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the confidence of the people, is the cause of this exclusion I cannot tell.

Be pleased to present me with affection to my acquaintances of the house, & to receive yourself the sincerest assurances of the esteem with which I am Dr Sir Your friend & servt.

P. S. I will take the first opportunity of forwarding the pamphlet to your father.

TO THE GOVERNOR OF VIRGINIA.

(BENJAMIN HARRISON.)

V. S. A.

MONTICELLO. July 18-1783.

SIR, I am sorry you have been at the trouble of sending an Express to me for information as to the transactions between the Executive and Nathan as I am satisfied I do not recollect a single fact that you are not already possessed of. In the winter of 1779-1780 Mr. Baker presented us some bills drawn by Genl Clarke, Colo Todd and perhaps others, which he said he had taken up at New Orleans or the Havanna and paid a hard dollar for every one named in the bills at that time. At that time I think we had been made to believe that depreciation had not reached Kaskaskia and the bills appearing fair, we considered them in the nature of many others taken up by Pollock, & wrote acceptances on the greatest part of them, undertaking to pay them in toto at 4 dollars the hundred. I believe we restricted some of them, perhaps as drawn by subordinate Officers, till we could write to Genl Clarke & Colo Todd. We wrote to them and desired a

description of the bills we were to pay fully & the rates of depreciation, if depreciation had affected any. They sent us a description of the hard money bills, to wit, all drawn on New Orleans, and a table of depreciation of the others. This shewed we had wrote acceptances for hard money on some bills thereon depreciation should have been allowed. We laid the case before Mr. Pendleton & Wythe intending if they thought us bound by our erroneous acceptances that we would pay them. They differed in opinion. We then informed Nathan of Clarke & Todd's marks to distinguish the bills, that this had proved we had accepted some in hard money on which depreciation should have been allowed, told him it was a case in which every man in the state was interested, that we did not wish to be judges in it ourselves, nor to refer it to any persons within the State, but we would refer it to lawyers in Philadelphia whither we knew he was going, and therefore that it would be convenient for him to have it decided there, as it would to us, our delegates being on the spot to act for us. He agreed to it. I wrote a state of the case, read it to him at the Council board, he agreed every article was right, we enclosed it to our delegates, and is the last part of the transaction which happened within my knowledge. Our dele

gates have told me since that he tergivisated a little there, disputed facts, declining the reference, but that he had finally come to, but of this they can give more certain information. In every part of the transaction with us he acted candidly enough as far as we could see, and we should certainly have thought

ourselves bound to pay the money agreeable to the award.

There was another transaction with him. Colo Gibson (I think it was) came for clothing for the troops at Fort Pitt. We were distressed how to procure them. Nathan offered to go with Gibson to Baltimore & buy them, & to wait a considerable time for the money. Perhaps he might name a year or some such term. We agreed, he went, bought them, & drew on us immediately for the money, which we did not like.

I am persuaded there is nothing above but which you know from more certain hands, for indeed my recollection is too faint to be trusted even as to what I have said. Some parts I recollect positively enough, others very faintly or perhaps steps in the place of memory. I should really be afraid to affirm them positively. If there be however any particular circumstances which you would wish to have sworn to, I will endeavor to recollect them with more certainty and send them to you. There is never a day scarcely but Mr Short, Colo Moore and I Buchanan can send me a letter & I can as spedily return an answer. Be pleased to present my compliments to Mrs. Randolph and believe me to be with much affection, Dr Sir Your friend & servt.

TO JAMES MADISON.

MAD. MSS.

MONTICELLO, Aug. 31. 1783.

DEAR SIR,-Your favor of July 17, which came to hand long ago remains still unacknowledged, as from the time of its receipt I had constant hopes that you

VOL. III.-22

would be on the road for Virginia before an answer could reach you. That of the 11th inst. I received yesterday, and leaves the time of your visit as unfixed as ever, and excites some fear that I shall miss of you. I propose to set out for Congress about the middle of October, unless they should be returned to Philadelphia, in which case I shall take at home the week I meant otherwise to pass at Philadelphia on my way to Congress. I wish it would have been possible for your journey to have been so timed as that your return could have been when I go for I still suppose you mean to pass the winter there as you told me at a time when it seemed to have no object but that of prosecuting your studies more at leisure. I sincerely lament the misadventure which has happened,' from whatever cause it may have happened. Should it be final however, the world still presents the same and many other resources of happiness, and you possess many within yourself. Firmness of mind & unintermitting occupation will not long leave you in pain. No event has been more contrary to my expectations, and these were founded on what I thought a good knowledge of the ground. But of all machines ours is the most complicated & inexplicable-Either here or in Philadelphia I must ask a perusal of your Congressional notes with leave to take notes from them, as they will better than any thing else possess me of the business I am to enter on. What is become of the mutineers? What of the secretaryship of foreign affairs? What of the

The rejection of Madison by Miss Floyd, a daughter of William Floyd of New York.

commercial treaty with Gr. Britain? These and many other questions I hope for the pleasure of having answered by you at Monticello. Be so good as to present my compliments to Mrs. House and Mrs. Trist and to ask whether the pleasure of lodging in their house may be counted among the circumstances which will render Philadelphia agreeable to me in case of the return of Congress thither. Should Con

gress not return thither, would it be possible for you to engage me a tolerable berth wherever they are? A room to myself, if it be but a barrack, is indispensable. In either event of my being or not being in Philadelphia, I propose to place Patsy there; and will ask the favor of Mrs. Trist to think for me on that subject, and to advise me as to the person with whom she may be trusted. Some boarding school of course tho' I am not without objections to her passing more than the day in such a one.-The want of public occurrences worth detailing has filled my letter you find with private & unimportant subjects. I wish you every possible felicity, and am with sincere esteem Dr Sir, your friend & servt.

TO CHARLES CARTER.

EPPINGTON, Oct. 12. 1783.

DEAR SIR,-Finding that Mr. Eppes has made no purchase of horses for me, the bearer comes for those you were so kind as to offer me. Thinking it almost certain that they will suit me from what I hear of them, I send you inclosed an order on Mr. Donald for £60, which will be paid at sight: only be so good as to keep it up till Tuesday evening, because if,

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