between Field and my youngest sister. She bore the good old-fashioned
Christian names of Mary Matilda--a combination that struck a responsive
chord in Field's taste in nomenclature, while his "come at once, we are
starving" aroused her sense of humor to the point of forwarding an
enormous raised biscuit two thousand miles for the relief of two
Chicago sufferers. The result was an exchange of letters, one of which
has a direct bearing on his whimsical adoption of many-colored inks in
his writing. It read as follows:

[Illustration: A PROPER SONET.
_From a drawing in colors by Eugene Field._

Then Kriee 3 times his breast he smote,
And gruesome oaths swore he;
"Oh, bring back _mine_, and take _your_ coat--
Your painted coat, the which I note
Full ill besemmeth me!"
But swere and plede he as he mote,
Old Field said "No, ol' Nompy, no!
You'll get your coat not none no mo!"]

[Illustration: FIELD AND BALLANTYNE AWAITING THE ARRIVAL OF A BISCUIT
FROM NEW BRUNSWICK.
_From a drawing by Eugene Field._]

[red ink] CHICAGO, May the 7th, 1885.

[blue ink] Dear Miss:

I make bold to send herewith a diagram of the new rooms in which your