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March 4, 1917
March 11, 1917
March 18, 1917
March 25, 1917
Dear Mother,
Today is the seventh in a consecutive series of stormy ones,
and has been the worst of any of them, so that I have been indoors
all day long. I wonder if you have had the same kind of week
up home.
The past week has been another busy one, and one devoid of any
social activities. I have been especially busy at school this
week, because I have had charge of the newly instituted extra
study hour for delinquents between three and four in the afternoon
for the week. It's been going for three weeks now, and the different
teachers take weekly turns at it. It is designed to bring up
the Scholarship of those who are deficient in any studies, but
also is held over the heads of recalcitrant pupils who are disinclined
to do the proper amount of work, in a punitive light. I had about
half a dozen algebra students spending the week up there while
I was on duty, and so the week has been one grand revelry in
algebra - poor folks! despite the impossibility of preserving
perfect equanimity while attempting to cast algebraic lights
thru their mental fog, I can't help sympathizing, I should be
like the ungrateful servant who took his fellow servant by the
throat, demanding payment for a shilling debt when he had just
been excused from a ten thousand pound one, in the scriptural
parable, if I didn't sympathize with their confused efforts to
wander thru the algebra maze, when I recall my own struggles
with the analytical geometry, and my inability to the last or
to this day to see what it was all about. [note - Our grandfather
has a penchant for long, run-on sentences; sort of stream of
consciousness stuff. This last being a perfect example and the
next being a close second. -- Susan Czaja]
Last evening I went over to Atlantic City with Davis and attended
a lecture in the Atlantic City High School, the first in a series
of six university extension course lectures on the place of music
in education, given by a Mr. Surette, an authority on musical
education, who is connected with the music department at Harvard,
I believe, but has some other connections, such as active membership
on a committee which for a couple of years has been working out
a series of songs and programs of musical study for each grade
in the Boston public schools. Last evening he spoke on music
for the earliest grades, and I presume will lead up from there
in the other lectures of the series to more and more advanced
grades. It seems probably a rather strange kind of thing for
me to be attending, and I probably shouldn't have thought of
going ever if Davis hadn't called me up yesterday and asked me
if I'd care to go over with him. But I rather think I shall enjoy
them, and expect to attend the other lectures in the series;
my natural interest in music, and the value of familiarity with
all educational matters to any teacher are either of them sufficient
justification for the time spent in this way, I should say. He
of course illustrates his lectures at the piano, and last evening
had a singer, a Miss Kennedy, who sang some of the child songs,
which he gave as illustrations of the right kind of thing to
interest children in music, in a very simple and unaffected,
and therefore pleasing, manner. Mr. Surette has a rather superior
Harvard-like air about him, and didn't mind insinuating that
many in his audience had musical standards of low order - for
instance he announced that he would play two children's pieces
which were to illustrate the right and wrong kind of thing for
children, and asked the audience to listen and say which was
the good one, and which was the bad one. The first one he played
was the bad one, full of these sentimental chords we get in present
day agony-music, as I call it, such as a dreamy drift from a
chord composed of notes D, A flat, and B natural to one made
up with E flat, A flat, and C; the second piece was a simple,
direct, genuine little thing, which I should think any one would
choose as the better - but as might be supposed there were some
in the audience who chose the first, and after he had seen the
show of hands he proceeded to ridicule the bad piece, which it
probably deserved, but could have done without previously enforcing
some of the audience to confess what he later implied, by ridiculing
the piece, to be bad taste.
Yes, I'll go in with Lucinthia on a present for Church and Eva,
if she wishes, and thank you for getting it. The check I am enclosing
($3.25) allows $1.50 toward this, the rest being my postage bill,
which it was just as easy to repay you for now as anytime. If
there is anything left over from the $1.50. then you can apply
that on necessary parcel postage in the future.
I must confess I haven't yet begun studying for the April examinations,
but shall do so this week. I hope Ralph will enjoy his Boy Scout
work. I was interested in the clippings about the New Britain
fires. Thank you for the apples and maple sugar included in the
laundry case; they went right to the spot. Good apples are a
scarcity here; none that the Winch's have had have been in the
least way palatable.
