Gold Rush Era Letters

Letter 5

1 Mile North of Saint Joe Mo [Saint Joseph, Missouri]

April 29 1849

My Beloved Wife, You Cannot Conceive the pleasure I have enjoyed in perusing your letters to me. Only to think I have had the good fortune to receive three letters from you within the last three days dated the 11th, 15th and 19 April. Dear I thank you for these sweet letters, so full of love & Confidence & containing that which I so much desired to Know. I am sorry to do many expressions of sadness and despon= dency in your letters, my darling you should not indulge in such sad forbod =-ings as you have done, you must bear up for the sake of our dear little Ones. I see I must talk about what is most uppermost in my mind first you tell me that our "little secret" will soon be known by every one [everyone]. Oh how glad I am it is what I most desired to know. I am confidant now that you will be yourself that you will be the noble, brave, and sensible woman that I married for a wife. I know you will consider the great necessity there is for you to be Calm & Cheerfull [Cheerful] and that you will Control your feelings & greif [grief] at our seperation [separation] for the good of our dear little unborn innocent. Oh I know that the Knowledge that you are carrying within you that little germ that will become the image of him who is absent will be the source of unspeakable Joy to you. The reflection will be delightfull [delightful] to you. Know that those motions which you felt were produced by him whom you love and who loves you so dearly. The more I think of it, the more am I rejoiced that it is so. how I was delighted when I read about my noble boy tell him "Pa" will bring him many Bamoes from "Janney" and a little horse for him to ride too. I hope then dear treasure is entirely well before you receive this letter. I am very sorry that Mr. Fisher should have said what