Adams Papers
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To John Adams from Elbridge Gerry, 24 August 1779

From Elbridge Gerry

Philadelphia August 24. 1779

My dear Friend

I have only Time by this Days post to express the pleasure I feel on the News of your safe Arrival to your Family and Friends, and the prospect of an agreable and early Interveiw with You. The Letters to me which You mention in your’s to Mr. Lovell1 never came to Hand, or I should certainly have acknowledged the Receipt of them; altho I have been under the Necessity of giving up my most agreable Correspondent<s>. I am much informed by your sensible Letter to Congress, which has been justly admired as an accurate History of the Relations, Inclinations, Interests, and Dependencies, of the several Powers of Europe; and I fully agree with You in your private History of Men and Things. Many of our Friends, by a Discovery of their personal Attachments and other impolitic Measures, must now be sensible that they have in great Measure defeated their honorable Intentions of supporting patriotism and Integrity, and developing Conduct which from present appearances, is disgraceful to our Country and the Cause in which We are engaged: but not approving their policy, I presume that I must not expect their Confidence. Your Letter relative to Expences is referred to the Board of Treasury, and will be answered by the next post.2 Pray make my Compliments to Mrs. Adams, and inform me what she will say, if I should again think it my Duty to promote your Appointment to an Embassy in Europe; she cannot justly impute it to the Want of tender Feelings, which married Ladies will rarely allow to Batchelors, When she is truly informed of my Impatience to join your sacred order.3 However I shall never wish to see any of my Friends in important offices under Congress untill they have adopted a Resolution, that no <Member> person shall be appointed to any office of profit of the united States, during the Time of or within twelve Months after his being a Member of Congress.4 I remain sir in Haste with the sincerest Esteem your Friend and very huml. sert.

E Gerry

RC (Adams Papers); addressed: “Hona. John Adams Esq at Boston”; franked: “free E Gerry”; docketed: “Mr. Gerry”; by CFA: “August 24th 1779.”

1No extant letter from JA to Lovell refers to letters written to Gerry. It could be that a letter of 19 Feb., of which no Letterbook copy exists, but which Lovell said that he received, contains the reference or it may have been in a postscript to a letter for which there is no extant recipient’s copy.

2For the reply from the Board of Treasury, see JA’s letter to Gerry of 20 Sept., note 1 (below).

3Gerry did not marry until 1786, but for an earlier courtship, see Adams Family Correspondence description begins Adams Family Correspondence, ed. L. H. Butterfield and others, Cambridge, 1963– description ends 2:94–95.

4On 25 Sept., Gerry seconded a motion in the congress barring the appointment to an office of profit of any member of the congress. After an unsuccessful attempt to extend the bar for nine months after a member retired, the original motion lost (JCC description begins Worthington C. Ford and others, eds., Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774–1789, Washington, 1904–1937; 34 vols. description ends , 15:1105–1107).

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