28 July 1878 Letter of Union Parish Recorder William Callaway Smith to daughter Mollie Smith Submitted for the Union Parish Louisiana USGenWeb Archives by Robert S. Hendrick, 1/2005 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ Materials from the Personal Collection of Dr. Robert S. Hendrick, Jr. Transcribed and submitted by Robert S. Hendrick, Jr. ================================================================================= 28 July 1878 Letter of Union Parish Recorder William Callaway Smith to daughter Mollie Smith Residents of Farmerville, Union Parish Louisiana ================================================================================== ================================================================================== ================================================================================== NOTE: William C. Smith wrote this letter home while on a trip to Atlanta, where he sought treatment for osteomyelitis (bone infection) in his hip. This condition eventually led to his death. ================================================================================== July 28, 1878 Atlanta, GA Miss Mollie Smith Darling Daughter, I received your much appreciated letter of the 22nd last Friday morning while I was down at the Gymnasium Room having my leg steamed & c. [cleaned ?] and also my darling little Florence’s letter. Oh it was such a nice & sweet letter and had such a beautiful little bouquet in it. In my imagination I can see her going among the flowers & selecting those beautiful little flowers. Tell dear little “Dolly” Papa will write her a nice little letter for that beautiful bouquet before long. I was so glad to here that all was well at home. I am getting along very well. My health is better than it has been for some time. I hope that I will not have any more chills & fever. In my last letter to your Ma (the 23rd) I stated that I had been walking on my crutches. I have walked some every day since except yesterday I had no one to assist me. I have made some improvement but I am afraid to under take it by myself yet. I put on my back brace when I go to walk which helps me very much. I am fearful that I will not have much strength for walking until the abscess in my hip gets well if it ever does. I don’t know whether it is improving or not. Has been discharging quite freely again the last week. Dr. Wilson has been gone from the Institute all this week. He carried one of his sons that was having the fever up about Chattanooga or Lookout Mountain, Tenn. The porter has just handed me a Postal Card from Jimmie of the 24th. Just proud to here that all was well at that time. He states that it had been a week since you had received a letter from me. I wrote to Crawford [Manning, Smith brother-in-law] which I supposed you would here from me. I have never failed in writing two letters a week to some one of the family in town. I was presented yesterday with a very nice plate of fruit. It contained four large Indian peaches just such as those in our orchard near the Lot & 1/2 Doz. bunches of beautiful & delicious grapes. The grapes were white & perfectly transparent. You can guess that I appreciate the compliment. I got plenty of fruit now every day from my boarding house peaches and grapes. I forgot to say who presented me the fruit. It was Miss Falkman (?) of New Orleans. I must close have filled up my sheet of paper. Much love to all. Don’t forget to write. I Remain As Ever, W. C. Smith ###########################################################