Boston June 24. 1762 Sir,

The 5 & 6th: Volumes of Tristram Shandy have made their Appearance very much of the Advantage of Uncle Tobys Character.1

I intended to have made a large Extract from them which I am sorry my great Hurry prevents however I cannot possibly omit mentioning the following beautiful part of the Story of Le Fever who is an officer taken ill at an Inn in the Village in which Uncle Toby resided & in whose Favour he had greatly interested himself. Uncle Toby insisting that Le Fever should not die & Trim (who is Servant to Uncle Toby) that he would; occasions the following Conversation which is indeed only part of what passed betwixt em.

He shall not drop said my Uncle firmly. A well o day do what we can for him said Trim maintaing his point the poor Sould will die. He shall not die by G— cried my Uncle Toby.

Then follows: The accusing Spirit which flew up to Heavens Chancery with the Oath blushed as he gave it in, & the recording Angel as he wrote it down dropped a Tear upon the Word & blotted it out forever.

Captain Greene is supposed to be taken as he has been out near 12 Weeks & no Account has as yet been recievd of him. Capt. Allen is a passenger with him whom I imagine you have some Knowlege of. The Launcestor Man of War is now here & will shortly sail as Convoy to the Mast Ships, by her a large Sum of Money will be remitted. The Govern-224ment is indeed drawing for £55000 but as they sett their Bills @ £138 when Silver can be got home at a little more than par it will by no means prevent its taking its departure. Gold as it will turn out as high as Bills @ £140 may possibly tarry a little longer.

Mr. Abel Willard was in Town last Week. I had not the pleasure of seeing him.

Cheever has preached for us part of the two last Sabbaths, a trifling Indisposition with which the Doctor is troubled obliged him to procure his Assistance the last Sabbath. There is one Mr. Gordon2 in Town from So. Carolina a preacher I must tell you who is much liked. He came hither for the Recovery of his Health.

Mr. Gessner has published in Germany a poem called the Death of Abel which has been translated in England by Mrs. Collyer,3 a performance which the Reviewers speak very handsomly of & give a Quotation which is abundantly sufficient to recommend it. They introduce what they have to say upon it by observing that those who treat of Subjects which have been already handled by an eminent Writer lie exposed to Comparisons which are far from being serviceable to them. The Pr: now before us has we doubt not (as they go on) sufferd greatly from a Comparison with one of the noblest Efforts of Human Genius Paradise lost which it is easy to see Mr: Gessner has read with Advantage.

Late last Night a person was committed to Goal who had been with Nat Hurd to get a plate cut for the counterfieting Connecticut Bills.4 It seems he went to him in a very free open Manner without taking those precautions which the Nature of his Business required. He told him he had been cheated in that Colony of £500 or 600£ L Mo:5 & it seems he was determined to follow their excellent Example & cheat them in his Turn. I am Sir with great Respect Your much obliged humble servt.,

SAM: ELIOT

RC ; addressed: "To Mr. Robert Treat Paine in Taunton;" endorsed.

1.

Vols. 5 and 6 of Laurence Sterne (1713–1768), The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, were printed in London in 1762. Eliot's slightly inaccurate quotation that follows can be found in Sterne's Works (London, 1788), 3:154.

2.

Charles Gordon (d. 1771), a Presbyterian missionary to South Carolina (Sibley's Harvard Graduates, 14:431).

3.

Salomon Gessner (1730–1788), Der Tod Abels, was first published in Zurich, 1758. The English translation in blank verse by Mary Collyer was published in London in 1761.

225 4.

This incident was reported in the 28 June issue of the Boston Gazette. The man later confessed that his name was Stevenson and he came from Springfield, Mass.

5.

Lawful money.

Lancaster July 5 1762 Sr.,

I have Inclosed with this a Writ against Thos. Willys, which I should be obliged to you to give to Some Plymouth Officer & as I am not acquainted with any of them, if you'll be so good as to pay the Officer his fees I will repay you when ever I can have an opportunity. I have also Inclosed a Power of Attorney & a Note of Hand against one John Foster who lives I believe at Plymouth but am not certain. He was a Lieut. in the army at the westward in the year 1760, perhaps by that you may find him out. You'll see by the Power where the Deft. lives, I would have you get the money as soon as you can.1

In your last Letter you wrote to me to Sue a Note of Hand I have in keeping against David Baldwin in favour of your Sister Eunice but not knowing where your Sister lived I did not Sue it but I wrote to him & he came to me & promsd to pay the money at our last May Court, but I have heard nothing of him from that time to this. Therefore if you purpose to have him sued send me a Power & also where your sister lives the first opportunity for the Time of Service draweth nigh. I Should have wrote to you before, but I had determined to have taken a ride to Taunton that I might among other things have had the Pleasure of gazing upon your Phiz (which my Soul for this great while hath longed after) but business & an indifferent State of health prevented.

In my last Letter I wrote to you I desired you to let me know how much I was to give for Bacon's Abridgment, but you wrote me no answer, therefore be so good as to write me how much I am indebted to you, unless when you come to Commencement you'll be so good as to ride to Lancaster and Spend an Evening with an old unsociable Friend, that we may consult upon Matters of Importance. I am yr. Friend & hble Sert.

ABEL WILLARD

N.B I had like to have forgot Full which I want very much for Since I have Seen you I have become a most unaccountable farmer.

RC ; addressed: "To Mr. Robert Treat Paine Attorney at Law, in Taunton"; endorsed.

226 1.

Neither action was brought before the July 1762 Court of Common Pleas at Plymouth (Plymouth Court Records, 8:58–64).