xxyiii LIFE OF WILSON. 



affectionate relatives. Write me positively by post, two or three 

 times. My best love to my sister, to Isabella, Alexander, John, 

 the two Maries, James, Jeany, little Annie. God Almighty 

 bless you all. 



" Your ever affectionate friend, 



" ALEX. WILSON." 



TO ALEXANDER DUNCAN. 



October 31, 1802, 

 " Dear Alexander, 



" I have laughed on every perusal of your letter. I have 

 now deciphered the whole, except the blots, but I fancy they 

 are only by the way of half mourning for your doleful capti- 

 vity in the back woods, where there is nothing but wheat and 

 butter, eggs and gammon, for hagging down trees. Deplora- 

 ble! what must be done? It is a good place, you say, for a man 

 who has a parcel of weans! 



" But forgive this joking. I thank you, most heartily, for 

 this your first letter to me; and I hope you will follow it up 

 with many more. I shall always reply to them with real plea- 

 sure. I am glad that your chief objection to the country is 

 want of money. No place is without its inconveniences. Want 

 of the necessaries of life would be a much greater grievance. 

 If you can, in your present situation, procure sufficient of these, 

 though attended with particular disadvantages, I would recom- 

 mend you to persevere where you are. I would wish you and 

 William to give your joint labours to putting the place in as 

 good order as possible. A farm of such land, in good cultiva- 

 tion, is highly valuable; it will repay all the labour bestowed 

 upon it a hundred fold; and contains within it all the powers 

 of plenty and independence These it only requires industry 

 to bring forth, and a Small stock of money to begin with. The 

 money I doubt not of being able to procure, next summer, for 

 a year or two, on interest, independent of two hundred dol- 

 lars of my own, which I hope to possess on or before the mid- 

 dle of March next C. S. is very much attached to both your 



