S

October 14th 1857

My dearest Sister,

Whatever may be the circumstances that have our correspondence to I know not, never the less I feel that I cannot refrain from telling you how deeply I sympathise with you in the death of dear Tommy.

I have refrained from writing before, because I had fondly hoped that the dear fellow might turn up, but of this there is now no hope, but there is this comfort for us, that he was not tortured & whilst my tears flow at the remembrance of him I can praise God for His Mercy in that respect both to him and to those who loved him dearly, and will always respect his memory. He had led us to expect him at Norwood this Xmas when he intended to have taken his furlough, so little do we know what a day may bring forth.

I have been much pleased to hear from time to time through others, that you were all so well and doing so well. Who that has lived in India would have thought the natives capable of such atrocities!!! What a lesson it is to us ???????? as it does the deforavity? of Human Nature and how thankful we ought to be, if God in His infinite ?ave has by His grace made us to differ.

My brother James is one of those locked up ones at Lucknow, God grant that he may be spared to his family. They, (the females) are at Hapourid or Hassour??

William has just taken the Seize or Suge? Train? of one thousand Waggon loads of Ammunition towards Delhi. Perhaps you have not heard of the wonderful escape of his wife and children, they were with Dr ?rarl? in his carriage when he was shot dead, and they fell into the hands of the mutineers who after detaining them for several hours let them go unharmed, by the last account they were in the ?????? at Lahore?, their youngest child only 10 months old died the day after reaching that place and the other two children had not (4 & 6) recovered from their dreadful fright at Sealcote?

I had a long letter from Charlotte at Calcutta , they seem to have had some very narrow escapes there. Lotty and her husband are happily at Pegu? Out of this dreadful scene. When will it and how will it end.

I will now turn to some other subject. You would scarcely know Norwood our part of it more particularly were you to come home. We have the rail road only a stones throw from us, makes our beds shake again and I fancy must gradually injure the foundations of the houses that are so near it. It has driven many families away and altogether it is a sadly altered place.

We go out very little so that news of the place I have none to give you and we are so far advanced in life that it is not ????y. We should move away altogether but we go away every Summer for ??? on 3 months into Devonshire where we greatly enjoy ourselves with dear Charles and his family 2 girls and a boy, if he knew I was writing I am sure he would send his king love to you all.

The Colonel now in his 81^st? year is quite as well if not better than when you left and desires his kind love to all in which I must cordially? write and believe me my dear sister.

Yours very affectionately,

Frances B Whitley

Isabella has 7. 5 girls and 2 boys.

I don’t know your proper address. I therefore send this to Mr Dale to forward for me. I cannot get here any black edged Indian paper?

It would appear that maybe James Digby Smith had a nickname of "Tommy" as this letter was written after James was killed in the mutiny in India in 1857?.