My dear Miss Addams:-
You can imagine how interesting "Twenty Years at Hull House" was to me and how much I appreciate your sending me a copy with the authors compliments. It made clear to me many of the problems that swirled around when I lived there nineteen years ago. As I look back to those times they seem to almost have the glow of romance -- certainly the blossoming out of Hull House in its present proportions and influence seems like an Aladdin's dream.
The Barton family were all as [page 2] interested of course and our own Freeport friends have been eager to see the new book and to get a copy.
Do you remember that you dictated ↑to me↓ that first important article on the "Subjective Value of a Survival Settlement" one hot Sunday so that you could take the train Monday for the Plymouth meeting where you gave it I believe. I can hardly realize that nearly twenty years of life have passed since then.
I prize very highly all the advantages Hull House gave me of contact with some very noble people but I am going to take this opportunity to thank you, more than I can anyone else for opening my mind to the realities and significance and duties of human relationships. And it is a [page 3] great deal more than [Tolstoy] could ever give ↑much as he has to give↓.
May I add that even if physically I find I cannot do as much as I would like to do at Hull House itself yet I still cherish the belief that through the exhibits of the methods much can remains to be done for immigrant citizenship. I hope that in your next Twenty Years at Hull House we can do something to work this out.
Again thanking you in more ways than one for Twenty Years at Hull House, I am
With sincere esteem
Edward J. Burchard
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