| Title: | McIlrath, Hamilton to McIlrath, William, 1886 |
|---|---|
| ID | 4522 |
| Collection | The McIlrath Letters: A family history in letters from New Zealand to Ireland (1860-1915) [Bassett, McKee et al.] |
| File | mcilrath/41 |
| Year | 1886 |
| Sender | McIlrath, Hamilton |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | farmer |
| Sender Religion | unknown |
| Origin | Springfield, New Zealand |
| Destination | Killinchy, Co. Down, Northern Ireland |
| Recipient | McIlrath, William |
| Recipient Gender | male |
| Relationship | brothers |
| Source | |
| Archive | |
| Doc. No. | |
| Date | |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | |
| Log | unknown |
| Word Count | 465 |
| Genre | family, local economy |
| Note | |
| Transcript | Springfield May 2nd 1886 Dear William I received your letter of February 22nd and we were very glad to hear that you were all well and that Mother was enjoying good health. I don't know how to excuse myself for not writing long before. I wrote to John after Father's death and of course I thought you living so near that it was nearly all the same. However we must write oftener to one another than we lately have been doing. We are all in good health and that "all" includes eleven, five boys and four girls, all fine and healthy. Six attending school the two eldest boys aged, one 13 and the other between eleven and twelve years, are both in the fifth standard and for grammar and arithmetic far before me, and the others getting on equally well for their ages. I forget how many of a family you have but the two I see mentioned in the programme must be really clever. Hamilton will be quite a man by this time and Jane a young woman, how time flies, I think they must have got their musical talent from their mother for I don't think either of us could ever sing any. My Mrs would like very much to get the words of the two songs by them but I suppose you could not easily send them. She is very fond of music. The summer just past was the driest we have had here for years and feed very scarce, still the crops on the whole turned out better than expected and the prices a little better than last year. I thrashed out two thousand bushels. Wheat fetched 3/= per bushel 60 lbs at the nearest station about a mile off and oats 2 / - 40 lbs. There is a great cry of hard times here as elsewhere where it is pretty hard to make much money at present but still I can hold my own pretty comfortable. Sheep that sold last year for 18/= are fetching at present about eight or nine shillings but after all I don't think there is any better country than N. Zealand. A few years ago people were doing too well and speculated too much on land and other ways and got heavily in debt and now the reaction has set in, they feel as woeful as a drunken man when he is getting sober again. I had a letter from James lately, they are all well. Eliza joins heartily in sending kind love to Mother and wishing her many years of health and happiness and we would wish to be kindly remembered to John his Mrs and family and with kind love to you all from us all I remain your Brother Hamilton McIlrath |
