Circular Letter to the Governors of the Other States, 27 September 1780
Circular Letter to the Governors of the Other States
In Council Sepr. 27. 1780
Sir
I beg leave to present to your Excellency Copies of the Acts of the Virginia Assembly from the begining of the Year 1779. and will do myself the pleasure of transmitting their future Acts regularly hereafter, not doubting but an interchange of this kind, should it take place generally among the States, will prove equally useful and agreeable.
I have the honor to be with every sentiment of esteem and respect Your Excellency’s Most obedt. Servt.,
Th: Jefferson
RC (RPA); in a clerk’s hand, signed by TJ; without indication of recipient, but William Greene was governor of Rhode Island from 1778 to 1786. A letter with identical text, with the date altered from 27 to 28 Sep. (or vice versa) and inadvertently left unsigned, is in MdAA and was therefore no doubt addressed to Gov. Thomas Sim Lee of Maryland; the answers of Gov. Meshech Weare of New Hampshire, 6 Dec., and Gov. William Livingston of New Jersey, 27 Dec., will be found below under their dates. See also the following letter, addressed to Samuel Huntington. The publications accompanying TJ’s circular must have been the Virginia “session laws” for May and Oct. 1779 and May 1780 ( 7128, 7166, 7223).