Memoirs Of Aaron Burr, Volume 1, Matthew L. Davis [book club suggestions .txt] 📗

Accompany Me, And I Hope You Will Too.

 

 

"Since Commencement I Have Been At A Dutch Wedding, And Expect To Be

At One Or Two More Very Shortly. There Was Drinking, And Singing, And

Fiddling, And Dancing. I Was Pleased Extremely. Every One Seemed To Be

In Good-Humour With Himself, And This Naturally Led Them All To Be In

Good-Humour With One Another.

 

 

"When The Itch Of Scribbling Seizes Me, I Hardly Know When To Stop.

The Fit, Indeed, Seldom Comes Upon Me; But When It Does, Though I Sit

Down With A Design To Be Short, Yet My Letter Insensibly Slides Into

Length, And Swells Perhaps Into An Enormous Size. I Know Not How It

Happens, But On Such Occasions I Have A Knack Of Throwing Myself Out

On Paper That I Cannot Readily Get The Better Of. It Is A Sign,

However, That I More Than Barely Esteem The Person I Write To, As I

Have Constantly Experienced That My Hand But Illy Performs Its Office

Unless My Heart Concurs. I Confess I Cannot Conceive How I Got Into So

Scribbling A Vein At Present. It Is Now Past Eleven O'Clock At Night,

And Besides Being On Horse The Greater Part Of The Day, I Intend To

Start Early To-Morrow For Philadelphia. There I Shall See The Races,

And The Play, And, What Is Of More Value Far Than All, There, Too, I

Shall See Miss -----, You Know Who.

 

 

"The Enclosed Letter To Spring I Commit To Your Care. I Should Have

Sent It Before, As I Wrote It Immediately After You Left This Place,

But I Really Thought You Were In New-England Long Ere Now. I Know Not

His Address; Perhaps He Is At Newport, Perhaps He Is Not. If, On

Inquiry, You Find That The Letter Is Wrongly Directed, Pray Give It An

Envelope, And Superscribe It Anew. If He Is Still At Newport, It

Would, Perhaps, More Readily Reach Him From New-York Than From Any

Part Of New-England That You Maybe At. I Have Said That If I Am

Mistaken In Directing The Within Letter, You Should Cover It And Give

It The Proper Address. Do, Dear Burr, Get Somebody Who Can Write At

Least A Passable Hand To Back It, For You Give Your Letters Such A

Sharp, Slender, And Lady-Like Cast, That Almost Every One, On Seeing

Them, Would Conclude There Was A Correspondence Kept Up Between My

Honest Friend Spring And Some Of The Female Tribe, Which Might,

Perhaps, Affect Him Extremely In Point Of Reputation, As Many People

Suppose That Nothing Of This Kind Can Be Carried On Between Unmarried

Persons Of The Two Sexes Without Being Tinged With Love; And The

Rather So, Since The Notion Of Platonic Love Is, At The Present Day,

Pretty Generally, And I Believe Justly Too, Exploded. Platonic Love Is

Arrant Nonsense, And Rarely, If Ever, Takes Place Until The Parties

Have At Least Passed Their Grand Climacteric. Besides, The New-England

People, I Am Told, Are Odd, Inquisitive Kind Of Beings, And, When

Pricked On By Foolish Curiosity, May Perhaps Open The Letter, Which I

Do Not Choose Should Be Common To Every Eye.

 

 

"You Gave Me Some Hopes That You Would See My Good Friend Reeve Before

You Returned. If You Do, Make Him My Respectful Compliments, And Tell

Him That I Fully Designed To Write Him, But That Business Prevented,

That Laziness Hindered, That--In Short, Tell Him Any Thing, So It Does

Not Impeach My Affection, Or Lead Him To Think I Have Entirely

Forgotten Him. I Am,

 

 

"Dear Burr Yours Sincerely,

 

 

"Wm. Paterson."

Chapter III Pg 22

In A Letter To Dr. Spring, Dated October 5, 1772, Speaking Of The

Commencement, Judge Paterson Says:--"The Young Gentlemen Went Through

Their Exercises In A Manner Passable Enough. The Speakers Were All

Tolerable--None Of Them Very Bad Nor Very Good. Our Young Friend Burr

Made A Graceful Appearance; He Was Excelled By None, Except Perhaps By

Bradford. Linn, Too, Was Pretty Generally Approved; But, For My Part,

I Could Not Forbear Thinking That He Took Rant, And Rage, And Madness

For True Spirit--A Very Common Mistake."

 

 

For Some Months After Burr Graduated (1772), He Remained In College,

Reviewing His Past Studies, And Devoting His Time To General

Literature. Possessed Of An Ample Income, Having Access To The College

Library, And Continuing, From Time To Time, As His Correspondence

Shows, To Supply Himself With Scientific And Literary Productions, His

Mind Was Greatly Improved During This Period. It Is True He Continued

To Indulge In Amusements And Pleasures; But, Sleeping Little, Seldom

More Than Six Hours, He Found Ample Time For Study.

 

 

In The College There Was A Literary Club, Consisting Of The Graduates

And Professors, And Still Known As _The Clio-Sophic Society_. Dr.

