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Lonesome Hollow June 21st 1861
Dear Cousin,
In compliance with thy very modest request that I should write to thee a third time without receiving any answer I have commenced the task of doing so though I must tell thee I felt disappointed at not hearing from thee yesterday
Before thee receives this thee will no doubt have had the lecture much better described to thee than it is possible for me to do but if thee will promise me not to be too vain of thy ------ [his mark], I will feel as if I must tell thee how much pleased I was with the whole performance. The lecture lasted exactly 48 minutes. The audience was large and very quiet and attentive. The subject of the lecture was principally Henry Clay [written larger] as the most illustrious patriot and statesman we are acquainted with. The delivery was much better than I had even hoped for there being no hesitation whatever, every one I heard speak of it was very much pleased, and one person remarked that some of his passages were equal in eloquence to those of the illustrious character he was describing.
If thee has any faith in my sincerity thee may take what I have written as my honest opinion of the success of the undertaking. Anna and I went up on horseback and came home again last night in spite of many invitations to stay in the neighbourhood all night. We did not do so to be contrary as thee may think but it was such a beautiful moonlight night we felt like coming on.
We are expecting Charley and Sarah Stabler to spend the day with us and thereby fulfill a promise of long standing, so thee sees some of our friends will make the effort to come so far if other some do not, but perhaps I ought not to urge thy coming as I hope the greater part of thy future 1ife will be spent down here. The last talked of building site is much nearer to us than any before thought of and I hope it may be found the most advantageous for in this out of the way place we should be very near and dear to each other.
I summoned up all my courage and forced myself up to speak to Mary G L [written large] last night. I have felt some hesitation as to whether it was my place to do so, but regardless of any rules of etiquette that may exist in the case I felt that it was my duty to make this advance. It has been four months since I saw any of the family to speak to them.
Please remember mo very particularly to thy cousins, and remember me as ever thy devoted friend
R. B. Farquhar