ADDRESSED TO: Mr. A.J. Stage, Mt. Sterling, Madison Co., Ohio

FROM:    Mother M E.  Wood

Mansfield, Pa.    Feb the 27    1890

Dear Childern

    I resieved your Welcom letter 1 week ago yesterday or the day before and was sory to hear that you was sick   I hope that you are all better   You must all be carful not to take cold for it is harder than the first   I moved up on the hill a weeke ago last Saturday the second from Elder Palmers and a monday I wente to stay with Sophi dotys mother   She had the grip   I came home this week a Monday and have ben trying to straiton the house a little   I had a leter from Mate¹ this week   She said that she wasent coming untill the first of April but I wrote to have her come sooner   Kate Orson wanted her to worked for them when she comes   I havent hurd from Herbes² folkes since I wrote to you   Nor Kates³ either   I couldent live up stairs eny longer   Oh it was to hard work   I gett the house for to dolars a month   Thiar is lots of room in it   Nash hainte expected to live so I hear   Old Mag was hear yesterday   She said that she saw Will Reynolds up town   She said that Uncle Bennit was dead⁴ and Charley5 wente to see him and he was drunk   If I could onley hear that he was dead it wolde bee a releife to my mind   Helen do you think that Will wrote your letter⁶   If he did I should have thought he would have said something about Mrs. Frost   I donte believe that he wrights them   I donte hear enything about my pension yet   Maby I will now someone els is going to take hold of it for me   now you see it advertised in your paper the pension agent Allcott he getts evry lady a pension   He sais that he can gett Mrs Swan one   O dear how wish I could see you all   I wante to see Tess so bad   Maby it is all right that you and her hafto be so far from me

I will finish up on this bit of paper   I donte no as I can think of eny more tonight   I am glad to hear that Berts mother is better   I suppose the girls have tolde you who all have got religon hear   Mr and Mrs Caple came out last week and so has Will7   Thair hainte but a fiew old topers left in town now   I wante to hear from you soon if you ar able to right for I shel feeal waryed about you untill I hear from you agin so gooby for this time.

    Love to you all and a grait big kiss for Tessie from your

    Mother

Birt Ives folkes have all fluded out    I gess thay ar going to SeeAttle this spring   People say thay have enyway.

Notes from the peanut gallery:

1) Mary A. Wood, her daughter.

2) Herbert Wood

3) Kathryn (Wood) Reynolds

4) There's got to be a good story here.   The information comes from "Old Mag".  That's probably significant but we don't know she is.  Assumption time:  Bennit is Bennett, he's an uncle of Mary E. (Ganoung) Wood,  his surname could be Ganoung, Thompson or something else entirely if he's not blood.  Actually even Thompson is but conjecture at this point.

5) Let's say Charles A. Wood, son of Mary E, since we don't see a lot of Charley's on the Wood side.

6) Wiilliam H. Wood.

7) not William H. Wood