Transcription
CATALOG NUMBER HF 3013 A
OBJECT NAME Letter
DATE February 19, 1805
AUTHOR Alice Ann Hoffman (Philadelphia)
RECIPIENT Judge Josiah Ogden Hoffman (Albany)
MEDIUM Paper, ink
PEOPLE Becky [Gratz], Mr. & Mrs. [Hopkinson?], Mrs. Geruad, Mrs.
Moreau, Matilda. Literati
PLACES Philadelphia, Mrs. Gerlaud’s School
EVENTS
KEYWORDS french, school, education, female education, boarding school,
letter home, children’s education, homesick, day-scholar, ball, party, French master, English master
*Original spelling retained throughout work; content appears exactly as written.
[PAGE 1]
Philadelphia Feby 19th 1805-
My dear father,
It is an age since I have heard from you / I begin almost to despair of hearing at all _ The grea-/ -ter distance you are from me, the more more is my anxiety to see you _ How I long for the time when / I shall embrace you _ I believe I repeat this sen-/ tence in every letter I write, yet can I say it too / often? Each time I write my anxiety to see you increases- & I am sorry to say school grows / every day more irksome to me- I ought to acquire / the french language perfectly to repay me for the / many doleful nights & days I have spent within / the walls of Mrs. Gerlaud’s school- I do not wish/ for any other acquirement for I only learn [mine] [unrecovered words] & improve very much in ___ / But I will tell you & Mr [Thomson] the french master / says I may give him as authority that I speak
[END OF PAGE]
[PAGE 2]
French with quite as much ease as I do English / I may say as well, my pronunciation is impro - / -ved & I find no difficulty at all in speaking it - / I have none of the shame I used to have about / it- last night I was out (for the first time this fortnight!) / at a ball as Mr. [Michlins] I spoke nothing but / french almost the whole evening- Madame Mo - / reau was there & astonished every body [inserted: by] her dancing / I have a request to make to you my [inserted: dear] father & which / I hope you will grant- It is to stay with the girls / & be day-scholar here from the first of March-/ Do not be startled at the request, when I tell you / the reasons I have for making it- We live here very / early, [crossed out] french school is not in tell nine o’clock & between the hour of rising and nice I / do nothing, I do not learn English & therefore have / no lessons- the french master stays from nine / till twelve, and twelve the English master comes / & stays till two- during that time I practice / my music _ which you [inserted: see ] are the two things I / learn french & music, we dine at two- after din - / ner I take my music lessons- & sit & sow [sic] till /
[END OF PAGE 2]
[PAGE 3]
Five o’clock- this is my days work & whether I sleep / here or not it is the same thing for I do nothing / more- I have no lessons to learn, & of an evening / I sit & [gape]. I cannot read for the little girls / are round the table studying their lessons, & they / make too much noise _ Mrs. Grelaud is giving lessons / at the piano _ I derive no advantage from spea - /king french for we are not allowed to talk as / the little girls are busy studying _ We used to / when we lived in the other house sit down stairs / of an evening but that Mrs Grelaud will not / allow _ I go to bed every night [at nine inserted] with a heavy / heart & if I were with the girls I might read as / [unrecovered, page torn] or converse with Becky & devine some [??] / [unrecovered, page torn] would improve quite as much at [unrecovered, wax seal] / [unrecovered, page torn] so now I should speak french all day from / nine till five, & then go home & spend a soci- / able evening _ you need not be afraid of my going / out too much the girls go out very little, they / have been out to one private party yet _ I should / be able then to cultivate some pleasant acquai - / ntances] here, which at present I am not able to do, for as soon as I meet with a pleasant / person one evening, I perhaps don't see her again / for two or three weeks _ Mrs. [Hopkinson?] is inclined /
[END OF PAGE 3]
[PAGE 4]
To be very kind to me _ but it is impossible for me / to get acquainted with her, I have only drank / tea there once and I am only out Saturdays _ / She has asked me to stay with her, which if / I was day boarder I might for a week or two / & then again with the girls _ Mr. [Hopkinson] is a very sensible man, & [crossed out] all the Literati constantly at his house _ Do you not /
[LARGE SPACE]
Think my dear father [inserted, unrecovered spend my time better] in such company then / sitting sewing of an evening here? Do answer me quickly? / If you consent, write to Mrs. Grelaud, I am sure she / will not be at all offended _ It is different with Matilda / as she learns English & Drawing _ If you ref[unrecovered] me, just write to / me, & I will e’en sit and gape till the [unrecovered] I shall embrace you /
Ever & forever your child -
Alice Ann Hoffman
[Address; written on letter]
Josiah Ogden Hoffman, Esq
Care of Mr. [Mancins?]
Post Office
Albany
[END OF LETTER]Transcriber
Kathryn AlexanderLanguage
English
