Part 3: Letters from the Goldfields - 18th July 1896
Arthur’s friends back in Horsham were getting worried when they
hadn’t heard from Arthur is almost two months. This letter from
Bernard cleared up the mystery, Arthur had been very ill and could
not write.
1 b Albion Terrace
Horsham
July 18th 1896
Dear Bill,
Very pleased to hear from you again and can assure you I am taking
the first opportunity of replying. No doubt you have wondered why
you have not heard from Arthur. We, until last Tuesday, did not
know what to think about it as we had not heard from him for about
six weeks. I then received a letter from town in which I was
informed that he was down with fever. Tom Bradford wrote to Mr Wild
(a friend of theirs on the “Orient”) and asked him if our cousin
(George Pearce) was still there, and if he was he was to let us
know of Arthur’s illness. I’m awfully sorry but hope he is better
by this time. I also received a photo of Arthur and two others in a
tent through the same source. Try and come down on August Bank
Holiday …
Your sincere friend,
Bernard Baker