September 29, 1954

Dear Mr. Obasiki:

Please forgive me for being so very long in
answering your kind letter but I have been away
in the country most of the summer and my mail
has piled up terrifically.

It's certainly good of you to write me, and if
you have any short stories of your own, preferably
fictional stories about contemporary life today,
of not more than ten to twenty pages, or less,
I would be happy indeed to receive a few of them -
one or two or three - for consideration in the
Anthology of African Short Stories which I hope
to assemble this fall. Do not worry about grammar
or spelling, because if the stories are good, with
interesting characters or incidents in them, it
will not be difficult to correct simple mistakes,
and I would not mind doing that for you. Your
Nigerian writer, Amos Tutuola, has had two books
of his stories published in this country recently
and, as you probably know, he does not write gram-
matically at all.

For my book, I cannot use any folk or animal
stories, because what we want is stories made up
by living writers about living people. There
have already been several books of African folk
stories published in our country so I would not
try to duplicate these.

I send you all my good wishes.

Sincerely yours,

13 October 1959

Dear Benny:

It was very nice to have a letter from a 20-year old citizen of Ghana, a new nation and one in which I and many, many other Americans are very much interested. The long delay is answering your letter was occasioned by my very busy schedule which has kept me very much on the go during the past year. In between short stays at home, I try to answer as much of my correspondence as possible and so I am just getting around to you.

Your hobbies - reading and stamp collecting - are both very worthwhile activities which can help you develop both your perceptive powers and your knowledge so I hope you will continue along these lines. In the course of your reading I hope that you will be selective and choose books that can add to your store of knowledge, not only about other nations and people, but about your own people. When you say that "Ghana is the first negro nation to be independent", you indicate a lack of knowledge about Africa. Prior to the European conquest of Africa - which in terms of history is not so very long - many great African nations existed. And one African nation, Ethiopia, has the longest continuous history of independence of any nation in the world.

I mention these things to you as a descendant of Africa who is thrilled by its glorious past and full of hope for its future.

I send you all my best wishes.

October 1, 1954

Dear Mr. Obi:

Thank you very much indeed for so kindly sending me your interestingly written account of THE ANCIENT IRONMAN OF NIGERIA. However, it is not suitable for my Anthology of AFRICAN SHORT STORIES so, I regret that I am unable to make use of it. What I am really looking for is creative fiction in short story form about the lives and problems of contemporary men and women in Africa today, not factual material or folk stories since many such books have already been published in our country. Your account however is most interesting and informative and would be suitable to some scholarly publication interested in such aspects of African life. But I myself do not know what to do with it in that regard and so I am returning it to you.

Again, my gratitude, and all my good wishes to you.

P. S. The manuscript is coming to you by boat mail.

BY AIR MAIL

AÉROGRAMME
AIR LETTER

IF ANYTHING IS EN-
CLOSED THIS LETTER
WILL BE SENT BY
ORDINARY MAIL.

→ First fold here →

Second fold here

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Sender's name and address:-

Azemum B. Ebi,
Enland Revenue Dept
Lagos, Nigeria.

Langston Hughes
20 East 127th Street
New York 35, New York

Mr. Ezemurum B. Obi
Inland Revenue Department
Lagos, Nigeria
AFRICA

Address Left the Dept.

Present address unknown

June 18, 1958

Dear Miss Oduilanin:

It was nice to get your letter and to know
that you are interested in submitting material for
the Anthology of African Writers which I have been
compiling for sometime now.

At present, I have quite a lot of fiction
and also sufficient poetry. I would suggest, there-
fore that you write a factual piece if that is agreeable
to you. Perhaps you could write about the experiences,
that is, your experiences as a student at University
College. This kind of material would not only be
informative, but would be quite interesting as well.
If you prefer to write about some other phase of
African life - political, social, economic, etc. -
please feel free to do so.

I shall look forward to hearing from you and
end you all my good wishes.

October 5, 1954

Dear Mr. Ogbuaku:

Please forgive me for being so long in acknowledging your
story VICTORY FOR TWO which arrived sometime ago, but I have
been away from New York almost all summer and have just recently
returned to the city.

The response to my appeal for stories has been most gratifying
as some fifty manuscripts have arrived from the various countries
of English speaking Africa. I have assembled them all together
and shall read them all at once, very soon now, so you will be
hearing from me again shortly about your story. This is simply
to let you know that it arrived safely.

With all my good wishes to you.

Mr. G. Ochi Ogbuaku
Editorial Department
Daily Times
P. O. Box 139
Lagos, Nigeria

Sept. 24, 1954

Dear Mr. Ohunta:

Thank you for your letter in response to my
letter in the local newspaper over there.
I am glad to know of your interest in writ-
ing and hope you will have much success.

We are not interested in novels, only in
short fictional pieces of from 10 to 20
pages in length dealing with human beings
and concerned with African life.

If you have some short stories on hand that
fit this description, we shall, of course,
be glad to see them and they shall receive
full consideration for inclusion in the pro-
posed anthology. I cannot guarantee the in-
clusion of your material in the anthology,
since that decision will rest with the pub-
lishers, but your work will receive a reful
attention and we shall be glad to look at
all and whatever you may care to send.

With appreciation for your interest, I am

lh-hs

January 10, 1958

Dr. Julius Okala
Chairman
Cinema Corporation
Eastern Region
Enugu, Nigeria:

Dear Dr. Okala:

For the past two years I have been collecting material
for an Anthology of short stories (fiction) by
English-speaking indigenous African writers. I have
received some excellent material. Recently my publishers
have requested me to extend the Anthology to include
poetry, folklore and articles on various phases of
African life. I, too, feel that in thus broadening
the scope, the book will have wider appeal and useful-
ness. The subject matter is almost unlimited and
might include pieces on African education, politics,
arts and crafts, etc. The one requirement is that they
be authoritative and well written. While they need
not be scholarly, for inclusion they will have to be
of a very high standard. It is for this reason that
I am writing to you. I should appreciate very much
your doing a piece on the Cinema in Nigeria. Would
this be possible? Also, I should appreciate any
recommendations you may have of other possible con-
tributors.

Payment to writers whose work is selected for the
Anthology will be made on a pro-rata basis from
the overall amount allotted by the publishers.

I look forward to hearing from you.

CHIKE OKONYIA Esq. B. A. Hons (LOND)
Cert. in Cultural & Social Anthrop. (OXON)
Ministry of Health, Enugu,
Eastern Region,
NIGERIA. 6th August.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

Please allow me the liberty of introducing myself to you. Since a friend of mine here has mentioned you to me advising that you will be able to assist me in the publication of my MSS.

I was prior to joining the administrative Service of the Eastern Region of Nigeria a lecturer in the Extra-mural Department of the University College, Ibadan. During this period I prosecuted researches into the foundations of power and prestige in Nigeria before the advent of the white man. I thought this study important in view of the vast political changes which had since occurred and which, in fact, are occurring more rapidly in these days. Such ethnological study will be valuable in considering the affairs of an Independent Nigeria in the years ahead.

I have completed the two sections of this work which deal with my part of the country - the Eastern Region. The working notes for the Western Region and the North are also ready. The completed portions - THE ARO DYNASTIES and THE SMITH-KINGS OF AFRICA - have been read with interest at Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Even my critics agree that my approach to the study of the Ethnology of illiterate Communities is entirely new. I have called it LINGUISTIC ARCHEOLOGY.

I wonder really if you can help me to publish these MSS in America? Afterwards, it was from EDWARD SAPIR, BLOOMEFIELD and the North Western University Journal of Anthropology that I drew my early inspirations.

You will need to see the MSS, I know. They will be sent on your request.

September 10, 1958

Mr. Chike Okonyia, Esq.
Ministry of Health, Enugu
Eastern Region, NIGERIA

Dear Mr. Okonyia:

Your letter of August 6th was most interesting and I
certainly find the subject of your manuscript most
unusual and dynamic.

Although I have a particularly busy fall and winter
schedule of lectures and other commitments in connection
with literary deadlines, I would request that you send the
manuscript on to me by boat mail. It would then arrive at
a period less hectic for me.

You probably are aware of the fact that doctoral type
manuscripts are by no means the easiest ones to find
publishers for. Here in the United States, popular, mass-
appeal material receives the easier acceptance. However,
this does not preclude the possibility of your fiding an
interested publisher, especially in view of a continuing
interest in things African. At any rate, as soon as I have
read the material, I will write you my opinion and suggestions.
Meanwhile, know that I send you all my best wishes.

September 29, 1954

Dear Mr. Okunyade:

It is good of you to write me, but, unfortunately, we cannot use in the proposed Anthology of African Short Stories, any stories longer than ten to twenty pages, typewritten double space, so therefore there would be no point in your sending me your long Nigerian Slave Boy story. Since what we are looking for is short, modern fictional stories, preferably of contemporary life today, we cannot use folk tales either, since there are already a number of good books of African folk tales published in America. But I am most grateful to you for your interest and I send you my continued good wishes, in your literary efforts.

De, MOSS OLUFEMI

38, Nathan Street,
Suru- Lere,
Yaba, Lago
7th Jan.

Dear Mr. Hughes;

I have much pleasure to write you this letter of which I hope you will find much interest to read it.

Even I was exceedingly glad after being through your article of recent date which was published in the "WEST AFRICAN PIONEER" of Nigeria;

and the articles which embraced The Christmas Story. It was well written systematically and grammatically. As such I would like you to send me a printed copy of the article and your own personal photograph; even your appearance in the picture attracted me, and as a boy like me I shall like you to send me one so as to frame it in my house.

I am a boy of wide knowledge and free born of Nigeria, the motherland of all British possession in West Africa. I would like to have more news about America and her youth and the pre sent position of America and of the Negro races;

I shall be very pleased to have one of your picture and a print ed copy by next coming mail.

Compliments of the season, and Best wishes to all your families.

With Love from your

Lamidi Olukoya,
1 Ayodele Street,
Ikorodu Road,
Yaba.

My dear Father,

I have the great pleasure in writing you this
few lines, and I hope it will meet you well in this
Happy New Year.

Many thanks to you for what you have done to me
in the past, but it is a pity I cannot express my
happiness here and I also wish you the best of luck in
this New Year. My friends also sends you their warmest
greetings.

Now lastly but not the least, I wish you have not
forget what I discussed with you before you left?

Many greetings to friends and others until we meet
again. It is now goodbye and wishing you the best of luck.

An early reply will be greatly appreciated.

February 3, 1962

Dear Lumidi,

It was a very pleasant surprise to have a
letter from you only two days after I got
back home, as I stopped in France on the
way and stayed some days in Paris. I am
most grateful to you for all the courtesies
you showed me in Lagos. You are a very
good driver and a thoughtful, polite, and
reliable young man.

If you move, or change your address or your
job, be sure to let me know, so that I can
find you the next time I come back to Lagos.

Did you get your chairs? And how did the
photograph come out we took on the way to
the airport? Did you get one? Tell Yinka,
the carpenter, to send me one, too, please.
I am going to send you some BIG sport shirts
as soon as I have time to shop. I have been
very BUSY working since I got home. You
know, it takes about 6 or 8 weeks for any-
thing to get to Nigeria by boat, so do not
expect the shirts until sometime in March
or April.

Be sure to let me know about the baby. And
give my very best regards to Latifu, your
brother, and all the other friends. I am
still remembering what fun we had on New
Year's, the dancing and all. Write again
when you have time. I am enclosing some
stamps which I did not use in Lagos, as I
never had time to write my letters!

Keep well---and be good!

Sincerely,

My dear Father,

March 30, 1962

Dear Lamidi:

Very good to receive your letter, and to have news of you. But unfortunately, I cannot help you about the taxi. The newspaper I work for is on strike and has not paid me any money for several weeks, so I am broke. Even if I were not, "f160" is a LOT of $$$! If I had that much, I would buy a car myself in New York.....Did you ever get your chairs from the carpenter, Yinka? And what about the baby? Let me know. And are you still working for Levantis? The enclosed handbill is of my holiday Christmas show, but it is over now, so I have no money from it either......I am still remembering our HAPPY NEW YEAR in Lagos. Regards to all your friends and to your brother.

Write soon again.

Làmidi Clukoya,
1, Ayodele Street,
Ikorodu Road, Yaba.
Lagos, Nigeria.

Mr. Langston Hughes,
20, East 127th Street,
New York 35, N.Y.
U. S. A.

Dear Sir,

I am in receipt of your letter dated 15th July,
1962 and the contents therein were carefully gone
through and noted.

For your information I have to tender my apology
to you of not writing to you since it is due my travelling
to Northern Region even I am just arrived when I came
I met your letter at home I came back last week Friday,
and your letter was delivered to me from there I could
realise that I have done bad.

Therefore, I beg you, I don't forget you at all,
so try to send me Christmas and New Year present and
and extend my greetings to whom you know that it is
necessary and with them Happy Christmas and New Year
in advance.

I shall be expecting your earliest reply as quickly
as possible to this my letter.

BY AIR MAIL

PAR AVION
AIR LETTER
AEROGRAMME

Mr. Langston Hughes,

20, East 127th Street,

New York 35.

N.Y.

U.S.A.

← First fold here →

Second fold here

Sender's name and address: Dr. H.A. Oluwasanmi

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE,

IBADAN, NIGERIA.

