North Dana Mass,
July, 24, 1907My dear Miss Baker,
As I did not hear from you I thought I would write a little.
I suppose you are having lovely times this summer and are getting rested after your year's work. I am at home and expect to be for some time. I have had a pretty good time so far but my good times are coming in about two weeks when we have a house full of company as we expect to have.
Do you expect to come back next fall? I hope so, for I shall hate to have two new teachers at once. One of the teachers who is under my cousin, who is principal of the high school in New London, has written to New Salem for the position and if he comes, my uncle says we will like him. Mr. Stowell told mama that the new school building would be ready for us the winter term. So there are two reasons why you should come back.
I got my rank card some time ago and was much surprised at the marks I got, for I felt sure I wouldn't pass, none of them were below 80.
Last Saturday night we had an awful hard thunder shower about a mile from us the wind was so great it blew up, by the roots, large pine trees, tore up fences and blew the tops of trees off about six feet from the ground, it did a good many hundred dollars worth of damage. The thunder and lightening [sic] was one continual rumble and flash, I was afraid every minute either the barn or the house would go.
We have four of the cunningest kittens I ever saw, Virgiline was down a week ago Tuesday and went home last Tuesday and took one with her.
The raspberries are getting ripe, I want to get some, but it has been so hot I have been willing to stay in the shade all that I could. I have done about as I wished most of my vacation, but now, as I said before, in about two weeks we will have sixteen or eighteen here, I must go
tto work.The stage is coming and I hope he has a letter for me, I think it is about time I got one for I have written quite a few. Well he brought me a postal, and a letter from Lillian. She is at work at Mr. Putnam's, and likes [it] very much, she says she is not rested yet from school. I guess it made it pretty hard working and going to school, and then right to work again without a vacation. I think she ought to have a vacation.
Have you heard from Mary Shaw? I haven't hear [sic] for over a year, I must write and see if I can get an answer.
I have quite a lot of sewing to do and I haven't done a bit yet I will probably let it go until the last week of vacation as I did last year.
I am not very good at writing letters so I hope you will excuse the mistakes in this.
I haven't seen one of the girls since school closed. It hardly seems true that I have only one more year, and that at last I am realy [sic] a senior.
I am afraid you will get tired of reading this so think I had better close.
With lots of love from your
pupil Bernice Skinner.
North Dana,
Mass.