Portion of Letter by Calvin TUNNELL, Greene County, Illinois Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives Copyright 2000 PORTION OF LETTER BY CALVIN TUNNELL Jim Redpath a few days since at a black republican pow wow in Ashtabula County Ohio made the following remarks in a speech on the fate of Hazlett and Stephens the last of Brown's men who suffered the penalty of the law: "To those of you who are friends to the slave driver I have nothing to say. My duty is the men whose hearts are too large to be suffocated by the dust raised by party mountebanks and whose gaze is too steady to dazzled by the glare of the false and fatal splendor of the despots court. To those of you who are ready to imitate Stephens, this only need be said; "Be prepared; bide your time; ere long you will be called." For I tell you, men of Ashtabula, that the strangling of John Brown was not the death of his anse; and that ere many moons revolve, the slave will be offered succor again. Six months before the blow at Harpers Ferry, I stated that would be made, and even indicated by whom; and again, I give the slave driver a solemn warning to set his house in order, for his doom is pronounced - "he shall die and not live." "Those of you who approve it may aid it by your money." GIVEN BY LUCY M. BALL TO JAMES EDWARD TRABUE IN 1932. IN THE POSSESSION OF JAMES D. TRABUE IN 1992 LETTERS FROM CALVIN TUNNELL TO HIS DAUGHTERS, ELIZABETH TUNNELL SUMMERS & NANCY TUNNELL SUMMERS November 30th, 1858 Dear Children. Thee (sic) months since I sent a dispach (sic) by mail informing you of the death of your mother but as yet we have not been informed that you have received the intelligence which is to us so melancholy in its character, I must think you have receive (sic) the news or else you would be making some inquiries about her. Perhaps you have concluded to not write to us until the days of our mourning have ended. Well if we were moving in the fashionable circles where people are allowed thirty days to mourn in crape (sic) it would perhaps be well enough. But our case is a very different one. We put on no habiliments of mourning nor is our time limited to thirty days, but our time is a day which knows no evening, our mourning is that silent suffering of soul that cannot be exibited (sic) by the fashionable habiliments of mourning. I think for the last two months we have been at the post office two or three time per week expecting to hear from you, the last letter we got was written the 5th September. Your friends here are all well so far as I know and I have heard from the most of them recently. I have a letter from your cousin John Tunnell of Tennessee written sixteenth October they were well as usual his father has become so frail that he does not pretend to walk from the bed to the fire or to the table without having some one to hold him steady his mother has a cancer in the region of the eye from which she has no hope of recovering. William was eighty four years of age the 14th instant. John has after buying Keys farm sold all but his lower place and moved to within seven miles of Knoxville. I suppose it nearly north. He has bought the old homestead of his father in (illegible) near Bever creek he pays $6310 for it. If any of (you) come the southern rout (sic) you can stop and see him. I believe I have never told you how we are living. Well(?) Mary Reynolds is keeping house for us. She is a good girl and a good house keeper, your mother seemed to like her as well as she did her own children as a kind of protection to her your Aunt Sally is also staying with us, I took it(?) in yesterday to see Elvira who has given birth to a daughter on the evening of Friday the 26th Instant. She seemed to be doing well. I believe they think the babe is pretty the old lady Parker who is staying with them especially she thinks they(?) like her own were when they were little and as a matter in course she thinks it is very pretty. Times are hard with us and produce is selling low we have not thrashed our wheat yet I expect we could not sell it now for more than seventy-five cents. I believe the boys think we have a thousand bushels but I think it will not yield so much. They have not sowed any this year. Jackson has rented about forty acres which is sown in wheat and I believe I told you Calvin has rented eighty acres in Montgomery which is sown he went up and fenced the north half of his land with pine boards there is about 149 acres inclosed of his he wants to (illegible) the balance of it in the spring which will be about 40 acres he having about ??7 planted now Our grain(?) (illegible)at looks very fine, the fall season has been unusually wet so much(?) that people have gathered but little of their corn. Our taxes are high and rather oppressive. It is true that our property generally is not valued at much more than half what it would sell for but those who have money to pay on has to make every dollar tell. I have been looking for Ezekiel for some time (illegible) now to give our best wishes for yourselves and families. Calvin Tunnell February 16th 1860 Dear Elizabeth. I received your letter of last month in due time and was very glad to hear you were all well. You say you and Nancy are much pleased with idea that I will visit you this spring. Well I told the boys if one of them would go with me I would try to (illegible) Calvin says it seems like he cannot possibly spare the time to go before fall. I told we might go then and stay all winter. Jackson has given me no answer. Polly says he told her he did not want to go with me because he will want to stay some time when he does go and that I will soon want to come back. I see no chance for him to leave home, there is no old man in the neighborhood so much confined as he is, he goes nowhere except he has business. At Mr. Thomas they have recently made two balls (I suppose) to get the young people together he was invited to both but did not go. When it was time to start to the last one Stannton told him as they had invited had invited him on two occasions he thought he ought to go. The only reply he made was "My mother never taught (illegible) I have thought some of visiting you this spring but I feel very unlike I did when I went before. Although my health is far better that it was then I do not feel confidence in my ability to make the trip that I then did and do not like to start alone. If I find I can go I will inform you of it as soon as I decide on doing so. I have succeeded in getting my business managed so that so far as it is concerned I can go. A brother and two brothers in law of Rhoads with whom I was at law interfered and made him sell the land and fix the matter up they (managed to have $??? deposited in hand for me and I ???????? -- this is at fold in paper and