MY DEAR: " When at the first I took my pen in hand Thus for to write, I did not understand That I at all should make a little book In such a mode; nay, I had undertook To make another, which, when almost done, Before I was aware I this begun. ... But yet I did not think To show to all the world my pen and ink In such a mode; I only thought to make— I knew not what: nor did I undertake Thereby to please my neighbor; no, not I, I did it mine own self to gratify. "      *       *       *       *   

I assure you that I did not stay composed very long, for as the cruel train pulled out, and I saw, through a mist of tears, that dear form fade from sight, I broke down, and remained "down" all the afternoon and evening. With this morning's bright sunshine, however, I am a man (?) again. The first sound I heard this morning was, "Here's a message for you, Miss" and straightway that porter's name goes rattling down the rocky road of history as a discerning and right-minded person. What married wo

The ship was so white and clean, and I was so pleased over our stateroom, that I forgot for a moment the big lump in my throat; but I do not understand why people allow those near and dear to them to come to see them off. Nothing could have kept me on that boat had my nearest and dearest been standing on the dock. Ruth and Suzanne are here at last. I am sending these lines back with the pilot. I wish he were to take me instead of the letter. How I envy it!...

There has been no writing on board this ship for the past four days, and very little sleeping, and less eating. Every one seemed sick except Ruth, a few of the men and myself. Those of us who were able to crawl up on deck were lashed to our steamer chairs and the chairs lashed to the deck. The pilot left at six in the evening. Every one on board rushed to the side to see the sailors lower him into his little boat, and I watched him as far as the eye could see, for he carried with him my last mes

Every one is out today, and as it is cold, the entire saloon deck is lined with a much-wrapped, many-rugged assembly, whose chairs are fastened to the house-side of the deck, while those who have their sea legs are marching to and fro in front of the line of chairs. The deck steward has the chairs placed for us each morning on the side free from the winds. Most of the time these past days I have been sitting in my chair looking at my feet, first with the sea and then with the sky, as a backgroun

Oh, blessed day! We saw land for a few moments, and I have your dear letters—two happy events. I ran away with my letters and have written answers to them which are for your eyes alone. That reminds me to say, that I think it would be better for me to write on one sheet of paper a wee bit of a letter to you, telling you a few of the many nice things I think of you, but which will interest no one but you. On another sheet I will tell of the places I see and the people I meet, and this you may sen

" F loating around in my ink-pot" are many things which I intend to tell you some day, but with the unsteady condition of this writing-table, not now. Just a word today about my fellow-travelers. Mrs. F., of Boston, reminds me of the Arabian proverb: "He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool; shun him. He who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is simple; teach him. He who knows, and knows not that he knows, is asleep; wake him. He who knows, and knows that he knows, is w

Oh, to be in England Now that April's there, And whoever wakes in England Sees, some morning, unaware, That the lowest boughs and the brush-wood sheaf Round the elm-tree bole are in tiny leaf, While the chaffinch sings on the orchard bough In England—now! Robert Browning. We landed at eleven o'clock and I went immediately and sent a cable to you. In the paying for it—my first money transaction in England—I was given too little change, which stamps me fresh from America and not up in shillings, p

I canna thole my ain toun, sin' I hae dwelt i' this; To bide in Edinboro' reek wad be the tap o' bliss. Yon bonnie plaid aboot me hap, the skirlin' pipes gae bring, With thistles fair tie up my hair, while I of Scotia sing. Kate Douglas Wiggin. Melrose Abbey by moonlight! What a world of meaning those words hold for me! What a wealth of history those ruins contain! Their story must be read before coming, for the custodian's daughter, who was our guide, like Stockton's Pomona, had learned her sto

When the glass is up to thirty, Be sure the weather will be dirty. When the glass is high, O very! There'll be rain in Cork or Kerry. When the glass is low, O Lork! There'll be rain in Kerry and Cork.      *       *       *       *       *       * And when the glass has climbed its best, The sky'll be weeping in the west. Kate Douglas Wiggin. The shortest sea voyage between Scotland and Ireland is from Stranraer to Larne. Stranraer is a short ride from Ayr, but the S. S. Princess Victoria was fi

