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TLS as president, one page, 7 x 10.5, White House letterhead, October 9, 1973. Letter to Helen Copley, the widow of newspaper publisher James S. Copley. In part: "There is so little we can say—yet so much we feel for you at this sad time. Jim was a close friend and advisor to me for more than a quarter of a century—losing him is like losing a member of our own family. Yet we cannot help but feel a tremendous gratitude for the privilege of having known Jim, gratitude as we remember his buoyant spirit, his generous heart and his unfailing devotion to our Nation; gratitude, too, because we could share his life and his example with our daughters as they grew up—knowing they, like us, would derive continuing inspiration from the fullness and purpose of his life. You have the greatest loss to bear, and these have been long, difficult days for you. All the Nixons are keeping you in our prayers, and we feel certain you will face the future with all the courage we know you to have." In fine condition. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope.
James Copley, whose newspapers had long supported Nixon, had succumbed to cancer just three days earlier, making the president’s deeply personal tone especially poignant. The timing of the letter is also historically remarkable: on the evening of October 9, 1973—the very day Nixon wrote to Helen Copley—Vice President Spiro T. Agnew informed the president of his decision to resign amid a growing corruption scandal, with the resignation becoming official the following day. Thus, while the Watergate crisis and constitutional turmoil were rapidly engulfing his administration, Nixon paused to compose an intimate and heartfelt tribute to one of his oldest political allies and friends. Letters combining such personal sentiment with direct proximity to a pivotal moment in presidential history are exceptionally uncommon.
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