Letter from Hattie to Clara, February 28, 1889; March 8, 1889

Letter from Hattie to Clara, February 28, 1889; March 8, 1889

Steamboat disasters; Dreams; Steamboats

Harriet writes to Clara about sending one of the memorials (presumably for their Father Varnum, who died the spring prior) to a mutual friend, as well as describing the velvet memorial cover that Sarah gave her. She then informs Clara that the ship she first traveled to China on has sunk, musing on how often steamboats crash. Finally, she discusses a dream she had of her family (including her late Mother and Father) getting ready to go to a prayer meeting.

Noyes, Harriet Newell

The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #4

Unpublished

1889-02-28

Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant

PDF

eng (English)

Text

noyes_c_cor_397

SS Oceanic
Pacific Ocean
Feby 28th 1889
March 8th
My dear Clara,
I have just been writing
to Miss McFadden and have
told her that I will ask you
to send her one of the memorials
so do not forget it. Send it to
Miss Lizzie T. McFadden Cadiz
Ohio. In her letter which I
am answering written some time
since she inquires about Father
and I am sure she will be
interested in seeing it. It
is [u] five [/u] [u] weeks [/u] today since we
were together in Cleveland
These have been very [u] long [/u] weeks
although as I look back to
those last days they do not seem
far away. We are sailing
splendidly now I am so

sorry we could not have "a little
bit of a good time" when the other
missionaries were on board. Henceforth
I think I shall think of a
steamer in the same way
that Em does a horse as a
means of getting somewhere that
I want to go. I have just heard
of the fate of the S.S. Priam
the one that I went home on
the first time, with Henry and
his wife. I have not any very
pleasant remembrances of the time
spent on board of her yet I am
sorry to hear that she was
wrecked off the coast of Spain
went on a rock and broke in two.
Four of the passengers and
the Doctor were lost. It was
not the same Captain who
was on board of her in 1876.
Capt Butler they say he was

twenty miles out of his course.
Nearly all the stearmers that I
have ever travelled on have
been wrecked. Perhaps sooner
or later it is the fate of most
vessels it certainly is of many.
I do not think I have told
you that Sarah gave me
such a beautiful velvet cover
or packet for the memorial.
Miss Bibb an artist friend
gave it to her for Christmas
and she wanted to give it to
me and when I was in
Jacksonville Miss Bibb asked
her to give it to me telling her
she would make another
for her. It is of purple velvet
with sprays of golden grain
painted on it. I do not
know but it would have been
nice to have had some ripe

wheat on the outside of the
cover. I suppose it could have
been done. Sarah says it looks
so [u] black [/u] but it is not more so
than many books. I gave a
copy to Miss Jennie S Vail of
Tokio if you wish to put her
name down on the list of those
to whom they have been given.
I do not think I told you what a
nice dream I had just before I wakened
on my birthday March 5th. I thought
we were [u] all [/u] [u] together [/u] at home and
getting ready to go to prayer meeting.
Father looked so perfectly natural putting
on his shoes. Mother had her bonnet on
and was all ready and [u] not [/u] troubled
we were all around through the home
Edward in the bedroom Em in the
sitting room putting the finishing touches
to a hat she had been trimming that black
one I gave her. Clara had been

[Continued vertically on the first page]
copying something
for me we were
in the little
chamber and
Mary came in
bringing five cents
which she
insisted on my
taking for some
[?rucking?] I had
given her.
It was all
so perfectly
natural I
thought the
horses were
down at the
shop being
shod and I
was going down
to bring one
up to take
Mother to meeting.
With love
Hattie.

Oceanic轮船
太平洋
1889年2月28日
3月8日
我亲爱的Clara
我刚才给McFadden小姐写了一封信，
我告诉她
我会请你给他发
父亲的讣告，
所以你别忘了。
给俄亥俄州Cadiz城市 Lizzie T McFadden 小姐发。
/
我正在回复一封她询问父亲的信，
/
所以我相信她会感兴趣阅读他的讣告。
/
我们在克利夫兰在一起已经 5 周了。
/
尽管这几周很长，
/
但当我想起那些快乐的日子时，
/
它们似乎只发生在昨天。

我们航行得很快。
/
我希望我能和其他传教士在轮船上玩得更开心。
/
现在，这艘船似乎并不好玩，
/
我想到轮船就像她想到马一样：
它只是一种交通工具。
/
我刚知道Priam轮船发生了什么，
那是我第一次和Henry夫妇一起回家的轮船。
/
虽然我没有在船上的许多美好的回忆，
/
我很伤心地得知，
/
它撞上石头在西班牙海岸和成两半。
/
四名乘客和船医溺水身亡。
/
这不是 1876 年我们开船时的船长。
船长Butler说

船偏离航线 20 英里。
/
我乘坐过的几乎每艘轮船在我乘坐它们后都失事了。
/
不过，
也许这就是每艘船的命运。
/
我想我没有告诉过你Sarah给我的用来存放讣告的漂亮天鹅绒封面。
/
/
她从Bibb小姐，
一位艺术家朋友那里得到了封面，
她在圣诞节时送给她
/
她想把它给我在杰克逊维尔，
Bibb小姐告诉Sarah她回个她做一个新的。
/
封面是紫色和金色。
/
我希望黄金看起来像成熟的小麦。
/
/

/
我想它本来可以做到的。
她说它看起来是黑色的。
/
我给了
我给了她一份东京的传教士女士Jennie S. Vail小姐的讣告。
/
如果您要列出所有收到父亲讣告副本的人，
您可以将她的名字添加到其中。
/
我想我没有告诉你我在 3 月 5 日生日那天做的美梦。
我梦见我们都在家里，
准备去祷告会。
/
父亲在那里，
他穿上鞋子看起来很自然。
妈妈戴着她的帽子，
即使她准备好了，
她也不介意我们没有，
Edward在他的卧室里，
Em准备我给她的黑帽子，
/


Clara在小房间里写一些东西的副本，
/
/
Mary来了
她带了 5 美分，
/
她坚持要我拿
/
/
/
一切都是那么自然，
/
我以为马匹在商店里被穿了蹄子，
/
/
/
/
/
我正要去骑马带妈妈去开会。
/
/
/
/
爱你，
Hattie

Letter