Chapter 6: September 1773
6.1 Wednesday Sept: 8
Received a Letter from Mr Hunter—No News from Princeton—Nor Virginia—Evening Mr Paterson came home with Uncle.1
6.2 Letter of Philip V. Fithian To Elizabeth Beatty
Greenwich. Sept: 10th: 1773.
To Laura.
I hope the World is using you very well, & that you enjoy yourself in Contentment; & the Society of your Friends with Pleasure. The Reason of my saying this, is, because many People here are often enquiring about you; Where you live? How you do? When you will return? The Cause of your Absence?—And forty other things that none knows, or ought to speak of, but yourself.
You inform me that you propose to be at the approaching Commencement: It will not be in my Power, with any Convenience, to go—I can, however, give you a Caution; Let not Pity so much affect you, nor Fear so much alarm you, as again, (you remember last Fall) to excite Tears in your Eyes, or one sorrowful Ake in your Breast, if any of Nassau's bold Sons shall attempt once more, to support their Right by suppressing Impertinence & Violence.
There are many going from Philada &, I am told, some Ladies of Note & Eminence—There are many expected from the Southern Colonies—And, because of the Connexions, many from York, & the New-England Goverments. The Assembly, no Doubt, will be large, & splendid—And I hope the Exercises may be worthy their Attention & Approbation. Nothing hinders my being there but only my Purpose of going soon to the Southward.
I may not omitt telling you that—Smith as we were returning Home, pitied you from his Heart; An agreeable, & sensible young Lady, separated from genteel Society, & prisoned in a Room in the Woods, in the Midst of an unpleasant Country, like a penitent Virgin conscious of her Sins, voluntarily retiring to a lonely Monastary!—But he forgot, Laura, that infelt Peace, makes us always happy, even tho' our Circumstances be apparently distressful.
I am, Eliza,
yours
Philip. V. Fithian.
6.3 Wednesday. Sept: 15
Rose at seven; slept but little for I was affraid—Breakfasted on Oysters, at the Ferry-Mans, with John Holmes, Esq:—Had an Hours Conversation with him, on Lotteries—Whether they are just & lawful—He thinks not—At ten we came up to his Brother Benjamin Holmes's Esq:—They mentioned to me an Intention they have to erect, & establish a School, among them, that their Children may be taught, Latin, Greek, & the Practical Branches in Mathematicks—They desired to know if it would be convenient, & agreeable for me to undertake with them, to prosecute their Plan. But I must, with Doubt, away to Virginia—It would be a laudable undertaking if such a School could be founded in this Part of our Province; & I think ought to be duely encouraged—
I left Mr Holmes's about twelve, & came to Mr Hunters about four, seventeen Miles—Evening walked Home. Expence 2s/0.
6.4 Sunday. Sept: 19
Rose half after six—Read some in Pictete—Walked to Sermon by ten; Smith Rode in order to go home with Mr Hunter after Sermon—Dr Ward seems very low, confined commonly to his Bed; the Disorder it is to be feared is a Consumption, & increases in malignity almost daily—How much will Cohansie feel his Death if by this Illness he is soon taken of, or by the Violence of it wholly disabled to practice among us, who has been so long successful in his Work! Received a Letter late last Night from Mr Hunter at College, and He informs me that the Dr insists on my Going to Virginia—
6.5 William R. Smith To Philip Fithian
Philadelphia Octr 3d 1773.
Futurus Pedegog'issimus.
Fe-O-whiraw, whiraw, hi, fal, lal fal, lal de lal dal a fine song—commencement is over whiraw I say again whiraw, whiraw.
And what is more never was there such a commencement at princeton before and most likely never will be again. The galeries were cracking every now and then all day—every mouse hole in the church was cram'd full—The stage covered with Gentlemen and ladies amongst whom was the Governor and his lady; and that he might not appear singular Lee2 was stiff with lace, gold-lace—
A band of music from Philadelphia assisted to make all agreeable and to crown the whole the eloquence of Demosthenes was heared in almost every mans mouth, so that the person who spoke last was always the hero of the tale—O murder! what shall I do I want to say a great deal to you but cannot for the girls who are almost distracting my heart—O murder! murder, murder I say what will become of me, murder, murder—I shall go distracted—I saw Dr Beaty3 and Betsy—I gave your love to them—and indeed to tell you the truth I could not for my life help leaving my own heart, and love, and all with Besy—she is realy a sweet soul. I wish ten millions and she were mine, I should be a happy creature, happy indeed to the last degree—. I got cleverly up from cohansie early in the evening—My love ten thousand times and ten thousand kisses to all the girls of my acquaintance.
I cannot quit but must
Willm R. Smith.
Probably Samuel Fithian, the brother of Philip's father. Philip refers to him as "Uncle Fithian" on other occasions.↩︎
Henry Lee (1729-1787) of "Leesylvania," in Prince William County, Virginia (known later as "Light Horse Harry" Lee) was a student at Princeton at this time. He was a brother of "Squire" Richard Lee of "Lee Hall" in Westmoreland County. Henry Lee later became the father of Robert E. Lee.↩︎
Dr. John Beatty had been graduated at the College of New Jersey in 1769. Cf. Williams, ed., Fithian, p. 90, fn. 1.↩︎