Hurley Family Emigrant Letters (Ref. U170)

U170/

death of politician Michael Davitt, who ‘was a hard worker and did much good – not only for his own country, but for humanity’. 2pp

27 June 1907 Letter from Denis Hurley, Carson City, Nevada to ‘My dear May’, his niece. He has given up work since December, ‘the steady drag was getting too much for my health owing to my advancing years…We have to figure out and economise at present. We may if God spares us see old Ireland some day’. Carson City will have a 4 th of July celebration of ‘considerable magnitude’ this year’, with a grand electric light display. He now has plenty of time to tend his garden and can go to Mass every morning. Brother Michael is well. Mentions funeral of cousin Tom Hurley, a ‘good big-hearted man’. 2pp 25 April 1908 Letter from Denis Hurley, Carson City, Nevada to his brother John. ‘This country has experienced a great and unlooked for change in the past year…Crops are plentiful and command good prices, mines producing well, and yet there are more than 300,000 RR (Railroad) cars idle: train crews and machine shops in proportion Many banks had to suspend…’ Says he has faired pretty well in his affairs, though short of money at present. 2pp 31 December 1908 Letter from Denis Hurley, Carson City, Nevada to his brother John. He has not been in the best of spirits for some time, and has been ‘squeezed and cornered…with the financial stringency’. Things are now looking better. Denis had ‘some political experience’ which did not add to his peace of mind, when he was a candidate for the Nevada Legislature for his county in the November election. However he did not succeed in being elected as the Commissioners, ‘who had the recounting’ were of his opponents political party. Says ‘There was much money used in bribery also against us’. He has lost some money in expenses as well as the salary he would have been entitled to. He will try again in 2 years as he ‘had the support of a large majority of the respectable voters’. 2pp

15 August 1910