Robert was in New York City, and he seems to have an important job that required him to be “on duty”.
We do not know if he was a policeman or fireman, or if he performed some service in a retail or other commercial establishment.
On February 11, 1911, Robert wrote to Miss May Cohn of Springfield, Massachusetts.
The postcard is an embossed design of pink roses and a hyacinth (?) in purple.
I could not find an indication of the artist or the publisher.
The legend proclaims, “To My Valentine”.
Miss Cohn may be a relative, as Robert refers to a common “Gram” in his note on the reverse.
The deeply-embossed design required Robert to squeeze his message into a small area.
(The postcard does not have a “divided back” for the address and the message, suggesting that the postcard was printed circa 1905.
Robert divides the back by drawing a line -which would have been printed on postcards published after 1906.)
Robert asks how Mary is “enjoying Lincoln’s Birthday” and then reports that, “I am on duty, same as usual”.
Robert makes a reference to the availability of Valentines in the city, and adds a wish that “you and Gram get plenty”.
One hopes that Robert enjoyed his performance of duties on Lincoln’s Birthday and on St. Valentine’s Day, and that Mary and Gram were inundated with Valentine greetings.
