51From George Washington to William Pearce, 28 August 1795 (Washington Papers)
The enclosed letter for Miss Betcy Custis relates to a matter, respecting which, I have made some enquiry in her behalf — Put it into her own hands, if she is at Mount Vernon—and as she might wish, perhaps, to revolve the subject a little, before she communicates the contents to any oth⟨ers⟩ give it to her when she is alo⟨ne⟩⟨ mutilated ⟩ letter also, which only serves to cover it. I am Your...
52From George Washington to William Pearce, 23 August 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 16th instant, covering the ⟨wee⟩kly reports, came to my hands yesterday. As ⟨you⟩ have begun upon what is called Davy⟨’s field⟩ at Dogue-run, I do not wish any change; and when to this is added the high, and dry parts of the Mill swamp Corn, & one of the lots by the Barn, the quantity of ground in wheat, at that farm, will be pretty well. But I wish your sowing had kept pace...
53From George Washington to William Pearce, 16 August 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter, begun on the 9th and ended on the 12th instt, with its several enclosures, came to my hands yesterday. It is to be regretted that the frequent, & hard rains should have involved you in such difficulties. But all that can be don⟨e⟩ in cases that are not to be guarded against, or avoided, is to do the best under them that circumstances will admit. More ought not to be expected; and...
54From George Washington to William Pearce, 12 August 1795 (Washington Papers)
I forgot to ask you, what prospect there was of your saving clover seed, sufficient for your next years purposes? If it is a good one, there will be no occasion of buying, if it is not, the sooner I am informed thereof, the better. I hope you will, not only of this kind of seed, but of all others, endeavor to save as much as will answer my own demands, as the purchase of them falls heavy upon...
55From George Washington to William Pearce, 9 August 1795 (Washington Papers)
The day before I left home, I rode by the field at Dogue run called Davy’s field—and intended to have had some further conversation with you on the subject of a second wheat field at that place this seeding time; but the suddenness of my departure prevented it. In looking at the field above mentioned, it did not strike me as sufficient, in addition to No. 5 for a wheaten crop at that farm (if...
56From George Washington to William Pearce, 12 July 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 5th, and the reports of the preceeding week, have been received. I am glad to hear your wheat harvest is secured. If it yields well it will be fortunate as there is no doubt of the price being good. The Indian corn will have no cause to complain from the want of heat, for some days past. If nothing more than I foresee at present, happens to prevent it, I shall leave this...
57From George Washington to William Pearce, 5 July 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 28th, with the enclosed reports, was duly received. I think it very likely that I shall commence my journey for Mount Vernon about the middle of this month—but as business may detain me a few days longer than I expect, I will not speak positively at this time. In my next, I shall, I hope, be able to name the day I shall leave the city. But let not this prevent your writing...
58From George Washington to William Pearce, 28 June 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have received your letter of the 21st with its enclosures, and am very glad to find by it that your Wheat crop is likely to turn out pretty well. The sample of the grain which you sent me is not bad; but are the ears large, or small ? If the former, and filled with grain as good as that which you sent me, I shall have no cause to repine; notwithstanding the injury it sustained by the rains...
59From George Washington to William Pearce, 21 June 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 14th instant with the Reports were received yesterday. I am sorry the rain you were wishing for, should have come attended with the disasters your letter represents; but to these it is our duty to submit—I never repine at acts of Providence, because I always suppose, however adverse they may be to our wishes, they are always for the best. Let the place of the young mule,...
60From George Washington to William Pearce, 14 June 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 7th instant, and the weekly reports, were received yesterday. On wednesday night, thursday, & part of friday, we had a great deal of rain in this city, and as it appeared to be general, I hope you partook of it. If the Corn is not destroyed by the insect you complain of, I do not despair (on account of its backwardness) of making a good crop, yet. It is in the months of July...
61From George Washington to William Pearce, 7 June 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 31st of last month, enclosing the weekly reports, came duly to hand—yesterday. Let the person who is to supply you with plank & Shingles, have the precise length of the first given to him, that it may not waste in cutting. This length you will be able to ascertain from knowing the uses for which it is intended; & by consulting the plan which I sent you. The plank for the...
62From George Washington to William Pearce, 31 May 1795 (Washington Papers)
I am quite surprized to find by your letter of the 24th instant (which with the Reports came duly to hand) that your crops had stood in need of Rain. There has been no three days together without it, at this place, since I arrived here; and some times for whole days and nights, with little or no intermission. The exhausted state of Provisions (bread) in Europe; the demand for flour there; and...
