Letters Received to H.H. Barker, November 3, 1930

UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI COLUMBIA DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY November 3, 1930 Mr. H. H. Barker NOV 5 1930 United States Radium Corporation 535 Pearl Street New York City, New York My dear Barker: Upon my return today, from southeast Missouri, I found upon my desk several letters from you. The last one to arrive, the one on top, records your unfavorable reaction to a notioe in the New York Times headed, "RECOVERS RADIUM OFF WATCH DIALS.' The article in the Times appears to be an abstract of a more detailed article which was sent to me as a clipping from the St. Joseph Gazette under date of October 12, 1930. It is probably the same article which appeared first in the Columbia Evening Missourian, but since I was out of town at the time, I have never seen the article in the Missourian. But this is simply by way of introduc- tion. Let me say in the first place that the responsi- bility for this publicity rests largely with me. The feature writer for the Missourian got at least a part of his informa- tion from me, although I found that when he came over he had already collected quite a store of data, about radium and luminous materials from other sources such as articles in popular magazines and from student friends. Some of this original copy needed revision, as for example, his evaluation of the radium in a small watch dial of less than one cont; about half a cent per dial. This seems to be the popular impression. A revision upward 20 to 50 times should thus be : considered from this angle as well. The Missourian reporters and feature writers have given our radium laboratory quite a bit of attention during the past five years, ever since we resumed the refin- ing of mesothorium. Both Dr. Breckenridge and I have been interviewed at least once to three times a year. At no time has either of us made any overtures for publicity. We have kept in the background as much as possible. Dr. Miner visited us and the curiosity of reporters became keener. You evidently left an enduring impression upon at least one of these ambitious newspaper men upon the occasion of your visit to Columbia. At