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^ 71 against it for one of Meacham’s temporary replacements. (City directory, 1896; San Francisco Call, 23 May 1896.) 2. Francis Lester Hawks Noble (c. 1867–1948) had been a college chum of William Randolph Hearst at Harvard and followed him west to work as an editor at the San Francisco Examiner.Although he eventually joined Hearst in New York to work at the Journal and later the World, he stayed in San Francisco until 1896 or 1897.(Harvard College,Class of 1888. Secretary’s Report No. IV [December 1898], 77; Aldice G. Warren, ed., Catalogue of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity [New York, 1910], 515; New York Times, 4 February 1948.) 3. William Randolph Hearst (1863–1951) owned the San Francisco Examiner, the first newspaper in his media empire,though he had by this date moved to New York City to publish the New York Morning Journal. (ANB.) Mon. May 4, 1896. In San Francisco Woman’s Congress of the Pacific Coast opens this day1 1. Starting in 1894, a Woman’s Congress gathered annually in San Francisco to bring disparate organizations of women along the Pacific Coast into conversation . SBA attended the congress in 1895, but her trip to Sacramento for the State Republican Convention caused her to miss most sessions in 1896. See Gullett, Becoming Citizens, 74–79, 84–87, and Film, 35:728–43. Y Excelsior Diary 1896, n.p., SBA Papers, DLC. ••••••••• 25 • Theodore W. Stanton to ECS Basingstoke, [England] Sunday, June 14, 1896. My dear Mother: IwroteyouacardfromParisjustbeforestartingtellningp youIwouldgive you some account of the sad affair here.1 Well, I arrived here early Saturday morning with beautiful weather.Hatty broke down for a moment on meeting me but she does not look so worn out as I feared would be the case. She has worked like a Trojan since Thursday. Almost alone, though greatly aided by Alice Blatch2 & by Harry3 in some things, she arranged everything & arranged it admirably. The little coffin, set in the baby carriage, whose wheels were trimmed with flowers; the conservatory off of the parlor where the body lay; the rooms all tastefully ornamented with flowers; two little tables near the coffin holding photographs of you all—Nanny & Cousin Lizzie4 were there—& favorite books & one or two play things of the child; five or six of 3–4 may 1896 72 & 14 june 1896 the cousins—children—grouped in one corner of the conservatory, Nora5 at the foot of the carriage, Hattie & Harry on either side at the head, I a little back next to Hatty; the Unitarian clergyman,6 who did his part very well, the three Blatch sisters7 & three ladies from London in the parlor; Conran & Platers in two chairs outside of the parlor at the open window; two pretty songs by two excellent Basingstoke voices, Alice presiding at the piano; a violin peice delicately executed by Jacob Bright’s daughter;8 Hattie & I carrying the coffin, after the ceremony which lasted not more than a half hour, to the carriage standing near the terrace; Alice & the trained nurse accompanying it to Working,9 whither five or six of us—Hattie, Harry, Mrs. Savile,10 & Elizabeth11 —went by train; the cremation, which consumed two hours & passed off without any unpleasant feature, the return by train, getting home by six,—such were the chief features of yesterday’s ceremonies.Everything went off quietly, without a hitch, with much dignity & feeling & reflects the greatest credit on Hattie’s taste & good sense. One is almost tempted to say that such a funeral is pleasant. Anyway there is nothing repulsive about it. I wascontinuallyrecallingthechill&shockingfeaturesoftheBerryfunerallast summer.12 Fortunately the weather was simply perfect.The crematory part of the proceedings has removed from my mind the slight prejudice I had against that manner of disposing of the dead.It is the only rational way of being buried . Marguerite & the children sent over by me a lot of beautiful white roses. One of them was cremated with the body.I am now trying to get Hattie to go back with me for a week or two. Nora is delighted with the idea. But H. is so changeable that I can’t tell whether she will go or not. One moment she says yes & the next no. When I get back to Paris, I will drop you a line as to the result. She ought to leave here, for a few days at least. The Blatches all say so & I think so too. I go over Monday night. Best love to all, U Theodore. Y ALS, Clara B...

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