Letter from John May to Samuel Beall, 29 April 1780

never informed me the amount of the sum advanced, but in a former letter seemed to give me a latitude in drawing on you; in consequence whereof I ventured to engage for a larger sum than our stock will admit of, depending on you to comply with my Engagements: when I first set out upon the Plan of taking Pre Emption upon [Halves? Holmes?] I doo not expect to receive more than ten or twelve but a Company of Monongalians are expectedly coming down, with Claims for most of the valuable Places on the north side of Kentuckey, I was induced to [?] rather deeper than I intended but with a Certainty of considerable Gains the land granted by such Certificates being generally choice Places. I was also induced from another Part of your letter ^desiring me to purchase a seat for you to adopt a Place for securing some Ready Money and ventured to receive Money here and to draw on you for the like sum payable in Williamsburg, with w^ch I propose to purchase whatever valuable Places I can near the Falls. The Business of location as hitherto engaged so much of my time that I could attend very little to anything else, but as that Matter will be over in a few days I shall have time to attend to the other Part of my Business and shall secure for you agreeable to your desire a convenient seat ^(but you must put up w^th Bears instead of Foxes) I have already purchased one within 8 or 10 Miles of the Falls for [pound symbol]5000 payable six months land containing 2850 Acres the Quality & Conveniences of w^ch I have had a favourable account of, and have seen offered considerably more ^for it than it cost already; and did I incline to sell, I probably could double my money Your Favour of the 1^st of april which was this Day delivered me, has somewhat alarmed me, especially that Part ^in which you desire no more Purchase to be made on your account, than the sum formally engaged will pay; I wish it had come to hand sooner as I should immediately ^have stopt receiving money here and should have made no more Engagements to pay Money below; but as I already have received [pound symbol]16664:12 and given an order on you for it

and the Messenger has set out for W^msburg, it is impossible to recall it. It was with much Reluctance I engaged so deeply, but when I considered the Prospect of gain and compared it with the Inconvenience to you, of advancing the sum Required to carry these schemes into Execution especially too, as I was advised that Money was rapidly depretiating I presumed that you would approve of ^the Measure. Before any Money will be required, application must be made to the Assembly to allow a further Time for taking out Pre Emption warrants & before the passing of the Law you may with convenience pay up the sums required which will amount to [pound symbol]33931:10:8 And as this is a Matter not within the meaning of our first contract I shall be willing to reimburse you the first cost at a much shorter Day and upon the same Plan as is settled between us by our articles of agreement. The Bearer Major George Thompson is one third Part interested with us in both these schemes and is to advance his share of the Money required upon taking out the warrants, his third Part of the other sum, to be laid out in purchasing lands already secured amounting to [pound symbol]]8332: to being already deposited in my hands; we were likely to interfere with each other, & therefore entered into this contract to avoid it: He is industrious and attentive to Business and has engaged to deliver you this letter with all possible dispatch, and to send out our warrants by the Person in whose Favour I draw on you, to come out towards the latter End of the summer and to see our land surveyed, for w^ch he receives no compensation, the advantage accruing to him from his being admitted as a Partner, being considered as equivalent to his Trouble: I had some Doubts about admitting him as a partner, as our Business with thereby become more compli-cated, but he was likely to stand in my way, and having pretty extensive Commissions, I thought it prudent to take him in, upon the Terms before

