cam_JonathanBassett_B017_F009_001A

Downouville Downieville, California November the 10 1852

Dear frinds [friends] i [I] feel rather sick & down cast [downcast]
to day [today] i [I] am not able to work & am driv [driven] out
of imployment [employment] & no [know] not whare [where] to look on the account
of a hevey [heavy] rane [rain] that has tore up over flown [overflown]
& fild [filled] ouer [our] digins with water it has ben [been] raning [raining]
seven days & is still raning [raining] & how much longer
it will rane [rain] no body [nobody] can tell we ar [are] laying two
in ouer [our] cabin wating [waiting] for fare [fair] wether [weather] & whare [where] we
shall go i [I] can not tell for thare [there] is so meney [many]
miners runing [running] tue [to] & fro for digins that the chance
is rather poor to make a strike whare [where] a man can
make much som [some] strikes it & some dos [does] not thare [there]
is two [too] meney [many] men in this contarey [country] to mak [make] it
prfatable [profitable] mining altho [although] thare [there] apears [appears] to be meney [many]
places in this contarey [country] that hant [haven't] ben [been] prospected
yet & i [I] am in hope to strike a place whare [where] i [I] can
nake alitle [a little] for i [I] hant [haven't] mad [made] enithing [anything] yet ouer [our]
clame [claim] proved poor gut [got] out but litle more
then [than] enough to pay for ouer [our] clame [claim] & floom [flume] & tools
it costs agood [a good] deal to floom [flume] in this place for every
thing is so by thare [there] has ben [been] a gret [great] palner on
floomes [flumes] on the riber [river] this year & agreat [a great] meney [many] lost
thare [there] somers [summer's] work & fell in debt these ar [are] hard
times rather descurraging [discouraging] thare [there] ar [are] meney [many] wild
men in this contarey [country] & still groing [growing] wilder no
mestak [mistake] tell the plane [plain] truth iam [I am] sick of this
contarey [country] and i [I] dont [don't] no [know] that ever i [I] shall git [get] muney [money]