1899

In the Memorial section this month is our tribute to Ed Allen. Ed never left a '99 letter unanswered, and probably no other either.

Fod! Martin on his summer pilgrimage to his sister's in Rutland entertained or was entertained by the usual troop of 50 or so loyal friends or relatives. "Refreshing," he said, "to travel where there were merely 100's of automobiles instead of millions." As a former 17-year principal of the Good Will School, now the Hinckley School, in Maine he regrets recent radical changes in its administration. For example, children no longer live in small cottages in small groups. Dormitories, instead, and a big central dining "commons" take away much of the home atmosphere so beneficial to the youngsters who come often from "broken homes." As for himself Fod reports a recent physical check-up found him "sound in heart, limb and lung" — no report on the state of the brain.

Herb Rogers, with unfailing regard for us all, telephones from time to time from his rooming house in Springfield. A bad ankle keeps him from much stair climbing. Daughter Barbara and her husband Phil Bachelder have reported in person a new move, to Mexico City. From there Phil will visit and inspect various branch offices in South America for Kimberley Clark. Sadie (Mrs.Ed) Skinner still writes cheerfully of her life alone in her snug four-room home in Worcester, with welcome occasional calls from Gus Heywood's widow Muriel. Sadie remembers well the trip when she and Ed with a friend took May and the secretary to the mountains. A joint greeting card also from these two '99 girls reminds the writer of another trip Ed and Sadie made to Sacramento to her niece's, and a side trip they thoughtfully made to Oakland to see K's cousin Irene Murphy, whom now K happily anticipates meeting himself for the first time.

On July 21 the Concord "Monitor" carried a long article on our Eva (Mrs. Guy E.)Speare. At last June's University of New Hampshire Commencement she received the Charles Holmes Pettee Award for "outstanding service to the state and nation." Recently as the president of the Pemigewasset Woman's Club in Plymouth she was honored by the Garden Club's planting of a young maple for her. As of October 3 she was indeed herself turning a "youthful 90."

Finally, Elma (Mrs. "Tony") Willard is better just now than for some time; says that "unlike so many of our womenfolk these days I'd like to gain some weight." One of her grandchildren is taking his Army service before his last two years at the University. But he earns his own way and seems to be putting his life together very capably and self-reliantly. Our best wishes to all such.

Secretary, Care of Mrs. Joseph A. Murphy 1434 92nd Ave., Oakland, Calif.