At last... the final chapter of the wedding letter. First two parts are in previous posts. Read them first if you are just starting!
.... I had given her a centre piece of my needle work, and with this mass of silver, beautiful linen, cut glass, and embroidery, a set of Havaland china decorated in delicate pink flowers and gold, and a dozen American Beauty roses in the centre, I leave you to imagine what the table was like. We had gone over the afternoon before and set it ourselves. About five oclock all the guests but my son Charlie and myself left. Then Nonie and Mr. Harper fussed around the house like two old married people. Packed their girps for the Park trip which they are taking, I counted all the silver and linen and put the latter away, the former was spread out on the polished dining table to show in the evening, and then we sat around the cozy grate fire in the dining room and talked until the gentlemen from the Assay office, seven in number, two with their wives, arrived. It was such a jolly party. Mr. Harper showed them over the house, and then we all gathered around the dining room fire again and Mr. Harper and I passed champagne and cake. It was all so bright and informal you might have thought it was just one of Nonie's regular evenings only we did not let her serve. Mr. Harper has been in the U.S. Assay office twelve years, under three administrations and his associates one and all look up to him with the highest esteem and liking. It is said about town that seldom has there been a marriage here which has called out the expression of good will that they have heard for Mr. Harper. The guests all left by ten oclock and Nonie went up and changed her dress. They wanted Charlie and me to go to the train with them, but we found it was so belated that they could not get off until half past twelve, so at eleven we drove home and I suppose they are at one of the park hotels today. One of the gentlemen from the office took the silver down and put it into the vault until their return, which will be at three oclock Thursday morning. I will go over on Wednesday, see that the house is in order, there is a man staying in it while they are away, make their bed and take them something for breakfast. I hope you are not weary with this long letter, but I felt that it was hard that you could not be with your eldest daughter yesterday, and that it was hard for her not to have you, so I did my best to supply your place and relieve her of all care and . I was dubbbed the mother-in-law pro tem. Nonie is looking forward to so much comfort in seeing Bertha Peaper and perhaps Lou this fall. With love to you all, I am
Yours cordially
Imogene S. Lotz
713 Spruce Street
Helena, Mont.
July 1st 1898
Some information on United States Assay offices...
The Assay Offices of the United States are part of the United States Treasury Department. They are responsible for the testing, melting, and refining of gold and silver bullion and foreign coins and recasting them into bars, ingots, or discs. Assaying is done at all the federal mints, but special plants were established at New York in 1853, at Boise, Idaho, in 1869, at Helena, Montana, in 1874, at Deadwood, South Dakota, at St. Louis, Missouri, in 1881, at Seattle, Washington, in 1898, and at Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1909. Other than the federal mints, there is now only one assay office. It is located in San Francisco.
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