Charles William Anderson to Charles W. Chesnutt December 3, 1902.
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CONEY ISLAND JOCKEY CLUB,
WINDSOR ARCADE,
571 FIFTH AVENUE,
NEW YORK.
W.K.VANDERBILT, President.
C. FELLOWES, Secretary.
J.H. BRADFORD, Treasurer.
December 3rd, 1902,
Mr. Charles W. Chesnutt,
Cleveland, Ohio,
My dear Mr, Chesnutt:-
Only a line to advise you that Hon. J.S. Fassett1 of this State is exceedingly enthusiastic over "The Marrow of Tradition", and wantedwants to know of me whether or not you have another book in course of preparations. He has read your "Conjure Woman" and "The Wife of His Youth and Other Stories." Mr. Fassett is, as you may know, one of the ablest men in public life in this State. He was the Republican candidate for Governor some years ago, and was Collector of the Port of New York under the Harrison administration. If I am not mistaken, he married the daughter of Crocker, the California Gold baron. He seems to feel that your books have not the circulation which their merits entitle them to, and is now busying himself in your behalf by calling them to the attion of his literary friends. This is such pleasant news that I thought I ought to pass it on to you.
I am now far and deep in the work of preparing my Annual Report of the Groos Receipts of Racing Associations, and when it is all concluded , I may turn my face toward Cleveland and the West. If so, I shall do myself the pleasure of looking in on you. Let me hear from you at your convenience. My office is Room 10, Fifth Avenue Hotel. Hoping that you and yours are well, I am
Yours truly, Charles W. AndersonCorrespondent: Charles William Anderson (1866–1938) was a prominent member of the Republican party in New York, holding several local and state offices, including as the first Black Collector of Internal Revenue in Manhattan, a post he assumed in 1905. Before that he had served as the State Supervisor of Racing Accounts. A close acquaintance of Booker T. Washington, Anderson had a noted interest in literary works by Black writers, and was said to have a library in his home that contained "more books than that of any other colored man in [New York]" ("A Colored Man's Rise," New-York Tribune Illustrated Supplement (March 26, 1905): 8
1. Jacob Sloat Fassett (1853–1924) was a White lawyer and Republican politician from New York. He served in the New York State Senate and U. S. House of Representatives, and unsuccessfully ran for Governor of New York in 1891. [back]
