Clinton Mississippi Oct.29th I835 My very Dear Father & Mother After a very very long & on my part a painful silence I once more address myself to my long neglected duty & nothing could in the slightest degree justify me unless the plea of my ill health. hany many times have I taken up my pen to write you a letter during the past two years & then I would conclude that as my health was so delicate that I would wait until I could say that I was quite well & as Brother Jas. had wrote several times I thought that would satisfy your minds some time longer till I should be quite well, I know you may think this a poor excuse for my long silence but I assure you that I thought it better not to write during my illness for I thought it would give you more uneasiness to know that I was sick than even not to hear from me for some time, Though I know I must suffer in your estimation as being unfilial & Unbrotherly & as having forgot you all:But my dear Parents you may rest assured that I can safely say, that one week nay I might safely say one day has hardly passed without my mind reverting back to the scenes of my childhood & youth. In fact when I was at home at my parents fireside I have long since found that the word home comprehends a great deal- in fact all that is worth living for is in that word & I never yet have found all that 2. that "sweet home" containe since I left you Recvd. Sister Amelia's letter of the 20th March last it was a source of great satisfaction to me it contained a thousand little things that were highly interesting. In fact it caused me to shed tears I can hardly say of joy or sorrow it reminded me so much of home. I thought I just saw you all even the very trees & shrubs were brought up before me, Amelia i- must be grwon a fine large girl long since, how time tears on since she was winding pirns for me when I was weaving, those are happy recollections but their like is past forever. To speak something of my illness I must go back to one month after the date of my last letter which was in May I833, I think, while I lived in Nashville. I was taken with the Cholera about a month after I wrote, I had two or three attacks of it but as I used prompt means I soon got it checked but my recovery was very slow & I left the City & went out 2 miles into the Country to establish my health & to use mineral water, I stopd at the house of an old Methodist & I believe his family were the happiest folks that I have ever seen. His wife & almost all his family were lately converted & the appear to live as it were in heaven & their pianofotte which formerly was played to all sorts of profane melody was now attuned to hymns of Praise. A great many Preachers stopd at the house & amongst the rest a Mr. Shephard an Irishman from Near 2 Portadown I think he said. he served his time with Thos. Shillington of Portadown. He at least had lived with him & he knew a good many of our relations. I do not know whether you recollect anything of thim or not, I think I have heard my mother mention the name. He gave me a great deal of satisfaction for though total strangers he knew a great many people that were known to me & we felt at once that we were friends. / I staid at this place some time and I thought I had got strong enough to ride to Hopkinsville Ky. to Brother James' but my dreams of increasing health & strength were soon blasted. I took sick by the way & commenced discharging Blood through my Bowels & before