For Italy, my Italy, mere words are faint! No writer's pencil can convey thy heaven's blue, Thy languorous bay. Thou art thine own interpreter. I dream and wake and find no words for her— For Italy's soft-storied charms I throw the English words away. Her gondolas drip through the night— I stretch my arms toward Napoli, And "Monte Bella" softly say. Harriet Axtell Johnstone. How splendid it seems to be free again! And yet I do believe it does one good—having been out of the habit of studying—to

Fair Switzerland, thou art my theme, Thy praise by day, by night my dream. My swelling heart with rapture speaks; I love thy lakes and snow-capped peaks. Thy wooded glens my thought recalls, Thy mountain paths and waterfalls. With praises I my verse adorn Of Jungfrau and the Matterhorn. Thy moon-lit nights and sun-lit days, For thee in song, my voice I raise. Thy name for right and freedom stand— I love thee, dear old Switzerland. Roland Phelps Marks. Ah, Kate! dear old friend of my childhood! H

Holland, and Belgium Are countries quite funny; Their Art is a joy, But a bête noire their money . I have actually found some places that I do not like, and it is well, for I have used up all my adjectives and exclamations. I did not care for Zurich, and many of the Rhine towns found no favor in my eyes. I saw most of them only from the river about which we have heard so much that, naturally, it failed in the realization of my anticipations,—besides, it rained much of the time. I overheard a con

Come, come with me to the Isles of Greece, And on o'er the seas to its golden shore; Pause not till you reach Athenia's crown, Then mount to its heaven-domed Parthenon. Its glories will feed your musing hours, When fame has dwindled to cheap renown. It is a far cry from the Bowery to the Bosporus, but only a few obstacles, such as the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, the Adriatic and the Sea of Marmora, intervene. We had overcome two of these so that it was from Brindisi, Italy, the end of the Appia

The cloud-capp'd towers, The gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples. Shakspere , The Tempest , Act IV, Scene 1, Line 153. During the early hours of yesterday morning we reached Smyrna, one of the seven cities spoken of in the Book of Revelation, and we spent the day in its odd, underground bazaars. Wildness, madness and fiendishness have lost their terrors for me since landing at Smyrna. LANDING AT SMYRNA BY SPECIAL PERMISSION COPYRIGHT BY DR. J. L. LEEPER Imagine all the wild animals of the zoo p

The world's best garden. Shakspere , Henry V. , Epilogue. The Oriental Express was thundering around the Balkan Mountains in Bulgaria on its long run between Constantinople and Budapest, when suddenly, with a succession of sharp jerks, the train came to a stop. Before we could reach the windows, above the babel was heard: "An avalanche! An avalanche! The torrent's burst!" And with the throng of people at the foot of the mountain, it was enough to strike terror to the stoutest heart. Immediately

All places that the eye of heaven visits Are to a wise man ports and happy havens. Shakspere , Richard II. , Act I, Scene 3, Line 275. We arrived in Vienna with the Emperor. In fact, we acted as his advance guard for some time, his train following ours. The Emperor himself was but a small part of the show, for the officers of his suite outshone all else, and were swagger to a degree. German and Austrian army officers are imposing anywhere, but especially so on horseback. Vienna is a city within

For now I am in a holiday humour. Shakspere , As You Like It , Act IV, Scene 1, Line 68. My introduction to Bavaria was through Salzburg. It was a happy presentation, as few towns can compare with it in situation. Salzburg is surrounded by mountains with castles on every peak. It was the home of Mozart, and is overflowing with interesting memoirs of that great musician. Munich is a city of wealth. It is the Mecca for students of art and music and the starting-point for the three wondrous castles

Je voudrais n'être pas Français pour pouvoir dire,— Que je te choisis, France, et que Je te proclame Ma patrie et ma gloire et mon unique amour! Victor Hugo, A La France. Oh, to have been born elsewhere, that I might choose thee, France, and proclaim thee my country, my glory and my own! Translation by Eleanor Everest Freer . The captain advised us to remain on deck while the ship was entering the harbor at Havre, and we were repaid for the midnight vigil by the brilliancy of the scene. The port

So waited I until it came— God's daily miracle,—oh, shame That I had seen so many days Unthankful, without wondering praise. Lowell , "At Sea," Fireside Travels . What slaves of sentiment we mortals are! Here I am at Ischia again—Ischia that has been enshrined in our hearts for years! And yet it is not the enchanted island of our younger dreams. Will the memory of that first visit ever be effaced? Can you not recall, as though it were yesterday, how our hearts beat when we found the invitation t