63From George Washington to William Pearce, 24 May 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have duly received your letter, and the reports of the 17th instant. The enclosed sketches, will give my ideas so fully, of the Barn, proposed to be built at River farm, as to leave me scarcely any thing to add to it. If 2 Inch (white oak) plank, is thought sufficient for the threshing floor of the Barn, I do not want it to be got any thicker; and if Inch & quarter (Pine) plank, is thick...
64From George Washington to William Pearce, 10 May 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 3d instt, with the Reports of the preeceding week, was received yesterday; and I am glad to find by it that the Wheat & grass continues to mend—I hope the warm days we have had, and the showers of rain (if they have extended to you) have also brought on the Oats. It is high time they were advancing, if much is to be expected from them. Considering the quality of my flour...
65From George Washington to William Pearce, 4 May 1795 (Washington Papers)
I arrived in this city on Saturday at noon—about which time I recd your letter of the 29th Ulto. It gives me pleasure to hear that your grain and grass have benefitted by the late rains. As both are liable to great changes from the viscissitudes of weather, mention every week what the then appearance of the fields and meadows are; particular whether any grain is to be expected from the injured...
66From George Washington to William Pearce, 12–13 April 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 5th, with its enclosures, I received yesterday. I propose to commence my journey for Mount Vernon tomorrow—but as the road through Maryland, by information, is almost impassable, & business will detain me a day or two at the federal city, I do not expect to reach home before Sunday (this day week). This being the case, my letter will be short; I shall add however, that I...
67From George Washington to William Pearce, 5 April 1795 (Washington Papers)
I perceive by your last report—enclosed in your letter of the 29th ulto —that Carter Ben, at River farm, has been laid up many weeks; with a person to attend him, the whole time. What is the nature of his complaint? When these extraordinary cases happen, let the report respecting them, say what the cause is; without which, and at this distance from the scene, it is not easy for me to...
68From George Washington to William Pearce, 29 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have received your letter of the 22d instt with its enclosures. Had Mr Pierce Bailey accepted the terms on which I offered him my land on difficult run, without proposing an abatement of interest, after I had declared I never would lower them, the bargain would have been concluded on my part. As he did not, but is still attempting to make other terms, I shall suspend saying any thing further...
69From George Washington to William Pearce, 22 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 15th, and the reports of the preceeding week, have come duly to hand. I am glad to hear that your new Overseers turn out so well. Of Groves I had not the least knowledge; my fear of Allison was, that he would be too familiar with those he overlooked, and of course would carry no authority. If he avoids this error, and is sober, honest, industrious, and stays at home & with...
70From George Washington to William Pearce, 17 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
You will receive this letter from the hands of Mr Izard, to whom I request you to pay attention, and make his visit to Mount Vernon as convenient and agreeable to him as may be in your power. I am Your friend &ca ALS (photocopy), DLC:GW , series 9.
71From George Washington to William Pearce, 15 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have received your letter of the 8th instt, with the reports of the preceeding week. By the Sloop Harmony, Captn Ellwood, who talked of Sailing today, I send you as pr Bill of lading enclosed, a bale of Oznabrings consisting of ten pieces, amounting to 972½ yards. The Box, & band box, therein mentioned, are for Mrs Fanny Washington as marked; and is to remain with Colo. Gilpin ’till she...
72From George Washington to William Pearce, 8 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
I am sorry to find by your letter of the 1st of this instt enclosing the weekly reports —that the Wheat on the ground is in so unpromising a way. Another short crop of this article will fall very heavy upon me. How does the Barley look? It was not my intention to use the Rollers until the frosts were over, & the ground was settled. If the absconding of French’s Paul did not proceed from a...
73From George Washington to William Pearce, 1 March 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have to acknowledge the rect of your letter of the 22d ulto, and shall give you my sentiments upon the several matters required. With respect to the fishery, I am of opinion, that, selling them all to one man, is best: and that if Mr Smith will give five shillings pr thousand for herrings, and twelve shillgs a hundred for the shad, and will oblige himself to take all you have to spare, that...
74From George Washington to William Pearce, 22 February 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 15th instt and the reports, have come to hand as usual. I was affraid the open weather we have had, with frost, would have injured the wheat. A short crop of this article two years running, wod fall heavy upon me; as it seems to be the only thing, to any sort of amount, from which the means is derived, by which the various, and heavy expences of my estate, is borne. If the...
75From George Washington to William Pearce, 15 February 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter, and the reports of the preceeding Week, came duly to hand. It is my earnest wish to have my land on four mile run resurveyed, and the bounds thereof ascertained, that the pretence of not knowing the lines may—no longer—be an excuse for the tresspasses which are committed thereon, to the great diminution of its value; the wood being the more important, as the land is of a mean...
