ENPages
1
Nashville March 26th 1857
Col. Jno Armfield
Dear Sir
Your letter in reply to mine reached me about ten days or a fortnight ago, on my way to Middle Tennessee. I had intended to reply to it earlier in= =forming you about what time I should probably be at Beersheba but have been prevented hitherto by the pressing char= =acter of my engagements. I arrived home last evening and was met by a very unexpected, but not less gratifying letter from Mr. John H. French, offering in behalf of himself and others the erection of a sum= =mer residence for the accommodation of myself and family on a lot which, I am informed, you have kindly & generously ten= =dered as a donation, at Beersheba, for that purpose. For these very liberal proposals, & for your share in them, my dear sir, I beg you to accept my most grateful acknowledgments; & in accepting these offers for myself I return thru you
2
as I have also thru' Mr French my sincere thanks to all concerned.
Mr French reguests me to come to Beersheba at any early day to make selection of a lot for building. Although I possess very little judgment about such things, I should feel bound to comply with such a request of consistent with existing engagments. But I am prevented by positive appointments made at this place -- Franklin -- Columbia -- Williamsport -- Clarksville -- and Memphis & other places in the Western district, ex= =tending from this day to the 12th April. Our Convention meets the 20th May, and all my work for a year past, as well as the arrangemen of Church-business for a year to come, has to be laid-out, plan= =ned &c, between the middle of April & the 20th May. I have therefore written to Mr. French explaining, as I hope satis= =factorily, the reasons why I cannot be at Beersheba before the 1st week in June. I have said to him, that I should under any circumstances, prefer a selection to be made by him and yourself, as I have more confidence in your judgment and
3
taste about such matters, than {insert symbol}in my own. I wrote to Bishop Polk some weeks ago proposing that he meet me at Memphis about the time our Convention assembles at Jackson, and immediately after the ad= =journment of that body, that we proceed on our tour of exploration to Beersheba and vicinity, and thence to other places in {insert symbol}E. Tenn'e so that we may be able to report to the meeting of Bps & delegates from the S. Western dioceses, to assemble on Lookout mountain, near Chatta= =nooga, by the 4th July next.
I thank you for your kind invita= =tion to come to your house. Should the plan proposed by Mr French & friends be car= =ried into effect by the first week in June, I trust to be able, to make my arrangements to take my family with me to Beersheba, and occupy {illegible struckthrough} our own quarters. My household is now small consisting at present of myself, wife & daughter only -- not requiring very ample accommoda= =tions -- yet we are too many to live all at once upon our friends. --
There are some three or four families
4
{penciled at top: Mar 26 1857}
who are members of our church, in the neighborhood of Beersheba. Their names if I remember right are Punderson{underlined} & Handerson{underlined}. With such a nucleus we might have worship at the Springs or near by, at least during the sum= =mer or watering season. Should you meet with any of these people, I should be obliged, if you would enquire of them, whether they would feel disposed to aid in such a project, by attending at some convenient place for worship, or if deemed expedient, to contribute for the erection of a chapel -- I should like to have this information when I come -- The project of establishing a University for the S. West. is exciting more & more interest daily & is evidently gaining favor with the public. If our friends will only back us with their favor & active co-operation, as well as their money, the enterprise will succeed & it is the most important & glorious in its results that the mind can contemplate.
I remain very truly yr friend Ja H Otey -----------