<--PREV Doc #743  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  First Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #745 Document #744; February 27, 1954 To Milton Stover Eisenhower Series: EM, AWF, Name Series ; Category: Personal and confidential The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XV - The Presidency: The Middle Way Part IV: "Pushing ahead along the broad center"; December 1953 to March 1954 Chapter 9: Fending off "the reactionary fringe"   Dear Milton: (Reference the man I mentioned to you on the phone the other day.) Since you are coming down here next Friday, I will have a chance to chat with you then. But so many reports of a disturbing nature have been coming to me recently that I am writing this note to urge you to be extremely careful. By no means am I hinting at anything criminal--but I can relate to you a number of allegations from people of very fine reputation. My only interest in the matter is to make certain that you personally could not be hurt. Not for a moment do I think it necessary for you to "cut" the man off your list; I merely mean that you should take care that no act or word of yours could ever be misinterpreted. 1 I wrote a note to Helen the other day in the hope that my own experiences with X-ray would give her a little boost. It wasn't much of a message, but I had to steer my course between the extremes of appearing to consider her case too serious on the one hand, or take it too lightly on the other. Mamie and I are terribly distressed about the matter, and I do hope that you will keep us informed.2 As ever 1 On February 16 the brothers discussed rumors of a potentially embarrassing relationship between Milton and financier Robert Ralph Young, who was fighting with capitalist Harold Stirling Vanderbilt for control of the New York Central Railroad (Telephone conversation, AWF/D; see New York Times, Jan. 20, Feb. 14, 16, 20, 26, 1954). The President told Milton that "Young's opponents in the N.Y. Central fight have lots of friends around here, some of whom began saying `Dr. Milton is visiting our opponent.'" Eisenhower was referring to Milton's recent visit with Young at his home in Palm Beach, Florida (see Milton S. Eisenhower to Robert Cutler, Feb. 18, 1954, AWF/N). Vanderbilt himself had called the White House to complain about Milton's visit with Young, and according to a notation by Ann Whitman, "The President did not seem upset by Vanderbilt's telephone call, if anything annoyed" (Feb. 12, 1954, AWF/AWD). To further complicate matters, Milton had, on February 1, included Young's name on a guest list for consideration at presidential stag dinners (Milton S. Eisenhower to Ann Whitman, AWF/N). "With such silly stuff going around," Milton wrote later, "I'm sorry now I asked that Mr. Young be included in one of your dinners. Of course it would now do more harm to take him off the list than to leave him on" (Feb. 26, AWF/N). Eisenhower would resolve the dilemma by directing that Vanderbilt be invited to a stag dinner scheduled earlier than the one Young would attend on March 11 (Ann Whitman memorandum, Feb. 12, 1954, AWF/AWD). Writing on February 26 Milton told Eisenhower that their friend Cliff Roberts also had complained about the relationship with Young, reporting that there had been speculation that Milton was being considered as a director of New York Central if Young won the fight. Roberts argued that if Milton aligned himself with Young, it would be difficult to raise funds from the warring camps for the Republican party. "I could have forgiven Cliff," Milton wrote, "on the ground that he does not know me very well if his objection to the possibility of my being a Central Director had been made on the ground that it would be unfair to you and unbecoming of me as a brother. But . . . to have the objection made solely on the ground that my alleged participation in a business fight would make the collection of political funds difficult leaves me icy cold" (AWF/N). Distressed by the rumors of his involvement in the scheme to control New York Central, Milton wrote, "I do not own a single share of Central stock. I have no thought of being a Director." Furthermore, he said, I believe I have an appreciation of the restraints I must place on myself these days" (ibid.). In a typed notation on Milton's letter Ann Whitman wrote, "Note for our files. President talked to Milton 2/28/54 on phone about this" (ibid.). As it turned out, Milton would attend the President's stag dinner on March 6, and again on March 11--with Young, who would ultimately win the fight over the New York Central (see New York Times, May 27, June 12, 1954). 2 Eisenhower's letter to his sister-in-law is no. 739. Bibliographic reference to this document: Eisenhower, Dwight D. Personal and confidential To Milton Stover Eisenhower, 27 February 1954. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 744. World Wide Web facsimile by The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission of the print edition; Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, http://www.eisenhowermemorial.org/presidential-papers/first-term/documents/744.cfm <--PREV Doc #743  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  First Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #745

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