Richmond, Dec. 10^th 1862

 

            Brother Charles

                                    We received your last to day saying that you were better We write to you once a week and if you fail to receive the letters the fault is not ours. We are well. It is now evening ¼ past six. Mother and Caroline are washing dishes. Willie and Tom are having a lively time and John is going down to Barney's. To day has been warm and pleasant. I got Kit shod all round this forenoon and this afternoon built a cover over the water trough Had Dick's steel shoes put on a day or two ago. The colts are in the cow pasture and look well. I have traded the grey for a pair of 3 year old steers broke with one of Put Hick's boys of Wayland and gave him $10 to boot I have picked out 66 breeding ewes to keep and the rest of the ewes 25 in number, the culls, I wish to sell for $4.⁰⁰ a pair. The lambs ran down for a while but now they are recruiting Old Josiah, young Jo, Truman & Lem Short have brought 16 ewes to the wrinkly buck, and John McCrossen Alden Adams, Coyne, Dan Taylor have brought 15. There will be a dozen or fifteen more as Guy intends to take 10 Guy has been sick some time of dropsy, hardly leaves his room. John McCrossen is using the little buck & John is drawing manure on the meadow. He has plowed both corn lots. I meant to have said that we have been offered $100.⁰⁰ for the wrinkly buck. Huff bought a buck in Canadice for $35, and never was better shaved in his life

 

Sold 25 turkeys on monday last for $13.⁰⁰ By doctoring I keep Dandy's eyes pretty well, but he looks badly / the medicine Dr Paul prepared for him came near killing him

 

            Mother wants you to be careful and not do any work until you fully recover. She wishes to know what you sleep on. You probably have heard of the death of Silas Reed at Suffolk. He had quinzy and fever and bloody dysentery and measles in succession. John and Henry and Hiram Short have been to Penn. on a deer hunt John and Hi got each a deer old Henry killed two he thinks but got neither

 

On the 1^st of Dec. I went to Canandaigua with John A. and Paddy Clark to to prove the will. I dont know whether Caroline wrote any thing about it or not. Mother and Caroline are to have every thing in the house except the watch which is given to me and old Dick, harness and carriage. Willie is to have $1500.⁰⁰ when he is 21 and the balance is to be divided / equally among us then. Mother has the use of her 1/3 both real & personal. I wrote to David Phipps two days ago to give Northrop the power of Attorney to settle up that estate as he could do it cheaper than an administrator could. Aunt Betsey wanted to take up that last note of $50. of yours, so I let her without charging her interest for the short time it had run. Mother is going to give you the secretary. Caroline sent you the Independent—will send you another tomorrow. Mr Day intends to write to you

           

Do you expect to leave Portsmouth this winter?

Samuel P Reed

 

Caroline sent you some more stamps

SOURCES