March 17, 1952

Dear Milt:

We have undertaken a modest venture here at Harvard in which I feel
certain that you will be interested. It is a quarterly designed to give
European and American intellectuals an opportunity to discuss contemporary
problems on as high a level as we can reach. Our Board of Editorial Advisors
includes McGeorge Bundy, Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., Huntington Cairns, and
Professor Arthur Sutherland of the Harvard Law School. A few days ago we
invited Reinhold Niebuhr and Harry D. Gideonse to join this group.

The intentions of this little journal I think are fairly obvious and
have been set out with reasonable frankness in the first issue. I can only
add that it seems to me the best possible propaganda not to propagandize,
but to permit serious and representative inquiry by Europeans and Americans
alike into the common problems. Therefore, we are purposely inviting charac-
teristic statements by people who do not share our own views, but who carry
nevertheless great weight in European intellectual circles.

I am enough of a Platonist to believe that we should aim our efforts
at the relatively small group of intellectuals, civil servants, and academicians
which sets so much of the tone in European life, as you know probably better
than anyone. We go on assuming that mass appeals and mass communications
and mass propaganda can achieve massive results. No doubt they all have their
place, but their effectiveness depends on the prevailing intellectual atmosphere.

People keep calling for bold decisions, but you who wrestled with the
atmosphere of European political problems are better aware than anyone that
the climate for taking bold decisions simply does not exist. One must pain-
fully and even slowly, in spite of every wish for speed, build up the moral
consensus without which common policies are really impossible and hopes based
on them illusory.

'I gather from Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., that you are interested in a
similar venture already, although I understand it is directed primarily at
literary circles. We are trying to reach a wider audience: We shall un-
doubtedly call on many academic figures, but our panel of those who have
already agreed to contribute to the review includes some public figures (trade-
union leaders, a number of leaders of political parties and so on), journalists,
editors of reviews, as well as a considerable number in more scholarly pursuits.

Mr. Milton Katz
Ford Foundation
914 East Green Street
Pasadena, California

MAR31 REC'D

THE FORD FOUNDATION

914 EAST GREEN STREET
PASADENA 1, CALIFORNIA

MILTON KATZ
Associate Director

March 28, 1952

Professor W. Y. Elliott, Director
Summer School of Arts and Sciences
and of Education
2 Weld Hall
Harvard University
Cambridge 38, Massachusetts

Dear Bill:

I have had a preliminary discussion of your letter
of March 17 and of Confluence with my associates here. They
want to consider it further.

Several questions have been raised. While I can
fairly say that we are impressed by the first issue, several
of us wondered whether the effort might not tend to peter
out rather rapidly. The problem would be how to carry the
basic questions raised in the first number into their many
phases, without falling into sterile repetition. Similar
questions were raised about the range and quality of avail-
able contributors.

In addition, we would be glad to see a more detailed
budget of estimated expenditures and needs.

I would suggest that we proceed in this way: Why don't
you let us have a more detailed budget? We would then refer
the request to a corporation we have just set up, to be called
Intercultural Publications, Inc. This is the corporation which
will have general responsibility for publishing and distribut-
ing our new quarterly, Perspectives USA, which Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
mentioned to you. In addition, it will be the agency through
which we expect to deal with various pending projects involving
the publication or distribution of books and periodicals. The
president is James Laughlin of New Directions. The board of
directors are an imaginative and well-balanced group.

We are all aware of the danger that a small but sig-
nificant project of this kind can very easily get lost in the

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      <td>WYE</td>
      <td></td>
      <td></td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>AER</td>
      <td></td>
      <td></td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>MLC</td>
      <td></td>
      <td></td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>NH</td>
      <td></td>
      <td>✓</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>VRL</td>
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      <td>EJ$</td>
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    <tr>
      <td>HAK</td>
      <td></td>
      <td></td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td colspan="3">ANSWER</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

April 11, 1952

Mr. Milton Katz
The Ford Foundation
914 East Green Street
Pasadena 1, California

Dear Milt:

Your letter of March 28 reached my office during the spring recess while I was in Washington (O.D.M, steel strike, and all that) and did not for this reason come to my attention until a few days ago.

