Metuchen near New Brunswick New Jersey North America

March 21, 1858

My dear Father Mother

I have walked a little more than 20 miles in June is to the post office in expectation of getting a letter from you, as yet I have not got one and it is over three months since I wrote my last thought I had better right again to assure you of my welfare and my health is very good since I have been here I have a grown rather heavier than I have a watch at home being about 156 pounds if that is any criterion I am pretty well as I ever was at home     I think you know I can’t pretend to tell you how I felt when I asked if there was a letter or how I felt when told there was one. I supposed you had written and it has miscarried, I was anticipating a very prompt reply calculating and it has calculating that you would receive mine just after Christmas when you would be all at home.      however I tried to think no news was good news and consold myself with the idea that you were all well and anxious to know the reason I did not write. I received a Derby paper three or four weeks ago and read it clean through except the patent medicines and they looked better worth reading then when I was at home,      then again a week ago we received the new illustrated paper of which I had seen accounts in the papers here. I also saw that some one had

been appointed to succeed Dr. Vaughan but could not learn whether Dr. V was dead or had resigned and that T. Binary was gone to the Antipodes for the benefit of his health and pieces about Spurgeon who is still very much thought of by the Americans. John has got a volume of his sermons and William Watson has two.  I have read several of them and like them much. I think Brian Grant’s style is something like Spurgeons.    While writing about ministers may I tell you that they have got a very talented young man at Metuchen. He is a first rate preacher     the doctor brought him here one day to see John’s wife who is sick yet as I told you in my last and not likely to get better, I had got acquainted with me Dr. with him coming likely to get better I had got acquainted with him coming so often. And sometimes we had a little chat with him about things in England so he introduced me to the minister as a young man from ditto whereupon he very cordially shook hands and had a little conversation.   He seemed particularly pleased to talk to my Aunt and said it was a privilege not often enjoyed to meet with one who had been a member of the church so

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so many years. She was unwell a while ago and had a fire upstairs so I went up to sit with her and do a little thing for her that she wanted.   One night she said William I am glad you are at breakfast and wonder what I should have at dinner perhaps as I did of you.    but you are so much ahead of us there when you are breakfasting I am not up nor begin to think of getting up and when you were getting dinner at 12 1/2 o’clock it was 10 minutes to 8 here. New Year’s day is thought more of as a holiday then Christmas in this hemisphere.  there was no service in the church around here on Christmas Day but at New Year’s Day there was and a very fine day it was so I went with John’s man to the Baptist church that is near here.

I have spoken and shook hands with the ministers several times.    one day he was here and brought a friend with him while shaking hands he said he not have the pleasure of my name so I told him and then he introduced his friend to me and when John came in he told him that I was a cousin from England     he said he thought I was from the old country from the accident ,  Well about his church I may tell you that it is a large one and a very nice one       the people who attended nearly all of them ride there in carriages. One night a while ago aunt was looking into her old letters and showed me one or two of yours written many years since.      I could own the hand writing in a moment .  amongst them was one of cousin Thomas Jackson that he wrote to William Watson telling him about Aunt Riley how she was situated that there was only you that did anything for her and that her nephews here ought to help her as well as you.   Moreover he spoke of you in such terms has made me feel proud to be your son this was written before I came and he could not have the smallest idea that I should ever see it, I hope you will write to him next time. Father I am sure he would be very glad to hear from you. I think he would most like to go to England when Tom comes back if all is well. Henry talks of accompanying  me if he does not go with his father or if his father does not go at all.  Edward said he should like to go and have a look at you all. I am very fond of Edward. One night when I was at Reading I went down after work to have

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little music as usual. It came on rain so I stayed all night and slept with Edward. I heard someone repeating my name so I woke up and found it was Ed saying Cousin William Slater in his sleep.  I suppose it is often the case with him. I have written to cousin Thomas Murfin  and I had an answer from him he says they will be so glad to see me when I can make it convenient to go and tells me he has a brother living in sight of the station and wants me to let him know when I’m coming and he will meet me     and he says he has eight children five of them married. I wrote and told him I intended doing myself the pleasure of visiting them (after I had heard from you)  but as I have not heard have not gone yet and as I had no knowledge of the geographic position of them of the place or what railroad to take to transport me further he has he sent me the necessary information,     it is in the Pennsylvania rail road and I think about 60 miles from Philadelphia     he wished me to give the best love to you all and if I understand him right you have written to him or else it is through me that he is glad to hear of you. The last 11 days I spent a cousin W Watson’s at Perth Amboy.   he was up here with his sleigh,   the snow was on the ground when he came so I had a sleigh ride which was a very pleasant. The south  wind The south wind and sun soon melted the snow and put an end to sleighing however it was very fine walking so I enjoyed myself pretty well on the whole..  There is a fine Bay comes up to Amboy so one can look right out of the Atlantic and think of the loved ones on the other side.

William has sent his eldest daughter Sarah to school a good distance from home.  She is very nice girl about 18 tall and very genteel and when I first went to see them I was eating dinner just the moment you wanted anything she had ready for you with a pleasant smile.     They have another little girl and a boy and the boy is youngest. The little little girl can play  on the melodeon and sing also.  William commenced lime business  a good many years ago.  Oyster shells were the articles that he converted into lime and had a good business for sometime all to his self and made money. Then after a time there was competition as everything else gets.  Now he has given it up altogether. He

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has several good houses in the town besides the one he lives in and 80 acres of land-  50 he farms and 30 is woodland with some good timber on it. He wish me to remember him kindly to you and say that I had seen my American cousins and say one little girl was very sharp (joking his little daughter). 

off  He has the best and largest store of the kind in the town and for a good while the only one.   He has built himself a very large handsome house a little distance from the town and the windows reach the floor so that you can walk out to the balcony which is five or six steps from the ground his eldest daughter is 18 or 19 quite Lady like and very pleasant. The mother died when she was an infant and her father married again and has four more children,  the youngest a few months old.  The other little ones when told to go and shake hands with their cousin from England looked at me and smiled and when at dinner asked if their mother a few questions about me in whispers and looked and smiled again.   Emily the oldest played a few tunes on the piano at my request and John told me confidentially when were going home or that he had a rather not hear pianos played.   

I had only a short stay with them but Amos and his wife pressed me to come again and stay a while.    I have been counting all my cousins here and I found there is 41.  I dare say you are astonished but it is a fact nevertheless.    Aunt has been looking for a letter from you when mine came and she sends her kind love to you all and to her dear sister and says she should like to see you all very much and hopes to meet you all in heaven when there is no more parting.

She is a good kind heart and I love her dearly.

Give my kind love to aunt Riley. I often think of her and hope she’s comfortable and happy.

Hoping this will find you all well and relieve your anxiety about me if you’re getting anxious and

believe me dear Father and Mother

your very affectionate son

William.

This is English ink. The bottle was made either at Denby or Codnor Park

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Front of Envelope addressed

Caleb Slater

Eastwood

near Nottingham

England Europe

no stamps remaining

postmark June 13 the rest illegible

Reverse of Envelope

One clear postmark

Nottingham July 15 59