Richmond County Virginia
“We Fear you Have Been Swindled of Your Property”
~ 1798 ~
Copyright © 2000, Frederick Smoot. All Rights Reserved.
Stampless folded letter sheet.
Partial black straightline postmark:
R ’ D . Nov . 5 , ’ 98 .
Manuscript rate:
20
Addressee:
Mr. Jonathan Meredith
Philadelphia
Letter’s author:
Campbell & Clark
Contents:
Mr. Jonathan Meredith
Richmond 5th Novr. 1798Dear Sir
Your favor of the 22 ult. Reached us in course but tho we used all diligence in attempting to procure this information you want it was not untill yesterday we could learn anything worth communicating and we have now to regret that the little we are enabled to give is far from being of an agreable nature. In short we fear you have been swindled of your property. Mr. John Hendrich of Manchester we learn has a brother of the name of James a person of very indifferent repute who has been for several years past confined in jail in England for debt till sometime in Summer he was released by a subscription made by some of his countrymen in London and sent out to this country. We believe he landed in Baltimore but are not certain. He has certainly however been in Philadelphia and this leads us to conclude that he is the person who has got your property. Before going to England he had been engaged in a business at Manchester under the firm of Michau and Hendrich and failed. At present he has no establishment nor any connexions at that place. His brother John is doing business there and in tolerable credit but there is no reason to believe that he has any interest in it. Neither his brother nor any of his acquaintance here know any thing of his plans or destinations. Indeed all that is known of him is reached from the report of people who have happened to see him since his arrival; this being the case we dispair of being able to procure any farther information of him at this place but shall nevertheless use our endeavours and if we succeed in learning any thing of him that may be material to you shall not fail in communicating it ~
May we beg the favor of you to furnish us with a list of various kinda of Leather, wrought and unwrought in which deal with their prices and your terms of credit. Should we have any dealing in this way we can give you if necessary accepted Dft on our friend Mr. Gracie of N. York for the amount for the previous to shipment ~
We are respectfully
Dear Sirs
Your mo: obServt
Campbell & Clark ~
