Master Jack Wallace was growing up in Princeton, the lovely college town in southwest New Jersey.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princeton,_New_Jersey
We met members of the extended Wallace family in earlier postcard stories:
“Charlotte Sends the Lutheran Church”, “Aunt Ruth Is at the Races”, and “Taking the Waters in July”.
In August of 1939, Jack received a postcard from Allie, who (I believe) is his cousin.
From the printing and the sentiments of the message, Allie seems to be an older child.
The postcard was mailed from Hawley, a borough in Wayne County of northeast Pennsylvania.
Once dependent on the coal industry, Hawley became a center of summer recreation around its lakes, golf courses, and other leisure attractions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawley,_Pennsylvania
The face of the linen-style postcard is a photograph of a brown bear trundling along a rural road.
In this photograph, the bear does not look especially dangerous – it appears to be a bit curious.
The postcard photograph is from the “Animal Scenes” postcard series of the Curt Teich Company of Chicago.
On the reverse, Allie begins her message by thanking Jack for his letter.
Allie then shares news of the family and extends personal messages to Jack.
Deda and Connie “send …love”; the vacationers have ‘seen lots of deer”.
Hawley has been “nice and warm”.
Allie asks about Billy – who may be a sibling or a pet of Jack’s, and also asks about Aunt Peggy and Uncle Jack”.
Peggy and Jack, I believe, are the parents of Master Jack.
Invoking the image of the bear, Allie warns “Be a good boy or this bear will eat you up.”
There is little historical evidence that frightening children with tales of ferocious beasts leads to improvements in behavior.
The extended family misses Jack and sends the message with “much love”.
One hopes that Jack was delighted by the bear, that the vacationers continued to enjoy Hawley, and that Allie and Jack maintained a friendly correspondence for many years.
