Letters to Lillian, posted June 17, 1922 (pt. 1)

Introduction to Letters to Lillian

Sampson Mine

Llanada Calif.

June 15, 1922.

Dear Lillian--The mail is due to go out tomorrow, so I take my pen in hand etc.

     Last night and tonight I gathered the gang together and we put up the aerial. I put it where I first intended, running it to the store. Counting the lead in, it is about 600 feet long. It runs from a tree in front of my tent to a tree across the canyon. It is over 40 ft from the ground at the lowest point and over 100 ft at the highest, or I might say the lowest is the highest, as the upper end of the aerial is nearest the ground. I will try and get a picture to send you.

     Tomorrow I will take a vacation from lab. work and do store work. I have to take stock. Besides I have run out of lab. samples. I have been running two analyses every day lately, in addition to grinding my samples.

     Tonight Dennis brought his wife and kids up to camp. Betty, the older of the two, 20 months old, is a very good looking little girl.

     Today was hotter than it has been lately, being 87 on the porch at the laboratory door. Hot weather makes my lab. rather uncomfortable as the furnace runs intermittently all day long. The boss showed me how to operate the burner properly, which I had not been doing, and now my furnace is much quieter and somewhat hotter.

     My still got me into trouble today. I picked up a bottle to put at the recieving [sic] end and as I lifted it I hit a shelf with it and dropped it among my dirty apparatus. I broke three beakers and a flask. Total damage about $1.50, but the company pays for it. The worst of it was that the boss was in the next room and heard it.

     My doctor job is picking up. Dennis was around today, with a bum finger. Tonight I recieved quite a thrill. One of the Esteban girls met me as I came from supper and asked me if I could do anything for a rattlesnake bite. It was not as serioius as I thought at first however, as the dog had been bitten. I knew what to do, but we could not catch the dog to do it. The dog was bitten in the lower jaw and when I saw it, the jaw was greatly swollen.

     Today the pay roll closed, making it necessary to make up my store bills. Pay day comes twice a month here, the one going in now being in about 10 days.

     I expect my radio set tomorrow and my coils are not done. I could be working on them now, but I would sooner write to you. I have fixed up the battery and expect that it will work, although I have no way to test it until I connect it up. In my opinion the outfit will work, but as to that I had better not speak too soon. Today Blackie asked me if I would be able to help with the office work. I told him that I probably could if I had a wife here to help me. But as he suggested, maybe that would not appeal to you. But to get right down to details, although I can't say that time drags, I get pretty lonesome for you. The reason that time don't drag is that I am always busy, but not with reading my mail. The road to Mendota will soon be done and then we will have daily mail. But that will not likely help any, as you would not write any oftener. From the look of things the flood of mail from this end will not soon cease. I have about 200 envelopes, 75 writing pads and plenty of stamps in the office store. The supply of ink is limited, but I can make a few gallons with the materials on hand.

Well I will close for this time, possibly adding some tomorrow.