The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1873-09-04
The Family Letter.

Sundays. The reason that day is 90.
lected is not alone because Of tho
leisures it presents. The quiet of the
day, its relief from all influences that
irritate or agltate, frees the mind
from irrevelant and antagonistic mat.
ter, and makes it pre- eminently fit
occasion for communion with distant
leved ones. In nine cases out OF ten
the letter is written by the head 0,
tho family, and Of those sent an equal
portion are addressed to his wite'a
folks. We don't know why it is tina,
man so rarely writes to his own
folks, but ~ it is not tho project Of
this article to treat on that subject,
we will pretend We don't care.
The hour being selected for indit.
ing the letter, the first thing is to
find the paper. There IL always a
drawer in every well regulated faml.
ly for keeping such things. 1t is
either in the table or stand. Here
the writing paper and odd screws,
and fiddle strings, and broken locks,
and fiishllnes, and grocery receipts,
are kept. There may DO other things,
but if there are, he will see them
The sheet Of paper is finally found !;
the fly stains neatly scraped of, aud
the search commences Tor the ink and
pen. The former is invariably found
on the mantel, next the clock, and is
Immediately laid on the table con-
venient to the perepiring man, who
sarcasucally inquiries if the letter IS
to be written TO day or next Sunday.
This inspires the wife with new zeal
in the search. She goes over the
drawers again, because she knows he
wouldn't see anything If it was right
under his nose, but the pen is not
there. Then she looks over the top
of tho bureau, and lifts everything
on the front-room table, and says it
seems SO singular it cant be found,
when she saw it only the day before,
aud thought about the letter. Then
she goes into the pantry, and, after
exploring the lower shelf in vain,
stands upon a chair, and carefully
goes over the top shelf where the
medicine bottles and unused cans are
stationed. After she has done this
she starts up stars, and pretty soon
returns with the pen, and takes it to
the sink to wash the grease from it
but does not succeed in quite effaclng
the delicate scent of bergamot. This
leads him to observe tha. anybody
who takes a pen holder to lift hair.
grease from bottle, is too poor aud
innocent tor this world.
Everything now in readiness, good
humor is restored, the wife takes a
seat opposite, with her elbows on the
table and her chin in her hands. and
assumes . cast Of countenance that
is mysterlously calculated to both
encourage and depress the writer ;
and he grasps the pen tightly be.
tween his fingers, and starcs at tho
paper with an iptenslty that is entire.
ly unnecessary. The date line starts
of glibly, and then suddenly ceases
a. it reaches the date itself. He puts
the holder in his mouth, and immed.
lately spits it out again, making up a
face that is nowise suggestive Of Der.
gamot, and pettishly asks her if she
knows the day OF the month. It il
the 13th-or it is the-but not
must. Shc hesitates. stares at HIM
wavers, and il lost. She don't know
whether It is the 18th or 14th, but
the almanac will tell, and she at once
starts to hunt it up. This occasion.
. delay Of some fifteen minutes, dur
ing which he makes ninety.fiye passes
at one fiy.
The date having been satistact torlly
settled upon, aud the things which
rolled over the floor, as the stand
drawer unexpectedly foil out, having
been restored to their place, the date
line is completed. and Dear Mother
started. The pen is q home pen, ol
bashful mould, and whenever it starts
line it requires half dozen passes
to make it give down. All home
pens do this. And all home sheets
OF paper have weak spots which tht
ink refuses to cross, thus creating
some remarkable divisions Of words
aud considerable confusion among
sentences. Some of these spots are
two inches 10 diameter. and any one
IN tho next room could tell the mo
ment the writer comes to them, Just
as we'll as If he was looking over biz
shoulders. When tho letter is com
pleted. which generally occurs at the
end OF the fifth hour from the com
mencement, it is carefully read ovel
and supplied with absent words, and
then gone over again and artisticall,
touched ur with the pen at fine bar,
places. Then it is folded up ready
Coz Tho nnunlona and AhA AsenD.a>.s