Home- 1st day noon- 2.9.[1873] My dear Mart and Lizzie- I have felt that I owed Mart a letter, for the pleasure that I had in reading hers to Saint Lydia; and then I do really owe Lizzie one- for hers of just one month ago- so when the paper came yesterday, and in it the cute little ventursome absurd Arbutus, how can I forbear a chat today between meetings, to thank you for it all? Yes, absurd I say. What business had it to come poknig out this time of year? Ours is better behaved- not half so bold= safe still under cover for many a long week. Dear little souls, where did they come from? I wonder if Sallie Cole found these in their woods- or if you two have visited our favored hill-side by sand river- or perhaps Lizzie's friend "Arbutus" has returned to Aiken, made her acquaintance, and kept watch for the earliest opening flowers- I read the newspaper with interest, of course- and must thank Mark for another, which came a month or more ago- [underlined:two] others- I drank up the school matters, and all the town gossip with special relish. It was about the same time that Lizzie wrote me of the Christmas tree, and your holiday, and [leleme's] turkey, and the fire at Ashley's- and Aunt Amy's chimney, [underlined:poor] Aunt Amy; wasn't she thankful it didn't tumble on threw and kill them all in their beds- and of the watch meeting [New Year] eve- all so interesting- when a body knows just how things look, and all about them, it is delightful to hear. I wonder if you ever think how Aunt Mary & Aunt Jane and Cousin [Chales?] must enjoy your letters, having seen for themselves. [Page Break] To think that these eyes have never beheld that dear m, Elizabeth's father, since our parting in Aiken depot. Aunt Mary & Aunt Jane may have written of the evening that [Richard] & Lydia & myself spent with them in the holidays, at Cousin Sam's- It was very pleasant, and I worked hard for the privilege- "Come early" said Sallie, and so I started out before 5, to have a little bit of afternoon, as well as evening. It was one of those unfortunate times, in which this winter has been somewhat rich, when the snow lay heaped, on each side the car-tracks, and teams of 4 or 6 horses were needed- so the cars were few, the people many in proportion - Oh the waiting and the waiting! as one after another passed, filled to overflowing. Then another corner, and another, were tried with like results- and after some half hour's delay, this child started off to walk, on icy pavements, all the way to the desired goal. Some of the squares were very lonely- but she got there- and the supper wasn't eaten up, and everybody was so nice, and you two just ought to have been there. Aunt Mary had on her nice cap & [?]- and Aunt Jane the [black] alpaca we remember - and they sat and talked about [underlined:everything], and read us one of Mart's letters ( you see, [Richard] & [Lydia]. came in the evening) and there of course we went over last Spring again- I've been right homesick for Aiken half a dozen times. As for Lydia, it would scarcely be too much to say, that she would have welcomed a reasonable amount of relaspe into unfavorable symptoms on my part. Yet she would feel of course if she were absent, the same old difficulties- too much care for Carrie, Sallie unmanageable [Page Break] , the kitchen going to destruction- She must worry, you know. You want to hear all about them, dont you Well, [Richard] is first rate- has his ways of opposing and arguing- born with him- kind and helpful to every one- social, and going to all sorts of [Meetings] & Committees. the last news of him, sitting talking at Shepleys till 1/4 of 1 at night- nothing would delight him more than to have company [underlined: every day]- but he spares his wife. He [underlined:did] bring home Mattie Train a week or two ago- she was the teacher of Charlotte, who waylaid us on our journey down last winter. A concern about some orphans must be laid before Richard, so the two teachers swooped down upon us in the cars. Well, some little time after, she brought up a dozen woolly-heads to our shelter- and now a fortnight back, a dozen more. Lydia gave us quite a story of her trip- the kindness she met with on the way- all of which I presume she will detail to Mart in a letter she has in view, knowing that both of you would feel interest in the subject- The little ones safely housed among the others, Martha Train attended to visiting and shopping- and our sweet sister prefaced her description with a sigh and an exclamation, "Well I am more glad than ever that I am a friend!"