Stanford Student Letters and Memoirs

[written] 14

[typed] Sunday afternoon March 7-'97

My dearest Nannie -

I am pretty sleepy, but will try and make myself coherent long enough for my Sunday letter to my precious Nannie. Last Wednesday, Helen Lathrop and Edith Cullen took dinner with me and stayed all nkght - we heard the Glee club practice and Mrs. Baker took a number of us over to the Zeta Psi house for a romp: so they had a pleasant time I am quite sure. They made quite a stay at Mrs. Gilman's and enjoyed every minute of it and are in love with Stanford. Edith Cullen is to marry Nelson Phelps sometime before the year is over; she has been engaged to him for six years since she was sixteen. Friday all of Epsilon Chi went to San Jose where Laura Mann, Charlotte Philips, Florence Park and Mary Brunton were formally initiated. I stayed with Gertrude and the rest, nearly all, at the Maclarens where we had such a lovely evening.

Was interupted by Mr. Pitcher calling - we spent the afternoon walking about the aboretum. To continue with the San Jose story. The Maclarens did everything imaginable to make the evening delightful and the next day, I took my silk waist and linen skirt to be made at Miss Smeads together with a black taffeta waist for Theodora.

It simply poured all day so I spent the afternoon indoors with Gertrude and took the 5 train home. She was perfectly lovely - mended my petticote for me that isn't wearing at all well and was such a trump. She gave me one of her framed Rome photos. The last communion of St. Jerone. I have it already hung. This morning I went to church and heard such an excellent sermon from Bishop Nichols - it was confirmation service and a dozen or so were presented. Last Wednesday I cut Shelley and went to church which I very much enjoyed. Helen just brought me your letter which is always so much fun to get. I think Theodora is better and happier this term as she has taken more liberty and gotten away from her boys oftener.

Did I tell you I am reading Benveneuto Cellini's autobiography by J.A. Symonds. It is wonderfully interesting.

Bye bye Toodles.

[written] 15

[typed] Monday evening,March 15,'97

My very dearest Nannie -

I can't quite remember where to begin but last Wednesday is a good place as I went to afternoon service; it was not so very well conducted as a very scared student is left in charge by Dr. Peet for the Wednesday and Friday service. Thursday Mr. Oliver Pitcher and John Daggett both of Pasadena called for Mary Brunton and me to go up to Frenchman's lake for a little walk. We did and found it full of water and wonderfully pretty. The views from the hills were beautiful - for the weather is growing warm. Saturday morning Helen, Marylyn and I took the 7:40 train for the city as Helen and I had shopping to do and Marylyn was going to see a friend. I had my new organdie waist to get and pay for and shoes (patent leather) also some errands for Theodora; you see the conductor forgot to take my ticket the last time I went, which makes the trips cheap as I am very lucky in being overlooked. The New Orleans French grand opera company is at the California and that afternoon were giving Faust. I had never heard grand opera nor seen Faust on the stage so thought it, in spite of Lent, to be too good an opportunity to lose.

We got the best seats in the house by having resold ones presented to us in exchange - the first row in the gallery. I never enjoyed anything so much in my life; every work of it was in French but of course having just been studying it very carefully I knew every scene and it was so grand. I never heard such music. Of course it is not the finest company in the world but the voices were fine and the parts well interpreted besides having very good stage setting. We had a libretto and I am sure the dollar was well spent - the music still rings out in my memory. In the scene where Valentine dies and curses Margaret I found my face wet with tears, the traces of which gave me a grotesque appearance the rest of the play. We had time afterwards to have a sherbet at Maskeys and catch the 5:30 train. I got off at San Mateo and stayed all night with dear Lolie and it was the crowning treat of such a happy day. She looked very well and we had such a jolly talk. You can't imagine how much more human and sensible that dear child is and I am proud to say we have grown very companionable.

