Green Brier, N. Newton.    Hamilton

Mifflin County, Pa,  North America

May 4, 1858

My dear Brother John

You tell me that my last letter was the most welcome one in that it dispersed all your doubts and dim foreboding scattering and driving them all away like the Sun does the mist on a summers morning. I wonder some of you did not think of writing again as well as me to cheer me a little so that I could let my imagination rest, I hope for the future (“times gone by”) we shall not have another anxious spell of waiting like the last. Now I’m going to answer your questions, there is not any more winter expected. The price of land where John Watson lives is from forty to eighty Dollars per acre that is from £8 to £16 per acre if it fetches more than that. It must be in good state of cultivation   J. Watson was talking of selling his awhile ago he wanted from $75 to $80 per acre house and building all go in that   his farm is in as good & rather better condition than most round there and he manages it in the old style looses all the liquid manure there are two large holes just outside the farm yard, one 10 yards long the other between 6 & 7 & about 3 wide & a tidy depth full of very rank liquid which never get carried out it runs over and washes away. I don’t know how many fold it yealds but it is less than it is in England considerable when it begins to ripen     it is ripe directly it has not time to fill as it does in England   the ears are shorter and the grain is not so fine but John had a very fare sample, The farmers round there have something to do to make a living on their own farms of about 80 or 100 acres   it would make them scratch their heads where they did not hitch if they had rent to pay. I have not heard of any camp meetings living the revival   it would be rather to cold to camp out of doors in winter   there has been a great stir in N York having prayer meetings in the middle of the day and at other hours during the day in the churches and large buildings which have been cramming

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full they allowed each one 5 minutes so as to give opportunity to as many as possible it has been so in Philadelphia and other large cities, When I was in Philda I went into the old statehouse and saw the Bell that rung the peels of independence for the Yankees  they layed on so heavy till they cracked it. there are a lot portraits of the illustrious men that figured in the revolution and since Washington at the head then I went to the book where visitors sign their names, a man asked me if I was a stranger he then he handed me a pen and I wrote my name and where I came from. then I went up to the top where the bell is that the clock strikes on and had a fine view of the city. In some of the streets there are rails laid for the omnibusses to run on they are similar to a railroad car have two horses go through the city on one street and back up on another street that is parallel with it. an the streets are parallel each other at regular distances & are crossed by the other streets in like mode.   I can’t tell you of any tremendous trees for I have not seen any but what I could see to the top of them by myself without any one to help me   so  they are a pretty good height though especially those on the tops of the mountains     others again seem to be down in the world for they are logs every which way rotting and that is a bold fact for all the bark is off their trunks   you have heard of some parts of Wales and the Peak of Darbyshire being rough in fact you’ve seen it, but Sir if you travel about Wales & Darbyshire till you are 202 you won’t see so much rough country as I saw yesterday and I was asleep some of the time   what do you think of that eh? As to you & me & Ben felling a very big tree I don’t know how I should like it, the paying part would do but I think both your paws and mine would have some blisters on ‘em. Mr Roscoe I have not seen any but I have seen such things as Hawks and Owls    Hawks are common round here I intend to take the gun and try to introduce myself to one of them    Coz [cousin] Mary Jackson says you look like a minister & so do some others who have seen your likeness and ask me if you are not one. Now I must think about writing to Sarah and tell you that I am still your very affectionate and only

Brother William

(Upside down on page 2)

Remember me to Mr & Mrs Golledge & Rebecca and also to Coz [cousin] Sally Smith