Orleans July 7-05

My dear Shoemaker
Yours of 24-28 red on 29th. Your
cipher was easy (after I had the key).

You look for something difficult in mine
do you not? That is why you overlooked
the true solution. It is exceedingly simple.
The rules for its reading are;-

I. Disregard all numerals, figures, ladders,
  arrows, volcanos, coffins, snakes and invert- ed letters but retain all greek or Roman
letters (print and script) whether free or upon
other outlines ([F] = F = E).

II. Read each letter for the letter before it
in their natural order in the alphabet .e.g.
BOE = AND.

III. Read from right to left beginning
at the bottom and reading upward.
Top line - MBvtV3tB = lausu sa =
as usual .   Sabe?

-----------------------

Your experience with the ivy - while
chasing the six gaited tagger - was rather
a painful rhus (wow!).

[1905, July 7]

Sent you a box containing 8 cuttas
yesterday. I could have caught more, had
I had my net or the time to spare. I can
probably get more of them if you want them.
Talking about Cicindelidae - March 25ᵗʰ
last I saw the LeConte collection of C. at the
Agassiz museum of Comp. Zool. (Harvard Univ.-Cambridge, Mass.)
and while there had a chat chat with Prof Henshaw
who is chief mogul of the bug department. He
was very cordial soon as I mentioned the names
of Bruner & Wolcott. When I mentioned your
private C. celeripes forms he asked me if
it was not possible that we had C. cursitans
misidentified as celeripes.

There are several C. cursitans (in the
Museum coll.) from Neb and I think only one
or two C. celeripes in the collection and they
from the Atlantic coast I believe.

I thot of you and how you would have
enjoyed going thru that museum. It is
an immense affair, all carefully classified
and arranged in related groups and tho I
spent nearly a half day there I saw but a
minute fraction of the specimens. I spent a

[1905, July 7]

long time before the case containing the
skeletons of the manlike apes and man.
These are arranged so as to gently grade
down from man (ciceasian) to the lower
forms of the anthropoids and it is
worth a tup east just to see that one
case.

Of course I did not “do” that museum
as I would like to, if I had the time
to do so. I went east for another purpose
and just took in the sights as a side line.
Boston is a beautiful place but I would
not care to live there, It is too slow.

I spent a week in a little village
in Northern Maine (New Vineyard). It
has over 700 population and boasts of
one store, a post office and a turned wood
novelty mill. The store was conducted
by the folks I visited ("her" parents) and has
been conducted by this family for about
a hundred years.

There is no M. D within 9 or
10 miles and the folks wanted me to
locate there but I had to beg off.

1905, July 7]

I told them that if they would give me
a quit claim deed to ½ the town and the
income from the balance, that I would
prefer to live in Nebraska and grub for
a living. I showed them the difference
between one town here which has a pop-
ulation of about 700 with over 40 business
houses, banks etc and one of their slow
sleepy places and told them that I would
die of “ennui” (or some such disease)
etc. etc.

Yes, I’m going back there and will
come back here a benedict. Don’t know
just how soon - as it depends on how
I prosper here.

            ------------------------

Say - why in time don’t you tell me
about the trip to Lincoln? You say that you
went down there but don’t say anything
further. Did you see Miss Caldwell
and the other fellows? Tell me about
it. You had ought to know that
poor me, away out here in the wilder-
ness, wants to know about the good
times you have.

[1905, July 7]

But to return to the tiger beetles.
Will you be so kind as to inform me
what you are going to do with “nearly
three hundred” of one species? I can’t
see what you want with so many unless
you want to use them for the intestines
for a pie or a mattress. Of course I
understand that you want them for
exchange but do the “cranks” collect
them by the hundred?

This is a great country for birds
and if I had the time I could do some
nice work here. Mockingbirds are not
infrequent and Ark. Kingbirds are quite
numerous. Bobwhites are abundant. I
saw at least six upon fence posts yester-
day when driving out in the country. I
stopped my team and watched one calling
from a post less than 100 ft away from
me. He raised his crest and puffed his
feathers out until he looked as big as
a prairie chicken and then he stuck
his bill in the air, opened it, and said
“Bob, bobwhite” as fine as you please.

By the way - what do you know

[1905, July 7]

about the publication of the Biological Report,
containing our papers? They were in a
terrible rush to get the Ms. but since
sending it I have nothing except an
acknowledgement of its receipt.

It is just barely possible that I
may come up to those diggings some
time next fall - ak. Sen. Ben work piraps -
and if you happen to be in I may say
hello to you over the wire.

I wish you would thank Miss Van
for me, for that set of t.w. lessons that
she sent to a young friend in Maine at
my request. The recipient says that
she has learned more from it than from
her course in t.w. at Business College or
words to that effect. o.t. b.e ; a i.w. etc.

But this is getting so long that
it threatens to become tiresome so will
close for this time with best regards to
the Vans and a real genuine roast for John
Clark Van Sant for sending his son to the
Minn. Univ instead of keeping him here in
Nebraska as he should. Tell him that
I do not admire his taste at all and

[1905, July 7]

that I object - so there!!!!!!!!!!
I suppose that Miss Van is proud of
Carl’s work in the O.N.S. and I don’t
blame her for being so. He surely did
make a fine record.

But. -    -    -   
-    -   -   -  .

As usual
[illegible initials]. Trostler