Scranton June 22/77

 

Dear Brother,

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Sometime last fall I received a letter from you the only one I have had for several years. Being a good deal occupied about time, I defered writing for the time being, and have let the time slip away till now.

You remark in your letter that so long a time has elapsed since having a letter from me that you do not recollect its purport. You certainly then could not have received my later ones for it had been but a short time since I had written more than once, and in all my letters since our Mothers death I had referred to that event, and her always expressed anxiety about you whenever I had seen her or she had written to me, for I had no knowledge whether you were even aware of her death, as neither I, or any others of this family so far as I knew had received anything from you since that event.

We had a visit last fall from Mary’s husband and her youngest son, the first time I ever had seen him. I suppose you knew him at Franklin. I liked him very much, he is not at all a brilliant man but of good sound common sense. My family here are all well and so far as I know all the rest of us. I don’t know where Elvira is at present, the last time I heard from her she intended to return again from the west, but whether she has done so I have not been informed.

Waterbury and his son were also at our house last summer, the Centennial exhibition at Philadelphia bringing a great many people from the West and East that would not otherwise have come.

By practising a good deal of economy in family expenses I managed to give all my family an opportunity of witnessing the great exhibition and I assure you it was well worth the sacrifices made to see it. We spent three days there and did not begin to see all the attractions of the accumulated productions of the World there collected together.

Our part of the world is in great financial troubles at this time. I mean by our part of the world, this place and the surrounding vicinity, which depends upon the Iron and coal interests for its prosperity. The iron trade is very much depressed and coal is disposed of at less than the cost of production. One half of all the capitalists here abouts have either failed or are seriously embarrassed. Where it will all end no one can tell.

When you write me again tell me more about the character of the country where you are, its present and future prospects, and if filling up any with settlers.

Truly your Brother George