Dear James,
Glad to get your letter. We have plenty to do all the time. It rained the afternoon the children were home but we got most of the last load of wood inside first. Yes, Jenson brought the last load. Sham hasn’t started to cut yet. Darrel set fire to some dry stuff near the school house and frightened the children half to death. They keep the strip around the school plowed all the time in case of fire. We can get wood from Jenson to last until you come.
Saturday and Sunday were mild and fair. We walked around the grove and through the fields and found deer tracks, rabbit tracks and partridge tracks and I saw the bird (pileated woodpecker) again yesterday in our grove. I’ve been afraid someone had shot it and I hope no one gets our deer. It is nice to think of the little wild folk living near so quietly.
I’ll put the paper around the house as soon as I mail this letter. It is not cold and the wind has died down but it looks like rain. We went to Park Rapids Sat. afternoon. I put real hot water into the radiator and left it covered a few minutes and it started right off. I tried it first without the hot water and it wouldn’t start. I looked at the pump first as you told me to and the fan belt was off. I always try the pump as you told me to. I shall look over everything very carefully and only use the car when it is necessary. I couldn’t get eggs around here and hadn’t had any for a week and had been out of coffee for three days, and Sat. was a fair day so I thought we had better go then. I bought a dozen eggs for 30 cents, a dozen oranges for 25 cents, a bedspread for 98 cents, and a yard of cloth for 15 cents to hang over the tops of the windows as the curtains are 4 inches too short. I dyed the oldest curtains a light yellow and put them up at the east and south windows and the yellow ruffled ones at the north window. They look very cheerful and the cretonne for the tops has yellow, blue and brown in it and blends very well with the blue walls, yellow curtains and wood beams. I am sending you a pan of biscuits and John says the canoe is for matches. The pictures are good. I have one stamp left. I’ll send a list of things to get and don’t forget your laundry. The vegetables are good but just send a few at a time.
Lots of love from us all, Martha
(Wednesday)
I didn’t get to vote, the car wouldn’t start. I got the paper around the house just in time. I banked it with dirt. I also covered the coop roof and the corner where the wood is piled. I covered the flowers with grass. We greased John’s boots again, that keeps them dry for a while. It snowed last night and is sleeting today but it is not cold. The children send their love.
Write soon,
Martha