AN AIR LETTER SHOULD NOT CONTAIN ANY ENCLOSURES; IF IT DOES IT WILL BE SURCHARGED OR SENT BY ORDINARY MAIL.

THE 'APSLEY' AIR LETTER

Form approved by Postmaster General No.—71995/IX

March 11, 1958

Dear Mr. Oluwasanmi:

I am indeed pleased to learn that you will be able to contribute an article to the Anthology of African writers. And I am flattered by the very nice things you have to say about me.

I can fully appreciate how very busy you must be with your work at the University College. If it is at all possible for you to get your article to me during the month of June, I would be most grateful as there will be a good deal of work to be done after all of the material is assembled for selection, editing, etc.

With kindest regards, I am

August 26th 1964

Dear Augustine:

It was so nice to receive your letter and I feel badly about not keeping up our correspondence. If you could see the letters that pile up on my desk, you would understand easy it is to get behind in spite of good intentions.

Shortly, I shall be leaving for Germany to participate in the annual Berlin Arts Festival where the theme this year will be African and Afro-American cultural contributions especially in the field of literature. During this sojourn, I am to be presented with an award from the Free Academy of Arts in Hamburg.

Two different companies of BLACK NATIVITY, my gospel music show on the Christmas legend, are now in rehearsal here in New York and one will leave in September for Europe, while the other will tour Australia. At the moment, I am completing a long piece for book on the Negro in Entertainment (in the U.S.A.). So, you can see I find barely a moment for myself these days. And, with so much work, I haven't as yet found time to look for a bride, hence, I am not married yet.

Again, many thanks for your letter, and please accept my best regards as ever,

Sincerely,

DENNIS C. OSADEBAY
LLB (Lond) B.L.

Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
Member of the House of Representatives
Member of the Western House of Assembly

Phone Aba 71

No. 28/133.

OSADENIS CHAMBERS

5, POUND ROAD,
P.O. Box 202,
ABA, NIGERIA.

8th July, 1954.

Mr. Langston Hughes,
20 East 127th Street,
New York 35, N. Y.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

Many thanks for your letter of the 16th June which
was a pleasant surprise. I had read some of your poems
quoted in Zik's papers here and liked them.

Unfortunately I don't write short stories. I have
only written verses which were recently collected into
a book called "Africa Sings". I send you an autographed
copy under separate cover. I am, however, directing
enquiries on your behalf to one or two editors here in
Nigeria.

FSE.

Mr. Dennis C. Osadebay
Osadenis Chambers
5 Pound Road
P. O. Box 202
Aba, Nigeria, BWA

September 24, 1973

Dear Mr. Osadebay:

Please forgive me for being so long in answering your letter of last July, but I have been away from New York almost all summer, and while I was out of town my secretary was also on vacation.

I am deeply grateful to you for sending me your charming book, AFRICA SINGS, which I am delighted to add to my shelf of Negro literature. In return, I am sending you a volume of my poems, but since it will be coming by boat, you probably won't get it for several weeks.¹

I had the great pleasure of seeing Zik at the 100th Anniversary celebration of our mutual alma mater, Lincoln University. I had not seen him since we were in college together. We admire and like him very much here in the United States, and certainly we are all holding in our hearts the very best of wishes for the new Nigeria which you are helping to build.

I have had several stories from Nigerian writers, including Amos Tutuola, and would be pleased to receive others, if you know of other good writers to whom you might give my address. With my very best wishes to you, I am

lh-hs

September 24, 1954

Dear Mr. Osibodu:

It was indeed kind of you to respond
to my letter in the local paper there for
short fictional material dealing with African
life and human beings. I am thankful for your
deep interest.

However, we are interested in writers
who already have short stories on hand and
need not have to take up time writing up a col-
lection just for this anthology. I do, however,
appreciate your desire in this direction and hope
you will continue your interest in writing and
the next time we are ready you may have then
composed some short stories that we might look
over.

With best wishes for your success, I am

lh-hs

J. S. K. Osibodu,
Kosehin-Olu Lodge,
115 Agbeni Street,
P. O. Box 245,
Ibadan, Nigeria.
7th Oct, 1954.

Mr. Langston Hughes,
20 E. 127th Street,
New York 35,
N.Y., U.S.A.

My dear Langston,

I am today acknowledging your kind letter
of September 24, 1954. In reply, I beg to forward
to you the life of the two greatest and leading men
in Nigeria, both East and West. If such history are
the one that you prefer, I shall continue to collect
more history of such able men to you.

Meanwhile I remain while waiting for your
esteemed reply.

Hon.Dr.NNANDI AZIKIWE, M.A., M.Sc., LL.D. etc.

Managing Director of the Zik's Group of papers, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the African Continental Bank, National President of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons, Second Lagos Member and First Minister of Local Government, Eastern Region. A nationalist of the first rank, scholar, writer, author, orator, historian; he holds an envied position in the pages of the World Press and in the hearts of the people of Nigeria. No single man has achieved more than "Zik" within the last sixteen years to lead Nigeria to the vantage group of national consciousness, mental emancipation, economic resurgence and political aspirations. His achievements as a member of West African Press delegation to the United Kingdom in 1943, as the leader of the N.C.N.C. delegation which fought in London, the heart of the Empire, against the obnoxious bills in the Richards Constitution and demanded immediate self-government for Nigeria, and a member of the old Legislative Council under the Richards Constitutions, have contributed in no small measure to the present political advance of Nigeria. With the honest triumvirate consisted of Zik-Awolowo-Balewa, self-government for Nigeria within five years is sure. He became Prime Minister of Eastern Region on Friday, the 1st October, 1954.

Hon. OBAFEMI AWOLOWO, B.Com., LL.B., B.L.

The strong man of the West. Leader of the Government of the Western Region, President of the Action Group, the political party with clear majority in the Western Region. Proprietor of the TRIBUNE, a popular daily in Nigeria, Executive and Central member of Ijebu Remo Native Authority Council, First Remo member in the Western House of Assembly and House of Representatives, author of Path Nigerian Freedom, and Minister of Local Government and Reforms in the Western Region. Educated in Wesley College, Ibadan, and Institute of Legal Education, London, Awolowo rose from the ranks to eminence by hard work, long suffering and endurance, faith and perseverance, truth and honesty of intentions. Gifted with fertile brain, convincing tongue, instructive pushful and felicitous pen, devotion of self to duty and sincerity of purpose, he has with loyalty to his clients built up a large practice at the Bar, has occupied a conspicuous place in Ijebu Remo Council, has built up the great oak of Egbe Omo Ududuwa, with branches all over Yoruba land, and with the Action Group he has drawn around him the best brains and influential heads in the Western Region, and with his men he has been working sleeplessly to make the Action Group Government a model for others to follow. He became Prime Minister of Western Region on Monday, the 4th October, 1954.

October 7, 1953

Dear Emakhu:

Please forgive me for not having replied before to your very nice and interesting letter, but I have been extremely busy trying to finish two or three books, and have been traveling a great deal, too, as far west as California. So it has been almost impossible for me to keep up with my mail. But I do assure you that I did enjoy your letters and have been meaning to write you for a long time. The next time you write to me let me know when you will finish with your schooling and what kind of work you intend to do when you are done. Also, please send me a picture of yourself because I will feel I know you better if I see you.

Sometime I hope to visit Nigeria again. I liked the people there very much when I was there many years ago as a seaman.

I send you all my good wishes and hope that I shall hear from you soon.

Mr. Emakhu Osoba
P.O. Box 21
Ibadan, Nigeria, West Africa

LH
HS

20 F. 327th, new york 35, n.y.

December 23, 1953

Dear Emakhu Osaba: It was indeed nice to get your note and to find that in spite of your most unfortunate experience, you are still carrying on. I am sorry to learn of the death of your mother, but it is indeed a good thing that she had a fine, strong and reliable son like you to carry on the family. Wherever she is I believe it is with peace and contentment that she rests in the knowledge that all will be well with you and those whom she has left to your care. You do have my sincere sympathy in your bereavement.

You must continue your work and never lag in your am-
bition. The world, and Africa in particular, is in great
need of ambitious young people who with new vision will
go forward to make this a much better place for all
people to live in. Africa is surging upward, and the
work to be done that lies ahead is tremendous. Yet so
long as it has young people like you its hope of real-
izing its potentialities will most surely be crowned
with success. You have my every wish for fulfilling
your desire to accomplish all that you wish. Continue
with your training, encourage your sister to move ahead
also, and never give up, no matter how difficult things
may seem. The future is bright for those who strive
for the good of mankind. I feel you are among these.

I shall look forward to receiving your picture and shall
estimate it a real favor to receive it. I am always in-
terested in knowing young people, for they are the hope
of civilization. Take care of yourself, and to you
and your sister and other family members I send you my
heartfelt wishes for a most Merry Xmas and a prosperous
and pleasant New Year.

Mr. Emakhu Osaba
Agr.Dept., Cocoa H.Q.
Ibadan, Nigeria, West Africa

EMAKHU OSOBA,

Department of Agriculture,
Cocoa Headquarters,
IBADAN.

29th July, 1954.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

I thought that something which is common to all has happened for since I sent you a copy of "Nigerian Magazine", I heard from you not until I read of your enquiry in the "Daily Times" of 26th instant. I thought the pamphlet would interest you and at the same time adorn your collection. Probably your enquiry will be answered but as far as I am concerned, I am not a good writer. I hope you are breathing the free air as I am doing here at this moment.

We were entertained recently by one Philip Sherlock, versatile scholar, principal of a West Indian University College, Afro-Anglo Jamaican by blood and a member of their "House of Common". He was humorous and interesting to such an extent that the British Council Hall was packed full of an unprecedented crowd of woolly-haired African negroes. You will be listened to if you find your way to Nigeria one day. Men here are too fond of hearing of any story from beyond the seas.

Nigeria is boiling hot for the fourth coming federal election. I hope to vote for the party that stands for the unity of the country especially at transition of the hand of our birth

In America again, during his economic mission, your former college mate who quotes very often, added one more epaulette on his shoulder when an honourary degree was conferred on him. You must have seen Zik (that is what we commonly call him here) during that ocassion. He is our pride in Nigeria and probably in American where he received his education.

I am lucky to have been located in the typing section; that is why I typed this my letter. I hope to exploit the art of typewriting for the sake of the musical rythms it produces when an expert beats the machine.

Friend on the western side of the Atlantic, how are you ?

Your friend in sunny
land of Africa,

September 29, 1954

Dear Emakhu Osoba:

Please forgive me for being so very long in answering your kind letter which I very much enjoyed receiving and it was certainly good of you to send me NIGERIA. It is a very interesting magazine indeed, and I was delighted with the pictures and articles which it contained. Anytime that you have an extra copy on hand, I would be most happy to continue to receive it. I am very grateful to you for thinking about me and sending me information about your country.

I met Philip Sherlock when I was in Jamaica a few years ago. He is a very good poet and a most interesting fellow.

You are certainly an excellent typist as your letters show, and if you can get musical rhythms out of the machine as well you are, as we say here in Harlem, "SOLID GONE".

All my good wishes to you, as ever,

February 21, 1955

Dear Emakhu,

HAPPY NEW YEAR to you even if it is a bit late!

I am still enjoying the NIGERIAN YEARBOOK which you so
kindly sent me some time ago. And I am sending you now
a copy of my new book about jazz music and how its rhythms
came from Africa and were developed into jazz by the
Negro people here in America. I hope you'll like it.

Lately I've been busy collecting short stories from
all over English-speaking Africa, and have received
several good ones from Bigeria from Amos Tortuola,
Tim Aluko, Mabel Jolaoso, and others. One of the
stories mentions the harmattan, and I would not have
known what that meant if you had not told me. One of
the stories is about a motor trip from Ibadan to Lagos,
too, and how the tires blow out all the way. Quite a
funny one. You have some good writers in Nigeria,
and I hope to make a book of their stories, among
others.

I hope all goes well with you. I'm working hard, but
always broke! Money is very hard to get hold of, and
even harder to keep! I wish I had a rich uncle.

Write when you have time. And all good wishes to
you ever,

BOOKS SENT, 10-4-66:

POEMS FROM BLACK AFRICA
BEST OF SIMPLE
SOMETHING IN COMMON
THE DREAM KEEPER
THE BIG SEA
LANGSTON HUGHES (Poets
d'Aujourd'hui)

Haile Sellassie I University Library,
P.O. Box 1176,
Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia.

18 May 1966

Mr. Langston Hughes,
20 East 127 Street,
New York, 35, N.Y.,
U.S.A.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

On behalf of the Library I should like to thank you for donating an autographed copy of your book _New Negro Poets_ U.S.A.

There is a good deal of interest among our students in modern poetry in English and especially negro and African poetry. This book will be read very eagerly by our readers.

I was wondering if it would be an imposition to ask you to send a copy of any new books you publish. You must, of course, get many letters asking for free copies, but the University Library here is basically a very poor institution. We try to cover the whole field of studies with a book-fund that is not even 10% of that of a small American University. I do hope that you can help us.

Thank you once again for your book.

October 3, 1966

Dear Mrs. Pankhurst:

In response to your letter of May 18 (which came while I was away in Europe) I am happy to mail you today by Boat Mail, a small box of six of my books which I hope will reach your library safely. And when I have new books, I will keep the Library in mind.

