Letter from Mamie to Emily sometime in 1898

Dear Emily,

I hope this letter finds you and the family well. I have not visited as often as I'd like to because of the unpleasantness over my elopement, as you know. I wanted to write to you to let you know that my affection for you and even for ma and pa has not diminished. There are things unsaid between me and them that I feel should be said to you. I should start at the beginning. When the courts forced the state to create schools for Chinese, at a young age I felt how a victory for me could be a victory for many. Ma and pa were upset that we had to go to school for only Chinese students. We were still not fully free but a big step had been made. And to be with people who looked like me but dressed as in the old country was not so bad. I felt free. I think we all want to be free. Everyone in this country is chasing after it. Ma and pa as well. They want to be free but they do it according to the rules of the whites. Some of the whites accept them and some don't. I think this path is a bit narrow and not free to me.

My husband and I recently moved closer to Chinatown and are very involved in the community and especially in the church. When growing up, I remember dad had one hand in the Chinese community and the other in mainstream america. I want us, not just me, to get our rights some day, but maybe the community that does not reject me can be more than a leg up. I married for love and not for money, and maybe I could only do that because of the kind of people the folks are.

Love,
Mamie