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Eva has a gastrointestinal ailment. But she's funny about it!
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My dear old Darling:-
Everybody knows I am dumb and getting dumber. Two weeks ago I could dictate to four people but now can only dictate to two.
The circumstances for writing are even worse than before. I thot it was bad enough not to be able to see but to be sick in bed for two days has taxed my “strenth” to such a degree that I am even less fitted to write a letter. Mother thinks she has made a great discovery. You remember the theory Mrs. Bidwell suggested when I was sick when Dr. Fraunfelter could find no cause - that of having jumped the rope too much, has led mother to attribute my present indisposition to a cause almost as foolish. I was “took down” Wednesday evening and thot I would retire early and rise “bright, happy & cold” ready to join and be a frivolous con again but the Fates decreed otherwise. I was fearfully sick all night. I not only lost all my sleep but caused mother to do likewise. I imagined I had a very ordinary stomach-ache possibly caused by eating too much of your good fudge. But after throwing up quantities of stuff and finding no relief I no longer blamed it on that. We sent for the Dr. early Thursday morning and after giving me two kinds of medicine and ordering an icebag said he would want to see me in the afternoon. How could they expect me to be better only giving me four teaspoonfuls of broth. Dr. came at two and said altho my temperature was a degree above normal I was better but had better not eat anything. The family all came up and visited me in the afternoon to keep my mind off eating. I presume that was what it was for at any rate I didn’t get anything to eat.
Consequently I didn’t feel any better in the evening and called the M.D. again as he said I should do. He left some nice little brown tablets which he said should be given me if I could not sleep but I immediately proceeded to tumble off to sleep and got cheated out of them. He took them back this morning I presume they must be very valuable he seemed so anxious to get them back and so afraid I would take them.
On each of his visits he kept pounding me with his fingers in the lower regions and asking me if it hurt here and if it hurt there and I was forced to go thru a process of elimination as it tickled every place and I had to imagine how much was tickle and how much was hurt. As I was going to tell you mother came rushing in this morning and said she knew what made me sick. I had swept too much. So when the doctor came this morning with great pride and great delight she most eloquently disclosed her secret. But the doctor didn’t give it entire credit. I presume it was to save my feelings that he said that was the partial cause. At any rate he seemed to think I was sick enough to be sick for several days and said I should be cautious about my eating and not be in too big a hurry to get up.
Perhaps I had better tell you that in order to keep from being lonesome on Thursday I swept every room in the house and mamma says it would be cheaper to hire the sweeping done. What do you think of that for an unkind cut. When she came out in the hall she said “Did you sweep this or has it been swept?” and when I was forced to confess that I had tried to sweep it she said “Why, Eva you don’t work as you used to.”
I am so glad you received the hairbrushes. I naturally supposed you were as truthful as I so I believed you had received them but Fred, for some reason or other knew you had not received them. He must be equal to such tricks himself or on to your tricks.
I am so sorry to hear you wasted half of your banana. You perhaps think the worst of it is the soiling of your clothes but I naturally think of the banana. My conscience hurts almost as much as my stomach when I remember what year it is and the doctor has been here four times in two days. I realize that it is a great luxury but you know our credit is good at Mahaffey’s. I hugged the hot water bottle all Wednesday night. When the M.D. came Thursday morning he said I should have one of Frank’s ice bags and some of Frank’s good ice. Of course the ice was heavy and Fred went down for it but if June had gone she would have gotten a much larger piece. I had the ice lay wrapped in your immense Turkish towel, wasn’t that dear of me. But I soon found that I felt no cold through it and had to use a thinner towel but I used the other for packing so I had it with me all day and all night. [Bud lost to Yale 34 to 28, this may account for her indisposition but she says he lost because she was not there to inspire him.] The Yale coach said that the Oberlin team was as good as his team but it was our first game and Yale’s eleventh of the season. I really think it was a neat scheme to get sick on journey day for it poured all day and June had to do my journey for me. You know journey is a very trying ordeal so I was glad to get out of it for once. I mist a vocal lesson this morning by being sick. June went over to tell the dear little man and as soon as June opened her mouth to tell him he flew upon her and said “Oh I hope she has not a cold” and when June assured him she had not he was so glad, June said he would not have cared if she had the smallpox. The most delicious odor of baked beans has come up through the register from the kitchen and poor me, I can’t have any. I just imagine they are having all the good things they can think of while I am sick, but the doctor said I could have an egg and when I remember what year [???] it is I think it will be quite a treat However mother said it was going to be a packed egg and mother usually packs eggs when they are eighteen cents a dozen. I think they will still be ahead of me I am also going to have a piece of toast made in your favorite toaster so of course it will be delicious. I think tomorrow I will have some beefsteak and of course you know I will enjoy that. I can’t make up my mind whether to be well enough tomorrow to go to the sale of the seats for the artist recital course it is an all day task and of course very tiresome.