The considerations raised by you and your associates had also occurred to us. After grappling, first of all, with the problem of how to keep the discussion from petering out, we believe that we have found a formula. We intend each issue to present two problems for discussion: one new and the other a continuation of a previous topic. In this manner there will occur some overlap, as well as a definition of each topic in advance of the substantive discussion and an opportunity for replies and for an exploration of some useful ramifications. We are considering running the summarizing article in the third issue after the discussion has been begun. An obvious device will be to have summarizing articles both from the European and American points of view. I am sure you understand that we cannot really do this on an effective and continuing basis until we have some assurance of continued support.

As soon as our review is on a more stable basis we intend to carry the idea of a forum into a number of other fields. For example each issue would run reviews from Europe and the United States on books of contemporary interest. A book such as Bevan's recent effort can be very effectively dealt with in this way. In order to give the review a more international flavor we intend to publish summaries of each article in French, German, and Italian as soon as our funds permit.

The continued high quality of our contributors is, of course, a major concern. As I indicated in my first letter to you, we have established a panel of over 150 Europeans who have agreed in principle to write for us. In addition about twenty others, including contributors to leading Swiss and British newspapers have written to us on the basis of our first issue, inquiring about the possibility of writing for us. Nevertheless we feel the need for putting the matter of contributors on a more stable basis. We therefore propose to create an advisory board in Europe similar to the one we have in the United States charged with the dual task of suggesting both topics of discussion and possible contributors. Our initial exploration of this idea in Europe has been quite encouraging. Henry Kissinger is

Mr. Milton Katz

-2-

4/11/52

going to Europe in May on other business and could at that time line up the rest of this group if we have some assurance of continuing. If you feel like backing us I should particularly welcome a chance for him to talk with you at your convenience as to time and place.

I am enclosing a budget phased over a period of two years. I think you will agree that the usefulness of such a venture cannot be measured in short-range terms and that if it is to be continued it should be given a chance to prove itself at least for two years, although I should prefer three. We ought not to go on without such an assurance, though we can struggle on with an underwriting for only one. The figures although based on our actual expenses in putting out the first issue are probably too high. This is due to the fact that we have not included any estimate for subscriptions for the first year because we cannot yet estimate their scope. One estimate of 5,000 subscriptions for the second year is very conservative I am sure. We intend to use funds from foreign subscriptions to pay our foreign contributors and our advisory board where necessary. At any rate $20,000 would be our maximum requirement for two years and could well be substantially reduced as soon as we are on a stable enough basis to take subscriptions.

The response to our first issue has been very encouraging. We have received a large number of letters both from Europe and the United States supporting our effort. Two Swiss newspapers--*die Tat*, and *Die Neue Zuericher Zeitung* have indicated that they would comment on it editorially while the German monthly *der Monat* has asked for permission to reprint Barrett's article. We have already lined up articles on our next three topics: The Adequacy of the Democratic Method, The Social Role of Art and Philosophy, The Meaning of Neutralism. We have also explored redesigning our cover to make it a little more lively, although still conservative.

I shall not repeat what I tried to put in my first letter, i.e., the unique chance to have a "high-line" answer for the honest doubts and fears of European intellectual leaders. By placing our American articles side by side with those by the best younger representatives of European culture, we will let our readers judge directly the American moral and intellectual contribution to the common problems.

All these plans depend at the moment on some assurance of continued support. I believe it would be a great pity to permit these discussions which have evoked so favorable a reaction to lapse without a thorough trial.

WYE:jwm

THE FORD FOUNDATION

April 24, 1952

Professor W. Y. Elliott
2 Weld Hall
Harvard University
Cambridge 38, Mass.

Dear Bill:

In an effort to get an early indication of
the prospects for Confluence, I asked the officers and
board of Intercultural Publications, Inc., for a pre-
liminary reaction to Confluence prior to Laughlin's
departure for Europe. Unfortunately, the preliminary
reaction is one of considerable doubt and hesitation.

After some discussion with my associates here
and by mail with Laughlin, it seems that perhaps the
best disposition to make of the matter at this time
would be to put your application in the deferred category.
After you have put out two or three issues, if you wish
us to do so, we would be glad to reexamine the project
on the record as it would then stand.

I am sorry we're unable to give you more
specific assistance or encouragement at this time. I
do hope that you will ask us to reconsider in the light
of a record of three or four issues.

With best wishes,

April 29, 1952

Mr. Milton Katz, Associate Director
The Ford Foundation
914 East Green Street
Pasadena 1, California

Dear Milt:

Thank you for your letter of April 24. I can understand the reluctance of
your associates and of the officers of Intercultural Publications, Inc. to
commit themselves on the basis of only one issue. As a matter of fact, I
should on my part much prefer to have our request for support considered
on the basis of a record of three or four issues. The utility of our ven-
ture lies, after all, in its ability to continue a high level of discussion.

