Letter from Harriet to Emily, May 4, 1869
Dublin Core
Title
Letter from Harriet to Emily, May 4, 1869
Subject
Birthdays; Bathtubs; Furniture; Parcel post; Newspapers
Description
This letter from Harriet Noyes to her sister, Emily, is in honor of Emily's twenty-third birthday. Because of the occasion, Harriet writes about whether she would like to relive the past, as well as how nice it would be for her and Em to be together. This leads into Harriet writing about the various necessary 'comforts' of China - bathtubs, mosquitos, beds, etc. She concludes by addressing and inquiring about various home life news, such as a box on its way from the New York, the home Church, and the home newspaper, the Herald.
Creator
Noyes, Harriet Newell
Source
The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #1
Publisher
Unpublished
Date
1869-05-04
Contributor
Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant
Rights
Format
PDF
Language
eng (English)
Type
Text
Identifier
noyes_c_cor_028
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
Canton China
May 4th /69 -
My [u]darling Em,[/u]
I have been thinking
for several days about your birth-day
and that when it came I would
write you a long letter. But the
day has slipped by and it is so
late now that I fear my letter will
not amount to much. I wonder
what you are doing on this your
twenty third birth-day. Do you
remember that piece Libbie used
to repeat at Mary Dowd's school.
"When I am 25." Tell her I thought
of it "when I was 25" How far in the
future then it seemed to think of
being 25 but the years do not seem
so long in looking [u]backwards[/u]. Do you
even feel that you would like over again
any of the years that are past. I do
not think that I would not even
the happiest and there have been
many very bright and happy their
memory is indeed precious those days
of "Auld lang syne" when we were [u]all
together.[/u] It has been a lovely day
to-day and we know how to prize such
days when we think of the warm ones
that are coming. Would'nt it have
been nice if we could have gone
"A Maying" [u]together[/u] to-day. Do you
remember the time you + I tried to
keep from drawing in Hubbards
creek, I shall never forget that Mayday
excursion. I would'nt mind repeating
the experience every day this summer
if I could have such [u]nice clear
water[/u] and such good company.
It almost makes me feel cool to
think of Hubbard's Creek I have
seen just one stream of [u]clear[/u]
water since I came to China
and that was when we went to
"Lai chin shan". But our nice
large bath tubs here are one of our
chief comforts during the long hot
months. They are of stone ^[or composition] 4 or 5 feet
in length 2 or 3 deep + every day
the servants fill them up with ten or
a dozen pailfuls of water and when
a person feels almost melting & their
clothing completely saturated with
perspiration you can imagine how
comfortable it is. I do not know that
I have ever told you that we are
always obliged to have mosquito
curtains on all our beds. And the
beds here are usually very wide the
one I sleep in is nearly square almost
six feet each way. You remember
my bed-quilts were made rather narrow
they do just as well however by having
a wide spread over them.
We hear that Box No 2 is on the
way left NY in February on the
Samuel Russel so we shall begin to
look for it bye + bye The last time
that ship came out she was
five months in making the trip.
Thank Edward for the
Concert programmes was that
piece "I am looking at your
picture" nice. If so I would
so like to see it, or a copy just a
copy of the air & words would do I dont
know of anything I would like to see much
better than new music, something you
sing at home. [u]Some one[/u] inquires (I could
not tell the hand writing) "Do you ever read
this" the story Foul Play in the Herald
Yes + I have several times thought of asking
Sarah if she enjoyed it as much as
"Vonved the Dane." I always look over
the Herald to see if there is any mark
of [u]Home[/u] on it. Once I found a little
scribbling in Mary's hand and
once some of Fathers.
How does the choir come on of course
you miss Mr Hamsher's bass,
I am glad they are not going
any farther away than Mansfield
perhaps you will see them
occasionally. Tell us who take
their places in the SS, the choir
the church everywhere.
I think of everything in the farm
as looking fresh and lovely now
Did you think of me this year
when the leaves first begun to come
out, Does my lilac bush grow,
And now good-night, Love for [u]Father
Mother Edward Frank Mattie Em Sarah
Clara Mary[/u] + kind remembrances
to all inquiring friends. [u]Your own[/u]
Hattie.
May 4th /69 -
My [u]darling Em,[/u]
I have been thinking
for several days about your birth-day
and that when it came I would
write you a long letter. But the
day has slipped by and it is so
late now that I fear my letter will
not amount to much. I wonder
what you are doing on this your
twenty third birth-day. Do you
remember that piece Libbie used
to repeat at Mary Dowd's school.
"When I am 25." Tell her I thought
of it "when I was 25" How far in the
future then it seemed to think of
being 25 but the years do not seem
so long in looking [u]backwards[/u]. Do you
even feel that you would like over again
any of the years that are past. I do
not think that I would not even
the happiest and there have been
many very bright and happy their
memory is indeed precious those days
of "Auld lang syne" when we were [u]all
together.[/u] It has been a lovely day
to-day and we know how to prize such
days when we think of the warm ones
that are coming. Would'nt it have
been nice if we could have gone
"A Maying" [u]together[/u] to-day. Do you
remember the time you + I tried to
keep from drawing in Hubbards
creek, I shall never forget that Mayday
excursion. I would'nt mind repeating
the experience every day this summer
if I could have such [u]nice clear
water[/u] and such good company.
It almost makes me feel cool to
think of Hubbard's Creek I have
seen just one stream of [u]clear[/u]
water since I came to China
and that was when we went to
"Lai chin shan". But our nice
large bath tubs here are one of our
chief comforts during the long hot
months. They are of stone ^[or composition] 4 or 5 feet
in length 2 or 3 deep + every day
the servants fill them up with ten or
a dozen pailfuls of water and when
a person feels almost melting & their
clothing completely saturated with
perspiration you can imagine how
comfortable it is. I do not know that
I have ever told you that we are
always obliged to have mosquito
curtains on all our beds. And the
beds here are usually very wide the
one I sleep in is nearly square almost
six feet each way. You remember
my bed-quilts were made rather narrow
they do just as well however by having
a wide spread over them.
We hear that Box No 2 is on the
way left NY in February on the
Samuel Russel so we shall begin to
look for it bye + bye The last time
that ship came out she was
five months in making the trip.
Thank Edward for the
Concert programmes was that
piece "I am looking at your
picture" nice. If so I would
so like to see it, or a copy just a
copy of the air & words would do I dont
know of anything I would like to see much
better than new music, something you
sing at home. [u]Some one[/u] inquires (I could
not tell the hand writing) "Do you ever read
this" the story Foul Play in the Herald
Yes + I have several times thought of asking
Sarah if she enjoyed it as much as
"Vonved the Dane." I always look over
the Herald to see if there is any mark
of [u]Home[/u] on it. Once I found a little
scribbling in Mary's hand and
once some of Fathers.
How does the choir come on of course
you miss Mr Hamsher's bass,
I am glad they are not going
any farther away than Mansfield
perhaps you will see them
occasionally. Tell us who take
their places in the SS, the choir
the church everywhere.
I think of everything in the farm
as looking fresh and lovely now
Did you think of me this year
when the leaves first begun to come
out, Does my lilac bush grow,
And now good-night, Love for [u]Father
Mother Edward Frank Mattie Em Sarah
Clara Mary[/u] + kind remembrances
to all inquiring friends. [u]Your own[/u]
Hattie.
Original Format
Letter
Collection
Citation
Noyes, Harriet Newell, “Letter from Harriet to Emily, May 4, 1869,” Letters from Harriet Noyes: Missionaries and Women's Education in Nineteenth Century China, accessed April 25, 2024, https://noyesletters.org/items/show/27.