After being in bed two days I think that would be a rather strenuous way to begin and when I look at June and see how plump and rosy she is I feel that it would do her a world of good and be more effective than rolling on the floor. But I don’t want to impose upon her good nature too much; I want to be on the good side of her. We had such poor seats the last time that every time we went to a recital Mama would say “I wish we had paid ten cents more a night” so we were firmly convinced that the only thing to do was to get a $3 choice this term but when I think of starting out the term with a doctor bill I felt that I can only afford standing room It is very likely that the choices will not run so high as last term so I will probably get a seat of some kind. Mama wants Fred to go and do up a bundle of stuff that Alma forgot but for which she has not hinted as you did for the hairbrushes.
Mama just came up and said that we can’t have the beans unless Fred goes for catsup so he will take Alma’s package and this letter mama says you’ll have all day Sunday to make it out.
Write as soon as you get this for I would gain more “strenth” from your letter than I would from the eggs & toast put together. With love Eva.
Everybody knows I am dumb and getting dumber. Two weeks ago I could dictate to four people but now can only dictate to two.
The circumstances for writing are even worse than before. I thot it was bad enough not to be able to see but to be sick in bed for two days has taxed my “strenth” to such a degree that I am even less fitted to write a letter. Mother thinks she has made a great discovery. You remember the theory Mrs. Bidwell suggested when I was sick when Dr. Fraunfelter could find no cause - that of having jumped the rope too much, has led mother to attribute my present indisposition to a cause almost as foolish. I was “took down” Wednesday evening and thot I would retire early and rise “bright, happy & cold” ready to join and be a frivolous con again but the Fates decreed otherwise. I was fearfully sick all night. I not only lost all my sleep but caused mother to do likewise. I imagined I had a very ordinary stomach-ache possibly caused by eating too much of your good fudge. But after throwing up quantities of stuff and finding no relief I no longer blamed it on that. We sent for the Dr. early Thursday morning and after giving me two kinds of medicine and ordering an icebag said he would want to see me in the afternoon. How could they expect me to be better only giving me four teaspoonfuls of broth. Dr. came at two and said altho my temperature was a degree above normal I was better but had better not eat anything. The family all came up and visited me in the afternoon to keep my mind off eating. I presume that was what it was for at any rate I didn’t get anything to eat.
Consequently I didn’t feel any better in the evening and called the M.D. again as he said I should do. He left some nice little brown tablets which he said should be given me if I could not sleep but I immediately proceeded to tumble off to sleep and got cheated out of them. He took them back this morning I presume they must be very valuable he seemed so anxious to get them back and so afraid I would take them.
On each of his visits he kept pounding me with his fingers in the lower regions and asking me if it hurt here and if it hurt there and I was forced to go thru a process of elimination as it tickled every place and I had to imagine how much was tickle and how much was hurt. As I was going to tell you mother came rushing in this morning and said she knew what made me sick. I had swept too much. So when the doctor came this morning with great pride and great delight she most eloquently disclosed her secret. But the doctor didn’t give it entire credit. I presume it was to save my feelings that he said that was the partial cause. At any rate he seemed to think I was sick enough to be sick for several days and said I should be cautious about my eating and not be in too big a hurry to get up.
Perhaps I had better tell you that in order to keep from being lonesome on Thursday I swept every room in the house and mamma says it would be cheaper to hire the sweeping done. What do you think of that for an unkind cut. When she came out in the hall she said “Did you sweep this or has it been swept?” and when I was forced to confess that I had tried to sweep it she said “Why, Eva you don’t work as you used to.”
I am so glad you received the hairbrushes. I naturally supposed you were as truthful as I so I believed you had received them but Fred, for some reason or other knew you had not received them. He must be equal to such tricks himself or on to your tricks.
