She was to win fame by singing before kings and queens, but as a child she won the hearts of the big rough gold miners with her remarkable voice and loveable ways. She loved to recall singing before Queen Victoria, and the words that followed. Rumor has it that he asks Mrs. Mills for permission to kiss one of the graduates.
Permission is denied.
To commemorate the 50th year since her visit, Mills held a Gertrude Stein Literary Conference in fall of 1994. She is remembered fondly by the other students, arriving n horse-drawn carriage in the morning, her arms full of fresh cut flowers or fresh cherries from her fathers nearby orchard, where she and her husband would later make their home.