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Monday Eve. 5. P.M. January 13th. 1896
My Own Sweetheart
I received no letters at all on Saturday but your Thursday night and Friday night letters came together this morning at about 9 o'clock, so I was a very happy little girl. I received one from Daddy at the same time -- Our mails are very irregular, here, depending so much upon whether the Chicago train gets in on time or not. You dear faithful one; you would write quite the
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same whether I wrote to you or not. It is so sweet to think that no matter how things go against us I have always your perfect trust and love to fall back upon nothing else matters while I have that.
I am glad that you do not mind the home teasing but keep the sunshine pillow close to you in spite of all.
If you only knew their was a kiss and a loving thought went with every stitch in its construction for I knew it would stay very close to you when I was gone. I took my second lesson of Madame this morning all went well --
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As we both expected, Mrs Russell is anxious for me to give Natalie lessons while I am here, so I shall make an exception in her case. To think I have only been gone from you a week, it seems months, darling. I wonder if every week will be as long as this. I do hope and pray not. I am so grieved to hear that dear Alfred Toy is ill, give him my love and sympathy and give my true love to your dear Mother and ask her if she won't write to her other exiled
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daughter, I should so love to hear from any of your dear home people.
(Shop) The green soap is not acting badly now, I think during those extremely cold days the first of the week my face was unusually tender.
I had a note from Miss Van Schaick today explaining her non-appearance yesterday afternoon.
I expect I shall have several calls on Thursday so I have sent out some cards for that afternoon in each week, with the introductory letters which I had given one
As to my poor Alice, Claire dear, I have every reason to doubt your
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diagnosis, as her letters are all expressions of content and a perfect assurance of happiness to come very soondo not breathe this to any one, as I am her confidant. The reason I call her "poor" is because I am so afraid that she will find too late that her happiness is counterfeit and not at all the genuine thing. But it is absolutely useless or worse to suggest the slightest doubt to her mind, she glories in the fact that she can and does believe in him implicitely, in the face of evidence against him. You could no more shake her trust in him than the rock of Gibraltar.
