Letters to Mary Shedd Scott from Charles K. Adams
Charles Kendall Adams was a cousin of Mary Shedd Scott. He was a professor at the University of Michigan when these letters were written.
Ann Arbor, Feb. 4, 1874
My Dear friend Mary,
We were very glad to receive your last letter. Please accept our hearty thanks for your promptness in writing, & for all the kind expressions your letters contain. Indeed, we sometimes feel younger for those messages of friendship, they are like a fresh garland of green upon our ?? brow. In my last letter to you, I strangely forgot to acknowledge the receipt of you brother’s picture. Hibbard looks a little older, perhaps on account of his beard covering the smooth face & chin.
In two weeks from Friday next, you will expect your brother, with his new bride on the very day your school will close. The event of your only brother taking to himself a wife is an exceedingly interesting & important state, not only to himself & his companion but also to yourself & to your dear parents. In these strange times, more is thought of an event like this, than it was in times gone bye.
Most sincerely do we hope, it may be a joy & a constant comfort to all your hearts. We think it will be very pleasant for them to make them a visit in the spring. Should you find in this new sister, (as we hope you will) a genial loving friend, one whose heart is warm, whose sympathies are active, it will be a great comfort to you, a blessing which your nature requires, since the sorrowful experiences of the last year.
In the half sheet I spoke of, which has since been burned, I think there was nothing but what you have received, only I promised if life was ??, I would select, & send to you another Aretum (?) a larger & better variety of forest leaves.
The large pacer horse Omnubus runs every hour from Mineral Springs Hotel, half a mile west of the P.O., up by our house to the head of the Avenue at Mr. Scott’s, round trip 10 ??.
You will have absenced by the papers I have sent you that Mr. Druffield is again in hot water. This time, his shafts are directed to the lucky students in the Medical College. Poor man – he thinks religion has deported from the University because his old friend Dr. Toppin was turned off more than ten years ago, & so everything goes awrong. Mr. D, in todays paper, says let us drop it all. He has again been driven to the wall. It so happens that not one of the Professors attend his church. This is, & has been a sore trial to him.
Mr. Scott is still very feeble, but steadily improving. Mrs. Dea. Mills is at present more comfortable, Dea. Wheeler of our ch. died two weeks ago.
Our son’s family are at present in usual health, Charles has at times worked beyond his strength. About the first of the year he was taken, strange to say, very much as I was when you were with us, with faintness, dizziness, loss of appetite, loss of sleep, and palpitation of the heart. The Dr. set him up in a few days. Besides his labors in the advanced classes, he has now written & corrected his entire course of lectures of last year, dividing them into chapters, for the press. His manuscript has been approved in New York, & is now sent to London for the approval of that branch of the firm. It may possibly fail. We think the chance is good that it will be out in the spring. Say nothing about this, nor allude to it in any letters for our son is very ??, seldom letting what he has done, & never telling what he is going to do. Make no allusions to this in any letter.
You will expect me to say something about Charlie. He is making fair progress with his books but he had almost everything to learn when he came here – not only in his books, but in his general deportment. He is nervous & excitable, very fond of play in almost any form. He has no vicious habits. We must exercise much patience & do him all the good we can for the good of the boy & for the memory of his own dear Mother. I enclose his picture taken the 17 of last month the day he was twelve years old. It is a good picture, in the chin we see a little of his mother’s face. Charlie & his picture is all that is left of dear Emma, only the sweet memory of her gentle nature & her constant love. This is enough to do all that lies in our power for his good. We hope not to be disappointed in those efforts.
I am glad to be able to say that from the week of prayer there has been an increasing religious interest in the young men Christian Association of the Ministry. For the past week or so, an unusual degree of Christian activity has been quite manifest in their meetings. Some conversions among the students are reported & quite a number are enjoining for the way of life. The churches are being awakened & the hope is expressed that a pure revival of religion may be at our door. There is perhaps no place in our nation where the results of a genuine revival of religion would be more widely felt than here at this time.
If all the students should be converted, more than 1000 in number, what an ?? of influence to be spread over the whole land by these young men, so soon to be representative men carrying a weighty influence wherever they may go. My letter is already too long & must be brought to a close. Please write after your brother has made his visit. Give our love to your parents & claim a large share for yourself. Mrs. A. joins in this request.
Your friend, most affectionately,
Charles Adams
Ann Arbor Oct. 4, 1878
My Dear Mrs. Scott,
Your kind welcome letter came to hand on our return from our visit in Ohio. We thank you for all the kind words your letter contained. We thank you too for the fine picture of your husband.