76From George Washington to William Pearce, 8 February 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter with its enclosures, came to my hands as usual, by the Mail of yesterday. The general accounts, as I mentioned in a late letter, may remain for settlement, until my arrival at Mount Vernon, up to the close of the last year. I do not, among the things sent to Mount Vernon by Mrs Styles (as in the possession of Austin) see any shirts mentioned. Was it an omission, or were there none...
77From George Washington to William Pearce, 1 February 1795 (Washington Papers)
I write to you this week, more for the sake of letting you know that your l⟨e⟩tter of the 25th Ulto with the reports, came safe, than because I have any thing to communicate that is in any degree material. I have no doubt of Ceder making a good hedge—but I have very great ones of your getting them to live, when transplanted; and if they should not, your labour as well as the plants will be...
78From George Washington to William Pearce, 25 January 1795 (Washington Papers)
Since my last of this day week, I have received your letters of the 11th & 18th instt, with the weekly reports—and an acct of sundry payments and the rects therefor. The latter (that is the vouchers) I did not wish to have had sent—it would have been time enough to exhibit these when I come home, and settled the accts regularly. All I wanted for the present, or rather for the past year—was a...
79From George Washington to William Pearce, 18 January 1795 (Washington Papers)
Not having received the usual letter and reports, which always arrive by Saturdays Mail, I have less to communicate in this letter. I forgot in my last letters to remind you of filling the Ice house, whenever you were furnished with the means. The necessity of doing it, has not, I hope escaped you. One caution I wished to have given you in time, before this work was in hand; and that was, to...
80From George Washington to William Pearce, 11 January 1795 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 4th instt, with the reports, is received —but the Miller, I perceive has left off, or rather I believe, has not yet begun to report what wheat is manufactured, & what flour is made. The price of both these articles have fallen in this market as well as in that of Alexandria; but as I see no permanent cause for it, and know that the last years crop of Wheat was very short...
81From George Washington to William Pearce, 4 January 1795 (Washington Papers)
I have received your letter of the 28th of last month with its enclosures, and am sorry to hear you were unwell, at that time; but hope you have quite recovered. the warmth, and changeability of the weather have been productive of violent colds in this part of the country. Such has been the goodness of the last autumn, & mildness and openess of the winter, hitherto, that I hope all the Oat...
82From George Washington to William Pearce, 28 December 1794 (Washington Papers)
I have duly received your letter of the 21st instt with its enclosures. Your idea of fencing the ground at the mansion house for Corn, accords exactly with mine (as far as I understand it) except in joining the fence which comes from the first (outer gate) in the hollow to the corner of the clover lot, north of the road, by the deep washed gully. My idea was, to continue that fence on, (making...
83From George Washington to William Pearce, 21 December 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 14th instant with the papers & reports, which were enclosed therewith, came safe to hand. The whole amount of the Corn Crop I perceive is, 1639 barrels. I perceive also, by the reports of the last week, & I believe it has been as much for several Weeks preceeding, your weekly consumption of this article is 22 barrels to the Stock, & about 14 to the Negros; amounting together...
84From George Washington to William Pearce, 14 December 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 7th instt, enclosing the reports of the preceeding week, came duly to hand. I approve your idea of clearing up the wood between the fence and the road, and letting it lay over to another year; but quere, would it not be better, instead of cleaning the ground thoroughly , and exposing the earth to the rays of the summers sun, to have it well grubbed, & lye with all the brush...
85From George Washington to William Pearce, 7 December 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of 30th Ulto, with the weekly reports, came safely to hand. By mistake, the sum of £300 was omitted in the charges against my bond, to Mr Lund Washington; as you have discovered in the above letter. By my mode of settling the bonded account, he will be £7.10.8 in my debt—and by the mode he proposes, I shall be £51.12.11. in his debt. Which of these is the mode by which a Court of...
86From George Washington to William Pearce, 30 November 1794 (Washington Papers)
As the experiment of grinding a hundred bushels of Wheat into flour, is found more profitable than to sell the like quantity in grain; I would have you proceed in the manufactury of what little I have made. and I desire the particulars of the experiment may be sent to me. and the Miller must be careful that he keeps up to it. or I may be deceived thereby. Caution Sally Green against dealing...
87From George Washington to William Pearce, 23 November 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 16th with the reports—except the Carpenters, which I have been without for several weeks—came to my hands yesterday. As I expected, so it happened, my letters to Colo. Willm Washington of Westmoreland, did not reach him until a few days ago. As you seem to be of the same opinion wch I entertained at first, namely, that from the easy and simple manners of Donaldson, he wd not...
88From George Washington to William Pearce, 19 November 1794 (Washington Papers)
Enclosed I send you thirteen hundred dollars; out of which I desire you will discharge and take in my bond, with a receipt thereon in full, from Mr Lund Washington. The letter to him is left open for your perusal and government in this business. The accounts therein are, for aught I know to the contrary, correct; but if any errors should be found in them, there can be no objection to the...
