June 1, 1915

Dear Diary,

I still haven’t heard from Roy and it worries me some. I know it’s just he’s very busy or the mail has been held up for some reason. All the same I can’t help fretting that he might be sick, injured, or worse. No, I must not let my thoughts go there. He’s just working hard, that’s all.

I do wish it would rain. I know we have had lots this spring but not in the past few days. We need some soon if our seedlings are to take off.  Some of our neighbors are now talking of moving to Sheridan the unpredictable weather here in the Bear Lodge mountains just makes it hard to farm.

Sadie and Bert surprised us with a short visit yesterday as they were on their way to spend the evening with their good friends, the Bates. I loved getting a few extra minutes to cuddle and play with Tootie. She’s getting to be quite the crawler; I am afraid there is no more sitting her on a blanket and expecting her to stay put.

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Nagrom, WN
June 1st, 1915

Dear Mae:

Well here I am once again. Am a little late with my letter this week but better late than not at all so they say. I went home last Sat. evening so didn’t have time to write. I didn’t think I would go down before about the first of July, but I had a letter from Mother and she was feeling kind of blue so thought, I would go down and see if I could cheer her up a bit. She isn’t so well as she was a while back has been just about down with the grip for a week or more. I was home all-day Sunday and it seemed quite nice to be home again. It sure looks nice around Puyallup now, everything is so fresh and green and there are so many flowers in blossom. The strawberries and cherries are ripe to so you may know that I had a feast. Wish you could have been there and helped me eat some.

• 

I saw all the folks except Justin and Lillian they were all well except Lode, she was feeling bum she said, but I guess it wasn’t anything serious. Saul and Hugh are not living where they did they have moved into the little house right south of Mr. Purkensen’s berry patch. (Author’s note: The Purkensens were another one of Mae’s aunts and uncles). I went over and had a nice visit with Henry’s folks. They seem to be getting along fine. I showed Mrs. Henry your picture and I thot she was going to have a fit over it. I showed it to all the rest of the folks to and they all said it was just dandy. Mother and Lida seemed awful glad to get it and said it was good.

Sunday evening I was over to Mr. Purkensens and had a nice visit. It was the first time I had seen since I came back from WYO so they had lots of questions to ask me. Justin and his wife are at home tho. Justin has a team and is working on the county-road. You ought to see Justin’s little boy. He is just awful cute. He and Iretha are just about the same size and I guess they’d have a great time playing together. Henry’s said they expected Justin and Lillian to show up in Puyallup at any time now. I expected to get to see them as I thought they were already in Puyallup but was disappointed. Will get to see them before so very long tho I suppose.

My Father is pretty well now, he looks ever so much better than he did when I last saw him. He is able to go out with the team now and do quite a little work.

I got yours and Sadie’s letter Saturday and of course was very glad. Sorry that you Mother wasn’t very well and hope she will be better soon. I expect you were some glad to see Tootie again. I would be glad myself If I could see her now. Many thanks for the picture. I don’t think it looks much like her tho, for I know she is much prettier than that. I sure would like to see her with her new shawl, bet she is some cute.

Sorry you have been having such disagreeable weather in Wyoming. Hope it will be nice pretty soon. It is still pretty well here. we have some rain almost everyday. Rained pretty hard this afternoon. I sure hope June isn’t going to be as wet as May was.

Good evening,

Well I think I have told you about all I know so will stop and pull in as I am getting awfully sleepy. Give my regards to all.

Roy

Here is the first little wild roses I have seen this season. I found them in the woods where we were at work the other day.

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June 5,1915

Dear diary,

We had a meeting of the Book and Thimble club today at the Massies but it was so wet and foggy not very many folks came. Those of us who were there had a good chat. We agreed to postpone our book talk and try and meet again next week. Unfortunately, the meeting ended on a sad note when the phone rang to inform us that Grandma Rishor had died earlier in the day from a stroke.

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Nagrom, WN

June 5, 1915

Dear Mae,

 Well how is my Little Girl this fine evening, just fine tho I trust. I am still feeling fine and dandy and hope these fiew lines will find you in the same fix. I received your last letter Wednesday and you know I was glad. I wasn’t looking for another letter so soon so was somewhat surprised. It was a very pleasant surprise and I wish you would surprise me again in the same fix. Was so glad to hear you were feeling better and your Mother is better to.

