Alexander a considerable Lawyer likewise a Proprietor of New Jersey & Surveyor General of the lands there as the person most capable to inform you of what you desir'd & soon after wrote his opinion to you But I have now forgot the particulars I lately receiv'd a letter from Mr Alexander (for I now live in the Country) wherein he puts me in mind of my having consulted him formerly on your affair but had forgot every particular & tells me that the Proprietors of New Jersey being resolved pursuant to several Notices they had given in the English News papers to come to an entire partition of all the lands of East New Jersey if there were not some person impower'd to appear for you your share might be of little or no value by the worst of the lands (mountains or barrens) being left by the others for you & others who have not agents to appear for them That your agent be impower'd to draw Bills of Exchange for the Expence of the Partition which will be pretty considerable. At the same time he inform'd me that if you inclined to sell he is willing to purchase if you can make a good title & offers £300 Sterline for a half propriety or £600 Sterline for a whole propriety or 1/24th part which he says is a higher price than any hitherto given but as this lies more in his way than in anothers he can afford to give more but it was upon that condition that the Bargain he compleated & the Conveyances here within two years He desir'd me therefor to write to you to send the detail of your Title for he had entirely forgot the particulars for answer to his I sent him your letter in which your title is particularly enough set forth & in return to that I receiv'd the inclosed letter M Alexander is a man of very considerable Estate & great honour with whom you may safely deal If I can serve you I shall very cheerfully do it in any thing & if you think proper to write to me on this affair please to direct yours for me under cover directed to James Alexander Esq at New York to the care of Messrs Rodrigo Pacheco & Benjamin Tavarez Merchants in London It may be sent by the Post to them & they will take care to forward it to New York. My Wife & I will be exceedingly pleased to have a particular account of the prosperity of your family & of your Brothers & Sisters & my wife desires to be affectionately remember'd to your Sister Mrs Vitch By some misfortune I have not heard from my brother in two years please to inform me of him My family is in good health. Sir From James Alexander and William Smith. NEW YORK Dec 1741. We are in hopes that at Some of the times yourself proposed for setling what was due from you towards paying the Debts Contracted by us & others for the necessary uses of the Equivalent Company that you would have setled the same and paid or given your bond for what was Justly Due that we might have part of in payment to Some of these Creditors-Mr Murray has Judgment against us for Some of Whats so due & Actions are now bringing by other Creditors Whom we cannot blame for so doing Seeing its Betwixt Six & nine Years Since the Contracting those Debts which is much too long to let money lye on Interest without Receiving Interest, & its only upon our promise of paying Mr Murray Interest for his Interest at Reasonable times that we could or Did Ask of him a Delay of Execution against us-Now Sir we have often told you and you well know that Mr Kennedy & Coll Matthews Depend upon what you do and that we cannot without the Greatest Reluctance & necessity take process against either of you and to take the process agreed on by the Articles of Agreement Against the Rest and not agt you will be said to look like partiality Wherefore we Begg you to Consider That this our regard for you Kennedy & Matthews tyes our hands from taking the legal Course which we Could Otherwise take for relieving ourselves from these Judgments and suits Against us, And as now the fourth Year is almost at an End Since the Accounts were Setled and those moneys should have been paid According to the Articles of Agreement not withstanding reiterated Letters to Every Debtor we find, we must Either pay three or four Hundred pounds out of our pocketts or take the Steps the Law Allows Against the Debtors and which had it not been for the Reason before we should three Years Ago have done And are Resolved this Winter to do upon your answer to this or a Reasonable time & opportunity of Answer, & if the Charge be Heavy we can't help it, for an End we are Resolved to have of it Inclosed is your Account Stated according to the Articles of Agreement with Interest to the first of this Month and Inclosed is also a bond for you to Execute for the Sum thereof payable at any time in a year with Interest from the first Instant which we beg you to Execute and to Send us that we may say you have paid what was Due from you; Inclosed also you have Coll Matthews Account and a bond for the ballance in like manner Which we beg also that you would lay before him with a Sight of this Letter and to Request him to Execute it and Send it Down And that neither of you may have any Reasonable Objection to this we do promise to you both that the Accounts Setled according to the Articles of Agreement shall be open to you when you please or Either of you that if any Just Objection you have to any part of them we will do as far as in us lyes whats Just and Reasonable and if you and we cannot Agree the Objection we shall be willing to referr it to Arbitration, or if we cant Agree on Arbitraitors Will trye the points in difference at Law And hereby promise you to Repay all that by Either of these ways shall be found to be too much in your respective hands with Interest provided that with in a year you do whats Reasonable on your part toward Determining the matter If this our Reasonable Request you and Coll Matthews will comply With we make Little Doubt of Compelling Every Other person in a Very Short time to pay what they Justly Owe with Costs, to make up for the Costs we have been already or shall be put to by the Actions against us. But if you will not Comply with this our Request we hope after the pains we have taken to Avoid Law Suits we cannot Justly be blamed for Commenceing them in Jan next when we have time to think of this matter & for Laying Down to ourselves the Steps we are to take which if we should Delay longer doing our other Affairs will soon after that be pressing all our Attention and occasion another Years Delay of Commenceing the Suits We are To Interest of £12 8 54 To Dec 1st 1736 -19 To his Quota of Excess of N° 79 35 acres Dr 20 8 514 39514 5 8 19 10 £25 2 42 B Pr Contra 29 By W Smith Cash pd him By Wm Smith for Excess of his Charge Ballance due by Colden on 1st Quota Cr 800 1 7 8 978 15 14 812 £25 2 42 Dr 25 By Prop" for 1/3 Expences of Messenger to Norwalk £20 26 By Props for Cash pd Secty For his Trouble abt Excep- 16 8 £ 3 10 6 10 £13 10 6 Ballance Due on 2a Quota 14 7 2 £55 9 12 |