Wells County, Indiana, December 8^th 1864

 

M^r Martin

            Sir       I received your letter of October 24^th stating that you would come to the west and settle on your land if you can sell your property there for a fair price, and consequently do not wish to sell your land yet; you likewise wish to know what kind of constitutions the fever and ague attacks, and what the price of lumber is &^c. In the first place in an agueish season it is no respecter of persons, the most robust as well as the most delicate constitutions are subjects to its attack but none need have it if they will use some antibilious medicines during the prevelance of the disease. We have been in the Country the last ten years and the ague has never been in the Country but twice during that time

 

            The price of lumber at the mill (which is but three fourths of a mile from your land) is for siding [ink blot]ne dollars per thousand feet and all other lumber is ten dollars per thousand. Stone can be had by hauling them three and a half miles from the Wabash river. Carpenter wages is one dollar per day so that you can draw your own conclusions as to what a house would cost. Furniture can be had at Bluffton or Fort Wayne as cheap as any place that we ever lived at. The very best of bureaus cost about twenty two dollars, so on down to ten dollars, other furniture in proportion. Dishes and clothing are cheap, the best of domestick brown muslins is only seven to eight cents per yard, calicoes and other things in proportion. Cooking stoves range from ten to twenty five dollars according to quality. Chickens sell at about eight cents a piece

 

            The roads in the spring of the year is bad but not so bad as they was some years ago. /

 

some kind of a tenement can generally be had to go into untill you would have time to build a better.

 

And in conclusion we should be glad to see you come and live among us, and improve the country, and bring as many sober, enterprising, industrious families with you as you can. Here labour meets with a fair reward and there is every encouragement for people to come nay while land is cheap and provision plenty.

 

            The plank road is finished from Bluffton to Fort Wayne and runs within a mile and a half of your land which makes a good market for all our produse.

            please to let us hear from you occasionally

 

                        Yours respectfully

                                                            J. Garton

 

Martin

North Swanzey

Bristol County

            Massachusetts

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