Monday evening – March 28th
My dear Sister,
At nine oclock I commence this letter
knowing I shall have no time to write tomorrow and
feeling unwilling to wait another day – I have been
out all the morning writing the remainder of the ladies
whom I proposed having visit me – then we had company
to dinner – Mr Graham the Post Master from N. York
and Mr Eaton – then the Miss Lansings called and
lastly Fred Betts has concluded the evening – I
have left Mrs Brown in company with Pa who is very
sound asleep and snoring very loudly on the sofa in
the parlour – you know his fancy for sleeping in publick
places — It has been a cold unpleasant day – March
weather in earnest – I hope you will not continue to
prosecute your house cleaning until it grows warmer – You
seem to intimate that Worden is coming here – how I
do wish you could come with him – I cannot but hope
yet that when you get as far as Auburn you will come
here – I wish you and Clara would both come together –

if not before when Augustus returns – The good boy I trust
will be with us next Thursday or Friday I am very
impatient to see him – Your letter did not come
yesterday morning as I expected but this morning and
“thats the why you see” that I did not write yesterday –
I hope I shall get home earlier than I did last year I
shall commence the house cleaning operation as soon as the
Legislature adjourns then I have to organise my family
for the Summer – I hardly know yet when I am to leave
here — Poor Harriet is going to lose her other child — Frances
She has I think a hopeless affection of the liver and is
evidently failing fast — her symptoms are much like Sarahs
I must go to Williamstown if I can in no other way
succeed in getting a tomb stone for our Mothers grave –
I want you to go along – Henry thinks there will be an
extra session of the Legislature during the summer
and says I must come down if there is – I do not see
the necessity exactly but suppose I must if he thinks
it desirable – My cook is to leave the first of May
and chambermaid is ^a^ very uncertain dependence –
Abbey the nurse I think will go to Auburn with me I hope
to go as early as the 1^st of June perhaps before

Mr and Mrs Brown are still here — Mrs Brown talks of leaving
this week — Sam B. is at Washington he has the offer of
a foreign Secretarship one or more but this is private
he will undoubtedly accept one of them – writes that he will
probably be here this week — I do not doubt it — Tuesday
morning – I have risen before my usual time to finish this
letter before breakfast – the bright sun gives promise of a fine
day but sundry twinges of pain lead me to expect
my usual headache this evening – I read last
night part of Mr Delevan’s appeal – there is much talk
about it here – I believe very generally publick opinion is in
favour of Dr Sprague – I am frequently asked my opinion
but decline giving it as is customary with good politicians
A letter which Mr Delevan wrote in relation to the use of wine
for the communion previous to the commencement of this dispute
gave me a very unfavourable impression with regard to his honesty
still I think in this latter controversy he is the most injured
although he does not manifest quite the sincerity and uprightness
which is desirable and withal is very pharisaical in regard to
his religion — I believe Dr Sprague might possibly in his
passion for autographs have taken the letters with an honest purpose
but I also believe that a truly honourable man the moment
he discovered that he had thus obtained letters which were im-
proper for him to read would have immediately returned them without
possessing himself of the contents however useful he might have
supposed them to be in the vindication of his own character
I think there is some evidence of collusion and duplicity in the
letters which he wrote saying the letters had been seen by no
person except himself and those necessarily employed in copying
and comparing them – when he sent for Dr Campbell and Mr Kennedy
expressly to show them the letters that they might appear as witnesses
and also in his letter accompanying the returned packet he makes
no allusion to having copied them at all which he would
have done had he been quite sure that his course was justifiable
Henry and I do not think quite alike about Mr Delevan – I
never speak about either out of our family – It seems to me
that the spirit manifested by the committee of gentlemen engaged
in this affair is not altogether commendable – but I
suppose they are all “honorable men” —

[left Margin] I will send you some money as soon as I can I wish it were in my power to send more

Whittlesy has gone on to N. York – George Andrews is here he with
those gentlemen who dined with us made three Tyler men
in town at one time – Henry amused himself considerably
at their expense – Affairs at Washington appear in
rather and unsettled condition – there is every variety of
opinion about the movements there – The city of Philadelphia
is suffering dreadfully in her pecuniary affairs – More
depression there than there has been at any time in N. York
There are so many rumours about the movements of Dickens
that it is impossible to know any thing – the last says that he
is not to embark from Boston but New York the first of June
in that case we shall see him here – Willis Hall is
keeping house all alone by himself I have promised to call
upon him soon —
Mrs Alvah Worden
Canandaigua
ALBANY
MAR
28
N.Y.
Paid W.H.S.
[right Margin] I will apprise you of Augustus movements as soon as he
comes home — your own sister
Fred

x

Frederick Seward

Birth: 1830-07-08 Death: 1915-04-25

says I do wish you would ask Aunty
come here —