- November 30, 1956 – JSA to Alvin Whitney (Delmar, NY)
Dear Whitney:
Your note of the 29th with enclosures received but not fully digested. I hasten however to express the belief that we should not be afraid to be realistic. If, as indicated in one of your recent letters, the Nature Conservancy might hesitate to accept my gift of Dome Island without misgivings and confidence in the future, I think it would be unfair to all interested for them to own the island. For this reason I think we should consider the possibility that Nature Conservancy does not want to accept my gift and under such circumstances we should explore what Nature Conservancy might care to do under such conditions. There appears to be two courses – one is to return the funds collected to the donors and the other to transfer the funds to some other group who may be more enthusiastic and confident about their future efforts in perpetuating the Island in its natural conditions. As stated above, I don’t think we should be afraid of being realistic and I hope as soon as we can arrange a meeting as you suggest, we can dispose of this question along with any other points yet unsettled.
With best regards,
Hurriedly yours,
JS Apperson/W
c.c. : Mr. Timothy Cohan