Transcription
Sunny Side, Irvington, Westche’r Co’y. Nov. [8?]. 1857
My dear Kate
I have already acknowledged your last letter / of Sept 21 and have been longing for another; I hope that it will / come along without much more delay. Your Aunt Catharine / returned from your Aunt Charlotte’s soon after I wrote, and your / Aunt Julia took the opportunity of Col. Morgan’s return, to / rejoin your Aunt Charlotte; the health of the latter continues / to improve slowly and her strength is gradually increasing; / the changeable weather however, operates against her and / her children We have lately had a very pleasant / visit at Sunnyside form your cousins James Dodge and his wife / Susan, of whom you have probably heard very little. James D. is / one of the sons of my eldest sister long since passed from / time: in early life he started for the South to seek his fortune; / after tyr trying his luck in Virginia, he bought up in North / Carolina: then he fell in with, and married a charming / girl, Susan Williams, whose connections were, and are highly / respectable and wealthy; her late father was for many years a / member of Congress from North Carolina. After the wedding they / came on their bridal jaunt, with Susan’s sister Rebecca, to New / York and were for some days with us at my former home in / Bridge Street in that City: both Susan and her Sister have often / referred with great pleasure to that visit: many years have passed / since and their children are all grown up. James’ only son, Richard, /
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Graduated a few years since at West Point and has been / in the army, he is at present stationed in New York / City, superintending the recruiting service. While thus engaged, Richard / has made another engagement, for her has fallen with and taken / a fancy to Mr Fred’k Paulding’s charming daughter Julia, and they are / so well pleased with each other that they have concluded to take / each other for better or worse for life; this wedding however may not take / [^ place] until some time in the next Spring. Richard’s parents are well pleased / with the match and may well be so for Julia is a sweet charming girl, and / she will get a fine [worthy] fellow. James Didge and his wife / are at present in the City (N.Y.) were they will pass a few days and / then proceed towards their home on the bands of the “Yadkin” in / the upper part of North Carolina, where a large part of the Williams’ / Estate has fallen to Susan. They will proceed homeward by land and / will probably stop a few days in Washington and may make a call / upon your good mother; and if you have the opportunity, you / will of course pay them attention and show them the [beauties] +c. / of Washington. Your mother and yourself will find them both amiable / and agreeable. A few days after I wrote my last, I / started I started for the City, intending to take advantage of the / mild weather to make a week’s visit to your Uncle Edgar’s tere, then / another to your Uncle Pierre’s, and then another to your Uncle Theodore I’s / on Staten Island; but I altered my plan and went first to “New Brighton” /
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While at N.B. I went up to the City to attend to some family com= / =missions for your Aunt Sarah; the weather was beautiful, but I omitted to / take my overcoat and in consequence took a slight cold from the cool air of / the Bay: I recovered from this promptly, but word came to New Brighton that your / uncle Theodore I. was lying quite ill at his home near Richmond village _ your / Uncle Pierre and I drove over to him the next morning and found him to be / seriously ill with intermitting fever. We returned after dinner to New B. but the / jaunt had an ill affect on me, for it brought on a relapse, and I found it much / more diffi difficult to manage than the first attack: in fact I felt so much / “under the weather” that I deemed it prudent to return without delay to / Sunnyside. Fred’k Routh was very kind and attentive and saw me safe / to the City and to the cars at Chamber’s Street, and I thus reached / Sunny Side before dinner. I am quite recovered again, but xxx [^ have] not yet / regained the same degree of strength that I could boast of before the / attack. Your Aunt’s Catharine and Sarah went down to Theodore’s about / a fortnight since for one day returning home the next: they found that he / was gradually recovering but had not been able to leave his room; he / attributed the attack of fever and ague to the locality, for thxx / his house is on a plain that sweeps from the foot of the hills for several / miles to the sea beach and is but little above the level of the water of / the bay. Several of the family have been troubled with “chills and fever” / and he has therefore concluded to change his residence; they have / succeeded in removing him to his fahte father in laws fine establishment / at “Bay Ridge” on Long Island opposite [^ to] the Quarantine quarters. They are / in search of a comfortable dwelling an article just now not readily / to be met with in the vicinity of Richmond village: I trust / however, that he will succeed soon in making the change / and all be restored to good health again.
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We have recently heard again form your Uncle Washie / he continues in good health and busily engaged with / his “golden” prospects. You will recollect my love to your / good mother and to little Frank. I am sorry that I did not / hear of Willie when he passed through New York, I would have / st-[??] a point to get a sight of him _ remember me kindly / when you write to him and say that I hope yet to see him again.
Thank my dear Kate
Affectionately
Eben’r Irving
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[ADDRESS]
Miss Katrina Irving
28. 4 ½ Street
Washington DCTranscriber
Kathryn AlexanderLanguage
English
