Mar 10-12, 1936

Ruth must have gone to stay at Preston Hollow after her last letter dated Feb 21, 1936. After she returned to Albany, it wasn’t long before she was assigned a new case.

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March 10, 1936

464 First Street
Albany, N.Y.

Hello Honey,

Gee, am I good or am I!  Seems like this is rather soon to be holding out the dollars on you.  Why in heck didn’t you tell me about it?  I never tumbled until after I had gone to bed.  You must think I have adopted Loretta’s methods.  I hope nothing happened so that you needed that dollar.  I’m awfully sorry it happened and it really wasn’t done intentionally.

Loretta has gone down street with her sister so I am here alone sitting by the telephone.  Clifford has gone out and left all the breakfast dishes.  He is as sweet as can be toward me this morning.  Maybe he thinks I’m dumb enough to do the dishes for him.  However, I haven’t forgotten last night yet and I’m not apt to right away either.  If you can’t come here and be treated at least half way decent, I don’t have to stay.

It is much too nice a day to stay in the house, but there seems to be nothing else to do.  When our room gets aired, I’m going to give it a cleaning.  It hasn’t been touched since the time Loretta and I cleaned it some four or five weeks ago.  I also have a couple sweaters to wash and a bath to take so by the time I get all that done I think Loretta should be back.

Loretta seems to think I should invest some money in material for a bed spread, but I can’t see it that way.  If I spend any money, it will be for something that will fit in my cedar chest much sooner.  I would rather have a butterfly bedspread like Lydia’s anyway.

It was awfully nice seeing you so often during the last two weeks but I guess it spoils me.  When I come back to the city I feel so darned lonesome I hardly know what to do with myself.  Maybe it is a darn good thing we aren’t any nearer or you would never get a night’s rest.

It seems good to be able to write without the radio on full blast.  This cussed pen makes me so mad I could swear (if I wasn’t such a little lady).

I guess I’ll write to Lydia and give her all the latest dirt.  She probably won’t be at home so it won’t do much good.

I bet you were awfully sleepy going home last night.  I should have sent you a lot earlier but it is so hard to let you go, especially when I have to wait nearly a whole week before I see you again.

Remind Lydia to give you my monogram stamps in her top dresser drawer.  I expect to need them as soon as I finish my other two kittens.

5:10 p.m.

Now that I have my work all done and even the dishes washed, I think I will finish my darling’s letter.

I called Zelma so she would know I am still alive.  She didn’t have much to say.  Loretta had a call from the school to go to work at eight o’clock tonight.  I am in hopes I’ll get another chance at some work before the week is over.

I guess Loretta and I are going out to dinner somewhere pretty soon so I’ll have to be getting ready.

Everyone tells me what a beautiful day it has been, so now that it is getting darker and colder, I’ll go out and find out for myself.

Oodles of love.

Your sweetheart,

Ruth

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March 10, 1936

Middleburg, N.Y.

Dear Ruthie,

It has been so long since I have written you a letter I almost forgot to do it tonight.  It is much easier to jump in the car and run down to P.H. to see you.  Who gave you that idea of going back to the city anyway?  Whoever did, it is a punk idea.

My premonition about the fog last night was correct.  I must have been a full hour getting to Feura Bush, but from there on it wasn’t so bad.

I have been working in the woods all day and my legs are tired from wallowing in snow banks.  The snow is two and three feet deep yet in the woods.

Tomorrow I have to go to M. and take Mrs. White down.  I probably won’t take her to P.H. until Thursday.

I received a card from Molle today.  You were right as usual.  The entry must be accompanied by the carton front or a large size tube or jar of shaving cream, so the questions were not considered and you are out three cents.  I still say I didn’t hear them say anything about the carton.¹

I’ve got a feeling you are going to get work this week and won’t be able to go out Saturday night.  Do you hope I am right?

That waste basket idea of yours is a good one.  I think you had better get one and chuck these letters in as soon as they arrive.  I can’t write anymore and there is no use trying.  I’ll try and write so you will receive it Saturday and tell you the dope on the card party.

For now it is goodnight, my love.

Always yours,

Dave

Wednesday noon.

Received your letter, hon, I wish I could write one as nice.  You would discover that dollar after I thought I had put one over on you.  You’re way ahead of me you know and that was an opportunity to start catching up so I took it.

I’ll bet you aren’t having any trouble staying in the house today.  It has been raining here ever since early morning.  I’ve been to M. and Mrs. White is all tired out from the long trip so she doesn’t want me to take her to P.H. until next week.

Time for the mail so I’ll say bye, bye.

Love,

Dave

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March 12, 1936

464 First Street
Albany, N.Y.

Hello Honey,

I bet you never received a letter quite like this before.  I usually have some kind of paper in my kit but this time I seem to be lacking so I have to waste a perfectly good chart on you.

Yesterday about 12:10 p.m. the Exchange called me for a case and it happens to be day duty for a wonder.  The woman had the grippe last week and had a relapse Tuesday.  She had a temperature of 104 degrees.  I don’t think she lacks an awful lot of having pneumonia.  She has a lot of pain in one side which, of course, is caused by congestion.  They have two boys who also have to be given tablets for colds.  The medications sure do keep me stepping.  I counted up on my chart and for seven hours yesterday I gave Mrs. Stumpf medicine about twenty times.  Not to mention alcohol rubs, enemas and plasters.

I don’t know if I will be here Sunday or not, but just in case I am the case in on 14 Brookwood Avenue.  It is out Western Avenue past the Country Club.  You turn left in a little place called McKownville by the Standard oil station.  I think it is the fifth house down from the station on the same side of the street.

