A Collection Transcribed
and Digitized
by Edmund Berkeley, Jr.
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, University of Virginia Library
Summary
December 9, 17171
Letter from Robert Carter to John Holloway, 1717 December9
Robert Carter writes to his attorney John Holloway, December 9,1717, concerning claims by Edmund Jenings that Carter had placed afence on his property. Carter states that his fence is in the sameplace as the land's former owner, Mrs. Whaley, had had her fence, butif Jenings can convince him that the fence is misplaced, he willacknowledge it. He continues that the serious injury to his rightwrist will probably prevent his attendance at the next session of theAssembly which he understands is to meet in March. The wrote againstthe Lees has been received and he will make use of it if the occasionarises. Some of Carter's comments about a proposal by Holloway for"an equal distribution of Mr. Lee's debts among his creditors" havebeen omitted by the copyist, and Carter concludes by thankingHolloway for his services.
Letter from Robert Carter to JohnHolloway,
December 9, 1717
-1
-
[Rappahannock, LancasterCounty, Virginia]
December 9th1717.
To John Holloway
Sir,
I give you my kind thanks
for your two late letters.
As for Colonel Jennings'
pretentions
ofmy pales
standing upon hisland
it is a thing purely novel to me. If
I mistake not,they stand on the
same place where the former pails [sic]
didwhich he himself was the
seller of toMrs. Whaley
: and why I
must not holdthe same ground that she
didI can see no reason.
Our Assembly
it seems is to sit
down early in March. At this
time my right arm, although almost
six weeks ago hurt,continues very
useless to me. Some ofthe bones of
my wrist are displaced and my hand
quitedistorted in so much that I can
neither dress nor undress myself. So that
I fear I shallnot be able to venture
-2
-
to lie out of my own bed this winter.
what time of theAssembly I may
be at under mypresent circumstances
I cannot foretell; but whenever
Colonel Jennings and I meet, if he
canconvince me that my enclosure
is upon any of his land, reasonwill
oblige me to make a properacknow
=ledgement to him.
I received the wrote against the
Lees and shall make use ofit as
occasion is given.
Your other proposal about an
equal distribution of Mr. Lee's
debt
amonghis creditors X X
X X X X X X
I never was one of those who were
for starving their causes;and you
are so strenuous& diligent in suppor
=ting those you undertake, I shall
always be desirous of dependingupon
your abilities as often as I have oc
=casion.
In all sincerity, sir, &c
NOTES
Source copy consulted:
Minor-Blackford Papers, James Monroe Law Office and Museum, Fredericksburg,Virginia. These texts are all nineteenth-century copies. Apparentlythere was in existence a letter book of Robert Carter's -- nowlost -- from which the unknown copiest recorded these texts. Asthey are the only texts, the punctuation and "corrections"obviously supplied by the copiest have been retained. The copyistused a series of the letter "x" to indicate omission of material thathe did not copy.
Robert Carter generally used a return address of"Rappahannock" for the river on which he lived rather than"Corotoman," the name of his home, on his correspondence, especiallyto merchants abroad. The return address, county, and colony have beenadded for clarity to this unheaded letter.
[1] RC refers to fence pales.
[2] This may be Mary Page Whaley (d. 1742), wife ofJames Whaley (d. 1701). TheWhaleys and Edmund Jenings lived in York County. (See Lyon G. Tyler, "Grammar and Mattey Practice and ModelSchool," William and Mary Quarterly.
1st ser., 4(1895-1896): 3-14.)
[3] This session of the Assembly did not meet untilApril 23, 1717.
[4] It is impossible to determine which "Mr. Lee" RCrefers to here.
[5] The nineteenth-century copyist inserted"[property?]" after the word "debt."
This text revised September 30,2008.