Letter from Emma Smith, 6 December 1839

Dear husband in the midst of the confusion of my own family and & and the remains of Stena Fisks family I shall endeavour to write, having omited writing so long already on account of so much confusion and some sickness that I very much fear that my letter will not arrive in in time for you to receive it, I did not receive your letter wrote at Jacksonvill untill after that Mr Law gave me the one he brought, I canot give a very particular account of what has passed here since you left home, Buisness in this place does not go on quite as well as when you was here, I broke fever the same day you left and he has been well ever since has had the chill fever twice the first time he had the bled at the nose untill he was very weak he has not been as well ever since as he was before but is now getting better, <​W.​> Milton has not been well but a small part of the time the rest of my family are and have been well s and family were brought here the day you went away were all sick, he soon recovered his health and has gone to the east his is very feeble yet was brought here the day after you left home and suffered extremly untill Sunday morming, when his spirit left its suffering tenement for a better mansion than he had here, he lost his speech the first evening he was here and never spoke another word wh[i]le he lived, although I think he retained his senses, his death was felt very sensibly by all in the place, his wife omited the funeral untill your return much buisness remains unatended to on account of his sudden and unexpected death altho has put into his office yet has not done any thing at all in the buisness neither do I think he will

requested me to ask me <​you​> what become of that letter [p. 1]