October 15, 1924. Mr. Ralph Budd, President, Great Northern Railway Co., St. Paul, Minn. Dear Mr. Budd: Mr. Russell has been considering your letter of October 1st, trying to decide just the thing he could do for you. I will tell you a few things he cannot do— First: Draw a close-up of any part of a modern train, Second: He cannot draw a pretty girl of people in up-to- date clothing. But he does know and feel the romance of the West of yesterday and knows its people as well as its animals, their lives and the magic that held them here. So anything he might undertake would necessarily be from their side – that is, the Old West would be in the foreground with civilization coming to take its place in the changing of this frontier. Charlie saw the picture you mentioned. He does not want to infringe on that artist’s idea, even if he could do the modern stuff, but he would be happy to do something for you if some of his ideas would meet with the necessary requirements. The painting showing Fort Benton that you speak of is “The Wagon Box”, and belongs to I.W. Church of this city. Brown & Bigelow have the calendar rights. Sincerely, [Transcribed by Lauren B. Gerfen, 2012-11-01]