The important passages
ran as follows:
"It is awful news. Our home is burned to the ground, and I am writing
this at Mrs. Wood's where we are all staying. The fire started in the
barn (we think a tramp must have done it), and the wind carried the
sparks over to the house, and in ten minutes it was all ablaze. It was
one o'clock at night, and no one was around to help us. Mother, Grace
and I saved all we could, but that was not much, because we did not
have time, and it got so awfully hot. When the fire was out, Charlie
made us all go over to his house, and sent a team over for what stuff
we had saved.
"Mother is awfully excited, and Grace is sick over it. Madge is all
right, and so am I. But I think it's awful, and I don't know what we
are going to do. Mrs. Wood and Charley, are very kind, but we can't
stay here very long, even if Grace is engaged to Charley.
"Mother says there is an insurance on the house and furniture for nine
hundred dollars, but she hasn't been able to find the papers yet, and
maybe they have been burned, too. If you can, come down right away.
I suppose they don't like to let clerks off in New York, but they ought
to make an exception in a case like this."
Frank handed the letter over to his sister Mattie.
"I'm sorry for you and your folks, Dick," he said earnestly.
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