Boston May 1749 Dear Brother,

Your repeated favour which I Received this day has afforded me great Satisfaction and the more Since I was so much indebted to you. I hope you have got your pills for they were left with Mrs. Apleton. I have told the Doctr. of your infirmity & he urges your taking 55them. I'm glad to hear you were so wise as to ride and make no doubt but more Such exercise wou'd Serve you much and I think it our duty to Strive to attain to all the Blessing of Providence and Especialy that of health Since tis that alone which makes us Capable of injoying all the other good things that are bestow'd upon us, and makes us more Capable of Serving him who is the author of all our Happiness. But tho' Health be so great a favour of Providence and the want of it a frown yet we must not be Cast down when we are bereav'd of it for even the want has often Blessings attending it when it is Sanctified & made a Monitor to quicken us in our preparation to Leave this fleshly dwelling, and how natural does the least disease lead us to Consider our mortallity as Doctr. Watts Says How weak the prison is where I dwell, Flesh but a tottering wall, The Breaches Chearfully fortell The house must Shortly fall. 1 and this reflection will be of great Service to us in keeping us upon our guard against every evill and quicken us in our desire after perfection. And tho' the want of health may hinder us from a regular preformance of many dutys and much Service which if health was granted we might do in this life yet how much goodness appears in this that where the desires are Strong tho' the flesh be weak yet it is accepted and we shall be Receiv'd even for wishing to be Serviceble to him.

Dear Brother, tis with Sorrow that I think of your weakly Constitution but how much greater wou'd my Sorow be if I Saw you in health and Strenth of body persuing all the vanitys of youth & thoughtless about the great Concern of Life, the difference is too great for me to discribe for now tho' you are under afflictive Curcumstances yet I can recount the many Blessings promis'd to early piety and have great reason to hope you are a Subject of them which raises my Spirits to trust for you in that Allmighty Arm that will Strengthen & uphold them who Seek for it and trust in it and that you may do this is the ernest desire of your ever Loving Sisster,

ABIGAIL PAINE

PS. The matter of a private Commencement2 is not yet determin'd. Mr. Oliver Came to get father to Subcribe three hunderd Pounds to promote it but he refus'd. If it be agreable to you I Shall be glad to have it private but shou'd be Sorry if it Crosses your inclination. Sisster is disa­56pointed in not having a Letter. She is not well and is to vissit Cambridge next week.

RC ; addressed: "To Mr. Robert Treat Paine att Cambridge"; endorsed.

1.

From "Happy Frailty," in Horæ Lyriraæ: Poems, Chiefly or the Lyric Kind in Three Books, by Isaac Watts. 9th ed., corrected. (Boston, 1748), 71.

2.

RTP records in his diary that the Corporation of Harvard College voted on May 15 to have commencement exercises private, but the Overseers negatived this vote on May 18. Commencement took place on Friday, June 30, when RTP received his A.B. degree.