I was gratified a day or two since by one more letter from you, a satisfaction only inferior to that of seeing you personally. I am delighted to hear that your mother was pleased with her visit, & the more so because it encouraged me to hope for a renewal of it. She left us as she has told you just as my Father & Brother started for their winter visit or rather residence at Louisville . She left us deserted by all in this haunted Castle, & she can tell you how pertinaciously we labored to prolong her stay, & how rigidly we exacted her promise for another visit on her part as well as your own, & that right soon! I think if my Father, whose influence would have been added most warmly to our own, had remained at home, she would hardly have been able to get away for some time to come. Tell her I have been retailing [retelling] some of her anecdotes — for when she got through with the old ones brought to memory by the [added: first] renewal of old associations, she

seemed to have an inexhaustible stock bran [brand] new just from the visit — tell her I have been endeavoring to repeat some of them, but with no shadow of the affect they had from her. Miss Leona McCloud has been spending a few weeks with us f & has greatly brightened the dullness of our little household, but she leaves us soon. Mrs Macy fortunately for us has recently arrived, & by the aid of her most excellent company, we are as cheerful a little party as you will find anywhere under the same circumstances; but I think we might form a much more symmetrical circle around the fireside, by a little enlargement. We are all rather old — we lack young [unclear: backs ]; I mean very little [unclear: backs ] . Do come over and bring with you a half dozen children if convenient. But I expect from the anxiety of your Mother to see little Sallie while she was here, that if you with were bothe [both] to come together your mother would lose at least a hundred weight of flesh in pining for you. You are the better judges whether she can spare so much. From my known fondness for children connected with one or two little casual coincidences, rather

indicating my a like fondness for widows, the impression has gone abroad, that I am in pursuit of some widow with at least three children — four is my number they say, but three will do to begin with.

I think mother has been really anxious to go over to Nashville , but she has remained at home so long that she has lost some of her former energy and resolution. She hardly even gets [added: up] to Uncle Wash 's once in these months, & her young relatives do not pretend to account [unclear: visit ] with her. But I must confess [added: she has had] [unclear: w ] this contemplated trip more difficulties than usual to contend with and now that the season is so far advanced we ha can hardly hope for good weather of sufficient duration to justify one of her health and age in undertaking the adventure. Do not wait for her to come over, but trust rather to the chances of taking her with you on your return. I do not see the force of your apology for not coming. You do not intend to be the active agent in hireing [hiring] another house yourself do you? One's being turned out of house is a poor reason for remaining at home. Our house has not yet been bought for an orphan asylum, bu though it is large enough to accommodate a few such agreeable orphans as

yourself.

Father and Henry are highly pleased with their situation & circumstances. Henry writes that the students seem attach fond of Father. He finds the duties very light, but says "it is a dirned [darned] sight harder to learn the boys' names than the lectures, and he [unclear] throws the class into convulsions of laughter by his ludicrous mistakes [gap] love to all and believe me

very Truly your Friend

Presley Ewing