South Hadley, Mass.,
Nov. 8, 1907.Dear Sister:-
I guess I will write to you now instead of studying any more - not that I have done so very much for there has been something doing most of the time to-day. After breakfast I did my dom. work real well so that took longer than usual, then I cleaned the rugs & Margaret brushed a little & we both dusted. By that time I had to get ready for the exercises Edith & I were going to-gether but we missed connections. I found Esther Richards, an awfully smart Sophomore, & sat with her. We sat in the one lone row of seats which were left behind the choir seats. The exercises were great. I have been looking forward to to-day ever since I came here & it hasn't disappointed me in the least. Oh! the gowns and the hoods. Esther explained to me all she knew about what they meant but I wanted to know more. Rev. Mr. Luther of Trinity was the speaker & he gave us a fine talk. The gentleman who offerred [sic] prayer Rev. John. L. Trask D.D. was a great fat man. He had some red on his gown & Florence Hight said all she could think of when she first saw him was a Thanksgiving turkey. His gown didn't feel good & he kept wriggling his neck up and down. Words of greeting were read from two of the daughter colleges - one from N.Y. and the other a telegram from California. Probably the people came in the same as usual. Miss Doak was the usher. First came the Seniors, then the Faculty & Trustees & then choir or I think that's straight.
The time between the end of the exercises & dinner I spent in doing odd jobs. We had a dandy dinner - chicken enough so we could have two helps apiece, mashed potato, cranberry sauce, celery, pickles, ice-cream with sauce & cake. Some of the girls from Brigham were over as Brigham was full - among them Elizabeth Sheffield, a girl I like very much. We sung in the parlor after dinner & the[n] Elizabeth & another girl, Edith & I went up to Edith's room and talked a while, then Elizabeth & I came to my room & studied until 3:30.
This year they had a new ceremony for the day. Twelve Seniors, twelve Juniors, twelve members of the choir (Seniors) & the Faculty & Alumnae formed in a procession in front of Dwight & marched down to Mary Lyon's grave, the choir singing all of the way, then the choir, Seniors & Juniors lined up inside of the fence. Each of the Juniors gave a quotation of something Mary Lyon said & while they were doing that the Seniors who had long ropes of evergreen decorated the monument. Then the choir sung a song written for the occasion. As they left they sung "Long ago she rose & stood." These exercises were in charge of a Mrs. Brown an alumna who lives in South Hadley. She wrote the song. Right in the midst of the proceedings Dr. Hooker's dog begun to bark & she cuffed him & so made matters worse. He had walked beside the procession for some ways keeping right along in step with them. The whole thing, not the dog especially, seemed a good deal like a grammer [sic] school exhibition.
We have found out when Miss Smith's birthday is. Next Friday. Isn't that great? Mabel Haskell found somebody who knew. Now I guess we shall have a grand celebration. I suppose we can't plan anything until Margaret gets back. Did you know Ruth Taylor? She knew you & had been wondering if I was any of your relations. Who is Lena Bowker? Her name seems very familiar. She is in this hall.
I went to Gy. Thurs. of course & found that there are only two other girls in the class. We danced most of the time but I expect usually we shall have regular Gym. work with weights etc. I hope so for Mondays in the regular class we have dancing & Saturdays games. I feel just great when I get my suit on. I just want to jump & holler. I have a long & thrilling [tale] about fourth floor doings which I will tell you on Sunday. It is too long for to-night. I am not going to the recital though I want to awfully. I will explain to Auntie the reason. Oh! just think she will be here by the time you get this. I can hardly realize it.
With lots of love to you & Uncle,
Molly.I got Auntie's letter & wanted to go to S- awfully but I didn't see how I could possibly. It is only a little over two weeks to Thanksgiving & then I will see Uncle for two days but that isn't just now. It is such a lovely day I hope he felt well enough to go.
["Mrs. Brown who lives in South Hadley" in paragraph 3 is a mystery. The woman who wrote "Long Ago She Rose and Stood" is Sarah Averill '93, who did not marry.]