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17 Mar 62 John Halifax Mother 10, Hyde Park Terrace ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Halifax, Nova Scotia

March 17th /62

My dear Mother

I have been waiting until now before commencing my despatches for the mail as I was quite uncertain whether I too should not be going home in the same ship, and it would then have been unnecessary for me to write what I would tell you better by word of mouth.

Lord Musgrave has however at last decided that I am to stay until he gets an answer to a despatch he has written to the Duke of Newcastle,* asking that I may be retained & saying that, altho’ the Province cannot afford to keep me he is anxious to do so, and hopes that the home government will pay me & allow me to stop this year, & that, next, if he cannot persuade the colony to come down liberally, he will dispense with my services.

Col. Taylor will probably not like this arrangement, as it dispenses with him at once, but Lord M. Seems to think that I am his man, and that I can be of great use to him. It would now be too late to go to the Staff College this year and besides I should like, as I am over here, to see something of this side of the Atlantic. Besides, I scarcely like the idea of returning without having been employed in some way – even inspecting Militia will teach one something.

Going home unemployed would look as if I were no good, even now if the Home authorities refuse to pay me a day rate, Lord Musgrave has wished to employ me, and thinks that I could be of use. So far a compliment & that will save my reputation, pending an answer, and as there will be nothing doing for the next month here, as the weather is too bad for outdoor work, I am going on a trip to the U [nited] or Dis-U States and Canada. It is of course quite possible that the Home government may refuse to keep me out here and then I must see Niagara and the great cities not to speak of Washington, with General McClellan and his great army. I do not wish ever to re-cross the Atlantic again, so had better see all I can before I turn eastwards.

You must not be surprised therefore at getting letters from all sorts of outlandish places for the next month. At the end of which I am again to report myself here, and get my answer as to whether I am to go or stay.

I have scarcely chalked out my itinerary for the month as yet, as so much depends on the time the trains take, and the opening of the navigation, which will enable me to take short cuts, instead of going a longer way round by ocean steamers &c. I have to go a long way round at starting to Boston to get to Montreal and that thanks to snow and ice. I am going with an old friend, Fitzroy 68th, as far as Canada West, thence I shall struggle along on my own account, with my letters of introduction &c. I do not know how money will last, but I think it will be well spent in travelling in that part of the world as there is really something to see; a change on the old humdrum of Europe. I must spend in this what I had provided myself with for my horses, & other marching kit, and must economise the more if I am to stay here. I have always been going to save and have just succeeded in finding out how to, when circumstances have changed and I have had to strike out a fresh line – like the horse reduced to the one straw, my experiments always break down at the critical moment. Even here, my economical arrangements were well planned, and I was to live well within my income; but my unsettled state has prevented my making any permanent arrangements & until I can get a decided answer I do not feel inclined to establish myself.

Living is not dear here when gone about in the right way. I was to be found in two good furnished rooms and breakfast; with a quiet tea at home once or twice a week when I felt that way inclined for £1 a week. Stable and coach house attached, I was to pay £8 a year for. This is not dear and as it is in the best part of the town, I had closed with my landlady at once, when everything was upset. I just get £1 a day, all told, with an allowance of forage for one horse, coal in quantity and rations (1lb of meat and the same of bread) for which I am charged 1½d per diem. It is just about half of what I expected, but were I once established I could pull through well enough on it. But all this time I am living at an hotel at of course much greater expense. Soldiering certainly does not pay.

Halifax is decidedly dull just now. We have dinner parties occasionally and last week I dined out six nights out of the seven. Pretty good that for a beginner, but that was only because I was a beginner. I was what is called going the rounds, with different Messes &c. I dined with the Governor & Lady M. who were painfully condescending. They are very good people but stand mightily on their dignity, so much so that they could not come to a ball we, the garrison gave, because the night was bad and they thought it would be too bad to have the soldiers out for a guard of honour. Of course they could not come without one.

I made an official inspection of the Halifax Volunteer Battalion last Friday. The turn out was not large and the men were nothing more than any of our average London Volunteers – rather inclined to be small. One company however shewed very well; fine men, well dressed and well commanded. I of course turned out in full dress, mounted, and after seeing some manoeuvres gone through, addressed them in what the papers pleased to call a short but spirited and highly complimentary speech. So you see I am doing something on this side of the water, altho’ not much.

We can get no money or next to none, only £4000 from the legislature here, for all their Militia purposes. This will not pay, arm, clothe and equip a very large force; besides there must be a staff of drill instructors paid & very little money is left for the rank & file. The problem to be worked out here is how to get any efficiency out of a force without paying it, and that Lord M and I are continually turning over in our minds. So we are going to insist on the Officers turning out to drill. This they will do for the sake of their uniforms and commissions which are to be forfeited if they cannot pass an examination in drill &c. by the end of the year. Thus we gain one point with only the expense of the drill serjeants, and we next proceed to carry as many as possible of the Militia into the Volunteer ranks, where they will clothe themselves and learn their drill also without pay. This is economical, but not altogether so serviceable as it might be, had we money to carry on properly. Still, beggars must not be choosers.

