Jefferson Quotes & Family Letters

brother Jeff came home last night & my first enquiry of course was about “the morals of Christ” which I had sent you, (not knowing if I was doing right or wrong) he did not mean that it should have been sent & desires that you will keep it & return it to him by some safe opportunity. he requests also (if they can be got for the same price that they might be had elswhere) that you will buy up for him about two hundred dollars worth of the histories that are to be found among grandpapa’s collection. if you find that they are going below their value, he says you may even go farther than the sum above named. the Universal History, Rapins, & Toulongeon, were the only ones he specified particularly, but any others, in french & English, originals or translations, ancient or Modern, he would like to have, leaving it to you to make the selection—James is getting better. there are dreadful colds prevailing in the neighbourhood & we think we are going to have them here. Tim is already quite sick, sister Jane & myself have colds coming—we shall send for mama & Virginia as soon as Titus & the horses return; if Ben does not get back to day, we shall be certain that the steam boat had ceased running before the books arrived in Fredericksburg, he would then be obliged to accompany them to Washington & they would arrive two day later, under the best luck that could be hoped for—I write in haste & must conclude abruptly—