Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 1, 1839

  • Posted on: 10 March 2016
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Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 1, 1839

transcriber

Transcriber:spp:nds

student editor

Transcriber:spp:keh

Distributor:Seward Family Digital Archive

Institution:University of Rochester

Repository:Rare Books and Special Collections

Date:1839-04-01

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Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 1, 1839

action: sent

sender: Benjamin Seward
x

Person

Name: Benjamin Seward Birth: 1793-08-23 Death: 1841-02-24

location: Westfield NY
x

Place

Name:  City:  Westfield County:  Chautauqua State:  NY Country:  US

receiver: William Seward
x

Person

Name: William Seward Birth: 1801-05-16 Death: 1872-10-10

location: Albany NY
x

Place

Name:  City:  Albany County:  Albany State:  NY Country:  US

transcription: nds 

revision: crb 2016-02-10

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Page 1

Westfield 1 April. 1839.
Dear H. –
After leaving Auburn
x

Place

Name:  City:  Auburn County:  Cayuga State:  NY Country:  US
, I called
on Mr. Schermerhorm
x

Person

Name: Abraham Schermerhorn Birth: 1791-12-11 Death: 1855-08-22
, offering to open my
budget forthwith before him, but suggested
that it might be more satisfactory to him
to accompany me over to Batavia
x

Place

Name:  City:  Batavia County:  Genesee State:  NY Country:  US
and
attend a settlement with the other parties
concerned. But he declined to do
either – alledging that he was now
perfectly satisfied, and if the papers
were left at Batavia, he would some-
day call & look over them if he should
think it worthwhile & not inconvenient.
I need scarcely say that the absence
of Mr. Cary
x

Person

Name: Trumbull Cary Birth: 1787-08-11 Death: 1869-06-20
defeated my object there. It
seemed to my mind, unwise if not unsafe
to leave my papers in Batavia: but
after a pleasant interview with Mr Lay
x

Person

Name: George Lay Birth: 1798-07-26 Death: 1860-10-21Certainty: Probable

& a promise to lay the papers before
him & Mr. Cary, in the course of a very
few months, I proceeded homeward &
made safe arrival on Friday night
. 9 days from Albany: all well here.

[left Margin] I have Rathbones
x

Person

Name: Jared Rathbone Birth: 1791-08-02 Death: 1845-05-13
deed – & Blatchfords
x

Person

Name: Samuel Blatchford Birth: 1820-03-09 Death: 1893-07-07
letter.

Page 2

I believe, I mentioned to you from
Auburn, that I had given Underwood
x

Person

Name: Jonas  Underwood Birth: 1797-03-07 Death: 1864-01-05

your chick for $600. This I did, under-
standing that he had drawn nothing or
but a trifle here. I now find, that
two or three small bills he left orders
to be paid for him here amount to
something over a hundred dollars: &
beside this, he has drawn on you pay-
able here, & Smith
Unknown
has given assurance
to pay, $675 – so that if all this be
paid, he will have $1400 – a sum larger
than you spoke of advancing to him
just now. – I know but little of
your obligations or the contract between
you – and my present impression is that
I must suspend the payment of the
$675 till I hear from you – & I shall
do so, unless I find it a clear case
that the contract calls for more. I
have felt a great delicacy in prying
into your contracts, for fear of officiousness
– but I now feel that it would be well
if I understood this matter better.
Page 3

My next will explain the state of the
office – suffice it for the present, that all
looks well – payments fair & money safe
– a good job has been done while I have
been absent.
Found a severe letter here in waiting
from father
x

Person

Name: Samuel Seward Birth: 1768-12-05 Death: 1849-08-24
, in which he censures me
without measure, for not fixing the day
when I wrote from N.Y.
x

Place

Name:  City:  New York County:   State:  NY Country:  US
about the iron
railing, for visiting Florida
x

Place

Name:  City:  Florida County:  Orange State:  NY Country:  US
to
build the vault: & in part, for
& for not giving any encourage-
ment, that I would ever build
it; but exhibited the same cruel
indifference about it as ever before
. How differently two persons may
view the same thing! how easy it
is to misinterpret another persons
views & feelings. –
Saw much of Marvin
x

Person

Name: Dudley Marvin Birth: 1786-05-09 Death: 1856-06-25Certainty: Possible
on my way
home – he seems loyal – possibly from
compulsion. Lay, speaks of abolition dan-
gers – & disaffections toward Tallmadge
x

Person

Name: Nathaniel Tallmadge Birth: 1795-02-08 Death: 1864-11-02
– but
Uncle Cary can tell you more about this.
Everywhere, W.
Unknown
is spoken of as the Vice C.
with affectation. B.J.S.
Page 4

William H. Seward Esq.
Albany
N.Y.
Single.
Paid
Chg 59
WESTFIELD N.Y. APR 2
x

Stamp

Type: postmark

seward-pen
Unknown
B. J. Seward
April 1. 1839
date: 
Monday, April 1, 1839
year: 
place_node: