Transcription
CATALOG NUMBER S 1007
OBJECT NAME Letter
DATE March 3, 1807
AUTHOR Mary Anna Sawyer Schuyler
RECIPIENT Sybil Farham Sawyer & Micajah Sawyer Esq’r MD
MEDIUM Paper, ink
PEOPLE new step-children, Aunt Farnham, Miss Searles, Clementine
Caroline & the children, M [Faris/Paris?], Colonel De Voe (“John’s old master”), John [maybe a servant, maybe Schuyler?], “his servant”, Mrs. Montgomery, Chancellor Livingston,
PLACES Rhinebeck
KEYWORDS newlywed “visitings”, social house calls, friends, box of preserves
from Mrs. Montgomery,
Rhinebeck March 3rd 1807
Your most timely welcome letters my dear / Father & Mother gave us great pleasure _ I have [^ had] no / information from home half so minute as Mamas & after / all I will cheerfully barter all sentimental epistles for / a good sober statement of facts & every day occurrences. / We are very well & I think very happy in each other / our children are good, & their parents wise enough to / appreciate rational enjoyment without grasping at more / than falls to the lot of mortals _ many I believe / lay up in store for themselves much uneasiness and / disquietude by f aiming at a perfectibility of / happiness inconsistent with our nature __ I am / not surprised that Aunt Farnham grows weaker _ for I thought death was written on her face long before / we parted _ I wish you would be particular in telling me how she is, how long she can set up, whither / she is discouraged about herself &c &c _ give my / best love to her; my heart is much with her. & I / can only regret that it is not in my power to be / with her [^ in person] at this time _ You will always have the / goodness to remember me to all friends _ the Miss / Searles _ Clementine Caroline & the children _ M [Faris/Paris?] _ We have spent the last week in visiting / one evening at a smart ball given by Colonel De / Voe who you will remember as Johns old master / he is as pompous, vain & tenacious as his servant /
[END OF PAGE 1]
But very good natured __ We have spent two nights / with Mrs Montgomery who is very friendly & agreable / she sent us a box of preserves of different kinds / supposing very correctly that we had not much / of that sort of [trash?] _ To morrow we dine / & spend the night at Chancellor Livingstons _ / This is showing ourselves to you in our most / dissipated point of view _ These visitings will / soon be over & we shall again be as domestic / & retired as you are. But now they are all / giving us diner as we are new married / people & as our neighborhood is not the most / compact they consequence is half the time they / give us beds __ We should hardly think of / riding twelve or fourteen miles to make a call / yet one or two have visited us from that distance / Catharine & John desire their respects Mr. Schuyler / unites with me in every remembrance of / love & affection _ Your
MAS ____
[END OF PAGE 2]
[POSTAL NOTATION]
X 17
[ADDRESS]
Doct’r Micajah Sawyer
NewburyportTranscriber
Tara R. IacobellisLanguage
English