I remember with much pleasure my
sojourn in Addis last Spring.

With cordial regards,

Sincerely yours,

Langston Hughes

December 19, 1959

Dear Mr. Petersen:

I would indeed be most happy to meet you,
and---even at this late date---extend you
a hearty welcome to our U. S. A. and hope
that you have enjoyed your stay here. On
Tuesday I hope to see you at the Carnegie
International Center, and perhaps there we
can plan a time when we can get together
again. Just today I had a beautiful
Christmas card from Sylvia Titus, who also
sent me the recording of KING KONG as a
holiday gift. She has written me most
interesting letters in the past.

With cordial regards,

Sincerely yours,

Langston Hughes

December 19, 1959

Miss Barbara Walker,
Department for Asia-Africa,
Institute of International Education,
1 East 67th Street,
New York 21, New York.

Dear Miss Walker:

I am sorry to have been so long in answering your letter in
regard to Mr. S. V. Petersen of South Africa. When it came
I was in Trinidad on a lecture tour, and since my return
have been up to my neck in deadlines, literary and otherwise.
But I would indeed be happy to meet Mr. Petersen, and have so
written him in reply to a letter from him from Atlanta. I
expect to see him at the African-American Institute reception
at the Carnegie International Center on Tuesday when it will
be possible to set a time with Mr. Petersen that we might
get together again. Thank you very much for your interest in
helping to arrange this meeting.

Athlone High School

Phone 69-3255

CALENDULA ROAD, ATHLONE, CAPE

Secretary— Mr. L. T. BLAKE, 67, Balfour Road, Rondebosch

Chairman of School Committee— L. WELBY-SOLOMON, Esq.

Principal: S. V. PETERSEN, B.A., "Garcia," Park Road, Rondebosch.

Phone 69-2741

Dear Friend Hughes,

Just a word of thanks again for all
kindnesses shown and all the consideration.
Friends will no doubt be interested to know
that I shall be leaving for Germany by air
on Thursday, 7th April, this year; I hope
to return by sea towards the middle of
March next year. The purpose of my visit is
two-fold, namely, to study educational
approach, and creative writing.

This opportunity has been made possible
through a grant from the Bonn Government,
and an award from the Education authorities
in South Africa.

I write to advise that my address
in Germany will be: —

Christophorus-Schule,
Altensteig,
Schwarzwald,
Germany.

Yours very sincerely,

→ First fold here →

Mr. Langton Hughes,

20 East 127th Street,

New York, N.Y.,

United States of America.

Second fold here

OFFICE OF THE HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR NIGERIA

Sender's name and address:

NIGERIA HOUSE,

9, NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE, LONDON, W.C.2.

AN AIR LETTER SHOULD NOT CONTAIN ANY ENCLOSURE; IF IT DOES IT WILL BE SURCHARGED OR SENT BY ORDINARY MAIL.

THE 'APSLEY' AIR LETTER

Form approved by Postmaster General No.—71995/IY

To open cut here

LIST OF POSSIBLE QUESTIONS TO BE DISCUSSED

1. Why so much interest today in negro literature?

2. Is negro literature different from other literature? Why? How?

3. What is the significance of negro literature for the negro? For non-negro?

4. Must we distinguish between American Negro and African literature?

5. What are the trends in American negro literature? In African?

6. Is negro literature in danger of painting things black and white? "God is black?"

7. Is this a necessary stage in the development of negro literature? Are we beyond this stage now?

8. Several leading African poets are politicians (Senghor, Lumumba). Is negro literature an extension of negro political action? Is negro literature only social protest or national pride?

9. What is the effect of negro literature on non-negro literature? Ex. Jazz has affected western music. Similarities within the realm of literature?

10. Western literature has lived from its folklore and history: Greek mythology, Germanic mythology (Faust), Shakespeare, Anouilh (Becket, The Lark) etc. Is this true of negro literature especially in Africa?

11. Much non-negro literature has tried - consciously or unconsciously, to influence human behaviour and attitudes - help people adjust to a changed world: Jane Eyre, Pygmalion, Our Town, The Cocktail Party, Who's afraid of Virginia Wolfe, etc. Is this now true of negro-literature?

12. What does Christianity have to contribute to negro literature? Much American Negro literature was based on that "old time religion." New time religion?

May 12, 1966.

14 Washington Place East
New York City 3

September 24, 1962

Mr. Langston Hughes
Care Crown Publishers
New York City

Dear Mr. Hughes:

When I got the enclosed letter from a fan about my book - now
out of print - I was very touched. I knew how difficult it is
to cultivate a taste for books in the Cameroons. I wrote to
37 people asking them to send books to Gwellem direct, or to
me. I included just three publishers, partly because it is no
use begging from them when they are deluged with requests, part-
ly because I thot that what they might offer would not help
very much. But I asked Crown for your book, Knopf for Peter
Abraham's MINE BOY, and they only had Tell Freedom, which they
sent, and Scribner for CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY. Each of these
in a different way I thot would have deep meaning for Gwellem.
Scribner's turned me down.

Your book came while I was away, and then other books were ready
to go. Now I would like to mail it to Gwellem with your inscription. For since the original letter we have had an exchange of letters and there were enough books sent to start a miniature library with a Cabinet Minister to speak. I don't know how many books, however. And they could still use them, for there are many readers to satisfy.

I truly believe that your book will prove a joy to the Cameroon-
ians. I found it absorbing, and since my books are about African
polygamy I particularly cherished the story by Mabel Dove -Dan-
quah. Would you also be kind enough to autograph my copy for
me.

I enclose postage for the books' return.

Copy

J. F. Gwellem,
Chief CORRESPONDENT of
"Cameroon Times",
C/O Cameroon Commercial
Institute, P. O. Box 12,
Mankon- Burenda,
West Cameroon.
28 th March, 1962.

Mrs. Rebecca Hourwich Reyer,
RobinHood- Maine,
U. S. A.

Dear Madam,

After reading your book on "The Fon and
His Hundred Wives", I feel motivated to write and know your
whereabouts.

Really, every literate Kom citizen (as myself) has read the
book with equal enjoyment and this makes me recollect when your
arrival was instantly spread across the tribe when I was, as an
infant attending the St. Anthony's School at Njinikom in the late
forties.

The present Kom Literate Society under my ample surveillance has expressed immense satisfaction over your book and your efforts in bringing Kom to the limelight but further regrets why your volume is out of print.

I would like to know if you have had a reprint hence I know
you would have a lucrative market this way because our general
beleive is that it was first published when we had not im-
bibed the romance of reading.

Relevantly speaking, a copy of it was mailed to me under regis-
tered cover by a friend at Victoria (almost 300 miles away)
because of the keen interest friends had from it. In fact,
people who purchased copies do not own them now since they pass
from hand to hand.

Except in the case of slight changes in words like "Laikom"
which you spell "Laakom" and few minor others, one has no other
adverse critisms to level against it.

To round it up, Kom has taken a tremendous change since your
departure and I am sure you would be baffled by the towering
bungalows; the back of schools and the beautiful scenery.

Your story concerns Fon Ndi who died on the 17th July, 1954
after ruling for 28 years.
Prime Minister Johnny Ngong, so you call him, is still growing
50/50 strong and now commands a very large family in Kom.
I would be highly gratified if you reply me in time.

Wishing you the best of the season,
I remain,

J. F. Gwellem

October 2, 1962

Dear Mr. Hughes:

It was exceedingly kind of you to send me a copy of your book, FIGHT FOR FREEDOM. I, too, grew up in a home where the CRISIS was read, and I shall never forget my father's and mother's in-dignation when they returned from a meeting of the Economic Circle, held at the home of a Washington/Ethelbert Stewart/ economist, at which Dr. du Bois had been invited to speak. The Stewarts had prepared refreshments and everyone there, but the host and hostess, and my parents, left abruptly. They would not eat with a man they had been glad to hear! Well, that was many years ago.

But I write this as the papers are plastered with the news from Mississippi, and I am reminded sharply of my unfinished project, and in which I now write hoping to interest you.

Bishop Lavis of Capetown, now retired, and in his late eighties, is the father of social welfare in the Cape, the best friend the Cape Coloured have ever had, a consistent liberal who has toiled on behalf of good race relations since he arrived from England as a young man.

When I first met him he was a Canon and he surprised me by having a picture of Lincoln on his wall. He told me that he recited the words of the 'ettysburg address every night of his life, with his prayers, and if he could not, he would not have the courage to face his next day's work. The last time he told me, "I sometimes wonder whether Americans realize how Lincoln is worshipped in Africa, the influence he exerts. And sometimes I wonder whether he continues to mean as much to you as to us, whether you are as determined as we are to move toward the goals so clearly defined by him."

It was my hope that a group of American citizens would have a plaque made of bronze with the words of the 'ettysburg address, and Lincoln's picture engraved upon them, with some inscription to Bishop Lavis explaining why he was so honored, and that arrangements would be made for St. George's Cathedral, the oldest church in southern Africa, right opposite Parliament in Capetown where the Nationalists now preside, to hang it for all to see. The publicity, especially this year, would be magnificent and ring round the world. But I have given up after dozens of letters, for I am just an individual, low income writer, I have no organization, no facilities, no secretary. I asked Bishop Pike, he referred me to someone else, Dr. Bond did, too, the Negro Episcopal group, and they to someone else, and so it has gone. But I love Bishop Lavis and would love to do it for him, and for the idea. Would some of your NAACP friends be interested? I could arrange to show you a lot more material about Lavis and make this sound more concrete. I know you are very busy, but may-be this will appeal to you. Let me know.

October 3, 1962

Dear Mrs. Reyher:

I am like you, just "a low-income
writer" with no full-time secretary,
only a part-time student at NYU, at the
moment more occupied with his studies than
my work. While I was away in Africa more
than a thousand letters piled up, only half
of which are as yet attended to, after be-
ing home over a month. Long unfinished
book contracts, etc., stare me in the face.
I've six television shows to film an
narrator this weekend. The National Poetry
Festival for 3 days in Washington shortly.
To take on one more letter or one more phone
call or promise one more thing seems, at
this moment, like the straw that would
break the camel's back! (I'm sure you know
how many "little" requests come in to a
writer by mail or phone everyday. I've a b
sing NO over my phone, but it doesn't work
too well, and I find myself still promising
things for "next month" that I haven't a
when the time comes, take a whole day out
one's life.) All this to say that while I
I'm all for your Lincoln project in S. A.,
I don't see how I can be helpful. The NAAC
has not enough funds for their continually
costly legal cases (like defending Meredith
in Mississippi) so are extremely loath to
take on other things in this crisis time.
Their staff is short-handed, too. But, any
way, I guess there will always be "too much
to do, too little time" and too little mone
Maybe one of the Lincoln societies would
help......... Coodial regards, and best ever,

Langston Hughes

The New
African

P.O. BOX 4232 CAPE TOWN

7th February, 1962.

Langston Hughes Esq.,
20 East 127th St.,
New York 35, N.Y.;
U.S.A.

Dear Mr Hughes,

Mrs Sally Holmes, whom I gather you knew as Sally Zimmerman, has suggested that we write to you about the possibility of your contributing to one of the future issues of THE NEW AFRICAN.

As a new journal, we are unable to offer anything more than token payment to contributors - a maximum of 8-00, or 8.40 per article - but I do hope that this will not deter you from submitting something to the near future.

Contributions should be not longer than 1500 - 2,000 words, and should reach us not later than 15th of the month prior to publication.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely,
Neville Rubin

PROPRIETORS / INSIGHT PUBLICATIONS (PROPRIETARY) LIMITED
EDITORS / RANDOLPH VIGNE AND NEVILLE RUBIN

September 21, 1957

Dear Friend: [L to R: Bun Sawyer, Benj. Smith]

Very nice to have your letter and I am glad that
you are attending my alma mater, Lincoln.
I am terribly sorry that I was not in New York

I am terribly sorry that I was not in New York
when you came through. I had, a few days before,
flown to the Coast to see a play there based on
my poetry and life.

my poetry and life.

When you come to New York again, phone me at
ATWATER 9 - 6559, so that I might have the pleasure
of seeing you.

of seeing you.

At the moment my African Anabaptist consists
entirely of short stories, fictional in form, but
if it should be enlarged to include articles,
I will get in touch with you. I very much appec-
ciate your offering to write something for it..

 Meanwhile, I send you all my good wishes for a
 happy and stimulating school year.

February 23, 1952

Mr. Joseph Sawyer
59 Abule Mla Road
Ebute Metta
Nigeria
West Africa

Dear Mr. Sawyer,

Thank you very much for your letter to Mr. Hughes and kind remarks about his Christmas poem in the West African Pilot. I thought you might like to know that Mr. Hughes is on his annual lecture tour at present, speaking at colleges and various other places in the Southwestern states of America, among them Texas.

Mr. Hughes is not expected to return to his home in New York City until sometime in the spring, but on his return I will surely refer your letter to him, and perhaps you can expect to hear from him in the future.

Thank you again for thinking of him.

With kindest regards.

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MARCH 2, 1966

AMBASSADOR DIOP,
SENEGAL EMBASSY
WASHINGTON, D. C.

