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    Schoolgirl Scribblings

    Tucked away for a century or more between pages 142 and 143 of D’Aubigne’s History of the Reformation (Vol. II) was a pristine sheet, embossed, written upon in pencil and pen by Ellie Stoneroad. It survives from Ellie’s schoolgirl days at the Harrisburg Female Seminary. It’s faint, not very easy to read, but brings a smile nonetheless for the sheer normalcy of the things written upon it. Ellie wrote multiple times on it the months and days of the week and their meanings (“July -Julius Ceasar,” “Monday-Moon’s Day,” “Friday-Frea’s Day”), an abortive French verb conjugation (“voyais, voyons”), and her last name and city (Stoneroad, Harrisburg). There appears (twice) the instruction “Write…