jbgotmar

More oxford books @ www.OxfordeBook.com
THE REAL ROOT OF EVIL 115
Wisconsin. Wright’s changed attitude toward Rand had been among the
sweetest fruits of The Fountainhead. It would have been impossible for
him to ignore the novel, for many readers drew an immediate parallel
between Roark and Wright. Privately Wright criticized the book, but in
1944 he sent Rand a complimentary letter, telling her, “Your thesis is the
great one.” Rand was thrilled and once again pushed for a meeting, telling
Wright she wished to commission a house from him. She had not
selected a site, but anticipating a move back to the East Coast told him it
would be built in Connecticut. Once at Taliesin she was disappointed to
observe the “feudal” atmosphere of the estate, where Wright’s pro tégés
shamelessly copied the master. The visit severely dimmed her admiration
for Wright. From then on she would classify him as a Howard
Roark professionally, but a Peter Keating personally. Her own Wright
house remained unbuilt. Although she loved the design, Wright’s exorbitant
fee was far beyond even her substantial means. 39
Back in California, as she resumed work for Wallis, Rand closely
followed political developments on the right. Her hopes for political
change rested almost entirely on Leonard Read, who moved to New
York in 1946 and shortly thereafter started the Foundation for Economic
Education (FEE). The most successful libertarian organization of the
postwar years, FEE quickly replaced the scattershot efforts of myriad
small anti–New Deal organizations. It was well funded, courtesy of
corporate supporters including Chrysler, General Motors, Monsanto,
Montgomery Ward, and U.S. Steel, and received its single largest donation
from the Volker Fund. The Foundation got off to a quick start primarily
through the charms of Read. Armed with a formidable Rolodex
and an affable personality, Read inspired confi dence in business donors
and intellectuals alike. Even the dyspeptic Paterson pronounced him
“good stuff.” 40 He quickly ensconced the new organization in a rambling
Westchester County mansion, a short trip from New York. From these
headquarters FEE sponsored seminars with libertarian professors and
commissioned writing on the free market ideal.
During FEE’s founding year Read assiduously courted Rand. Her
work for Pamphleteers had been a success, and Read had every expectation
their collaboration could continue through FEE. In 1946 he
described moving into FEE’s new headquarters and deliberating on
proper quotations to be hung on the wall: “Then, I got to thinking what
Fore more urdu books visit www.4Urdu.com