Joseph Johnson, letter, to Eleazar Wheelock, 1768 February 10
10 February 1768[1768-02-10]
ms number768160
[note (type: abstract): Johnson writes to Wheelock about his life among the Oneidas and the progress of his school. He notes that Kirkland is very ill.][note (type: handwriting): Johnson's hand is small yet clear and legible.][note (type: paper): Large single sheet is in fair condition, with moderate-to-heavy staining, creasing and wear.][note (type: ink): Brown-black.][note (type: noteworthy): An unknown, likely 19th-century, hand has added the note “Ind. mis.” to the bottom of one recto; this note has not been transcribed.]
Persistent Identifier
[Opener]
I would once more attempt to write a few lines to you my kind and [hond | honoured]hondhonoured Benefactor as it is not only your Order, but my [Indiſpenſable | indispensable]Indiſpenſableindispensable Duty to write you at every opportunity this being the third attempt,
that I have made Since I left your [houſe | house]houſehouse ([firſt | first]firſtfirst by David[pers0155.ocp], next William[pers0763.ocp],
David [pers0155.ocp]
[paſsed | passed]paſsedpassed by, William[pers0763.ocp] came back) but have had the [Miſfortune | misfortune]Miſfortunemisfortune of Seeing them [booth | both]boothboth, yet this once more will I [trie | try]trietry
[per adventure | peradventure]per adventureperadventure it may reach you; in which I Shall Endeavour to acquaint you of the
State of my School, and of the Indians; and Little of the manner in which I live
at [preſent | present]preſentpresent. Sir I have had By the [goodneſs | goodness]goodneſsgoodness of God my health as [Uſual | usual]Uſualusual; and would hope that you have had your much Valuble health allowed you.
Sir, I have lived very well the fore part of the Winter, but the Latter begins to
come on [heard | hard]heardhard. Sometimes Glutted to the full at other times half [Stearved | starved]Stearvedstarved never Steady, at [priſent | present]priſentpresent they now begin to cook Some good dried Guts of [Dear | deer]Deardeer and what is in it. (Dung if I may So call it.) to [Seaſon | season]Seaſonseason the corn; [likewiſe | likewise]likewiſelikewise Some rotten [fiſh | fish]fiſhfish which they have [keept | kept]keeptkept Since [laſt | last]laſtlast fall to [Seaſon | season]Seaſonseason their Samps, rottener the better they Say as it will [Seaſon | season]Seaſonseason more broth. corn they have plenty yet, but nothing to [ſeaſon | season]ſeaſonseason it. Little calf Died for hunger was Soon [quarterd | quartered ]quarterd quartered
[& | and ]& and
[boild | boiled]boildboiled and Eat the other day in this [houſe | house]houſehouse, [alſo | also]alſoalso Some hens dying of Some [Diſtemper | distemper]Diſtemperdistemper was Served [prety | pretty]pretypretty much the Same trick but not quite So quick. I have Lived [Interely | entirely]Interelyentirely upon the [affare | affair]affareaffair of the Indians this Winter Such times Excepted as when I was at [Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp]s— The Indians are very much Engaged at [preſent | present]preſentpresent and have given me 14 children, this is Since I wrote you [laſt | last]laſtlast and have [Shewn | shown]Shewnshown their [Reſpects | respects]Reſpectsrespects to the [Deſign | design]Deſigndesign as I [Suppoſe | suppose ]Suppoſe suppose
[Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] will Acquaint you to the full. [Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] had [propoſed | proposed]propoſedproposed I Should come down the Next week but the headmen [Requeſted | requested]Requeſtedrequested that I Should Stay with them longer to which I [agredd | agreed]agreddagreed with the [chearfull | cheerful]chearfullcheerful heart to See them So much Engaged. Kind Sir, I would [Enform | inform]Enforminform you that [Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] is very Sick I fear unto Death this being the [10th | 10th]10th10th Day Since he has been Sick he has been [moſt | most]moſtmost of the time confined to his bed and is [intirely | entirely ]intirely entirely
[Indiſpoſed | indisposed]Indiſpoſedindisposed for any manner of [buſineſs | business]buſineſsbusiness whatever. I would [alſo | also ]alſo also
[Enform | inform]Enforminform you that I keep Singing School every Evening very full meetings. two of my
Scholars are marriedmen, one is Old Enough for my father. they all Learn very
[faſt | fast ]faſt fast
[booth | both]boothboth Singing [& | and]&and Reading. I dont know Sir, when I Shall come home the great men give me
leave to go in the Spring. the Small-pox is very Brief in Albany[place0001.ocp] and
Schenectady[place0202.ocp], [vaſt | vast]vaſtvast numbers have [dyed | died]dyeddied out of [booth | both]boothboth places.
