Approximately one-fifth of these papers consist of general files of correspondence and informational material. These files cover James' career from the Wharton period until his death. Different file sequences appear at different stages of James' life, but there are chronological overlaps.

Files from the Wharton period (approx.1 m) largely concern his research, academic affairs at the University of Pennsylvania, and relations with personal friends.

Three meters of files arise from his McGill years. They contain correspondence of a non-administrative nature, for example, invitations to speak or dine, from McGill departments, organizations and individuals, but also include James' inaugural addresses as Principal and papers pertaining to seminars conducted by Lord Cobbold at McGill in 1961. Other correspondents include learned societies (for example, American Academy of Political and Social Sciences), individuals writing to him in his capacity as economist or international educationist, people requesting articles and speeches, and friends and members of his family, including his wife. Some personal financial materials are intermingled. Supplementing this series are bound volumes of non-administrative correspondence from 1937 to 1948. For the most part, these letters are of a private or family nature, but there are surprising incursions of official McGill business, e.g. a letter from John Fraser declining Deanship of Medicine (1944), and a curriculum vitae and press release on the appointment of James Sutherland Thomson as Dean of Divinity at McGill.

The character of his post-retirement files is three-fold. Personal materials comprise letters from family and friends (some going back as far as 1938), papers concerning domestic finances and associations of which James was a private member. Most of the McGill section consists of correspondence with old university associates on their and his current activities, McGill affairs and Canadian politics. There are letters to and from Stanley Frost, Lorne Gales, Bertie Gardner, H. Rocke Robertson, E.A. Collard, Dorothy McMurray and many others. However, this series also contains a few important items from an earlier period, e.g. correspondence with Vincent Massey, Lester Pearson, Mackenzie King, Winston Churchill (concerning the painting of the Québec Convocation), Principal Lewis Douglas and Sir Edward Beatty (concerning salary and pension), as well as a file on James' proposed visit to the People's Republic of China (1960-1964). There are also communications with the McGill University Archives and with the McGill Society of Great Britain. Finally, a large percentage of these files arose from James' active involvement in associations. Administrative correspondence with the International Association of Universities, particularly with its secretary H.M.R. Keyes, concerns membership, programs, conferences, and the study of international educational exchanges. A separate run of files contains information on education in various countries visited by James in his official capacity. Other educational associations in this series include colleges of which James was a fellow or trustee, the International Association for a Federal Union, the International Social Sciences Council, the Royal Society of Canada (concerning scholarships) and various inter-university bodies. Approximately 1.7 m of OXFAM files complete this series.