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Train, George Francis : Five Signed Inscriptions on Letter and Piece of Accompanying Envelope - George Francis Train

Five signed inscriptions by George Francis Train in orange and blue crayon on a handwritten letter and a piece of the letter's accompanying envelope. Letter and the envelope piece have handwriting in black ink by Carrie S. Goss. Each inscription signed, "Geo. Francis Train." Letter signed, "Carrie S. Goss." Letter datelined November 22, 1897 in Omaha, Nebraska. Train's inscription on the front of the letter is dated November 26, 1897. Letter: 5" x 8." Envelope piece (in the shape of an irregular, six-sided polygon): about 4 1/4" x 4." Letter is one page. Letter is clean and intact except for age toning, a small split measuring about 1/4" at bottom edge (not affecting handwriting), and a complete split along horizontal fold line which has tape repair (split and tape repair affect some of Goss's handwriting but not Train's inscriptions). Envelope piece is very clean and intact except for age toning. Train's signed inscriptions are very clean and intact except for minuscule smudging in some places. The letter and envelope piece with Train's inscriptions are Very Good. A unique set of five inscriptions by George Francis Train that appear on the letter written by Carrie S. Goss and a piece of the envelope she sent the letter in. Goss, an autograph collector, had sent the letter and its envelope to Train. In the letter, she expresses her interest in obtaining "something more than a signature." Train has responded to Goss's request with this unique collection of five signed inscriptions, one of which is on the front of the letter, two of which are on the back of the letter, and the two remaining of which are on the envelope piece. The signed inscriptions feature blue crayon or a combination of blue and orange crayon. Each of the inscriptions appears to be a ditty or poem. The inscription on front reads, "You are my friend / And I am yours." One of the inscriptions on back reads, "Oh well! The World is Discreet / There are many who Pause and Wait / But here is a man who plants his feet / Sometimes ina trance of Fate!" George Francis Train (1829-1904) was an American entrepreneur and author. Train had a colorful personality and was an eccentric of sorts who undertook many ventures throughout his life. He helped found the Union Pacific Railroad to construct the eastern side of the Transcontinental Railroad, traveled around the world in eighty days (it is thought by some that he inspired the protagonist Phileas Fogg in Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days), and ran as an independent candidate in the 1872 presidential election. However, Train's career also had an element of infamy as he co-founded Credit Mobilier of America with Thomas C. Durant in 1864. Credit Mobilier was a fraudulent construction company that was part of a scheme to defraud the United States government out of millions of dollars during the construction of the eastern half of the Transcontinental Railroad. The executives of Credit Mobilier and the Union Pacific Railroad were the one and the same. Ultimately, the U.S. government was billed $94 million in artificially inflated costs while the railroad only cost about $50 million to build. The excess of $44 million was pocketed by the executives. However, the truth eventually came to light in a 1872 report by the New York Sun. The revelations left Union Pacific and other investors nearly bankrupt, and the U.S. House of Representatives and Department of Justice opened investigations into the scandal. It appears that Train was not implicated during any of the investigations. Train had many other exploits, albeit not as notorious, after the scandal such as circumnavigating the world two more times in 1890 and 1892 which took sixty-seven and sixty days, respectively. At the time of his passing, Train lived in the Mills Hotel in New York which appears to be the stated location of his inscription on the front of the letter.. Manuscript. Book Condition: Collectible-Very Good. Binding: No Binding

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