Dr. John A. Hanks Letter to his Son John

Pittsboro May 11th 1868

My Dear Son: I received your long looked for and truly welcome letter a few days since & would have replied earlier had not circumstances prevented. You must therefore look over my seeming indifference & rest assured that nothing affords me more pleasure than to correspond with my absent children. I am glad you have moved up country as I never could "thole" that section you left and now it would be a perfect Pandemonium to reside in a county where the Cumbo [?] element so largely predominates as it does in Brazoria; however it is bad enough in Chatham & all over the old North State God knows. The Scallawags, Blatherskites, Rascals, Rogues & Cumbo [?] & Cuffie [?] have taken the day & N. Carolina has elected Wm Holden Governor & all the ticket composed as it is of Carpetbaggers & broken down politicians with a plenty of deserters from the parties they once were proud to belong to I mean the old Whig and Democratic parties. We hear this evening, however that the Congressional Committee has refused to take the state into the Union; the enfranchising clause is the objection & the probability is we shall be governed by a military despotism as at present, with the addition of another Brow-n low [?] of fiendish notoriety in the person of Bill Holden. Be it so! I would rather suffer on and bide our time than have our old constitution, made by our Fathers when men were honest & made by the wisest & best of N. Carolina's gifted sons & amended in /36 by such men as Gaston Toomer & Macon, thrown aside trampled on, & substituted in its stead a rickety, rascally, devilish, concern made in Washington & a literal copy in many respects of the Massachusetts Constitution with the addition of the Negro equality clause & then just to think of the men who made it! Fifteen negroes & the balance neither wiser nor better men, witness from our own County Chicken Billy Gunter & John McDonald! I honestly believe the policy persued by the Radical party will culminate in another war, a war in comparison with which the other was but child's play. It will be a war of races & the deluded Africans will find that this is & shall be a white man's & only a white man's government. The signs in the political horizon all through the North and Northwest are indeed encouraging & the old Democratic party is girding up its loins for the coming conflict & when the victory shall have been won, woe be to the now-dominant party if it refuse to surrender the reins of Government!! A result however that I do most certainly anticipate, and this is why I think there will be another war. If it should come & I am able to shoulder a musket you may count me in "Sure."

Enough of politics. Times are hard here money scarce & provisions high. There is no starvation, nor likely to be any, though in our County nor adjoining ones that I have heard of. We have the best prospect for a wheat crop I have seen in many years. If no accident befall it there has no such crop been harvested in many years. Much depends however on the season from this time.

We had quite a lively time on the 6th celebrated as the 1st of May. The coronation & the "tout ensemble" were most exquisite. All the young girls delivered their addresses in fine style & the band discoursed good music at proper intervals & all would have passed off charmingly had it not been for the fainting of one of the young ladies, Miss Euphemia Long, but she was better & able to go home & all proceeded in order subsequently. The health of the place is not very good just now -- We are having an epidemic, sore throat & Influenza with a sprinkle of croup among children. No deaths except among the darkies, poor things they suffer & steal & steal & suffer & the curse (of) God seems to rest on the Dark sons of Africa go where they may! You ask about Lucien. He is here doing business with O S Poe. He seldom writes to any of his absent brothers & sisters. Why I am at a loss to tell. I know he has plenty of time. He is well & I think doing pretty well. The rest of the family are well and all desire to be remembered to you. This (is) court week, but there will be little done in the way of business. I am going down into Harnett(e) this week to perform an operation for cateract on two persons eyes. I may get paid for this trip & may not. I can't be positive. I am intending to take a fish while at Egypt. Do you ever go a fishing? The rains have kept the rivers so flush and muddy all the Spring, so that I have had no fun yet. Your Uncle Martin & Wesly are still alive & very well for old men both desire to be remembered kindly to you.

I am often asked about you & the other children & all express the greatest satisfaction when I tell them of your doings, etc. You have many friends here & they are men of the right stamp. No scallawags. I trust you may succeed in business & that I shall live to see you here once more before I die, where you can meet those who now so kindly enquire after you.

You want me to go out to Texas. I should like to do so but at present I see no probability of it. The times are too hard & money is too scarce & property too low to bring any price and above all no chance to collect back debts! So I can't raise the means to take my family even a hundred miles from Pitts. Maybe something will turn up favorable yet I live in hope if I die in despair. Write soon & give me the news & how you are doing. You haven't I hope abandoned the legal profession. You can prosecute your studies & teach school at the same time & this I trust you will do. It is growing late & I must close this long & rather desultory epistle, with the request that you reply at your earliest convenience & believe me as ever your affectionate old Father

J.A. Hanks