The next day Dr. Breuner called and offered us the carriage to ride to San Mateo to church [illegible] and hear arch-bishop Weber. Dr. Brener also officiated but I did not like the service so much even if it was a wonderfully pretty little church for there was something affected about it an air lent by the rather fresh divinity students who also assisted. The whole Brener school marched in in full uniform and white gloves though they were quite overheated by their march from the school. Theodora and I slipped out in time to catch the 12:30 train to Palo Alto where I found myself in time fo dinner.

After dinner Mrs. Baker wanted the girls to go into the parlor and meet Dr. & Adn Mrs Wendt who had preached in the chapel. Prof and Mrs. Hudson were also there. Dr. Wendt impressed me as being a very egotistical kind of a man and I didn't like him at all. Afterward I slept the rest of the afternoon and last night Miriam, Helen and I simply dug with all our might for an examination in Shakespeare this morning. The ex proved the most severe one I ever had in the university The whole class is groaning over it. Twenty two questions on the text of Hamlet - lines or portions of lines being given and we were to tell everything about them that we knew - quote the passage, tell where it came from and explain the words and annotate as if for an edition of our own. Last night your dear letter came. I am so glad you are going to have a change.

[written] 19

[typed] March 29 '97 Monday afternoon

My dearest Nannie

Your dear good letter reached me this morning and I am so glad you are in New York feeling like a bloated millionaire; tho' I suppose before long you will be going back to . A week ago Saturday Theodora and I went to San Jose just for the afternoon to see about selling the furniture your dear precious letter was such a help and comfort. In my judgment it is by far better to dispose of those things that we nomads can now not afford to move with us or store. We did little in San Jose beside having a satisfactory wi talk with Mr. Gosbey whom I like very much. As you said, the things of Mammas are ones to dispose of as we choose and the proceeds do not go into the estate. The books, pictures, busts, grandma's chair, tea, chair and his d chair are probably all that we shall save.

Theodora went back to San Mateo and I here when our weeks vacation began. Sunday Mary Brunton and I were asked to dine at the Sigma Nu house where we also spent the evenling. The next day (Monday) the Sigma Nu's came for a number of us in a four-in-hand and we went into the hills for a picnic and home again by five o'clock. It was a lovely drive and we went through Woodside - the little village where the football men have secret practice a week before Thanksgiving and our way back was by Redwood City and the county road. The next Thursday Epsilon Chi invited Mrs. Rice and Mrs. Plate to go with us up to King's Mountain House in honor of Mrs. Haskell who goes home soon. We had a coach and four and started quite early. It proved to be a cloudy day but the drive was the most pleasant. We rode through such lovely woods and saw quantities of wild flowers - cyclamen, soap lily, tulium wild violets white and yellow and maidenhair. We reached King' mountain at about twelve and had such a great big dinner not to mention the view which was beautiful. The Mountain house is right on the summit and from its ridge we saw HalfMoon bay and the ocean. The fog began to settle into big drops and while we were at dinner it rained quite hard. I made things a little more exciting by losing my purse with a couple of dollars in it but Billy the driver found it, which made me feel very rich. We simply flew down the mountains in the way back and came home through Belmont reaching the campus about half past six very dusty, happy, and hungry after a forty mile lark.

Mrs. Rice was a Utica girl and went to Miss Kelly's school along in the fifties. She did not know Mamma but knew many people whose names were familiar to me. Saturday and I went to cheer up Lolie- it stromed the minute I reached San Mateo and I found her in the midst of her flock keeping demerit hour. She looked too pretty for anything in her new black taffeta shirt waist and was surprised out of her wits to see me as she didn't expect me till Sunday. We are enthusiastic about taking summer school work at Pacific Grove so many are going down and we can do it economically taking botany and possibly entomology. Kitty and Jessie Haskell with possibly their older sister Florence, Mrs. Beedy, Ida Wehner and her mother , Gertrude Payne, Lolie and I are the possible party.

I came back Sunday evening after having been at the service in the morning - it is such a pretty one, all the boys uniformed and gloved.

