In November 1828, William Tell Steiger wrote in his notebook that he had presented his beloved Anna Maria Shriver with an anagram: “O evil here I am at.”
He continues, “she deciphered it and returned an anagram in answer containing the following: ‘That love deserves to be returned.'”
Three years later, the couple married on September 20th.
We leave you to puzzle out the first anagram (which you can find in our Steiger-Shriver Family Papers). And yes, Anna Maria Shriver was the great-great-great aunt of journalist and First Lady of California Maria Shriver.
"I love thee Maria"
Hooray! You get the prize!
What about, "Maria I love thee." Prize for me too?
Sure! Would you like some steel paperclips? Or an assortment of blank call slips?Technically, Steiger's notebook entry discussing the anagram gave the solution as "Maria I love thee."