The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-03-14

MUS OF Wnlcn are hcil bN MI. II. IL.
Worth, No. Gil South Broadway, St.
Louis. They came into possession of
their present owner through the pur-
chase OF the office fixtures of ex-Mayor
John How:.
TO Ills FATHER.
WASHINGTON. Dec -. 1S48. My
DEAR FATHER: Your letter of the 9TH
was received night before last. | very
cheerfully send you $50 which sum
you say is necessary TO save your land
from sale. 1t is singular that you
should have forgotten judgment
against you, and it is more singular
that the plaintiff should have let you
forget 1t So long, particularly, rs
suppose. you have always had property
enough to satisfy Judgment of that
amount. Before you pay it, it would
be well to be sure you have not paid it,
or at least that you can not prove that
you have paid it,. Give my love to
mother and all the connections. Affec-
tionately your son, ~ A. LINCOLN.
TO HIS BROTHER.
DEAR JOHNSTON: Your request for
$50 do not think 1t best to comply
with now. AT the various times when
| have helped you q little you have said
to me: 1--WE can get along very well,
now" but in short time find YOU in
the same diff ulty again. Now this
can only happen by some defect in
your conduct. What the defect is |
think / know You are not lazy, and
still you are an idler. l doubt whether
since l saw you you have done good
whole days work in any one day. You
do not very much dislike<o work, and
still you do not work much, merely be-
cause it does not seem to you that you
get much for it. This habit of useless
ly wasting time is the whole difficulty,
and 1t is vastly important to you, and
still more to your children, that you
should break this habit. 1t is more
important to them because they have
longer to live, and can keep out of an
idle habit before they are in it easier
than they can get out after they are in.
You are now in need of some ready
money, and what l propose is that you
shall go to work ''tooth and nail" for
somebody who will give you money for
it. Let father and your boys have
charge Of things mt home-prepare for
a crop and make the crop-and you go
to work for the best money wages, or
in discharge of any debt you owe, that
You can get And to secure you fair
reward for your labor l now promise
you that for every dollar you will, be-
tween now and the first of next May,
get for your labor, either in money or
on your own Indebtedness, | will give
you one other dollar. BY this, if you
hire yourself at $40 month, from me
you will get 80 more, making $40
month from your labor. In this do
not mean you shall 60 off to st. Louis,
or the lead mines, or the gold mines in
California, but | mean for you to go at
it for the best wages you can get close
to homo--in Coles county. Now il you
do this YOU will soon be out of debt,
and, what is better, you will have
habit that will keep you from getting
in debt again. But if l should now
clear you out. next year YOU will be
just as deep in as ever. You say you
would almost give your place in heaven
for $40 or $50. Then you value your
place in heaven very cheap, for | am
sure you can. with the offer / make
you, get the $40 or $50 with four or
five months work. You say if / fur
nish you the money you will deed me
the land, and if you don't pay the
money back you will deliver possession.
Nonsense! II you can not now live with
the land, how will you then live with
out itp You have always been kind to
me, and do not now mean TO be I'M
kind to you. On the contrary, If you
will but follow my advice. you will
find it worth eighty times eighty dol
lars TO you. Aflectionatcly your BROTH
err. A. LINCOLN.