Passionate Abolitionist and
Witness to the American Civil War
Reports on health, rope making and avoiding excess charges on international letters.
Reading Feb 27th, 1859
My dear Father & Mother
Last night I received a letter from home of different dates with the Liverpool date of Jan 31st so it has been a considerable time on the way, however I am glad it has come to hand at last bringing me the welcome intelligence that you are all well, but I was rather surprised to have to pay 48 cents for it. I went up to the Post Office to ask if there was not a mistake, the man said the letter was a little over weight and that the postage paid in England was entirely thrown away so the next time you must have it weighed and pay for the fraction if there is one. I hear from John Watson occasionally last time he wrote they were all well including Aunt who desired her kind love to you all especially to Aunt Riley My health is pretty good but my stomach is a little out of order and my hands are broken out again so I went to a homeopathic Dr He says it is better and that my stomach and blood are disordered and thinks he can do me good I hope he will however if he can’t then fine weather will when it comes and that will be soon I work more on the laying ground than any of the other men except Grainger he is always on when there is work of
P2
of that kind going on. I asked him the other day what he always took me for, he said why those other fellows want telling every thing and I had rather do it myself than always be telling them what to do, some time ago we made a tarred rope 7 1/2 cir [circumference] they had to put a tight grip on the tails to keep the hard up so Cousin Thomas got a staff in the upper strap and gave it an extra twinge and told Granger to take hold, it was as much as he could do to hold it so I took possession of it and laid the rope up we made another a week or two ago and I land that all the way. Cousin Thos [Thomas] was laid up with a bad cold a week or 10 days back and Tom was in Phila and Harry at school so I had to take out the orders for what was to be done. Some of the fellows seem to think a little more of me when they see me drive up to the walk in the carriage and tell them what they have got to do. He is better now and Tom is come back and he is better we all three rode in last night in the sleigh there being considerable snow
It commenced snowing on Friday morning about 8 o’clock and kept on till Saturday at dinner time that is about 21 consecutive hours. Today the Sun has been shining like blazes and melting it like butter in the fellows hat when he sat before the fire. You will be glad to hear that my eyes are good I think if old Samy Roberts could see a black bird on a windmill sail a mile off I could if there were any windmills here. I must address Mary on the other half of this sheet as they all want to
With my best love I am still
Your Affectionate Son William Slater
P3 (Mary)
My dear Sister Mary,
I am always very pleased with one of your letters so you need not be afraid of me despising it even if the rest wrote me one as long as a rope walk there is generally some thing in yours to tickle my fancy and excite my riseables. You have stated some rather startling facts with regard to Church affairs who would ever have thought that Pickering would ever have given up the honorable office of Warden as well as get at loggerheads with the Rector and Georgina’s Father in law I should think G. R. B. Would turn up Jack if his dearest should venture to vindicate her Fathers cause. I expect the next news will be that the ex warden has been summoned for his Church robe. I should think he would not get much gravy out of Hides’ discourses they have been cut and dried and been thought that piece of indispensible furniture in a farm house viz a Churn too many times so I suppose the Littany would be his cheif solace specially with that part referring to “every hatred, and malice, spite, animosity, and all uncharitableness” also where it goes against Turing conspiracy and rebellion and for only peace and concord I should think the responce would come through his throat like sparks of a grindstone. There would be one redeeming quality in Hides he would not keep him till be written to separately if I can find enough to write about over
P4 (Mary)
