Bloomington Polk Co, May 24th, 1857
Dear Brother and Sister
After so long a time I will try to answer your leter that I received so
long ago that I have forgot the date of it now the reason that I did
not write when I received your leter was that several of the friends
was writing to you about that time and I thought it best to wait awhile
now John it is not for the want of love and respect for you that I dont
write oftener but it is pure negligence though I have writen more leters
to Illinois than I have received from thare but anough of this
this leaves myself and family in comon health my health has not bin
good for about twelve months though I am beter this spring than I was
last spring the friends are all well as far as I know Mother is living with
Isaac Butler she injoys verry good health and injoys herself verry well
concidering the circumstances she is well taken care of by the children,
they all appear to be anxious to do for her anything that will add to her
comforts Isaac M. Butlers wife has a fine daughter and they are so
proud of it they hardly know how to behave their selves I dont know
whether they hav named it or not
we had averry disagreeably winter here it rained all winter and continued
to rain until in April then it quit and the ground dride up in afew days and
continued dry until last week it rained a litle for severl days now the
ground is in good order this country is lik all others it has good seasons
and bad ons and this is one of the bad ones our gardens and spring crops
looks verry bad at this time fall wheat looks very well
Now I will tell you what my prospects are in Oregon I have four hundred
and twenty acres of land one hundred and seventy five under fence forty
in cultivation fifteen acres in fall wheat and it looks firstrate it is in bloom
at this time I sowed it in April, 56, I expect it will make forty bushels to
the acre wheat is worth one dollar and ten cts per bushel I have eight acres
of volunteer oats they are heading out and will make about forty bushels per
acre then I have eight acres of oats that was sowed this spring they look
tolerably well and five acres in Timothy it looks first rate and five acres
set in
Apple trees I have three hundred trees setout and I intend to set as menny
more next spring we have about one hundred that is three years old this
spring and the most of them are full of apples this is the best place for fruit
I ever saw we have aplenty of strawberrys here this spring I think we have
getherd more than one bushel of them this spring I wish you had a big bowl
full that Sarah has just set on the table ready pict for our diners I think
it
would make your mouth water now I will tell you about my stock we have
seven head of horses four of them old enough to work two yerling fillies and
one young colt and twenty four head of cattle nine cows six of them has
calves and the others will have soon one two year old steer and five
yerlings steers one two year old heifer and two yearling heifers I sold two
cows this spring I got one hundred and fifteen dollars for one of them and
twenty five for the other and I sold one horse f two hundred as for hogs and
sheep I have none I intend to buy three or four head of hogs that will make
my meat and that is all I want now I will give you some idey what it costs to
keep stock in this country I cut two acres of timothy hay last summer and put
it up and thrashed six acres of oats and that is all the feed I had excpt some
squashes for my stock last winter and I have fed my work horses ever since
last harvest out of the oat and hay and I have plenty to do me till harvest
comes again I fated nineteen head of hogs last fall on the corn an squashes
that growed on three acres of land and had some corn and squashes left there
was about five Wagon loads of squashes laid in the field and rotted now if this
wont do for a squash tail I will quit
well now I must brag some on our children we haint got menny but they are
mity bigons our boy is the largest of his age I ever saw and as smart as
children generally gets to be and I think as mutch of him as I would of a sack
of gold as big as Mount Hood my sheet is about full and I have but litle more
to write about this paper is so mean that I can hardly write on it.we divided
the personal property that belonged to the estate according to fathers request
we bid it of at an extravigant price I give three hundred dollars for one mare
and colt and the rest of it went in proportion
I want you to try and find out the blud of the old horse that I.F.M. Butler
started to bring to this country Ira got him of Bradley some of the Walkers
that live at Green Bush will know his stock if you can find out his pedigree
let me know what it is for it will be worth something to me for I have a
three year old horse of that stock
My sheet is full and I have nothing to write of importance Write often and
tell James to write so no more at present but remain your brother
E.D. Butler & SEB
[to] John M. Butler & Family
Isaac Smith and family was here last Saturday night they were all well
