In the summer of 1915, Myrtle gave a postcard to her cousin, Harvey Hahn.
The postcard was not mailed, so we cannot know where Myrtle and Harvey lived.
The face of the postcard is an artful illustration of a contemporary song.
The lyrics of the chorus are printed on the left; a pair of shapely bathers fill the rest of the card.
A maiden, in modest “bloomers” for swimming, dives into the outreached arms of a sturdy lad in a bathing “onesie”.
The postcard was copyrighted in 1915 by “Parke, Daniels, & Friedman” of New York City, although the lyrics were written by Ray Ingraham.
It appears that rights to the song were held by the music publishers.
In 1915, New York boasted a midtown, “Tin Pan Alley” of music impresarios and publishers.
The song became a bit hit and was performed by Sophie Tucker.
Here is the sheet music from the archives of Duke University:
https://repository.duke.edu/dc/hasm/a4941
On the reverse of the postcard, Myrtle teases Harvey, “This is you in the water, now don’t let her drown.”
The purpose of the postcard seems to be the announcement of Myrtle’s planned visit: “I will be up there the 11th of July…”
One hopes that Harvey was pleased by this example of postcard art, that Myrtle was able to make her visit, and that the cousins remained friends and correspondents for many years.
