Letter written by Henry Ebenezer MacDonald - Harris County Texas John Hendry 13 May 2001 ************************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. ************************************************************************** Transcript of a letter from Henry E. MacDonald of Houston, Texas, to his brother Roderick in Melbourne, Australia. Houston, Texas April 22nd 1894 My Dear Roderick, It is with much pleasure that I received your kind & long looked for letter which I received along with the photographs for which I return thanks. I was just looking at the ones you had taken in London & Calcutta & there was not much difference in them. Certainly you all look well. It is a good picture well taken. I received a letter from Alick dated Glasgow March 20th. They were all well when they wrote. He says things are getting better on the Clyde. More orders are booked for new vessels, only for the wet weather that is keeping things back. He says it has been raining continually since the New Year which prevents outsiders from getting on. He says he is getting a job now and again on repairs at the harbour. He says there are so many out of work Page 2 & fight to get any work. Alick has very little news he says he got a letter from Robert’s wife in London about the New Year. She sends very little news regarding her family. I am sorry to see of the hard times over there. I see in some of the dispatches last week about Labour troubles over there. Well it is all over. I do not know what it is coming to. Here in the United States I am afraid there is going to be trouble. There is an army of hundreds of thousands on the way to Washington to appeal to the Government for work. Hundreds of them passed through here. They take hold of the trains by force. I am glad to see by the photographs that you are looking well, though you did not state in your letter. We are all well but Annie she has been sick but is Page 3 getting better. The children are well and going to School. I am glad to see that Maggy, Robert & John are doing so well. I tell you it is a great thing to have a trade. I received the Annual Report of the Presbyterian Church. I see the names of several of the family in it. We had a State Holliday yesterday. You will get all the news in paper I send you. If you sent any papers I did not receive them. I will try soon and have our photographs taken. I have but very little news to write, only the weather is getting hot & I have been down to Galveston last Summer. It is a nice City. The government are still working on deep water there. The ammount the government give this year is $600,000 - 700,000 in all. The rock is from up the country on the Central RRd. Page 4 The Southern Pacific is going to build a big bridge across the Missippi River to cost $7,000,000, with rock used from Texas. I will now draw to a close. Hoping that this letter will find you all well & doing well. Annie joins with me in love & kind regards to Yourself, Wife & Children. Hoping to have a letter from you soon again. I remain Your Affectionate Brother Henry E. Macdonald Be sure and write soon & put a few Australian flower seeds in the newspaper for Georgiana flower garden. Good By to all This is a leaf of the Magnolia Tree. Also a leaf of the flower. It is a fine flower. I wish I could send you a whole one.