Unfortunately, however, we are faced with the following problem: We are
assured of support through three issues largely from the surplus of funds
raised for an international seminar, which we were allowed to divert to this
effort. As you can readily appreciate, we must make our commitments at
least six months ahead of publication. Our second issue is now at the
printer's, and our third is practically assembled. We will therefore be
forced to cease operations unless we receive some indication of support
fairly soon. Even if you should wish to support us after our third issue
has appeared, we would be in no position to continue, and all the connec-
tions so laboriously built up over a period of eighteen months would be
lost.

This I believe would be a great pity. I am encouraged to say so, not only
on the basis of considerations I have already outlined to you, but because
of the response our effort has evoked in Europe. We receive on the average
seven letters a day from all over the Continent, together with a substantial
number of unsolicited articles. This, I think, is all the more significant,
because the American "Letters to the Editor" column is unknown on the Con-
tent. I should wish that the officers of Intercultural Publications, Inc.
look over our correspondence file and I would be very glad to make it avail-
able to them if they came up here.

I hope you will feel that a matter of such importance should not be decided
on the basis of abstract considerations. I would therefore like to make the
following proposal: Would it prove possible for you to see us through two
more issues beyond our present commitment, with the understanding that you
would consider putting the magazine on a more permanent basis after you have
seen our first three issues? This would give us a sufficient "lead time" so
that if we have to wind up affairs we can do so relatively easily. We, on

W. Y. Elliott

Bucurely, Annæ

ing for Europe them on other business for three weeks.

I should welcome a staff of some officers from International Publications, Inc.,

to continuedaborst.
would be spent $8,000. It is understood that this would in no way commit you
Given a chance to prove itself more fully. The total cost of two more issues
have objective indices of the netness of our effort and it will have been
inane. It seems to me that in this manner your final determination will
our part, would undertake to solicit subscriptions starting with our third

October 20, 1952

Mr. Milton Katz
914 East Green Street
Pasadena 1, California

Dear Mr. Katz:

Enclosed please find the third issue
of CONFLUENCE. It is interesting to note that
the responses to our magazine are increasing
everyday and that as of late, we have had many
reviews in newspapers and periodicals. The
latest of these reviews was in the Educational
Supplement of the *Times* of London which in the
space of ten days brought forth twenty or more
requests for CONFLUENCE.

HAK:bd

HAK:dd

Henry V. Krausinger

Sincerely yours,

regards for CONFERENCE.

space of ten days brought forth twenty or more
embroidment of the *Times* of London which in the
latest of these reviews was in the Educational
reviews in newspapers and periodicals. The
everyday and that as of late, we have had many
the responses to our magazine are increasing
of CONFERENCE. It is interesting to note that
enclosed please find the third issue

Dear Mr. Kats:

Pasadena J. California
914 East Green Street
Mr. Wifson Kats

October 30, 1925

February 10, 1953

Mr. Milton Kats, Associate Director
The Ford Foundation
914 East Green Street
Pasadena 1, California

Dear Milton:

I see Dick Bissell from time to time at the Woodrow Wilson Foundation meetings and get some word of you through him but I am sorry that our paths do not cross more often. If you are in Washington, look me up at the Office of Defense Mobilization (old State Department Building) or in Cambridge at the Littauer School.

This is in the nature of a distress signal or a last call for help. The background of my letter to you can be unraveled by reading the two letters of Mr. Laughlin to Mr. Kissinger and Mr. Kissinger's reply of February 9th, copies of all of which are enclosed.

I can thoroughly understand a reluctance on your part to intervene in this matter, both because of a previous connection with Harvard (albeit at the Law School!) and because you have set up Intercultural Publications as an agency for dealing with this kind of problem. On the other hand, we have gone through all the right channels with Mr. Laughlin with the results indicated in his second letter in spite of the benevolent tones of his first one. Quite frankly, this means that we ought to shut up shop at the end of next month and call off our efforts to develop collaborators and to increase our subscriptions beyond the level that now promise to bring in $4,000 this year and might easily be developed if we had the chance to continue our invitations for subscriptions. This would mean that CONFLUENCE would fail because of a failure to secure an underwriting which amounts to about $15,000 a year of which at least $5,000 would certainly be covered by subscriptions. This is on the present basis of CONFLUENCE. If we had backing to do foreign editions, we should probably require another $5,000 under the conditions outlined in Henry Kissinger's letter. I do not feel that I have anything to add to his letter. He was reluctant to put in the part about PERSPECTIVES. On my part, however, I feel this to be relevant, because I regard it as an extraordinary piece of administrative machinery to have the judgment of other ventures in the broad field of intercultural relations tested by a group which is so committee to the success of a different approach as to become almost an interested party in the decision.

