My dear Cal,

Here the day is gone & I had meant that you should have a line today by this time to say that your snow shoes had came all safe sound. It was so good of you to send them right off & you did them up so neatly even paid the express you bad boy. I found them on the hall table on Saturday morning when we came up from breakfast. Of course because I hurried you, no party came off but the snow is hardly in good condition yet. Miss Bennett however on Sat. night borrowed a pair of snowshoes & I eagerly donned my moccasins & we went out on the lawn & had a jolly little time of it by ourselves--felt quite young & foolish again. Your snow shows just fit me splendidly--they are just the right size--the ones Miss B. had borrowed were much too small they sank down so far. Well mine are adorning my room now & I'm anxiously waiting to hear if you've brought your new pair all right & haven't broken yourself entirely.¹ Well my dear boy, so far, things predict a busy week, at least a full week.

To-morrow night we intend if possible to go to the rink--for one night this week--on Wed. is the church social at St. Andrew's. By the way, T. Herridge has shaved his moustache & looks fiendish. This Thursday afternoon comes our teachers meeting & in the evening we go to hear Dr. Drummond the habitant.² He is so fine.

On Friday afternoon Miss Boyd is giving another thimble tea & in the evening I suppose there will be something else & on Sat. afternoon I am invited out to Mrs. Smith's to another thimble tea--so you see how the week will go & then only one more week in February.³ Well my dear boy this is only a scrap of a letter but it will do to send my thanks & much love.

Your grateful & affectionate sister.

Ruby

(D.V.)[God Willing] That was a good thing in your paper about the Toronto man killing himself at ping pong & warning studious Toronto men in indulging in such a violent exercise as ping pong.⁴

¹ Snow-shoes have been the subject of the last several letters between Ruby and Calvin and Calvin has sent his old pair to Ruby. See W4539 and W4546.

² Dr. Drummond wrote the "Habitant" poems in the French Canadian vernacular (patois)and they were often recited publicly. Calvin developed the ability to imitate Dr. Drummond's "Habitant" poems and did so publicly on several occasions. See W4559, Box 12-159, W-MCP2-3b.060, Box 03-188, Box 03-188a, Box 06-246, Box 03-243.

See Also French Canadian Poem by Joe Picard, pen name for Charles S. FitzSimon and FitzSimon's biography, Box 03-241.

³ A thimble tea is a social occasion in which women gathered with their needlework.

⁴ We have not been able to locate this article and it does not appear in The Tatler articles that we have found and that are on this site. They can be viewed by searching on "Tatler."