Duplin County, NC - Jesse Grimes Letters ----¤¤¤---- Letter # 91 Old Washington C. H. Feb. 26th l857 Jesse I have rec'd two letters from you since the 27th Dec'r, the date of my last the last bears date the llth Jan'y and came to hand the l8th inst. I have made arrangements to visit Texas this spring by land by gitting a good saddle horse,a good new saddle, bridle etc. My horse was good and well recommended as a buggy horse. I got him the First of January and last week I put him into the buggy. He pulled off very well but soon stoped and refused to go any further. I then applied the whip and in less time that I have been writing about it,I had a broken buggy and a dead horse with some scratches & bruises on myself. A splinter from one of the shafs stuck him in the breast and I suppose passed into the heart. He run a few jumps and fell dead. This leaves me with a fine saddle that never has been road but no horse that I am willing to make the trip on. I have been thinking about the New Orleans Rail Road to Berwicks bay but I am unable to make out the distance I would have to make by sea to reach Galveston & the probable time necessary to make the sea trip. If I could get there alive, I would be willing to spare the time & expense but the thought of being turned upside down & inside out upon the Gulf again is quite unpleasant. This and a wish to see some of the northeastern counties & southwestern counties of that State had caused me to prepare for a horseback Jorney. I would have but little scruple about trying Johnny Kettle again only the returning him Page 2 from the eastern part of the State when I would want to return home either by land or by the Red River route. Williams Smith, George Dunbar, James Worsham & others that were up for Texas last fall were compelled to postpont the journey till next fall. They could not get off before the cold rainy season set in and the roads got so bad that they quit trying to get off. It will be a lost year to them. Smith & Worsham had to move out and give possession. I expect you have heard how Albert succeeded in getting away. Not being in good moving order himself and his wife becoming tired of waiting for him,undertook the journey alone. Fell in with Jesse Grimes and arrived at Galveston in safty. This is the last account we have of her. We hope she passed on without delay or hinderance to her relatives. And I wish they may receive her and keep her to the end of their lives. Albert is with us and but little probability of being able to get away soon if ever. William & wife is living in the yard by us. They eat at the table with us. Martha is off at school. Will return in August and that will be herlast effort at school. If Albert gets well, he will leave here for parts, I know not where. William will go to himself after this year,then I want to turn young & live my time over again. The months of Dec'r & Jan'y were severely cold. On the 19th of Jany the mercury sunk to 11' Fs scale. It rained on Saturday evening.That night was stormy - quite so all night. Sunday morning snowed little. Strong north wind. Faired off in the evening intensely cold. Monday, the 19th was the cold day. Continued very cold all the week & on Friday night sleeted. The next morning the ground was covered with the smoothest covering of ice I have ever seen & so remained all day. Page 3 The planters about here are very busy preparing for a full crop and I believe there will be twice as much land planted in cotton this year as there was last. Some that have been getting turpintine with nearly all their force have drawn off part of their hands and will plant cotton. Several of my neighbors are planting corn this week. I have about three fourths of my ground broken up and am ready to plant and will plant next week if the weather favours the opperatlon. I rec'd a letter from Reubin Stroud at the same time I got yours.He is still lamenting his misfortune. Says he is a doomed man & all the family & connexions well at the date of writing. James son, William, wrote us a letter two weeks ago. States they were tolerably well. James health has been bad for some l8 months. Believing that you have seen Jesse ere this, I leave the relation of their several circumstances for him. In your next letter do inform me about the railroad from N.O. west, the running distance & than the time required to get from the terminal to some particular place in Texas. You may think it strange that I don't know as much about it as yourself yet it is true. I have not seen this road mentioned in print within the last year. A short portion of the road was used when I was in Texas. I have seen but little said of it since. We are all well except Albert. (Write soon) Wm Grimes. The address shows only: Hon. Jesse Grimes, Grimep County, Texas. __________________________________________________________________ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Christine Grimes Thacker ___________________________________________________________________