I am supposed to work from eight to eight, but last night I left at 7:30 so if I am still working Sunday, you will probably have to go to the house to find out where I am anyway.  Try and be at the house not later than 6 p.m. and maybe a little earlier.  I’m quite sure if she is o.k., I can get through early.

Loretta is doing night duty down on Sheridan Avenue.  Her patient is an old lady.  I guess she is going to die.  As near as I can figure out her case is similar to that of Mrs. Crocker.  Loretta is anxious to get away from there.

Tuesday night I ate dinner at Wagar’s with Loretta and Ed.  Loretta was glad she was going to work until she found out Ed was going to be in town.

How does it seem to get a good night’s sleep lately?  You should be nearly caught up with yourself again.  Imagine me getting up at seven o’clock this morning.  The first thing I thought of was that you were just about piling out too, so it wasn’t so bad.  I went to bed at ten o’clock last night and didn’t sleep good at all.  Night before last I slept alone and once I guess I thought Loretta was crowding me and I was so close to the wall I bumped my nose and woke up.

The Dr. was in this morning and said the patient was a little better.  She still has quite a temperature.

Gee, Hon, it is a good thing I got a chance to work, otherwise I would be so lonesome I couldn’t stand it.  I sure do hate to have you leave me even for one day.

Did you find out anything about the card party yet?  I don’t care much about going anyway only it gives me a chance to be with you.  If they do decide to have it and I am not working, I will let you know.

I wrote to Lydia Tuesday night and had Loretta send it yesterday.  I am anxious to know what they are going to do this summer.

They have a Negro girl here who does the housework.  I get a big kick out of hearing her talk.

Clifford is very sweet toward me these days.  Maybe it is because I washed the dishes for him the other day.  We are even now.  I left my dishes for him yesterday.

Ed and another fellow have taken an apartment on Western Avenue.  He says there is another one there for thirty dollars a month.  Loretta and I may go up and look at it if we ever get a chance.  If we stay in the city this summer, that room where we are will be so hot we won’t be able to stand it.  There is no possible way of getting air in it.

Dr. McGrail has called Loretta several times lately.  She says it was about a case, but strictly between us, I don’t believe it was.

How is LaVere coming and where is he going to school?

No doubt I’ll be in a terrible hurry to get home tomorrow because I should have a letter from my Sweetie Pie. The joke is on me if it isn’t there.  I’m anxious to know how you made out getting home Monday night.

Page II

Well, Honey, now that I have received your letter maybe I can think of a little more to write.  That premonition of yours about my getting work was kind of cute.  I guess you should have them more often.  Now to answer your question, yes, I’m glad I’m working but being with you means an awful lot.

You are an old meanie for making that crack about the waste basket.  I should punish you severely but if you promise never to insinuate again that your letters aren’t o.k., I’ll just go on loving you.

So you thought you would pull a fast one and try and get that dollar off on me.  I’m not way ahead of you, so there.

I forgot to tell you about the taxi ride I took yesterday.  I called the Pine Hill as usual and they charged me 60 cents.  It broke a dollar and nearly broke my heart.  Maybe I shouldn’t have told you that ‘cause you might start charging me accordingly.

I was going to mail this tonight, but it is raining so hard I think I will go to bed instead.

I had a letter from my Mom today.

Goodnight, my sweet.

Lots of love,

Parky

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March 12, 1936

Middleburg, N.Y.

Hello Hon,

Nothing much to write about but I’ll start something anyway.

Got wet thru a couple of times today.  Every time we got in the woods and started working it would rain.  I suppose I’ll get called for that now, won’t I?

I went down to P.H. about 5 P.M. today to find out the dirt, but I can’t tell you a thing.  Lydia and Fran were not home, probably still down to Slingerland’s.  Maybe she will write and tell you about Saturday night.  I hope so because I won’t have any way of finding out before the mail goes tomorrow.

Did I tell you Lula had named her cat Pinky?  Well they changed it this week to Dicky.  It seems it wasn’t that kind of a cat.  Even so, I don’t know that there is anything so especially feminine about the name Pinky.

You should see the creek in P.H. now.  It is more like a young river.  It is right up to the back door of some of the houses and nearly everyone’s cellar is full.  There is some in our cellar but not as bad as I have seen it.  Only about a foot now.  I had to go down and read the meter for the electric man today.

If my hunches mean anything, you should be working now.  Somehow I have had a feeling you would get work this week.  I wonder if I am right.

Sunday is the 15^th again, but I won’t be able to rake up fifteen dollars by then.  I’ll just have to let it go and pay additional charges.

Gee, hon, I thought with warmer weather my spirits would come up a little with the temperature but I haven’t seen any perceptible change as yet.  The nearer it comes to spring, the more I think about you and how much I want to get married.  Maybe we’ll get desperate enough to get married and live in a tent and eat grass this summer.  How would that be?

Can’t think of anything more so I’ll say bye, bye till Saturday night or Sunday, I don’t know which.

Love,

Dave

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Footnote

1. Dave was most likely referring to an entry for a commercial contest. A lot of sponsors of radio programs promoted their product by offering prizes, including cash awards, for sending in proof of purchase along with an essay or any such piece about why the consumer liked the product. The cash prize was worth it to the sponsor as way of monitoring the popularity of the product (number of entries) and how they felt about it. I could not find the date when this was enacted, but the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) later enforced a “no purchase necessary” law, since requiring purchase for a contest amounted to gambling. Nowadays, we know that corporations have developed technology to keep track of online behavior and purchasing as a method of individualized marketing. Click here for the source of the Molle image and for more about the history of radio advertising.