| Home | Search | SBButler Letters |
Nov. 12, 1916
Nov. 19, 1916
Nov. 26, 1916
Dear Mother
Hasn't this been an exciting week? When I left New York Tuesday
night, I supposed that Mr. Hughes [note - Charles E. Hughes,
Republican candidate for President] was elected without a doubt,
and spent Wednesday morning in anything but an agreeable frame
of mind. The final result has borne out my predictions pretty
well, that the vote would be very close, and that Pres. Wilson's
strength would be in the West; as a matter of fact, only four
states West of the Mississippi went for Mr. Hughes, one of those
being Minnesota, with its extremely close vote, which might even
yet prove to swing the state to Wilson. It has been more satisfying
than anything to read the final result in the columns of the
Hartford Courant, and particularly to watch them swallow their
medicine in the editorial in Friday morning's issue. There was
certainly a great deal of interest taken in the election all
over the country, and, as probably you know, there were over
8,000,000 votes cast for each candidate, about 8,500,000 for
Wilson, and 8,100,000 for Hughes; the most that has ever been
cast for any candidate before was about 7,700,000; of course
the female vote is a large factor in the increase. The gain of
five states for prohibition Tuesday seems to have been lost sight
of in the excitement over the outcome of the presidential contest;
it wouldn't surprise me to see national prohibition an issue
in 1920, or perhaps endorsed by both parties, as woman suffrage
was this year.
I got to New York at about schedule time Tuesday, and went first
down to the Pennsylvania station to leave my suitcase and get
my sleeping car reservations; they don't have any parlor cars
on trains at that time of night, so I got a regular berth, and
an upper one. Then I walked back up town to Times Square and
stood with the crowd watching the returns a considerable time.
Traffic on the sidewalks was only allowed to go in one direction
at a good many corners, which is I suppose a usual custom. Horns
and rattlers were the chief noise- producers, and there were
an abundance of these feather duster ticklers in the crowd. The
returns on the Times screen weren't a bit faster than I use to
see them in New Haven, perhaps a little slower. Where I was standing
was right within view of the hotel where the Hughes family were
watching the returns. I didn't see anybody I knew in New York
or on the journey, except a 1915 man on the train from Berlin
to New Haven. Shortly after midnight I started down towards Pennsylvania
station again, and was tucked away in my downy couch, surrounded
by my suitcase, overcoat & other clothes, several minutes
before the train started out. I didn't sleep very soundly but
of course got some rest; it was necessary to get right out as
soon as I got to Philadelphia as I had to get a 5 o'clock ferry
for Camden, where I took a 5:10 electric train for Pleasantville,
arriving here on schedule time, before breakfast. I was pretty
sleepy all thru the day, and got to bed real early Wednesday
night, very shortly after nine, and slept for ten good solid
hours, which rested me up completely.
Friday night all the men teachers and three of the women teachers
had to be present at a reception at the High School given by
the Sophomores to the Freshmen, to put a curb on any roughness
which might get started, and to see that they didn't go all over
the building, doing what they pleased, and so on. As a matter
of fact, I should have gone anyway, before Dr. Whitney asked
me to, as I promised to take part in the entertainment with a
piano solo; I ventured to play Leybach's Fifth Nocturn, and the
Beethoven Minuet in G for the encore which I suppose they felt
called on to clap for. I also played the accompaniment for a
song, also encore, for Miss Haskell, the music teacher.
The examination yesterday didn't seem particularly hard, although
you can imagine it was rather long, when I tell you I spent four
and a half hours on it. I'll not know whether I passed or not
until just before Christmas; I feel pretty confident that I did,
but of course can't ever tell. I am glad it's over with anyway,
and shall be still more so when Physiology and Hygiene is out
of the way next week; then I can give much more attention to
my regular work.
Yale got beaten by Brown yesterday, as you probably know, 21-6.
Yale purposely played six substitutes, so as to save as many
for the Harvard & Princeton games as possible; I am not very
certain, but rather think the chances are against Yale in both
of the big games, however don't look for anything like last year's
Harvard score.
Please tell Uncle Bill that Carey knows Miss Bessie Griswold
very well, & had her as a teacher in High School; he also
knows of the Fred Norton Uncle Bill spoke of to me while I was
home.
It's time to say good night.
With much love to everybody
Sylvester
Dear Mother,
It is certainly a shame that Raymond has been having further
troubles. I got a letter from him at Lakewood in the next mail
after your letter came; he wrote me because he thought at the
last minute I might have found some way to go to the Princeton
game. Perhaps the result will be just what Raymond needs; anyway,
I do hope his vacation and treatment will bring him back to health.
