A Collection Transcribed
and Digitized
by Edmund Berkeley, Jr.
List of Letters
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Summary
Letter from Robert Carter to Thomas Colmore, July 29, 1723
Robert Carter orders from London merchant Thomas Colmore, July 29, 1723, "blew linnen" and oznaburg cloth. He adds a gloomy comment about the Act of Parliament that will prevent the importation of stemmed tobacco into England.
Letter from Robert Carter to Thomas Colmore,
July 29, 1723
-1
-
Rappahannock, [Lancaster County, Virginia]
Ju;y 29th. 1723 --
Mr. Thos. Colemore
Sir --
For Harvey to write
My Letters by the Sarah Captain Richardson
are sealed up, I have not Yet written for any blue linen
I find I cannot well Support my Family without It.
desire You therefore to send me in with my other Goods
Three hundred Yards of Narrow blues & five hundred
Yards of blue Osnaburg
--
Captain Hopkins is arrived I have no Letters come
to hand Yet, We have the News confirmed that the Scotch Interest
has obtained a Clause in the Tobacco Act, to prohibit the Importation
of all stemmed Tobacco which in consequence I reckon will Com=
=pleat our Ruin, Pray God grant I am mistaken I am
Sir Your most humble Servant
It seems that clause is to take
place the 1st. of next June so that
probably all the stemmed Tobacco that is got
home before that time will be in the
Greater Esteem.
Herein are some 2d. bills
of exchange the firsts went per
Richardson
NOTES
Source copy consulted:
Robert Carter Letter Book, 1723 July 4-1724 June 11, Carter Family Papers, Virginia Historical Society, Richmond.
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, especially to merchants abroad. His usual return address, the county, and colony have been added for clarity to the brief heading on the draft.
[1] Thomas Colmore was a London merchant. ( A 1740 London directory, A Compleat Guide . . . ,
consulted by Francis L. Berkeley, Jr., in London listed Colmore as a resident of Pudding Lane, Eastcheap.
)
[2] "Blue was a colour much used on linen, since it was a good, fast dye under almost all conditions. It was therefore a common item stocked by retailers selling textiles. It was sometimes being abbreviated to blue. Valuations varied from 7d to 14d the yard. Not found in the OED." ( Cox, Nancy, and Karin Dannehl. 'Blue-Blues,'
Dictionary of Traded Goods and Commodities, 1550-1820.
[2007]. Sponsored by the University of Wolverhampton online at http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=58704. Date accessed: 12 October 2009.
)
[3] Osnaburg is a coarse fabric named for the region of Germany in which it was first produced. It was commonly used for sacking and bagging. ( 18th Century Trade Terms (Fabrics),
"Of Silk, Terms Of Silk, Cotton, Linen and Wool," [Compiled from] The Beekman Mercantile Paper
1746-1799. Online at http://www.18cnewenglandlife.org/18cnel/ofsilk.htm, Date azccessed 4 May 2007.
)
This text revised October 13, 2009.