With much love to all
Sylvester
Dear Mother,
It was interesting to see the program of Mr. Dyer's recital,
and I am sure it must have been very enjoyable. Thank you for
sending it. I haven't seen anything in the Alumni Weekly about
tearing down all the buildings in the block the clipping you
sent me told about, for the purpose of putting up new dormitories,
but its not an unnatural thing to do; however I hardly believe
Pierson Hall would be torn down - an entrance could be cut on
the other side, so that it would face the new campus.
Have I told you about the new boarder we have had here since
the first of the year? I don't believe I have. She is a Miss
Taylor, who rooms next door and eats here; a new teacher in the
grammar school who just came after Christmas. She has had good
education and traveled around a great deal, but I don't believe
is any different to-day than the day she first left her original
rustic habitat - which must be sometime ago, as she appears to
be on the shady side of 35, at least. Her appearance and bearing
suggest such a name as Samantha Perkins, and in general, it is
inevitable that she should be the object of a little merriment
when she is not around. Within the past week she has gotten off
a couple of remarks, which have incidentally brought a little
fun at Carey's and my expense. The first was on Carey; I've forgotten
how it started, but for a day or two we had been carrying out
a pretense that Carey was courting Miss Davis and it had gotten
to the point where Carey was pretending despondency over supposed
rejection, when Miss Taylor comforted him by telling him that
there were others still left -- coming from her with the natural
implications we put on it, after she had left, of course, we
thought we had one on Carey. But I came in for my turn yesterday
morning, when Mrs. Winch, in the course of some bantering at
the breakfast table, asked me something like had I been spooning
in the moonlight the previous evening, which I countered by the
remark that if I had, I'd been spooning with myself. Miss Taylor
wanted to know if I hadn't been a little selfish -- and I shall
probably never hear the last of it.
There was no lecture last evening, the next one to be given next
Saturday, and the rest to be put ahead one week each. Just what
the reason was I don't know. To-day has been very springlike,
although it rained in spasms thru the morning and early afternoon.
Later in the afternoon, from about half-past three to half-past
six, I took my weekly constitutional. Have you seen any robins
or bluebirds as yet? I saw a robin, a nice big fat one, two weeks
ago today, while out walking, but since then I haven't seen a
one.
I rather plan to spend a couple of days of my Easter vacation
of 4 or 5 days (including Saturday & Sunday) up at Philadelphia.
Of course I could get up home, but it's such a short time that
I guess I won't try; besides, I don't feel as though I could
leave my work thru the whole time. Think of it, it's almost the
halfway time between Xmas vacation and June. I am naturally giving
considerable thought to ways and means of spending a Summer,
but have taken no active steps toward solving the question yet.
With much love to all,
Sylvester.
TWO ENCLOSURES
[laundry list]
3/9/17
7 shirts (2 soft)
7 undershirts
9 underdrawers (6 BVD [I'm not sure that this is the
(3 Balhiggen) <-- correct spelling]
2 pajamas
7 prs socks
14 handkerchiefs
2 large towels
2 small "
1 washcloth
[newspaper filler]
A Superfluity
"One wife too many," exclaimed Mrs.
Jones as she glanced at the headlines
of her husband's paper. "I suppose
that is an account of the doings of some
bigamist."
"Not necessarily, my dear," replied her
husband, without daring to look up.
Dear Mother,
Before your letter came, I had already received a letter from
Eva thanking me for the shears and paper-cutter, so that I already
knew what you had gotten; she seemed very much pleased with them,
the way she wrote, and I am certainly much obliged to you for
doing all the work.
Binky [Ernest Binks, "Ern" in the first letters] wrote
me a letter the first of the week, spurred on by your hint. He
seems to like his law work, particularly the trial end if it.
I judge he is spending a pretty lonesome winter in Cromwell;
says he hasn't even been up to the Sage's since Christmas. His
family have surely had a time of it with both Mary and Tom going
thru sieges of pneumonia during the winter.
I have written to Bert Phelps, c/o L.F.& C., New Britain,
which is the only address I know for him. They send mail out
to him every day, so it will be forwarded to the proper address
immediately; only I'm afraid you won't get the bottle in time
to give it to Aunt Lucy exactly on the 23rd. I told him to send
you the standard type bottle, full metal plated, quart size,
which I think will be what you want. I suppose the prices on
them are quite a little higher than they were when I left, but
I guess it won't be any staggering figure.
