Stanford Student Letters and Memoirs

[written] p. 26

[typed] Sunday - - Nov.8 - '96

My dearest Nannie,

If I let Sunday go by there is simply not a second all through the week in which I can write to my Nannie and last Sunday I slept greatly to from my astonishment from luncheon to dinner. What a quiet election! Mrs. Rice who mothers the Sigma Rho Eta boys asked Alice Colt, Miriam & me to spend the day with her as she would be all alone for all the boys were in San Francisco. So we did and had a merry time. Mr Bronco stayed home to help do the honors and he and Mrs. Rice hired a three seater & we drove to Santa Clara & back in the afternoon & came back to a delicious chicken dinner; in the evening Stuart Cotton unexpectedly came back from the city & thought he had found a young ladies seminary - we played cards and went to bed quite late. In the morning we came up to the quadrangle about half past eight before any of the boys came back, and we heard the glorious news of McKinley's election. At about eleven-thirty it was announced about the quadrangle that Tom Reed was visiting the university and would address the students in the chapel. Mr Bronco & I happened to meet and he piloted me through the growing mob to seats in the choir and there we waited for Mr. Reed. In the meantime Dr. Jordan asked Prof. Powers, to give his news of the election as he has been conducting the class in practical politics & was a _____ Bryanite, the joke was very much on him & the students fully appreciated for they cheered & cheered him with shouts of McKinley. Dr. Jordan as usual said the right thing expressing his joy by saying that now he would make his trip to Washington to report on the Behring Sea commission in a sleeper instead of a tourist. He excused Mr. Reed who was at the stock farm as being too tired to give any more addresses, the students mobbed the[written] guadrangle entrance & got a few elevating words of wisdom from him. Since then we have been having tremendously heavy work in Shakespeare & Wordsworth to much more than take up our time.

The Jordan party was very pretty and my gown came in plenty of time - the dearest sweetest dress I ever had, made beautifully & fitting beautifully too. It is quite a baby waist with small puff caps & little __shing around the neck with a bow on one shoulder and the ribbon tied around my waist in another beautiful bow:the skirt plain with the under skirt turned in two ruffles with a knife plated foot ruffle underneath. It is simply dear, or dearly simple either way. The morning after I remembered it was the last chance I had to use the San Mateo commutation ticket and as I had a lot of clean clothes for Lolie I jumped on the train in great haste & surprised the dear child; we had a very happy afternoon together & I came home in time for dinner. I had a glimpse of Mrs. Jowalman on the quadrangle one day, she looked so beautiful; & told me about seeing you this summer. Did I ever tell you that the Sigma Rho Eta's were the old Tizia whom we dined with during summer school? They were dissatisfied with their original charter & have withdrawn forming themselves with a local fraternity & probably waiting their time before applying for a very best national one. It was a very wise thing for them to do. They have made the strongest laws for themselves that no smoking, swearing, drinking or chewing be allowed in their house beside several other commendable sumptuary lawsbesides not talking with the girls on the quadrangle!

The Saturday evening after Thanksgiving the girls in the Hall are going to give a very swell dance have Mrs. Stanford & everything very scrumptous to celebrate the game no matter how it turns out.

[written] p. 33 28

[typed] Roble Hall. Evening. Thanksgiving - '96

My dearest Nannie,-

Can I ever settle myself to write a legible letter, 20 to 0 in favor of Stanford - Rah Rah, Rah, Rah Rah Rah, Rah Rah Stanford Really I could just jump up and down all through this letter I am so happy. 20-0 think of it. A quieter mass of students never left the campus, not a cheer or a yell, but a crisp, cold snappy morning with a team of well trained self-controlled, manly, fellows, that simply walked up and down the field, & Berkely tumbled before their fierce self possessed strength. Proud of them? I'd like to hug everyone of them! I tell you there is a staunch pride in this university that carrys it through every kind of crisis & brings it out triumphant, and it is the generous loyalty and love they & we all feel for our blessed Alma Mater and I wager there are lots of our men that do generous manly things for the Berkely boys to-day in their defeat.

It really has been a very happy day - someway, when I wasn't asleep Helen Younger and I were busy, and it speaks well for two persons congeniality, when they can put up with the other on a day of such suspense. She went to church with me early this morning and the walk in the sparkling frost was a ----- long; then we did some errands about Palo Alto for the dance next Saturday, and before and before we were through one of the bus men asked me to go down to Menlo Park to bring back the horses for him, as he was going to take the train & see the game. He couldn't understand our not going and even offerred us 10. He felt so sorry for us. We saw the long Flyer & the team near sauntering about the station as cool as cucumbers, some of them hailed us as we drove up. When we found ourselves in full possession of the respectable three seater & two horses coming home, we thought we would make the way a long one. So we stopped at the Sigma Rho Eta House where Alice Colt was spending the day with Mrs. Rice - we found Mr. Bruntors staying away from the game too so Mrs. Rice, Alice, & Mr. Bruntors got in with us & we drove around a little while and after taking them home we sailed back to Mr. Lund's stables where they seemed quite glad to see us, and said nothing about the length of the road back from Menlo being particularly long.

Afterward a package came from Charles, and what do you think it was! Two plump white boiled chickens, a chocolate cake, and a beautiful jar of canned peaches. I really think Charles is about the nicest man we shall ever know; wasn't that dear of him? This afternoon Helen & I read John Oliver Hoffe's "A Study in Temptations" and slept, till the glorious news came.

We haven't eaten of our good things yet but are waiting till Marylyn Maine gets home on the midnight train when we shall have our spread & celebrate. In the meantime we are going to bed.

Bye-bye Toodles

[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] April 10 '97 23

[typed] little man who when he is unbent proved very lively and interesting and above all a most jovial host. He of course has been everywhere with the Stanfords and was young Leland's tutor.

I caught a glimpse of Mrs. Myrick a day or two ago with a whole bevy of society girls - She was in her most tickled element especially as she had dear Prof. Allardice in tow too. She looked very pretty indeed and was very sweet - and airy. I went through some of the chemical labs and it was great fun to see Prof. Young display his chemicals to them.

The hall seems deserted as Helen Younger and number of the girls have gone to the city to shop. I am giving my bed a good sunning out of my window and think it is about time to take it is. Mrs. Rice just asked to show off the room to a friend - it is one of the show off rooms I find owing to its sunshine and pretty views. Don't forget to send the answer to the book puzzle - "cross eyed sons" is as far as I can get in it and I am sure I never read such a book. Thank you so much for clothing your

Bye bye your loving Rose

I would give worlds to go out into the hills with you it is such a bewitching day - the white oaks look like delicate maiden hair ferns.