A website from the Massachusetts Historical Society; founded 1791.

Papers of the Winthrop Family, Volume 3

Francis Kirby to John Winthrop, Jr.1
Kirby, Francis Winthrop, John, Jr.

1634-02-26

1634-03-08

To his very kind frend mr. John Wynthrop the yonger at Agawam or else wher this deliver in New England this deliver
London this 26th of feb: 1633/34 Louinge frend mr. Winthrop,

Yours per mr. Graues with 220 li. of beuer and the 2 other skins (1 for my sister Downinge and 1 for Ed: Howes) I receiued accordinge to your letter. The beuer is a pretty good sort of beuer. Ther was a sort of thin lethered skins very light and yet full of wooll which were the best of all and they were in the Hogshead. but ther were 3 or 4 very small and younge beuer skins which we call beuer cubs those were the worst of all for although they be light of lether yet they haue little wooll and that very bad the beauer hat maker calleth it faint stuffe. so thus much for instruction. now for the matter of the returne of your third part therof accordinge to your desire in your latter letters of the 20th of 7ber. You shall vnderstand that the market is bad for beuer, so that I have forborne to sell it in hope of better, for the plimouth marchants great parcell hath brought downe the price. Yet I desirous to follow your commission haue sent you such comodities as you wrote for and I thinke the full value of your 1/3 part. if it be more or les you ar like to hear of it. I haue disbursed mony till the beuer be sold, and I thinke the things are well bought: my wife and I haue done our endeuor therein. I haue followed your directions as neer as I could. I could not find any Bridgewater Cloth of any colour but red so that all the coates are red lined with blew, and lace sutable which red as mr. Pinchins note saith is the Cheife colour of all. for Rugs ther ar no tawny or mury to be had so priced as 12s or therabout. I haue bought some mingle colourdcheckered rugs partly tawny, but the most are wholly red and of sundry prices as I shall particularize to you such broad Cloth blankets as I sent last yeare ar not to be had vnles bespoken, but I haue sent you some brodecloth and some other blankets. I had bespoken 100li worth of colourd cloth accordinge to your directions in your former letters and could very hardlyrefuse it vpon your later. I did conceiue well of your intended trade with the natiues at Agawan but I perceiue your minde is altered, if not I should not haue counselled you to hazard your person amonge the natiues after I heard of that pitifull accident of Captain Bruton who losthis life the last somer on the north part of your American Continent, where he had bought of the indians an vnicornes 151horn and vnder a frendly pretence to trucke farther with him for seahorse teeth and such like they treacherously killed him. he had spent the 2 last somers about that place Chiefly to discouer a northwest passage to India but hath not discouerd any thinge to purpose. for your new trade of fishinge which you say is hopefull, I should be glad to further so good a thinge. if you shall see a manifest way of doeinge profit therby and my brother Downeinge also shall by his letters give you to understand his willingnes to aduenture therin then you shall presume that I will aduenture halfe so much as my brother, so that my halfe may not exceed forty or fifty pounds at the most.

in yours of the 13th June you write that some of the things you receiued you did not know from other being not written vpon which I confesse was my fault for I did presume you knew them but as I remember I did write you how much of euery seuerall thinge by waight. the hardest to be knowne I suppose was the soda and sandiuer. it was 8 li. soda and 2 li. sandiuer. all things else ar well knowen to most men. I paid Ed: Howes 2li 15s 2d beinge all that remaind of the 9li 12s I receiued for you. for the twigs of quodlin tree2 I did make vse of my brother Joseph Downeinge to provide them for mee and he saith, he hath deliuered them to one of his neighbours a gardener of Messinge who will packe them vp Carefully with some 100 yong apple and peare trees which he is about to send to your father and some other speciall frends per mr. Graues per whome also I send your goods beinge in one great drifat and one hogshead marked with your marke. I haue 2 dosen of short wooled sheep skins provided by former aduise from your father in my brother Downeings letters and although I haue now aduise to the Contrary yet I shall send them by the next oportunity if I can not sell them heer. they cost but 18s. you shall find in the fat a little booke written by Doctor Prideaux against the morality of the 4th commandment. I desire to be remembred to your second selfe my cosen Mary and James and the rest and so I comit you to god and shall euer reste Yours at Comand

Fra: Kirby

post scriptum 8° Martij. I had provided your goods to send per mr. Graues and it hath been in the warehouse at the water side for him this 10 daies but he saith he can not take it in so that by his aduise I now send it per mr. Crowther. I haue not yet paid the freight nor receiued bills of ladeinge but I will do both so soone as I can speake with mr. Crowther and will send a bill of ladeing to your father.

152
The wares which I send you are as followeth
li s d
3 mixt Rugs at 10s per Rug is 1 10 0
3 mixt Rugs at 8s 8d per Rug 1 06 0
4 mixt Rugs at 10s 6d per Rug 2 02 0
3 Red Rugs at 12s 8d per Rug 1 18 0
2 Red Rugs at 11s 6d per Rug 1 03 0
2 Red Rugs at 10s 6d per Ruge 1 01 0
3 Red Rugs at 12s 6d per Rug 1 17 6
20 10 17 6
1 paire blankets at 11s per paire 0 11 0
3 paire blankets at 12s per paire 1 16 0
1 payre blankets at 10s per paire 0 10 0
1 paire blankets at 13s per paire 0 13 0
6 3 10 0
15 yards ¼ of broad Cloth for blankets at 3s 2d yard 2 08 2
12 yards ¼ broad Cloth at 2s 11d per yard 1 15 8
17 yards ¾ broad Cloth at 2s 8d per yard 2 07 4
61 ¾ will be 12 paire larg blankets at the least 8 15 2
for the Coates
85 ½ yards red bridgwater at 2s id per yard 8 18 2
72 ¼ y: blew Cotton to line the Cotes at 15d per yard 4 10 6
15 dosen of statute lace at id per yard 0 15 0
3 groce ½ of thrid buttons 0 02 6
porterage of the Clothe 0 00 7
paid the tailer for makeinge 24 Coates 2 00 0
16 06 9
paid for a drifat and hoops nailes and Cartage 0 10 8
10 17 6
03 10 0
08 15 2
40 00 5

The Coats stand you in about 13s 7d per Coat heer besides the Charges. other things you shall find a paper vpon euery seuerall peice his price.

1.

W. 1. 104; 3 Collections , IX. 263–266.

2.

See Joseph Downing to John Winthrop, Jr., February 26 1633/34, pages 153–154, below. A codling is a variety of apple.