- Yards upon yards of trimming- and silk- and a switch at $18 for the Principal who was interested in the Doctor I believe or [underlined:some] pantalooned article, and wanted to supplement her knot the size of a walnut by this addition, hoping thereby to become attractive- and lots of things which sister was sure [underlined:ought] to be done without, at salaries of 17 1/2 per month- and so, you see, she thought with placidity of her own inexpensive ever- enduring attire- and longed for the world to come and do likewise. Remember the evening we talked about the black bow she had found in Aiken streets? [Page Break] She has had a serene winter, with the [underlined: nicest] cook and the best of chambermaids- but even with this best, the corners were not clean, and a fraction of dust in a corner is torture- in short, anything that isn't just so. (She has never got over her mortification, that the spickets in the bath-room were dim, the day of your return from Aiken). Now that occasional worryings for nothing, are merged into a worry for something, I must begin to sympathize. The good cook is weak enough to rejoin her husband- and is about to leave. So much for the heads of the house- Sallie is -as usual- [One] or two weeks she has been sent to take daily lessons- a Miss Bligh who has a faculty of managing incorrigibles, devotes two [hours] to her, alone- and [underlined:may] work wonders- so far, not much success- and I cant hoping that [Richard] will be convinced that it wasn't all the fault of our school, from [which] you remember he withdrew her, a year ago- Richie is a good boy, now entering business- kind & thoughtful, and a great favorite with his Shepley cousins, as well as his sisters. Carrie is delighted to have an aim in life- she has been for a month assisting me at school- and after the first nervous morning, where she couldn't eat any breakfast, has, she says, enjoyed every minute of the time. She is bright, well-read, and intelligent naturally- whether she has the talent for imparting, the power of keeping good order, and the management to waste no time but keep everything moving on evenly, will remain to be seen- I do not go to school now until after ten- so she has the early classes entirely under her own control. Thank thee, Mart, for thy suggestion of the Public school- but this winter [Page Break] 2/. it seems scarcely probable that it will be acted upon. Suppose I had built upon it, though, and Mr Powell had remained- wouldn't I have been disappointed . [underlined: I] manage boys! Ah Mart, there was a covert poke in that- I often wonder how Lizzie gets on with her charge- now that Jennie Hayne is absent it must be easier,- and last winter's practice has made the way clearer for this- Your meeting with the directors at the Town Hall- how could we imagine it- Such a contrast to [underlined: my] directors whom I met yesterday- in their faultless broad brims & straight coats and plain bonnets- not a suspicion of tobacco- clean linen & daily baths made manifest in their freshness- behavior perfect--- well, people say to me sometimes "How can thee bear to be under a Committee?" -Time was when I felt trammeled- and even now I do occasionally- but where all responsibility is assumed by them, they are often a real strength to fall back upon. Do parents object to something? "Go to the Committee." Do children query, "why is this? why cant we do that?" "Ask the Committee"- And they are truly considerate and faithful friends to us- To be sure, they are [underlined:very] strict- and their teachers have to be [underlined: just so]. I wear my chain inside, to save their feelings- I avoid "places of diversion" as the Query has it (do you ever go to Monthly [Meeting]?)- and to my sorrow just now I have had to deny myself one measure on their account- a visit to the academy to hear the "Jubilee Lingers"- all the old [Page Break] plantation hymns- how I did long to hear them- some that I had heard in Aiken, I found on looking over the list. Every body is charmed- the seats all taken, hundreds standing- one night they took in $1900-- the largest sum known at that house- it is for a college I think at Nashville- No Mart, no public school and no Aiken for me this winter; and the dear little room must do without me- I wonder if the sitting-room is just as cozy as ever. I told Carrie the other day, I'd give any thing if she had just been down one week, to see how we would sit and talk around the fire in the twilight. Aunt Amy comes in of course, and pops down on the little chair- No Anna to nod in the corner- At one time, I believed I should bear down upon you for certain- and wrote to [Doctor] Price that I