TLS signed “A. Einstein,” one page, 8.5 x 11, The Institute for Advanced Study letterhead, January 12, 1942. Interesting notarized letter of recommendation for Eric Cassirer, in full: "I do not know Mr. Erich Cassirer personally. But I do know his family very well. This family has a very fine reputation in every respect. Mr. Cassirer's uncle, Professor Ernst Cassirer of Yale University, is a philosopher of world-wide prominence. According to my information the young man himself was affiliated with the Zionist Movement which movement has a Jewish national character and is under the present circumstances, of course, hundert [sic] percent behind the Allied cause. These facts make it very improbable that Mr. Cassirer has committed any breach of confidence doubly improbable as such an act would have been in the interest of the mortal enemy of the Jewish people." In fine condition, with light creasing and multiple intersecting folds.
Eric Cassirer, the nephew of philosopher Ernst Cassirer, was born in Breslau, Germany (now Poland), in 1917 and fled from the Nazi regime in 1938, after serving a term in the Alexanderplatz prison for underground activities. He arrived in the United States with only five dollars in his pocket and no knowledge of the English language. Cassirer worked as a mechanic in forty-eight states and, during the war, at the atomic energy project in the Richland-Hanford area in Washington—a position that might have led to Einstein's interest in his situation.
Cassirer evidently faced some suspicion of his political beliefs, which led Einstein to pen this defense of his character. After fleeing Germany himself in 1933, Einstein used his influence to advocate for Jews seeking to escape Hitler's reach and find asylum elsewhere—credited with saving hundreds of lives, he even joked that he ran an 'immigration office.' He frequently made visa applications for other German Jews, personally vouched for refugees fleeing Nazi rule, solicited philanthropic support from fellow celebrities, and aided in securing employment for refugees around the world. Cassirer, the beneficiary of the genius's generosity, successfully established himself in America. After the war, he started multiple car sales businesses—selling over $8 million worth of automobiles by 1956—and publishing a book, 'Used Cars—A Gold Mine,' with the Vantage Press.
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