| OCR Text |
Show Dumbarton Castle 7th Nov 1855 My Dear Brother I hope you will excuse my carelessness in not writing to you before this. The first reason was I did not know your address and after D. Annand sent it, I thought it so vague that a letter so addressed would never find you. Moreover I have been shifting about from place to place, and when one is rather lazy at rate, very little suffiseth for an excuse. So now my Dear Brother I will make no more apologies but trusting to your usual good nature begin to give you an account of myself, your other Brothers and Sisters, and our late father's effects. With regards to myself you know that I was married in Ireland in '48, and I was promoted to Sergeant the following year & to Company Sergeant in February 1854. In April of this year I applied and was transferred to the Fife Militia Artillery in which I am now Company and Pay Sergeant. My pay is 4 shillings 3 pence per day. I am now stationed in Dumbarton Castle. It is situated on the Clyde about 15 miles west from Glasgow. We have only one boy 2 ½ years old. I named him after our lost brother William. He is a fine little fellow just like what you were yourself at his age. I suppose that you are aware that William went to Australia in June '52 and landed after a very good passage out in Melbourne where he worked a month. He then wrote the only letter we have ever received on the eve, he said, of his departure to the Diggings where he purposed staying a month when he would write home again. But from that day to this we have never heard anything of him except that the man he worked with sent home word that he subsequently returned for his tools but left again. He has been advertised and enquired for but we have never got any tidings of him up to this date nor do I think ever will. When our father died I was out on an out command from Devonport in England, and besides being at a great distance I could not possibly get away at the time so as to be in time for the funeral. D. Annand wrote to say that they had drawn the money to save the income tax, somewhere about £100, also that the houses were offered for sale at an upset price of £200. Subsequently he wrote to say that the houses could not be sold without the authority from William or some certain word what had come of him. From that time till I joined the Militia I heard no more either of the money or houses. But soon after my arrival in Cupar I took a trip north to see how the land lay. I expected they would have volunteered an account of the whole affair, but no, I came away as wise as I went. I again paid them a visit in a few weeks after, and Isabell told me that they had paid the funeral expenses out of the money and divided the remainder among them, that is, George, Elizabeth & Isabell. Up to that time I thought the money had been put past until the houses could be sold and then whole divided according to our father's will. So between you and me I think we have not been very well used among them, for they could have wrote and had an answer back from me in 4 or 5 days at the longest. Bell further told me that her husband D. Annand had had the papers in his possession since our father's death, but now they were to put them in Thomas Webster's hand and let him take charge of the houses. Still the rent must be running on all this time and I suppose they are taking that also. At all events they seem to be taking what they can get and leaving us to look after the remainder. Now my dear brother I want you to send me word how we ought to proceed and whether I ought in our names to put it in the hands of a man of business or not. George & his family, Elizabeth and her family, and Bell and hers are all well and apparently doing well. You must excuse me for not sending you the news about other acquaintances . I have been so long away that I know but very little about them or indeed our nearest relations. My wife joins me in sending our kind love to you, hoping this will find you in the enjoyment of good health as it leaves us, thank God. And I remain your affectionate brother, David Esplin When you write please address me as under - Co. Sergeant D. Esplin Fife Militia Artillery Dumbarton Castle Scotland. Don't do as I have done but write soon and I will not be long in answering you this time. D.E. |
