I came back from Oakland last night and found a very large bundle of letters. I have not yet fully read them. I hope you looked them over, one from Mary O. with a pleasant acct of Brewer’s visit, one from Godkin, one from Mrs Hoge & one from Blower, besides business letters. I will send them up to you soon. Ketchum thinks if this company breaks down another will be organized with more capital & take it up where it is.

Mrs Hoge & Bloor with regards to you want us to help furnish the Chicago Sanitary Fair Indian curiosities, bear skins &c. I have got Watkins to supply some card photographs of Big Tree & shall send some seeds with them. Shall be glad if you can think of anything to send & willing to spend $50 to procure it.

Am writing at the Bank. If I can get back to Hotel before boat time propose to send you report on Howard’s place. I want you to prepare & insert a detail of planting the mounds—substituting what you like for what I have written. You will see I shirked it—partly because not competent partly because I could not remember the names of what I did think best.

I think myrtles, fuschias & jessamines should be added. Forsythia & roses? On the West side would bananas come in with Magnolias or what? Would oranges or lemons come in before the rocks on the turf—directly in front the verandah? I want one or two very nice shrubs there—quite distinct, exotic & aristocratic. Revise the whole if you can so much favor me, & then superintend Henry’s copy of it. Let him make two copies & send one as soon as possible.

I had a hard day’s work with Miller yesterday, riding over the hills of the college property under very heavy squalls of rain & snow & am very stiff from it, & not very bright.

The Company has done nothing but ask questions which only shows they are alive & have not given up yet, finally.

[321]

Plan showing a Portion of the San Mateo Rancho with Grounds of Residence of George Howard and Howard’s Mound

Steamship Bellows is here, I have not seen him. Shall invite him to visit us?

Mrs Ashburner & Miss Tompkins go East by next steamer—Friday.

P.S. I send two undershirts which I hope are what you want for Marion. Slippers no 1 I could not get. 1.½ stuffed at toe will do I suppose & send them. I did not much like the slippers for Charlotte but could find no other without heels—very nice ones with heels.

Take an interest in the Howard plan if you can. Remember there [322]

“El Cerrito,” the George Howard Residence in San Mateo, with Howard’s Mound on the Right, c. 1870

is money in it—a little & a penny earned will buy almost as much in slippers & undershirts as a penny saved.

I will try to get the breast-pin.