I received Yours of Octobr. 14h. and have attended to the several Matters mentiond therein.1 The Wall at the Foot of Pens Hill is nearly compleated, one or two Days Work will finish it as far as you directed the Workmen to proceed— there will then be Stones sufficient to rebuild the Wall between you & Hardwick and a large Number besides for any other Purpose it therefore appears to me, 283 that it would be best to rebuild that Wall with those Stones when the Hands have leisure, as Hardwick agrees to dispence with your offer of blowing stones in his Land for that purpose—2 There has been no Rain with us for some Time past. we have therefore seized upon this Opportunity to plough the Meadow on the back of the House, which will probably be finishd to Day or to Morrow, this being done, as the Harvesting is finishd and the Corn in the Crib— We shall next plough the Hill & brake up the Ground proposed, that which is design’d for Barley the coming Year, it is proposed to carry the Manure upon it and plough it in—as it will be much easier to get the Manure upon it before Winter than in the Spring when the Ground will probably be very spungy.— As you concluded to let the Farms on which Burrell & French lives as heretofore, I think it would be best to agree with them as soon as may be, that they may have an Opportunity to enter upon the preparatory Work for another year (Guarding against some of the inconveniences of the former mode of leasing it) I have hinted it to them and shall proceed upon the Business if you do not disapprove of it— Your Directions upon the Subject I wish to have by the first Oppy—

I am happy to hear that the Sickness at Philadelphia is much abaited & hope you will meet Congress without any Danger of receiving the Infection and find that Body discharged of all its morbid Humors and purged from all its Corruptions— With mine & Mrs. Tufts’s affectionate Regards to Mrs. Adams / I am Your Affectionate friend & H Servt

I received a few days since with much pleasure your letter jointly with my new Sisters for which be pleased to accept my thanks.1 the account of your Marriage reached me some time before your letter, and I should have written congratulating you upon an Event which a knowledge of the Ladys merits induces me to hope may be fraught with happiness had I not been a little piqued that you had never 284 communicated to me your prospects, altho I had heard of them from several others

you must excuse me that I have been so negligent in writing to you, but for thease two years past I have had so many trialls and strugles in my mind to Contend with that I only wonder that I have retained my senses

My Dear Sister may be assured that I shall receive her into my heart with all the friendship which that tender epithet can claim and that her connection with a Brother I have ever loved and respected would entitle her to my sincere affection were I unacquainted with her merit but from the acquaintance I had the pleasure to form with her through the polite and friendly attention of her family when I was last in England I have every reason to beleive her well calculated to promote my Brothers happiness, and I most sincerely wish you all that felicity which the connection will ensure to those whose hearts and minds are united, and whose pursuits are directed to one object, the happiness of each other

I have to offer my acknowledgements and thanks for the very elegant Present which accompanied Mrs A letter and if ever it should be in my power I shall reserve to myself the pleasure of making some return

I presume you will have left London before this letter can reach you, I anticipate with much pleasure the period when we shall again be assembled together on this Side the Atlantick if such a scene of happiness is in reserve for us, and I shall flatter myself with the hope of hearing frequently from you and my Sister untill that interesting period arrives

Be assured of the sincere affection of / your Sister