Mr. Kats

February 10, 1953

My proposal to you is that you take this matter up jointly with Mr. Hutchins who I think has a clear conception of our objectives and I hope an adequate estimate of the importance of the job we are trying to do. So far as I am concerned, I would be quite willing to put this decision in the hands of Mr. Hutchins, if you feel in any way disqualified by your previous Law School connections. I think that far from disqualifying you, they may give you a better critical judgment of what we are likely to be able to achieve than could be found elsewhere but I know you to be a man who leans over backward in matters of this kind in accordance with the practices of that remarkable group of lawyers which John Lord O'Brien assembled in the War Production Board.

In case you do not feel inclined to rule yourself out, I would be particularly hopeful of your understanding the problem of winning the support of European intellectuals through this method of honest persuasion in the light of all of your real insights gained during ECA days.

If CONFLUENCE is worth saving, something will have to be done within the next six weeks. If the light of Mr. Laughlin's letter, I do not believe he is going to do anything immediate. Indeed, he professes to be unable in the face of his Board of Directors to do so. In that case, I must reluctantly bring down the budgetary axe and sign off.

This is a hard decision on my part but I really have no alternatives. I feel as much implicated now in the success of CONFLUENCE as Henry does although he has borne nearly all the burden. I thoroughly subscribe to his letter which I ask you to study and to pass on to Hutchins for a decision within the next six weeks. I am sorry to be burdening you with this kind of an appeal for immediacy. However, my last letter to you of November 25th will have given you the full background of the time limits which I am forced to set and I seriously ask you for a judgment as to whether the effort we have made is worth carrying on or not.

As to the question of whether the fifth issue will make any difference in the decision, I should be inclined to rest the case on the issues which we have so far published. We hope that the quality is steadily improving but if the promise of CONFLUENCE has not been established by a year of operation on a shoe-string basis and the response we have achieved then I do not believe one issue will make much difference.

WYE:ndj
Encs - 3

FEB 16 1952

THE FORD FOUNDATION

MILTON KATZ

Associate Director

February 13, 1953

Professor W. Y. Elliott
10 Weld Hall
Harvard University
Cambridge 38, Massachusetts

Dear Bill:

This will acknowledge your letter of February 10th, and its enclosures, which I have read with great interest. I'll talk to Bob Hutchins about it, and consider what further steps can be taken.

Laughlin has informed you accurately concerning the reaction of his Board of Directors. We went to consider-able pains to assemble a well-balanced and experienced board. Under the circumstances, you have correctly diagnosed the problem of over-ruling them on a specific decision within their sphere of assigned responsibility, where no broad question of policy or public relations is involved. But, as I have said, we'll have another look at it.

I am off on a trip, but should be back here by February 18th.

Yours,

February 18, 1953

Dear Mr. Katz:

Mr. Elliott is out of town but he has asked me over the telephone to drop you this note to keep you informed of the state of our negotiations with Mr. Laughlin. I had a good talk with Mr. Laughlin yesterday and we worked out a strategy which gives some prospect of bringing the Board around at its next meeting in March. This would be the last possible moment at which Ford support could save CONFLUENCE.

I wish I were not in the position of supplicant and therefore presumably prejudiced. I could then go to some greater length to describe the reaction to CONFLUENCE I encountered in Europe. I would welcome, however, any impartial survey of this even if CONFLUENCE should not be able to maintain itself. There is no doubt that an effort along its lines is badly needed and may be considered at some future time by your Foundation.

HAK:ndj
Air Mail

THE FORD FOUNDATION

February 20, 1953

Mr. Henry A. Kissinger
10 Weld Hall, Harvard University
Cambridge 38, Massachusetts

Dear Mr. Kissinger:

Many thanks for your note of February 18th.

I assume you have seen my note of February 13th
to Bill Elliott.

I am glad to hear of your further talk with Mr.
Laughlin. I'll stay in touch with Mr. Laughlin myself.

