Richford            Feb. 5. 1858

 

                                                                                    Dear cousin

                                                                                                            In obedience to your desire and in accordance with the dictates of my own conscience I will endeavor to write and thank you for your kind letter and will also try to write a few words in answer to it

 

In the first place, then, as regards the weather, I should think by your description, that we have had very much the same sort of winter here, that you have there, very little snow and as a natural consequence very little sleighing, and considerable quite warm and pleasant weather for this/season of the year; to day however it has been quite cold and looks considerable like snow. But enough of the weather I guess you will think I mean to write an almanac I suppose you had rather hear something about myself. I board in quite a large family there being fourteen of us, counting the baby and all. besides this I do not have much company except my books and gun.

 

I manage to get considerable leisure time, if I begin in good season in the morning I can generaly get through with my lessons by half past two and then when it is not good hunting I generaly go to the saw mill/for the family where I board own one                 I have got to be quite a sawyer somtimes I tend the mill alone when the one that generaly tends it wants to do something else. When there is a good fresh snow on the ground I take the gun and dog and go to the woods and try the rabbits, but there has been so little snow this winter I have not killed but two. Tell Royal that when the pond is frozen we somtimes go fishing with a net and somtimes catch between a peck and a half bushel of suckers at a haul; we are going to try that tommorrow if nothing happens. I guess he would/like to be here, it isn’t much like hauling them out one by one a day or two between each

 

But I guess you must be getting tired of reading this so I will draw to a close

 

If you think this letter is worth it I should be exceedingly happy to have you answer it Tell Alice when you see her that she must not wait for me to write to her. I forgot to tell you uncle Jacob is well and enjoying himself to the best of his ability                                                                                                                                 Yours truly                                                               R. K. Woodruff

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