ALS: Tuesday, June 8, 1926

(Letterhead: BROOK FARM / RIDGEFIELD CONNECTICUT)

June 8, 1926

Dearest Mother,

Just got your letter with enclosure from Wurlitzer's. Thanks. I finished paying for the drums the other day while in New York, and also bought a drum bag for the bass drum. I'll send it up. Do you mean you got the drums over from Merryall?

I'm awfully sorry to hear about Barbara's bronchitis. Hadn't she better have the doctor give her a tonic or something. You could call him on the phone and ask him what to get for her. Will you do that? It's a bad time for her to get into a run down condition. If you haven't got the money for a tonic, I'll send it up. But you had better do something right away.

I intended to write you last night but something much more interesting took place. Agnes and Gene were in New York for a few days, and as it happened, Kawa (the butler) was taking a few days holiday. So Gaga and I were here alone with the children.

About seven o'clock I thought I heard someone trying to get into the sleeping porch windows. I started to investigate and then thought to myself, no it was just the wind so I came back and sat down again. About half past nine I was sitting on the couch playing the mandolin and Gaga was out in the kitchen fixing the baby's (Oona's) milk. Suddenly I heard someone at the window in back of me. I got up and went out in the kitchen, told Gaga about it, and we decided it was probably some of the boys from the school. She locked the back door and I came back in and first turned on the porch light, went to the door and looked around but saw nothing. So I came back and about ten minutes later I was sitting on the couch again playing the mandolin when I heard the same noises at the window. I was scared stiff but went ahead playing and listened very hard to make out what was going on. All of a sudden there was the most blood-curdling scream from the kitchen, and a terrible thud. Then the most awful bumping of furniture. I immediately rushed towards the kitchen and in rushed Gaga, white as a sheet and simply gasping Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh!" and she fell on my neck speechless. Fifty million things went through my mind in about three minutes. I thought of everything that could have happened -- When I first heard her scream I thought she had been murdered. The thud, I found out afterwards, was only the dish pan which she let drop.

Finally after shaking her and trying to find out what had happened she pointed toward the window and said "Out there -- he's out there -- there's a man -- Oh! Oh!" Quick! Quick! and by this time I was so scared myself that I could have dropped. My knees were shaking so. So I grabbed one of the billiard cues and then wondered what I was supposed to do with it.

By this time Gaga told me he was not in the house but out on the back porch looking in the window at her. A man with a big black moustache, she said. As far as we knew there was not a gun in the house, all the windows were unlocked and all the doors unlocked but the back one which she had just locked a minute before. (Later we found out the key was on the outside all the time.) All the shades in the place were up and we knew there were at least 2 men outside.

I made Gaga lock the doors and I grabbed the phone and called the police station. . They didn't know where the place was but said they would try to find it. Then I called Mr. Bedini (outdoor man and gardener). It was the most awful feeling of helplessness to be without any protection, to know everything was wide open, and the house so big that in one end you have no idea what's happening in the other end. The two children were upstairs. So many windows and doors, we weren't quite sure just where or when to expect anyone. We shivered and shook and waited for about ten minutes. Then Bedini came.

He acted as though we were a couple of scary old maids, but he went all around the house looking, had a gun and a flashlight. Just as he got to the back door coming in, the state cop drove up and thought he had his man -- luckily he didn't shoot at him. Poor Bedini, he got kind of sore about that.

Then they both went over the whole place with lights and Bedini went driving madly up the road to see if he could see anyone. After about about a half hour's search outside -- it was 16 above zero -- we asked them in to get warm.

The cop was quite worried as he said there had been quite a lot of robberies in Ridgefield lately.

We wanted Bedini to stay here all night but he said he couldn't, that his wife would be scared to stay alone, so the cop said he would stay until we were ready to go to bed. He was worried that we had no gun so he called up the station and tried to get one of the men to bring one up for us. However, he couldn't get one to do it. By this time it was getting late and he had to go back so he promised to be up in five minutes if we heard anything more and would call him.

I made sure that no one was in the house and that all the windows & doors were locked before I let the cop go home. We even made a thorough search of the cellar.

After he left we searched closets etc. until we found the rifle. Neither of us took off our clothes all night, but we did sleep in snatches through the night. Gaga in the back part and Shane and me in the guest room. After I found the rifle I felt better. Not another sound all night, but I am sure it was someone trying to get in. In the first place it was too cold for anyone to be just fooling -- and then again, they must have been out there for about two hours before Gaga saw the man in the window. It was about two hours before that I had heard them at the sleeping porch window. I suppose they must have known we were there alone and then another thing boys don't have moustaches.

Kawa is back now and Agnes and Gene are coming tonight so I feel all safe now, but I've been a wreck all day. Every time I hear a noise it makes me jump a mile.

I think the awful scream Gaga let out was what scared me most of all.

She says she doesn't remember screaming. I've never seen anyone so scared as she was. She told me she absolutely lost her senses for about four minutes and she must have, because she tried to tell me what was the matter but all she could do was to open and close her mouth and every six or eight breaths say "Oh!" in a kind of a scream.

I suppose you will think this all was frightfully funny, and it really was after it was all over, but it wasn't funny last night. I've never really been scared before. I've heard people snooping around, and I've seen people snooping -- but I have never thought before that something awful was really going to happen. But I was sure last night that whoever it was outside intended to come in.

Enough for now. I'll write again soon and tell Teddy I'll find out about the water colors as soon as Agnes come home, and I'll let him know. Give everyone my love, and write when you can. I wrote to Mrs. Mitchell a few days ago.

Will write more news next time.

Lots of love,
Budge

Gaga sends her love

Funny thing -- the state cop used to know Gene's father in New London -- lived next door to him.

Sunday night

Missed the mail Saturday but will surely get this off on tomorrow's mail.

Am alone again till Friday. They just left. Would liked to have had you come, but on account of Barbara not being well thought it would be best for you to be there with her. I hope Teddy will not mind. It will be a great relief to me to have someone else in the front part of the house with me.

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I think it's very important that Barbara sees the Dr. right away. Please don't delay any longer. I mean don't let her delay any longer. Am enclosing a check for $10.00. You had better get Swanson to take her to Litchfield and then there should be enough left for her to get a tonic or any medicine she may need. Please make her do this right away.