Edenton July 23. 1753 Gentlemen,

Upon my first Arrival I wrote you by Capt. Emerson which I expect you have reced., since wch. Time have been Industriously Employ'd in loading the Hannah, which is at last accomplish'd & her Rigging fitted for sailing. You may wonder what should detain me so long in the Country, nor is it possible throughly to satisfy you unless you were here to see the Situation of the Country & the Circumstances of Loading a Vessell here. The Letter of Advice got so late to Mr. Blunt that he was obliged to engage a few Staves of one Man & a few of Another; (for no man would undertake to get many the Crop being so near on hand) that so I was obliged to go to three different Rivers for My Load & to a great many Landings in each River; barely wch. Moving about of my Vessall consumed a quarter of the Time. Another Detriment that attends my Arriving So late into the Country, is, that not having any quantity of199Staves to cull my Load, I was obliged to take a great many that are very thick & clumsey, by means of wch. the vessell will not Carry as many by some thousands as was expectd, but upon enquiry I find that the Staves will sell the better for being So large. In order to make them stow the better I have saw'd them all to the proper Length, & I believe the Hold is as well Stow'd as possibly could be, her Decks are full fore & aft, I expect to want some Literage, but how much can't say. I have laid in Such Provisions as is thought Necessary for the Voyage, wch. is as bad as can well be eaten, Provisions are always scarce here in the Summer. I hope to be at Sea in a few days, where I shall persue the Voyage agreable to orders so wishing you Success in yr. Trade and Navigation I subscribe my self yr. much obliged humble Servt.,

ROBERT TREAT PAINE

LbC ; addressed: "To Mr. Henry Leddel Mercht. Boston per favr. Capt. Bartlet."

August 8th. 1753. Bacon Island Road Gentlemen,

I have wrote you1 by Capt. Bartlet dated July 24th.2 which Letter you may not have recd. he not being come out of the Country at this Time, since wch. Time I have got my Vessell down & her Decks Stowd. It may Well surprize you to hear of me hear at this Time, but it cannot surprize you more than it has fretted me. Capt. Sawyer by whom I send this Letter, saild from Edenton before I got there from Loaden, notwithstanding which I shall put to Sea as soon as he does. On the 24th. of June I had all my Load on Board since which Time I have carried my Vessell to Town to clear out & am got down here, this delay has been owing to furious head Winds & almost incessant Squalls of Rain & Wind against wch. there is no striving. I have been obliged to Lighten the Vessell as much as come to 5.6.8 L. Money & then should not have got over had there not have been an Extraordinary Tide. The Vessell is compleatly full & proves tolerably tight, I hope to put to sea to morrow if it be a good Time, where if I have Winds as they have been a long Time, I shall not be much longer to Fayal than I have been coming down out of the Country, so wishing a good passage to the Hannah & Success to the Voyage I Subscribe Gentlemen yr. much obliged Humble Servant,

ROBERT-TREAT PAINE 200

LbC ; addressed: "To Mr. Henry Leddel Mercht. Boston pr. Capt. Sawyer."

1.

Probably the Capt. Isaac Freeman who in 1748 was master of the ship Bethel when it captured the Spanish ship Jesus Maria and Joseph off Portugal with its rich cargo (Frederick Freeman, Freeman Genealogy [Boston. 1875], 105).

2.

July 23.