[Almost no punctuation in the letter, though it's usually pretty clear where sentences begin and end. I added all the paragraph breaks for ease of reading.]So. H. Falls March 3rd 1892
My Dear Brother
I have not received a letter from you for a long time and have not heard from G only as Marys letter 7th of Jan, told us how you were at that time. How has it been with you this winter[?] Have you kept comfortable[?]
We have had a very remarkable winter so few real cold days I cannot realise that we have had much of a winter compared to the winter we had when you & I were boys when the first of Nov the snow would begin to show itself and it would pile up some 2 to 4 feet deep and it came to stay, too, and the mercury would run down to the bottom of the tub and if the tube had been long enough I dont know where it would have stop'd. There was what we called cold winters those were just what you and I liked we did not want no better fun than to have the neighbors hitch up 2 or 3 yoke of oxen and fasten on a couple of big ploughs and broke out the roads[.] We did not care but a very little about the cold those days[.]
But it is very different with us now the winters are plenty cold enough for me I think it is very remarkable that the snow should hold off until after 1st of Jan, and we have had but a very little here this winter pretty good sleighing 10 days or so we have not had steady cold weather enough to keep the snow but a little while[.]
Now I will change the program a little and I shall surprise you a little because I was surprised myself at the time. There are 2 sisters who live on Main St a little disance from us, one of them is an invalid the other is a school teacher, she teaches school in Springfield has taught there a good many years, through the summer time[.] She has come home every night to care for this sister and the home duties cooking &c[.] These 2 sisters are all there is of the family at the homestead Mary & Sarah Smith. Their mother died last March[.] I presume that Mary remembers Sarah Smith she taught school here a number of years.
Well she tried to get some person such as she could trust, to come and stay with her sis so that she could stay at Springfield through the week[.] She did not succeed in finding such a person and the week before New Years she came up to our home and asked my wife if [she] wouln't [sic] go down and stay through the term which closed the 26 of Feb[.] Wife says will think about it and let her know in a day or 2 and Sat she concluded that we would go[.]
We went Monday the 4th of Jan'y and about this time I had a spell of dizziness come on and I felt pretty poorly and had longest spell I ever had and indeed I have not got over it yet but a good deal better. I done the chores down there they had 24 hens to feed & water they were kept in the barn cellar and I had the care of 2 stoves which were run night and day carried all the ashes down into this cellar to sift them so the hens could have the benefit of scratching them over (these women were very particular about everything)[.]
So you see it was not a very easy task to do their chores a great many mornings[.] I did not feel as if I could get down to that hen yd I was so dizzy but after I had been up awhile I would feel some better and we staid until the 19th of Feb'y and then came home and we were glad that we had a home to come to.
Home is home if ever so humbly I tell you Festus there are 2 very essential things needed for old people like you and I those are a good warm house and a good bed and we had those at Miss Smiths and we got along very nicely[.] I told my neighbors that wife & I was doing chores for our board this winter[.] But Miss Smith paid us generously.
I suppose you got a paper from me last week I sent 4 transcripts away one to Lorenso West one to Mr Durand our old friend in Conn and one to Rev E. G. Blodgett[.] Greenwich do you remember about that remarkable illumanation [sic] I had forgotten about it until I saw those northern lights the 13 of Feb'y and that was nothing in comparison with the illumanation in 1837 I did not state the time in the paper but I think it was in Jan[.] And another thing about it I did not speak of there was a good body of snow on the ground at the time and the reflection was so beautiful it was just as red as blood and every thing and every body was very red undoubtedly you remember it well[.] There are very few in our village now who remember about it[.]
But I must change off for something else - I received a letter from Everett last Monday[.] All pretty well has moved[.] The house he lived in since he went to Torrington is a cold unconvenient one a hard place for his sickly wife to keep house in and now he has a good comfortable and convenient house has a hot water boiler holds 40 gallons giving the sink hot & cold water nice pantry every thing convenient in kitchen 1st floor 3 rooms on 2nd floor 3 rooms & bathroom hot & cold water besides a large attic he pays $15.50 month rent[.] I am glad he has so good a home[.]
Received a letter from Irving 16th Feb'y all usually well, was up to Eugenia's yesterday[.] She was not very well[.] She has the palpitation of the heart once in while I am going up there to day. I hope you will be able to read all of this if you cant answer it. Will you please to ask your dear son Ezra or your dear daughter Mary to do so right away so we can learn how you are getting along and tell us about the sick neighbors.
I also received a nice letter Tuesday 1st of March from our dear niece Addie Johnson [Keen?] N. Hampshire she is very sickly up there with [sic] but her family are all well.
Excuse all mistakes. And I will stop now[.]
Love from all to all
Your BrotherHave you heard of Harriet Fales death[?] She died last Christmas day[.]