To bad the frost injured the wild fruit down there. I hope it didn’t kill all of it tho. It would sure be a shame if it did. This has been a bad season for frost here also. There is going to be very fiew cherries or apples and I think the raspberries are hurt some to. Just how much I can’t tell yet. It is to bad but I guess it cannot be helped, so it is no use to cry about it.

I hope I can get enough cherries from my trees so I can send you a fiew. I have only two trees that will keep long enough and they are the ones that got frosted the worse. I went over and looked at them when I was down and there was only a fiew left. They will be ripe about the first of July I think. No, I didn’t rent my berries to anyone this season. Am hiring them tended and am going to let Lida tend to the picking. It doesn’t pay for me to do it myself. Wish you could be here and help in the picking. I suppose the camp will be shut down for about a week the Fourth of July so I will get to pick some myself and of course eat quite a fiew also.

I got a letter from Justin the other day, the same day that I got yours. He was still at Oysterville, digging clams. He said he would have to quit that pretty soon tho, as it is against the law to dig any after the first of June. He is talking some of renting some land down there. Said if he didn’t do it he would be up to Puyallup soon, and would come up here after the Fourth of July.

There is a dance here tonight, Richard is going to play. Don’t know if I will go over or not. I worked pretty hard to-day and it was pretty warm, so I am somewhat tired. Am going to have to work tomorrow to, so I guess I hadn’t better go to any dance.
I bet Hazel was some disappointed that she didn’t get to go to the dance at MC Donald’s. If she was here she could get enough dancing I think. I am going to bring my clothes with me after the Fourth and see if I can’t learn to dance. They sure have them often enough and have some good dancers here so I will never have a better opportunity to learn. Richard is practicing on some new music.

I am sorry I forgot the date of Daniel’s birthday for I intended to send him some little remembrance. I suppose he will feel a little jealous now because I sent Hazel a present after forgetting him.

Tell Hazel that I made a mistake when I put the ribbon in her shawl and got it on the wrong side and didn’t find it until it was to late to change it. She can change it herself if she wants to.

I found the flowers in your letter and think they are nice, many thanks for them. There are lots of wildflowers here but not so very many tame ones. Am glad to hear that there is prospects for good crops in Wyoming this year and hope the weather continues favorable.

I suppose you and Sadie and Tootie had a great time together last week. You will surely miss them when they go home again. Will they go before the Fourth of July?

Well it is getting so late so guess I had better pull in, as Daniel says and get some sleep so I can stand another long weary day.
Tell everyone hello for me.

 Good-night, Roy

Dear Diary

June 6, 1915

I feel so bad, this morning we woke to a blanket of frost on the ground. Unlike the one at the end of May this one I fear is a killing frost.  I am afraid we will need to do lots of replanting. Farming in these parts is just too hard. Seems like we either have too much rain, or not enough or it’s too cold or hot.

Just heard a car go by. Since the roads have finally dried out there has been a lot of joy riding going on around here. 

——————————————————————————————————————————-June 9, 1915

Dear diary,

Today’s going to be a scorcher, freezing one day, pouring the next followed by a hot, that’s a Wyoming summer for you.

Yesterday we all met over at the Bates for a combined birthday party for my Uncle Bill Smith and Daniel. Of course we acknowledged Daniel’s real birthday, too. Hard to believe he is already 12.

 Mama wasn’t feeling well so she stayed home but the rest of us went. Jim and Phoebe Bates cooked us a delicious meal out in the yard using their camp stove and we ate under the of the trees. Sadie and I brought cakes, a chocolate on for Daniel, and a lemon one for Uncle Willie.

There was quite a crowd of us with the Smiths, Marchants, and Bates combined. Tootie and Zeta are close in age and were so fun to watch playing on the blanket while the rest of us visited, played cards, and sang around a campfire. Uncle Willie said it was the best birthday he’d had in a long time.

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June 12, 1915

Dear Diary,

Maybe it’s the unpredictable weather we are having but I have not felt will since Uncle Willie’s party on Tuesday. I have spent most of the of the week in bed with the La Grippe, I guess.

If I had to pick a week to be sick I suppose this is better than most since it has done nothing but pour since the party. The Belle Fourche river is running so high none of us from Mona will be able to make today’s book and thimble club meeting.

Papa says the roads are pitted mud baths again. We are so in need of road repair. I bet that tax collector riding around here is getting an earful.

I still haven’t heard from Roy; I am nearly losing my mind with worry.