To James Madison from Tristram Dalton, 1 December 1814
From Tristram Dalton
Boston Decer 1st. 1814
Sir
Having received a Commission of Surveyor of the Port of Boston & Charlestown, and another as Inspector of said Port, I beg leave to offer my sincere thanks for this renewed mark of your favour & confidence.
Every attention, within my Power and abilities, shall be paid in the execution of the duties of these Offices, by which I will hope to merit the approbation of Government. With the warmest Prayers for your Health and Prosperity, I am, with perfect respect, Sir Your obliged and most obdt hble Servant
Tristram Dalton1
RC (DLC). Docketed by JM.
1. Tristram Dalton (1738–1817) was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, graduated from Harvard College in 1755, and became a prosperous merchant in his native town. He served as a representative and senator in the Massachusetts legislature from 1782 to 1788, when he participated in the state’s constitutional convention and was elected to the U.S. Senate. Defeated in his 1790 reelection bid, he invested heavily in Washington, D.C., real estate and suffered serious financial losses. He held the positions of Boston surveyor and inspector of the revenue until his death (Eben F. Stone, “A Sketch of Tristram Dalton,” Essex Institute Historical Collections 25 [1888]: 1–12; 3:96).