The American Sharpe Page 23
You mention that Robert Walker is a captain. Do you mean a post captain? He was a commander some time ago. He has no right to complain of his promotion, it has not been bad, but in the rank he now has it is difficult to get employed unless you have very good interests especially in peace time. But we cannot remain very long at peace. It is not in the nature of [Europe?] to be quiet. We shall be quarrelling I suppose next with the [Russians?] or some of those who have hitherto been our friends. I should like very much to see Robert again. I suppose he will be taking a wife now that he has gone to domesticate in Scotland.
I hope to hear from you soon with better accounts from you all. Tell my aunt that I will write to her soon. Remember me to Morisson, love to Jane, Mary and Gordon. And believe me my dear Laura, your affectionate brother, JP Gairdner.
The monotony of garrison duty in northern France meant that James saw no reason to continue his journal and his final notes show that he was successful in gaining an extended leave to sail over to New York and to finally meet up once again with his father:
Embarked onboard the Montagu packet2 for New York by Halifax on the 12th of May [1816]. Landed at Halifax on the 14th of June. It is a small wood built town, the country about it is barren & little cultivated, but not destitute of picturesque beauty. We remained there five days. I rode up the arm of the sea3 (which forms a basin in the interior) about ten miles the scenery was exceedingly beautiful; there are several straggling Indians here, they miserable, half clothed, dirty looking wretches but I was struck at first sight with the resemblance between them and the Cossacks I had seen in Paris, in their very peculiar cast of countenance.
Anchored in the north River opposite New York on the 30th of June.
It is uncertain how long James stayed in America but it would appear to have been around a year, as the next correspondence we have written from him to his father does not appear until early 1818 when he was back in England. This refers to a letter sent from his father in the previous autumn which would have been written many months after he had left America. It would appear that having sailed to England, he had spent the winter with his family in Scotland and was now back with the regimental depot at Shorncliffe before returning to his battalion, which still remained as part of the Army of Occupation in France.
James now encouraged his father to visit the family in Scotland himself.
Shorncliffe 27th March 18184
Annotated: Received 3rd November
To James Gairdner esq, Shady Grove, Augusta, Georgia.
My dear father,
I received your letter of the 27th October about six weeks ago while I was at Wooden5, where I spent a month on my way to Aberdeen. I should have answered it before, but I have been so continually engaged and occupied during the time of a very hurried visit which I paid to my friends in the north, that I have not had time. I went away for only three months and as I knew that there was no getting a prolongation and I had to pay visits at Wooden and Corsbie en passant, I had my time quite occupied. I found my aunt in better health than she has been for some time, but she has suffered a great deal since she has been at Aberdeen. My grandmother I found in good health and spirits and not in the least altered since I last saw her eight years ago. I have been greatly delighted with my visits to, and infinitely gratified by the renewal of the acquaintance with my relations in Roxburghshire, my cousins at Wooden and Corsbie, who have all given up since I (and more especially since you) saw them, have always cherished an affectionate remembrance of us all and I was much pleased with the warmth of heart with which I was received and by the terms in which they all expressed themselves of you and of their wish that you would settle among them, and really my dear father I wish you would think of some such plan. I am sure if you would as you have promised, come to this country on a visit, you would find so many in that part of Scotland where your relatives live, whose attentions and society would please you, that you would be convinced that it is a country more congenial to your tastes and feelings than you at present imagine; certainly more so than the one you now reside in. Mr Murray is an excellent man and speaks of you in terms of most affectionate regard as also Mr Walker and I am sure you need be at no loss for occupation there. Farming on a small scale, enough to give you employment and amusement, without involving interest enough to give you anxiety, would be much more calculated to make you happy, surrounded as you would then be by your friends and relations, than your employments in America, cut off as you are from all who care for you. I do not mean that you should, or that it would be practicable to put such a scheme into effect immediately. I know very well that the property in America must at present be looked after, but some such plan in perspective, something to look forward to in which we might hope to be all reunited would be a consolation to us all. It would I am sure be so to you, it would be so to me, and really my aunt’s mind and spirits require some resting point of that kind. They are all disgusted with Aberdeen and must leave it, it does not agree with the health of any of them and Gordon cannot finish his education there. They have met with some kind friends who have showed them a good deal of attention, but still they are strangers, they have no family connections there and in Aberdeen as in all other parts of Scotland those connections are of such primary importance, families are so large indeed and society runs so much as it were in clans, that strangers must feel themselves in a manner lost, if living in Scotland they have not there ties about them. Besides, there is another consideration, an important one, and which my aunt feels; and that is, that for her family’s sake it is a duty to cultivate the good understanding which her children’s relations have every disposition to show; if anything were to happen to her in her present situation, what would become of her family? They could not continue to live in Aberdeen, they must seek another residence which would then be done under circumstances peculiarly distressing and disadvantageous.
