Abigail Adams to John Adams, 5 October 1799
Abigail Adams to John Adams
Quincy October 5th [1799]
My Dearest Friend
I rejoice in the fine weather you have had. accounts from N york & Philadelphia are rather unfavourable, but I hope Frosts will make the city fit for Breathing by Nov’br1 I shall sit out on Wednesday the 9th for several reasons. in the first place, I shall avoid the parade of the 10th which would be very inconvenient, as I wish to put my House in order to leave it. in the next place Mr & Mrs otis will wait for me at Westtown, where they go this week—& proposed leaving on Wednesday next. it will be pleasenter to me to have some gentleman in company, and Mrs otis is next to a Sister; So you need not feel anxious about me—2
The Leiut Goveneur is to Breakfast with Me on monday morning on his way to Plimouth— o how Mortified he was, that you was at westtown & he to know nothing of it untill you were gone. he is much delighted with his Tour & his Reviews, particuliarly in the counties of Berkshire which he speaks of in terms of Rapture—3
I inclose Some Letters received Since your absence4 Love to William
yours affectionatly
A A5
RC (Adams Papers); addressed: “President of United states / Trentown.”
1. The Boston Russell’s Gazette, 3 Oct., reported nine recent yellow fever deaths in New York and 55 in Philadelphia.
2. AA departed Quincy on 9 Oct. and traveled in the company of Samuel Allyne Otis Sr. and Mary Smith Gray Otis. After visiting AA2 in Eastchester, N.Y., she arrived in Trenton, N.J., on 7 Nov. and on the 8th traveled to Philadelphia with JA (vol. 13:551; AA to JA, 13 Oct.; to Mary Smith Cranch, 15 Nov., both below; Philadelphia American Daily Advertiser, 14 Nov.).
3. Lt. Gov. Moses Gill became the acting governor of Massachusetts upon the death of Gov. Increase Sumner in June. Gill had visited western Massachusetts as part of a statewide review of militias. He continued with an 8 Oct. inspection of Plymouth County troops and, as AA noted, a 10 Oct. militia review at Milton. On 10 Jan. 1800 Gill informed the Mass. General Court that the commonwealth’s militias were in good order (vol. 13:xiv; Massachusetts Spy, 9 Oct. 1799; New Bedford, Mass., Medley, 20 Sept.; Boston Columbian Centinel, 9 Oct.; , 1798–1799, p. 643–644).
4. Possibly TBA’s letter to JA of 26 Sept., for which see vol. 13:563–565, or letters to JA of the 26th from Oliver Ellsworth and Elbridge Gerry and of the 27th from Gen. James Wilkinson (all Adams Papers).
5. AA wrote JA a second letter from Quincy on 5 Oct., forwarding additional letters received by the morning post and reporting that servant James was ill (Adams Papers).