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Disclaimer: The opinions on these pages are those of the writers
and don't necessarily reflect my own views. More...
Master Lyle B. Fawcett
Strasburg
Shenandoah
Va
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Harrisonburg 9th February 1821
Dear Son,
Your favor of the 2nd Instant
is to hand. I have no desire that you should follow surveying for
the purpose of making a living, I only want you to become well acquainted
with that branch of the mathematicks [sic] in order enlarge your fund
of useful Information, I therefore would not like to be at the expense
of purchasing a set of Instruments for the only purpose of making a few
experiments, as they would be of no use afterwards. If you had a
set in this place they would be continually out on loan or then you would
have to be out wasting your time in doing little unprofitable jobs, for
which you would neither get thanks or pay. I know all this from
experience for I once had a fine set of Instruments in this place which
perhaps cost 40 or 50 dollars, and I loaned them until they were ruined
in a great measure besides I wasted more time with them than two such
sets were worth, and I cannot help thinking that you may borrow a set
for a week or two to answer your purpose but if you cannot you must go
on and study the Theory as well as you can, and when you come home in
the spring I can very soon learn you how to use the Theodilite [sic].
My Dear Son there is an other reason why I can not comply with your request
that is the immense demand on me for money if you knew my distress you
would not ask me to pay a cent unless it would be for something of absolute
necessity. The business of Daniel Ragin is coming to a crisis, and
the alternatives before me exhibit nothing but what appears full of awful
responsibility or great loss. I shall in all probability be compelled
to enforce the sale of his lands and become the purchaser in which I hazzard
[sic] all. If I succeed I shall avoid certain ruin, and if I do
not succeed it will be only ruin. be therefore prepared to hear
the worst, but always hope for the best.
Your mother, Brothers and Sisters
are as well as they were when you at home. The whooping cough hangs
to the young ones without abatement.
Mr McDowell will leave me on
Monday next to commence the Study of Law.
Joseph Fawcett
Lyle B. Fawcett
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Source: Handwritten original in the private
collection of the Chambless family. Transcribed to softcopy
by Susan D. Chambless, 1998.
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