Chicago
June 27th, 1869
Dear Brother & Sister,
I suppose you will expect a letter from me before this but
you must excuse me for I have so much to do, and I am in hopes to make it all
up some day if we ever have a chance to meet.
I have been tied up in business rather close for the past six (6) years and
I am in hopes in another year or so that I can come take a little more leisure and
perhaps go home to see our father and mother once more before they are taken
away from us. I wish that you could go with
me. We had a letter from them last week
and father reminded me of my promise (a good while ago) to go home next
summer. Both father and mother are getting
rather feeble and he wants me to goggle your memory and have your write to
him. He says that it is a good while since
you wrote to him and he is very anxious to hear how you are getting along, and
all about it.
Frances has been gone to see her youngest sister that is
married (EH). Ever since last week her
sister was not expected to live but I had a letter from her Friday morning and
she said she was a little better and she thought that with good care she might get
along. If you recollect, EH was the one that
put on the long dress for the first time the morning that we was married to a
man from the east by the name of Fowler, and a very nice man he is indeed. And they have got four or five children (I think
that it is five) and it would have been a very serious loss to have her taken
away from them. She is now about 24 years of age and a better
girl, as I call her, never lived.
I have lost all track of my new relations. I don’t believe I know how many children you
have got. Richard keeps me posted on
his side of the question and I wish you would let me know how many you have got
and their names and ages. It don’t take
long to count ours for we have only Hattie and Winnie. Hattie is eleven years old and Winnie is 4
four.
I am now going to my dinner and I will finish this when I came
back. I have to take my meals to a
boarding house now while Frances is gone.
It seems as lonesome here today without them that I don’t know what to
do with myself. And now for dinner……Let’s
go, Richard!
Well, here it goes again.
I have been to a neighbor of ours to see birds. We have got about 10 canaries and the old one
is sitting on four eggs now. We have
some of the best singers you ever heard and Frances has given so many away. When I come to visit you I will bring you a
pair and you can raise all the birds you want in one season.
Business has been uncommonly dull for this season here and a
great many complain of rather hard times to do business, and it has rained
nearly every day for long time. And the
prospects is that grain of all kind is ruined ere this. I don’t suppose that we shall have any corn
anywhere in this section, and if it lasts much longer it will ruin all kind of
business. And I hope that we shan’t have
any more rain for a while.
I talk of going to Cincinnati to see a vernier machine. I think that I shall build one for our
concern. I have got some nice machinery
running here that I built this last year and I am now building a machine for
sawing the blocks to pave the streets.
It is one third size and is self-feeder and operates with six (6) saws
and will saw very rapid. The velocipede I
got done and is a very good one and Richard is an accomplished rider. I have not had time to ride it as yet. The new machine I have here in the house and
don’t let anyone see it (only my friends).
I built a very fine machine to saw the blocks about a month ago that was
four saws and saws four blocks at a time, but it requires a good many men to
handle it, etc. But this other, it will
do all the business itself. It may take
some time to complete for I have to work at it just when I can get time to do
so.
Write soon. Give my
respects to all.
From yours truly,
Edwin Benjamin
PS – I am rather careless about my writing and so you will
please excuse all mistakes.
Edwin
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