Pittsburgh, March 13^th 1845.

 

Dear Father;

                        Your letter of the 6^th inst. was received to-day, and read with mixed emotions of pain & pleasure; pleasure, to know that you are all well, and might be doing well, did you not vex yourselves in relation to things concerning which you might, & could, be at rest; and pain to hear your foolish project of coming into town again. What is [faded] of the German who caused to be inscribed upon his tombstone, "I was well, took medicine, & died." is at present very applicable to you, who when in the country you could well love, the very hardest pinch being over, your utensils & stock being gathered about you, and in short every thing in as fair a way as could possibly be, are dissatisfied. Now you may say "why then did you wish to go away?" I answer the cases are entirely dissimilar, I was actuated by a desire for leaving which you are not. I know perfectly that one could live in the country, had he no debts; and now do you not see? My Uncle offered to pay Dr. Speer, on your due bill; what could he do more? But did you take any notice of it? No, you never so much as mentioned it. Now you know perfectly that had you so much as requested him to do so, he would have done it with the greatest of pleasure. I never would have forced matters with you. But there you are; you take no notice of all / this and of the fact that in a few years after giving the thing a fair trial, you might then sell out pay my Uncle $150.00 (supposing you to have turned him to Dr Speer as pay master), and then have the proceeds of the farm to yourself; but instead of that every other letter, with the exception of one, is lamentation loud, and deep. Now I do sincerely hope that you, knowing all this, will send no more such letters.

 

            But as I suppose I have gone far enough with this, I will just inform you that in a few weeks you are to be honored by a special visit from my my-self, it is most probable that I will start on the Monday after next, and arrive there on Tuesday evening. it may be that I will stay 2 weeks when once I am out. But as to the length of time I cannot yet be certain.

 

            Mary Jane is well & is now living with [faded] Smyser, where she has been about 2 weeks.

 

            Eliza & [faded] are still alive and well. when I get out I will have some fine [faded] to tell you of them. Their last child was a girl.

 

            William John & James are well, and both working steady, their terms of apprenticeship will now soon be out & I suppose neither of them will stay in Pittsburgh long after that desirable event takes place.

 

            As to my studies, I do not suppose it to be necessary to say much of them, but I may be permitted just to state them as briefly as possible, in order to satisfy you in some degree. 

 

            Being through Latin, Greek, & French, I do nothing but study German, Analytical Geometry, & [faded] sections, Chemistry & Mental Philosophy;—Since I came here I have studied & passed examination on Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry plane & spherical, & Measurement. In Greek Xenophon, Homer, Sophocles, Euripides, [?]schines & Demosthenes. In French Telemachus, In [faded] "Sundries". and in the sciences, Political Economy, Logic, Rhetoric & Moral Philosophy. I have yet to study Descriptive Geometry & [faded].

 

            But it useless to go into particulars, since I will be there soon myself and therefore I add not but remain

                                               

Yours respectfully

Samuel Baker.

 

[numerous notes in German]

 

[verso]

 

Mr John Baker;

            Springfield tp.

                        Mercer Co.

                                    Penn^a

 

 

 

[notes in German]

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