A phrenologist would say that is a splendid head. We think so too. By your description the heart is as good as the head in your estimation, being ever ready to anticipate your every want by those little attentions which constitute a large portion of our earthly happiness. May your united lives be long and useful, being crowned by every blessing that a kind Providence may bestow upon you.
You speak of your parents going out in Oct. to make a visit to you all. As we have not heard from them for some time, we do not know what arrangements they have made, nor how long a visit they are expecting to make. Within the past two or three years, the changes in Denmark have been great – so great, that were we younger, the inducements to visit that good old town would be greatly diminished.
Since our return home, our health has not been so good as usual. A little of the shaking, and a little of the dumb ague has been upon us. We are now better.
Last week the university opened for the Literary Department, and this week for the Professionals. A larger number of freshmen in all the departments have entered this year than in any previous year. It is said that $50,000 have been received from entrance fees, and yearly fees at the beginning of the term. Our dwellings and our sheets are quite full. The present week the county fair has been held here for four days, the largest ever held her. Yesterday $1400 was taken as admission fee.
Our crops of all kinds very good – potatoes exceptional.
The status of my eyes have changed but little the present season. I can read no fine print, but large clean type does not weary my eyes for an hour or so. I am now reading the second volume of Stanleys Explorations in Africa. There are an abundance of hard broken-jawed names in the work, yet it is a work of vast interest, and rich entertainment for intelligent readers. Those volumes bring to view a large amount of information which the whole world has been ignorant of until now. As we read, how often the enquiry flashes through the mind, when o when will that dark continent be civilized, and brought under the reign of the Prince of Peace. The purposes of God will all be fulfilled in His own time and way.
Give our love to your husband and to all who may enquire for us. Write when you can, and believe us truly yours, affectionately,
Charles Adams
Ann Arbor Oct. 9, 1879
My Dear Mrs. Scott,
Your good letter of Aug. last has not as yet been answered, I beg of you, not to think my slackness is for want of interest in your welfare, by any means – it is simply the inconvenience and pain it gives my poor eyes to confine my sight to any object for any length of time. The change in my sight is not rapid, but a gradual dimness is constantly coming over my vision. For this reason, I have been obliged to change the shade of my ink for a more distinct color. For the above reasons, my letters have dwindled down to a few choice correspondents. It is still a mystery why your father does not write me – for aunt Carrie writes that she receives frequent letters from the Dr. during her long circuitous journey. To my mind, it must be something which I have written, or something which has not been written.
The shades Autumn are spread over our beautiful city, from many of the trees the bright leaves are falling, on some the leaves are still green, and all the trees of color are run in every direction. The University is now more crowded than ever. It is a sight to behold the numbers on the campus & on the streets. Every house that ever take roomers is full, the students mostly board in clubs from 10 to 40 each. Our front chambers are occupied by two young men from New York & our chamber over the kitchen is filled by two from North Carolina, one of them a Quaker, the other a Presbyterian – all fine gentlemanly fellows. For the past three months, not less than 75 men have been at work on four new buildings on the campus. Were you to be here next summer, you would look twice before you would recognize the place – or nearly so. There has been more building in town the present season then for seven previous years all put together. Main Street looks very fine. All the best stores have their fronts taken out and large plate glass put in. The past summer has been a warm one, some frost in Sept. but for ten days past it has been fully up to summers heat – mercury at 90 in the shade – very uncommon for Oct. The season, a productive one, apples an exception. Peaches very abundant, one of our neighbors has sold & shipped 9000 baskets of that fruit. Business of all kinds has revived, every one is hopeful for the future. What last spring was only 86 cents, now $1.20 with a large yield on hand.
If my memory is not at fault, your little boy is one year old the present month. That is the age little ones begin to toddle about alone. If John should happen to tumble over, as others have done, I think he would roll over much like a ball if he is still as fat as his picture represents him to be. We hope the little one will continue to be healthy, and escape the trying, critical time of teething. Your brother, it seems has quite a stock [of] boys – now we hope the next three will all be girls, and all live to grow up and be a blessing to their parents, and a blessing to the world. Young people should raise up children, and train them up better than some we have seen. When we see a little one in its mother’s lap, we think of the possibilities that may be concealed in the helpless one. Who knows that a Washington or Lincoln or a Florence Nightingale is not there. The great & the good were once like your sweet boy. My paper is full & have written but little that I thought of when I begun. Wife unites in much love to yourself & to all.
C. Adams
