letter to Robert Wood, 17 November 1847

On board the Steam Boat Col Cross

On the Rio Grande Nov r 17th 1847

My dear Doctor,

Your very welcome & highly interesting letters of the 14th 24th & 28 th ult were received with several newspapers & slips cut from others on my [way] from Monterey to Camargo, by the hands of Mr Van Allen, who was so good as to call at the Barracks where he saw you Mr s Taylor, Ann Betty & the girls who had just returned from Pascagoula, all looking to be in excellent health

I was more than gratified on your account to learn that the dreadful scourge which had carried off so many persons in N. Orleans & vicinity, had ceased to be contageous, & I hope as the weather was quite cool when Col V. left, that the whole country has been restored to its usual state of health

I was very much pleased to learn that Mrs T. & family had got back to the Barracks all well, & without meeting with accident of any kind while at the Pass, or in going or returning, & hope the same good fortune will attend them until they reach their place of residence. Betty writes it had been quite sickly at B. Rouge & that Mrs Cross had lost one of her daughters but as I observe from one of the N. Orleans papers there had been a frost at that place, I hope they Mr s & Betty as well as Ann & the girls can return without running any risk. Should there be the slight est danger in Anns remaining at the Barracks, I hope she & the girls will go up with Mrs Taylor & Betty to B. Rouge & remain with them, until they can join you in perfect safety; & should there be a good school at B. Rouge, I hope the girls will remain with their grand mother & be put to the same. Betty says they had received a very pressing invitation from Mr & Mrs Taylor to make them a visit at Point Coupee & spend some time with them before they went to house keeping ; but this I expect Mrs Taylor will hardly do, as she must be very anxious to return, particularly as Majr Hooe had taken the liberty of occupying the quarters she had been living in, & where was left the whole of her furniture, as I am satisfied she will find everything in great confusion, if she finds many things at all ; I consider such a procedure on the part of the Majr highly reprehensible

I left my encampment near Monterey on the 8th ins & on the evening of the same day met Majr Van Allen with despatches from Washington ; which were copies of instructions to Gen Scott, to sustain his army as far as he could do so, by levying contributions on the enemy, & that I was to do the same on this line ; recalling Mr Trist, & directing that there should be no more attempts at negotiation ; that if the Mexican government was disposed to negotiate they must make their terms known to Gen Scott or their wishes, who would communicate the same to the President of the U. States ; but was not to stay in the least his operations against them ; I reached Camargo on the 13th & left on there on the 15th for Matamoros, which place I expect to reach this evening or to-morrow morning, & where I shall await the result of my application to leave the country, which I hope to do by the 2o th or 25th at farthest; I shall not therefore write you again, until I hear from Washington on the subject of my leave, & not then if favorable, as I will in that case leave Brasos in the first good vessel for N. Orleans, when we will on my arrival discuss many subjects of interest which I will defer until then, particularly as regards political matters

I observe there has been most extraordinary failures in the great commercial houses in England which has had the effect greatly to reduce the price of cotton in New Orleans, as well as bread stuffs, & will no doubt extend to many other products, & may lead to mercantile embarrassments to some extent ; at any rate the country can hardly expect to be as prosperous the coming year, as it was the last, cotton I observe has fallen some three cents since the opening of the market, which is a great falling off, leaving little or no profit to the grower, particularly to those who like myself will only make but half a crop

I was somewhat surprised that Majr J. could have continued alive at the Barracks during the summer, with the yellow fever so near him, I am quite surprised he was not carried off from fright. Betty writes me he had not called to see her or mother ; his not doing so gives me not the slightest concern & I hope he will not attempt to do so, for the time to come ; I presume his family has joined ere this even if he could not get charge of a Steam Boat to bring them down from Louisville, as I observe the Ohio has been in fine order for navigation ; the arrival of the madam will add nothing to the society of the Barracks as far as you & yours are concerned ; but I truly hope you, Ann & the girls will give him & his family a wide berth, & besides having as little to do with them as possible, never to speak of them, & act as if there was no such people in existance

Majr & Mrs Hunter is with me on their way to Matamoros, where the Majr will be stationed

I sincerely hope Dick will join his mother in the course of the present month if he has not already done so, & if his health is not entirely restored, it is in a fair way to become so, at any rate sufficiently so as to enable him to commence the study of some profession, or to enter into business of some kind ; he has been idle too long for his own good, or reputation ; if we can do no better I want him to go to the plantation & have a general supervision of the establishment, until he understands the operation or principles of planting, when I will set him up in that way on his own ace

Should a leave be refused I will write you immediately on hearing Give my love to Ann & the girls if with you, or if absent when you write them, as well as to the boys & wishing you & yours continued health & prosperity I remain truly & sincerely

Your Friend

Z. TAYLOR

SURGEON R. C. WOOD

U. S. Army N. Orleans Barracks

P. S. The Boat shakes so much I write with great difficulty, so much so, I fear you will be hardly able to read it