Letters home to his parents; paper on religion; and two photographs : Beckwith with friends and Branner Hall

is faulty at times. I saw the [notation] [Emerson?] [/notation] debating coach who is my professor in Extemporaneous speaking and he complimented me on the improvement shown in my last few speeches. Since arguing for agnosticism I have taken up the cudgel in defence of Socialism and tried to develop some power of vitriolic denunciation by attacking the Ku Klux Klan. He urged me to continue trying out for the debating team.

I was sorry to miss seeing you this vacation but, as you see from the expenses of the trip, we needed the money more. I have come to the conclusion that father gave us four or five "punk" tries when he turned the car over to us. However we were a hundred dollars ahead on it so I guess we can stand the strain all right. By the way I believe you owe us some money on it but we can collect that Easter.

Your loving son,

Burnham

March 2, 1924

Dear Mother,

By the time this reaches you it will only be about two weeks until our Easter Vacation begins. The papers up here have been telling us of a rather bad drought in Southern California, so I suppose yesterday and todays rain has been appreciated in Pasadena.

Fright night Web and I had dinner with Stanley Weigel and his mother in their tiny flat. We had all the chicken and vegetables we wanted and they tasted good for a chang. His parents are absolutely uneducated and he is working his way thru here. He has a very brilliant mind however, and will make a mighty clever lawyer.

I have been getting quite chummy with [Art?] Wild and [Sartel] Prentice the two fellows who live across the hall. As I told you before the former has attended Harvard, & the latter Yale, for two years. They come from very cultured eastern families and have had the best kind of home training. Prentice's father, who is a minister, visited here recently and talked with Web and I about religion. Web & I are both freethinkers so we gave him a hot run for his money. Wild

is very interested in English literature and drama. Last night he gave me the very high brow play "Electra" by some German author which I read and liked somewhat.

Saturday afternoon Weigel and I went to San Francisco and he guided me on a sight seeing trip through the fine residential section which I had never seen before. We had a delicious dinner at Townsends and that evening we say "The Fool", Channing Pollock's social religious play, at the Columbia. It is a very powerful compelling story of a minister losing his parish for preaching in behalf of some strikers whose employers are of his congregation. I wonder if you were able to see Eleanora Dase during her apperance in Los Angeles.

I was unable to get tickets to the Chicago Grand Opera Company. They were sold out of the cheap 3 & 5 dollar seats weeks ahead of the performance which has not taken place yet. I certainly would have liked to hear Chaliapin.

I have decided to try eating at Russell's this month. If I see any improvement in myself while doing it I shall make it my permanent dining place.

We had a fire on the campus here a few nights ago. Web was in bed & got up and dressed in order to go over and see it. From the flames and light in the sky everyone thought at first that it was the President's mansion or Roble but it was neither; only the small women's boathouse.

I spoke in favor of a union of the English speaking peoples of the world in Extemporaneous speaking on Friday. I was less nervous than on any occasion so far. I was glad to learn from the professor that I can continue this course for two quarters more. I thinking it is improving my confidence and experience in addressing an audience very materially.

The English professor read another of my short story plots in class and complimented it.

My weight is 132 pds.

Your loving son,

Burnham

March 9, 1924

Dear Father,

I am writing this letter with a pen I found Friday. Unfortunately the loser advertised in the Daily Palo Alto lost & found column so I will have to return it tomorrow. This is the second pen I have found this quarter which is very fortunate as my own has a broken point.

The Y. M. C. A. is going to have a series of luncheon discussions with eminent preachers to lead each. The first one comes off tomorrow noon so I suppose I shall go over and try to convert the preacher, whoever it is, to reasonable agnosticism.

The generator on the car has been weak for some time now so we usually have to get out and crank it. I got quite a bruise on my arm doing so to-day. We are having terribly warm weather here now so we have the top down again.

I gave "Patriotism" a severe drubbing in my last speech in Extemporaneous Speaking. This coming week the two best speakers in each section will be chosen by the class & will [skip?] the final in this course. I think I shall speak on Eugene V. Debs and