OUR HOSTESS
DEAR COUSINS:
O F COURSE not every one could come to this party, no matter how much they might wish to, so there are several States which have no mansion at the Fair.
California had thought about that, and so built a much larger house than she would have needed for her own people, that those having no State house might feel perfectly at home.
She is always a most delightful hostess, and makes one visiting her feel so welcome and comfortable that the visit is never forgotten. Her beautiful mansion is made after the old Mission style, with a bell tower, and bells, and lots and lots of room in it – parlors, cafes and rest rooms, and a lovely ballroom where the grown-ups may amuse themselves.
We go over to California’s house when we are tired, because our State is one of those which has no house, and one day while father was visiting with some friends we went in the secret gardens and waited for him. It is a lovely place, with old acacia trees in it, and a clipped Monterey pine hedge around it, and a wishing well in the middle.
It was so still and sort of whispery in there that we began to feel like children in a story, so we pretended that we were captive maidens in an enchanted garden. Whenever we tried to get out, the place where the gate was a moment before was just solid hedge. We despaired! An enchanted pigeon flew down from the blue sky! We implored her aid! So she flew away, and then father came. We know now that we shall be famous story-writers.
In the counties’ annex, California shows that she is a whole world all by herself. Each county has sent of her treasures, and the fruits are as golden as the real gold which is found here.
If there were nothing else to be seen at the Fair, it would still be worth while to have come to see California, whose blue skies and golden fields are always smiling. No one has ever seen a frown on California’s face, – not all over at one time. We love you, California!
Your loving cousins,JANE AND ELLEN.
THE PALACE OF FINE ARTS
DEAR COUSINS:
W E fear that we are not old enough to write to anyone about the Palace of Fine Arts, it is so wonderful, especially when it is reflected in the little lake where the swans live.
We got our first glimpse of it in the lake, and we almost thought we must have gone to Greece, and had not heard about it yet, because it looked like something out of our Greek book.
We walked around among the lovely trees, and went in and stood in the colonnade. It was so still and hushed, and different from the rest of the palaces, that it made us feel peaceful and holy, like going to early-morning service on Easter Day.
The galleries were a bit bewildering to us, there were so many pictures, but we wandered around by ourselves, and found some fascinating screens of lovely Chinese cats, and roosters, which we understood. There were more of our Swedish snow pictures, and away down in a little room at the end we found some miniatures which we loved. It made us feel quite acquainted and welcome to find a miniature called “A Mountain Lassie” which was painted by Bertha Corbett Melcher, our own dear Sunbonnet Babies lady.
We wandered out in the grounds to wait for father, and there among the shrubbery we found the darlingest little Pan, with his pipes. We stayed with him a long time. Janet Scudder sculped him. Then we came to the very prettiest thing we have found at the Fair – a dear little child figure, standing on tiptoe, with her hands outstretched to us, and her baby face full of joy, as though she had just seen the world for the first time and loved it. She is called “Wild Flower” and was made by Edward Berge. The dear little thing reminded us of spring rain, and morning sunshine, and nooks in the woods where the first violets grow.
There is another figure by Mr. Berge, called “Boy and Frog,” and many other dear little baby figures which we did not have time to learn about, because it was time to go home.
Father was pleased that we had found something to interest us. We intend to study the Expression of Art, because we feel so much better in our hearts when we find some beautiful thing which we can understand.
Your loving cousins,JANE AND ELLEN.
THE PALACE OF EDUCATION
DEAR COUSINS:
T HE Palace of Education has a most beautiful entrance, which is as it should be, because education is the most necessary thing in the world. Father says that we do not at all realize our blessings because things are made so easy for us. He says that he and Mr. Abraham Lincoln did not have things so easy.
But it could not have been so bad, because see what splendid men they both grew up! We found so many things of interest that we could not begin to tell you about them. But the thing which most interested us was the vocational schools which Massachusetts was showing.
Their motto, “Earning while learning,” does seem so sensible. They explain that there will always be some children who will have to help support themselves, and so Massachusetts, like Sentimental Tommy, has found a way.
The children go to school one week, and work in a factory the next week, turn and turn about. Massachusetts has a large number of factories and so can make an arrangement of this sort, but she believes that other communities have some industries which could furnish work for children.
Another school idea appealed to us more: We do not like to think of other little children having to work when we have so many good times, and we hope that there will be found a way, very soon, so that they need not do it.
But the idea is this, and it also belongs to Massachusetts: They build a schoolhouse in the center of say twenty-five miles of country. They put teachers there, but no pupils. The whole radius of twenty-five miles is the school. If a boy over fourteen, who has attended regular school up to that time, wishes to start a business, so that he can both earn and learn, whether it is chicken-raising, carpentering, fruit-growing, dairying, anything which he can do in the country, he becomes a pupil in the school, and is entitled to one visit a week from a teacher, who will not only show him how to do the work, but will instruct him how to market his wares. He is expected to keep along in regular school work as well, so that when he is twenty-one he will have a business, and some money in the bank. Father said that was real common sense applied. There are also schools in home-making, where any girl from seven to seventy years of age can learn all about housekeeping, and taking care of children. We saw some lovely leather bags made by the high school pupils of Minneapolis, which father said were worthy of skilled workmen.
We have not yet decided upon a life work, but we are going to learn to make gingerbread and jam, currant jam.
Your loving cousins,JANE AND ELLEN.
WHAT WE SAW AT THE PALACE OF FOOD PRODUCTS
DEAR COUSINS:
F RONTING on the Esplanade we found the Food Products Palace. Madame World considers that it is most important that the Spirit of Plenty, who rules food production, should have a palace worthy of her august Highness.
They were cooking so many things, and showing such quantities of food that it was most surprising. We were offered almost everything to eat that we had ever heard of, and some that we did not know existed. We were willing to sample them all, but father said that he did not believe we had better try to eat in so many languages. So we just had an oatmeal scone, and some puffed rice, and some Chinese cookies, a cup of chocolate, and a bit of biscuit, and a few other little things, but the others all looked good.
A lady has the most fascinating display of flowers made out of butter, red roses, and yellow roses, and water-lilies, and tulips, all growing on a lattice work inside her refrigerator. The colored flowers may be eaten because it is all colored with pure food colors. You could not tell that the flowers were not real, they look as though they grew there. She must have a lovely soul.
We wandered around to see the Aquarium. The fishes are lovely; we wish they did not have to be called Food Products. The Shovel-nosed Sturgeon is very probably a cousin to old Mr. Alligator, because he looks like him. He has the same bony humps on his back, and his head is shaped almost the same.
The Gar Pike looks like a submarine, and holds his body very rigidly, swimming only with his fins. He is grey and looks very cool and calm.
In one pool with some big blue Catfishes were some Salamanders, with funny furry tufts on their heads. They were lazy and would not get up. They resemble lizards. There was a whole tank of lovely Golden Perch from Catalina. They have faces with real foreheads, and a very bored and haughty expression. There were also some lovely Rainbow Trout from Canada’s mountain streams.
We were much interested in the fish-hatching processes. The eggs are kept under running water on a sort of griddle or coarse net, and when one little wiggly fellow comes out he uncoils and is long instead of round as he was in the egg, and so he drops down into the bottom of the tank, and begins to be a fish. He carries the rest of the egg around with him for a few days so that he need not be hungry until he has absorbed the nutrition it gives him.
Fishes do not care much about their relations except for dinner, as they are real cannibals. I suppose they do not know any better, but it seems unfortunate. I fear we neglected the rest of the palace.
Your loving cousins,JANE AND ELLEN.