I VERY GREATLY REGRET I CANNOT ACCEPT YOUR
KIND INVITATION TO DINNER ON FRIDAY MARCH FOURTH

LANGSTON HUGHES

WESTERN UNION

TELEGRAM

PM 8 57

1201 (4-60)

W. P. MARSHALL, PRESIDENT

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20 EAST 127 ST NYK =

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GOUVERNEMENT GENERAL
DE
L'AFRIQUE OCCIDENTALE FRANCAISE

THEATRE FEDERAL
DAKAR

Dakar, le 1er Septembre 1955

Monsieur Langston HUGHES
20, East 127 th. Street
NEW-YORK 35, N.Y.

Mon cher ami,

Votre lettre du 1er Juillet, ainsi que vos trois livres
THE DREAM KEEPER, ONE-WAY TICKET et FAMOUS AMERICAN NEGROES, me
sont parvenus à une période où j'étais débordé par la préparation
des programmes de Radio et celle de mon " SHOW " d'automne. Vous
excuserez donc le retard que j'ai mis à vous répondre. J'ai été par-
ticulièrement touché de la spontanéité avec laquelle vous avez bien
voulu répondre à mon appel. Il s'agit, en Afrique, d'éclairer les
masses sur les valeurs humaines de leur races, et cela avec des do-
cuments authentiques comme ceux que vous m'aviez envoyés.

W.C. Handy et Marian Anderson ont été les premiers à
ouvrir cette série de célèbrités. D.V. Ralph Bunche suivra dans ma
prochaine émission.

Je pense, dans les jours à venir, réserver 2 ou 3 émis-
sions à la présentation de poèmes négro américains.

Cependant, je désirerais obtenir d'autres documents
dont je vous joins la liste, mais, pour ne pas trop abuser de votre
grande bonté, je vous proposerais de les payer.

I FIRST BOOK OF JAZZ
2 FAMOUS NEGRO MUSIC MAKERS -ordered sent
3 FIRST BOOK OF NEGROES
4 FIRST BOOK OF RYTHMES
5 SHAKESPEARE IN HARLEM

Je désirerais également savoir choses, si votre li-
vre " the big sea " a été traduit en Français et sous quel titre,
et si j'ai la possibilité de le trouver chez SEGHERS à Paris.

D'autre part, si vous pourriez me communiquer l'adres-
se de " ESOTERIC RECORDS " New-York. J'ai enregistré des disques
pour cette firme lorsque j'étais à Paris, et désirerais leur pro-
poser de nouveaux enregistrements en Afrique. Je compte sur vous
pour cette dernière chose.

Si vous aviez besoin de quoi que ce soit, je vous

"FIRST BOOK OF NEGROES") Sent to Urona (5)
"FIRST BOOK OF RHYTHMS") 5/29/54 Llewelyn(3)
"POPO AND FIFINA" ) Blythe (1)
"WAYS OF WHITE FOLKS" ) Previously sent
"LAUGHING TO KEEP FROM RYING") Dyke Sentso

May 29, 1954

Mr. Dyke H. Sentso,
P. O. Box 29,
Vredefort, O. F. S.,
Union of South Africa.

Dear Mr. Sentso,

Congratulations to you on being the winner of DRUM'S Short Story Contest, and for
those two very beautiful stories, UNDER THE BLUE GUM TREE and OTHER PEOPLE'S GOODS
which, as one of the judges for the contest, it was my privilege to read. I liked
them both very much indeed, and I am wondering if you have any more like them, the
reason being that I am considering editing an Anthology of African Short Stories
and would very much like to see a half dozen or so of yours (other than the two
which I have) for possible inclusion in the book.

There is a great interest in our country at the moment in things African, particularly South Africa, since it is so much in the news these days. And the books of Alan Patton and Nadine Gordimer have had a considerable sale here. Patton is in New York now and I have had the pleasure of meeting him. And I have been corresponding with Peter Abrahams in London who is going to send me some of his stories. Recently I spoke with one of the leading American publishers about the possibility of an anthology of stories by African writers and received a very favorable response, asking me if I would try to assemble such a collection, and promising to give it very careful consideration when assembled. If accepted, there would be the usual pro rata anthology payment to the writers for the use of their work. Certainly such an anthology would help to further acquaint American readers with the life and problems of South Africa. So, if you have a half dozen or so stories dealing with the problems or folk life of the people or inter-group relations there, I would be most happy to see them for consideration for such an anthology as soon as you can conveniently send them to me. Also, if you could send me the names and addresses of any other good non-white African writers whom I might contact, I would appreciate it immensely.

I've sent you copies of two of my books of short stories which I hope you received by now. And, seeing the very nice sketch about you and your family and noting that you have some charming children (as pictured in DRUM) I am sending you today some of my books for children which I hope they will enjoy.

You write beautifully and I am happy to form your literary acquaintance across the miles of water and of time—because I am of African descent, too—that divide us, for your stories have brought you and your country into my heart.

All my good wishes to you ever, and may you keep on writing as effectively as you do,

October 1, 1954

Dear Mr. Sentso:

It has been sometime now since I received
your kind letter date June 28th, in which you
stated that you would be sending me some of
your short stories. Since I have not received
all of the issues of DRUM, particularly the
early issues, the only story of yours which I
have seen is UNDER THE BLUE GUM TREE. So I
am anxiously awaiting from you, THE SUN STOOD
STILL and THE HARVEST IS WAITING, also THE SOIL
AND THE SOUL. Could you air mail these to me
soon since I have now received some fifty manu-
scripts from English speaking Africa, and am
in process of putting the Anthology together.
Since you seem to me one of the most talented
of the South African writers, I would certainly
like to have more of your work to consider for
inclusion in the book.

Thank you very much for the kind words which you
say about my work. I will have a new children's
book coming out in November which I will send to
your children. Meanwhile all my good wishes to
you and the hope that I will receive very soon
your stories, I remain,

P.O. Box 29,
Vredefort.

14 October 1954.

Langston Hughes,
NEW YORK.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

Please accept my sincerest thanks for your
letter of the 1st instant. I am afraid I have nearly let you
badly down.

I am enclosing herein printed copies of two
of my stories... THE SUN STOOD STILL and one printed very
recently by "The Bantu World" US TOGETHER. I hope you will
like them.

As very soon as I am able to, I shall send
you THE HARVEST IS WAITING, a copy of which, I regret, I am
unable to lay my hands on at the moment. The same is true of
THE SOIL AND THE SOUL.

I am very sorry to have to give you so much
bother but unless I send the first two in printed form, I
may delay you a great deal.

October 21, 1954

Dear Mr. Sentso:

I was delighted indeed to receive today your two stories
THE SUN STOOD STILL and US TOGETHER. And I look forward
to receiving soon THE HARVEST IS WAITING and THE SOIL AND THE
SOUL.

I like your work so very much and find in it a true poetic
feeling - so, for my own pleasure, aside from the purposes of
the Anthology I am compiling, it is good to receive something
from you.

I hope that soon you will have a whole book of your own. I
do not see why not.

With my continued good wishes to you, and the hope of hearing
from you again, shortly, I am

20 East 127 Street
New York 35, N. Y.
November 6, 1956

My dear friend Sililo:

Your novel certainly sounds as if it is based on a very interesting piece of material, and since African novels are quite popular in this country now, I very much wish that some of them were being written by indigenous Africans like yourself. Only two such writers have recently been published here, Peter Abrahams of South African who is now living in the West Indies and Amos Tutuola of Nigeria. Certainly I hope that your novel is of such calibre that it might stand a chance of being published in the United States. If you would care to send the manuscript on to me I would be happy to read it and if I feel it would be acceptable, I will submit it to one or two publishers for you. But I must warn you that most American novels have to contain a pretty definite story line, and not be composed simply of descriptions of customs and folkways.

I am writing a note to your friend, Victor Mchunu at the Juilliard School and hope that I shall have the opportunity of meeting him.

With all good wishes to you, I am

May 27, 1958

Dear Mr. Sililo:

I am returning to you by boat mail your novel, *From The Ashes of Mkhumbane*, after having shown it to a number of publishers here in New York. They all indicated that they found it interesting but did not feel it was the sort of book which would sell well in this country.

May I assure you that this kind of pronouncement should not in any way discourage you in your desire to write. I know from many years experience as a writer that rejection notices are more often the case than acceptance. After I had been published many times, I had several publishers turn down my first "Simple" book, *Simple Speaks His Mind*. When finally accepted it turned out to be successful enough to warrant the publishing of two sequels.

I wanted to return your manuscript because you indicated that it was the best copy you had and I thought you might wish to perhaps re-work it and submit it elsewhere. At any rate know that I send you all my good wishes and I hope you will continue to write, to improve your skill and to be prepared for the very unpredictable reactions of book publishers.

20 East 127th Street
New York 35, N. Y.,

July 14, 1958.

Mr. A. T. Sililo,
P. O. Box 220,
Potchefstroom, S. A.

Dear Mr. Sililo:

I did not post your novel back to you afterall.

Instead, I interested the John Day Company in
giving it a reading, and have sent it down to
my eidtor there. This is the firm that publishes
THE GOOD EARTH and all the famous novels by
Pearl Buck, and it belongs to her husband,
John Day, so they have an especial interest in
Asiatic and African subjects. It will probably
be three or four weeks before I know what they
think of your manuscript, but I will let you
know, and certainly I wish you luck. Please do
not be impatient. Sometimes it takes a long
while to place a book.

Cordial regards,

Sincerely,

August 14, 1958

Dear Friend Sililo:

It was very nice to get your most interesting letter and I
envy you being in the land of the Zulus. I have just read
a fascinating book about Shaka called SHAKA ZULU by E. A.
Ritter. I wonder if you have read this amazing biography.
If not, I know you would find it very interesting. It has
been published both in England and the United States.

I should certainly be interested in a description of a Zulu
wedding and also in seeing the photographs you took. Also,
I wonder if you would care to do an article for me, say
10 to 15 typewritten pages, double spaced, concerning some
of the colorful aspects of life in Zululand today. As I
believe I wrote to you, I need about a half-dozen more
factual pieces for the anthology I am still assembling.
I have quite enough in the fiction, poetry and folk category.
If you can write such a piece, please do so and send it on
to me.

Meanwhile your novel is still at the John Day office and I
have had no report on it as yet. This, being summer, many
editors are vacationing and so everything moves more slowly.
But certainly I feel there is much of interest in your manu-
script and I hope it can find a publisher.

Best regards to you and your wife and all good wishes.

20 East 127th Str
New York 35, N. Y.,
June 26, 1959.

Mr. A. T. Sililo,
P. O. Box 220,
Potchefstroom,
South Africa.

Dear Mr. Sililo:

Regretably, I have not been able to place your novel, FROM THE ASHES OF MKHUMBANE, with a publisher. It has been to several (and each one has held it six or eight weeks) but, although some of the comments were favorable, there have been no takers. With the high cost of book-making these days, it is very difficult to place a new author or a new book. One almost has to be famous ahead of time! So I am writing this to find out if you are still at the same address (as above) so that I might post the manuscript back to you. I wish we had had better luck. Perhaps you can find a publisher in England. Anyhow, let me hear from you as to where to return it. Best wishes, Sincerely,

manuscript returned
12-16-59

November 16, 1962

Dear Mr. Sililo:

Mr. Hughes returned only to pick up some
material enroute to the air port and
Cleveland, as I told you, and will not
be returning until early December. He
asked, however, that I post you your
manuscript which I have mailed under
separate cover along with two books he
autographyed to you. Mr. Hughes regrets
not having time to call you and will call
you at his early convenience on his return.

All good wishes to you.

Mr. A. T. Sililo
502, Bancroft Hall
Columbia University
New York 27, New York

Mr Langston Hughes,
20 East 127th St.,
New York 35.

Box 3741 Nairobi
Kenya
23 November, 1962

Mr Langston Hughes
20 East 127th Street
New York 35, N.Y.

Dear Mr Hughes:

Mabel Smythe suggested that my friend send her book to you, in hopes that you might assist her in publishing it. I hope that this is not too great an imposition on you. Mabel felt that you would be happy to help, if you found the book worthy of publication. I regret that her schedule here was too tight to allow time to meet Charity in person.

Thank you for any help you may be able to give a very fine young woman. I do hope to meet you some day when I return to New York.

June 17, 1963

Dear Mrs. Snyder:

The manuscript of Miss Charity Wacuma which was posted to Mr. Hughes at the suggestion of Mrs. Mabel Smythe has been read by Crown Publishers (see copy of letter enclosed) and returned. Mr. Hughes leaves for Europe within the next ten days for an indefinite period and therefore desires to return the manuscript since he will not be in the U. S. to keep track of it. A letter addressed to Miss Wacuma at Nairobi was returned stamped UNKNOWN. We are therefore sending her manuscript* to you in hope that you have her current address.

Mr. Hughes regrets that the publishers did not find the book publishable in its present state, and sends his very best wishes for success with her work.

Miss Margaret C. Snyder
Box 3741
Nairobi, KENYA

*The manuscript is being returned under separate cover via boat mail.

Dryden Hall
1570 Oak Avenue
Evanston
Illinois

July 30 1961.

Mr Langston Hughes
20 East 127th Street
New York, N.Y.C.

Dear Mr Langston Hughes,

I hope you remember me; I had the pleasure of visiting you in
1957 at your home, and of meeting you on the Race Course in Lagos during our
Independence Celebrations last year October.

