David Moriarty:
I wonder if you understand or appreciate why I asked you why you mentioned Toulmin.
Did your grandfather get with Dr. Toulmin's daughter (aptly named Marion) at her Society Debut in the fall of 1911?
Seriously, and pardon me for saying so, but I don't "understand or appreciate" why you guys keep playing "we know more than you do," with the facts. I did not do that with my research. I readily shared it with you. Yet it seems like every time you guys figure something out one of you just cannot help but try to challenge me with that information. Just a few examples:
-- When Wayne called me to tell me that my "essay is 90% false" he couldn't help but challenge me whether I even knew when the NGLA trip took place. I told him I thought it was March or early April of 1911, not long before CBM and HJW returned to Merion.
-- When Wayne claimed that he had information that "would shake up my timeline," I responded that my understanding was that while Merion may have taken possession of the property in January 1911, they did not take title until sometime in the summer. I also explained my take on the complicated manner in which the transaction was set up, and the reasons for it.
-- And you have repeatedly challenged my knowledge about a number of factual issues. You even claimed that I had no idea about the Griscom's family business. I had to remind you that I covered it in my essay!
Tom, Aren't we supposed to be interested in figuring out the truth here? If so, then why do you guys go out of your way to try to rub your facts in my face? It is not polite and it does not add much to the conversation.
How about this: I admit that you guys have more information about Merion than I do. You have the documents that I was not allowed to access at MCC, and I obviously do not. If this makes you guys vastly superior researchers to me, then so be it.
So why keep playing these games? Why not quit hiding the facts? Or at least quit using them for rhetorical purposes before you are ready to release them.
By the way, I have a pretty good idea as to why you might have asked me about my Toulmin reference. But do you really want
me to tell you why
you asked the question? Or would you rather try to spring the information on me? Or we could just stop playing these guessing games. The choice is yours.
That's right, the story of Wilson going to see Macdonald perhaps in 1910 and then traveling abroad in 1910 and for perhaps seven months and then returning with drawings and sketches and surveyor's maps from abroad has been repeated by all those people you mentioned and perhaps others earlier---it's hard to say when that story first began or how it got into Merion's history.
You are constantly looking for proof of most anything I say and in this case I'm going to tell you I am not offering proof and I'm not trying to but I will give you my opinion on that story.
I think at some point, perhaps as much removed from the actual events in 1910 and 1911 as a half century, that story entered Merion's history. Of course one wonders why or how. My own feeling is someone, again removed from the actual events by as much as a number of decades, may've simply misinterpreted Alan Wilson's 1926 report on the creation of Merion when he wrote: "The land was FOUND in 1910 and as a first step Mr Wilson was sent abroad to study the famous courses in Scotand and England."
As anyone can see, Alan Wilson did not actually say Hugh Wilson went abroad in 1910 and he never mentioned when Hugh Wilson (and his committee?) went to see Macdonald at NGLA either. Hugh Wilson did not mention any date for the visit to NGLA either but the board meeting minutes most certainly does narrow it down more than anything we've ever seen before. As to Why Alan Wilson said, "as a first step" is hard to say too but the fact that he was writing that report about fifteen years after the fact might have something to do with it.
So, my feeling is that report of Wilson's was misinterpreted along the way, again, perhaps removed from the actual event by up to half a century. The remainder of the story of seven months and plans and drawings is the remainder of the mystery of that story. Perhaps someone just misinterpreted the fact that Macdonald showed them his plans and drawings from abroad at NGLA. As for the seven months perhaps someone misconstrued the fact that he apparently went abroad in 1912 for up to SEVERAL months (It could not possibly have been more than two months).
With all due respect, I covered all of this in my essay. I also offered a number of other possible sources of the confusion. Why are you trying to explain to me what I have already explained in the essay?
An honest question, Tom, did you even read the entire essay? Because this keeps happening, where you tell me something in the essay, as if I did not know it. I'd certainly understand why you might have gotten frustrated and just stopped reading. Did you?
Simply for interest we could try to look for the beginning of that story as far back as we can find a mention of it anywhere, again it may've been 40-50 years after the fact, but the point is it does not make any difference at all as to what actually happened in 1910 and 1911 and who did what and when. The facts of that are contained in the MCC meeting minutes.
I have not been allowed to sees those MCC meeting minutes, but I disagree nonetheless. The correct understanding of the NGLA visit makes a huge difference. It changes the story of how Merion East was created, and who created it. I should have been more explicit about this in the essay, because you and others seemed to have completely missed the significance.
When those are eventually made known I'm sure anyone could try to say those too are total exaggerations or lies or whatever but I guarantee that kind of deduction, assumption, premise or conclusion will not interest us here or Merion because the idea that men like that trying to build a golf course would exaggerate or lie to one another in the course of something like board meetings is frankly completely preposterous.
But I have little doubt the way this whole thing has gone on this website that someone probably will suggest such a preposterous thing at some point in the future, but again, neither we nor Merion will be paying any attention to it in the future.
I've noticed you keep saying that when Wayne finally produces his rebuttal essay and sources (if he does) that NO ONE at Merion or anywhere else should pay any attention to me, my comments and corrections. In other words, you are again trying to engineer a premature end to the conversation, campaigning to make your essay the
last word of the subject. This is the same exact thing you tried to do with the CBM letter and about three or four other times you prematurely declared my to be completely disproven.
If past is prologue, then you guys are overselling what you have found, or at least realize that your information is far from conclusive. But maybe I am wrong, and it will be conclusive. If so then it will be consistent with much of my essay. You guys are obviously heading in that direction. Take your post above. Just a repeat of some of what I covered. Or your claim above that all in Philadelphia have understood exactly what the NGLA meetings were about.
Either way, I respectfully question your judgment if refuse to allow me access until
after you present your paper to the clubs. I'd hate for you guys to have to go back and explain that you were wrong about a few things. I'd imagine that might be a bit awkward.
Now if someone could actually produce a Macdonald routing done in 1910 or 1911 that would be an entirely different matter and if it turned out to be the way the course was constructed I assure you people like Wayne and me would strenuously recommend to Merion that Macdonald be given something co-design credit for Merion East with Wilson and his committee. But given all the other information available the possibility of a Macdonald routing and design plan for Merion East ever being producted by anyone is, in my opinion, virtually non-existent.
Again, more indication that M&W's involvement is
very much an open issue.