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Madame de Staël (1766-1817) was a French literary figure whose writings were highly influential in late 18th and early 19th century Europe. She was a political polemicist whose famous confrontation with Napoléon Bonaparte led to her exile from Paris until the Bourbon Restoration. This letter was written in 1814 towards the end of her life. She writes from Paris to the prominent New York mercantile firm LeRoy, Bayard & McEvers concerning a financial transaction in the amount of $20,000. She states that she has transferred the sum to McEvers in London, and wishes to confirm that they will, in turn, transfer it to her account with another firm. At the time she wrote this letter, Madame de Staël owned a large tract of land in upstate New York. Her father originally purchased the land in the event that the family wanted to escape France's instability and settle in America. Although she and her children never moved to the United States, de Staël both increased her land holdings and invested in developing her property. LeRoy, Bayard & McEvers represented Europeans purchasing property in New York State, so it's highly likely that the $20,000 was used to either increase or develop Madame de Staël's American land holdings. This letter is evidence of a degree of financial and business independence that was highly unusual for a woman at the time.

Collection comprises a four-page letter Van Cott wrote (19 May 1884) to an unidentified close friend regarding her preaching in Dover, Maine, and its impact. She confesses "...I find the people spiritually dead" and tells the story of a father who dragged his son away from her and the altar. The letter is signed, "Peggie." She inserted into the letter a newspaper clipping reporting the revival she led in St. Paul, Minnesota.

African-American lawyer and businesswoman in the states of Alaska, Indiana, and Alabama. The personal and business papers of African American lawyer and businesswoman Mahala Ashley Dickerson span the years 1958 to 2007, the year of Dickerson's death, and chiefly consist of correspondence; newspaper clippings; real estate records; programs, letters, and additional items documenting honors, awards, and public appearances; papers concerning her homestead plot in Alaska and other personal and business concerns; photographs and videocassettes; and directories, journal publications, and pamphlets and correspondence concerning the American Bar Foundation and the Alabama State Bar Association. Business records chiefly are related to Dickerson's law firm of Dickerson & Gibbons, and the charitable organization Al-Acres, which she founded in memory of her son, Alfred, who drowned in 1960. There is some correspondence in the collection related to her memoir, Delayed Justice for Sale, which she published in 1998.

Major Attractions is a committee of Duke University Union. Its purpose is to present major events of contemporary entertainment with an emphasis on popular music. The collection contains files about attractions and artists brought to the Duke Campus by the Major Attraction committee. Materials present include administrative documents including annual reports, budgets, and policy notices, correspondence, committee minutes, performance contracts, hospitality/technical riders, publicity materials, and clippings. Dates in the collection range from 1957-1995.

Lloyd Brinkley Ramsey was a U.S. Army three-star general who served in South Korea from 1959-1960 as Senior Military Advisor to the Korean National War College in Seoul, South Korea. The three spiral-bound albums house over 300 black-and-white mounted photographs, chiefly in 4x5 and 8x10 sizes, all with typed captions and commentary. The images document the War College campus, Ramsey's quarters, South Korean and American officers in group portraits and in military meetings, dinners, and parties, as well as official tours and visits, including to the DMZ and a U.S. guided missile base; and visits to Seoul streets and tourist sites, rice fields and markets, and to Tokyo, Japan. Ramsey often appears in event photographs. There are a few snapshots of Ramsey's family. Also includes about 20 close-range photographs documenting the violence and bloodshed at student and civilian street protests in Seoul against President Syngman Rhee, known as the April Revolution of 1960.

Major Speakers is a committee of Duke University Union. Formerly the Educational Affairs Committee, the Major Speakers Committee is responsible for bringing to campus figures of national and international significance to speak upon the complex problems of the times. The collection contains files about speakers brought to the Duke Campus by the Major Speakers committee of Duke University Union. Materials present include administrative documents including budgets, policy notices, correspondence, performance contracts, publicity materials, and clippings. Dates in the collection range from 1956-2003.

ALS. Treat requests medical supplies and reports of Indian atrocities on the frontier.

Malcolm Bell (1931- ) is an author, lawyer, and whistle blower; he was formerly a prosecuting attorney for the State of New York's Department of Law task force investigating the September 1971 Attica Prison Uprising. Collection comprises Bell's extensive investigative notes, witness statements, legal memoranda, trial records, correspondence, writings, clippings, subject files, and audio recordings related to the Attica Uprising. Also included are drafts for Bell's book, both written and electronic, The Turkey Shoot: Tracking the Attica Cover-Up, a documentary video, Ghosts of Attica, and ephemera such as programs and fliers. Subjects include events during the uprising, the subsequent cover-up, investigative efforts, and legal cases; Attica anniversary events; activism on behalf of Attica Uprising victims; and related topics such as police violence, political corruption in New York State, African Americans in the prison system, the U.S. legal system in general, and the effects of systemic racism in the U.S. Correspondents include Tom Wicker, Donald Jelinek, and Heather Ann Thompson, as well as N.Y. State officials. Includes a group of 18 audio recordings from November 1975 of Malcolm Bell and Donald Jelinek in conversation one-on-one about the Attica uprising and their involvement at the time. In addition, Bell's papers document his interest in what he saw as related social issues such as corporate corruption and immigrant rights. Acquired as part of the Human Rights Archive at Duke University.

ANS. Thanks Norton for his gift of the medal of the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland.