| Title: | Greeves, John Sr to O'Brien, William, 1837 |
|---|---|
| ID | 6062 |
| Collection | The Transatlantic Letters of an Irish Quaker Family_1818-1877 [B. Jackson] |
| File | quaker/92(1) |
| Year | 1837 |
| Sender | Greeves, John Sr |
| Sender Gender | male |
| Sender Occupation | linen trader |
| Sender Religion | Quaker |
| Origin | Lisburn, N.Ireland |
| Destination | Lake Erie, NY, USA |
| Recipient | O'Brien, William |
| Recipient Gender | male |
| Relationship | father-in-law - son-in-law |
| Source | |
| Archive | |
| Doc. No. | |
| Date | |
| Partial Date | |
| Doc. Type | |
| Log | unknown |
| Word Count | 843 |
| Genre | bad state of economy, bill, family |
| Note | |
| Transcript | Lisburn 20th 6 mo 1837 Dear Wm Thy letter dated 1 mo 8th 1837 reached us in due course, by which I observe you have left off farming. The discouragement you have had, with sickly state of your son Thos and the bad crops &c &c &c is quite a sufficient excuse for you to try another situation. I think you have had bad success since you went to that quarter, which 1 think was on the persuasion of Jacob Taylor; is he to the fore or doth he reside in that Country. I expect you will have considerable dificulty in disposing of your farm, as I suppose the times are bad with you & cash scarce, as well as here. The lower class of people here are in a most miserable [state], provisions dear and but little or no employment as the weaving trade of all kinds hath failed and only for a railway that hath comenced from Belfast to this town, which employs about 2 or 3 hundred people. But that is but little to the working classes in other places; the mizerable world seems to be tottering to its center, the many tailors [failures] in almost all quarters, and I think America seems to have its full share. I understand that my son Thos wrote to you about 2 or 3 mo. ago enclosing a Bill on Abraham Bell for £10 British, since which time I hear that he hath stopt payment: if so, it is best for thee to return it to Thos as the drawer of it is safe so far. I expect that my son in his letter hath informed you of the melancolly state of my dear Jane. It is now nearly 12 months since I sent her to a Lunatick Asylum in the neighbourhood of Dublin, and at the last Yearly Meeting had her removed to another (the Retreat) belonging to the Society of Friends, where I think & believe she will be taken mote care of; and trust with the assistance of kind providence and Doctor Harvey she may be restored to her mental faculties. By the last accounts, we think het rather better as we mostly hear every 2 weeks from the manager of the place. I was loth to mention the worst of her when I wrote thee in my last. I have to pay # 2 pr yr for her keeping. She took it out of a fever which she got m Armagh where some of Mary's children has had it. Perhaps Thos did not mention anything to thee about thy brothr Danl & family - which I am sorry to tell thee he has failed early in last spring, as I hear to a large amt, some say to £9000: and I am sorry to hear that his creditors will get but very little, some say not 5/- in the pound, which is a disreputable failor. The Bank of Ireland was a creditor, and their agent treated him very harshly, I hear did not leave him a bed to lye in. Since his failor his eldest son John is in Youghall. his eldest daughter Anne is with Mary in Armagh & Margaret & Elizabeth the youngest is here. Thos is at Moummelick School and Mary Jane is in Balitore with Betsy Barrington who was so kind that she took her for one year & sends her to school; and he hath none with him but his son Ceo: what he means to do is hard to say. He hath acted contrary to some of his best friends advice in getting into too many kinds of business, which ended in his total ruin. What I have mentioned, you may have some little idea the state of my family &c &c. Notwithstanding the unfavourable acct I have given, I have cause through adorable Mercy (to be thankful) that I am still able to go about & do a little business. The last winter hath been verry unhealthy and a great many people and mostly aged died of influenza which was verry prevalent. I was mostly confined to the house with it for a month & it hath left great weakness, so that I still feel die effects of it. Sister Molly escaped it wonderfully, but is now poorly with cold. We wrote to Carlow, wishing to get Jno Wright's address but suppose the confusion & trouble that Dan & his family was in, [it] escaped their attention. Among the failors last winter was our cousin Wm Simon of Corn Market, Dublin. Since then he his wife [Ann] & Children went out to New Orleans to her brother Jackson, who hath taken them to Lewisville [Louisville] up the Mississippi, State of Kentucky, about 16 hundred miles from New Orleans, who offers to befriend them verry much. I have wrote you a long letter and perhaps Susanna may cross it & give you some further information about our relations. thy afft Father John Greeves Write often and let us know of your future movements. |
