Jefferson Quotes & Family Letters

I received a letter from Maria & yourself in one. in this letter you say you will leave Baltimore on the 9 or 10 of march. have you gotten permission for me to remove my Slaves there. if you have not I cannot go until then¹ as I would not remove one of them without having permission. I have had so much trouble with Elizabeth. I am every day expecting that she will be taken from me & sold for the benifit of the State & I have to pay a forfit of $400. This all owing to Sam Carr neglecting to apply to the Aassembly for leave to keep her here. it must now stand until the meeting of the next Assembly. as they will not receive any petition after the first of January. let me know as to this if this is done. I can go when you mention. before this perhaps you have heard that Bankhead & Jefferson have had a fight. he has been threatening Jefferson Randolph a long time & at Court he approached him with such an expression of countinance, as convinced J. that he ment to stab him. as he knew he carried a long knife as long as a dirk, he has bought several of them for the express purpose of killing Jefferson. but his wife has always contrived to get them from them him. the morning of the Court he got a new one. as soon as he got within arms length of J. Jefferson raised his whip to keep him off & struck him with the small end of it. he² approach on so fast that J. was obliged to take turn the large end of the whip in retreating to keep³ out of the reach of the knife after receiving several stabs he fell on his back but was up in a moment but wilst he was down B. stabed him in the back. his arm is dreadfully cut. but he⁴ is thaught not to be in any danger now. at first it was thaught he could not live. B. was tried & bailed to appear next monday.

Jefferson is staying at Mr Garrets, who has behaved very kindly to him. as soon as Jeffersons wounds were dressed he went to see jane to let her know how Jefferson was. altho it was 11 o clock at Night, & asked jane to come & stay at his house. she is now there with Jefferson. he was carried day before yesterday in a litter from Mr Leitch’s store where he was first carried. you will easily suppose what an agitation I have been in & what an agitation I now am in for fear they wont send B. to the Penitentiary. you can tell Mr P all this if he has not heard it before

jane is well. Jefferson is in fine sperits and dont mind it altho he perhaps will loose the use of some of his fingers, as two of the arteries were cut. he is not able to turn himself in the bed. the young men in town set up with him every Night. poor Mr Jefferson was dreadfully agitated, when he saw him first. he got there in less than half an hour after it happened. Frank dyer went for him. jane heard it as soon & no-one with her but her little Children. I have given you a very full account of this let her sisters know [abou]t it all if they have not heard it