I hope to carry my point to get all future volunteers dressed in red, à la 3rd London; the present existing corps are all in grey. We have a very respectable militia here, some 60,000 men on paper, but whilst there is no doubt the men are here (for every able bodied man belongs to the force) they are not come-at-able and therefore little more than fiction.

I daresay you do not care much about all these details but I enter into all this, so that you will the better understand my employment and how difficult it is to do such apparently simple work. I hope I may be able to make something of it; to set the machine going and then to get home in time for the Staff College next February. That is what I would wish for, but we cannot always have what we want, so I must not speculate too much on this. My watch has, I regret to say, gone mad. It suddenly started off at about three or four days ago and has been gaining about 1½ hours a day since, and to complete my misfortunes, I have lost the stone out of my seal on the chain so that altho’ I may set me hand to anything, I shall scarcely be able to set my seal thereto. I am not likely to want to ratify any contracts here, so it really matters little and unfortunately the workmen here are not equal to repairing the damage done. I may perhaps go to Boston or New York.

I wonder when Porter is likely to turn up. He has now been from Plymouth, 40 days at sea. A long passage even for a sailing vessel. We are almost getting fidgety about both the Adelaide and Victoria.

I am writing under rather unfavourable circumstances, as men of whom there are two or three, (brother officers, old friends) staying in the hotel, keep dropping in to have a chat, which somewhat disadvantages my train of thought. So I think I had better make a merit of necessity and leave off my correspondence until a more fitting occasion.

March 18th. Have been busy all day getting my things ready for my start to the States. Passport &c. I have just returned from dining with Lord Musgrave, an official party, full dress & uncomfortable; stiff & starched. He has been explaining to me that to avoid offence to Col. Taylor, he has applied for me instead of Col. T – putting it that it is cheaper to the authorities to keep me than to keep him. But he told me that I was not to understand it in that light. So my compliment is private instead of being public. However as long as it is practical and substantial, it does not matter and if I only hold it for a year, it will give me a claim to something else if I pass through the Staff C. I may be able to get a good talk with Sir F Williams, if I get up to Montreal and that may also be a help to me should there be any trouble bye and bye with our neighbours and cousins. For we here cannot help fancying that all is not quite settled altho’ for the moment everything appears quiet.

March 20th.

I was hurried away in the middle of a call yesterday to pack up my things, as a signal flying that a steamer, appeared to be the mail, was in sight. It turned out after all to be HMS Greyhound,* from Bermuda, so all my packing up & preparations went for nothing and I had to get out my evening clothes to dine with Mr Cunard, the manager of the line here. Sir S. Cunard’s son. I have one piece of news which relieved us all a little. The ‘Adelaide’* has got as far a Bermuda in 37 days, arriving with 2 tons of coal and 3 tons of water on board, a pleasant ship to make winter Atlantic voyage in. In about another week she will probably be here and then I suppose Porter must be established somewhere pending my return from Yankeedom.

Tell me whether you think I have done right or wrong in trying to stay the year out here. I think that staying gives me some sort of claim & it is more satisfactory to be employed and considered of use than to be returned on hand as if I were a bad shilling, or worthless article ticketed high and unsaleable. Providing I can get a fair seeing here for one season, I shall I trust gain both experience and credit – two very necessary things to a man whose reputation is his stock in trade. I meet some very queer people at different houses here and am told they are men of great local influence. To those people I have to be very frightfully civil & draw out their views whilst I imparting none, all for the better advancement of the public service. In words, people are very enthusiastic here. Every man hopes that something may be done that the defences of the country may be placed upon a proper footing and are quite sure that people are fully prepared to make any sacrifice in reason towards this end, but the legislature makes great difficulties about advancing the money & the sinews of war cannot unfortunately be dispensed with to direct the enthusiasm in a right way.

I have written a long letter to Julius by this mail, also a promised one to Robert & to an old Mauritius friend M. Gaveau who, I fully expect, will turn up in England very shortly. He was very civil to me out there and I hope you will shew him attention if he appears. His wife was a quiet enough person, not much to boast of, but his sister was a very nice girl, and will probably accompany him. He is the man who is coming over to have his eyes done. You may recollect his description of himself in one of his letters to me.

If I have time, I will deliver myself of a letter to Arthur but that, you have no doubt were this done, still I do not know but that a strong letter from me may do him good, altho’ he is probably getting thick skinned as he has already had one of two of that sort & may feel them less than formerly – even if he ever did appreciate them at all.

I trust by this mail to hear that my Father is better - & good news of you all. I hope my Father did not forget his promise to Capt. Toller about the Trinity House and Capt. Lambert and you your message from Miss Morse to Margaret.

With best love

Believe me ever

Your affectionate Son

J Wimburn Laurie

I still keep Helen’s valentine & hope it may prove a talisman

* Duke of Newcastle – Henry Pelham-Clinton, 5th Duke of Newcastle (1811-1864) was from 1859 to 1864 Secretary of State for the Colonies in Lord Palmerston’s administration

* ‘Adelaide’ – The Times reported on Saturday, 26th March 1862 ‘The screw steamship Adelaide, with troops, arrived at Bermuda March 10. Her fuel was nearly expended’. In 1855 she had sailed from Portland, England to Western Australia with 259 convicts

* HMS Greyhound – A screw sloop (a sailing vessel assisted by steam powered screw propeller) had been launched in 1859