Dear Sir You will be pleased to pardon me for troubling you,
but I have just received an anonimous letter dated " Mouth of the
Brazos22d. December 1832 " which purports to have been written
by some person who feels interested in my wellfare but they either
designedly or neglectfully sent the letter without signing it— In
which they inform me that Capt. J. B. Bailey is dead and in
consequence thereof my business left in his hands is in a bad condition—
Deeming it advisable at all times to apply to the fountain head,
I have taken the liberty of addressing this to you, and hope you will
not think it too much trouble to reply immediately— I wish to
ascertain if Bailey is dead, and if so, would you be pleased to enquire
and inform me the situation in which he left my business—also
would you be pleased to advise in whose hands I had better place
it, or whether I had better come down myself the latter Í know from
experience would be the better course, but at present it would be
attended with great inconvenience and sacrafice to me, and I would
rather suffer loss there, than here at present, unless the sacrifice
would be too great there, I had hoped to have been down in the
spring of 1828 but was prevented by suits—since when by a
succession of ill chances I have not been able to get off— since my return
from Texas I have lost a brother-in-law-Sister-in-law and Mother-in-
law by the death of the former my family has been increased 1 boy
and three girls—and in the same time my wife has presented me
with 2 girls and 1 boy— So you see when I do come down, I shall
come in considerable force in point of numbers, though not in
military strength—and I am determined to come down and settle in
that country yet, so soon as I can make my arrangements to close all
my business here, which I hope to be enabled to do in all this year
When I do come you I think will find me a different person in
many respects from what I was when you last seen me— it has
been a great source of regret to me the manner in which I conducted
myself while there— had I attended to my business as I ought to
have done while down I might have left it without any difficulty or
trouble about it at this time—but the fact is I cared little about the
world or any person in it at that time—I had been harassed and
defrauded by some of my relations, and by some who ought to have
been my best friends—and who professed themselves as such— I
therefore cared little what become of myself or anything else—but
I have since thought and learned better things— Dear Sir yo[u
see] I have a large family and had hoped that the [land I purchased
in Texas might be beneficial to [them and] * * * * to me—
I therefore do now hope that [it] * * * may not be wrested
from me— I had sen[t] [Bailey] * * * a full power of Atty.
to do and act as he thought most advisable for me investing him
with all the powers that I myself possessed— you perhaps think it
strange that I put my business in his hands—but I knew that he
felt a very warm friendship for me—and would make every exertion
in his power to serve me— I wrote by Mr. J. P. Fessendenlast
fall and sent a package by him to Bailey containing sundry papers
of value to me,—Fessenden promised to write me immediately on
his arrival since when I have heard nothing of him— will you be
so good as to inform me whether he has arrived in the colony and if
he has taken charge of the packet designed for Bailey I had every
confidence in Bailey—and in his letters he states that when I come
down, I will find every thing done that lay in his power for me
and whether he is dead or alive I should find it done for my interest
and benefit and not his—
Dear Sir by devoting some attention to this business you will
confer a lasting favour, and possibly it may one day be in my power
to reciprocate-—