All these and many other considerations with the most thorough conviction that the life of a country gentleman in that part of the country where your relations live, is the most suited to your tastes and feelings induce me to urge most earnestly the fulfilment on the earliest possible opportunity, of the visit you promised to pay us. You will then see yourself all that which I now attempt to impress you with, and besides the gratification that I am convinced it will afford you to renew your acquaintance with the scenes of your own country and with those who love you. It will be of great service to my aunt, it will be so to your own affairs; that business of Simpson & Davison I think absolutely requires your personal attendance to it. I am sorry to hear such bad accounts of the crops, but I do not give any credit to the story of the rot being permanent, the farmers in several districts in England and Scotland had their wheat destroyed for two or three successive years by something of the same kind for which they could not account and which went away in a manner equally inexplicable. I hope it may be the same with what you complain of, I however am always ready to forward any arrangement or second any plan that circumstances may render necessary.
I hope I have said enough my dear father, to induce you to comply with the request in which my aunt and her dear family earnestly join with me, that you will take the earliest possible opportunity of paying us your promised visit. Louisa returned home before I left it, much improved in health by her journey to the south, where I wrote to you she came and spent the winter with my Uncle Gordon. Jane is a nice, a very nice girl, and Gordon a fine gentlemanly boy. My aunt is much at a loss about him and wants to get at my uncle’s intention and opinion respecting him. I want to have some conversation with him on the subject. Robert Walker6 and his sister Rebecca accompanied me to Aberdeen, he is a fine fellow, but is very tired and restless at being so long out of employment. Thomas7 is a gentlemanly, nice young man, he has polished very much by the two or three years that he was at sea, Mr Walker has opened his eyes with respect to the bad system he pursued with respect to his sons and has sent Hugh8 away to school. The girls & the family are better brought up and are ve
ry ladylike, the Murrays are particularly so.
But I must conclude, I will write again very soon. Remember me to all the Gairdner’s and all their friends in your part of the world and believe me my dear father, your most affectionate & dutiful son, James P Gairdner.
By June, James was back in France and writing to Scotland about the rumoured end of the occupation and a possible trip into Switzerland.
To Miss Gairdner, Skene Street, Aberdeen
Cambrai, 9 June 1818
My dear Laura,
I was very happy to learn by Jane’s letter that you have been much better lately, I wish her account of my aunt had been as good, however as it appears decided that you are to leave Aberdeen I hope your change of residence will be of advantage to the health of all of you. I wrote to my aunt about a fortnight ago, since which as you will perceive by the date of this we have changed our quarters, it has been the custom every summer to encamp the army near the fortresses. We accordingly a week ago left our winter cantonments and encamped on the glacis of this place, I am very well pleased at the change, for we are all together now, whereas before we were very much divided. Such officers as choose to have lodgings are in the town among which number I am one, having no predilection for stewing in a tent when I can by any means get under a roof. The weather here is intensely hot and everything parched and burnt up for want of rain of which with the exception of about three hours one day there has been none since I landed in the country, now nearly six weeks.
The farmers are grumbling greatly but that is so much the nature of the animal that it generally means nothing; be that as it may it is certainly the most unswerving relaxing weather I ever felt; the time was when I cared no more about the extremes of weather than for the more temporary inconvenience with which it was attended and if I could get into the shade and keep quiet on a hot day I felt light and capable of anything that did not require bodily exertion. But this weather makes me quite lazy, and I perfectly agree with definition of happiness given by I forget what writer (and it is too great an exertion to try to recollect) who however makes out the quintessence of it to be, lolling on sofa and reading novels. Either it has in it something peculiarly inclining to idleness or else the infirmities of age are coming upon me and you may take it as no bad proof of my desire to please you, that I am capable of the exertion of writing to you, having within my reach as I have, the luxuries I have described viz the sofa and novels; for my lodging is at a bookseller’s shop and Madamoiselle, one of the belles of Cambrai and a very pretty girl I assure you, has made me free of the library and recommended several which she declares to be ‘fort interressantes’ [very interesting].
I think you judge harshly of the Walkers in supposing that Rebecca intends to forget her old connections because about to form new ones, they are certainly queer people and do not do things as other people do and Rebecca is a queer girl and has puzzled me more to comprehend than almost anybody I ever met with, but I do not think they want heart. I have had another Italian epistle from Robert [Walker] since I came out here, he says that his sister has not fixed the time for her marriage yet but that Captain Hood9 talks of leaving England about the middle of July. He seems to be more pleased with his future brother in law the better he becomes acquainted with him. Has David returned to Scotland yet? I saw [him] when I was in London, I do not imagine that he is likely to shine as a very brilliant luminary anywhere. I mentioned to you I believe the invitation I had through him from Mrs Paton to renew my acquaintance with them, an honour however which I did not avail myself of when I was in town. I am very sorry to hear by a note that I had from my Aunt Gordon accompanying a review which she sent me that my uncle has been very unwell, she talks of going out of town this summer for the benefit of a change of air which I hope will set the matter to rights again.