I am so sorry to hear you wasted half of your banana. You perhaps think the worst of it is the soiling of your clothes but I naturally think of the banana. My conscience hurts almost as much as my stomach when I remember what year it is and the doctor has been here four times in two days. I realize that it is a great luxury but you know our credit is good at Mahaffey’s. I hugged the hot water bottle all Wednesday night. When the M.D. came Thursday morning he said I should have one of Frank’s ice bags and some of Frank’s good ice. Of course the ice was heavy and Fred went down for it but if June had gone she would have gotten a much larger piece. I had the ice lay wrapped in your immense Turkish towel, wasn’t that dear of me. But I soon found that I felt no cold through it and had to use a thinner towel but I used the other for packing so I had it with me all day and all night. [Bud lost to Yale 34 to 28, this may account for her indisposition but she says he lost because she was not there to inspire him.] The Yale coach said that the Oberlin team was as good as his team but it was our first game and Yale’s eleventh of the season. I really think it was a neat scheme to get sick on journey day for it poured all day and June had to do my journey for me. You know journey is a very trying ordeal so I was glad to get out of it for once. I mist a vocal lesson this morning by being sick. June went over to tell the dear little man and as soon as June opened her mouth to tell him he flew upon her and said “Oh I hope she has not a cold” and when June assured him she had not he was so glad, June said he would not have cared if she had the smallpox. The most delicious odor of baked beans has come up through the register from the kitchen and poor me, I can’t have any. I just imagine they are having all the good things they can think of while I am sick, but the doctor said I could have an egg and when I remember what year [???] it is I think it will be quite a treat However mother said it was going to be a packed egg and mother usually packs eggs when they are eighteen cents a dozen. I think they will still be ahead of me I am also going to have a piece of toast made in your favorite toaster so of course it will be delicious. I think tomorrow I will have some beefsteak and of course you know I will enjoy that. I can’t make up my mind whether to be well enough tomorrow to go to the sale of the seats for the artist recital course it is an all day task and of course very tiresome.
After being in bed two days I think that would be a rather strenuous way to begin and when I look at June and see how plump and rosy she is I feel that it would do her a world of good and be more effective than rolling on the floor. But I don’t want to impose upon her good nature too much; I want to be on the good side of her. We had such poor seats the last time that every time we went to a recital Mama would say “I wish we had paid ten cents more a night” so we were firmly convinced that the only thing to do was to get a $3 choice this term but when I think of starting out the term with a doctor bill I felt that I can only afford standing room It is very likely that the choices will not run so high as last term so I will probably get a seat of some kind. Mama wants Fred to go and do up a bundle of stuff that Alma forgot but for which she has not hinted as you did for the hairbrushes.
Mama just came up and said that we can’t have the beans unless Fred goes for catsup so he will take Alma’s package and this letter mama says you’ll have all day Sunday to make it out.
Write as soon as you get this for I would gain more “strenth” from your letter than I would from the eggs & toast put together. With love Eva.
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1.
About the date...
Eva didn't date the letter. Maybe she didn't feel well enough to think of it. The envelope is postmarked January 4, 1907, but Barbara thinks the handwriting on the envelope is that of Mama Margaret, so conceivably the envelope could be from a different letter. But fortunately Eva mentions a game that Yale won, and I was able to find the game and confirm that this letter must have been written on Friday, January 4, 1907. Perhaps Mama Margaret addressed the envelope for Eva, since Eva was sick.
2.
Two weeks ago I could dictate to four people but now can only dictate to two.
What does this mean? I don't know.
3.
You remember the theory Mrs. Bidwell suggested when I was sick when Dr. Fraunfelter could find no cause
The Bidwells were Canton friends. I've got them listed on the Non-family Ohio folks page.
4.
I was “took down” Wednesday evening and thot I would retire early and rise “bright, happy & cold” ready to join and be a frivolous con again but the Fates decreed otherwise.
"thot" - I think that usually Eva would spell it "thought", but she was sick. Mama Margaret's sister Rebecca Provines Taggart spelled it "thot", so maybe for Eva it was a throwback to childhood.
"frivolous con" - must be some period slang. Google didn't help me on this.
5.
