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     I thank you my Dear Children for the many expressions of love & kindness I have reciev'd from you. Your good letter frequently occation tears  - tears of ? & undefinable emotion cheifly I trust of gratitude to God for his transcendent goodness to me in giving me so much of peace & comfort.
 And such treasures in my children - I wrote you I believe how I went home & stay'd one day i.e. went up Thursday & came back Saturday. it was very stormy Friday & I hardly got rested before I return;d -  But you dont know how good Charles is  & Albina too they seem to want to do every thing for my comfort - Self denying and humble they are themselves for the sake of others
 But Charles look'd very thin & pale when I was there  I never saw him so worn down. He attended singing school all the first of the winter & of course went to bed very late - - had a bad cold & cough a long time, must be up frequently with the children so he gets not enough sleep.  The rum party rule the town this year too & that vexes him I suppose. Taxes are very high 4 or 4 1/2 per cent. There is so much Rum ? etc. that it is next to impossible to hire a man that is good for any thing. How different he and Sam'l are -( how necessary it is to take into consideration the different circumstances in which people are plac'd in order

[top of page upside down] It seems probable now that Sam'l will clear by his years work [Mill, & woods a full apperations] full $4000, perhaps more tho' it cannot be ascertained exactly till his Lumber is all sold he sold $1700 worth a few days ago tho' it is not got down yet so he dont know what it will cost him