| Title: | George Nicholl, New York, To Robert Gault, Ballymena. |
|---|---|
| ID | 1968 |
| Collection | Irish Emigration Database |
| File | Nicholl, George C/8 |
| Year | 1842 |
| Sender | Nicholl, George |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | unknown |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | New York, USA |
| Destination | Ballymena, Co. Antrim, N.Ireland |
| Recipient | Gault, Robert |
| Recipient Gender | male |
| Relationship | nephew-uncle |
| Source | T.2035/6:Copied By Permission of Dr E R R Green, History Dept., Univ. of of Manchester, Manchester 13. #TYPE EMG George Nicholl, New York, To Mr Robert Gault, Galgorm Bridge, Near Ballymena, Co. Antrim. Ireland. 1st August 1842. |
| Archive | Public Record Office Northern Ireland. |
| Doc. No. | 8809176 |
| Date | 01/08/1842 |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | EMG |
| Log | 27:09:1988 GC created 14:09:1989 IR input 09:11:19 |
| Word Count | 1577 |
| Genre | |
| Note | |
| Transcript | To Mr Robert Gault Galgorm Bridge near Ballymena County Antrim Ireland New York August 1th 42 Uncle Robert Gault (To Yourself) Dear Sir I take the liberty of sending you another letter as I omitited [omitted?] a great many things which I ought to have mentioned we are all well at present hoping these few lines will find you in the same. I feel considerably better, I mentioned going to sea [see?] to my Mother but she does not like the idea, so I believe I shall stay where I am for some time yet, you told me to let you have all the particulars of how we are situated I shall endeavour to let you have a few, in the first place we live in the rear of 16 Essex St, it is rather an unhealthy place I think it is greatly against my Mothers health, I have done all I could to get another place but it is in vain I have only incurred the displeasure of my Uncle, & his wife as for my Mother she must live as long as She can, and now as I expect no one but you to read this letter I will let you know all about us, we are not as well situated as we expected whether it was John McK[e?]lvey's work or not I cannot say but we are treated in no pleasant manner. Josey is very cross with my father, he is to [too?] much so, for my fancy, he uses him more like a stranger than a brother my father is getting old now and has no use for scolding, he has very hard to work but he does it faithfully, but still he does not seem to please, my aunt is very snappish and taunts him a good deal, I beleive [believe?] it is mostly her doing, she hates us all Mother has to take a good deal of them but she take it better than we could expect, the [they?] done a good deal for us I know, and he had been at a good deal of expense I offered to pay him my passage, but he refused to take it, he knows it is his intrest [interest?] to keep us here in his power to take any trouble, that comes from time to time our room (and I may say means) is very small and we cannot accommodate, our freinds [friends?] as we could wish, any one that comes to Uncles if the [bee?] [poor?] all sent to us I would give you a list of troubles we have had if I had time I will give you to [two?] or [three?] the first is John McK[e?]lvey we had a great deal of trouble with him, you know our thanks we have suffred [suffered?] greatly by him, the next was Robert Mcdowell we would have been glad to do something for him but My Uncle ordered us to give him no encouragement at all so poor Robert had to shift for himself, and perhaps leave us in the blame, but he gets along well he gets $18 per month attending a store in Philadelphia he was on here a few days ago, I will pass over till Jane came, she intended to stop with us but my Uncle no sooner heard that she was a friend of Mr S Watters than we had our orders to clear her of [off?] the premises with reluctance, you will wonder what he could have against Steveson, when he came to this country he had a letter for him, so Joseph invited him to come and stop a while at his house which he did, his wife did some washing for him so this has been a taunt to us ever since we came here, as soon as he understood that he was to be at Ballston he said he would make it a point to meet him there and make him pay his board & washing for what time he was there, but by good luck Mr Watters came to New York, he came to our house and my Mother told him all about it he was astonished, at first but went immediately, to my Uncle and offered to pay him but he told him he did not want a cent for it he made my aunt a present of $10 for her trouble, so that was over, Mr Watters is well and his family are at Ballston, we have had no letters from Uncles John or George since we came we heard that Johns daughter Ellen is sick with a bleeding at the lungs I have got the consent of Mother and John Maxwell to write to you My Mother will perhaps give you a better account than I can, John will perhaps give you a sharp rebuke for not answering my letter but I hope you will think nothing of it I did not tell him that I got one from you on account of his tormenting me so much, saying that you treated me with silent (contempt &c) If he does you need not say anything about it at all, for if he would find out now he would never forgive me I told him the contents as near as possible, you must answer his as soon as possible if you ever expect to get another, from him, I will tell you the way we were situated the time the Hewitts came there was no one in our house at the time, Mother was gone to Mrs Robinson the mans wife which brought us the last letter from my Uncle, the [they?] went up to Uncles but the [they?] were treated rather cooly the [they?] went out and stopped in a neighbours house untill [until?] Mother came the [there?] were seven of them alltogether [altogether?] it filled our house so full that you could not move around, I had to go to John Maxwells till the [they?] went away they stopped from Friday till Tuesday, and the [they?] had only $1 & 1 shilling between the, Joseph was very pleasant with them he even favoured us with his presence, while the [they?] were here but he refused to help them to get away, here they were all in a heap we had not, the means to pay [their?] way not yet to keep them, so my Father borrowed and added what little he had and got a weeks wages forehand, which my Uncle offered him saying he might what he liked with it, so he got them off the [they?] left us without one dollar and in debt, they promised to send it as soon as the [they?] would arrive but the [they?] did it not, now that the [they?] were away Joseph commenced upon Father wishing he was away with the [them?] and swearing dreadfuly [dreadfully?] but I shall not add he is very sick, so much so that there has been 4 or 5 Doctors attending him and the [they?] had no hope of his recovering there was 12 leeches 9 blisters 3 mustard plasters, and a cord in his neck but he is getting better, Dear Uncle you seem to think that I [am?] [?] or has imbibed the spirit of 98 but this is a mistake neither do I follow in the footsteps of anyone in particular what I say, I say of myself, I feel for Ireland or the inhabitants there is a society in this city called the, Irish Emmigrant [Emigrant?] Society, the Office is 9 doors below where I work here I see daily, hundreds of Irish I see their poverty and there [their?] [ray bleeding?] I cannot look on them without pity, many a tearful eye I see and no doubt many a bleeding heart, you might look on them with indifference and even say the [they?] deserve it but I think, could not at least I can not, I saw one old man in particular which I could not but pity he was a man an aged man, whose looks bespoke him worn with care, His form was bent his cheek was pale, and sorrow seemed to linger there He stood alone without the means to get a bit of bread, But soon Alas his withered form, Shall [slumber?] with the dead, he had no hat no coat no shoes no money, no meat no means to get any, Poor Old man, now when I consider what brings this on, so many I allways [always?] come to the conclusion that it is England, although she has got good laws she has got poor people here the [they?] have not got so good laws but the people are well enough and I never hear any grumbling about the laws, now does not Ireland raise enough of food to supply her people, has she not to keep up and supply a troop of soldiers who are ready at any minute to cut the throats of the Irish if the [they?] strive to get something like a decent living, it may not be so but, this is my oppinion [opinion?] that had Ireland a goverment [government?] of her own she might yet be a thriving nation, you will not like the trouble of so many letters but I wished to let you know how we [are?] sittuated [situated?] you will please give my best respest [respect?] to my Aunt Mary & little cousins, while I remain your Respectful Nephew George Nicholl |