Kitty Haskell and I are enthusiastic about teaching. You see we take our degrees or rather finish our work Christmas so our experience begins at the same time. Dear Miss Darrah has asked us down to her home to talk schools with us - she is so lovely - one of the brightest women and an educational leader, she offered to write any letters I might needwhich will mean a great deal to me. The snow is way down in the hills and the wind is stinging cold but the sun is out and I guess the storm is over. Tomorrow Helen comes back and brings a plum pudding and pineapple jellyjust think of that. The Encina boys have been taking their meals at Roble as they always do in vacations, and some of them nearly always dine with us to make it jolly - there have been two or three pokey little dances too. Bye,bye my dearest nannie Your Rose. P.S. Miriam sends love so does Alice Colt and all of Epsilon Chi.

[written] 38

[typed] November 27, '997 Sunday night

My dearest Nannie

Am just home from my "Thanksgiving jag" as the football song goes and such a good time I never did have before! In the morning of Thanksgiving day Edith Snow, Kittie Haskell, Mr. and Mrs Pierce (pronounced purse) Prof. Allardice, Prof. Young, Prof. Campbell and Mr. Snow took the special to the city. The coaches were all bedecked with red bunting and after the engine had tooted the Stanford yell, the fourteen cars set off. When we reached the city I found Theodora waiting for me and when the regular Flyer came in we met Helen looking more like a queen than ever. Mr. and Miss Snow,Helen, Theodora and I took luncheon at the University club and then proceded to the game. We had seats in the yelling section which was the most loyal Stanford place. It was certainly a "red" day and the poor Berkeley men could scarcely keep their feet before our invincible line. The brilliant colouring of the cardinal mingling with the blue and gold makes a never to be forgotten scene, with trumpeting, shouting and waving of ribbons and flags. No one was hurt and the score quickly mounted up though the U.C. men did well and they had one good player and runner but our team is the heaviest of any of the Universities in the east, and Brook our coach was sure that it could have defeated Cornell this year.

After the game Helen, Tedora, Mary Brunton, Fred Haskell and I had dinner at the Palace and then went to the vaudeville that is given each year. It was very poor but was redeemed by the speeches of the football team, of Dr. Jordan and the rest of the prominent men. I could have hugged Stuart Cotton our captain, and in fact I am not sure but what I did exchange embraces after the game with Mr. Searles and some of the old men whom I hadn't seen for sometime, not excluding Dr. Jordan who returned from Washington that day. Theodora and I stayed all night at the Myricks and early in the morning Lolie slipped out to catch the seven oclock train for San Jose where she had to see Mr. Gorbey. I found Mr. Young at breakfast and accepted an invitation from him to go thru chinatown with Mr. and Miss Snow and Mrs. Myrick and Mr. and Mrs. Pierce. It was such fun to go thru all the merchants shops and finally up stairs to a swell resturaunt. Tea was served in a long hall very oriental in its black ebony, settes and taberets. The tables were large and Round with tea set for the party and pickled fruits - oranges and plums, ginger and chinese salted almonds that were delicious. The tea was the best I ever had.

Mr. and Miss Snow came home with us to dinner and afterward we went to the theater to see the "Geisha" - a new Japanese opera that has been having a great run. The next morning Mr. Young took us all down to the water front to see the fishing boats and that was indeed a most picturesque sight, with such refreshing drafts of sea air. We all dined at the University club and in the afternoon Mr. Allardice took us to the Loan exhibit at the Hopkin's House. It was of the local artists and we saw many of Keiths and Jorgenson's that we liked. Edith Snow and her brother said goodbye to us there and I do not know when I shall ever see her again. It left me with a very lonely feeling for in her short stay here I have grown very fond of her. Mrs. Myrick soon went home too and Mr. Allardice and I visited Shreves, Vanderdices, etc enjoying the Xmas things so much, especially those with the Stanford seal on them. I went out to the Myricks very weary indeed and had a good nights sleep beginning immediately after