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children have never been seriously sick except the youngest once for a few days with cold. The servants are generally well. That part of the household consists of Eliza about 30 years old & her three children Edward about 8 Clara 6 & Sarah 2 years old, Eliza & her two oldest children were given me by Mamma 2 yeras & 4 months ago, Sarah has been born since. Minerva about 21 years old & her two children Charlotte more than 3 years old & John little over a year. Minerva was bought 5 years ago her children have been born since. James about 14 years old. bought at the same time with Minerva. Delia about 16 years old, bought 6 years ago. Jim about 20 years old bought 6 months ago & Lindy 8 years old, bought at the same time with Jim. Minerva cooks & milks & one day in the week washes. Eliza irons, sews, puts the house to rights. & cooks the day Minerva washes. Delia minds the baby & one day in the week assists Minerva in washing. Lindy waits in the house, & helps take care of the children. Jim does all the out door work, James is apprenticed to a tailor. Edward waits in the house & goes on messages. The rest are children too young yet to be of service.
Servants have given me great trouble & have been my only trials in my married life. I have come to the conclusion that servants are happier & more attached to owners who are strict, than to indulgent ones. No one could be kinder to their servants than we are, & yet they are an unhappy, ill natured, discontented set; always wrangling among themselves; & displeased with their owners. The fault with us is; that we give our servants too little to do; & are not strict enough with them. It is [illegible] out of our nature to be severe; & our servants think they can do as they please & the less they have to do, the less they wish to do. Eliza is discontented, impertinent, immoral, & dishonest; but where she chooses it a smart servant; she is a first rate seamstress, & can do any thing well that she pleases. When she belonged to Mamma she was unhappy & wished she belonged to me.
She was always pretending to be sick, did nothing, & wasted away her life. Now she belongs to me, she was wishes she was back again at Mammas, & though she does more work now than formerly. I have had no comfort in ither since I owned her, & am afraid I never will, & she is such a bad example to her children, they would do much better without her Edward is a smart, useful boy, & considering his training, very good. I think he will be a fine servant. Clara seems smart, but promises to be pert. Minerva is smart, honest neat & truthful, but has a violent temper & often inpertinent; on account of her many good qualities, I am obliged to put up with some counteracting bad ones, & would be loth to part with her; she is very capabale. She & Eliza are generally at daggers draw with each other. Delia is truthful & honest, not very smart; but on the whole a good servant. Lindy is cheerful, & so far as I can judge truthful, honest & capable. Jim is faithful & honest & I think will prove a valuable servant quite capable, attends to his business & can do almost every thing. James is singular, I cannot understand him, one thing is certain he is lazy to an extreme, I am afraid he is of no account. We read a prayer & chapter in the bible every night to the servants, we let them go to the Sunday school we feed & clothe them well, we gratify all their reasonable desires. We are kind to them, give them little to do, do not make a practice of inflicting corporal punishment on them, only upon them when absolutely necessary. If any one is entitled to good, faithful, contented, grateful servants, we are Sheriff the boy my husband owned when we came to housekeeping given him by his father, he was obliged to sell on account of his bad conduct, he robbed the Post office; he has twice run away from the person to whom he was sold & returned to Greenville. The last I heard of him he was in the Jail at Asheville, he was taken up & put there. Poor fellow, he did not know when he was well off; & I expect has often bitterly repented his bad conduct. I have devoted more space to servants than I intended-
ed. They have proved to me so great a trial, that they afford me an inexhaustible theme. However I will drop it for the present for a pleasanter & more profitable subject. The clock has just struck 9. I have read the chapter & prayer to Jim, James & Lindy, all who made their appearance, I will now prepare for bed, & how thankful I ought to be, that I can lay down my head in rest & quiet on my pillow, free from suffering, with the prospect of refreshing slumber; so different from the present state of my sister, who is in pain & anguish, unable to get a moments [ease?], & no prospect of her suffering being mitigated in this world for one moment. & my other sister & mother watching by [her?] & suffering perhaps as much as she does.
Friday night. Febua March 15th 1844.
A Negro man was hung to day for killing his master Mr Jones. I saw him as he went from the Jail, he was carried 14 miles from here to where he committed the deed. Poor creature! I hope he was really penitent; & that a merciful Providence has had mercy on his soul.
