Thursday A.M.

My Dear Ina,

The photos are wonderful and I don’t know which I like the better. It was mighty sweet of you to have them made and you can’t imagine how I appreciate them. When they came to Dr. K.S. office the nurse was anxious to see them and she thinks that you are a very beautiful girl. My landlady thinks so too and told me how lucky I was to have such a “beautiful sweetie.” She arranged them on the dresser for me so that when I get up in the morning I’ll start the day out right. When I described or tried to describe you, she was certain that you are Irish for she says I described the Irish type of a beautiful girl. I told her that you had too sweet a disposition to be Irish, for I didn’t think that you had that much temper. She thinks you are Irish just the same. You certainly had some good ones made, but even then I don’t think they are as beautiful as yourself. I am glad that you smiled a little for one of them, for I like to think of you as wearing a little smile. It seems to say that you are happy and I want you to always be that way, though I know it is difficult to always feel that way. When you are happy, I feel the same way.

September 18, 1924

You don’t know how very much I would like to see you, Dear, and I wish that you were here – real often. It was nice to be given your position until April, and I am thinking that he won’t want you to quit at that time. I’d like to see you quit then, and I’d be the happiest man in the world if I could come for you in June. Gee, it would be wonderful. Seems almost too good to be possible. It would be wonderful to come for you at any time and if you only love me half as much as I do you, I am sure we will be happy. I would try to be good to you, Dear, and would do everything in my power to make you happy. I know that I would always be proud to have such a sweet little wife.

I have not heard from Mr. Bishopp since he left here. Mr. Parman’s letter was probably answered by Mr. Laake as he was in Dallas during Mr. Bishopp’s absence. If Laake comes down to help Mr. Parman it is possible that he will stay there during Mr. Parman’s vacation. I imagine he would rather not stay so long as his wife is in Dallas, though he may take her with him. You would like her I am sure.

Dear, I have sent almost a hundred sections of skin to Washington to two of the best men up there and so far they have not been able to isolate the parasite or organism causing creeping eruption. Mr. Bishopp said that they had not located minute burrows to indicate that they were near the parasite. I have just sent one section to Mr. Bishopp in which I was able to show the burrow by staining, and it is far smaller than anything we suspected. For a while I felt that I had the right thing but on finding such minute burrows, barely visible by staining and under a high power microscope, I have concluded that I had been working with the wrong thing. It is more difficult to isolate a thing like this when there is undoubtedly only one in a burrow. So many times organisms are present by the hundreds and by proper technique, some of them can be recognized, but when there is only one the chances of locating it are not so good. It is possible that Dr. White may get it yet as he has not finished the sections. It seems that he has been away on a vacation. Mr. Bishopp says that all of them are very much interested but none of them can suggest anything as to what it might be. Had it been as large as a “chigger” or “red bug” we would have had no difficulty, though when I came here we were of the opinion that it was quite a good sized thing, about the thickness of a dress pin and 1/4 inch long.

In treatments we had good results in more than a hundred treatments, but a few of them have been just as difficult to treat as they have been to isolate the organism. It is quite different to be able to see what one is working with and be able to check results without waiting for time to tell. Persons get them in the fingers in transplanting flowers and places that one would hardly suspect. The only precaution that is sure is to avoid coming in contact with moist soil of any kind, though lots of people do not have tender skin and are not affected. It is seldom that a negro will get them.

I don’t know why I am writing you all of this unless it is because I have it in my mind so much. Should a person play in the moist sand they can use a rub of alcohol, ethyl acetate, or even ether and prevent infestations, but of course they don’t suspect anything until they get them. Usually they don’t come to a doctor until the things have become painful and irritated from scratching.

Should you come down here with me, Dear, I’ll see that you don’t get any so don’t let that worry you. I’ll take care of you all right.

Hope to have a nice long letter from you soon, Dear, for I love you lots.

Your
Walter.