Joseph and Alice married at the Parish church of St George, Barrow in Furness, on Febuary 25th 1911.

After leaving the Navy, Joseph worked for the Customs & Excise in London

They had one son, George Wilfred Foster.

TO MY SON ON BOARD H.M.S
"DUKE OF WELLINGTON."

My Dear Joseph,

I am sure it will be a great pleasure for you to know that we are all in good health and
Very happy. We have our little prayer in the morning and as a result have a consciousness during the day that we have His protection and guidance, but if from any case it is omitted then we feel like the master of a ship who has gone to sea and forgotten his chart and compass.When at Newcastle a friend informed me one morning that he had just received a letter from his cousin in America whom he had never seen, but that they had frequently corresponded, and he expected to see her in a few months. Then, I said, since you have corresponded so long you will not meet as entire strangers. It enables me to better realize that the praying Christian keeps up a kind of correspondence with Heaven, and that when he reaches the other side of Jordan, to his unspeakable delight he will he received, not as a stranger, but as a son who had been sojourning and who by faith had kept up a regular correspondance.
Of late years especially it has been a great comfort to your mother and myself that we had often with our family when in good health been on our knees. This particularly comforted us when we saw your sister Mary, who had reached the prime of womanhood, laid in the same grave as her brothers Robert, George, William, James, and her sister Margaret. Poor little Tommy sleeps
on the Island of Portland, but I have no doubt that some kind guardian Angels will be the means of bringing us all together when the last trumpet shall sound. My mother's name was Mary and your sister was named after her. To my ear the name has such music and sweetness in it that I have a feeling akin to our good doctor, who was when a child so tenderly nursed and cared for by his sister Mary that when he became a man and married his love and gratitude were such that he named each of his four daughters Mary.

I have spoken of a name dear and sweet to us, yet there is a name, the sweetest name in
heaven, Jesus I may fall and be guilty of some great wickedness, but never, never can I fall
so far as to associate that dear name with the lowest anti foulest imaginable language. Ah, no, I can never be guilty of such base ingratitude to insult my bleeding advocate. No, no, though
guilty of every heinous sin, let me with icy last breath gasp his name and with childlike faith
him in the face.I knew an old man, who held atheistical opinions, for whom I had great sympathy, as he seamed to me so upright and honorable in his actions. At length I missed him for a considerable time from the quay and upon enquiring for him of a good old Methodist acquaintance I was much pained to learn that he was dead. I asked if he had changed his opinions before death and was informed that he had not. I then remarked that I hoped he would get some reward for his honesty and kindness. At this my old acquaintance shook his head and replied, "Ah, no, if we are but on the road, or even in the hedge side, though weary, halting and footsore, there is a chance of getting a lift on our way by some conveyance, but if we are not on the way there is little chance of a lift." This to me was clear and conclusive.

It is always pleasing to look back upon a well-spent life and there is a pleasure even in living
over again an excursion into the beautiful country. One of the most pleasing was when we all went to grandfather's farm at Gusland, and caught several nice trout in the little rivulet near the Chapel House. Perhaps you can remember the time when we gathered nuts and wild flowers, how delighted Margaret was to learn that she could pull armfuls of ladies thimbles, and how we all enjoyed the nice tea with our friends William and Mary Crowe.
I often think what pleasant times we had at Weymouth. I have heard that Messrs. Penny,
Casey, Maybee, Hornby, Toomey and Richardson have all been promoted.
At Newcastle we had many happy years, but I lost my friend when Joseph Baldwin died.
My dear son, the earnest prayer of my heart is that the perusal of this letter may help you to be a nobler man and a better Christian. I have some
of the feelings of the poor, but good old Scotchman who having learned that I believed we
would recognize one another hereafter, exclaimed: "Man, I hope so. for if I coudna' see my wee lassie 'twad be nae heaven to me."

Your Mother, Annie, Elizabeth and Sarah join me in best wishes for your welfare.

I remain, my dear Joseph,

Your affectionate Father,

The Grave of James and Margaret Foster at Scaleby