Yale seems to have a hoo-doo on Princeton, for even in the six
lean years before this, Princeton has only beaten Yale once,
and that was the time Ralph came down to New Haven to see the
game in 1911. Saturday's result is naturally a rather hopeful
augury for next Saturday, although to see Yale win would still
be a surprise. I hope those awful 36-0, 41-0 scores of the last
two years will be avenged some day.
Pleasantville High School didn't fare as well as Yale yesterday,
but rather occupied Yale's position in last year's game at Harvard.
The game was up at Bridgeton, the score 46-0. My Physiology and
Hygiene examination, which was to have come in the afternoon,
I succeeded, after some effort, in getting transferred to the
morning, so that I could go up there; for the reason that neither
Carey or Cruse could go up, nor could I find anyone else, and
of course it was necessary that some one go up with the boys.
As a matter of fact, Dr. Whitney finally went along with us,
but didn't attend the game. We hired a big truck to take the
team over to Bridgeton, and also a dozen other students, boys
and girls, and Miss McAllister. There was an overflow of four
or five who had to go by train, and I had to go up that way,
because I couldn't get away from Atlantic City in time to get
the truck. The result of the game, as I have indicated, was rather
disastrous; for one thing, the Bridgeton team averaged ten pounds
heavier at least than our boys, but of course, they played better,
too. I didn't have any time to look up Miss Stieberitz [the soon
to be Mrs. Ernest Binks, or Aunt Tot], as I had hoped to do before
going up; the game wasn't over until five and the people of course
wanted to get started back as soon as possible. We arrived in
Pleasantville about half past eight, then a good many, including
Dr. Whitney and myself went to a "box party" the Senior
Class was giving in the gymnasium at the High School; a "box
party", as you may know, is one where the girls all bring
boxes of lunch with their names on the inside, which are auctioned
off to the boys; the boys then eat the lunches with the girls
whose names are in their several boxes. I acted as the auctioneer,
and managed to dispose of the lunches in a satisfactory manner
to those who reaped the profits; some of the boys knew who brought
the boxes, and wanted certain ones brought by their own girls
(the idea of these youngsters having girls!? Nothing like that
in my day) and paid as high as 90 cents to get them. Ring games
like "Three Deep" & dancing to the victrola filled
up most of the rest of the evening.
When I was home, I saw some of those salesmanship course books
on Ralph's table, and thought probably he was studying them,
although the matter of a regular class hadn't occurred to me.
I suppose the course will be of some value to him in his work,
and hope it proves to be worth the time and expense spent on
it.
Mrs. Winch wants me to thank you for the recipes you sent. She
has already tried the chocolate cake once and the orange pudding
twice, with considerable success.
In the course of a conversation I had last night with Dr. Whitney,
I learned that he is fairly well acquainted with President Wilson;
has introduced him twice on the lecture platform, has attended
several dinners of the Philosophical Club which Mr. Wilson has
also attended, once sitting right next to him, and I believe
has once ridden on the train with him; these things occurred,
I presume, before Mr. Wilson entered on his political career.
It was very interesting to hear him tell about the President;
the chief thing about his personality which Dr. Whitney mentioned,
was that he was the most courteous gentleman he had ever met.
Dr. Whitney has certainly had an interesting life, with his wide
travels and his wide acquaintance with gifted and important men;
when he was sixteen years old, he talked with Tennyson, in England.
He is well acquainted with Alfred Noyes, and has even had him
as a guest twice at his home on the Hudson [I looked him up and
he was a British poet, best known poem "The Highwayman",
and a professor of modern English literature at Princeton from
1914-1923. Died in 1958.]
It's a great relief to have these examinations over with, and
to be able to devote more time to my regular work. Thru the Thanksgiving
vacation I shall probably stay right here in Pleasantville; shall
have to be here on the day, anyway, as we have a football game.
If you had thought of it, don't bother to send me anything in
the way of a spread, as of course I'll have plenty to eat right
here. It will seem strange to be away from home, as, if I remember
rightly, it will be the first time that I have not been home
on Thanksgiving Day.
Tomorrow I hand out my first report cards, which can't be said
to be uniformly complimentary. No one in my session room has
all E's (90-100), although about three of them have three E's
out of four marks. There is one little girl in my room, the youngest
one of these, I think, who looks very much like Lucinthia. She's
a bright youngster, too, but kind of a cut-up. Then there is
another girl in my room who reminds me for all the world, in
looks and actions, of Anna Anderson. Lucinthia's prototype's
name is Virginia Anderson, Anna's Mildred Burns.
