Lawrence, Kansas Territory
October 15, 1859
Mr. John Benjamin
Yours of the 18th ult. is before me having been read
with satisfaction, as are all your letters.
And as time and opportunity to me are both matters of will, I choose to
reply without delay, more especially when you say, “It gives us pleasure to
hear from you”.
Yes, Willie is still at Mr. Brevin’s . He has thus earned $500 and has nearly all of
it which is quite clever for him to do in the space of two years, and so he
will continue, at least for the time being as we desire not to be precipitate
in any changes or alterations we may feel somewhat inclined to make. I now have determined for the future to lay
no plans nor make any boasts of what I intend to do, but nevertheless, if life
is spared, and matters work to our minds, it is more than likely we may find
ourselves removed from Lawrence, perhaps to Leavenworth on the Missouri river
in this territory. Such a removal would
I think suit myself, and Mrs. Wait as well in time, so even at the present open
a wider field for Willie to obtain employment and set before his view a little
more of the world in an enlarged population and more active business. These measures, if we believe them right, are
our duty to fulfill, having always before us bounds of reasonable limits.
I say, desirous of knowing something more of your past of
the country there, I ___ and therefore I wrote you accordingly, and have
received your replies. The night on
which I mailed my last letter to you we had a little touch of frost and no more
from that time to the present. We are
having the most delightful series of fine weather I ever beheld. Oh! what a lovely creation the giver of good has bestowed upon his unthankful creatures.
And I cannot help thinking that the scenery in your locality with
prairie, wood and lake must be charming.
And if it was not for the buts and the ifs and the ands, and not quite
so far out of the world, I might almost have been tempted (if I were not
already in Kansas) to have desired a location near you. That your climate is better suited to our
northern people, I doubt not.
Speaking of other children and their acts, I have no
question but that yours will be a comfort to you, at least so I hope. And here let me say parents should be careful
that the example should strictly correspond with the inculcated precept, for if
not, their labour will be in Lawrence rain.
I regret the frost comes upon you so early and in consequence will
shorten your corn gathering. Your
thunder I am inclined to believe does not exceed the terrific storms of that
kind we experience here. We have had
much less rain this fall than we have had the two last falls. I find by your meteorological table that of
the months of Dec 1858 and Jan & Feb 1859 you have had 30 days out of the
90 that the thermometer was at and below zero.
Now, I protest against such wholesale ice manufacturing. Occasionally the thermometer is with us in
those months is at or something below zero.
They are few and far between, however.
Tell your affectionate wife for me, and that too without being jealous,
that Mr. Wait is only lacking in ability to make up all the deficiencies and
havoc that Jack Frost brings with him in his train. I would in such case more
than make up the damage to the crops, so take the will for the deed and as it
has not with me before, as now, these
are not unmeasuring exceptions.
Money here is very scarce.
Our milkman has number 25 cows lost by the Mexican sickness. One poor family I know owned 2 yoke of
oxen and 7 cows and they lost nearly
all their horses, and four of the oxen are dead and one of the cows.
When I say that you are under no obligation to write me, you
say you beg leave to differ from me in that respect. Well, so be it. I am pleased to read all you have or may
write, that I assure you of a truth. But
do you not overestimate your obligation to me
for the very little favor I have extended to you and yours. I have a grateful disposition, for if I know
myself I in some degree possess this ____ and now I repeat it is the ability I
lack, and want only to do for others as well as yourself in this your time of
need, and it greatly disturbs me that I
have not in possession the money to demonstrate my willingness to do my
Master’s work. Now do not say that I am altogether relying on
“Good Work”, for if you do, you will accuse me wrongfully. Nevertheless you
know it is said “By their fruits ye shall know them” and “He that giveth to the
poor lendeth to the Lord” and “Insasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of
one of these, ye have done it unto me”.
Mrs. Wait desires to be affectionately remembered to Mrs.
Benjamin, the children. Also my Willie
is not wanting in respect to those of my friends.
I am your friend,
Richard G. Wait
No comments:
Post a Comment