[Thomas Waters. R.M. to his wife. Elizabeth]
Addressed to Mrs Waters, 21 Mulgrave Place, Woolwich, Kent
7 H.M.S. Barham Bosphorus 8 June 1832
I hope my Dearest Love your spirits are improved, since your letter of February’s date, and your mind much less distressed; I trust our dear children’s healths are by this time pretty well recovered; I hope my dear Mary is a good girl, that Joseph behaves well and John attends to his lessons, that Thomas does as he is bid, sweet little Benjamin is recovering his strength and that Betsey is a delight to her mother, my best affection to all, not forgetting my own sweet charming Wife- This is a fine country, but its cultivation is very much neglected, it has been most tyrannically governed and the Sultan’s subjects have been afraid to make themselves rich for fear he should take their lives for the sake of obtaining their wealth; I understand their lives and property are rather more secure under the present grand Signior, and that there is a material change in the manners of the Turks for the better, their houses are flimsy, nearly all built of wood; the inhabitants are friendly, in appearance to us, they take but little exercise, their chief amusement as far as we can perceive is smoking, and drinking Coffee or Sherbet; they condescend from curiosity to come on board to view the Ship, the females are seldom seen that is to say the most respectable of them, and the others when they venture out are so muffled that nothing is to be seen of them but their noses and eyes, this mode of living is confined to the Turkish, or at most to those who possess the Mahometan religion [Islam], for the Armenian, Greeks etc. are not so restricted; the Turks eat but little animal food, pork they abhor, (instructed so by their religion,) and some other species of animal food; they follow the primitive mode of feeding themselves, squatting round a circular dish or bowl containing their food ready cut and mixed, each with his thumb and three fore fingers dip in and eat untill his appetite is satisfied, without the aid of knife fork or spoon, but it is said that the Turks are getting a little more refined and that some among the upper ranks are beginning to use those convenient utensils at their repasts; they are averse to taking refreshment with christians, (excepting a little bread, or a little Wine or spirits under the name of sherbet,) but this prejudice they are said to be slowly overcoming, ’tis thought they are not now quite disinclined to learn from enlightened Nations but that they are ashamed to be taught by them. Pride and indigence allied to indolence is their inheritance. Sir Stratford Canning the Ambassador resides at Therapia, Mr.Willson and myself have dined with him once at his palace. Your letter of 6th of March I received 14th May; I am sorry Mary’s health is not good but I have no doubt it will improve with age. You are right to take Elizabeth again if you think she will suit. My Sister one would think is, a little, alarmed at the recent turbulent conduct of the Bristolians, but she has beat her retreat in an orderly and deliberate manner and taken up a position among the salubrious hills of Clifton, where she may look down on the good Cits and rest secure and contented amidst the storms of Cholera and contention etc with all the imaginary ills of this life; that she will maintain her ground I have no doubt as her spirit of firmness is inexhaustible; she thinks I am improved in my epistolatory style, no wonder my sweet love when inspired by you and with an angel for a correspondent; make my respects to my Sister.- Mr.Stockwell’s sufferings and danger I regret exceedingly; to his family it must be a very great affliction. I am sorry poor Benny is so unwell, and Betsey; their not eating flesh gives me great pleasure, Butter also you know, I disapprove as well as sugar, and sweet cakes, and comfits. The digester, I should think, you find very useful, and now and then the camp-oven. I hope our children will make good use of their garden plots which you have so kindly and properly granted them; a knowledge in gardening is a most interesting and valuable acquirement, it is highly conducive to health, it invigorates the mind, strengthens the body and enlivens the spirits, it is also a profitable employment, in short a sober, industrious, skilful gardener can maintain himself almost anywhere; the boys will do well when they see a gardener at work to observe his manners of cultivating the earth and try to obtain an insight of the best mode of raising and improving Trees, Shrubs, vegetables etc. they should endeavour to make themselves acquainted with pruning and grafting as well as sowing and planting- Your letter of the 28th of April I received 16th May, but I think it is misdated,
it should have been March-
I remain my dearest Wife ever your most Affectionate Husband
Thomas Waters-