You may perhaps have heard that previous to the Embarkation on his mission for London of my father, he was required by the widow & sons of Genl Hamilton—and upon his declining was juridically summoned by a bill in Equity filed in the name of Mrs Hamilton—to deliver up certain Confidential papers belonging to the Estate of Genl Hamilton—which papers Mr Pendleton, the Executor of Genl Hamilton, had placed in my father's hands for safe keeping— To this bill of Course an answer must be made of which probably an outline will soon be transmitted by my father from London to H

     I have just received a Letter from Mr Gerrard Alexander, in which he informs me, that an Execution has been issued agst him in your name, for a ballance of the debt due, from my Brothers estate, to that of Genl Washington.

     I Would Have Been Very Happy to Call Upon You in my Visit to Monticello and Montpellier, But We take our journey in the steam Boat to frederiksburg, and Will Return, I Believe, to the Seat of government By the Road Under the mountains, So as to Be arrived at Washington City on the 24th. it is Said the frigate Will Be Ready to Sail By the 1st September: it is therefore at the end of the month that We Will make our Mount Vernon and Woodlawn Visits; too short they Will Be to our Great Regret.

     Having recently understood that Mr Wheaton will be a candidate for the appointment of Clerk to the Supreme Court, I respectfully propose myself to your friendly consideration as an applicant for the situation of Reporter to the Court, should a vacancy occur in that office. Should you feel yourself at liberty to oblige me so far, I shall esteem it a great favor if you will (in the event of a vacancy), present me to the favorable consideration of the other Judges for that situation.

     I received your favor of the 14th inst. some days since & should have replied to it earlier <b>ut for the indisposition of Mrs Scott, who has been confined to her room near three weeks laboring under the ills of miscarriage.

I received a few days past your letter of the 29th of June and am much grateful at its contents. It is extremely fortunate that Mr Jay was privy to the whole transaction and that he has lived long enough to explain it.

     In a late official communication by Govr Troup to the Legislature of Georgia, I find myself charged with having maintained before the Supreme Court of the United States, at the last term, the proposition “that slavery, being inconsistent with the laws of God and nature, cannot exist.” Will you do me the justice to say in reply whether either your notes of argument, or your recollection impute that proposition to me; or any sentiment or opinion that slavery, as it now exists in the several¹ states, could be or ought

I have just received a letter from Colonel Troup of New York which surprised me a good deal. It seems that a correspondence took place between General Washington and General Hamilton respecting the Farewell address which shows perhaps, for the letter to me does not state the fact positively, that it was written by General Hamilton. This correspondence was placed by Mr Pendleton one of the exrs of General Hamilton, confidentially in the hands of Mr King.

I received your letter a few days past & ought immediately to have answered it; but when you reach my age you will find that when a man is engaged as I am at present, a thing postponed is very apt to slip the memory & to be longer neglected than it ought to be. I concur with you in the opinion that the clerk can be appointed only when the court is in session, & I suppose there would be an impropriety if indeed there would be a power to make the appointment at the August term. I wish most devoutly that the business was over.

I have received your favour of the 28th May, and according to your request have examined the two bills filed by Cresap & Tomlinson vs. McLean, and the Answer to Tomlinson's bill, the other answer I have not yet been able to procure.

Your Letter of the 30th of May reached me this morning— I believe the general impression of the Judges has been, that all acts reqd to be done by the Court, are to be done in term— I have hitherto acted upon that construction of the Laws, though I confess myself not perfectly satisfied with it— I should distinguish between acts strictly judicial, & those which are ministerial.

I have received your letter and am very happy to be informed that you will devote a part of this summer to a perusal of the letters. I believe it will be proper to make some deductions for the purpose of avoiding repetition but several letters may be withdrawn or abridged without affecting the number of volumes.

I am closely engaged in preparing my corrections of the life, and have no doubt they will be in perfect readiness by the winter, should any printer be disposed to engage in the publication. This however is a business which we can not press. My present employment has brought to my recollection a letter which I think ought to be suppressed but which I forgot to mention to you in Washington.

     By order of the Standing Committee of the Bunker Hill Monument Association, I beg leave to inform you that you were this day elected an honorary member of that institution. Its object is, by the erection of a permanent monument, to commemorate an event highly interesting in its Consequences to the cause of American freedom. Should it, as is hoped, be agreeable to you to be thus united with the Assocation, a certificate of membership in due form will be forwarded to you.

     Forty four years back, you as well as myself under the command of Colo.

My dinner hour is the usual one, 5.

     In consequence of instructions from the Committee of Arrangements of the American Bible Society, I have the honour to inform you, that the next annual meeting of the Society will be held in this City, on Thursday, the twelfth day of May next. The Managers would rejoice to see you on that interesting occasion, & respectfully request to be honoured with your presence, as a Vice President of the Society.

In conformity with your wish expressed in your last letter I have deposited the boxes in the steam boat addressed to you to the care of Mr Herbert. The captain received them from me & assured me that he would put them in his room & deliver them safely at Alexandria.

I have found the missing book. It had been brought out of my office into the house & placed on a settee where it was covered with a pile of newspapers. I had put some other book into one of the trunks & supposed it must be this.

I have expected to hear from you since you have had an opportunity to look into the trunks and chests last sent up for the volume of letters containing those which have not been copied, and am uneasy at not receiving a letter from you. I have been apprehensive that you have been prevented by indisposition. Still, as I have not heard of your being sick I will flatter my self that some accident has prevented your looking into the trunks, or has prevented your writing.

I have received your letter of the 2nd instant, & in reply beg leave to say that, with the approbation of the Secty of the Navy, I will most cheerfully receive Mr Busrod W. Turner as one of the midshipmen of the N. Carolina. With the highest respect & Esteem I am Dr Sir yr. ob. Svt

     I Would Before this time Have Called Upon You, Had I not Been Apprised You prefer Coming Here. This is my arrangement for the day; I Shall be at Home Untill Twelve than I must go to the old Congress Hall Thre Hours; Burgate Brown and the officers of the Army, and a Committee from Wilmington Have Announced their Visit betwen ten and Twelve; at Thre I Will Return Here to Wait for You, Unless You Have Come Before. I expect no Visits from thre to four.

     Having been detained in the lower Country longer than I expected, Your letter of the 24. June was not receivd until this day.

     While literature in other countries is languishing for want of encouragement from the great, and leagued oppression is striving unremittedly to quench the blaze of Science, and sweep from earth all that adorns mankind; We feel an honest pride in courting the approbation of one, who, though perhaps engaged in a multiplicity of other concerns, must view with interest the daw[n]ing Splendour of our national literature.

     I have just received by yesterday’s mail your favor of the 15th instant.