mentioned; and since the Receipt of your letter I am pleased that I did so, not on Account of any Danger which may attend such schemes, but because it will be much easier for you to advance two thirds than the whole of the Money. Upon either of the present Plans there is not a possibility of losing, land in the new Parts of the Country w^ch I aim at, will be exceedingly valuable from there Situation, and much more from their Quality there being no land here, that can be called even tolerable except in a few remote Parts, all the Rest being such as would in Berkeley County ^were it there be thought fine, and a very great Proportion of it equal to the Riches Bottoms. I shall set out on our first Plan, to see our land located & surveyed, within a few Days, and expect to have it in my Power to locate a considerable Quantity on my Return, there being an extensive Country down the River of fine land with which few are acquainted, & of course in w^ch there will be few surveys made; Gilberts ^1400 Acres lie in that coutry and is a very valuable one, of which if you make a Purchase it must be a very advantageous one; it lies on the Ohio in a very agreeable Part of the Country about 40 miles below the Falls There is at present the greatest opportunity of making a Profit by purchasing in this country, that ever offered in any Country; the land is certainly the richest that any Country ever afforded; it is conveniently situated to navigation & salt; and on acc^t of the difficulty of Access to this Country, from the other inhabited Parts, scarcely any Money amongst us, so that a man who can command Money, may almost make his own Terms I have seen some Instances of this, and shall take my Measures accordingly; there is such a Feild, that I shall, as soon as the End of my coming out is answered, prosecute my present Plan to a greater Extent, on w^ch account I wish to know your sentiments respecting such a scheme, as something of consequence will be continually presenting itself, whilst I stay here. M^r Beall met me on the Road and delivered your letters, but did not

3 come to the Office before the 1^st of May, he mentioned something of certain Conditions annexed to your & his agreement, but I could not recollect what they were not having your letter with me at that time, he promised to come to the Office that Evening, at which time I expected to have delivered him the warrant, but he not coming for it till the last Day of making Entries I thought it prudent to locate it on our own acc^t under w^ch I have seen him and he informs me he did not understand from me, that I insisted on the Bargain, such warrants having fallen in their Price on acc^t of the difficulty of locating. On my way up, I bargained with Col. David Mead for 25000 Acres of M^r Morris Treasury warrants for Tobacco at first Cost and all Expenses thereon and an additional sum agreeable to any trouble I may have with it. I took his note to the Company for the Price of the land and to myself for the other allowance, not with any intention of appropriating it to my own use and for the Benefit of the Company. The note is 500000 [?] & the Interest from the 15^th Oct^r last past & the allowance to be made me will I presume make it equal to 20/. per acre a Price w^ch I hope you will be satisfied with ~ When we parted we were both timerous, and when an Opportunity offered of disposing of so much of M^r Morris's Part I thought it prudent to embrace it; I could have to be totally put of it of but Col Mead would not take it on any other Terms than that it should continue in Partnership with me. I am surprised you have never rec^d my letter respecting Littlepage's land. I left it in very safe Hands as I thought, and hoped that before this time the Purchase was made, but I now fear it is too late. Our extensive views in this Country yet remain a secret, People suspect that there are extraordinary Matters going on between me & some other Person, but not a syllable has transpired respecting our late military Claims, but I do not think it prudent to risque them, you will therefore enter Caveats in all

such Cases as soon as possible and take the proper steps for bringing them on to Trial, for sure we be obliged hereater to pay the stole Price, the sooner that Matter is determined the better. I have had a good deal of Conversation with M^r Nath^l Randolph and find him to be a sensible intelligent and prudent Man; he is Partnership with Col Clark and has very extensive views in the Trading Way: should you at a proper Time, embark in that scheme this man I think would [page damaged- be] a valuable acquisition to the Company, as that Part of the Business respecting the navigation up the Missip-pi, could be more properly conducted under his direc-tion than under any other Person's in this Quarter. We are likely to interfere in our locations and on that acc^t are about throwing our land into one common stock and hereafter divide; he is the only Person except my Brothers in whom I can repose any confidence, and is the only one acquainted with the Country below the Falls where I wish to locate. I have such Information already, as will enable me to make tolerable locations, but if we agree I think I should do better. - I am so hurried & confused & have been so for en Days past, not having one Moment free from Bustle & Crouds & being obliged to write in a Corner without a Table & numbers continually talking to me so that you must excuse the incorrectness & tediousness of this Epistle; for my Ideas have not been clear for some Time past nor have I had one moment w^ch I could call my own since the first Day I began to write this letter. I would have gone to the woods but the Indians being the neighbourhood made it too dangerous. At the Foot hereof you have a list of all warrants sent me

I am sir y^r very Hum serv^t John May

In one Packet - 36300 In another - 16850 In two others - 27000 78150