This week I have a party on hand Friday evening, and also guess
I'd better make a long overdue party call on the Maltby's. In
addition I hope to get caught up on correspondence.
With much love to all
Sylvester
[Susan Czaja adds: Raymond is Raymond
Coe, Sylvester's cousin married to Eleanor Schwartz who's
sister Anna Schwartz became Anna Strom. The Librarian at Belden
Library. Anna Anderson was Anna Doering of "Grandma Doering"
fame, an old girlfriend of Gramp's who he had contemplated proposing
to before going to Pleasantville. She's the Piano teacher that
Jackie & Nate had. Dad says that Raymond had very bad Asthma.]
Dear Mother
Perhaps I haven't been wishing that I had been up in New Haven
yesterday to see the break in the long lean spell and to feel
the thrill and exhilaration of losing a perfectly good Derby
hat over the goal posts. And to think Raymond couldn't have seen
it either! Eleanor wrote me that it was going to be out of the
question for him to do so. Yesterday was a good day all around
in football as the Pleasantville High School team beat the Bartlett
Athletic Club's team from Atlantic City, 26-0. The boys played
the best game they have put up this season and it certainly seemed
good to see the score end up on the right side. We play the same
team again Thanksgiving morning and I hope they don't succeed
in turning the tables on us at that time. That game will complete
the season, and I shall be glad that it is over. Basket ball
practice starts this week, and Carey is going to take care of
the basket ball team, I hope, although I have been assisting
in organization and have overseen the making up of a schedule.
The party Friday night was one of about thirty young people of
Pleasantville & Ocean City at a Mrs. Gandy's, a woman with
whom Cruse and some of the other teachers board; she is a young
old person, who has put two poor men under the sod and is courting
a third. Half a dozen or so of the other teachers were there,
including Miss Davis from here, Carey & Cruse. Games, music,
& refreshment made up the evening; refreshments seem to be
the chief element in a party down here, and the people seem to
be able to eat anything at any time - ice cream and cake near
midnight somehow don't appeal to me very much. The chief game
of the evening was a progressive "peanut-punching":
in this game there are several different tables, as in progressive
card games, and on each table there is a bowl of peanuts; people
on opposite sides of a table are partners; at the sound of a
whistle, the two opposing sides at each table try to see which
one can get the most peanuts out of the bowl with a hat pin,
starting with any one person and going around to the left; if
you got a peanut you have another turn until you miss; this keeps
up until the whistle blows and the couple that has the most moves
up, and then the game proceeds as before, ad lib.
Last night Carey and I were invited for the evening over to Atlantic
City by a Miss Dorsheimer, a Pleasantville teacher who boards
over there; she had her sister over from Philadelphia and with
one other girl and two other men made up a small party for the
evening. We missed the car over that we wanted to take, and so
were about an hour later than we intended to be. Her sister is
a very fine contralto singer, but our being late prevented us
from hearing her; she is a perfect picture of Ethel Barrymore,
the actress. We played five hundred most of the evening and just
before we went home had some refreshments of cake and cocoa.
I have just come in from a good walk of about an hour and a quarter
with MacDougall, the first walk I have taken out in the country
for some time.
In my other letter I conveyed some unintentional misinformation,
I see, about the dancing. What there has been of it at the school
parties has been rather limited, and I haven't taken any part
in it. The auctioneering was easy enough, except that it was
at the end of a hard day, examination and Bridgeton trip; how
those who had to listen to me stood it, I wasn't told. The examination
I took a week ago Saturday was harder than the first, and I don't
feel very confident about the result, but even if I don't pass
it, will have another chance in April; hope of course, however,
that it won't be necessary to take it again.
Of course the loaf cake will be very acceptable, and I'm sure
the other people here would enjoy getting a taste of it.
In the laundry last week I sent back a shirt that doesn't belong
to me, but is one of Ralph's, if I remember rightly.
Christmas vacation will begin on Dec.22nd, which is a Friday,
Christmas being on a Monday. I don't know just how long it will
be, but there will be at least ten days, I think. We have the
whole of the week from Thursday to Monday, off for Thanksgiving,
and I shall be glad of the chance of a little extra rest. I hope
everyone at home has a good time Thursday, even if you are going
to do nothing special.
With much love for all
Sylvester
| Home | Search
| SBButler Letters |