was coming to him for advice- whether to go away, or shut myself up in my room and be tropical. Of course, writing had the effect to make me get better, and when I really went, I was ashamed at being so well- He was cheery, and comforted me- "I dont think thee needs to go away" good soul, he knew I wasn't so fond of going from home as some people so he was merciful- but if he had said yes, I should have felt you such a refuge- My friend Martha, whom you know by her letters, has now been a week in the Bermudas if the ship bore her safely and she lived to get there- Three months illness, neuralgia [Page Break] of the severest kind, and later internal troubles and threatenings of a tumor, have worn her down to skin & bone, and have made her a wretched invalid- the only hope of a cure, a genial climate and change of scene- Cant you sail out some pleasant day from Charleston? due east, you know, and only a thousand miles. Little Mary has gone with her, and a sister of Will's- I ought to tell Lizzie what a nice little visit I paid to [West] Chester, when I went to see [Doctor] Price. Wrote him word that I would see him at the hotel. What did he do but meet me in his sleigh at the Depot, and take me home. Rachel was kind as she could be, they kept me to dinner, sending me [crossed out: off] in the sleigh to the Depot- I tell thee Lizzie, it was [underlined: very] kind and so unexpected. What a dear old lady Grandmother Price is- we had a nice talk- I never saw her before, but remembered what you had said of her, and was not disappointed. As for [Doctor], blessed little man, he was busy busy, but just as nice as ever and so comforting as I said before, to tell me I was better. I had just passed through two months of down hill--and it was hard work- now I am going [underlined: up, up], so happily- I didn't see Lizzie's father in [West Chester] but how could I, for I only raced to the Depot & back again, except the two hours I was in [Doctor's] parlor & dining room. How pleasant to have [Page Break] the Conservatory opening out- the daintiest little bouquet Rachel gathers for me- and I enjoyed seeing her plants too- only the contrast with my own was so great. In the fall, my school windows seemed so bare, that I asked the children to bring one or two plants each, what they could spare- some of the specimens were but poor at first, and I have nothing to be proud of - Two or three bunches geraniums however, are always out, and the sun does its very vest with these- When is it warmer again, I shall buy two primulas and something else bright, and let us have a little bit of bloom to cheer us- Half a dozen hyacinths are opening- but- things need care which they dont get. I really havent time. Three times a week I ride. Of course, the riding school is the only available place this time of year. When I think how twelve months ago I was exploring your county on dear little pony; and now find myself just going round & round a room, the constrast is great. If I had known as much about the art of riding as now, I should never have felt the least fear of the little fellow- I never did here the Park, though he would be pretty lively sometimes- oh its mournful that I've lost him. I did hope one day to be rich enough to buy him back & keep him- and had just written to his owner never to sell him without letting me know, a little while before his death- [Page Break] 3) Perhaps you've never seen a riding-school- a good many people never have- so I'll tell you my unhappy experiences- The frost & snows & rains all made it unsuitable here to ride out of doors in winter- and nothing was left but to take lessons, for sake of the excercise. That's the shape of the room- [picture of on the ground floor- about 150 training area] foot long- 40 or 50 wide- It is large enough any feeling of giddiness as we go round & round- We have a dressing room near, and put on our fixins- then go through the gate into the riding ground, which is paved with tan- so if one gets thrown it is soft- and no dust is raised in the ride- on the platform from which the gate leads, sit the visitors when there are any-often three or four come together- others [?]- They see a class, it may be 5 it may be a dozen, streaming round one after another, perhaps on a walk- rather dull, but as our Master says, the time to learn to sit, to hold the reins, to keep the [inserted:horses] neck arched, and so forth & so forth- Soon the command to trot- oh how tired it makes me- and what a quantity of breath it takes. Then another walk- Then a canter- a certain number of times round the room is a mile- 15 I think- then we turn & go the other way- "Miss Shinn has done that wrong-deliberately" he said with cutting [emphasis?]