Gentlemen.

I Received your favour of the 3d Inst by Capt Fulford and Observe the Contents, and never was so much Surprised as on the Receipt, on Your Informing me that you never heard from me Since the 9th Febry which was the time I Contracted with You for the Brig Rogers, and also that it does not Appear to You that I have done anything, In the Purchase of her Cargo, it Certainly must Appear to You, that when the Committee took the Vessells here, to Sink for the Safety of this Town, that mine was detain'd as well as all Others, & I do Suppose that Charles Carrol Esqr must Know that was the Case, However Soon after the Otter was here Mr Wm Lux was going to Annapolis, & I Requested him to let You know, that my Brig was detain'd, and the Cargo Ready to put on Board her, and Requested your further Instructions, on his Return he told me you had not any further Orders to give me but if You had Any further You would send them to me hereafter on which Account I thought it was Unnecessary to Give You any more Trouble but Resolved, to Load the Vessell as Soon as Possession was given to me, Unless Orders had Come from You to the Contrary.

Last Monday they gave me Possession, and I now have Nine Hundred Barrels on board her, and I shall have her Ready for the sea this Week, and I hope in the End shall give You Every Necessary Satisfaction, tho You seem to think by what You say in Your letter, that I have not laid out the Publick money Properly, if I had been one of those kind of men, Mr Thomas Jones of this Town, would not have given me a Letter to Any friend he had, & that time I Contracted with You he gave me a few Lines to Danl of St Thoms Jenifer Esqr your President. However I must Confess I was to Blame to trust any man, & see now I should have wrote You in Preference of sending by Mr Lux, but if he has Deceived me I cannot help it now, but shall for the future never Depend on him or any Man, on such Business. I am Gentlemen [&c.]