FERNBA NK NEWS [sic] Vol. V, No. 1.
August 3, 1932.
Woods Hole, Mass.
Weather: At the present moment it is cloudy and threatens rain; it threatened so convincingly with a few droplets an hour ago, that it seemed desirable to take the bathing-suits to the basement. The summer has been warmish, so far, and rather dry - dry enough so that the Water Commissioners sent out leaflets asking people to use water with restraint.
Gardiner Road items: The Gardiner Road cottages on the Millpond are all occupied but Pine-Knot and Fernbank are the only ones which have their usual occupants. The "Lantern" has been sold to Dr. Wilson and has not yet received a new name. She has reclaimed a considerable amount of land on the mill pond and made an attractive terrace supported by a stone wall; Dr Wilson has planted yellow flowers of various kinds along the road. "Neuveannee" is occupied by Dr. and Mrs. Heilbronn of Philadelphia. The cottage north of Pine-Knot is occupied by Dr. and Mrs. Jenkins of Washington, D.C.
For a while fires seemed to be the order of the day on Gardiner Road. On the morning of June 24th Dr. Clapp entertained the village with a small fire. A paper carton in the fireflace [sic] went up the chimney and spread itself on the roof. Dr. Clapp wanted to climb up and put it out, but interering people insisted on sending for the fire department which was so very prompt that the fire was out before the Fernbank household discovered where it was. The only evidence of fire which they saw was the crowd around the house. On July 7th there was a much more spectacular fire at neuveannee. It started in a pile of rubbish under the house from an unknown cause and made good headway before it was discovered. Mrs. Heilbronn turned in an alarm from the box at the corner of Millfield St. and Gardiner Road, and almost instantly the fire company was on the spot. Flames came up on all sides of the house and were sweeping toward Fernbank, but the firemen had the fire subdued in a few minutes, although it had looked as if the whole house would go. The floor and the sheathing were badly burned but the contents of the house were very little damaged. The Woods Hole Fire Company is quick and careful. Mrs. Schramm visited Woods Hole last week to see about the repairs on the cottage.
Miss Alma Stokey and Miss Fredda Reed arrived at Fernbank, June 21st. Mrs. Evans arrived June 23rd. Miss Reed stayed until June 27th being beguiled by various entertainments such as a trip to Provincetown.
Mrs. Elizabeh Rodhouse Creglow, of Washington, visited at Fernbank from July 2nd until July 12th. There was much discussion of the solution of "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" during her visit[.]
Miss Gertrude Cushing, Miss Doak, and Miss Chase, drove from South Hadley, July 15th and spend [sic] the week-end at Fernbank. The chief entertainment furnished them was to take them to hear the chorus practice. There was also a picnic at Nobska.
Miss Rumana McManis, the proprietor of the Hidden Book Shop, New York City, visited at Fernbank from July 21st to 25th. There was a Nobska picnic for her.
Miss Ethel Jackson arrived at Fernbank July 30th and will spend part of the month of August there. There was a picnic Saturday night at the Buzzards Bay beach, attended by Miss Dorothy Stewart, also many midges. The calm evening favored skipping stones as well as midges, and Miss Stewart make [sic] ten skips.
Mrs. Evans, Miss Jackson and Miss Stokey went to Nantucket Sunday, July 32st to visit Miss Katherine Bruce who is assistant in Botany at the maria Mitchell National Science Association. They left at 8:20, according to the time table (but it was really 8:35) and returned at 7:45, having had over 5 hours at Nantucket during which time they saw much of the island and had an excellent dinner at the Chanticleer, at 'Sconset.
Mill Pond News. There are many craft on the mill pond, from Miss Clapp's boat usually manned by Robert Wilson, to several small sailboats, which man themselves. There is a handsome bright red boat manned by a lad named Graham. Talk of pirates has been heard by eavesdroppers. The pair of blue herons appear at intervals, usually separately.
Aircraft news. Hydroplanes make regular trips between New Bedford, Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Their landing place in Woods Hole is a floating dock beside the wharf and the railroad tracks.
An autogiro passed over the mill pond some days ago. One member of the Fernbank household who had never seen one made a rapid exit from the dinner table, and even Mrs. Evans who has seen them in Philadelphia thought it worth while to follow the leader into the garden (or what should be a garden).
Fallings in. The most important falling-in this summer was that of Dr. Alfred Meyer. He frequently visits the floating dock of the hydroplane to see it come in and on one of these visits after the plane had come in he inadvertently stepped back off the dock into 10 ft. of water. In a few seconds he came to the surface still clutching his cane and his New York Times. He was rescued by two young men and send [sic] home in a taxi, none the worse for his wetting. Recently one of his rescuers got a ducking in the same way - stepping backward to avoid the wings of the hydroplane.
Music. The Woods Hole Choral Club is engaged in preparing a program for a concert which will probably be given A ug, 15th. [sic] They have several new things of which most interesting (to the Editor) is an Ave Maria by Palestrina. There is a very interesting Chorus of Villagers from the opera "Igor." They are to repeat "God is with us" in which Mrs. Evans will sing the solo. The sopranos are weak, and get most of Mr. Gorckhoff's attention. The tenor is notably good, chiefly one tenor who sings so beautifully that one of the altos sometimes forgets to sing while she listens to him. Fortunately it does not make much difference whether she sings or not, when such a good tenor is just behind her and a good alto is beside her.
The Fernbank household has had several pleasant musical evenings with Dr. and Mrs. Meyer. Dr. Meyer has been studying Schumann's Symphonic Etudes during the past winter and has played them several times to the great delight of those present. Mrs. Meyer has accompanied Mrs. Evans in several very interesting things, chiefly sons of Richard Strauss and Erich Wolff.
Vegetation and Botany. The Fernbank Jungle had become so dense during the house [sic] could hardly be seen from the road. The Chief Jungeleer [sic] has had many sessions with it and now it is possible to walk around the willow tree in the center. It looks very like a place for lions or tigers to circle around, but it would be rather cramped for elephants. So far nothing larger than a garter snake has tried it. The ferns are doing nobly; the orchids have not appeared and it may be that they were crowded out during the congestion of vegetation. There are three clumps of Marsh Mallows; one near the pond and two in the jungle near the path. The Chief Jungeleer has trimmed up the willows so that the Fernbank dining-room will get a view of the mallows at Neuveannee which now make a magnificent clump. Poison Ivy is no longer a dominant feature of the vegetation, but every week it is necessary to make a sortie on it.
Miss Stokey has a research room in the Botany Building where she works on the ferns which she brought back from India, Java and Formosa. So far she has not made any discoveries which will upset the world. She is sure that it will be necessary to make a return trip to Java. But when?
Dancing. This should have followed upon the items on Music. There has been a course - can six lessons be called a course? - in aesthetic dancing under Miss Gloria Braggiotti. It meets in the Garden at Mrs. Warbasse's. The teacher is graceful and competent, the garden is a charming background and the aspiring dancers do as well as they can. The Editor has taken part in the class with much enjoyment but finds it difficult to make her lack of appitude [sic] in dancing as inconspicuous as her singing. She thinks it would be a help to have a separate mind for each arm and leg, with a mind-in-chief in command.
Gas has been introduced into Woods Hole and ahs been piped on Gardiner Road. It was piped into Fernbank last week. The oil stove is doing so nicely at the present moment that it is not likely to be supplanted by a gas stove this season. The oil stove has had its dull moments and meals have been uncertain, but it is on the up-grade at the present.
This will probably be the only issue of Fernbank News this summer.