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Blenheim January 15th 1865

Sunday evening

Dear Nina,

Your letter enclosing

dear Mother's was received on the 9th

and most delighted I was to hear that

they had reached their journeys end

in safety without taking cold & were so

much pleased with their new house.

I do hope they may continue to be so

and that it will be a home for

them until the war is over. I think

Pa would be satisfied now to remain

in one place with Mother with

him & that he had never been any

where yet, & if the boys are good boys

he will be a first rate teacher to them.

Have you heard from Sister yet, I have

not, though I wrote a letter to meet her

there and begged her to write at once I

hope however that I shall hear from her

tomorrow, but feel a little uneasy but

she should have taken cold, and not

be well enough to write. I am waiting

[page 2]

anxiously for your next letter to hear

whether you have seen Mr. John. I

do not understand his letter at all, not

knowing [?] his confidence con-

sisted. If he is engaged, he can't refer

to himself by your being the goddess in

more hearts than one, and what does

he mean by your not thanking him for

the confession that you are worthy of his

most sacred confidence & most secret

thoughts. By "Since you cannot return my

trust it is perhaps more prudent for

you and yours that what may not be re-

ciprocated sh'd not be mentioned." I

understand him to regret to Willie &

yourself, & that he considers you as [?]

[?] to Willie, but that as you are

not positively engaged to him, &

he is his cousin, you could not tell

him of it, is that your interpretation

of it. I am very anxious to hear whether

you "[sat?] & talked about it" and what

was the result - so do pray write at once

if you have not written before this reach-

es you. I have sent my gloves to my

Mr. John & will finish this pair of

[Page 3]

yours by Tuesday next but have not

stamps enough to send them, so I will

send you $10 and I want you to get me

$5.00 worth and send me as soon

as you can do so. With the other five

I want you to get me a spool of black

glazed cotton No. 80, which if it is con-

venient to you to get soon you can leave

with Mr. John Booker to send to me by

Mr. Hobson who is going down soon, but

I am in no hurry for it, as I only want

it to make myself a new net by the spring,

I may then perhaps make it with the

coral beats like yours. You did not tell

me whether you had your strand of

corals or not. I want you too Nina

the first time you go into the city to

look for straw splitters & let me know

at once. Have you begun to plait your

spring hat yet, I want to begin mine

as soon as I get done my soldiers gloves

which will be in about two weeks.

[Page 4]

You might send me my corsets by Mr.

Hobson too if you are in the city before

he goes down. I am so glad you have

had your head shaved I think it will

be such an improvement to your hair

does it begin to grow any yet. Has not

the weather been delightful for the

last few days. I walked over to Mrs. H's

yesterday morning & spent a very pleasant

day but it was so windy in the evening

that I did not come home but rode

over on horseback this morning. But

as I got nearly here and was riding

pleasantly along talking, two of the chil-

dren who were walking jumped out

of the bushes & the horse jumped clear

from under me, and being on a mans

saddle, I had nothing to catch to,

so over I went backwards & my shoulder

was the first thing that touched the

ground. Fortunately I was not thrown

violently, just slid over and was

not hurt at all, did not get a bruise

nor even tear my frock tho it was

my old bombazine. As usual I came

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right home loaded, I felt quite ashamed of myself, a bag

of apples, four books, pair of shoe strings and 9 [?]

which Mrs. H insisted upon my taking as she said I

might want them before these came you were to

get for me. The last time Mr. Hobson went to Rich-

mond I asked him to get me two spools of cotton

and when he came back he would not let me

pay him for them. By the way I am anxious about

the cotton I owe Mrs. Booker. Ma said she would

ask Frank if he could get me five yds of government

cotton in Richmond, I wish you would ask him

about it & let me know; if he can't get it from the gov-

ernment what can it be bought for at the stores. I have

no doubt Mr. W Hobson could get it for me in this

[sideways across pages 3 and 4]

county but it is so indifferent that I don't like to

send it to Mrs. B. What are you reading, I brought

Napoleon & his Marshals over with me this morning

but I found Fannie had sent me East Linn**, &

[Fantine?] so I reckon I shall read them first. Well

I believe I have exhausted my subjects so I will

stop. Wrote soon darling to your own loving

Hattie.

• • likely meant "East Lynne," a popular book in the 1860s from England.