My dear husband has not yet returned from Laurens court. I received a letter form him Wednesday night, saying he would be at home the latter part of the week; so I have been looking for him this evening; as it is business that detains him, I cannot regret his absence. He has lately purchased from Mrs Harrison a tract of land containing 80 acres; about 2 miles from the village, on the Anderson road; for which he gave 420 dollars; & where we will get in future all of our wood; he has also purchased a house for which he gives 75 dollars; so now he has a pair of horses, he will soon purchase a waggon, & ere long I dare say a carriage, he will plant soon, oats &c to support the horses. I am very much pleased at the late purchases, they will certainly not give me so much trouble & vexation as some other purchases have. Our household is now a very large one; including horses, cows, hogs, servants & children. We commenced 3 in family, & are now 16.
Mrs Croft is very ill in Charleston; the report is; she will not recover; as she has lingered for a long time; I should think she might; I cannot realize Mrs Croft as dead. Mr Wells brought me from town last Monday several packages, consist of a book from my Aunt Mrs Robert Hayne to myself; & [3?] books from her to Willy also a book from Aunt Eliza to Will, to instruct him in reading & spelling; which I think will be very useful. I have laid aside Mrs Barbauld to commence with that. I at the same time received my second letter from Aunt Eliza, & Maj Perry one from Mrs Hayne, inclosing certificates for Bank shares, 28 & a ½ shares, my portion of my fathers estate. My husband took me a portionless bride with the exception of 400 dollars; this is the first property he has ever received on my account. I am sure he has never regretted it; or for one moment wished I had brought him a fortune, but when I think; if [sick]; how different his destiny would have been I cannot but wish; it had been in my power to have [undered] him independent of labouring daily; in the way of his profession; for the support of his family. If it were not for that; there is no office or honor to which he could not aspire; & what a reputation he could establish for himself; he was meant for public life, he possesses the talents & character, that would render him of the greatest service to his coutnry. I think the offices of the nation would be conducted better if he were in its councils. As President of the United States he would surpass all who have preceded him; & ever to this office might he aspire; if he were independent of his profession for his support, he could be a Candidate for Congress at the next election; he would certainly be elected; & in Congress how he would distinguish himself; it is the very place suited for him; & baring the opportunity of making himself known, & distinguishing himself; he would be elected to fill the most important offices in the country, perhaps even the Presidential chair, all of this he has been deprived of by me. How different his fate would have been if he had remained single, or married a rich lady. These thoughts I know never enter his head; but they certainly do mine & make me at times quite unhappy. This I know is very wicked; & I pray to God
to give me a contented disposition, gratefeul for my man mercies; & not repine or [illegible], because I or mine are deprived of somethings; which I consider andvantages. I have many, many blessings; & it is sinful situated as I am. for one moment to repine; I chiefly regret it is not in my husbands power to occupy the station so well fitted for him, & in which he would be so useful; but I will try & not repine. I have to night received a second letter from my kind husband he will be at home, tomorrow or Sunday; he enclosed in the letter two likenesses of himself, which though caricatures I value.
I have just read to the servants; had a full attendance; afterwards I taught those who go to Sunday school their hymn.
June 6th 1848. Little did I think when I undertook to keep a Journal that years would elapse, without my even looking into it; but such is the case. Four years have passed since I wrote in this book; & of course many events have occurred of importance in so long a period. I now have four children instead of two; & lost one a year ago, which was still born. I have altogether had 6 children, two of them ceased to breathe before they entered this world, & the eyes of their Mother never beheld them. I have miscarried 4 times. I have mentioned the births of my two oldest children, my third one is a son named Benjamin Franklin after his father, we call him by the pretty abbreviation of Frank; he will be 5 years old the 19th of this month, he is a beautiful boy; perhaps now the handsomest of our children. He is large for his age, has a fair complexion dark blue or perhaps Hazel eyes, light curly hair, beautiful nose mouth & teeth, & a fine figure; he is a general favorite, his good looks helping him to be so. I have as yet taught him nothing, he does not seem quite as quick as our other children but in the end perhaps it may be just as well. My fourth