Milton Katz

April 6, 1953

Mr. Milton Katz
Associate Director
The Ford Foundation
914 East Green Street
Pasadena 1, California

Dear Mr. Katz:

I am sorry to have to impose so frequently but I did want to send you the enclosed copy of a letter to Mr. Laughlin. Mr. Elliott has asked me to point out that he is being urged by the Provost to clarify the budgetary situation.

It may interest you to know that three articles from our fourth issue have been reprinted in their entirety in European newspapers and that two full-length discussions of CONFLUENCE have appeared in leading German and Danish weeklies. I am enclosing a copy of the letter from the Danish Information Office which describes one of these discussions. Also, an article from our March number is being reprinted by the Chicago Round Table for their next issue. It is somewhat frustrating to receive daily tokens of good will and interest from all over the world and not to be in a position to do anything about them.

HAK:ndj
Encs.

P.S. In the last issue of PREUVES there is a discussion of CONFLUENCE, PERSPECTIVES and DIOGENES which you may find interesting.

PERPETUARIES and BIOGENES upon how much interest you have in the fate of FREQUIS there is a discussion of CONJUGENCE.

Bres.

HAK:ndt

Henry V. Kiebler

Sincerely yours,

go surprising upon them. God will and interest from all over the world and not to be in a position to lose their next issue. If it is somewhat transferring to receive daily tokens of article from our Merip number in being remitted by the Office Round Tags Information Office which describes one of these discussions. Via, an English newspaper. I am enclosing a copy of the letter from the German and French discussions of CONJUGENCE have absorbed in feeding German and have been remitted in their entirety in European newspapers and that two issues may interest you to know that three articles from our touchable issues

Proveat to clarify the previous situation.

Mr. Elliott has advised me to point out that he is being made by the
I did want to send you the enclosed copy of a letter to Mr. Loughlin.
I am sorry to have to impose on your patience so frequently but

Dear Mr. Kiebler:

Frederick J. California
Diy. Ray Green Street
The Ford Foundation
Associate Director
Mr. Milton Kiebler

V.111. p. 1023

April 6, 1955

Dear Mr. Katz:

I am sorry to have imposed on your patience so frequently but I did want to send you the enclosed copy of a letter to Mr. Laughlin. Mr. Elliott has asked me to point out that he is being urged by the Provost to clarify the budgetary situation. We are willing to keep CONFLUENCE going until Fall, but we have to come to a decision soon since if discretionary funds are not available, we will be forced to start refunding subscriptions.

HAK:bd
Enc. 2

P.S. In the last issue of PREVUES there is a discussion of CONFLUENCE, PERSPECTIVES and DIOGENES which you may find interesting.

BERGENSTADT and DIOGENES which you may find interesting.

B.S. In the last issue of BREATH there is a generator of CONFUZION.

Tue, 5
HAW:pp

Henry V. Kneuberg

Sincerely home,

them.

all over the world and not to be in a position to do anything except
unwillingly to receive slight tokens of good will and interest from
the Chinese bound tape for their next issue. If he somewhat
generous. Also an article how our man now has a permit reprinted
letter from the Chinese Information Office which describes one of these
resistless Germans and Danes weeklies. I am enclosing a copy of the
and two full-length biographies of CONFUZION have appeared in
these have been reprinted in their entirety in European newspapers.
It may interest you to know that three articles grow on our网站

as part returning superfluous.

since it discretely large are not available, we will be forced to
CONFUZION (but until Eiff) put we have to come to a decision soon
Broader to clarify the preferred attention. We are willing to meet
Mr. Eiffelt has asked me to bring one that he is going to send to the
I did want to send him the enclosed copy of a letter to Mr. Iwasuyin.
I am sorry to have to inform you, but since so greatly put

Dear Mr. Kneuberg:

Bergenstädts, J., California
814 East Green Street
The Ford Foundation
Associate Director
Mr. Milton Kneuberg

July 6, 1922

CJ

THE FORD FOUNDATION

APR 18 1953

April 15, 1953

Mr. Henry A. Kissinger
10 Weld Hall
Cambridge 38, Massachusetts

Dear Mr. Kissinger:

I have just returned to my office, to find your
letter of April 6th.

Mr. Laughlin has been polling his board of directors,
and it may be that something can be worked out in the
form of an interim grant from my discretionary funds,
to keep the whole matter from going by default. We will
let you know as soon as possible.

With best wishes, and warm regards,