Samuel S. Smith, Subsequently President Of The College, Was Then

(1773) A Professor. With Him Young Burr Was No Favourite, And Their

Dislike Was Mutual. The Attendance Of The Professors Was Expected To

Be Regular. The Members Of The Society In Rotation Presided Over Its

Deliberations. On A Particular Occasion It Was The Duty Of Young Burr

To Take The Chair. At The Hour Of Meeting He Took His Seat As

President. Dr. Smith Had Not Then Arrived; But, Shortly After The

Business Commenced, He Entered. Burr, Leaning On One Arm Of The Chair

(For, Although Now Sixteen Years Of Age, He Was Too Small To Reach

Both Arms At The Same Time), Began Lecturing Professor Smith For His

Non-Attendance At An Earlier Hour, Remarking That A Different Example

To Younger Members Was Expected From Him, And Expressing A Hope That

It Might Not Again Be Necessary To Recur To The Subject. Having

Finished His Lecture, To The Great Amusement Of The Society, He

Requested The Professor To Resume His Seat. The Incident, As May Well

Be Imagined, Long Served As A College Joke.

Chapter III Pg 23

From Timothy Dwight.

 

 

New-Haven, March, 1772.

 

 

Dear Aaron,

 

 

By A Poor Candle, With Poor Eyes And A Poorer Brain, I Sit Down To

Introduce A Long Wished-For Correspondence. You See How Solicitous I

Am To Preserve Old Connexions; Or, Rather, To Begin New Ones.

Relationship, By The Fashionable Notions Of Those Large Towns, Which

Usurp A Right To Lead And Govern Our Opinions, Is Dwindled To A Formal

Nothing--A Mere Shell Of Ceremony. Our Ancestors, Whose Honesty And

Simplicity (Though Different From The Wise Refinements Of Modern

Politeness) Were Perhaps As Deserving Of Imitation As The Insincere

Coldness Of The Present Generation, _Cousin'D_ It To The Tenth Degree

Of Kindred. Though This Was Extending The Matter To A Pitch Of

Extravagance, Yet It Was Certainly Founded Upon A Natural, Rational

Principle. Who Are So Naturally Our Friends As Those Who Are Born

Such? I Defy A New-Yorker, Though Callous'D Over With City Politeness,

To Be Otherwise Than Pleased With A View Of Ancient Hospitality To

Relations, When Exercised By A Person Of Good-Breeding And A Genteel

Education.

 

 

Now, Say You, What Has This To Do With The Introduction Of A

Correspondence? You Shall Know Directly, Sir. The _Edwardses_ Have

Been Always Remarkable For This Fondness For Their Relations. If You

Have The Least Inclination To Prove Yourself A True Descendant Of That

Respectable Stock, You Cannot Fail Of Answering Me Very Soon. This

(Were I Disposed) I Could Demonstrate By Algebra And Syllogisms In A

Twinkling; But Hope You Will Believe Me Without Either. I Never Asked

For Many Connexions In This Way; And Was Never Neglected But Once, And

That By A Jersey Gentleman, To Whom I Wrote And Received No Answer. I

Hope The Disease Is Not Epidemical, And That You Have Not Determined

Against Any Communication With The Rest Of The World. It Was A

Mortification, I Confess; For I Am Too Proud To Be Denied A Request,

Though Unreasonable, As Many Of Mine Are--Therefore, I Insist Upon An

Answer, At Least, And As Many More As You Can Find In Your Heart To

Give Me; Promising, In Return, As Many By Tale, Though Without A Large

Profit. I Shall Not Warrant Their Quality.

 

 

Your Sincere Friend,

 

 

Timothy Dwight, Junr.

Chapter III Pg 24

From Samuel Spring.

 

 

Newport, May 15Th, 1772.

 

 

Dear Burr,

 

 

It Is A Little Strange To Me That I Have Not Heard Any Thing Of You

Since Your Examination. I Don'T Know But You Are Dissatisfied, Since

You Are So Backward To Write; However, I Will, If Possible, Keep Such

Thoughts Out Of My Mind Till I Hear From You In Particular. If You Are

Let Down A Peg Lower, You May Tell Me Of It. If You Are Permitted To

Live In College, You May Tell Me Of It; And If You Are Turned Out, You

May Tell Me Of It. If You Passed Examination, And Have A Syllogism To

Speak At Commencement, _If You Are Able To Make It_, I Suppose You May

Tell Me Of That Likewise; Or, If You Are First In The Class, You May

Tell Me, If You Will Only Do It Softly; Indeed, You May Tell Me Any

Thing, For I Profess To Be Your Friend. Therefore, Since You Can Trust

Me So Far, I Expect You Will Now Write, And Let Me Know A Little How

Matters Are At Present In College. In Particular, Let Me Know The

State Of The Society (Cliosophic); And If I Owe Any Thing To It, Do

You Pay It, _And Charge It To Your Humble Servant_.

 

 

I Hope You Will Write The First Opportunity, As I Trust You Have Got

Some Very Good News To Tell Me Concerning The College In General, And

Yourself In Particular. I Have Nothing Particular To Write. It Is Very

Pleasant To Me Where I Am At Present.

 

 

The Study Of Divinity Is Agreeable;--Far More So Than Any Other Study

Whatever Would Be To Me. I Hope To See The Time When You Will Feel It

To Be Your Duty To Go Into The Same Study With A Desire For The

Ministry. Remember, That Was The Prayer Of Your Dear Father And

Mother, And Is The Prayer Of Your Friends To This Time--That You

Should Step Forth Into His Place, And Make It Manifest That You Are A

Friend To Heaven, And That You Have A Taste For Its Glory. But This,

You Are Sensible, Can Never Be The Case If You Remain In A State Of

Nature. Therefore, Improve The Present And Future Moments To The Best

Of Purposes, As Knowing The Time Will Soon Be Upon You When You Will

Wish That In Living You Had Lived Right, And Acted Rationally And Like

An Immortal.

 

 

Your Friend,

 

 

Samuel Spring.