2-138 (Original)

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Vandemans Land Septer 29 1836
Dear Father And Mother I have After A long Absence from you Imbraced the opportunity of writing to you hopeing those few lines may find you And All my Brothers And Sisters In Good Health As I Am happy to Inform you that this leaves me quite well at this time thank God for it I have likewise to Inform you that I Am Arived Safe In vandemans Land but I Am Sorry to Inform you that we had but A verry unpleasant Voiage for After we left Woolwich the Cholera raged on Board our Ship whitch Obliged us to Return Back to Chatham And lay there 21 days and we had 22 Persons died but I had but A Slight toutch of it my Self you must Excuse me for Not writeing Before As I have till Now been A Long way up the Country And have Not been Able till Now to get A Letter to the Post with any Safety but I Am happy to Inform you that I Am Now verry Comfortabley Situated within A mile of Hobart Town the head Town In the Collony I Am Situated In A Large Market Garden belonging to A Gentleman by the Name of Mr David Lamb Esqr And My Imploy Is to Drive A Horse And Cart Into Hobart Town with the Produce of the Garden for Sale As to my Liveing I find it Better than Ever I Expected thank God I want for Nothing In that Respect As for tea And Sugar I almost Could swim in it I am Alowed 2 Pound of Sugar and 1/4 Pound of tea Per week And Plenty of tobaco And Good white Bread And some times Beef Some times mutton sometimes Pork this I have Every day Plenty of fruit Pudings In the Season of all sorts And I have two Suits of Cloths A year And three Pair of shoes In A year And I want for Nothing but my Liberty but though I Am thus Situated It Is Not the Case with all that Come As Prisonners It Is all Owen to A Persons Good Conduct that they Get Good Situations for some through their misconduct Get Into Road Partys and some Into Chain Gangs and Live A misaberable Life my kind Love to my Brother James and I hope that my misfortune will be A worning to him and to all I send my kind Love to my Child An I hope that he Is well and besure Send me word how he Is And how Providence have Provided for him Since my departure from him As to the State of this Country Is As follows A Tradesman of Any kind will get from 6 to 7s Per day And A farming man will get A dollar Per day whitch Is 4s 4d. And Bread is 4d the 2 Pd loaf Cheese is 1s 6d Per Pound Butter fresh is 2s 6d Per Pound Beef 8d to 10d Per Pound Mutton 6d to 7d Per Pound Sugar And tea is verry Cheap I have known good Sugar at 2d Per Pound And tea at is Per Pound But it is Rather dearer at this time Sugar 4 and tea 1s 6d Per Pound As to the Produse of the Collony It Produces all Sorts of Grain and fruit of Every discription And wool and Oil is the Cheif thing that is sent from the Collony In the Shipping As for the Climate In this Country it is A fine Climate we have but verry little winter And there is not A tree but what may be Propperly Called An Ever Green As they are Green all the year long And what is Termed the Bush Ground that is not Cultivated is Adorned with Beautiful flowering Shrubs of all Sorts and Ground flowers of all sorts as for the Timber In this Country it [grows] verry large and high some trees Called the Gum tree Grows 200 feet high [There] is others Called Stringebark [...] Peppermint tree but the Gum tree is the Best for Use the Howses In this Country Are Cheifly Built of Stone And the Roofs are Covered with wood Called Shingals they Split Allmost in the form of tiles About 14 Inches long and 5 or 6 Inches Broad and Each one fastened with A Nail When you write to [me] you must be [sure And Pay] the Postage of the [le]tter to London or I sha[ll] not have it And you must direct As follows for Richard Dillingham at [Mr] D Lambs Esqr Sanday Bay Hobart Town Vandemans Land And besure and Pay the Postage of the Letter to London or I shall not have it And I hope you wil not delay w[riting] to me As Soon As Possable So I Conclud with my kind love to you all and Still Remain your Unfortunate Son [90]
Richard Dillingham
there Is one thing that I the writer this Letter have to State to I daresay your Great Sattisfaction that Is your Son Richard I can say Is Verry [illegible] Steady for though Liquor Is verry Cheap And he have the means and the opportunity of Geting it he Never gets more than do him Good Rum Is 2s the Pint and that Is the Cheif that Is drank Wine Is verry Cheap It Is 9d the Pint and the Cape Wine Is 7d the Pint the distance from England to Vandemans Land Is 18000 Miles and It Is day here when it Is Night in England
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