We seem to get a new sensation served up to us every week, don't
we? Surely these are days of great events. I hope the new order
of things in Russia will be permanent; also wouldn't mind seeing
similar events transpire in the empire to the west of Russia.
I don't believe the Russian revolution will have any ill effect
on the military situation as far as the Allies are concerned,
in fact it may help them, as there were unquestionably many of
the old reactionary leaders who would have welcomed a separate
peace and an understanding with Germany - even the Czar himself
may have been under this influence; I don't imagine he would
be a particularly hard man to influence.
Last evening I attended with Davis the second of the lectures
on music's part in education. I was a little bit mistaken in
telling you before what the lectures were to cover - I believe
I said I thought they were to cover merely what kind of music
should be taught in the schools from the lowest grades up. I
enclose a program of the series which will show exactly the scope
of the course. Last night's lecture took up especially the education
of children in music in the home & with private teachers
- it is his view, and the view seems to me for the most part
well taken, that the chief aim of musical education is to teach
one to be musical and to appreciate what is good in music, and
that to do this children should be started at once on simple
pieces with good musical themes, with just enough work in scales,
exercises, and so forth, to acquire the necessary technical skill
in playing. He maintains that a musical sense is much more important
than technique. I am finally not going up to Philadelphia at
Eastertime, as I had a letter from Sam this week, saying that
he'd have to beg off on account of approaching examinations.
I'll probably need the time myself on my own examinations. Ern
expects to be down at Bridgeton a few days at Easter, and I am
going to see if I can't persuade them to come over and see me
for a day.
Our friend C. Collard certainly got plenty of advertising in
connection with his latest escapade. I noticed the article in
the Press about Mabel Carlson's coming to Atlantic City on her
honeymoon - didn't you tell her, too, that I was only five miles
from here? I can keep my things here at Mrs. Winch's thru the
summer, and shall leave as much as I can; a number of my books
I shall want to carry around with me, but there are also a great
number I can leave here.
I enjoyed the licorice dandies, the apples, and the crackers
very much; nibbled at them most of the day yesterday, as I worked
at my desk. Please tell Aunt Sarah I'm very much obliged. Also
wish Father many happy returns of the 20th for me.
With much love to you and all
Sylvester.
Dear Mother,
This is a most beautiful sunshiny spring day here, only it needs
a few trees and hills to set it off. Are you still having winter
up home?
I haven't seen anything of Church and Eva down this way. Does
anyone know where they did go? I had a letter from Marie Hollister
this week and she mentioned that her father had gone up to Cromwell
to marry them. I was glad to get Aunt Sarah's letter the early
part of the week - Cromwell has been building right up this winter,
according to her.
Last night the musical lecture was on church music, as you will
see from the program which I am enclosing this time if I don't
forget it. What is good and what is bad music under the various
kinds he takes up seems to be the main theme of his lectures.
The singer, Miss Kennedy, was with him again last night, and
sang three or four simple but beautiful anthems which Mr. Sevrette
believes to be the right kind of thing for congregational singing.
He took a fling at paid quartets, and believes that all church
music should be such as could be understood and sung by congregations.
Wednesday I took an evening off and went down to Northfield to
see Davis. We spent the evening over at his school, part of the
time going over some pieces with violin and piano together, part
of the time he was trying to teach me some dance steps with victrola
music, and the rest of the time listened to some good musical
records of his that he keeps at the school.
We're beginning to work on graduation programs now, and I have
got the task of supervising the boy who delivers the class oration,
which means, I suppose, that I write most of it, as his literary
abilities are, to say the least, hidden. However, I shall of
course try as far as I can [to] keep within my proper sphere
of suggestion and criticism only.
It is making me "hump" to complete the year's work
by the 15th of May, which is the time examinations begin. In
Mediaeval and Modern History I can't begin to do all the work,
and shall have to do not a little skipping of less important
facts; it would be so interesting, too, to go over in detail
the events of the last three years with them, but that will be
out of the question. As we started so late, and the textbooks
were two weeks later in coming, incidentally having proved a
disappointment in not being very suitable for my Sophomores who
take it, making it impossible to catch up. I find this skipping
necessary.
It looks as though a revolution in Germany would be about the
only thing which would keep us out of the war now, as far as
our navy is concerned at least.
With much love to yourself and all,
Sylvester.
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