- whereupon I did it wrong again, and a third time- "well" said I, "how [underlined:must] I do it?" whereupon he told me- "I have never been taught that way" I pleaded. "No matter, you should have known how to do it"- rather hard I thought. He's as cross as a [underlined:bear]-often times- and scolds for [Page Break] the last failure- and what is so odd, tells me often that I [underlined:dont try]. I'd heard that so many times that I got out of patience, and so I said at the last repetition of it- "It would be the strangest thing for any one of my age to come all the way out here to learn to ride, and [underlined:not try]! Now if I were a child it would be different!" This seemed to calm him down a little- but he does say very cutting things- "Whip your horse-hard! harder!! Why dont you [underlined:whip] him, and not be playing there, like a Dunce!" With it all, and my boiling over sometimes, and my desire to say stinging things back, (in which I dont indulge, let me assure you) I have really the nicest kind of rides- on the whole. His horses are well trained- he gives me easy gentle ones- is learning that I get tired if I trot too long, so he very kindly (for him) indulges me in a canter instead- and always the lessons have the most exhilarating, tonic effect- I wish you could both share them with me. Lizzie would be perfectly delighted. Mart would be dreadfully frightened at first, for some of the horses stand up this way [drawing of a horse rearing up with a rider on its back] and you're sure they'll go over backward on you- and some go this way [picture of a horse bucking forward with a rider on it's back] and you dont find it comfortable, and some spend the time alternately on the forefeet and the hind feet, when the Master walks along besides with his hand on the rein, and tickles them vigorously with the whip as they go round the room. Many a sly cut he gives them as he is riding beside them- and they watch him with the most knowing look as he [Page Break] comes near or goes away- How much you will both enjoy Meg as the Spring days draw near- and I should certainly go on horse-back sometimes, if the old lady knows anything about carrying ladies at all- I can fancy you driving out to Cousin Issac's- often- do give my love to all of them- Tell Cousin Issac that his cousin Mahlon [Murn?] was here all night a week ago- and Mary spent two weeks with us- she is a bright good lovely girl- a great comfort to her father, and a most faithful sister- they could hardly do without her at home, but she needed change and rest. Mahlon asked after the Aikenites, and had more questions than I could answer about the farming. I do hope [underlined:next] year there wont be a drought to spoil the strawberries. I wonder if you'll get them from the garden as you did so often- oh such luscious berries, full of sunshine- I want two saucers of them now- There is a gentleman here today from Bogota in [South] America- he says they have strawberries there all the year- how much better to do without, and then let them come with all their freshness- as we do- So after all, I wont pine for them till the right time- and will be satisfied with the [Page Break] abundance of apples (three barrels open now, down stairs) and the occasional orange crops that make their way to our streets- We have had radishes every night all winter with very rare excepting and I wish you could get the delicious crisp celery that daily adorns the table- No I need not grumble for strawberries.- But they are already in our windows, and asparagus too- and huge bunches of hot house grapes [underlined:only] a dollar a pound, are distracting as one passes the confectioners . Sister law the loveliest bunches of lilies of the valley a week ago- [underlined:two dollars] a bunch. She thought not! I am glad Clem is getting on nicely- if only the people will [underlined:pay]- but doubt they have the credit system in Aiken? Very risky. Do give my kind regards to him & Charley- and tell Cousin Carrie that I often think of her, how she used to stop sometimes and sit with us- and say to Cousin Issac that I'd very much like to see him again and hope I will sometime either here or there- Mart, if you were 2 1/2 [hours] off instead of all that distance, wouldn't I drop in and make my own remarks to you instead of scribbling away-which always leaves so much unsaid, and often sends away worthless words- Love to you both and good Aunt Amy- I'd like some of her best corn bread for breakfast, tell her- Lovingly yours- Cousin R