My dear Sir 

As the signal Operations of War are again in our quarter, you may now Expect some Intelligence from your Friends here, and while you are Engaged in Treaty with An Embassador of a Grat Monarch & Acting the part of a Sovereign of a great State,¹ Condescend to read with Some pleasure a Line from a Person as Obscure as I am, You have every Capital Intelligence so direct from the persons Intrusted with the Execution of the principal parts of the great Drama that it will be to Little purpose for me to tell you of the Arrival of the French Squadron before Rhode Island, &c. I shall therefore Content myself with Congratulating you on this Event which seems better Calculated to do Execution than laying before New York, and to Inform You that their Arrival has diffused A General Joy here. there seems to be a Spirit prevailing to Afford every Aid to the Expedition against Rhode Island. The Council of this State have ordered out the Men Gen^l. Sullivan has requested, and I am told they turn out with alacrity in general,² besides several Companies of Volunteirs are offering them selves. One of which of 84 very respectable men from Salem are now in this Town on their way to Providence,³ so that I think we have at present every reason to Expect Success unless An English Fleet of Superiour Force should Arrive & spoil the Sport.

... We have no foreign Intelligence, no late Arrivals from Europe nor any prizes in. I presume the Warren has before this Joined the French Squadron. the Brig^t Resistance will sail in a day or two. & the Raleigh perhaps in 10 or 14 days.⁴ to Effect even this we have been forced to make great Exertions[.]⁵ I find I must soon leave this Business & then when you return Home if you will take the pains to make a Visit to Plymouth, you shall be received with great Cordiality, by a Simple & I Assure you A very honest Farmer, who never in all his Employments got a Single Shilling from the public dishonestly. The Business of this Board is Extensive, Complicated, & as we are supplied Embarrassing & besides is too Expensive for me. my Single Board, Horsekeeping & Barber has Cost me A dollar A day more than my pay since I have been in the Office. what then is to become of our Families. it has always been my Fortune to break the Ice for Other people. I flatter myself we have done A good deal & got things in a tolerable way. I suppose Others will succeed us with good Salaries. & find a beaten Track to walk in. whoever serves you in such an Office should be paid for it. it is Mortifying to serve always for Nothing A Silly & Ungrateful Generation of people wallowing with Unmeaning dissipation, in illgotten abundance, & with all the fopperies & fooleries of high head dresses, & large Cock^d. Hatts &c. while their own Families are to be reduced by the Terms of their Service to Poverty[:] I will not detain you any longer. at this Time but only Assure you that I am with great Sincerity [&c.] 

I have not paid my Compliments to M^r. Hudson who is here with Gen^l. Hancocke.⁶ he lodges at his House. I should have seen him if he had lodged any where else but for many reasons I did not Incline to go there, none of my Friends mention this Gentleman to me. no doubt they have a reason for it

I forgot to mention to you an Extraordinary Step of the Board of War. In Impowering our Council to appoint some Body to receive [,] take Care off, &c forward the Cloathing while Otis &c Andrews were on the Spot, & Capabl[e of] doing it much better than any Body her[e] & who by their Exertions, have certainly [de]served the public thanks rather than the [Sensure?] of any public Board. the Council have Appoin[ted] M^r. Sam^l. Fletcher.⁷ A Contrast Indeed but he is related to great Men. If you don't know him you may Apply to M^r. Adams⁸ for his Character, History & Connections, from all which you will be Able to form A Judgment of the situation of Your Goods Imported here of a very great value, & perhaps wont won[der] if I tell you this in every part is a matter of much Speculation—