Letter from Mattie to the Dear Ones at Home, October 27

Letter from Mattie to the Dear Ones at Home, October 27

Home; Travel; Railroads--United States; Family

Mattie writes to her family at home, telling them how their letters made her feel loved. She feels that her life has more purpose now, even though it means she is away from home. She wishes she could do more for her siblings. They have reached San Francisco in good time. Dr. Loomis met them at the station in Oakland and she has also seen Dr. Hepburn, Miss Crouch, and Mrs. Condit.

Kerr, Martha Noyes

The College of Wooster, Special Collections, Noyes Collection, Box #5

Unpublished

10-27

Council on Library and Information Resources Hidden Special Collections Grant

PDF

eng (English)

Text

noyes_c_cor_516

San Francisco Oct 27th
Dear Ones at Home
I received your good
letters this morning so unexpected
they were for I had thought to
get them the last of the week
Sue had some in the same
mail and oh you can not think
how much they were worth to
us We have both shed a good
many tears over them. Oh I
did not once dream how
very much you loved me
I have been away from
home so much I felt you
would not miss me so much.
Oh you can not tell how
I have felt since I left home
to think how little I have

taken the place that a christian
sister and daughter should in
the house-hold but it was all because
I did not live near my Saviour.
It seems as if my whole life had not
yielded any fruit in the dear old home
God [u] bless [/u] [u] every [/u] [u] one [/u] of [u] you [/u] and may
we find that he can be more to us
than any earthly friend. I felt so
much the last day and for a long
time before how much easier it
would be for me to go if I could
take all the sadness with me
but I could not bear the lonliness
of the dear ones left behind Nothing
could have made me willing to do
it but the feeling that it was my
duty and it has been as I expected I
can not feel any thing else than that
I ought to do as I have done. But the
fact that Jesus wept at the grave of
Laz.-- has been such a comfort to me
for we may shed tears over the parting

and know it is right. There is so much
I have wanted to do for you and the
many little things are all undone
but we will think it is all right, as
it is. You never can know how much
good it did me for you to go to that
farewell meeting and that Edward Em
and Mary could go to C. with me the
remembrance of that will always be a
pleasure to me. Edward helped me so
much when I parted with [--Sarah--] [--and--]
Frank and Clara at the depot it seems
as if I could feel his arm about me
now in that fond pressure And my
last glimpse of home was just as I
would have had it Father and Mother
standing at the gate waving their
good bye came to me as a benedic-
tion Surely no one has been blessed
as I have been in having such a pre-
cious home and I trust we shall still
be a great blessing to each other though
bodily separated. This is only a note

I will try and write you a letter
very soon. We reached San Francisco
in good time and Dr Loomis met
us at the station in Oakland and did
not leave us until we were safely
established in our hotel with every ar-
rangement for our comfort entirely
complete We were at the Brooklyn house
until this morning when who should
call upon us but John Stubbs who had
been watching for our arrival and came
to take me bag and baggage to his house
where Miss Crouch and I are now
fully established Dr Hepburn engaged our
passage on the steamer this morning
have not seen him since but I am
sure every thing will be all right. We have
met with friends everywhere and I feel
that it is in direct answer to prayer we
have been brought here so safely. We are
this afternoon to go to a ladies prayer
meeting at Mrs Condit's with whom we
dine at 5 It is as warm as with us
the first of Sep. have had delightful
weather ever since we left home
I have dropped a line to you every
day since I left home except the Sabbath's
but they were directed in led pencil
and I doubt if you have received them
all This is no letter but I will try to
write one before to morrow. I could
not bear to have the mail go without
sending something. I hope to do a
little writing while here but do not
know how much. Am very well.

[Continued vertically on the first page]
It is time to go and I must close I have looked my
dear album all over this morning and Father's Mother's
pictures and the
precious letters are
on the table where
I am writing. If
I can I will try and
give you a little
journal of my over-
land trip after I
get on ship board
but it will not be
worth much I wish
you could only know
how much good your
letters have done me.
Your loving
Mattie



旧金山 10 月 27 日
亲爱的在家的人
今天早上我收到了你们的好信，
太出乎意料了，
因为我原以为这周的最后一个星期会收到它们，
苏在同一封邮件中收到了一些，
你无法想象它们值多少钱我们俩都为他们流了很多眼泪。
我从来没有梦想过你是多么爱我我一直远离家乡，
我觉得你不会那么想念我。
你无法形容我离开家后的感受，
想想我在家里占据了一个基督徒姐妹和女儿应有的位置是多么少，
但这一切都是因为我没有住在我的救主附近。
似乎我的一生在亲爱的老家没有结出任何果实，
上帝保佑你们每一个人，
愿我们发现他对我们来说比任何世俗的朋友都多。
我最后一天感觉如此之多，
很长一段时间，
如果我能把所有的悲伤都带走，
我会更容易走，
但我不能忍受被遗弃的亲人的孤独没有什么能让我愿意这样做，
但感觉这是我的职责，
而且正如我所期望的那样，
除了我应该做的事情之外，
我没有别的感觉。
但耶稣在拉撒路的坟墓前哭泣的事实——这对我来说是一种安慰，
因为我们可能会在离别时流泪，
并且知道这是对的。
我想为你做的事情太多了，
很多小事都没有做，
但我们会认为没关系，
因为它是。
你永远不知道去参加那场告别会议对我有多大好处，
爱德华·埃姆和玛丽可以和我一起去 C. 回忆那件事对我来说永远是一种乐趣。
当我在车站与弗兰克和克拉拉分开时，
爱德华对我帮助很大挥手告别的大门来到我面前是一种祝福 毫无疑问，
没有人像我一样受到祝福，
拥有如此珍贵的家，
我相信尽管身体分离，
我们仍将是彼此的巨大祝福。
这只是一个便条，
我会尽快给你写一封信。
我们及时到达旧金山，
卢米斯博士在奥克兰车站接我们，
直到我们安全地在我们的酒店安顿好之后才离开我们，
为我们的舒适所做的一切安排都完全完成了我们一直在布鲁克林的房子，
直到今天早上拜访我们，
但约翰·斯塔布斯一直在等待我们的到来，
并把我的包和行李带到他家，
克劳奇小姐和我现在已经完全安顿下来我相信一切都会好起来的。
我们与各地的朋友会面，
我觉得这是对我们如此安全地被带到这里的祈祷的直接回应。
我们今天下午要去参加在康迪特夫人那里举行的女士祈祷会，
我们在 5 点与她共进晚餐。
天气和我们一样温暖，
就像九月的第一天一样。
自从我们离开家以来，
天气一直很好。
我每天都给你写信因为除了安息日我离开了家，
但他们是用铅铅笔指导的，
我怀疑你是否都收到了。
这不是信，
但我会在明天之前写一封信。
我无法忍受不送东西就让邮件走了。
我希望在这里写一点，
但不知道能写多少。
我很好。
[第一页垂直续] 该走了，
我必须关门了。
今天早上我把我亲爱的相册翻了一遍，
父亲母亲的照片和珍贵的信件都在我正在写的桌子上。
如果可以的话，
我会在我上船后试着给你一份我陆路旅行的小日记，
但它并不值钱，
我希望你只知道你的信对我有多大好处。
你爱的玛蒂

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