This letter was written by Dan Tompkins to his mother and family, in Sylva, NC, while he was staying in Raleigh for business. As the letter heading reflects, Tompkins was a North Carolina State Representative during this time, thus he would have traveled to Raleigh on political business. In addition to serving three terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives, Tompkins was also the editor of the Jackson County Journal from 1912 to 1943 (Austin).