Since last January I have been here at Northwestern University
on a Rockefeller Fellowship, to attend courses on Cultural Anthropology. I hope
to spend some time in or near New York early next year, prior to returning to
Nigeria, to the University College, Ibadan, to teach.

In the meantime, and as a follow up of contacts made in 1957,
I have been trying to prepare a Paper on "Negro Art and Culture". This Draft
is now ready, and a copy is enclosed herewith for your private information and
retention. May I refer you, please, to page 12, under "N: POETRY AND LITERATURE",
where - in its paragraph 5 on top of page 13 - I have made use of your name.

At the present moment I am trying to see how to get this Project
started; the first thing I have had to do was to condense this Draft into a very
brief 9 pages, in which form it is more likely to receive attention than in this
Draft form. I hope you will not mind my reference to you in this Draft, but should
it prove possible to get anything started in Poetry and Literature, it would
indeed be a privilege and a pleasure to have your cooperation.

Also enclosed is a copy of an article by Dean Horace Mann Bond,
which might be of some interest to you, if you have not already seen it.

With every good wish,

September 15, 1964

Dear Fela Sowande:

It was most kind of you to send me a copy
of IFA. It is a most interesting book
which I am happy to have in my collection.
I will be leaving New York within the next
few days for Europe--I will attend the
Berlin Freedom Festival and then come
over to London and Paris. Maybe I will
see you in London, I do hope so.

With cordial regards,

Mr. Fela Sowande
25 Lexham Gardens
Kensington, London, W. 8

C O P Y

Efua Theodora Morgul

Dear Mrs. Sutherland:

At long last a publisher has been found for the anthology
of African writing I have been gathering for a long time--now
enlarged to include not only fiction, but articles, poetry,
and some folklore. The book is called AN AFRICAN TREASURY, is
to appear in the late Spring, and will sell for $3.00--a low
price in these days of high book costs.

Some weeks ago I sent you a permission form to fill out to
your former address the Fijai Secondary School at Sekondi. But
perhaps it did not reach you. Yesterday at luncheon with the
Ambassador from Ghana to the United Nations, I learned where I
might write you.

The publishers have allotted $25.00 each as payment for
prose pieces. If this fee is agreeable to you, kind grant to
Crown Publishers the right to use in the above anthology your
charming story, "New Life At Kyerefaso" and tell us if any other
source than yourself needs a credit line. You have, of course,
the right to use this story anywhere else you wish. In lieu of
writing, if you received the form, simply fill it out and return
it to me by airmail, as the book is now ready to go to press.

I hope you continue to write, and that I will see more of
your work in the future.

With cordial regards,

cc: Radio Ghana

20 East 127th Street,
New York 35, N. Y., USA,
April 1, 1961

Dear Mrs. Sutherland:

Indiana University Press has asked me to assemble a small anthology of poetry by indigenous African poets for consideration as a possible volume in its Poetry Series. All poems accepted will be paid for at the usual anthology rates; and you are free to use the poems wherever else you choose---for magazine, book, or other anthology publication. The poems need not be new or unpublished. They should be only what you feel is most representative of your work.

I would, therefore, be most grateful to you if you would send me perhaps six or eight of your poems for consideration, by air if possible; and if you would inform other poets of quality whom you know to do the same. Or kindly send me their addresses, and I will write them directly myself.

With cordial regards to you,

Dear Mr. Swai:

I am grateful to Mr. Mbiti for giving you my address, and it
is good of you to write me.

What I am interested in at the moment is creative writing by
African writers. There is a very wide interest in the United
States now in all things pertaining to Africa, and our papers
are full of items and news about Africa these days.

Not long ago I spoke with one of my publishers regarding the
possibility of an anthology of short stories by African
writers of color, and it seems like a very feasible idea. If
it should develop, each writer would be paid on a pro-rata
basis for his contribution. According to American anthology
rates, and depending on the number of contributors, this pay-
ment might not be very large, but at least it would be some-
thing, and I feel that the anthology itself might add a great
deal to the understanding of African life on the part of
American writers. If you have written any short fiction I
would appreciate it very much if you would send me what you
feel might be your best short stories, preferably those relating
to some phase of African life or problems, not folk tales or
animal stories.

With all my good wishes to you, I am

Sincerely yours,

TANGANYIKA RED CROSS SOCIETY

Patron:
President
Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere
President: Dr. C. V. Mtawali, M.B.E.

Telephone 20464
All Communications
to be addressed
to the Secretary

National Headquarters,
Upanga Road,
P.O. Box 1133,
DAR ES SALAAM.

23rd May, 1966.

Mr. Langston Hughes,
C/o United States Information Services,
P.O. Box 9170,
Dar es Salaam.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

On behalf of the Tanganyika Red Cross Society, I am
writing to thank you for so kindly giving the splendid
concert in aid of our Society last night.

As you know the Tanganyika Red Cross Society is very
urgently in need of Funds, so we are extremely grateful
to you for having helped us. You will be interested to
know that we collected Sha. 234/-.

20 E. 127th Street
New York 35, N. Y., USA

September 22, 1954

Mrs. Lettie Grace Tayedzerhwa
A. P. O. Hostel
29 York Street
Kimberley, Cape Province
Union of South Africa

Dear Mrs. Tayedzerhwa:

Thank you for your letter of July 13, and I was glad to know that you had begun to try your hand at fiction stories which might be usable in the proposed anthology.

I would be glad to see what you have written and you may send your material along. However, I cannot guarantee publication, for that will depend upon the publishers who will decide just what is to be included in the anthology. At any rate, if you care to send your stories, I should be happy to receive them and give them every consideration.

With best wishes and thanks, I am

LH:HS

Along with the book I am sending to you, I am enclosing a list of
my books and their publishers—including the lost WAYS OF WHITE FOIKS
which you mention in your letter—in case you might wish to secure
copies of them.

It suddenly occurs to me that I am having MONTAGE sent to you directly
from my publishers and so I will have to enclose the list in this letter.

Again, my thanks to you for your letter and all good wishes to you.

LANGSTON HUGHES

2.

the exception of about six Europeans it is staffed entirely by non-Europeans, including the two principals. The classes range from the Kindergarten to the Junior Certificate. Then we provide for a two-year post J.C. teachers course and a specialist course in Music.

I have already asked a book-seller to get me a copy of THE DREAM KEEPER. It was quite a coincidence that I had MERRY-GO-ROUND on the blackboard when your letter was brought to me. Even my little niece, aged three, recites it. I am looking forward to learning some poems from THE DREAM KEEPER myself.

It is with keen anticipation that I shall await the arrival of MONTAGE OF A DREAM DEFERRED. Thank you so much. It is really very nice of you to think of sending me a copy, and I can assure you of my appreciation.

I wish I knew just how to reply to your - 'you must lead a very interesting life out there in South Africa". Somehow I just cannot find a word to describe our existence. It is not the actual Apartheid that we resent so much as the continual insults that are hurled at us and the implied idea that we are inferior beings. For example the fact that we are given special seats on aircraft does not really fill you with so much disgust, but what does infuriate is to be told that hand-towels used by non-Europeans are laundered separately. Multiply this by ten, twenty such things a day and you will realise just how "interesting" life is. But Mr. Hughes I cannot paint the South African scene adequately for you in one letter so, instead I am sending you a book which I hope you will accept.

"White Man Boss" paints the present scene in this country very vividly. It is up to date and accurate in every respect. It does not lose sight of the fact that what the Nationalist Party is doing has the whole-hearted support of the majority of the white people in this country, irrespective of which political party they belong to. I am sure you will find it a most interesting book.

Once more thank you for writing and for the book, in advance.

SYLVIA M. JACOBS.

March 22, 1951

Miss Sylvia M. Jacobs
"ONVERWAGS"
Kent Road, Wynberg
Cape Province, SOUTH AFRICA

Dear Miss Jacobs:

Thank you very much indeed for the splendid copy of WHITE MAN BOSS which arrived while I was on my Negro History Week lecture tour. I am delighted to add the book to my library and I assure you I read it with a great deal of interest. For many years I have been interested in the problems of the South African Negro and books, newspaper, radio and first-hand accounts from friends who have been there have all served to point out the fact that there is more than a superficial relationship between the South African's plight and that of the Negro in America--particularly in the south.

Thank you, too, for your most interesting letter. In a few concise paragraphs you have given me a most vivid picture of what some of your life and living conditions must be there. WHITE MAN BOSS serves to round out the picture.

You ask if Negro History Week applies to white schools as well as Negro schools. Unfortunately it does not. Nationally we observe what is known as "Brotherhood Week"--one week out of 52 set aside for the observance of kindness, consideration and so forth to one's brother. The newspapers, radio and television networks flood the public with a barrage of goodwill slogans. But after the week expires, the whole thing dies down and we're right back where we started. Negro History Week was designed to call attention to the achievements and merits of America's Negro citizens which, I am afraid, would otherwise go pretty much disregarded.

I hope that you will have received MONTAGE OF A DREAM DEFERRED by the time this letter reaches you. Of course it is much to early to tell about how the book will be received by the reviewers, since the newspapers are rather slow in reviewing poetry. But there have been a few reviews and they have been, on the whole, uniformly good thus far.

Again, my thanks for WHITE MAN BOSS, and for the kind inscription. My continued good wishes to you for all success in your work.

Sincerely yours,

LH/NWV

LANGSTON HUGHES

May 12, 1951

Miss Sylvia M. Jacobs
"Onverwags"
Kent Road, Wynberg
Cape Province, SOUTH AFRICA

Dear Miss Jacobs:

Thank you so much for being kind enough to send me the copy of
THE COLOURED MAN SPEAKS: The Entrenched Clause, and the reverse,
DI STEM VAN DIE KLEURLING: Die Verskanste Klousules. I'll have to
let the Dutch version go but I will be reading the English one with
a great deal of interest. Thanks, too, for your little note.

I certainly hope, for your sake and for the future of all the colored
peoples of South Africa that the vote bill which you speak of does NOT
become law. When a man loses the right to have his say in the operation
of his homeland, he loses his most powerful weapon. Our own poll tax
in the south is the same kind of legal trap we trick the South uses to
disfranchise the Negro in America. Slowly but surely, however, we are
breaking it down. I only hope that whatever Gods of right there be in
this life will work to prevent such a catastrophe from happening to
the South Africans.

Again, my thanks to you. And continued good wishes and success in
what you are trying to do with education out there.

LH/nvw

June 2, 1954

Miss Sylvia M. Jacobs,
"Onverwags",
Kent Road, Wynberg,
Cape Province, South Africa.

Dear Miss Jacobs:

S.O.S.!!!!... Recently in speaking with one of our best American publishers, he expressed an interest in possibly publishing here an anthology of African short stories by non-white writers, as I'd told him about three quite good stories I'd seen when it was my privilege to act as one of the judges of the recent contest for DRUM. So he asked me assembled a dozen or so for consideration. Peter Abrahams in London likes the idea and has promised to send me some of his, and I've had answers from a few contacts in Liberia and Nigeria, too. And have written all my friends in various parts of English speaking Africa to send me the names and addresses of any good fiction writers they may know. I would immensely appreciate it if you would do the same, airmating them to me as soon as you conveniently can.

There is a great interest in our country in things African at the moment—since it is in the news everyday. And I think such an anthology would help immensely to give Americans a better understanding of the life and problems of non-whites there—as fiction is usually more powerful than journalism. The books of Alan Paton and Nadine Gordimer, among others, have been widely read here. And Paton is in New York now. (I had the pleasure of meeting him last week at a party for him where he spoke most illuminatingly about the current South African situation). Haile Selassie is here now, too, and Azikiwe of Nigeria whom I went to school with and shall see tomorrow. So we're very African minded now. And I'm sure if I can get 12-18 good stories together, the volume will be published—with the usual pro rata anthology payments to each author for his work used therein. So any authors you may know writing stories about the daily life, folk ways, or problems of the people—not just conventional love stories, etc.,—please tell them about it and ask them to send me a selection of their best stories for consideration—or let me know who they are, and I'll write them at once.

That most interesting book you sent me a long time ago, "White Man Boss" has been lent around to all my friends, to their help and profit. Gollanca is now my English publisher, and I met him here in New York recently. He brought out both my "Simple" books in London. Just the other day a good review of the last one, "Simple Takes A Wife" reached me from a Pretoria paper. Do you have the book? If not, I'd love to send it to you. At the moment I'm hard at working trying to make a play from it for production next winter.

I've just read the proofs of Peter Abrahams' TELL FREEDOM, his autobiography, and liked it enormously. It's to be published here in the fall.

hope all goes well with you, and that I shall hear from you soon. My continued good wishes,

"Bac of the Moon",
Touws River,
Cape Province.

15th July, 1954.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

I regret the long delay in replying to your S.O.S.,
but, unfortunately I was away on holiday, and therefore I have only
just received it.

Your request regarding the short stories made me
sit up. I know this is going to be hard to believe, but it is
true, and perhaps it is a reflection on the degree of progress
amongst the non-Europeans in this country. We, that is the Cape
Coloured people have produced absolutely no writer of any standing
at all. Because this realisation was such a shock I contacted
George Manuel (see "Tell Freedom"), a journalist with a local daily
and asked his help. He confirmed this, and even went through their
files, but without any luck. So when it comes to the Cape Coloured
people I'm afraid you have drawn a blank.

