Bagillt,
July 28, 1853
Dear John & Elizabeth,
I take the pleasure of writing to you in answer to yours of
the 11th inst. and was very
glad to hear that you were all well in health, hoping that these will find you
the same as these leaves us at present better than we have been, thank God for
it, and I have to inform you that after I received your letter on Monday
morning I begun to write a letter to your brother Edwin, but howsomever after I
wrote a few lines something struck me in the head quite of a sudden that I had
better go to Liverpool myself and see him personally, and so your mother
between a little she had in her own pocket and borrowed a little to pay my
passage to Liverpool, and I went and I found him very comfortable indeed
lodging with Stephen Price. He keeps a
very comfortable place, for Stephen is
at the present time as steady a man as any man in Liverpool, and very dearest
sort of a woman for a wife, and as I can understand has money by them at all
times, and indeed they made so much of me as possible as even they could, but I
did not let them know my business whatever, and I told your brother to do the
same only that I came to see how he was getting on and in what sort of place he
was in, but however I have to inform you about your brother that he is very
excitable of the preference as you are so kind as to put him in of it, and
moreso as you want him to make a promise to you for to pay you back the money
as you would send over to him and us, and he told me in Liverpool that he would
be very glad to have the privilege of so doing, and that he would not be very long in doing it doubly according to
what you sent in your letter how he should be paid for his labour after coming
over, and he said to me let it be whatever you would be so kind to send to him
and us, that if God would grant him his health that he would do all as you
require with the greatest of pleasure, and again I think at least I hope so
that you will find your brother a better man than you would think of him, and
as you was talking of having a vessel from Bangor, there is none, and when I
was at Liverpool I gave a call with Eleazar Jones and he told me there would be
plenty of vessels turning out for Boston in the next month, and a capitall
accommodation that is Train & Co.’s line of packetts, and that as you was
in the neighborhood of Boston that you could buy his ticket at Boston if you
liked, but he said he could not tell me then what the passage money would
be.
Then another thing I have to inform you of is about our
house, that Mr. Faulks has bought this and the old Hatch house by the well
between us and Bagillt, and he went to Denbigh and took Mr. Smedley’s clerk
with him for to see if all the writings was good, but they were not good but
promised they would be right in another week or else he would of paid for them
there and then, and he tells us altogether that he will make us a very
comfortable house here, what we never had since we are here, but that we must
settle with Mr. Williams out first, and as you know that your sisters would
assist us as far as possible they could, and they did as good as possible they could
but however the arrears as I owe is 8 pounds and we could not do any better, and
we do not know what to do either, and we are to have the house if we can settle
the arrears up first, and as you was asking about your brother Jones he has
gotten to himself very good and I believe that he has had a very good time (?)
for he gets to feel it nearly as strong, thank God for it and the other, and he
sends his kind respects to you and Elizabeth and little M. A. Ellen, and
wishing very much that he should have the privilege of coming to see you all
the same as his brother Edwin, but he hopes the day won’t be long that either
of his brothers will be so kind as to give him the opportunity of seeing you
all together again for he thinks himself a man to be worth more money than four
or five shillings per week, for that’s what he can get at Pentre Mills, and
that you can plainly know, if God will grant, that your brother should arrive
with you safe and that he should of been very glad to have the opportunity of
coming with his brother Edwin.
PS. I have to tell you that Richard Gardner, Elizabeth’s
brother, called upon us yesterday. He had been of an ___ to somewhere and I
asked him if he should like for me to send a word or two to you and he thanked
me, and he sends his kind respects to you all, and that he is coming on very
well, and so he does for I was quite surprised to see him for I had not seen
him for a great while before, for he is thriving very much and also told me for
to tell you that he is in the shop now with his brothers and that he likes very
well and that his brother and the child was very well at present and that the
little child was out with somebody by the Babell near Calcot, but Richard
thought that he would be with the mother’s family often a while.
PS. As I have forgot
some as you were talking of your brother taking a first class passage, Mr. Eleazar I told that the first class would
cost about fourteen to sixteen pounds and the second would be from six to eight
pounds. Therefore I cannot say no more
but must do the best as we can after we
shall receive a letter from you we shall do our best. Your mother is very proud that she is under promise
of receiving a letter from Elizabeth.
She will receive it with the greatest of pleasure for she says that she
has not had a single word from her this many a month, and she jumped to
Gardner’s note as soon as I opened the letter and said this is for one from
Elizabeth before I had time to see who it was for, but was very sorry when
found disappointed.
So your brothers and sisters all sends their kind respects
to you both and the little girl, and that all of us would be very glad to have
the pleasure of receiving the likeness, but you can see by the papers when the
Africa will be bound for Boston. If
Robert Ellis is with her or not I cannot tell but however I found out in
Liverpool this time that there is a young man of Flint of the name of Robert
Bellis, son of ___ Bellis of Flint, as belongs to the fire department, for your
brother Edwin knows about him well. She
is bound for New York this time and this letter with her.
So we must conclude for this time again with our kind regard
to all of you, and this from your dutyful father and mother,
Robert & Sarah Benjamin
PS. I saw Richard
Davies in Liverpool and he spends his kind respects to you and family for I
told him that you was sending to him and he was very glad to hear from you, and
that he and his family are all well at present. Old Margaret Lloyd is here just
at the finishing of my letter and desires to be remembered kindly to you all
and also the old news man sends his respects at all times.
PS. You can see yourself that this lateness is of great
importance for it has been signed by mother and Harriet and she means by what
she done, is God Bless you, amen, and I wish to same, amen.
Edwin is determined to travel to America!
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