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Dear Papa We arrived at this city yesterday evening about 7 o'clock after a very pleasant and agreeable journey of three days. Doctr Franklin is a most engaging & entertaining companion of a sweet even & lively temper full of facetious stories & always applied with judgment & introduced apropos ー he is a man of extensive reading &deep thought &curious in all his enquiries: his political knowledge is not inferior to his literary & pli.ilosophical: In short I am quite charmed with him: even his age makes all these happy endowments more interesting, uncommon & captivating.This morning we have been viewing the fortifications erected & erecting in and around this city: the ardor of the citizens is astonishing: gentlemen of the first and men of all ranks, work on these fortifications: the minute men receive their common pay about 2/2 ー I was told by a gentleman, that some gentlemen not used to work with a spade, worked so long, to set an example, that the blood gushed out of their fingers ー While this spirit continues the Americans will ever remain unconquerable. ー The Asia lies about a mile & half from the town: she does not molest the vessels wh bring hay & provisions from the back country down Hudsons river & from the Jersies, because by leave of the committee of Safety, provisions are allowed to be carried to them ー If this were denied she could interrupt the provision vessels wh would occasion in the present situation of things great distress: at present My Lord Stirling informs me there are, including melitia; 6000 men: the rifle Battalion is arrived & the greatest part of the army under Gen. Washington is expected-we have no certain intelligence of the enemy having sailed from Boston: their destination is still uncertain. 30th P.M. 7 o'clock ... we have no certain advice of the fleet's being sailed from Nantasket road. Howe's delay is a proof that he does not intend to N.York & that he embarked his forces with great precip[it]ation: they have certainly abandoned the castle after blowing up some part of the fortifications. I am more & more convinced that the greatest part of Howes forces will go to Canada: the MinistrY, will certainly indeavour to repossess themselves of that country it will be giving Some eclat to their arms, and they may annoy the colonies extreamly from that quarter: the burning of a few defenceless seaport towns will render them contemptible only, not formidable ー ... General Washington will certainly come ~o N. York when Howe leaves the coast of N England: this is a centrical place & the best adapted for the head quarters of the American army: from this place detachments may be sent to the eastward, Canada, & Southward. Ch. Carroll of Carrollt[o]n