Saturday, February 9, 2019

Henry Clay to Judge Francis T. Brooke, December 30, 1801

Lexington, December 30, 1801.

Dear Sir, — I have received as well your letter by Mr. H. Taylor, as the one written a few days after, by the post.

I must request the favor of you to execute a small commission for me. The Acts of the Virginia Legislature, passed prior to the separation of this State, are extremely difficult to be procured, even by collecting fugitive Acts, in this country; but few indeed of the public offices possess entire collections. Will you be so obliging as to obtain for me, if you can, the old revisal, which reaches, I believe, to the year 1766, the Chancellor revisal, and the Acts passed since that, in a regular series to the year 1792. The last is most desired, but I could wish to possess all. Your revisal of 1791 would not answer my purpose, because it contains laws not in force in this country, and, if my recollection serves me, omits to give the respective dates of the passages of each law, all-important in many cases. These books you will be pleased to forward to William Taylor, Esq., merchant, in Baltimore, from whom I can easily procure them; or to either of our representatives in Congress, Mr. Brown, Mr. Breckenridge, Fowler, or Davis, who will contrive some mode for them to get to me. I suppose they may be obtained from the Council Chamber.

What has become of the son of my much regretted friend, your brother? I feel myself under obligations of gratitude to the father, which I should be happy of having an opportunity of discharging to the son. What is the progress he has made in his education? We have in this place an university in a very flourishing condition. Could you not spare him to me in this country for two or three years? I live at a short distance from the buildings, have a small family, and need not add, that from the cheapness of living in this country, his expense to me would be extremely inconsiderable. We have, too, a distant hope of getting Mr. Madison, from William and Mary, to take the management of our seminary. Be pleased to let me hear from you on this subject.
_______________

* Mr. Clay and Judge Brooks, of Fredericksburg, Va., were correspondent: for more than half a century.

SOURCE: Calvin Colton, Editor, The Private Correspondence of Henry Clay, p. 9-10

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