been reading William James.  His varieties of religious experience is the only philosophic work that I was ever able to get all the way through.  This thing gave me real delight for a week.

Have just read Mr. John Bigelow’s reminiscences, or bits thereof, and find that the aforesaid John is much like another John that we know in this city, the fine friend of the Pan-American Bureau.  He seems to have been a dignified and solemn gentleman who carried on correspondence with a great many men for a number of years, without ... having indulged in a flash of humor in all his respectable days. ...

Will you support me for Supreme Court Justice?  I see that I am mentioned.  Between us, I am entirely ineligible, having a sense of humor.  As always yours,

LANE

TO SIDNEY E. MEZES PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS

Washington, February 15,1912

My dear Sid,—­Your weather has been no worse than ours, I want you to understand; in fact, not so bad.  I think the glacial period is returning and the ice cap is moving down from the North Pole.

The Supreme Bench I could not get because I am a Democrat, and the President could not afford to appoint another Democrat on the Bench.  I do not know when McKenna goes out, and I am not going to be disturbed about it anyway.  If I had not been unlucky enough to be born in Canada I could be nominated for President this year.  Things are in a devil of a condition.  We could have elected Wilson, hands down, if it had not been for Hearst’s malevolent influence.  He is at the bottom of all this deviltry.  His aim is to kill Wilson off and nominate Clark, and Clark is in the lead now, I think.  God knows whether he can beat Taft or not.  It looks to me as if Taft will be nominated.  I have a feeling somehow that the Roosevelt boom won’t materialize.

My love to the Missis and to Mr. House.  As always yours,

FRANKLIN K. LANE

TO JOHN H. WIGMORE

Washington, February 19, 1912

My dear John,—­For two weeks there has been standing on my desk a most elegantly bound set of your cases on TORTS sent to me by Little, Brown & Co. at your request.  You do not need to be told, I know, how much I appreciate a thing that comes from you and how poverty stricken I am when it comes to making adequate return.  I can prove that I have been working hard, but my work does not crystallize into anything which is worth sending to a friend.

The fact is that I have never worked as hard in my life as I have lately.  I get to my office about nine, and without going out of my room (for I take my lunch at my desk), stay until six, and work at home every night until half past eleven, and then take a volume of essays or poems to bed with me for half or three-quarters of an hour, and so to sleep.