Barzen letters

Palo Alto, Cal. Jan 27, 1913 Mon. 6:00 P.M.

Dear Family,

Letter of Saturday A.M. received today and I am very glad to hear from you and to learn that you are having pleasant weather there. Weather here is also pleasant and about the middle of the day is quite warm. So far I have not done anything about the club but may go in about the first. Glad to hear that you enjoyed the newspaper clippings. I will send you one that I think you will enjoy more than any of them so far - at least I, being of a vain disposition, have enjoyed it most since a very minute portion of it concerns myself. It is relative to the track meet, which I mentioned was to take on Sat. This time I met with better success in a different type of run, the half mile. Friday night I ate some ice cream so before retiring, in order to get the gas off my stomach I bent over and touched the floor with my fingers 125 times. It made my back stiff so I rubbed some of

that shaving lotion (camphor and witch hazel) on and felt pretty fair in the morning. I drank a cup of hot water and went to track. Didn't undress until time to run. There were fifteen entered so they divided them into two squads and ran the two heats which you see mentioned in the paper. I drew for the first heat. You see my race is the half mile but it was shortened to 600 yards. No varsity men ran but the fellow who won one of the heats, Bassett, had run before in the race last year against California, that is he made the squad as they saw but was not a point winner. The race started at a fast clip so they all said. I decided to fall into fourth position as that would let the first men tire themselves out if they were going to and still not put me so far back that I could not sprint the finish I kept fourth until about 220 yds from the finish and then managed to pass Davis. I was of course all in but I saw the fellow ahead of me was worse off so I managed to pass him, thus getting second. Davis then managed to sprint and passed the man whom I passed and also

me so we finished one two and third. Of course I was elated. The fellow whom I passed and Davis who placed second both lost their lunch but I didn't and was only dizzy, a little and tired. Was pretty sore yesterday and today and have had a cold today and not felt very well but went to track tonight and worked pretty hard and got shower and rub down. Ed Obrikat ran a half and while he did not place ( that he to get 1st 2nd or 3rd) he ran a nice race and I think may show up. He came in fifth with about ten entries and did not seem to be tired at the finish. I surely was tired - I couldn't raise my leg off the ground hardly at the finish but fortunately my wind seemed to be doing fairly well and that has always trouble me most. In the afternoon John and I went to San Francisco an I went to Berkeley and he went shopping as the women say. Wanted some catalogues but was unable to get what I wanted but can send for them. I then went exploring. I wanted to see what the Phi Kappa Sigma House looked like ( that is our maybe you

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know. It is not as good looking from the exterior as the one the boys (the club) have here but it is larger. I did not go in, of course as I had not met any of the boys but I looked around elsewhere and saw how e ("e" means "the") fraternity houses were located. They are off campus and in Berkeley, though they are more or less grouped on the same streets and a few are next door to each other. I again went into the beautiful library the university has. I was with al though impressed as previously to the effect that Stanford is truly on a farm while California is in a city ____ the farm for me. In the evening I met John and he took me to the Palace Hotel for dinner. You can immagine that ___ during e meal they place on fresh lunch cloths, remove butter when it has merely been touched and all that sort of thing. We went in the evening to "Excuse me" at the cort. 9 + was partially for this that we went up and I did enjoy it. I constantly wished father might have been along. The scene is in a Pullman, first in the sleeper + then in a combination car. I have

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never attended a more amusing play and it was very well acted. I think the play has come from the south and hence you may not have an opportuity to see it but if it comes there by all means go. John & I then went slumming as they say, seeing the dance halls but as we had seen it all before we tired of it and returned to the uptown, had something to eat and caught a train for Pally instead of going to a hotel as I wished to get home and study. Slept most of Sunday morning and studied in the afternoon and part of the evening and didn't queen. I honestly have never done so little queening since I have been acquainted in Pally. I wanted to write this afternoon in time to catch the 3:01 but as had to go to the R.R. seminar which I mentioned I could not do so 7 & hence and writing now as soon as back from track and before eating supper. Studied French with ostrander after the R.R. seminar + before track. In that R.R. course he is going to make us do original work, that is we will go to