To Thomas Jefferson from Philippe Reibelt, 12 May 1805
From Philippe Reibelt
Baltimore le 12 Mai 1805.
Monsieur le President!
C’est en votre qualitè de grand Amateur et parfait Connaisseur des Arts, que je prends la libertè, de Vous adresser avec çette Lettre un petit paquet, renfermant quelques pièces, qui en partie au moins Vous feront du plaisir.
On vient a l’instant me remettre votre Lettre du 10—a la quelle j’ai lhonneur de Vous repondre incessament.
1) Je Vous prie, d’accepter mes remercimens de l’envoi de la Patente originale.
2) C’est avec un plaisir bien Sincere, que je saisirois le premier Moment, qui sera a ma disposition, pour Vous presenter personellement mes hommages, et de Vous communiquer alors le modele a la main la puissance motriçe—infiniment simple—du Moulin en question—
Soÿez en General—jusqu’a çe, que j’aurois acquis l’avantage, d’etre Connus de Vous de plus près, soÿez, je Vous prie, persuadè, que jamais il est imigrè Aux etats unis du Continent Europèen—personne plus attachèe aux principes, que Vous avez Sauvé pour l’Univers—que Moi—personne, qui aye fait des Sacrifices relativement plus importans pour çette Cause, que Moi—donc personne, qui soit penetré d’un respect plus pur pour Vous—que Moi—
3) J’ai recu le Vol. des Oeuvr. de Plutarque—et
4) j’espere, que Vous aurez recû egalement le Manuel du Mus. francais—
Permettez Moi, de Vous presenter çijoint un Catalogue d’un petit etablissement rival a Philadelphie, avec quelques remarques.
Ce sont deux frères de Lyon—cidevant Conscripts forcès pour l’armèe d’Egypte—partisans de tout ancien ordre des Choses—parfaitement profans au fait de Litterature, qui vendent a 2 et 300 pC. en Sus du prix de Paris, et se flattent de prendre le pas sur l’etablissement des Mss. Levrault, Schoell et Comp—qui n’y mettent, que 60 pC.—lesquels pour y reussir se servent de la Voie des Calomnies, dont la moins excusable est çelle, que cette Maison, ayant des Depots aux Capitales de la Russie, de la Suisse, de l’Allemagne, de la Valachie et Moldavie, et a Strasbourg—etoit sur le point de faire faillite &c.
Ils sont arrivès avec 6 Caisses de Livres, qui—comme les Catalogues respectifs le prouvent, ne renferment pas le Quart de çe que Mr. fleischer à importè, ni en Nombre, ni en Valeur litteraire.
Ce n’est pas pour ma personne, que j’ose Vous faire çes representations, c’est uniquement pour mes Amis, Composant la Maison a Paris—tous des Litterateurs tres distingués, et tres estimés—Car—Moi—je ne desire pas mieux, que de quitter aussitot, que possible, les occupations de Commerce, pour les quels je n’ai pas le moindre Gout, de remettre la direction a un beaufrere de Mr. Schoell, que j’ai demandè, et de rentrer dans la Classe bien plus Morale des Cultivateurs—autant, que çela depend de Moi, a la Louisiane—possedant mieux la langue francaise, que l’Anglaise.
Daignez Agreer gracieusement les protestations de respect, que j’ai lhonneur de Vous offrir.
Reibelt
Editors’ Translation
Baltimore, 12 May 1805
Mister President!
To you, in your capacity as the perfect connoisseur and great lover of the arts, I take the liberty of enclosing a small package with this letter, containing several items that will bring you at least some measure of pleasure.
I have the honor of replying to your letter of the 10th, which was just delivered.
1) Please accept my thanks for sending the original patent.
2) It is with very sincere happiness that I shall seize the first available moment to present my greetings in person and bring you the model of the infinitely simple motor for the mill.
Until I have the good fortune of being known more personally to you, please understand that no immigrant to the United States from the European continent has ever been more attached than I am to the principles you have safeguarded for the universe; no one has sacrificed more for this cause than I have; and no one, therefore, respects you more wholeheartedly than I do.
3) I received the volume of Plutarch’s works, and
4) I hope you also received the Manuel du muséum français.
Allow me to enclose the catalog of a small competitor in Philadelphia with a few observations. These are two brothers from Lyons whose previous experience was as conscripts drafted into the army to serve in Egypt. Biased in favor of the old order in all things, they are not at all knowledgeable about literature. They sell for 200 to 300 percent above Paris prices and presume to rival Levrault, Schoell, and Co. which marks up by only 60 percent. To succeed they resort to lies, the least pardonable of which is that this business, which has branches in the capitals of Russia, Switzerland, Germany, Wallachia, and Moldovia, as well as in Strasbourg, is on the verge of bankruptcy, etc.
They arrived with six cases of books which, as the respective catalogs prove, do not contain a quarter of what Mr. Fleischer has imported, either in quantity or literary merit.
I do not provide this description for my own benefit, but solely for that of my friends in the Paris office who are all very distinguished, respected literary figures. I desire nothing more than to retire as soon as possible from business, for which I have not the slightest inclination, to entrust the management to a brother-in-law of Mr. Schoell, as I have requested, and return to the much more ethical class of farmers. If I had my way I would settle in Louisiana, as I speak French better than English.
Please look favorably on the assurance of respect that I have the honor of offering you.
Reibelt
RC (DLC); endorsed by TJ as received 14 May and so recorded in SJL. Enclosures: (1) Probably Louis Pierre Dubray, ed., Catalogue des estampes des trois écoles, portraits, catafalques, pompes funèbres, plans, cartes géographiques, etc. qui se trouvent à Paris, au Musée central des arts (Paris, 1801). (2) Probably the catalog published annually by the Musée Napoléon, that is, the Louvre, as Notice des statues, bustes et bas-reliefs, de la galerie des antiques. Other enclosures not found, but see TJ to Reibelt and to P. & C. Roche, both 17 May.
petit etablissement rival a Philadelphie: almost certainly the booksellers P. & C. Roche, who were advertising their business by late April (Relfs Philadelphia Gazette, 27 Apr.).
Depots aux Capitales: product of a merger between Levrault frères of Strasbourg and Paris and Schoell et Compagnie of Basel, the firm for which Reibelt worked sold books in a number of different cities. Within the soon-disbanded Holy Roman Empire, which was often called Germany, the firm operated in Leipzig, Frankfurt, and Vienna (information in Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris; William Fleischer, Annuaire de la librairie [Paris, 1802], preceding title page).