Patterson Adelia (1 results)

Hardcover. Condition: Good. Marble paper covered boards measuring 7" x 8". 26pp. Worn edges, a stain in the gutter, and some tears. A composition book kept by Adelia, Addie, Patterson while attending the Tuscarora Seminary in Pennsylvania in 1864. There is a short table of contents which includes the types of compositions that were expected including Letters, Transpositions, Dialogues, Discussions, Subject, Rehearsal, Formal letter, Historical Biographical, Words, and Tale. Her first entry is a letter written to a friend discussing her new school. "The Seminary building is very handsome. The young ladies are very pleasant and kind. It seems very strange to glance around the school room and see no familiar faces, it makes me feel a little lonely sometimes, but I think there is no use in following myself to become so, for in a little while they will become familiar to me." She writes about "The Indians" and "Mary Queen of Scots" for her historical entries. "The Indians, by early historians called the "Red Men," once inhabited the entire Western continent. Those of the North were divided into numerous savage tribes. They lives by hunting and the corn which their women cultivated." She continues, "The Indian is said to possess some of the most noble traits of character; if you gain his friendship nothing can exceed his fidelity, but if once provoked he is your lasting enemy." A nice collection of writing samples from a Civil War-era female seminary school student.