Colonial Williamsburg Digital Library

MS48.02: Alexander Spotswood Papers
"R.S." letter to "Cousin", 1747 September 29

Since I wrote you by M^r Nasmith
I sent a book ^{Spottswood's Practicks} to my Cousin I have not had the pleasure of
hearing from My Cousin ^Him or you, and that is about two years
ago only I had a short Line from you acquainting me
of my Cousins Marriage & likewise that you would write to me
in a little time after: w^ch has delayed occasioned me Not
to write upon receipt of yours.

I wish John all manner of Happiness & Satisfaction in his
new state of Life & I hope by this time he is a father but I could
have wished that he had Traveled made the ordinary Tour
of France & Italy befor he had Settled.

I have always been in Expectation that John wou'd have
wrote to me himself for I assure you nothing would gives me
more pleasure then of seeing or hearing from my friends and
relations and as there I wou'd Wish we cou'd establish a
Settle upon a proper as I have no Expectation of the
former at present I wou'd gladly make the Latter as—
freqeunt as possible & not Stand upon the Ceremony of
Letter for Letter for we have an old proverb here w^ch no
doubt you'll remember where there is too much Ceremony
there is Little Kindness & therefor we shou'd embrace every
opportunity that offers & for that end I have been endeavore
ing to find out a proper place so as we may never
want hearing from one anoy^r once a year at least and I
think I have at Last found a place w^ch is very convenient
for me And I hope will be the same for my Cousins & you
The Town of Drumfries being a place that Carrys on a
great Trade for Tobacco w^t you and have Ships going and
Coming almost every moneth from Virginea will be a [proper]
[faded]all for keeping up a Correspondence & keeping Maintain-
ing that Intercourse of friendship & Coversation w^ch absence
denys This place is [habitate] Six miles above New abbay and
your directing your Letters to me ^{by their ships} to the Care of William
Gracie in the Western Glenn of New abbay will come Safe
to my hand at any time where ever I am for this person
manadges all my affairs in this Country and one that I
am very much obliged to & this probably wil be delivered
you by a young man affe called John Dickson who is a
Nephew of his & has been in Virginea for sometime and as I
Understand by the Merchants here has a very good Character
given of him by their Correspondents w^t you I likewise observe
from the young man's letters to his father w^ch I have often seen
that he has a great Inclination to do well & Improve his Talent
to the best advantage but as he is a young man a Stranger
(and not haveng had great Experience of the World) no doubt
he wou'd be the better of the patronage & friendship of people
of Condition in the Country So I hope as I was taken with the
His way of writing to his father Testifying his Inclination to
Industry & Thriving I have used the Freedom to reccomend him
to my Cousins & you in the Strongest manner if ^{they or} you could be
any way helpfull to him in geting him right Settled it would
not only be doing Contributing to the good of Man our fellow
Creature ^{in generalle} but it would be doing me a Singular favour ^{in particular}
for his Uncle M^r when I came a Stranger into this—
Country his Uncle M^r Gracie was the first man who did
me any Service in my affairs and has always been doing
me good offices Since so that I think ^{upon ye above considerations} I have Some Interest in
the young man to Contribute all in my power to have
him Settled in a good way. upon the above Considerations
and I hope upon what is said my Cousins & you will
pardon my recommending him so warmly I begg you'll
[illegible] let me have the pleasure of hearing from My Cousins
and how they are & what Children M^rs Moir [hath] all my
family desire to be Kindly remembered to Them, Some
[illegible] I was in the Expectation of seeing my young Cousin
in this Country by what I heard from some person by I don't
remember who it was that he was they told me he was [illegible]
coming over here for the Compleating of his Education w^ch
would have afforded me great Satisfaction.