Temperance > Autobiography and personal recollections of John B. Gough

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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF JOHN B. GOUGH.
house. There is enough wood lying about the farm to supply
hundreds of families; stumps and trees lying round about the
woods, which they do not care to burn, as they take good timber
to burn. They never think of grubbing up theistumps when the
trees have been cut down, but they let them stand and rot. Third,
provisions are very cheap. Bread is Is. per gallon, 6d. your
money; beef, from l^d. to 2d. per pound; pork, 1 id. per pound.
They throw away the hog’s inwards, and you can buy hogs’ feet,
poles, and ears by the bushel. Cows are very cheap. You can
get a good cow for $12 in the spring, and from $12 to $16 in the
fall; a good fowl or pullet, 4d. to 6d.; geese and turkeys, Is.
your money. I find I must conclude, entreating you to give my
love to Mr. and Mrs. Yalyer and family, and all inquiring friends.
Also accept, beloved parents, my every good wish and my sincere
love. I expected to have seen a longer letter, and a few lines
from my dear father. I long to see his handwriting again. I
am, dear parents, your ever affectionate son,
J. B. Gough.
Extract from another letter:—
I have enjoyed pretty good health and spirits since I have been
here. I have learned a great many things. I can hold the
plough, and thrash, and plant and hoe corn, plant potatoes, make
cider, and do a great many things that I knew nothing of before.
I was at the harrow with the oxen when I heard there were
some letters for me, and soon after Elizabeth brought a packet to
me in the field. But I could not work any more all day for joy.
I like the Yankees pretty well. They are open, free, and gener¬
ous. They very much use the word “guess.” Thus, if they
meant “I shall go to chapel,” they would say, “I guess I shall
go to chapel.”
Yesterday I went to a camp-meeting, which is held once a
year by different societies of Methodists. It is generally held in
some of the woods. When we arrived at the entrance of the
woods, where this meeting was held, we heard a confused noise;
but the first thing that struck our attention was a great number