LOWELL, JAMES RUSSELL. Autograph Letter Signed, "J. R. Lowell," to Elliot Cowdin, chairman of the lecture committee of the Mercantile Library Association of Boston, graciously declining the invitation to give a lecture while praising the Association.

LOWELL, JAMES RUSSELL. Autograph Letter Signed, "J. R. Lowell," to Elliot Cowdin, chairman of the lecture committee of the Mercantile Library Association of Boston, graciously declining the invitation to give a lecture while praising the Association. 1 page, folded 4to sheet with integral address leaf; usual folds. Elmwood, 23 June 1846 E300/400 ". . . Should I ever lecture in public, it would give me great pleasure to do so before an association of whose usefulness I have so high an opinion . . . The institution certainly owes much to your own individual exertions, & will, I trust be enabled to enjoy your services for many years to come."