Added 5.10.19. Before email, there was this thing called the letter. As most people born prior to the digital age likely know, for many centuries letters served not only as a means of private communication but also as a rich source of material for historians and other scholars. Though we think of letters as typically extemporaneous and personal, they could be more composed, and far-reaching. Milt in this 1997 episode delves into the subject with three experts. They start with the epic and bristling letter from Samuel Johnson to his former patron Lord Chesterfield, and then jump to other points in the historical continuum to reveal the art and effect of the letter in history.