From Thomas Jefferson to Nicolas Gouin Dufief, 4 February 1803
To Nicolas Gouin Dufief
Washington Feb. 4. 1803.
Sir
I recieved from you some days ago the three volumes of les Moralistes Anciennes, and last night your letter of Jan. 31. with Doctr. Franklin’s catalogue, which I have this morning sent to the chairman of the library-committee of Congress. I observe in it the following books
Athenaei Deipnosophistorum &c. fol.
Philostratus works from the Greek. fol.
Durham’s Physico and Astrotheology 8vo.
which I will ask the favor of you to send me with those you are about forwarding me. to this I should certainly add the volume inclosed in your letter, containing two small pamphlets with copious marginal notes by Dr. Franklin1 but that from the binding, and the desire expressed to have it returned, I conclude you wish to preserve it for yourself as a relict of a saint. Colo. Monroe will soon be passing thro’ Philadelphia on his way to France. I wish to send by him our last volume of Philosophical transactions to mr Volney. it is not to be had here. I will ask the favor of you therefore to get this volume, and inclose it under cover to mr Volney and put it into the hands of Colo. Monroe on his arrival in Philadelphia. you will certainly hear of his arrival immediately; and I will moreover ask of him to send to you for the book. it is only for fear he should forget to do this that I pray you to send it, on his arrival, without waiting for an application from him. Accept my salutations & respects.
Th: Jefferson
RC (CtY); addressed: “Mr. Dufief Bookseller Philadelphia”; franked and postmarked. PrC (DLC); at foot of text in ink: “Dufief”; endorsed by TJ in ink on verso.
chairman: Abraham Baldwin.
The books that TJ wanted from Franklin’s collection were: Athenaei Dipnosophistarum, sive, Coenae Sapientum Libri XV, a 1556 edition of a work by the Greek scholar Athenaeus, a version of which TJ had sought to acquire a few years earlier ( No. 42; Vol. 28:358); Charles Blount, The Two First Books, of Philostratus, Concerning the Life of Apollonius Tyaneus, published in London in 1680 ( No. 1336); and Derham’s Physico and Astro Theology: or, A Demonstration of the Being and Attributes of God, a two-volume edition published in London in 1786 that contained lectures by William Derham originally printed in 1713 and 1715 ( No. 3727).
The fifth volume of transactions of the American Philosophical Society appeared in 1802.
1. Preceding three words interlined.