[alſo | also]alſoalso; [Beaſts | beasts]Beaſtsbeasts, they have a [Diſtemper | distemper]Diſtemperdistemper and die [dayly | daily ]dayly daily
[booth | both ]booth both
[horſes | horses]horſeshorses and cows, the [diſtemper | distemper]diſtemperdistemper is [almoſt | almost]almoſtalmost got up here. —
The Indian [horſes | horses]horſeshorses fare very [heard | hard]heardhard this Winter, I have Seen where they have gnawed little Elm trees to Eat the [beark | bark ]beark bark
[therof | thereof]therofthereof, the Indians have given Mr Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] Some corn for his creatures from [booth | both]boothboth places.
[Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] preached twice here before his [Sickneſs | sickness]Sickneſssickness came on, and
[propoſed | proposed]propoſedproposed to come down again but the Self Same week he was — taken Sick.
Thomas[pers0643.ocp]
[carrys | carries]carryscarries on [amongſt | amongst]amongſtamongst us now Sabbath Days.
[Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Dodge [pers0169.ocp]
[Enforms | informs]Enformsinforms me that he [open'ed | opened]open'edopened a [ſchool | school]ſchoolschool about one week he Says he [keept | kept]keeptkept it before [Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Kirtland[pers0315.ocp] was Sick and was [Oblig'ed | obliged]Oblig'edobliged to [brake | break]brakebreak up —
William[pers0763.ocp]
[keept | kept]keeptkept it Some time [after wards | afterwards ]after wards afterwards
[Laſt | last]Laſtlast Monday I went in to See the School and Saw [vaſt | vast]vaſtvast number of children in it [almoſt | almost]almoſtalmost
[illegible][guess (h-dawnd): 30]30 lacking very
few, it Seemed as if with [pleaſure | pleasure]pleaſurepleasure I could wait on Such Number. then I turned my mind and thoughts of my
little number I had at [Onoida | Oneida]OnoidaOneida[place0179.ocp]. yet I think I cant think to have them few as they be. So
long as they Seem to be Engaged. I have nothing more to acquaint you of at [preſent | present]preſentpresent only I want to hear from you my ever [hond | honoured]hondhonoured Benefactor [aſ | as]aſas I have not heard any thing from you Since I came from your [houſe | house]houſehouse. So [Revd | Rev.]RevdRev. Sir, I [deſire | desire]deſiredesire Still to be under your direction [& | and]&and advice at all times, as I am not yet capable of [manageing | managing ]manageing managing
[my ſelf | myself]my ſelfmyself So I would not undertake any thing without your kind advice [& | and]&and approbation.
[Pleaſe | Please]PleaſePlease to Remember me Still in your prayers; that God would keep me humble and
fill my heart with Gratitude [booth | both]boothboth to Him and to Man. that I may put my whole [truſt | trust]truſttrust in him [booth | both ]booth both fo[gap: tear][guess (h-dawnd): r]r Time [& | and]&and Eternity, for in him alone can I be [ſafe | safe ]ſafe safe
[amidſt | amidst]amidſtamidst ten [thouſand | thousand]thouſandthousand Malicious [Dearts | darts]Deartsdarts of the [Divil | Devil]DivilDevil. So I would remain your
[faithfull | faithful]faithfullfaithful and Obedient pupil, and good for nothing not quite Old Indian.
[Closer]
[Joſeph | Joseph ]Joſeph Joseph
[Johnſon | Johnson]JohnſonJohnson.[pers0288.ocp]
[Onoida | Oneida]OnoidaOneida[place0179.ocp]. february [10.th | 10th]10.th10th 1768.[1768-02-10]
[Postscript]
PS. this Letter if I may So call it was wrote in [haſt | haste]haſthaste I dont know as if you can make out to read it if you can I Should be
Exceeding glad, not only in
[haſt | haste]haſthaste but under many [Diſadvantages | disadvantages]Diſadvantagesdisadvantages.
[Trailer]
From Joseph Johnson[pers0288.ocp]
[Feb.y | February]Feb.yFebruary 10. 1768[1768-02-10]
To— the [Revd
| Rev.]Revd
Rev.
