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October 12, 1949

Dear Arthur:

I duly received yesterday your very good letter of October 7, for which I thank you.

I appreciate your leaving it to me to decide whether I should propose the Tintoretto alone or the Tintoretto with the Titian to the Foundation. Our interests being alike you can depend upon me to act to the best of our advantage.

When you write about Herbert Parsons, I surmise you mean Harold W., whom of course I know very well, and who has been active as advisor to certain museums throughout the country. 

From the personal experience I have had with the Kansas City Museum (at the head of which my wife was for several years) I doubt very much that the Tintoretto could be of interest to them, were it but for the question of price.  Now, of course I know that within the last year or two they bought a painting and gave a certain number of paintings of their own of lesser importance in part payment.

I do not know how you would react to such a proposition, which, afterall, may work out alright, but I would consider it as a "pisaller" for the time being at least. 

H./W.P. has also been in close touch with the Cleveland Museum which I approached a few months ago, as you will recall. I have this still in the back of my mind. 

I am glad that you answered H.W.P. as you did - in other words neither yes nor no, for you know so well, competition in a case like this is detrimental to the price of a painting, as it can only manifest itself "I can get you that painting at a better price than it has been proposed to you", [[strikethrough]] which, even though it may not be true in the final analysis, nevertheless does not help.

Therefore, if the following meets with your approval, may I suggest that should H.W.P. write to you within the next coming few weeks, about your paintings, you advise him that I am for the time being your agent. May I repeat that we are on very friendly terms. 

At the beginning of your letter, you mention very discreetly certain rumors you have heard, as regards the methods required to pass the "art iron curtain". Would you be so good as to type on a perfectly blank piece of paper without name or signature what information you have heard, as it may give me certain hints or allow me to put two and two together which might be of considerable help to us both. There are certainly some very mysterious goings-on, and the better posted we are the less difficult

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