Dear Ned

Imprimis, God bless you, here and hereafter, forever & ever, for preserving the Life of my dear Jenny, till the 14th Decr last, & then procuring for her a passage to Halifax under the Care of Capt Watson of the 65th ー Heaven grant that no untoward Accident prevent this happy Incident from being co-incident with my Wishes ー had she starved in Boston, it would have been Death to me ー had she fallen into the hands of your infernal Rebels, it wou'ld have been the Devil ー how have I felt for her since I left her ー how much more pungently since I recd yours of 3rd Decr ー well, God bless you & your's again & again ー if I can but hear she has had one good Belly full before she dies, I shall feel perfectly resigned to her future fate ー wishing however, that I may once more see the dear charming Creature before she or I die. ー

Your history of the Dispute between the Adml ² & the Custom-house is curious ー I can't conceive what put it into the head of the Lord of your Sea's that the Exercise of the Law martial (or military Law, as he quaintly phrases it) operates as a Supersedeas to the residence of the Commissioners there in their official Capacity; & gives him a power of dispensing with an Act of Parliament. The truth is, some of your Gentry have conceiv'd most absurd Notions of the Nature & Effect of Law martial ー it has no other Operation than to carry into Execution the criminal Law of the Land in those Instances where the Course of the Common Law is interrupted by War [however that] does not affect the official Capacity of [the Commission]ers or any other constitutional (I hate that Word) Officer any more than it affects the official Capacity of an Admiral on the high Seas in the Moon ー I have no doubt but the Commissioners are right & the Adml wrong for most surely if he was invested with a dispensing power, it was to be exercised only when the Necessity of the Case required it ー & tho' (for a Moment we admit) he could dispence with the port-bill it wod by no Means follow that he could knock the Cus[tom Commission]ers in the head, & dispense with all the [blurred] but I suppose by this Time he has recd his Supersedeas by the Arrival of Adml Shuldam & this Dispute will drop where it is ー tho' if it shod be brought over hither, you may depend upon every Assistance in my power.

I am out of all patience at hearing, from you & others, the Accounts of your Sufferings ー what Excuse can be found for a British Admiral, who, with 30. or 40. Ships under his Command, suffers a Garrison to starve tho' surrounded with plenty of every Necessary, within the reach of his Ships! who tamely & supinely looks on & sees Fishing Schooners, Whale-boats and Canoes riding triumphant under the Muzzles of his Guns, & carrying off every Supply destin'd for your relief! Heaven grant you patience, & reward every one according to the Deeds done in the Body. ー I can tell you, for your Comfort, that he is cursed as hard upon this Side the Water, as he can be on yours ー he has now no Advocate here, & I believe will scarcely find a Friend in England upon his return. I hope by this Time, you are relieved in some Measure, as, out of the great Number of Ships wch have sailed loaded with provisions & Coal, it will be hard indeed, if some dont get in safe, maugre the Vigilance of the Rebels, & the Inactivity of Trunnion ³ ー I verily believe your Sufferings are drawing near a period ー you will undoubtedly have, early in the Spring, an Army of 40,000. & a Fleet [of] upwards of 70. Ships, & then the Mettle of the Rebels [will] be try'd ー hitherto their Successes have been owing to their having none to oppose them ー the poor infatuated Wretches, as yet, know Nothing of War ー they have been treated as froward Children heretofore, but now, they will be treated as incorrigible Traitors ー I pity, I feel for the Majority, but, for their Sakes, I wish the Vengeance of G. Britain may speedily overtake their base Deluders.

I wish you were here Ned, with Money enough in your pocket ー you can have no Idea what a noble Country this is for a Gentlemen ー every Thing is upon an immense Scale ー whatever I have seen in my own Country, is all Miniature, yankee, puppet-shew ー I was at Court the Day before yesterday, being the Queen's Birth Day, (I am now at the 20th) & I believe in my Conscience, the prime Cost of the Drapes I saw there, was sufficient to have purchas'd our whole Continent ー the Wealth of this Country is truly astonishing, but unless a Gentleman can get his Share of it, he has no Business here ー £600 pr An. is but as a Drop in the Ocean ー the Man is lost ー he is Nothing ー less than Nothing & Vanity ー & his Contemplation on his own comparative Littleness, is Vexation of Spirit but, humiliating as it is, I wish to stay here for the Sake of giving my Boys a Chance for the grand prizes which every profession presents to View ー however, I fear, the cold, inhospitable Lilliputian Region of Halifax will finally bring me up; for as to Massachusetts Bay, I wish it well, but I wish never to see it again, till I return at the Millenium ー No; believe me, Ned, the mad Conduct of my Countrymen has given me a Dose I shall never get over ー God mend them, & bless them ー but let me never never be cursed with a residence among them again ー I hate the Climate where Rebellion & Fanaticism are ingendred ー & would shun it as I would a Country infested with the plague, ー from all which, good Lord, deliver me. ー I thank you for writing to me, & beg for such favours every Oportunity ー & in return, you shall have frequent Scribblings from, dear Ned [&c.]

[Endorsed] answerd July. ー Staaten-Island.