The inscription appears on the second blank page at the front of A New England Boyhood, an autobiographical book written by Edward Everett Hale and published by Little, Brown and Company of Boston in 1898.1
The inscription is directed to William H. Gutelius Jr. and, amazingly, this isn't the first appearance of a Gutelius on Papergreat. Back in 2013 I had a 1915 postcard addressed to a Mr. W.H. Gutelius in Wallingford, Pennsylvania.2 My guess is that the boy who received this book is the son of the Gutelius previously featured.
Here's the full text of the inscription:
William H. Gutelius, Jr.I hope this inspires you to give someone the gift of a book when December rolls around. And write a sweet inscription (with the date!) so that, if the book survives, someone can see your inscription in the year 2132 and maybe blog about it, if they have blogs then.3
From his friend & old teacher, Hannah Whitson.
May this beautiful, pure, happy, New England Boyhood give much joy to an honest, sturdy, Pennsyslvania [sic] Boyhood.
Xmas 1900.
Footnotes
1. A man named Darren posted the following four-star review of A New England Boyhood on Goodreads.com in 2012: "Very interesting read that provides insight into the boyhood of a well known Bostonian from the mid to late 1800s. Highly recommend for those interested in old New England and Boston and biographies. I really enjoyed Mr. Hale's commentary. It also always made me smile when he'd refer to how things were and how modern and fast paced they had become ... in the 1890s. His writing style matches the time but thankfully is casual."
2. With regard to that 2013 Gutelius post, I received a very odd email earlier this year that wove a tale involving the Charles Lindbergh Jr. kidnapping, a club foot, birth certificate and autopsy shenanigans and the possible switcheroo of toddlers.
3. In the year 2132, according to Wikipedia, a time capsule on Rideau Street in Ottawa, Ontario, is intended to be opened. It was buried in 1982.
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