I shake your hand affectuously.

Your godchild,
Andree Leblanc.

[22] Flat bands (plate-bandes) flower beds. [23] Recognizing (reconnaissante) grateful.

Greenville Falls
Nov. 18, 1917.

Deer godchild,

How are you?  I got that mister Teddy’s letter, and I was goin to anser it but I dident no just what to say, so I gave it to miss Betty and she sed she wood anser it herself.  And you needent worry about my twistin his nose and stikin my finger in his eye, because if you like him I will leave him alone fer your sake.  I had quite a good birthday.  Miss Betty found out when it was, and she gave me a bully party, but we had a feerce time gettin sugar.  You no mister Hoover the new minister I was telling you about?  Well he has got reel exited about sugar, and he has told the shopkeepers they must give only one pound to itch family, and miss Betty she wanted more than that to make my cake, because she sez it is hard enuf to cook with things but it is the limit to cook without them.  And she dident no what to do until she had a brite idee.  She sent Molly to Butler’s store and she got some mapel seerop and mixt it all up with the sugar and a lot of other good stuff.  And I had a bully cake.  It was kinder soft to have candels on it, but miss Betty made it all herself and that is more than your Teddy did, and it was a bully cake just the same.  And she let me ask Dinky Odell over to have some and we had hot chocolate and a fust rate time.  I am sorry your sister dident like the poitry.  Some peeple dont no a good thing when they see it.  Carl Odell has writ to Amanda, and he sez, “I am writing this in the midst of falling shells and boms busting in air, but if ever I come out al-rite little girl I’ll come back to you.”  Carl Odell must have been sent to the front pretty quick al-rite as he has only been gone too weaks, and he sez he has a lot of inside inflammation, but he is afraid the censer will cut it out.

And now I come to the bizness part of this leter.  Fer one yere now I have been your godfather and you have been my godchild, and we have hit it off pretty well I think, and now the yere is drawing to a close, and next month it may be all will be ended between us.  Little girl, what I have been wishing you wood do fer Christmas is not a scarf, or slipper or ennything but this.  Will you be my godchild fer a nuther yere?  I guess mebbe you mite do better fer yourself and get a more classy godfather.  I dont seem to be much good at school somehow, and I guess that missis Yanket was rite when she sed what she did about my spellin bein feerce.  I guess mebbe you rite better than I do, and I no that mister Teddy dose becaus miss Betty saw his letter and she sed it was a fine letter.  Somehow I guess Mr. le Cure and missis Yanket and all your frens rite and spell better than I do.  But I bet I can polish dore handels and wash winders and sell Mirrors and suport you as well as enny Body.  Mebbe I am cut out fer plane bizness.  And so I say, if you think you like me, and wood like to keep on having me fer your godfather, say yes and I will be much obliged.  But if you think you wood be hapier with Mr. Teddy, dear godchild why just say so and never mind about me.  I guess I can live it down.