Metadata
Title
David E. Hale to Sarah Josepha Hale
Date
1830/1839-01-13
January 13, [1830s]
Subject
Hale, Sarah Josepha Buell, 1788-1879
Medium
Manuscripts
Language
eng
Type
text
Collection
Sarah Josepha Hale Collection, The Athenaeum of Philadelphia
Identifier
46-M-179
Rights
http://www.philaathenaeum.org/rights.html
Text
West Point, Jan. 13th
My dear Mother -
"The long agony is over.'
I am 'redeemed, regenerated, & disenthralled!
I have passed an examination in both
Chemistry & Philosophy without
missing a single question. The world,
that is, the world of West Point
looks kindly on me - Col. Thayer, Tom
[?], Hopkins, Casey Profs in Phil, & Chem.
all seem desirous or at least willing
that I should succeed, & I trust that
I have succeeded. I have a most beautiful
course of studies from this time till
next June. Electricity, Astronomy,
Galvanism, Magnetism & Chemistry. -
"Excuse me fair it was nervous'
I have been so busy, so very busy
in my studies, reviewing & re-reviewing
that I could not find time to write
to you or to any one but my
[ED: the following text appears along the left side of the page.
Pray excuse this scrawl I've just come from
the examination & feel [DE: ?] nervous with success. 'Now are our
brows [etc.]
sisters, from whom I received a letter
last week complaining that I had
not written to them for five months.
Josepha said she was sure that I had
forgotten her & Martha Ann, that she
was entirely out of patience. I sat
down immediately & wrote each
of them a long letter - went to
recitation next day missed on Specific
Gravities & [DE: ?] was marked down more than
I had been before for the whole year
My whole soul, heart, & sense has been
wrapped up in Mechanics, Laws of Motion
Universal Attraction, Optics, Newton
[Kepler?] [etc.] By the way we Cadets
had a letter from Lafayette to-day
just as we were going to the
examination hall. When actually
worn out by study I have taken up
'Studies in Poetry' which you gave me
and I find that it refreshes my mind
more than any other light reading.
A novel [DE: ?] in fact unfits me for
study. I wish you could contrive some
means to send me Willis's last Poems.
I should like a [hardstone?] seal (for letters)
also as I have lost mine. I am ashamed
to ask you for such things when I
send you nothing in return.
I have been unable to obtain
any money as the Secretary of War
has issued an order that no cadet
shall draw any, till he graduates
[ED: page torn] is unfortunate for I otherwise [ED: page torn]
draw in the next two months thirty
dollars or more.
I hope you have not suffered
any by so many fires. I never saw
such a chapter of accidents as your
last letter in my life. -
I always thought my Uncle Enoch
a fine man - of talents though unfortunate
in the use of them & far above soft
Ly[?] or his sisters.
'Life is a dream' it is true but
we are so [constituted?] as to believe it a
reality. I should not like to live always
in the fear of death nor do I believe
that God intended we should do so.
'Tis not so very terrible to die and
the longer I live the more I [say?]
Mr. D.E. Hale
at West Point
[ED: postmark]
WEST POINT
Jan
14
Mrs. Sarah J. Hale
Boston,
Mass.
to stifle and [control?] [ED: page damaged][?] passions
and feelings in order to fear it the
less.
Your affectionate Son
D.E. Hale
My dear Mother -
"The long agony is over.'
I am 'redeemed, regenerated, & disenthralled!
I have passed an examination in both
Chemistry & Philosophy without
missing a single question. The world,
that is, the world of West Point
looks kindly on me - Col. Thayer, Tom
[?], Hopkins, Casey Profs in Phil, & Chem.
all seem desirous or at least willing
that I should succeed, & I trust that
I have succeeded. I have a most beautiful
course of studies from this time till
next June. Electricity, Astronomy,
Galvanism, Magnetism & Chemistry. -
"Excuse me fair it was nervous'
I have been so busy, so very busy
in my studies, reviewing & re-reviewing
that I could not find time to write
to you or to any one but my
[ED: the following text appears along the left side of the page.
Pray excuse this scrawl I've just come from
the examination & feel [DE: ?] nervous with success. 'Now are our
brows [etc.]
sisters, from whom I received a letter
last week complaining that I had
not written to them for five months.
Josepha said she was sure that I had
forgotten her & Martha Ann, that she
was entirely out of patience. I sat
down immediately & wrote each
of them a long letter - went to
recitation next day missed on Specific
Gravities & [DE: ?] was marked down more than
I had been before for the whole year
My whole soul, heart, & sense has been
wrapped up in Mechanics, Laws of Motion
Universal Attraction, Optics, Newton
[Kepler?] [etc.] By the way we Cadets
had a letter from Lafayette to-day
just as we were going to the
examination hall. When actually
worn out by study I have taken up
'Studies in Poetry' which you gave me
and I find that it refreshes my mind
more than any other light reading.
A novel [DE: ?] in fact unfits me for
study. I wish you could contrive some
means to send me Willis's last Poems.
I should like a [hardstone?] seal (for letters)
also as I have lost mine. I am ashamed
to ask you for such things when I
send you nothing in return.
I have been unable to obtain
any money as the Secretary of War
has issued an order that no cadet
shall draw any, till he graduates
[ED: page torn] is unfortunate for I otherwise [ED: page torn]
draw in the next two months thirty
dollars or more.
I hope you have not suffered
any by so many fires. I never saw
such a chapter of accidents as your
last letter in my life. -
I always thought my Uncle Enoch
a fine man - of talents though unfortunate
in the use of them & far above soft
Ly[?] or his sisters.
'Life is a dream' it is true but
we are so [constituted?] as to believe it a
reality. I should not like to live always
in the fear of death nor do I believe
that God intended we should do so.
'Tis not so very terrible to die and
the longer I live the more I [say?]
Mr. D.E. Hale
at West Point
[ED: postmark]
WEST POINT
Jan
14
Mrs. Sarah J. Hale
Boston,
Mass.
to stifle and [control?] [ED: page damaged][?] passions
and feelings in order to fear it the
less.
Your affectionate Son
D.E. Hale