89From George Washington to William Pearce, 16 November 1794 (Washington Papers)
By the Post of yesterday I received your letter of the 11th instt, with the Reports of the three preceeding weeks; (except those of the Carpenters). I did not write to you last week, not having heard from you by the two Posts before. I am glad to hear that your Potatoes & Corn are likely to turn out well, & that the Wheat now in the ground looks promising. The last Crop of that article...
90From George Washington to William Pearce, 2 November 1794 (Washington Papers)
I have had neither leizure for, nor opportunity of, writing to you since I did it from Carlisle, ’till my return to this place; which happened on Tuesday last. In the meantime I have received your several letters of the 28th of Septr—and 5th 17th and 23d of last month. As the accident I met with in June last, prevented my riding about my farms when I was last at home, I should have been very...
91From George Washington to William Pearce, 6 October 1794 (Washington Papers)
I wrote you a few lines from Reading the first instant—and the only design of writing to you now is, to inform you that I clearly see that it will not be in my power to visit Mount Vernon before the meeting of Congress, and of course not ’till the Spring. I mention this matter that you may not, whenever the situation of your business will permit you to be absent, delay your journey to the...
92From George Washington to William Pearce, 3 October 1794 (Washington Papers)
If this letter should reach your hands, it will be delivered by Mr Weston, who with his lady may take a ride from Alexandria to Mount Vernon. Should this happen, I request you will make their visit as agreeable as your situation will enable you to do. I am Your friend &ca ALS (photocopy), reproduced in Historical Review of Berks County , vol. III, no. 2 (January 1938). GW probably was...
93From George Washington to William Pearce, 1 October 1794 (Washington Papers)
I am thus far (55 miles from Philadelphia) on my way to Carlisle agreably to what I wrote you on sunday last. As I am not much accustomed to the management of Buck Wheat—and think I have heard you declare the Same—the purpose of my writing to you now, is to inform you that this Crop on the whole road I have travelled, is cut down (although I should have thought it much too green) and remains...
94From George Washington to William Pearce, 28 September 1794 (Washington Papers)
I have received your letter of the 21st instt, and the Reports of the preceeding week. I am glad to find your seeding of Wheat is over, and that it is compleated in such good time. There cannot, in my opinion, be the smallest occasion for opening the new road, which under different circumstances than those which exist at present, was ordered by the Court at my particular request —Nor would it...
95From George Washington to William Pearce, 28 September 1794 (Washington Papers)
In a seperate letter of this date, I have wrote you pretty fully respecting the New Road which you are appointed Overseer of, with orders to open; that the letter may be shewn to the Court—to Mr Mason—or whomsoever is the mover in this business, without having other matters of a more private nature blended therewith. Since writing to you this day week, I have engaged a Scotchman, just arrived...
96From George Washington to William Pearce, 21 September 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 14th instt and the weekly reports, have been recd. We left our Quarters at German Town yesterday, and are again fixed in this City. Thomas Green’s quitting my business of his own accord—whatever the pretence may be—is in my opinion a lucky circumstance, as my repugnance to turning him away was on account of his helpless family. These you may suffer to remain where they are,...
97From George Washington to William Pearce, 14 September 1794 (Washington Papers)
I am well satisfied that the omission of the date of Colo. Lyle’s bond was accident, & not design—& for that reason suggested a mode, by the observance of which, no information that is required will ever be omitted. When is that Gentleman, by promise, to discharge this bond? I think you were quite right in sowing the early (or drilled) wheat at different seasons, with a view to discover the...
98From George Washington to William Pearce, 7 September 1794 (Washington Papers)
Your letter of the 31st ulto with the Reports, I have received. A few days ago I received a letter from Mr Pyne dated in the City of Washington still expressing a desire to be employed at Mount Vernon, and a wish to be there some short time before Butler left it, that he might get a little insight into the nature of the business, previous to his entering upon duty. I referred him for his being...
99From George Washington to William Pearce, 31 August 1794 (Washington Papers)
In your last letter of the 24th instt came a copy of the conditions of Colo. Lyles Bond; but you did not give the date of it; which reason the purpose it was wanted for, cannot be accomplished until the date is transmitted. In one of the early letters I wrote to you, I pointed out a method, which if you would observe, it would be impossible to omit any thing to which an answer was required:...
100From George Washington to William Pearce, 24 August 1794 (Washington Papers)
In reply to your letter of the 16th which, with the reports, came duly to hand; I have only to observe that it never was my intention to withdraw the hands from other essential work to employ them on the New Mill-Race; on the contrary I only wish that this job may be prosecuted at times—and at all times, when their other avocations will permit it, without detriment. No work is more essential,...