From Helen Yale Smith (later Ellsworth) to her father Morris; written in Darmstadt, Germany. Helen was in Europe from 1873 to 1875 both going to school and on a Grand Tour of sorts. Mrs. Bean was a chaperone for Helen and her friend Mattie.
“Dearest Papa,
I am almost wild with joy. I am at last going to Italy and in the right way too….Italy, Italy, Italy, the golden land. The land of dreams, oh! Isn’t Mrs. Bean delightful? I think she is an angel! And what is better than anything- Mattie is going too. Oh, I am so glad and happy over it, and I have the greatest difficulty in sticking to my studies over it and to be proper, sober and sedate. So, we, Mattie and I, will have such a jolly Christmas in Rome- where the air is thick with shadows of the past and every stone has its story.
…. (discussion of Mattie’s mother’s and sister’s illness and arrangements)
I asked about the Vienna trip- how you liked it but I have not yet received the letter containing the notes of your approval but I hope it is all right- and oh, I am going to Italy. I had given it up as lost and now it comes again ten times brighter than before- for Mattie is going now. Think of me, dear people, as carousing around in Rome, perhaps dancing at the grand ball at the banker’s Christmas Eve.
And your Christmas? It will be so broken up, won’t it? I hope you will have as happy a one as I anticipate….How good every body is to me! How can I ever be thankful enough? Now, Papa, I will try hard not to be extravagant, but the temptation is fearfully strong sometimes. It is very late and I must wind up my studies. So goodnight, dear Papa. A merry Christmas and a happy New Year to you. Your own, Nelly”
Acair Fearann 
Leaves several questions! What connection was Mrs. Bean? What was the date of the letter? How old was Nellie at the time?
And also, amusingly, carries echoes both of “Little Women” and one of the “Katy Did” books. Little Women, of course, was a bit earlier. But the Katy Did book in question (“What Katy Did Next”) was published in 1886. My (our) copy bears the handwritten inscription: “Helen Ellsworth from Mamma and Papa, Christmas 1891”. She must have felt right at home with the story, which largely involves a European tour for Katy, traveling with a Mrs. Ashe and her young daughter.
Who else in the family had a chaperoned European tour? Eileen, of course, with Beth Hamm. Anyone else that we know of?
I haven’t figured out Mrs. Bean yet, beyond that she was possibly some sort of chaperone. I confess to having flipped to a letter that bore the same date and taking a snippet for the blog! That being my rule: the day and the month must correspond to the one I am writing it up on (though not always publishing on). Mattie was sixteen so a chaperone was definitely necessary. I had wondered why I knew the writing style, Little Women of course! I don’t know the Katy Did books. It is such a bright style. I wonder if she did dance at a ball in Rome? I shall have to look and see.
The Katy Did books, at least some of them (including the one under discussion) are available on Gutenberg in case you want to get a taste of them. I grew up reading them (over and over) and simply couldn’t leave them behind, so here they are – all five, in good shape – in California. In fact, I just finished re-reading them a month or so ago! I think they were one of my first introductions to the West, actually (Colorado, specifically).
How old was Helen? I don’t have her birthdate off the top of my head.