4 January 1860 Maraekakaho My dear Donald As the post came up here yesterday I could not let him go without writing you a few lines altho I wrote you only a few days back but it appears all the letters hitherto have been going astray. Alex got a letter from you today and I was glad to find you are improving and getting stronger every day. I hope your trip to Canterbury will tend to put you in good spirits and get you round to your former health. We are very busy shearing and have shore 1761 of the wethers and dry ewes. About 900 of them to finish when we will comence on the ewe flock. They clip first rate. Some of the fleece weigh washed good 7 1/2 to 8 lb and Alex thinks the clip all through this year will average over 4 lb. We have 22 bales now packed and if the weather is fine Neil and our own dray will go down with a load tommorrow of well packed bales. The gardin come in good play for the shearers, plenty of potatoes and vegetable. We will have a few apples owing to the great drought. A number of the blue gum trees have withered that will because the gardin went dry for 14 days so you never could believe how parched everything looks and the plain is quite burned up but we hope to have rain before long. There is a Mr Irland with some of his schoolboys from Mr Moyan's station here with horses and taking sheep in return for them. Alex has got one of the mairs and foal, he says a very good one. I hope you will receive all my letters. I enclose a few lines to John in my former letter. I am placed in a state of great anxiety through a letter from my wife stating she never has heard from me for the last 12 months and I have in that time written 6 or seven letters. I cannot conceive how letters go astray so you see when I want to do well and do my best something allways comes to annoy me. This world is a hard one take it as it. Well that news has depressed me much after writing so often but it is the same with the letters I send to you. It appears you only get one in place of four since you left here. No wonder you will feel vexed with me. I wish to goodness we had you here for a few days now and you would be pleased to see the shearing and busness going so nicely. Gave my regards to John and Jessy. We would like to here from them how they are getting on. I will write you all the particulars of the returns after shearing is finished. If you have not written to my wife before please do so and tell her that I have been writing constant. Whatever has come over the letters. I now must end. With kind regards to you and ever believe me your affectionate brother Archibald John McLean