Typewritten DS, signed as President, one page, 10.25 x 14, March 25, 1923. An official document in which Ambassador to Peru Miles Poindexter is authorized to effect the ratification of the “Convention to facilitate the work of travelling salesman concluded at Lima on January 19, 1923.” Countersigned by Secretary of State (and future Chief Justice) Charles E. Hughes. The date of signing, March 25, raises an interesting question, as Coolidge did not assume the Presidency until August of that year, following the sudden death of Warren G. Harding. The document bears the heading “Calvin Coolidge, President of the United States” and the closing “By the President,” both in the same type used in the main body. The typing and signatures are clearly contemporaneous, the page bears a large embossed Presidential seal, and there is no indication whatever that this is anything but a legitimate and genuine Presidential document. As there is no record of Coolidge serving as “Acting President” prior to his swearing-in in August, a possible explanation for the anomalous date is that the document was related to unfinished business from the Harding administration and retroactively dated for legal or official purposes; or, perhaps the “mystery” is nothing more than the result of a typist’s error. In any event, this is surely the earliest Coolidge “presidential” document you’ll ever encounter! In fine condition, with light toning and soiling and a few small spots. COA John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
