Your letter by Mr Walter Jones covering the Transfer &c.

Your two kind letters, one by Mr Newton and other of a prior date, came to my hands soon after the[y] were written, and would have been duly answered had an Opportunity offered; but I live so retired that I very rarely hear of any of the very few that go from our County to your Town— My very long silence previous to the receipt of the two above mentioned letters can only, and very justly too, be attributed to the cause mentioned in one of your brotherly & friendly letters; indeed, if I had not been so perfectly acquainted with your generous and considerate disposition

     I have never yet met with any opportunity of writing to you since the new year except by Post, and I am sorry to find that the several letters written to go that way have never reached you yet, and it is possible as you have not received them before now that they will not get to you at all, which render it necessary for me to recapitulate what was mentioned in some of them. I wrote to you that Mr Downman had pd off his Bond £244.13.4 That on the 6 Feby I pd Mr Park by order of Beckwith Butler £100 and on the 11th of Feby pd Docr Thomson for Blane £145.1.0.

     Your kind favor of the 3d of the present Month came safe to me on Monday last. It was unnecessary for you to have said that you were much concerned at hearing of the distressed Situation of my Family— your past friendship would have convinced me that you participated with me— I will not add to yr uneasiness by a relation of what I have suffered since the commencement of the new year— Let it suffice to say, that my dear wife has had no return yet of her melancholy complaint, and my Son Richard is in a fair way to recover from his very sudden & severe Attack.

     Since I had the pleasure of seeing you, or writing to you, I have been one of the most unhappy creatures in the world— I have expected to loose my dear wife by very severe epileptic Fits, which seized he[r] on the 9th of the present Month, and attended her for several days & nights— It is now 14 or 15 days since she has had any return of them; but, I fear, they will return again— I have imployed the best Physicians in this part of the world, and they flatter me with her entire recovery— My constant attention is not wanted you may be sure— My children are well, exc

     Yours of the 7th of the present month I found at Hay Wood the day before yesterday enclosing an order drawn by Mr R. B. Carter, which, as well as your other business, shall be punctually attended to. Our dear Sister seems to be some what better, and the family have great hopes of her recovery, but for  my own part I still have very little. Docr Rose told me about two weeks ago, that he conceived she was past all recovery— He thinks she is so low that it is highly probable she will never reach the Springs—but God is the best Judge.

     Fickleness is not only always distressing the mind of the Man it attacks; but is often, in its consequences, exceedingly distructive to his circumstances; both of these I have experienced in some degree in my late attempt to move my Family to Berkley, which I declined merely to satisfy a few worthy Friends in this neighbourhood. Expecting to move off in a month or two, I sold some of my property that I cannot well do without now, and consequently my Family will be subjected to many disagreeable inconveniences.

     Inconstant fortune after a long scene of frowning, has at last assumed a smile & blessed me with an opportunity of presenting my dear brother with a few lines the dictates of a sincere breast always afflicted with the most piercing stings of grief when he is subject to the least pain, & puff'd up with the most exquisite pleasures when he is happy, & in short never enjoying any diversion fully, unless he is in great degree a partaker.

I wrote you a letter about eight or ten days ago by Mr Purviance, but since he intends to spend two or three weeks in Baltimore before he goes to Philadelphia, there is no doubt but you will receive this first, as it will be sent by a waggoner, who papa told me should set off on monday next to carry you either a load of tobacco or hemp: in the above mentioned letter I gave you an account of our happiness on the arrival of the Bushfield family, their stay here, and our intended visit to Prospect Hill: