TYPED LETTER TO J. B. POND ABOUT A LECTURE TOUR SIGNED BY NEW YORK TIMES MUSIC CRITIC OLIN DOWNES. Together with a copy of Pond's reply and a further reply from Downes' secretary.

- Typed letter filling two-thirds of a sheet of New York Times letterhead illustrated at the top with 2 vignettes of the New York Times building and annex. Signed "Olin Downes". There is a 28-word autograph postscript below the letter signed "O. D." The top edge of the letter is creased with 2 tears where fasteners have been removed. A faint date stamp overlaid by a darker stamp indicates when the letter was answered. Folded 3 times for mailing. Together with an unsigned carbon copy of Pond's reply and a further typed letter replying to Pond signed by Downes' secretary. Very good. Downes writes to Major J. B. Pond of the Pond Bureau about an American tour Pond is arranging for him. He finds Pond's conditions "perfectly satisfactory" and only asks Pond to let him know how long a period the contract will cover. He also refers in the letter and the postscript to a Miss Seckels in Colorado who is making some difficulty about which states Downes will visit. In his reply Pond writes that he will deal with the Seckels situation. He says that he usually makes contracts for one year and then lets them renew from year to year if everything turns out to be satisfactory.Olin Downes [1886-1955] was an American music critic, known as "Sibelius's Apostle" for his championship of the music of Jean Sibelius. As critic of the New York Times, he exercised considerable influence on the musical opinion of his day.…