Bayside 12/18/59
My dear Mart
I received thy letter last 5th day
on my way down to New York, and as it is relating to [underlined] business
matters [/underlined] I will answer it before meeting —
When thee gets [through] with thy visits, and feels like
coming, we have made up our minds, that we should like
to have thee for a few months, and then perhaps you
will [underlined] all get to Sharon [/underlined] — where I hope thee can get a
situation, but for this Winter if thee is not engaged
why not come, and spend it with us — I like thy
idea very much about having the room over the
dining room, or the middle one either — it would be
out of the way of any interruptions — as to the salary, we
must fix something about — would $10 a gr, for each of
them, be sufficient, and for us to pay thy expences, coming
and going? thee must judge of that — we want the children
to be improving now — and [although] thee will have
but [two?] to teach (unless [Oby?] goes) it will be rather
more desirable than to have others coming on some
accounts, and then we shall not interfere with the school.
I think it would be very well for thee to go up to Uncle
Paxsons, for I fear very much that dear Aunt Jane is
failing, and she would love to have thee come and after
that, if thee concludes to come here — thee could stop
at Uncle Charley’s on thy way — I only mention it so
that if thee can come [underlined] next [month] [/underlined] sometime — it would
suit us — Now do just as thee thinks best about it
and write very soon, to tell us of thy arrangements —
I am going to send you Martha Janes letter — to give
you a little insight as to the feeling then, in regard to
that sad affair — where so many innocent people
lost their lives, not such an excitement has been caused
by that deluded man John Brown — but if that
[underlined] letter is true of Mahala Doyle [/underlined] — instead of being
a [underlined] Martyr [/underlined] — he ought to be called a Murderer and
a traitor — however much he may have wished to
to free the slaves — that was not the proper way
to go about it — and if a few got away, should
they have been retaken, what suffering the poor
creatures would have passed thru from their exasperated
masters — I fear all these [underlined] sympathy meetings [/underlined] will
cause more harm, than all the good they will do — because
[sideways text along left side and cross-hatched]
it only irritates the South — but enough — for I know, Lyd will say
Aunt Eliza is not in favor of Abolition — —
with love to all from thy
[affectionate] Aunt Eliza H Bell
[Martha Schofield’s handwriting, in pencil]
Eliza Bell 1859
Speaks of [underlined] John Brown [/underlined]
Murderer or Martyr?
Also Refers
to M. S. [?]
[Eliza Bell’s handwriting, in ink]
Martha Schofield
Darby PO
[Delaware County]
[Pennsylvania]
