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#2252: Willa Cather to Meta Schaper Cather, [August 29, 1916]

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NUMBER FIVE BANK STREET6

Now that we are so botanical, the baby7 is Virginia occidentalis. I thank Ross3 ever so much for the pictures of the twins8!

Dear Meta1:

Elsie9 is packing—or at least is un-earthing her garments in order to pack tomorrow. She leaves on Friday. I have been lying still on the upper porch10 for several days and Virginia7 and I have been tracing flowers down in the big new "Rocky Mountain Flowers"11 I got in Denver12. It amazed me that she recognized so many Lander4 flowers the moment she saw them in the book. She has a good eye for form and a good memory of form. I shouldn't wonder if she drew well when she grows older, and she will surely be a good botanist. She somehow takes in the essential points of structure, and knows the difference between the peas and the snapdragons by eye. I gave her the book and sent her out to identify father's13 pine trees by the cone and leaf. She looked carefully for about three minutes then pointed them out with perfect sureness on a page with a dozen kinds of needles and cones. I tried Mary14 and Tom15 on some of the same things, and they have no eye at all. Virginia and I stayed at home when the others went to the Bladen16 Fair. We had tea on the upper porch and we always play the porch is Wendy's little tree house17. We spend all the long sunny days on the porch. I wish we could have the twins18, too. They could sit on the Indian blankets and play with us. We have two hammocks, one for Virginia and one for me.

With love Willa
Mr. R. C. Cather3, Lander4 Wyoming RED CLOUD NEBR.5 29 AUG 1916 7.30 PM