Transcription

[Page 106]

35 Hyde Park Gardens
Dec. 26th 1849

My dear Macarthur

A thousand thanks for your long & most welcome letter of Oct.  It was most kind & considerate of you to report from actual observation upon the state of my poor dear Brother Williams health.  Your description of the condition you found him in together with the electricity of spirit which characterises his own long letter to me have somewhat materialized the effect produced by the very gloomy letter of Roberts Deas Thornton & Billyard, at the same time I cannot of course close my eyes to his very poor position, poor Fellow!  He writes to me for Books & [indecipherable], and evidently takes as lively an interest in all the leading questions of the days as if he were free from all bodily ailments, at the same time there is no desire to hide from himself or others his true condition.  "The mind", with him, truly "is its own place".  This philosophy has not deserted him.  Except that

[In left margin]

rarely room enough left to tell you how very warmly & sincerely we both reciprocate all yr. kind expressions.  There are no friends like old friends my dear fellow, and never to be [indecipherable] all about themselves.  I long to hear all about these belongings so please tell me in yr. next as much as you can about yr. garden & Vineyards.;  I care much more for such information than any thing about Coll. politics, tho I am glad to learn that you are in the Council too.  God bless you.  With our love,

Yrs. ever

Geo: Macleay
 

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