Presented is an 1891 letter signed by William H. Taft, then the Solicitor General of the United States, and later the 17th President of the United States. Taft, born in 1857, in Cincinnati, Ohio, graduated from Yale University and became an attorney. A Republican, he rose in political influence and defeated William Jennings Bryan in the 1908 Presidential Election. As President, he was heavily involved in foreign policy, especially in East Asia. His "Dollar Diplomacy" plan supported U.S. business interests. After a split in the Republican Party, he lost the 1912 election. He later was the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, the only person to have served in both those capacities.

The offered letter measures approx. 8x10", written on Department of Justice stationery. The typed date on the letter is April 18, 1891, but an unknown hand, using blue ink, drew a neat line through the number 1 of the date, so the date could conceivably have been April 8, 1891. The typed name of the addressee on the letter is Calderon Carlisle, Esq. Part of the address of the above-named attorney is missing or erased from the letter. In the top left corner are the initials designating the Solicitor General: S.G. Below that is the file number "6384-1886." The numerals of the file number are somewhat smeared. In part, the typed letter reads, "My dear Mr. Carlisle: I have just seen Mr. Beall, of the Clerk's Office.... I said to him that we all expected to be ready to argue the Bering Sea case specially assigned for Monday next.... Very respectfully yours, William H. Taft (as a signature in steel-tip black fountain ink) Solicitor General." The letter has two horizontal fold lines, from when the letter was mailed.

Aside from the imperfections mentioned above, the letter is in EXCELLENT condition. The letter comes with a JSA LOA for the signature (Cert. Number: XX34866).