I could send you some excellent articles by a very
good friend of mine, who, incidentally is the first Coloured Dr. of
Philosophy in South Africa, but they will not be of any use to you
in this particular work. I am however, for your own information
sending you a few of his articles under seeparte cover. These you
ought to find very interesting and very instructive.

You will notice that I have limited myself to the
Cape Coloured people, for I feel sure that you would have contacted
the offices of DRUM, and they are certainly the best people to give
you the African material.

May I say that I think this anthology idea wonder-
ful. With the right material it ought to achieve much of what you
desire. I do not think that compiling it will be an easy task,
for we in Africa have few writers comparable with your Negro writers
but I am sure you are equal to the task, and you certainly have my
sincerest good wishes.

There seems to be some telepathic communication be-
tween us you know. On holiday I was reading "Simple Takes a Wife"
and "Tell Freedom". I used to read one 'Simple' story a night, for
fear of getting to the end to soon. I'm absolutely in love with
Jess B. Semple. As a matter of fact I am a little disappointed that
he has taken a wife. I hope he will not become too domesticated!!!

2.

I have never been a Peter Abrahams fan, but I was very impressed with "Tell Freedom". If you want a picture of life in South Africa there you have it. Believe me the Vrededrops of South Africa have not improved since the days of his childhood. His description of the political activity and the leaders in Cape Town I found very true. (Today it has become so confused as to be absolutely ineffectual.) Personally I feel that "Tell Freedom" presents a clearer picture of South African conditions than any of Paton or Gordimers'.

Thank you for "To Langston Hughes in Harlem". I liked it. It is nice to know there are other people in Africa who feel about you the way I do.

I was looking through my bookshelves the other day and wondered what has happened to Richard Wright. Has he written anything of late. Since EBONY and NEGRO DIGEST have been banned I have no way of keeping up with the latest publications on your side of the Atlantic. At present I am reading Yerbys' "The Devils' Laughter". He has quite a following in South Africa.

Good luck with the anthology,

Sylvia M. Titus.

October 6, 1954

Dear Miss Titus:

Please forgive me for being so long in answering your kind letter but I have been away from New York most of the summer and have just recently returned to the city. I appreciate very much the information which you gave me regarding the lack of good writers among our people in Cape Province, but I think there is at least one, Richard Rive, whom I discovered through DRUM. For my anthology, I can use only fiction, as you know, but I would be personally pleased and interested to read the articles which you promised to send me by your Ph.D. friend. They have not arrived as yet.

From the various English-speaking countries of Africa, I have received some 50 manuscripts during the summer, a few of them of real interest, so the response for short stories has been most gratifying. And with those still to come from writers who have promised to send material, I think I will be able to assemble a small anthology of genuine merit and interest.

How good of you to speak so kindly of my friend, SIMPLE, who, although now married, is not yet domesticated. I think in due time there will be a third book about the ups-and-downs of his married life. The second has received some wonderful reviews from the South African papers, other parts of British Africa and even as far away as Australia, which delights me because I am always trying to tell young writers of color that books about colored people need not be limited in their universal appeal, providing they make their characters warm and human enough. Peter Abraham's TELL FREEDOM has quite a critical success here in the United States, and I, myself, like it very much. Richard Wright has just written a book, BLACK POWER, about the Gold Coast. And one of our colored women writers, Era Belle Thompson, has written another about her trip to Africa, AFRICA: LAND OF MY FATHERS. Both are receiving favorable reviews here, but I have not read them yet.

Alan Paton (whom I met while he was here) has a series of articles now running in COLLIER'S magazine on his impressions of the American race problem. And from London comes a new colored magazine, quite good, I think, called BRONZE, Exdel House, Whitcomb Street, London W.C.2 Subscription rates 12 issues for 14 shillings, in case you might wish to subscribe. I guess this is all the literary news for the moment.

Do you have a long-playing record
machine? If so, I will send
you a recorded LP (33-1/3),
ANTHOLOGY OF NEGRO POETRY, on
which various American poets
read their own poems.

February 22, 1955

Dear Miss Titus, What a perfectly charming gift, CAPE SCAPES, a lovely happy-looking little book indeed to help start the New Year off. Thank you immensely! And love the prints, and the verses are amusing. I liked most the Malay quarter (page 29) and pages 32, 33, 37, and 41. Is the artist and poet a coloured man? No matter, the book's delightful! ..... The articles you wrote me about by the Ph.D. as yet haven't arrived, but whenever they come, I'll read them with interest and show them to others here..... Peter Kumalo, Dyke Sentso, Richard Rive, and Bruno Esekie have all sent fascinating stories from South Africa. Richard Rive is at the South Peninsula High School in Diep River, Cape Town, and Kumalo (Peter Clarke) is in Simon's Town, C. P. They're both good writers, as I guess you know from DRUM. And I guess they are Cape Cohoureds, aren't they? ..... I think my anthology is going to be most interesting. Stories are still coming in from Nigeria, Gold Coast, and London. One Davidson Nicol at Cambridge is a very good writer indeed. I'm not sure if he's from Kenya or Sierra Leone, as he writes about both places, but his stories are very well written. Seems he's a doctor......I did not realize how much work this anthology would be when I got the idea! I've had literally hundreds of letters from Africa, and lots of bad fiction. But the good makes up for the bad, though the later was far more voluminous. I'll have about 25 quite good stories, though, to include in the book, the most and the best from Nigeria and South Africa--quite different, by the way--the Nigerians running toward humor and fantasy, and your writers toward problems and poetry. You'll see when the book is ready, maybe by late summer, as you'll be receiving a copy...... Meanwhile, I'm busy trying to make a musical play of "Simple" which is moving along slowly, but has several nice songs already written..... A new little book of mine on JAZZ is on its way to you by boat. Hope it reaches you before next New Years-- you're so far off! ..... Best regards ever,

April 28, 1955

Dear Mrs. Titus:

I was delighted to have your letter, but I am a
bit tardy in answering it as I have been bogged
down with a deadline on a new book for fall publica-
tion, FAMOUS NEGRO MUSIC MAKERS, which I have just
this week turned in to the publishers. About the
same time that I heard from you I had a note from
Richard Rive to say that he had made an appointment
to call on you so I am glad that you two will get
to know each other since you and he are my favorite
correspondents in Africa.

What a shame to hear about the vandalism and the
loss of the manuscripts and school records by fire.
I did remember your saying you were going to send
me some of the essays and that is why I was asking
about them.

I am sending you by boat mail today, two of my
recent records - one is for children, and the other
might be for anybody. I hope that you receive them
and when they arrive that you will let Richard Rive
hear them too as I believe I have sent him the books
from which the records are derived.

I think it's wonderful news about the baby and I hope
you will send me a snapshot of him sometime. With all
good wishes to you, as ever,

Mrs. Sylvia M. Titus
Bac-of-the-Moon
Towns River, Cape Province, S.A.

Mrs. Sylvia Titus
Onverwags
Kent Road Wynberg
Cape S. Africa

August 25, 1955

Dear Mrs. Titus:

I was sorry to learn from your letter this week of the death of your husband and I send you my very deepest sympathy. Under the circumstances it is most thoughtful of you to write me at all to let me know that you received the records safely. I had a recent letter too from Richard Rive saying that he hoped to visit you soon. He has sent me some very good short stories in-deed and I would judge from his writing that he is a very talented young man.

A recent note from Peter Abrahams tells me that he will be flying to America next week and will be in the West Indies a while and then spend a month in New York so I am looking forward to meeting him.

Just before your letter came a book, JOHANNESBURG FRIDAY, arrived, and also that very interesting essay on the CAPE COLORED PEOPLE. There is no name on the essay but I suppose it must be written by the man you told me about in one of your previous letters. At any rate it is very informative, and I am very grateful to you for sending this to me as well as the book. The latter I perhaps will not have a chance to read for a while since I am in the middle of some very pressing literary deadlines at the moment.

All my good wishes to you and my gratitude for your letters and friendship.

Sincerely yours,

March 21, 1960

Dear Sylvia:

So nice to have your letter. I am just back from Georgia---where the college students are having those wonderful "sit-ins" at food counters that refuse to serve Afro-Americans. Producing results, too, as a few cafes have lowered the color bars already. Next week I leave on another Southern lecture tour until Easter, so this is just a hasty note to ask you to do me a favor.

In my forthcoming anthology, AN AFRICAN TREASURY, I am using a little poem by I. W. W. Citashe, WEAPON, taken from an article "Toward An African Literature" by Dr. A. C. Jordan published in AFRICA SOUTH, April-June, 1959. Who is (or was) Citashe? I need a brief biography of him---3 or 4 lines. And if he is a living poet, his address so I get his permission, and offer payment. Otherwise, I need the address of Dr. Jordan for that purpose. Mr. Petersen offered to get this information for me (as he knows Dr. Jordan) but at the moment I can't find Petersen's address to write him.

I greatly enjoyed meeting the Petersens (and hearing him read his poems in that musical language) but regretted having so brief a moment only with them, as they were going to Long Island and I to California. But please give them my best regards. And you must come see this U. S. A. of ours sometime, too. Dr. Rosey Pool of London and Holland is here now touring the Negro colleges and making a great hit with the students, talking on Negro poetry and on Anne Frank, whose teacher she was in the days of the Nazi underground.

Briefly I've met Marian Makeba and heard her sing. New Yorkers like her very much, but now she has gone away on a tour. I told her you had sent me the KING KONG record---which I treasure.

Actors' auditions for my play, TAMBOURINES TO GLORY, start in a few days. A record star (currently popular singer) Della Reese is to have the leading role, rehearsals to start in July. My recent little show made from my poems, SHAKESPEARE IN HARLEM, had wonderful reviews, but lasted only a month---a little on the "art" side for the general public---so it closed last week. (And not a penny from it have I seen yet!)

Jim Bailey, owner of DRUM, is coming to see me tomorrow. And today I had luncheon at the United Nations with the Ambassador from Ghana. This is my African year! But I wish I could sit by the sea in your car and look at the waves of that pretty Bay you write about. Those were beautiful pictures in that book you once sent me. I'll be over that way someday.

Cordial regards,

"ONVERWAGS,"

KENT ROAD,

WYNBERG

Phone

7-9377

6th April, 1960

Dear Langston,

It was so nice to have a real letter for a change, instead of the usual letter card. It was delightful to read of all your interesting activities. I am looking forward to hearing more about your 'African year'.

The most interesting thing in your letter was that one sentence: 'I'll be over that way someday'. I sincerely hope you meant it. As an enticement I am sending you, under separate cover, some slides of the Peninsula which I took myself. I hope you will like them.

First things first however. I got in touch with Dr. Jordan by phone and he promised to write to you. However, just in case you need to contact him sooner, this is his address:

'Thabisano', Unity Rd., Crawford, Cape Province.

I think you will have to appoint me as your publicity agent in South Africa. Dr. Jordan was very surprised to learn that you belong to us. I sent him your anthology -Selected Poems- and Ik Zag hoe Zwart Ik Was. You can bet I shall watch him, until he returns them!

I have not had the pleasure of seeing Petersen personally since his return. As a matter of fact he is just about on his way again. This time to Germany on a £1000 grant from the Government. He will do a years study there.

I have just written a friend of mine in London at present. He is Leonard Schach, one of the foremost producers in the country. His is the only professional theatre company in Cape Town. They do a season from September to about March each year. Unfortunately, there is only one theatre in Cape Town and there the colourbar is applied so we have little opportunity of seeing Leonard's work. Anyhow, he is in London at present to collect new material for his next season, and he will be coming to New York. I have

given him your address. I hope he will have the time to contact
you while he is over there.

I am so glad you like KING KONG. There is another L.P.
out now of the show which succeeded it - SHEBEEN. I, unfortunately,
did not see KING KONG, but I did see SHEBEEN and I can't say
that I was very impressed. However, I have booked a copy of the
record which I will order to you and I will leave you to judge for
yourself.

I read in this morning's paper that Jim Bailey has gone to
Ghana. DRUM has been banned there because of recent events here.

We have had some torrential rain during the last twenty-four hours and as the sun seems to peeping out now I think I had better pull out that car and go and see what the world looks like outside.

'ON VERWAGS', KENT ROAD, WYNBERG.

Cape Town.

19th October, 1962.

Dear Langston,

It certainly is a long time since I last
heard from you. I think it was just before you went off
to Mbari. How I wish your travels would bring you further
south! I can assure you, you would find much to interest
you here, and that a warm welcome awaits you.

I had Richard Rive to dinner recently so that
I could hear all about his proposed trip overseas. He is
due to leave here in December and plans to be away for about
two years. Luckyhim!

He seems to be doing quite a lot of writing,
and says that he has had several things accepted for publi-
cation on the Continent. His first novel is also due for
publication shortly.

I noticed in the local newspapers yesterday
that another Coloured writer, James Matthews, has had a
manuscript accepted for publication in Sweden.

Talking about writers, let me introduce you
to another. I think you will find this quite interesting,
and I would like to hear your opinion. My little son,
Trevor-Paul, is seven years old, and in his first year at
school. I do not encourage him to read anything other
than the prescribed readers for his class as I want him to
master those words thoroughly. However, we read to him a
great deal, or rather, we are forced to, if we want any
peace at all.