I believe a change in the country seldom fails having a good effect upon his health. We have nothing of interest stirring here, shooting matches are the rage just now, and I have rather to my own surprise become all at once a dead shot. I have been long a shooter and have always been fond of it, but I used formerly to be surprised when I killed, now it is a matter of surprise to me to miss. The report still continues to prevail that the army of occupation will leave the country in autumn, but we know nothing positively. I intend in a week or two to go to Paris, where there are several people I am acquainted with. I have been strongly urged to accompany one party to Italy. That is out of the question but it is not improbable but that I may go with them as far as Geneva. Give my love to all with you, kisses to dear Mary, and thank Jenny for her letter, I will write to her soon and believe me dear Laura, your affectionate brother, James P. Gairdner.
18 June I received your mother’s letter this morning.
Three months later both father and son were writing to each other again, his father enquiring10 what James’ plans were if, as widely expected, the Army of Occupation ended soon.
To Lieutenant J P Gairdner, 1st Battalion Rifle Brigade, British Army, France.
New York, 7th September 181811
My dear James,
Some time ago I had the pleasure of receiving your favour of 10th May, the letter written on your return from Scotland has miscarried, as I requested Mr Gardner to forward on here any letters that might arrive after I had left Augusta, but as I have not heard from Aberdeen for a very long time, suspect he has omitted sending them. It now appears certain that the army will be withdrawn from France, there will of course be a great many more regiments reduced, which will make it more difficult to purchase. I therefore hope you will soon get admitted into the military college,12 what time do they generally remain there? There are a great many people northerly this year from Carolina & Georgia. Thomas Gardner & family are here now, they were at Morristown 30 miles from this all summer. I left Robert Walker there as I came on (I believe shall leave him there at school) and went on to Newport Rhode Island, stayed there better than 3 weeks, then went to Boston & Salem, I meant to have gone farther to the eastward but the weather was very warm & dry which made it disagreeable travelling. It has been very dry in Georgia, at Shady Grove they had only one shower in two months. Corn crops are mostly ruined, it is now two dollars a bushel and expected to be at 3, the cotton crop is also bad and the rot has got into it again, but I have just received a letter from my overseer, he had got none of it 23rd August, but says it may come yet, it was bad at Walkers, T. Gardner’s and others in my neighbourhood.
Charleston & Sava[nnah] has been very healthy the summer, Dart tells me that old Doctor Barron is very ill, not expected to live, he is worn out, Miss Barron is also very unwell. I shall move from this in 2 days & hope to get home by the 10th October, when I hope to find letters from you & our friends in Scotland, if you write to them, say that I am well & will write on getting home. I remain my dear James your most affectionate father, James Gairdner.
James was simultaneously voicing his concerns regarding his future, given that the Army of Occupation was drawing to an end.
To James Gairdner esq, Shady Grove, Augusta, Georgia
Cambrai, 20th September 181813
I have just received yours from Shady Grove of the 5th of June and are glad to find that you are well and about to migrate northward as usual, it appears you have made the old house so sumptuous that I shall hardly recognise it again. I am sorry to hear little Robert has been so unwell, he will no doubt be greatly delighted with his tour, for little fellow he has the world all before him and everything has the charm of novelty for him. You say nothing about Edwin, how does he get on, is he as fond of planting as ever? The exploit of the two young Baylies does not surprise me in the least, one of them who I did not see had already shown himself a confirmed blackguard and I had no great opinion of the other. The young men in that country are for the most part great rips and the old ones great savages. How is General Jackson’s business to be settled?14 His occupation of Florida has excited some interest and a good deal of surprise in Europe and the American government seems
by the last accounts we have to be rather at a loss what line of conduct to adopt, but I suppose it will end in the purchase of the territory from the Spanish government it is I believe of little use to anybody but the United States.
I have written to you twice since my visit to Scotland last winter. I spent some time at Wooden & Corsbie & then went to Aberdeen, I gave you an account of all our friends in that quarter, Robert Walker and I have corresponded since and nothing new has occurred there since I left them except the marriage of Rebecca with a Captain Hood of I forget what regiment, he is a gentlemanly good sort of young man, of pretty good property and in short a very desirable match; it was in contemplation when I was there but was not concluded until about two months ago. She and her husband departed immediately after the ceremony for London, from whence they were to proceed to Falmouth to embark for the Mediterranean where his regiment is stationed15.
Robert is very anxious to get employed and with the rank he holds it would be a capital thing, but I fear he has very little chance, for it must require very great interest indeed to get the command of a vessel now.