December the 22 A D 1862
My Dear husband I take the
opportunity to inform you how we
are getting along i will let you know
that i am well now i was sick with
the small pox but i had only about
a half a dozen i had none in my face
but mother has them the rite way
she is in bed ever since friday but
she says she is better to day she is
very full of pox since they are out
she feels better but we had a great
time of it there was no person to do
the work hardly but the boys i was
out before i was able most to go out but
there was no other way but i got up every
morning while i was sick i went to bed
one day about 2 hours and another about
one hour that was all i lay while i was
sick i had it so bad in my head when
i had wrote your letter i took it to the
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post office myself first i took it to
matamores and there i couldent get no
stamps then i went to Halifax and there
i couldent get one stamp neither and so i
had to seel my letter without putting
any stamps in it for you my sweet
love we cant get no stamps here if you
can write without them just write and
we will pay the letters when they come
to hand i got your letter this evening wich
is monday evening andy and noah was
down asaturday evening and they both
asked for a letter but meredith said
there was none there then morning andy was
over at eisenhouers and old ben asked
andy what you wrote home then andy
said we dident get no letter since the other
Saturday and old Ben said he was down
when the mail came and there was a
letter there for me then andy went
down and told meredith he got it but
he had every excuse about it i think
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he had forgot it and now he hates it
and so this letter comes a day later
and my dear Charles i will send your boots
and tobaco as soon as i can look after things
a little better but i am kept at home purty
close but i think mother is a able to [leafe?]
in a few days i tell you we are not [trods?]
with any visitors but david Shultz
comes every now and then i most forgot
the meeting at the stone church broke up
last evening it seemed to last a good while
dont it so many got religion susanna
Siders got religion and Elizabeth and mary
i must also let you know that james Lebo
the one that is at old Jacobs Lebos goes
to see emma Sweigard and about
your letter i got that other letter you
wrote only one without this one that shell
that you had put in it was broke in about
a half a dozen pieces it spited [1] me very
much that it was broke but i believe ti [2] was
done at matamoras there was some little
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one
someone in the store and come
running to me and asked me what
what was in my letter for i dident
fetch it myself so i think they felt it
and may be they squeeced it to hard
and broke it and further about what Noah
said to you that mother was not pleased
she was always that way she never liked
it very well when i went away i think
she got lonesome still when i went away
but you must not mind it thats nothing
she was pleased when we come back
she liked it very well when we fetched
Aaron along home being he was sick
i dident say any thing to her about it
being she is sick i thought i would
just leave it as it is at the present
time and please let me know if you
got my letter before you wrote this one
i put mine to the office on the 15 and
you wrote yours on the 16 i thought
it cant be that you got my letter
so soon dear Charley now i dont
want you to trouble yourself about
me at all for i am well again the
reason i think i got a little bad was
when i went to halifax to post office
i think i over done myself for [3] i started
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I must take this yet to
finish when i left halifax
i could hardly walk and it
took me a great while till i got
home but i talked a good while
with mary Lantz but i tell you
walking dident go very well with
me mother was not pleased with
me then she dident want me to go
she allowed i was not fit to go but
thought i could do it best i waited
to see that you get stamps and then
i got none after all she thought
i was laying someplace and cant
get home but i got home safe
and all is over now and i am well
now
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Dear husband dont you think when
i get sick i am cared for but think
how i feel still if you should get sick
and so far from home just think
how i feel still now dont take it
so hard my sweetheart if you have
to eat and drink to sleep that you
can be comfortable take it easy now
promise me not to trouble yourself about
me so much you know i am true to you
and love you so dearly but we will
cast our care on Jesus and he will
help us along and please let me know
how much money it takes to come home if
you only dont get the small pox out
there i am glad to hear that there
is prayer meeting there a tend it regular
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and pray much pray for me and for
you for i do the same i think i must
love writing for this time for it is now
going on 12 o clock write as soon as
you can my sweet love a kiss to you
I remain
your true wife
Charles W Spire
Suan Spire