Perhaps I had better tell you that in order to keep from being lonesome on Thursday I swept every room in the house and mamma says it would be cheaper to hire the sweeping done. What do you think of that for an unkind cut. When she came out in the hall she said “Did you sweep this or has it been swept?” and when I was forced to confess that I had tried to sweep it she said “Why, Eva you don’t work as you used to.”
I don't understand this. If Eva was sick enough to need a doctor on Thursday, why was she sweeping? And why was she lonesome if she had three doctor's visits? Surely it was on some other day that she swept. Tuesday, maybe? And I don't understand that question that Mama Margaret asked.
6.
Of course the ice was heavy and Fred went down for it but if June had gone she would have gotten a much larger piece.
June must be June Bracken or Brocken from Canton. I've got her listed in the Non-family Ohio folks page.
7.
[Bud lost to Yale 34 to 28, this may account for her indisposition but she says he lost because she was not there to inspire him.]
The Yale Daily News Historical Archive told me that Yale beat Oberlin at basketball 34 to 27 on January 2. Yale's basketball team was on a long trip, playing many other colleges.
I don't know who Bud is. I imagine he's a boy that Eva liked. Eva liked lots of males.
Eva is awfully random in this letter. What is the purpose of the brackets around that sentence? And that's just one of many randomnesses.
8.
I really think it was a neat scheme to get sick on journey day for it poured all day and June had to do my journey for me.
Journey day doesn't sound right, but I can't figure out what it's supposed to be.
9.
However mother said it was going to be a packed egg and mother usually packs eggs when they are eighteen cents a dozen.
Packed egg? I really don't think it's poached, but what is a packed egg?
About the date...
Eva didn't date the letter. Maybe she didn't feel well enough to think of it. The envelope is postmarked January 4, 1907, but Barbara thinks the handwriting on the envelope is that of Mama Margaret, so conceivably the envelope could be from a different letter. But fortunately Eva mentions a game that Yale won, and I was able to find the game and confirm that this letter must have been written on Friday, January 4, 1907. Perhaps Mama Margaret addressed the envelope for Eva, since Eva was sick.
2.
Two weeks ago I could dictate to four people but now can only dictate to two.
What does this mean? I don't know.
3.
You remember the theory Mrs. Bidwell suggested when I was sick when Dr. Fraunfelter could find no cause
The Bidwells were Canton friends. I've got them listed on the Non-family Ohio folks page.
4.
I was “took down” Wednesday evening and thot I would retire early and rise “bright, happy & cold” ready to join and be a frivolous con again but the Fates decreed otherwise.
"thot" - I think that usually Eva would spell it "thought", but she was sick. Mama Margaret's sister Rebecca Provines Taggart spelled it "thot", so maybe for Eva it was a throwback to childhood.
"frivolous con" - must be some period slang. Google didn't help me on this.
5.
Perhaps I had better tell you that in order to keep from being lonesome on Thursday I swept every room in the house and mamma says it would be cheaper to hire the sweeping done. What do you think of that for an unkind cut. When she came out in the hall she said “Did you sweep this or has it been swept?” and when I was forced to confess that I had tried to sweep it she said “Why, Eva you don’t work as you used to.”
I don't understand this. If Eva was sick enough to need a doctor on Thursday, why was she sweeping? And why was she lonesome if she had three doctor's visits? Surely it was on some other day that she swept. Tuesday, maybe? And I don't understand that question that Mama Margaret asked.
6.
Of course the ice was heavy and Fred went down for it but if June had gone she would have gotten a much larger piece.
June must be June Bracken or Brocken from Canton. I've got her listed in the Non-family Ohio folks page.
7.
[Bud lost to Yale 34 to 28, this may account for her indisposition but she says he lost because she was not there to inspire him.]
The Yale Daily News Historical Archive told me that Yale beat Oberlin at basketball 34 to 27 on January 2. Yale's basketball team was on a long trip, playing many other colleges.
I don't know who Bud is. I imagine he's a boy that Eva liked. Eva liked lots of males.
Eva is awfully random in this letter. What is the purpose of the brackets around that sentence? And that's just one of many randomnesses.
8.
I really think it was a neat scheme to get sick on journey day for it poured all day and June had to do my journey for me.
Journey day doesn't sound right, but I can't figure out what it's supposed to be.
9.
However mother said it was going to be a packed egg and mother usually packs eggs when they are eighteen cents a dozen.
Packed egg? I really don't think it's poached, but what is a packed egg?
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