is illegible or missing) They are however to pay me $120 the first of May if (I-omitted) want it. That is for the use of it. The purchaser is also (to-omitted) pay the balance on the land to me on the 10th of May to secure the payment of which I believe he has given a vendors lien on the land it is $456.89 with 10 percent interest we had to borrow $400 which we will perhaps pay out of that to Mr. Thomas he does not want it he says we always pay him before he wants it he would rather we would keep it. Calvin started day before yesterday to Montgomery with a load of boards. I thought some that he had a mind to settle himself but judging from what he said to me before he started about getting a family to keep house for him I suppose that is not his intention. I do not know that his house is finished when I heard from it last it was not painted and also lacked the scrimcoat of plaster but as there has been so much fine weather since I expect it is finished. Yesterday Matt Dayton was here and told me he saw Pryor two days before. They are well. We are all well so far as I know. Yesterday we Jackson? got a letter from Jackson Witt he was well likes the country is getting 160 acres of land that will cost him about 90 cents per acre by the time he gets a deed eight acres plowed from 80 to 90 rails on it will be at home next summer. I have heard nothing from your Aunt Sally or Sally Doyl for perhaps six weeks she was then able to sit up a little. I think there is no probibility of Frank and Lou. marrying he took doctor Mansons daughter and two other girls there once. I have forgotten ?? they were and again he went back (but ????? ???ing illegible) at school at (C?????? he --illegible) is a very clever fellow but I would not be pleased if she was to have him although I am sure he would be kind to her. It seems to me that he is not very well constituted especially in his mental organization. I ordered the Banner of liberty to be sent to George and Ezekiel some of you let me know if they get it also let me know if you get our little Carrollton Gazette, if you do you will perhaps find in this weeks issue my letter to Felix who writes from Greenfield. I do not know him by his assumed name but I have and idea that he is (G. W. ???? --illegible) who married Polly Ann Parker my letter purports (illegible) I say that much that you may (???????? is.--illegible) You may also remember George Reynolds spelled Isaac. I would much rather the boys would visit you than to do it myself they being young might learn something that would be useful to them while I could not profit by it at my age (69) men generally go into a state of mental decripitude and I should perhaps sometimes feel awkard on finding myself so much behind the age in good manners. Young people would perhaps never think that I am a mere relict of the generation that has passed away. Farewell Calvin Tunnell Mrs. A. W. Quarrier (?) Madam pleas send this to my long absent daughters and you will lay me under obligations to you I fear they did not get the letter I sent before. I enclose five cents as it may have to be ??????ed. Scott(?)ville 24 June '63 Dear Madam I forward ????? a letter sent through by my Mother, hope it contains good news. Yours Wm. A Quarrier Mrs. Summers Mrs. Summers Opposite ? ? Office Monday May 25th 1863 Dear Nancy, Elizabeth and families. Having heard nothing from you since January last and being fearful did not get my reply I write you again to tell you (illegible) friends here are well except Eliza(illegible) mumps and Daniel is afflicted with rheumatism, has been unable to work, is better. I write this at Calvin's I arrived at Pryors a week since. Elvira and her two little children came with me to stay a (illegible) came by way of Daniels and Johns. Ann (Calvins wife got a letter from Caroline (Jackson's wife) written Sunday before last. They were well. They are now alone, I expect to return perhaps this week. I am looking for Randolph and Polly. They are perhaps at Jackson's. I expect to return with them. I told you some thought Frances Ball Calvin's wifes sister would go and keep house for Jackson. She has done so but her name is Witt. She is a very fine looking lady and is much (illegible) he is equally so. They will do well, since I wrote (illegible) Mary Witt married James Smith. I yesterday visited Lewis Thomas and then went to Church in the evening he and Absalom and Frank Clark visited us. We are to visit Clarks this evening. We call the times hard though currency is abundant and the necessarys of life are so too, but no period of time is so full of evil but some grace may be found in it so now we find our trials and difficulties teach us some very wholesome lessons of economy and should also teach us some to exercise (illegible) and forbearance. We are compelled by the immediate (illegible) necessity to accept of things as they are and not as we would wish them to be. I find no good looking wheat up here. It is better in Greene and is not very good there. (It were perhaps ?) there be a large surplus and here more (illegible) for home consumption. The scarcity of labor will soon render crops of all kinds less abundant. Corn here is found in great abundance as is selling at from 25 to 30 cents per bushel wheat is quoted at from 60 cents to $1.25 per bushel at St Louis. I stayed all night a week since with Betsey Ann Julian. She is sister to your cousin Wm. V. Tunnell who died last fall, she and family have recently come from Missouri on account of the troubles there. You may think it strange that I have nothing more to write in these exciting times but you must recollect that it might be improper for me to say any thing except about our domestic affairs. May 29 Having neglected to take this to the office I write again to say we are all well. Emma is (illegible) well. I think I shall start home on the first proximo. I expect you to write to us when ever you can. The friends all join me in sending their love to you. Affectionately yours, Calvin Tunnell Photocopies of the originals of the foregoing letters were given to James D. Trabue by Dr. Charles Blackwell, Jr. of Phoenix, Az. Dr. Blackwell is a great-grandson of Nancy Tunnell Summers through her daughter, Emma Booth and granddaughter, Julia Mae Blackwell. They were transcribed by James D. Trabue in November 1997. Because of stains and faded ink, certain words were illegible or questionable and were so noted. Additional material on the Addairs (Adairs) & Tunnells has been contributed to the USGenweb sites for Anderson Co., Tenn. & Pulaski Co., Va. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organizations or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb Archivist with proof of this consent. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Jim