all the gravy was dried out of the meat for his Sunday dinner. By way of a change how are the heads of the disasters getting on and Tom Kelk and his set do they keep on in the glorious reformation they were sored hot in a while ago. If Mr Vincent pays a few more visils to Eastwood he will let them into a few things that the Parson never preached about. I should think in fact I’m sure Ben never heard such a man in all his born days that could talk in such style and tell truth in such a manner as about make a man split is “wascote” back with laughing. I should like to hear S Shaws description of him no doubt it would be as pointed as his own whiskers and that is as much as any reasonable man could desire I would not wish him to split a hair by no means. 28th I received a “Guardeant” to day and have just laid it down to write to you I also received a brace of Standards a while back but I like a Nottin Derby or Also proper wife as well there is more in them that I know something about its quite refreshing to see some of the old names, the names of places and men here are so different especially the latter such as Moltz, Schwartz, Boyer, Knoke, Noble, and a many other heathenish names as they seemed to me at first but now I’m used to them I suppose now Miss Godbers have left Eastwood there is nobody else that goes to Church now that turns to the east when the Seleig is rung over but now it is a new Church my be all hands are turned toward that quarter all the time unless Joe Widdowson happens to be there. Remember me to John Word when you see him tell him I’m much obliged to him for enquiring after me, I often think about Eastwood folks especially you at home You must remember me to all the folks that enquire after me. I don’t know wether I shall be able to cross this for you but I’ll see after I’ve written the others
P5 (Mary)
I have not much to communicate Mary my dear so you will have to be satisfied You must give my kind love to And Riley tell her I hope she will never think of going back to Pheebe again I hope to see her again some day if we are spared. I think I can spin her a good long yarn about all her relations. accept my best love and believe me to be
Your very Affectionate Brother
William Slater
PS Write me a good budget of home news and tell me everything next time you write. Remember me to Ben & Tom if he is working at our house yet to Sam Shaw and who ever may enquire after me I am
PS again Can you keep yourself warm ?
PS my hands are a good bit better thank you
P 6. (To Parents)
I thought I would tell you how to work Manilla then perhaps you might get some orders at Leston for Straps and lines in the first place then a man opens a bale here he cuts it all in the middle, if it’s very long he cuts three lengths lays it down on the floor and oils it and sprinkles some water on it that has whitening in it then lays another layer of hemp and so on and hackles it next day pulling it down as Ben does Polish Bands when hackled doubles it and ties it up with one knot so it is handy to weigh, Manilla lines we make 4 thread a strand and just lay them up with atop weighing every strand so as to have them tear well. In laying the strands you should not let the looper budge more than 3/4 of a yard in laying 130 yards. We have spring balance to weigh the hemp with so all we have to do is to hang it on and then we know in a minute how much it will will spin so if you wanted to spin some cut lines 3 in a length You might spin the cords to that stump between 13th & 14th posts soak the hemp pretty well it makes the lines smooth put some salt in the water, All the ropes from an inch and upwards we put a considerable quantity of centre yarn inline, Manilla and Some hemp mixed hafe & half and soak it in the composition. A man can hackle a bale in a day and get through by 4 or 1/2 past and when we spin Manilla hemp we spin as many threads as we do of lines
P.7
Manilla has been very low here so I suppose it is as low in England if you can make as much on it as tar’d Rope you could soon find it as easy to work next time you write tell me the price. A man has to spin 12 strands 130 yds for a days work and often gets done in 9 hours so you need not tell what our days work is unless they do less than that. I think it is a good plan to have so much to do for a day and then a fellow knows what he has to do I had nearly forgotten to tell you that Edward had the misfortune to break his leg some weeks back but he getting better now again. With kind love to all
I Am Your Affectionate Son
William Slater
This letter starts with a reminder of what happens if the sender does not put on enough postage to cover the weight of the letter being sent. Here the letter was over weight and the postage that was applied in England was all thrown out and a new charge was made for receipt here n America.
As we see so many examples of interlaced and cross hatched letters styled to minimize postage, this is a reminder that there was a constant awareness of the need to minimize postal charges.
We note the familiar reference and solicitations of Aunt Riley. Here we gain some clue other fortunes when William says that he hopes “she will never go back to Pheebe again”. Since there appears to be no place name for Pheebe or Phoebe in Britain, we assume there was woman named Phoebe to which this relates.
Much detail about rope making that we believe will be valuable for cordage historians.