DANIEL CHESTER FRENCH 
125 WEST ELEVENTH STREET 
NEW YORK CITY 
January 17, 1910. 
William Brewster, Esq., 
Cambridge, Hass. 
Dear Wills— 
Your letter has Just come and I fear that unless I answer it in 
this way ; I shan’t answer it at all for too long a time. I cannot thank you 
enough for going so exhaustively into an estimate of Abbott Thayer's book. 
I really think that what you have privately written to me ought to be pub¬ 
lished; t seems so clear and fair and sensible. I intend to put the 
letter in the book where it may be read by those who are interested in the 
subject. You certainly give him enough credit to satisfy almost anybody, 
but, of course, in his enthusiasm he insists on the acceptance of all his 
statements. I had noticed the flamingo sunset and it seemed to me a some¬ 
what extreme case. I expect to see Thomas Dewing within a day or two and 
shall take the liberty of showing him your letter. I really hope you have 
kept a copy of it so that when you are called on for a criticism of the work, 
you will have it to refer to. I do not believe you could do better if you 
tried ever so hard. I did not appreciate that Gerald had so much to do with 
the work. If I had read the preface, as -^^one ought always to do, probab¬ 
ly should have learned of his association with his father. It certainly is 
remarkable that he could leap into such excellence of literary expression at 
once. 
I was pained to see in the paper on Saturday the notice of the death 
of John Hopkinson. I always think of him as a young man, but he had completed 
