I returned from the upper country too late to answer your letter of the 29th of August previous to your providing on your circuit.

The copies which I mentioned to you may be carried to Washington in Feb. when they may be placed with the others which I shall endeavour to carry with me. Meanwhile I shall try to arrange them as we both think most advisable. It cannot be made complete but I shall endeavour so far to complete it as to free it from any striking impropriety.

I think with you that repetitions ought to be avoided & that letters without interest may be omitted. Apparent inaccuracies should certainly be corrected. Whether they may have been produced by the negligence of the original copyer or have escaped the General in the hurry of writing, is perhaps not very material. There is I think no motive for preserving them.

I have received a letter from Mr Wayne, for which I am greatly obliged to him, enclosing a memorandum from Mr Small of the expense of publishing 1000 copies of the Introduction, but I am so ignorant of the technical language of the craft that I do not understand it. I propose to have the Introduction published in good type, such for instance as the first edition, on paper about the same size & quality, 33 or 34 lines to the page, about 500 pages or rather more. I am willing to advance money to buy the paper, & leave the publisher to make the residue of the money out of the books if it can be done in a reasonable time— if not I will pay it. I wish to know what will be the cost of 1000 volumes, distinguishing¹ the price of the paper from the other part of the work. I wish the book to be bound in the most usual measure— say as the Life of Washington is bound. About 500 copies may be bound first & the residue when there shall be a demand for them should that ever be. I shall make inquiries in Baltimore & perhaps elsewhere but shall give Mr Small the preference unless his terms should be much higher than the terms of others. Your