The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1869-11-13
4 GOOD LETTER.
Mark Twain's Idea of IL.

The most useful and interesting let
ters VIC get from home are from children
seven or eight years old. This is pet
rifed truth. Happily they have got
nothing else to talk about but home,
and neighbors and family-things their
betters think unworthy of transmission
thousands of miles. They write simply
and naturally, without aim for effect.
They tell all they know, and then stop.
They seldom deal in distractions or
homilies. Consequently their epistles
are brief; but, treating as they do OF
familiar scenes and persons, always en-
tertaining Now, therefore, II you
would learn the art of letterwriting, let
a Child teach you. have preserved u
letter from little glrl eight years at
age-preservcd it rs Il curiosity, because
it was tho only letter | ever got from
the States that had any information in
il. II ran thus:
ST. LOUIS, 1865.
"Uncle Mrk, if you was here / could
tell you about Moses in the Julrushes
again, / know it better know. Mr..
Sowberry has got his leg broke off his
horse. lie was riding il on Sunday.
Margaret, that's the maid, Margaret has
taken ali the spittoons, and sl0p bnck-
cts, and old jugs ont of your room, be-
cause she says she don't think you are
coming back any more, you have been
gone too long. Sissy McElroy's mother
has got another little baby. She has
them all tie time. 1t has got little blue
ewes, like Mr.. Swimley that boards there
and looks just like him. / have got a
new doll, but Johnny Anderson pulled
one of the legs out. Miss Dusenberry
was here yesterday; | gave her your
picture, but she didn't want it. My cat
has got more kittens-oh |! you can't
Ihink-twice rs many as Lottie Belden's.
And there's one, such 8 sweet little butt
one with short tail, and named it for
you.
All of them's got names now-General
Grant, and Halleck, and Moses, aud
Margaret, and Deuteronomy, and Cap.
tain Semmes, and Exodss, and Levitt
icus, and Horace Greeley-all named
but one, and am saving it because the
one named for you's been sick all the
time since, aud reckon it will die.
1t appears to be mighty rough on the
short tailed kitten for naming it for
me. | wonder how the reserved victim
will stand it'll Uaele Mark, do be
lieve Hattie Caldwell likes you, and l
know she thinks you are pretty, because
| heard her say nothing could hurt your
good looks-nothing at all-she said,
even if you were to have the :mall -pox
ever SO bad, you would be inst as good
locking as you were before. And ma
says she's ever so smart. tNery.l SO
no more this time, because General
Grant and Moses are fighting. 49,
This child treads on my toes in every
other sentence with. perfect looseness,
but in the simplicity of her time OF life
she doesn't know it.
l consider that model ietter-an
emiBently readable and entertaining
letter, and, as said before, it contains
mere matter of interest and real infor
nation than any letter ever received
from the East. | had rather hear
about cats at home, and their truly re.
marksble names, than listen to lot of
stnff about people am not acquainted
| with, OF read "The Evil Effects Of the
Intox icating Bowly illustrated on the
back with the picture of ragged scala
wag pelting away right and left in the
midst of his family circle with q junk
| bottle. =