Poe Archive

Beverly
April 6th 1852

Friend Webber,

Yours of the 28 of Dec/51 has just came to hand, there has must been great delay it had been posted in Salem & I suppose you must have thought I were dead or had not taken any notice of your letter but I was very glad to receive it at the eleventh hour.

Webber this is a great country as you well know and old Beverly I sense larger. We have a living to get & that is all we want but I should like to live high, but cannot, but you & I must be content with what we can catch. Webber if I can sell out all I have got here in Beverly and cash in my pocket. I am determined to start for some new location as this climate, I think, does not agree with me. I was taken sick on the 1st day of January & remained so until the middle of March. Am now pretty well & hope these few lines will find you well and in prosperity. I gave your best respects to Mrs. Pelson and Mr. Dodge. Webber, I thought that Dodge would be looked [?] after you went away but I think he will stay here some time longer. He is in good spirits & often says Wallis, what do you think the reason is that Webber does not write. Tell him you are handling pork and your fingers are too greasy. But Webber I want you to write and write in confidence to me as often as you can. There is no one that I should receive letter from with so great a pleasure as from my old friend--E. W. Webber

Webber, I cannot find much news that would be interesting to you excepting that we have a great revival of religion among the Baptist-there is a great many found their Savior as they call it.

I suppose you have heard of the robbery of the Suffolk Bank. There has been found missing about 75,000$. The teller of the bank, Mr. Brewer was taken in New York about starting for Europe, but Thorndike Rand gave them the slip & has gone to Europe. His bondsmen are Albert Thorndike & Michael Whitney & two more out of town for 10,000$

John A. Green & Co. have resolved partnership. John has gone to Boston with John P. Adams, corner of Merchant Row & State Street and your friend Mr. Symonds and Asa Spalding still continues at the old stand under the name of S. B Symonds & Co.

Benj. Shaw has lost his life. He was Master of a Brig and was carrying convicts for the Chillian Government. Somewhere when the convicts on shore revolted and killed their Governor & then took him & their crew, carried him on shore and shot him & then burned him.

Webber, we have had the hardest winter there that ever I experienced. We have had an abundance of snow & cold weather & now while I am writing this it snows fast. It commenced snowing last evening & looks likely to continue for some time. There is about one foot on the level now.

There has been some deaths since you left here, Alvah Woodbury, George Arbuckle, Nat Cox. Old man Curtin & they some expect Captain Austin Dodge is lost with his wife & child as they have been out some 100 days over the usual time for the passage. Capt. C. Bennett has got home again & is well.

We had a serious accident in the factory, an Irishman was at work on the rolls & got his hand into them & maimed his hand in an awful manner so that he lost one of his fingers & one month after Mr. Terrill got his hand in the same place & it was mashed in a most shocking manner, so that he had it amputated at the wrist. It has healed up and he has gone home to Cunnington. They are doing nothing in the factory. Mr. Standley thinks of starting it again own his own hook & soon. Abiel Hales was very much out of health last fall so much so I did not think he could live long and he did think so himself but he revived & left this climate last fall for Florida. Since he has been there he has been gaining his health very fast & says he was never better. Nath. Bailey was not well, yet he has got so he can go about his house on crutches.

Tomorrow I will go to Salem an see if I can get your card of clearance from Essex Lodge. The People about here are generally well. So I must bid you a good night.

Please give my last respects to Mr. Davis & Elizabeth & the rest of the family. Perhaps you will think I do not get along very fast as I have just commenced to make a few additional lines (April 14th), I have applied to Essex Lodge for your card but have not received it yet. On Fast Day we did not forget to spridg a little you know. Since I have commenced this sheet we have had news from Mr. Wales, he has had another bleeding spell which I fear will prove fatal to him.

18th Sunday We have had another letter from Mr. Wales and he is better, The Essex Lodge laid over for one week granting your card and I am waiting for it to be enclosed in this letter. I have not had but one pleasant day for the last month. It is cold and wet with snow on the ground.

The fisherman are very busy fitting out about this time, there are 4 new vessels comes to this place this season—fish is very high here worth about 4$ pr. 100 lbs. You spoke about those rubber shoes that Mr. Standley was going to send you. You received them as much as I thought you would. There is some people in this world will promise and do nothing else without it is for their own selfish interest. Expecting to get a larger slap then they will fulfill some promises. Chaff its hard work to catch him the second time.

22nd Perhaps you will think I am rather neglectful about your business as it takes me so long to write a letter to you and attend to your little business but I have proceeded with all possible dispatch, not receiving yours until 3 months after you expected I should.

They have not granted your card as yet but have laid it over again. I suppose an act of you destroying it yourself, as soon as I had applied for it there was some investigation of it I have tried hard for it, and I may get it yet, perhaps by next week and if so I shall send it directly.

I conclude this sheet by saying you will be impatient if you do not hear something from me & you would not to be to blame. I therefore wish you all the good will & esteem of your new made friends hoping you will go on prospering and to prosper until you will arrive to what we are all trying to get at.

From your friend,
Eleazer Wallis 2