Gold Rush Era Letters

as usual my dear wife I say to you I have no instructions to give respecting affairs you know them as well as I do. I hope you have long before this received the $140 I sent by Mr S Forbes September last to be paid to br. L. C. P. Freer for you benefits.

I think I shall not send any more home. I am compelled to loose [lose] about $15 on every $100 the gold being worth from 17 to 19 dollars in the states here only $16 and one per cent discount my gold is of the best quality. I think I shall not return before next fall although I shudder at the thought of being so long absent from my darling home my dear wife and children but I often think should I be successfull [successful] the pleasure I shall take in improveing [improving] and embelishing [embellishing] the home of my darling family. I often see it before my eyes how the trees will be planted and pruned -- the walks and grounds, graded the out buildings fited [fitted] up and the neat comfortable, buggy, to carry my family all has A tendency to stimulate me to action and ever regard my health as the property of my family. I hope you will be contented as possible bear with the freaks faults and foibles of the children. Speak kindly it seems now to me as though. A harsh word would break my heart. Keep A good watchfull [watchful] eye to Mary Jane she is now at that age that she is now forming A charicter [character] for her after life. I feel more anxiety about her than I do about James. I think he has the seeds of moral honesty implanted in his mind that I hope will never be eradicated.