The other evening he was playing with some
marbles. He picked up one saying, 'Doesn't this look like
a green pearl?' After a short pause he asked whether I
would like to hear the story of a little green pearl. And
then, fluently and without any hesitation the story just
flowed from him.

When he had finished the story I asked him
when his teacher had told it to them, for I thought it a
very good reproduction. He assured me that he had never
heard it before. So I made him repeat it and I wrote it
down verbatim. Everything, including mistakes, is his
very own.

He has followed this up with another which he
called 'Magic Stardust'. As a matter of fact I am finding
it quite a job to keep up with him. The moment 'a story

taps' at his mind (as he puts it) then I have to leave what-
ever I am doing to write it down. Magic Stardust was writ-
ten for may birthday which was on Tuesday.

Last night he came up with another which I
liked very much. I am enclosing them and I would like to
know what you think of them.

Between writing down my son's stories I have
been busy with NEW THEATRE. I think I have mentioned this
group to you before. It is the only non-racial group in
Cape Town, and probably in South Africa. They hope, one
day, to work on a professional basis, but for the present
everybody is just coming along and doing their bit.

Their aim is to present new, modern theatre. The
first production was Genet's 'THE BLACKS'. It was not a
financial success, but it has certainly set people thinking.
For the next production they have chosen 'The Visit of the
Old Lady' by Friedrich Durrenmatt. This comes off in Jan-
uary.

We were advised by Richard Rive to apply to The
Congress of Cultural Freedom for a grant. We are hoping
very earnestly that something will be forthcoming from them,
otherwise I don't know how we are going to manage. It is
very difficult to get backers. People will be prepared to
back the pot-boiler, but not something which is new like
this.

It is hoped that as soon as our financial worries
are over, we will be able to put on four-five plays a year.
We are particular interested in presenting plays by new
playwrights from all over the world.

We are now launching a NEW THEATRE CLUB which,
we hope, will ensure us a substantial membership which will
make it possible for us to concentrate on the vital, stimu-
lating theatre. At the inaugural meeting of this CLUB we
hope to do a play-reading of 'Song of the Goat', by the
Nigerian author, John Pepper Clark. We intend following
this up with 'The Connection'.

And there NEW THEATRE Calls. It is time I went
off to the meeting.

Hoping to hear from you soon,

LANGSTON HUGHES

20 EAST 127TH STREET
NEW YORK 35, N. Y.

[YAYA TOURÉ]

30 juillet,
1966

Mon cher Yaya:

Quand j'ai arriver chez moi a New York
de Paris cette semaine, j'etais tres con-
tent de trouver ici les deux lettres de
toi si gentilles. Je regrette que tu
etais malade, mais content que tu est bien
maintenant, et que tu avais une visite de
ta mere.....Il y a beaucoup de traivaillers
Senegalese en Paris, mais ils me dis que
la vie la est tres chere et q'on ne gagne
pas beaucoup d'argent, et il pleut beau-
coup et fait froide le plutpart de temps,
meme en ete cette annee. (C'est plus chaude
ici a New York). Peutetre c'est mieux que
tu reste a Dakar.....Peutetre je vien encore
une fois a Dakar en printemps en route a une
conference a Abijane. J'espere que oui, et
je te verai si je vienne. J'aime Dakar.
Dittes BONJOUR pour moi a Mme. Portes, Paul
et Tidiane et tous a Clarice. Avec amitie,

September 13, 1966

S. Judy James
Secretary
Transition
PO Box 20026
KAMPALA
Uganda

Dear Miss James,

In answer to your note of September 10th., I should like to inform you that my address is the **same**: 20 East 127 Street, New York, N. Y. 10035. I was in Africa during the month of April, not returning to the U.S. until quite recently. I had hoped to come to Kampala and visit your offices when the emergency arose, thus preventing the trip. Please send the check on to me again.

Thank you.

Langston Hughes

September 13, 1966

uganda
KAMPALA
PO Box 5005
TENTH STREET

Dear Miss James,

In answer to your request to send me the check, I should like to inform you that my address is the **same**: 20 East 127 Street, New York, N. Y. 10035. I was in Africa during the month of April, not returning to the U.S. until quite recently. I had hoped to come to Kampala and visit your offices when the emergency arose, thus preventing the trip. Please send the check on to me again.

Thank you,

Langston Hughes

October 7, 1953

Mr. F. N. Udeogu
No. 10 Mission Avenue
Coal Camp
Enugu, Nigeria, British West Africa

It was very nice indeed to receive a letter from you
from so far away as Africa. Many years ago I visited
the West African coast as a seaman, and found Africa
a very beautiful and wonderful country, indeed. I
have always wanted to come back, and maybe someday
I will be able to do so.

When you write me again please tell me more about
yourself, what you do for a living, and how you
spend your time. Now that winter is coming in
New York, it is getting cold and we will soon have
snow, I wish more than ever that I could be in
Africa for a while where the temperature does not
go down to zero.

All my good wishes to you.

LH
HS

Dec. 17, 1954

Dear Mr. Udeogu:

I think perhaps by now you have received a letter from
me thanking you for the copy of the West African Pilot
which you so kindly sent me, as I am almost sure I
wrote you sometime ago. But if I did not, please accept
my thanks now. And certainly I should be happy to
receive a copy of the new Nigerian Constitution which
you say that you have for me.

I saw Azikwe at the Lincoln University Commencement in
June and we had a very nice conversation together. We
here in the United States are very proud of him.

I am sending you some American Negro newspapers and
magazines as you suggested, but since they will be coming
by boat, it will be no doubt several weeks before you
receive them.

Meanwhile, all my good wishes to you, for a MERRY
CHRISTMAS AND A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Sincerely yours,

Langston Hughes

February 21, 1955

Dear Mr. Udeogu,

HAPPY NEW YEAR to you, even if it is a little late!

And thanks immensely for the "AFRICAN PILOT" and the "NIGERIAN SPOKESMAN" which you sent me. I've enjoyed reading them very much. And I shall try to send you soon some of our newspapers and magazines. In the meantime I am sending you my new little book, which is the story of jazz music and how it's rhythms came to America from Africa, and it was developed by the Negro people here.

I've been collecting short stories, fiction, not folk tales, from Africa, and have some very good ones from Nigeria from such writers as Amos Tutuola, Tim Aluko, and Mabel Jolaoso, and others from all over English-speaking Africa. I hope to make a book of them this year.

This is our winter season here, snow and ice, so it is a good time to stay in the house and work. From about May to September it is hot and sunny, but not in the winter....Tell your friend unfortunately I don't know any rich people he could write to here! Sorry! Wish I did....Me, I am not married, and writing is my only business, don't go to church much, but was born Methodist. What about you?....I saw Zik at our university, Lincoln, when he was here last June. And his wife is in our country now studying at Howard University in Washington, but that is about five hours from here by train.

Best regards to you, and write again wehn you have time.

Sincerely yours,

Mr. Langston Hughes
20 East 127th Street
New York 35, N.Y.

(AIRMAIL)

APR 22 1966

Dear Mr. Hughes:

I submit to the ORIGIN OF DEATH—A. Hottentot. Fable..., which I wish to include in your anthology, AN AFRICAN TREASURY, to be published by your Publishers, Inc. You may include this material, for which I would like the credit to read as follows:

and for which I accept Canada, the British Commonwealth, and the English-speaking market throughout the publication, we regret to fee you offer.

The above is not our we cannot trace it.

for GEORGE ALLEN & UNWIN LTD

Telephone MURRAY HILL 5.8550

Cable Address LETOUT NEW YORK

419 FOURTH AVENUE, NEW YORK 16, N.Y.

January 31, 1960

Dear Onyenaекye, Udeagu:

As you may know, for many years now I have been compiling an anthology of African writing, which will be published by Crown Publishers under the title of AN AFRICAN TREASURY. It will consist of articles, essays, stories, poems, and miscellaneous items by indigenous Africans, and one of the distinguishing features of the collection is that all of the contributors are writers of color. I think this will make for not only a rich and stimulating reading experience but also an important expression of what African writers are thinking and saying.

In keeping with the high standards we have set for this anthology, I would very much like to include the material listed below, the rights to which, I understand, are controlled by you. If you do not control the rights, would you please pass this letter on to the person or publication which does. Since there is a time consideration, I would appreciate it if you could return the form below to me Airmail. We will of course give you appropriate credit in each instance, so would you please indicate exactly how you would like that credit to read. Since this is a small book which we are trying to put out at the lowest price possible to reach the widest market, our budget necessarily is limited; but if you do give us permission to include your material, we will pay you $25.00...

Thank you very much for your attention to this matter.

Selection(s):

An excerpt (about 3 pages)
from IBOS AS THEY ARE

(AIRMAIL)

Dear Mr. Hughes:

I control the rights to IBOS AS THEY ARE, which I understand you wish to include in your anthology, AN AFRICAN TREASURY, to be published by Crown Publishers, Inc. You may include this material, for which I would like the credit to read as follows:

and for which I accept the fee you offer. This permission covers distribution in the United States, Canada, the British Commonwealth, and the English-speaking market throughout the world.

Sept. 22, 1954

Dear Mr. Ukaoukwu:

Thank you very much for your letter. Please
forgive me for being so long in replying, but I have been out
of New York for most of the summer.

Certainly, I would be delighted to read some
of your stories, if you care to send them to me. What I need
for the anthology are stories of African life or background—
not animal stories or folktales—but fictional stories of from
10 to 20 pages in length or less. If you think you can write
some good ones, try it and let me see one or two.

LH:HS

September 24, 1954

Dear Mr. Unique:

Thank you for your nice letter in reply to my letter in the DAILY TIMES there. It was indeed kind of you to take an interest in the attempt we are making here to publicize non-white African writers.

I wish deeply that there was some way that I could aid you in your efforts to secure a scholarship so you could study in America. The best that I can do is send along to you the name of an organization that is interested in the education of African and you may want to write to them of your desire:

THE PHELPS-STOKES FUND
101 Park Avenue
New York, New York, USA

I do hope, however, that in some way you may be able to realize your ambition to come to America to study and I laud your sincere interest in wanting to better prepare yourself for a continued useful life.

With best wishes, I am

lh-hs

FORM 0152

Reference

UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS
LAGOS, NIGERIA

Ref. No. ADM/SSA/1204

30th April, 1966

Langston Hughes, poet & author
20 E. 127th Street,
New York,
U. S. A.

Dear Sir/Madam,

This is to inform you that Miss Evelyn L. Crawford has applied to the University for the post of Lecturer in French and has given your name as one of his referees.

I shall be grateful if you give me in confidence your views on his suitability for the post. An early reply (a copy of which should be addressed to the Secretary, Inter-University Council for Higher Education Overseas, 33 Bedford Place, London, W.C. 1) will be greatly appreciated as interviews will shortly be conducted.

To open cut here

No.PRE/66/442.
Information Service,
Northern Nigeria,
Kaduna, 30th January, 1958.

Mr. Langston Hughes,
20 E127 St.,
New York 35,
New York,
USA.

Dear Sir,

Reference your inquiry of the 10th inst. as to
whether we can recommend writers of African origin who
might worthily contribute articles on various phases of
African life for your Anthology, we in this Information
Service would hesitate to name individuals in this Region
who could possibly meet your request. We have a Nigerian
on our staff who writes illustrated feature articles con-
cerning progress and achievement hereabouts. They are
issued for free external/internal use by whatever publi-
cation cares to take advantage of this service.

Copies are sent to the British Information Service
in New York and the Nigeria Liaison Office, Dupond Circle
Building, Washington (Mr. R. Barratt) - you might care to
contact Mr. Barratt in any event. If for any reason you WOULD
like us to send copies of these articles to you from here
we should be happy to oblige.

Meanwhile, perhaps it would be worth your while
to get in touch with the Director of the Northern Region
Literature Agency at Zaria, Northern Nigeria; though I
believe, in the main, they deal with publications in other
than English. Nevertheless, they could probably more
adequately make recommendations.

Incidentally, you may be interested in the fact that
in Britain's "New Stateman" (weekly) of January 25 you
were mentioned in their notes from New York (p91) as cont-
ributing "a serious column or two" to the "Petal Paper",
the weekly published for the towns of Petal and Hattiesburg
in Mississippi.

20 East 127 Street
-New York 35, N. Y.

March 11, 1958

Director
Northern Region Literature Agency
Zaria, Northern Nigeria

Dear Sir:

Mr. W. T. Vanter of the Information Service suggested that you might be helpful in suggesting the names of *xxx* some possible contributors to an Anthology of African Writers which I am compiling for publication in the United States. I am particularly anxious to secure non-fiction pieces dealing with the political, social or cultural life of the African people. The Anthology will include fiction and poetry but I have already received a sufficient amount. of both.

If you do know likely contributors, I should appreciate your asking them to send material directly to me.

March 11, 1958

Mr. W. T. Vanter
Information Service
Northern Nigeria
Kaduna, Nigeria

Dear Sir:

In answer to your letter of January 30th, I should like very much to have copies of the articles by the Nigerian writer whom you mention.

Following your suggestion I am writing the Literature Agency people at Zaria.

Thank you very much for your prompt and helpful response.

Charity Wanjiku Waciuma,
c/o A.J.Hughes,
P.O. Box 30080,
NAIROBI,
Kenya
EastAfrica.

