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Sydney October 20th 1829 to Mr David Hope Glasgow
My dear Cousin,
I have lately received a letter from Mssrs Gregory Thomson & Co Kilmarnock Concerning the goods sent me appointing Mr How to settle them / be assured I am extreamly glad - has it as been a source of vexation and trouble to me and no doubt they will think I have not acted right with them, but I hope as soon as Mr H can sit down with me he will be able to convince them and you I have done my best / the state the Colony has been in these last three years has rendered impossible for any one to make good their acccounts, you complain loudly of my not writeing - there may be some Cause but not quite so bad as you of course must think, as I understand you have not received any letters since Jany 1827 No 21 /So Mr How said you told him and which I immediately referred to my Book and showed him dates 19 June 1828 No 22 by the Megonet [?] bound for Glasgow / 28 Oct 1828 by Mrs Wemyss our late Commissarys Lady with a parcell for Mrs Irvin Containg [sic] Two India Crepe Gown pieces, one for Williams Wife and which I am Certain will deliver safe / if She arrives well the next the 3d of Jan 1829 by the Hellen through Mr Morrison, 29 Jany 29/20th March Capt Doughty ship Eliza by which I sent twenty one 21 Bales of Wool to Acct of those bills I drew on your House for £602.18.10 / I have also remitted the first and second of Treasury bills for £250 as also the first of one hundred pounds / the second I now transmit altho a lapse of time has transpired since remitting the first but their being no opportunity before I had included it when I was at the southward to send by the Alice but was not in time for the post but I hope & Trust you have long ere this recvd the first, the Wool I bought on speculation namely for a remittance at 1/ one shilling a pound sterling the nett Amount was £255.5.10 / knowing it was a good sample I hope it will pay me but I know you will do your best for me.
I now enter into family affairs which to you O [owe?] I had liked to have forgot for I must tell you all my Busness affairs /I wrote Mr Hargreaves about Two years & half ago to send out a little medicin to set up a person as Chymist & Druggist who had been in that line in England and who was about takeing one of my Houses / of course the man had everything to arrange in his House and the fitting up cost him a deal of money / he also detained Two young men in his service to dispence them till it nearly ruined him expecting they whould come in due course /[105] but Ship after Ship arrived and no investment the Young men where obliged to seek other employment and he Mr Colhist had to let part of his House to assist in paying his rent having given up all thoughts of them comeing out, indeed we both had written him not to send them as it had been such a lengthy time / in the, meantime out comes a person from London of the name of Foss and set up and has amassed quite a fortune - now the Country is quite full of them, had Mr Hargreaves sent them out within 15 or 18 months Mr Colhist whould have had no oponent and might equally done as well as Foss but after the lapse of nearly Two years and half out comes an Invoice over of £908.0 / Mr. Colhist will not take them having made Arrangt otherwise Consequently they are thrown all on my hands they are now lying in Mr Pitmans stores / I have had the first legal advice in the Colony and they say they are of the Opinion that I can refuse to receive them after such a length of time but unfortunately I was down at Launceston when they arrived and they where lodged in Mr Pitmans Stores as my Agent. I really do not know what to do with them their is no money in the Colony no one will buy under 12 or 18 months credit here and their is a question wether the bills are good / they also say the goods are laid in at much too high prices their are similar Invoices in the Country which are from 50 to 75 per cent Cheaper/ I think of reshipping them again but I should like if I could Sell it all at a small loss to do the best I can for him but at present I see no likelihood / I had desired him to buy me a small Carriage that he did not send nor do I wish he whould as every Article here now is much below prime cost or mostly so, owing to the scarcity of Money / I wrote Mr H. about 7 or 8 months ago not to send it nor the medicin I suppose he must have shipped them before he received my letter / I have got all this Trouble through my own good nature to some others.
I suppose you will be tired of this complaint, so I must just give you the last occurances of my family I believe I wrote you about Mr. Thomson since I have been down to the southward and did all in my power to settle his busness / their appeared in his Accts when I was down their an error of £9 or £1100 which was sent over to Hobart Town for the Commissioners to examine / the result I have not heard yet as I left before they came over but if that is the case will lesson the debt or near pay it of with what they have already taken from him / indeed every head of cattle and my Grains of Wheat he had / I am afraid he is as Idle as ever my poor Eliza has now got five 5 children it is for such a young Creature a miserable prospect / to be sure he is very kind and affectionate to her but that is not all, as I tell him it wants his exertions and activity to support such a family / she is quite a slave to them. [106]
it whould delight you to see her children with what order and neatness she keeps them had she a Husband equal to herself they might have been amongst the first people in the Colony but he is fit for nothing / I do no know any one thing he can do for the Farm he now lives on he quite neglects but I hope he will soon see his error I have talked to him seriously,
I did not write you about Elizabeth's marriage / She was married about six months ago to a Lieutenant Innes adjutant of the 39th Regt. a very fine young man is only 6 foot 7 inches high and I think will make her a very good Husband / I have settled upon her £200 a year besides her Farm with his pay which is about the same will support them very handsome with occonomy, he is a very clever young man and an exellent Correspondent / She Elizabeth wrote you some time back thanking you for the handsome present you sent her did you receive it She desired me to give her kind regards to you and accept my best wishes for your health (which I hope is quite restored) and happyness from your affectionate Cousin
M. Reibey
As please to give my love John & wife & little Penelope, William and wife and ask the latter if she received the crepe gown through Mrs Irvin love to Alice and her spouse & little George
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