University of Virginia Library

TO JAMES MADISON.

Hond. Sir,—Mr. J. Walker has safely delivered to
me three letters from you attended with the money
therein specified. He has also been so obliging as
to undertake the conveyance of the several articles
of medicine you wanted with a gallon keg filled with
good Port wine; to all which I add a large packet of
Newspapers—and an almanack. The last packet I
sent was by a waggon returning to your neighborhood
which brought me a letter from Mr. W. Maury,
by which I sent at the same time a small supply of
Bark for my Mother.

I mentioned to you in one of my former letters
that I had a prospect of getting on very favorable
terms a few scarce books from a library brought
hither for sale by Col. Lane. My purchases of him
have amounted in the whole to nineteen pounds
three shillings of this currency. As I had not the
money here for him, & he could not conveniently
wait till it would be convenient for me to pay him, I
was obliged to give him a draught on you. I hope
you will be able to find means to satisfy it. If it can
not be otherwise done than by a deduction from the
further supply you have in contemplation for me I
must submit to it. How far I shall depend on you
for the resources necessary for my expenses here not
included in the legal provision, and for the arrearages
into which I have unavoidably fallen, will be known
as soon as the assembly have finally decided on our
accounts & the allowance which is to be made to us.
This I suppose will be done at their session in May
next. Unless liberal principles prevail on the occasion,
I shall be under the necessity of selling . . .
a negro.

The newspapers will give you in general the intelligence
we have from Europe. As far as we are
enabled to judge of the views of the British Cabinet,
the misfortunes of one more campaign at least will
be necessary to conquer their obstinacy. They are
attempting a separate peace with the Dutch & talk
of suspending their offensive war agst. us, & directing
their whole resources agst. the naval power of France
& Spain. If this be their real plan we may be sure

they do not mean by it to abandon their pretensions
to the U. States but try another mode for recovering
them. During their offensive exertions agst. our ally,
they can be practicing insidious ones agst. us: and if
in the first they should be successful & in the latter
disappointed, a renewal of a vigorous war upon us
will certainly take place. The best security agst.
every artifice & every event will be such military
preparations on our part as will be sufficient either
to resist or expell them as the case may require.

With my affectionate regards for the family