31 December, 1962

Dear Mr. Hughes,

I have sent to you under separate Second Class
cover the typescript of nine chapters of a book I am writing,
together with a synopsis of the remainder, which I am still
working on.

I would be most obliged if you could read what I have
sent and see if it is suitable for publication. If you do
not consider it satisfactory as it is I would be pleased to
hear any suggestions you might have for improving it.

As you know there have been very, very few books written
by East Africans and mine is certainly the first by an African
woman from this part of the continent. We have no publishing
house here and I know your company has helped a number of West
African writers.

I am enclosing a letter of introduction which Miss Snyder
was kind enough to write for me.

I can get testimonials if you would like to see them
from people in academic and political life. In particular,
my friend and former teacher, James Gichuru, now Minister for
Finance, would write a forward for me.

March 6, 1963

Dear Miss Waciuma:

Your manuscript was received in my absence, and therefore, the delay in acknowledging its receipt. I find the material very interesting and have sent it to one of my publishers, CROWN PUBLISHERS, who expressed an interest in reading it.

I have only been in the airport of Kenya, an emittance stop en route to Nigeria and Uganda, but I have seen pictures of your beautiful country and hope one day to visit it. Your writing which captures the pulse and everyday living experience of your country makes me even more anxious to visit your tribes.

I hope that Mr. Arthur Fields of Crown Publishers will like your work and it will realize publication.

My very best wishes to you.

Miss C. W. Waciuma
P.O. Box 30080
Nairobi, Kenya

June 17, 1963

Dear Miss Waciuma:

The publisher listed below has established an office in Lagos, Nigeria especially for the publication of works by African writers. I think you might submit your manuscript to him for possible publication.

ANDRE DEUTSCH LIMITED
105 Gt Russell Street
LONDON WC1

I have given you the London address since I do not have the Lagos address, but you probably can ascertain the Lagos address from the London office.

Mr. Hughes asked that I inform you of his pleasure in reading your manuscript—he found the material interesting and the book charming.

WEST AFRICA

Editor: D. M. Williams

Orbit House, 9 New Fetter Lane, London, E.C.4.

Cables: Wesnews Cent London

As from the West African Review

21st May, 1962.

George H. Bass Esq.,
Secretary to Langston Hughes,
20, East 127 Street,
New York 35,
U.S.A.

Dear Mr. Bass,

Thank you for your letter of the 17th instant.

Mr. E.A. Komey is a Ghanaian, and can be contacted
through Flamingo Magazine, Charlton Publishing Co.Ltd.,
55, Charlton Street, London, N.W.1. for whom he works.

W.A.G.

George H. Bass Esq.,

Secretary to Langston Hughes,

20, East 127 Street,

New York 35, N.Y.

→ First fold here →

Second fold here

Sender's name and address: WEST AFRICA
Orbit House, 9 New Fetter Lane,
London, E.C.4.

THE 'APSLEY' AIR LETTER

MATEI MARKWEI'S POEM
"TO L. H." SENT.

June 1, 1954

The Editor,
West African Pilot,
34 Commercial Avenue,
Lagos, Nigeria.

Dear Sir,

whom
Azikiwe, from I've recently had two nice letters and whom I shall see shortly, arrived in New York today. Haille Selassie is also here. And Alan Paton (CRY THE BELOVED COUNTRY) I met recently. There is a great interest in things African in our country at the moment. So I spoke not long ago with a leading American publisher about the possibility of an anthology of African short stories being published here and he was most favorable to the project, promising to give it his best attention and consideration, and asking me to assemble such a volume. DRUM, in Johannesburg, sent me some excellent stories last winter when I acted as a judge of their Short Story Contest. I am wondering if there are any good non-white writers of fiction in Nigeria, and if so, would you be so kind as to send me their names and address, so that I might contact them? I would appreciate this immensely.

Also, if you wished, you might published in your very widely read newspaper, a notice to the effect that I am compiling a collection of African stories for publication, with the usual American pro rata anthology payment from the publisher to each author whose work is used (if the book is published) and that authors may submit manuscripts directly to me at the above address in New York.

I very much hope that we can achieve such a volume of stories here in America, as it would be most timely, and would serve, I think, to help people in this part of the world better understand the life and the problems of the great and important land of Africa. My thanks to you for your attention to this letter.

Sincerely yours,

May 26, 1962

Dear Sir:

Enclosed herewith is a check in the amount
of $5.00 for a one year subscription to
the WEST AFRICAN REVIEW. Post the magazine
to Mr. Langston Hughes at his above New York
address.

Thank you for your service.

Subscription Department
WEST AFRICAN REVIEW
Orbit House
9 New Letter Lane
London, E. C. 4
England

WEST AFRICAN WRITERS AND ARTISTS CLUB

12 Rushbrook Crescent,
Walthamstow E.17
London.

January 2nd 1952.

Dear Langston Hughes,

Miss Rosey Pool whom I understand
is a good friend of yours has been good enough to give
me your address, so that I can send you details of this
Club, which we think will interest. The little leaflet
will give you some idea of our activities.

Rosey herself has given two or
three readings of Negro poetry in her own inimicable
style, and of course she included much of your poetry.
This caused considerable interest, and I wondered whether
it would be possible for you to send some of your works
for the Club library?

We are trying to establish inter-
national liaisons in the Negro world, and should like
to invite you to be a member of our Advisory Board. We
do hope that you will be able to accept. If you know
of any American Negro cultural associations who would
be interested to hear of our Club with a view perhaps to
eventual affiliation, we should be most grateful to know
of them.

We are engaged in producing the
first number of Phoenix, our journal, and should very
much appreciate a contribution from you, or permission
to reprint some of your poems.

Art Editor & Acting Secretary

April 4, 1958

Director,
Information Services
Western Nigeria
Ibadan, Nigeria

Sir:

Thank you so much for your prompt response to my recent request in reference to an African Anthology. A good number of the persons whom you suggest have already been contacted and I look forward to receiving contributions from them.

In case you might mention my request to writers with whom you are in contact, my present need if for non-fictional, factual material on the political, social and economic life of the African people.

Again thanks and all good wishes to you.

Western Region Government, Ibadan, Nigeria
Eastern " " Enugu, Nigeria
Northern " " Kaduna, Nigeria

Dr. H. P. Olavive, Univ. College, Ibadan, Nigeria.

January 10, 1958

Dear Sir:

For the past two years I have been collecting material for an Anthology of short stories (fiction) by English-speaking indigenous African writers. I have received some excellent material thus far. Recently, my publishers have requested me to extend the Anthology to include, in addition to short stories, poetry, folklore and articles on various phases of African life. I, too, feel that in thus broadening the scope, the book will have a wider appeal and usefulness. The subject matter is almost unlimited and might include pieces on African education, politics, arts and crafts, biographical sketches of chiefs or political personalities, foreign influence in Africa, folk customs, etc. The one requirement is that they be authoritative and well written. While they need not be scholarly pieces per se, for inclusion they will have to be of a high standard. It is for this reason that I am appealing to you for recommendations of any writers of African origin whom you feel could make a worthy contribution to the Anthology. Since I have quite a lot of folklore and poetry, my big need now is for factual, journalistic-type articles. They should not be over 15 double-spaced, typewritten pages and may be shorter.

Payment to contributors whose work is selected for the published Anthology will be made on a pro-rata basis from the overall amount allotted by the publishers, Crown Publishers. It is one of the largest publishing houses in the United States and recently issued my PICTORIAL HISTORY OF THE NEGRO IN AMERICA and a number of other important books.

I thank you very much for your cooperation and look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience. There is great interest in Africa in this country just now and I feel that an Anthology of the works of indigenous Africans would be of very great value.

April 4, 1958

Mr. Archie Winful
Office of the Establishment Secretary
P. O. Box 140
Accra, Ghana

Dear Mr. Winful:

A Mr. M. Costello of the Ministry of Housing has been good enough to call to my attention your very interesting poetry. As he probably told you, I am assembling an Anthology of African Writers for publication here in the United States.

Would it be possible for you to send me a typewritten copy of "Whatever You Do Six Feet". I would like to use some of the poetry in the anthology, but also to submit the manuscript to an American publisher.

I am very happy to have learned about your work and send you all my good wishes.

c/o The Establishment Secretary's Office,
Post Office Box 140,
Accra, Ghana.

15th April, 1958.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

I know that Miceal Costello has probably
painted me as a somewhat dilatory and phlegmatic
character. I have been trying hard not to live
up to such a reputation but must apologize for my
ill success.

I was very pleasantly surprised by your
ready response to Miceal's suggestion that you
get in touch with me. Thank you so much for
your offer to submit my manuscript to an American
publisher. I shall certainly be glad to avail
myself of the offer. I am afraid, however, that
some of my work is not exactly in the form in
which I would wish to see it in print: this has
been the main bottleneck that has held me back
from seeking a publisher; but, perhaps, as Miceal
somewhat cynically says, if I am waiting till
I am satisfied, I never will be. It's a hard
saying, but may be true. The trouble is, one is
not always disposed to do the same thing over again
however unsatisfactory it may have been done before:
my natural instinct is to scrap it and start afresh.
For, when once the fever of creation is past, with it
goes also very often the desire to revise or polish
off: one is more inclined to look for fresh
"conquests" of matter and form.

/I am ....

LANGSTON HUGHES, ESQ.,
20 EAST 127TH STREET,
NEW YORK 35, N.Y.

MANUSCRIPT returned
December 15, 1959
with note &
"Negro Mother" folder

c/o The Establishment Secretary's Office,
Post Office Box M.49,
Accra, Ghana.

2nd June, 1958.

Dear Mr. Hughes,

Please accept my apologies for the long
delay in following up my earlier letter as I had
hoped to do. An unusual concatenation of circums-
tances, which it would be tedious to recount,
prevented me from sending my poems as I had promised.
Here they are at last, short of one poem, "The
District Commissioner", which needs so much recasting
that I fear, with the time at my disposal, I can
only do it at the risk of further delay.

Would it be asking too much if I asked you
for a list of your published works, as I am so
ignorant of the American literary scene? Perhaps
some day I shall have the good fortune to visit
your country and find more material for re-orientation
and synthesis. I trust you will find in this
collection some material which will answer to your
purpose; but I am looking forward to the publication
of the lot and I gladly welcome your offer to find
me a publisher in America, as I do want to know what
impact my sherds and broken images are likely to have
on a world divided against itself and has no time
for visions or revisions.

August 19, 1958

Dear Friend Winful:

You have certainly turned out a most profound collection of poetry and I wish I could give you encouragement in terms of my opinion about the possibility of publication. Unfortunately, I am of the opinion - and this is shared with me by a reader who has also read your manuscript - that the current fashion in poetry today, at least here in the United States - tends toward surrealism. Add to this the dwindling number of volumes of poetry which are selected for publication and the chances seem even slighter.

In order to break through these rather formidable barriers, it would appear to me that your work would have to express in stark realistic language a quality and content that was at once African, and simultaneously universal. Your work is in the very best tradition of the 19th century English poets and the African content is quite incidental. I am writing you thus because I do not want you to be either disappointed or discouraged if we cannot find a receptive publisher.

If the Anthology of African Writers which I am still compiling finds a publisher, I should like to select from your manuscript a few of the poems. Everything here in America is affected by fashion so that what is the rage today may be passe in a few years. There is currently a poetry-to-jazz vogue and next year it may be that publishers will be seeking poetry manuscripts as avidly as they seem to be avoiding them now. My advice to you would be to continue writing as much as possible.

I am enclosing a book list as you asked and look forward to hearing from you again. Meanwhile I send you all my very best wishes.

Sincerely yours,

Langston Hughes

Mr. E. A. Winful
Establ. Secretary's Office
P. O. Box M 49
Accra, Ghana

October 5, 1954

Dear Mr. Yemitan:

Please forgive me for being so long in answering your kind letter, but I have been away in the country for most of the summer and have just returned to the city recently. This is to acknowledge receipt of your story BIDE WAS BACK HOME which I am grateful to you for having sent. It seems to me a good story, but I'm going to read it more carefully when I go over all the material that has arrived from Africa - some forty or fifty manuscripts.

What I want for the Anthology is creative fiction, that is short stories, which may deal with any phase of African life past or present. But we cannot use any fok tales or factual material since there have been many such books already published in our country, but there have been no books of fictional short stories by non-white writers published here as yet. If you have any more such stories I should indeed be glad to see them, and will return all of them to you whether used or not. If the Anthology is published, as I hope it will be, there will be a modest payment for all the material used, divided pro-rata among the various contributors.

Thanking you very much for sending the material and with all my good wishes, I remain

September 24, 1954

Dear Mr. Zaid:

Thank you for your note in reply to my letter in the DAILY TIMES there for short stories to be used in a proposed anthology to be published here of African non-white writers. Although you are not a writer, I thank you for your interest in writing to me and am glad to be able to send along the following addresses of merchants and manufacturers association and a place, also, to which you may write to find some pen pals to help along African-American friendship and goodwill.

AMERICAN MERCHANTS AND MANUFACTURERS AGED

1338 First Avenue
New York, New York, USA

And for pen pals, you might write and ask the people at this institution:

INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION

1 East 67th Street
New York, New York, USA

They should be able to put you in touch with
persons who will be glad to be your pen pals.

With best wishes for success in your endeavors,
I remain

lh-hs