Elizabeth Conklin
December 11, [1864]
  
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    Dec the 11th

  Dear Sister  
It has been so long since I have heard any tidings of you that I have been made to fear that you was no more I have been writing most all day or at least I have written three letters and my hand is very tired but it shal not rest until I have written a letter to you whether you receive it or no but I am in hopes you will receive It and answer it immediately for I am so anxious to hear from you we are all well but little charlie he has a bad cold but hope he will soon be well again he is as fat as a little pig and as cunning as a fox Willy is a nice little fellow he will be old enough to send to school next summer Ida is very large of her age if not larger than emma was when you left here she has been studying grammer this winter and she gets a long with it very well William is still running on the wabash and gets 85 dollars per month little wages for these times we cannot buy any more with it than we could buy with 30 when times were good but I have tried to be just as spareing of the money as possible and try to lay by a little for the hard times that are yet to come for I dont imagine these are the worst times we are to see they are very hard tis true but the war is not over yet and they can not help but grow worse until it is
William with 25 other men formed a club each one putting in 100 dollars and those that were drafted out of that club were to draw the pile there was 4 men drafted there from and his hundred dollars is minus he also gave 25 dollars to help raise money to lift the draft those scoundrels up at kendlevil squandred all the money and the draft came of after all and now they will exempt any man that will pay them for it and the quota is not yet filled and they are agoing to draft again and I dont expect nothing else but what Will will be drafted and then he will either have to go or it will take all we have to buy him a substitute Lucy Aldrich's Husband paid 1000 dollars for a substitute and it must go pretty hard with them for they have been building a new home this summer.
I suppose your husband is now at home with you haveing served his time has nothing to fear and I am glad of it I hope he may remain with you while you shal live for you have indeed had a hard and lonesome time of it and I am afraid there will be a grate deal of suffering among the war widows and orphans for want of wood and clothes + provisions but if they cannot stand it here in the north how can they in the south it seems so strange that they can hold out as they do.
dont you intend to make me a visit now your husband has got home I do want to see you so much and If I had no small children I should have visited you long ere this but you know how it goes visiting with children but my babe is now two years old and if I can get some trusty person to leave them with I do intend to come that is if you do not move still farther away and I hope you will not do that write and tell me all the knews and what you intend doing for if you think of going farther west perhaps we ma conclude to go along if we could only get where the draft could not catch us I would do almost any thing
          Ida sends her love to Aunt Celina and little hatty and wants to know if hatty can make bead collars and if she is not comeing to see her sometime Harriet is still liveing here her husband is learning to be an artist dont you think you and I had better learn that and go habbers

[in margin] I have filled my sheet but would still like to converse with you but will have to close for this time
                    from yours Sister           Lizza Conklin

[in margin] my love to all                         write soon

© elf junction, ink.

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