Brown Family Letter, January 26, 1884

LETTER #7, JANUARY 26, 1884, KNOXVILLE, ARK.

Dear Brother, I received your letter a few days ago.

I am making more now than I have at any time since I have been in Ark. But it is all on what I owe and I don’t get any money for it, and unless we have good weather to work I won’t be able to pay up what I owe before next Summer.

The reason I got so far in debt was because we had a misunderstanding about how much I was to pay for board. I thought it was $1.50 per week and when we got to figuring up how we stood at the first of the year they counted it at #2.00 and I said nothing about it, and let them count it that way because we had no special contract made. That made a difference of about $12.00 and will take about one month’s work if I get to work every day and this is the first week in three months that a person could work every day in the week. I write this to let know how hard it is to make anything here now. In regard to going west I have found that will take 75 or 100 dollars to go where we could get land and homestead it and fix to live on it the first year. After that I think we could do very well and then I would have 160 acres of land as good as the railroads sell at 5.00 to 7.50 per acre, but I see no chance for it unless I can get the money from you or someone else, for I can’t make it here.

If you could let me have it I would give you part of the land or a note or anything else I could, but I won’t think hard of you a bit if you don’t want to rishk it.

Your brother, WHB

Envelope addressed again to Mr. A. R. Brown, Knoxville, Tenn. at WWW & Co.

Transcribed and submitted by Betsy Smith