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Gardening matters. Cucumbers up nicely. Beans doing fine. As soon as ground gets dry will plant corn. Joseph to tell Ed about what plants he used. Tom and Jo planting. Cow gives milk. Write soon.

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Bargain about pants. Needs pants badly. Wants something light-colored. Pete and Robert Rinker came last night to see him. Pray for him. Will Ben write him back? Write soon.

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Mr. Coats and Marshale Bowman. Settlement of money. $4.96.

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Mrs. King’s mother down with fever. Heard from brother E.A. recently. Guesses that the potatoes are dug up. Abundance of fruits where he is. Gained 20 pounds.

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Heard from brother Ed and brother Sam. Jo should goto school. Do they have plenty of rainfall?

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Gained about twenty pounds. Used to weigh 130. Now 150 pounds. Feels splendid. Sickness last week. Out at Lutheran service five miles from town. Dinner with pretty ladies by the name of Coiner. Too much to eat. Chicken, ham, veal, sweets on table. Ate too much. Got sick. People kind to him. Death of Mrs. King’s mother. Left five children. Mrs. King to take two girls. Little boy to go to miller.

Scope and Contents Relationship: Cornelia F. Will is aunt Not much time to come down because of steady work to pay off the saw mills bought that summer. Buying lumber, sawing it, and selling the lumber. Bettie moved since last letter. Still in New Concord. Annie’s finished her house. Ella helping with the fixing up. Cold weather. Boarded in a shanty last week. Very crowded. Plenty of peaches. Sold for 40 cents to dollar a bushel. Story of Ella Switzer. Their little girl died. Attended theater with some men....

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In a hurry. Enclosed $2.00 for mother to buy sugar. Mrs. Wilson to come visit him. Is a lot of fun. Will come home for Christmas. Wrote to brother Ed and told him to come.

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W.H. Lynn from New Concord, Ohio. Ella here at present. Sold interest in mill and thinking of moving to Newark. Been to Tennessee. Wrote to Will and her aunt. Cheap land because of so many darkeys. No sale for lumber. In Cincinnati when water was 66 feet high; it rose to 71 feet. Awful to see top of cars. Houses floating. Has she heard anything from Ella or Will Switzer(?). Heard that they divorced. Later heard they got back together again. Love to Fannie and the babies.

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Books put in hands of collectors. Settlement of matter.

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From Hawkins Town, VA. Correspondent unidentified. Alice not well. Leaves behind Will and her eight little children if she dies. Maggie here tonight. Doctor came yesterday and said Alice will not last but a few more days.

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Special Offer. Advertisement for Parisian diamond earrings and teaspoons. Send $3.00.

Scope and Contents Letter might come as surprise as she is not expected. Does not know what Cornelia has against her. She never mistreated her. Only answered late to her letters. Trying to reform her carelessness. Cornelia going to Florida. Feels quite alone in the world. Entire family buried. Sadness to think of last few years. William, George, herself together of what is left of their once large family. Church. Please forgive her for neglect. She had a sick family to tend to and neglected dear friends. Glad...

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Part I (S.J. Williams): Weather is cold. Is Joseph going to school? Importance of education. Working for 50 cents a day is not a good plan. Brother and he are well. Enclosed picture of himself. Post script (Bill): Coldness. Ice is four inches. Sends love to all.

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Check of $2.00 received from Burken (?) Bank. Need 40 more cents. Will write check of $2.40 and notify of this transaction.

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Specific day in March unknown. Correspondent unidentified. Had a hard winter. How is Miss Bettie? To come up soon. Trying to find work. Robert teaching school in grant County, West Virginia. John preaching (?) in Ohio. Write back soon.

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Circular letter. Has information about company policies and dealings. E.A. Will is a policy holder of The Staunton Life Association

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Brother Ed wrote. Mrs. Williams got flower society (?). Hopes pap is well this winter. Changed boarding house. Could not get along with Effa. Told Will he would not board with him, and he got very angry. $11.00 a month to board. Leaving county. Will is head miller. Mother is only woman he loves in the world. Found no one to marry. Will visit them soon before he moves.

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Receipt. Received $2.40 for account of assessment. Number 12. On policy number 199.

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Statement of work done for all parties. W. Hockman. Work at sawmill. Individable work. Calculations.

Scope and Contents Busy time. Flour business. Sam and he will come down to visit around May or June. Sold 19 dozen eggs at 17 cents per dozen. Butter bringing in 20 to 25 cents a day. Nellie (a cow?) growing fast and fat. Is Ed’s baby still big? Terrible murders in New York. One man killed another man and cut him to pieces and shipped him to Baltimore. Will send the paper. Another murder by 16-year-old of two young children with an ax. Murder in Shenandoah County—will be hanged. Wishes that Joseph was in a...

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J.F. Zirkle is a dealer in agricultural implements from Quicksburg, VA Sell stone machines for $25.00. 60 through 90 days. Business letter.

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How are the babies? Suppose they have all moved by this time. Went over to see Jessie Coabill (?) who looks mighty thin. Ed is working.

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Hugh M. McIlhany is the Secretary of The Office of Staunton Life Association of Virginia. Receipt: Received $2.40 for payment of assessment number 15 on policy number 18. Enclosed are two pamphlets on health: “Guide to Health” and “The Successful Agent”.

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$22.80 due October 1, 1887 is now at the Shenandoah County Bank.