The early letters describe the scenery and people of India and mention Richard Baird Smith’s work on canals and his part in the Sikh war of 1848. There is a long series of letters to his wife, written almost daily from December 1856 to March 1857, which give details of his activities and comment on current events while he was travelling from Delhi to Agra, Gwalior, Cawnpore and Roorkee. A second, more fragmentary, series covers the period December 1857-February 1858. Also included are a printed obituary and a watercolour portrait of Baird Smith.