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great desire to have a visit from me this spring, that I have concluded to go, & effect to set out the last of this week or first of next to spend a few weeks with her. They were all well when she wrote, 30th [?], except colds though Scarlet fever & diptheria prevail in that region - I transcribe for your amusement an extract from a recent letter from A.
"Ag lost her Bantam chicken the other day - it was quite an affliction to her - as she was very fond of it - the funeral was indefinitely postponed on acct of the weather & an hour or so after she found she was dead, I came into the dining room & found her writing a letter to the departed some of it was rather queer - so I thought it might amuse you to see it - so here it is -
"Dear little Miss Thumb - Oh how I do miss you are your feet frozen, or did you freese in the hen house last night? What a fool I am to hold you so much, don't you think so? - Father put you on the shelf in the work room an hour ago - you are dead & gone to the Lord's [thro?] - I thought you might get better yesterday - I hope you get your chicken feed in heaven & lay an egg every day & send it down to me in a basket, for I wish it. I will tell you how to send it - go through the hog house first - then through the hay stack & then you are here - say your prayers every night, & dont get in a fight, but hold your head up tight - So little darling good night, for ever & for ever amen" from your aff mistress Agatha Minturn"
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Ferrisburgh 4th Mo 3rd 1864
Dear Cousin Rachel
We do indeed rejoice with you in the deliverance of your dear son & brother from his protracted & horrible imprisonment. We shall be glad to hear the particulars of his hospittable entertainment by the generous chivalry of the [Sunny?] South. His story must be a painfully interesting one. When you are favored with it, I shall expect as copious extracts, as they time & the [privacies?] of domestic correspondence will permit. I was glad, as we always are, to hear of the health & prosperity of the other members of thy dear family & hope they may long continue to be a blessing to thee & to humanity. I suppose you are now in the midst of your Sugar harvest & hope you may have an abundant one. If convenient, I shall be glad to have cousin Thomas make us
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This letter was directed to [H?] Co [KY?] but A. thinks there is no such County in that Coffeebean State. Sister & the boys join with me in love to all. thy aff cousin Robt T. Robinson
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a can of Syrup thicker than is usually made for market, & [also?] 50 or 75[lb?] of [it?] quality of Sugar. Shall expect to pay a proportionately extra price - We are in no hurry for them & can wait till thou or some other of the family visits us, which I hope will be long before we shall really need the other sweets.
Thou asks how we have got through the winter? - First rate, as the boys say. The winter has been so uniformly mild, with a few short exceptions, that it seems as if we have had no winter & got tho sleighing has been the best & of the longest continuance we ever knew for so little snow. Our french Mary is still with us & though not exactly what we need is, perhaps as good as we shall be likely to find, so we Endeavor to be content. What most interests us just now & what, I think, thou will be glad to hear, is that we have sold our lake wood lot of 73.95/160 acres for $100 per acre which, if not [?] (& I trust it will
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not be), will put us quite clear of debt & something left, I am to go to [Rat?] tomorrow to receive the purchase money $7358.37[/c?] - Isn't thou glad, that, so unexpected an occurrence, as to be out of debt, has happened to us? We did not need this lot, having sufficient wood for fuel without it, & lying some 3 miles from the house & subject to pilfering & [exposed?] to loss by fires, & wholly unproductive to us at present, I feel greatly relieved by the Sale. I may add ([underline]to thee[/underline]) without wishing to boast that we have quite enough land left, 400 acres, which, with the orchard [underline]ought[/underline] to give us a living. The apples last season sold for $808.00 after paying for the [bands?]. Thou may think me foolish or superannuated to tell these particulars; I shall not do it to any other human being, except Ann & I know thou feels interested in all that concerns us hence my freedom.
A letter from Ann last evening expresses such a