[Doctr | Dr.]DoctrDr. Wheelock[pers0036.ocp]. in
[N | New]NNew England.[place0158.ocp]
[bottom] a Grand [miſtake | mistake]miſtakemistake or [reather | rather]reatherrather great [miſtake | mistake]miſtakemistake, a Letter turned [upſide | upside]upſideupside down. as I was reagding it over I took notice of it not
before.—
a Grand [miſtake | mistake]miſtakemistake or [reather | rather]reatherrather great [miſtake | mistake]miſtakemistake, a Letter turned [upſide | upside]upſideupside down. as I was reagding it over I took notice of it not
before.—
Document Summary
People identified in this document:
id | Text in document | Role in header | Authorized Name |
---|---|---|---|
pers0155.ocp | David | mentioned | Fowler, David |
pers0763.ocp | William | mentioned | William |
pers0155.ocp | David | mentioned | Fowler, David |
pers0315.ocp | M r Mr. Kirtland | mentioned | Kirkland, Samuel |
pers0315.ocp | M r Kirtland | mentioned | Kirkland, Samuel |
pers0643.ocp | Thomas | mentioned | Thomas |
pers0169.ocp | M r Mr. Dodge | mentioned | Dodge, Phineas |
pers0288.ocp | Joſeph Joseph Johnſon Johnson . | writer | Johnson, Joseph |
pers0288.ocp | Joseph Johnson | writer | Johnson, Joseph |
pers0036.ocp | Doct r Dr. Wheelock | recipient | Wheelock, Eleazar |
Places identified in this document:
id | Text in document | Authorized Name |
---|---|---|
place0001.ocp | Albany | Albany |
place0202.ocp | Schenectady | Schenectady |
place0179.ocp | Onoida Oneida | Oneida |
place0158.ocp | N New England. | New England |
This document does not contain any tagged organizations.
Dates identified in this document:
Standard Form | Text |
---|---|
1768-02-10 | february 10.th10th 1768. |
1768-02-10 | Feb.yFebruary 10. 1768 |
Regularized text:
Type | Original | Regularized |
---|---|---|
modernization | Revd | Rev. |
modernization | Doct.r | Dr. |
modernization | Indiſpenſable | indispensable |
modernization | houſe | house |
modernization | firſt | first |
modernization | paſsed | passed |
modernization | Miſfortune | misfortune |
variation | booth | both |
variation | trie | try |
variation | per adventure | peradventure |
modernization | preſent | present |
modernization | goodneſs | goodness |
modernization | Uſual | usual |
variation | heard | hard |
variation | Stearved | starved |
modernization | priſent | present |
variation | Dear | deer |
modernization | Seaſon | season |
modernization | likewiſe | likewise |
modernization | fiſh | fish |
variation | keept | kept |
modernization | laſt | last |
modernization | ſeaſon | season |
variation | quarterd | quartered |
variation | boild | boiled |
modernization | alſo | also |
modernization | Diſtemper | distemper |
variation | prety | pretty |
variation | Interely | entirely |
variation | affare | affair |
modernization | Mr | Mr. |
variation | Shewn | shown |
modernization | Reſpects | respects |
modernization | Deſign | design |
modernization | Suppoſe | suppose |
modernization | propoſed | proposed |
modernization | Requeſted | requested |
variation | agredd | agreed |
variation | chearfull | cheerful |
variation | Enform | inform |
modernization | 10th | 10th |
modernization | moſt | most |
variation | intirely | entirely |
modernization | Indiſpoſed | indisposed |
modernization | buſineſs | business |
modernization | alſo | also |
modernization | faſt | fast |
modernization | vaſt | vast |
variation | dyed | died |
modernization | Beaſts | beasts |
variation | dayly | daily |
variation | booth | both |
modernization | horſes | horses |
modernization | diſtemper | distemper |
modernization | almoſt | almost |
variation | beark | bark |
variation | therof | thereof |
modernization | Sickneſs | sickness |
variation | carrys | carries |
modernization | amongſt | amongst |
variation | Enforms | informs |
variation | open'ed | opened |
modernization | ſchool | school |
variation | Oblig'ed | obliged |
variation | brake | break |
variation | after wards | afterwards |
modernization | Laſt | last |
modernization | pleaſure | pleasure |
variation | Onoida | Oneida |
modernization | aſ | as |
modernization | Revd | Rev. |
modernization | deſire | desire |
variation | manageing | managing |
modernization | my ſelf | myself |
modernization | Pleaſe | Please |
modernization | truſt | trust |
modernization | ſafe | safe |
modernization | amidſt | amidst |
modernization | thouſand | thousand |
variation | Divil | Devil |
variation | faithfull | faithful |
modernization | Joſeph | Joseph |
modernization | Johnſon | Johnson |
modernization | 10.th | 10th |
modernization | haſt | haste |
modernization | Diſadvantages | disadvantages |
modernization | Revd | Rev. |
modernization | Doctr | Dr. |
modernization | miſtake | mistake |
variation | reather | rather |
modernization | upſide | upside |
Expanded abbreviations:
Abbreviation | Expansion |
---|---|
& | and |
Hond | Honoured |
hond | honoured |
& | and |
Feb.y | February |
N | New |
This document's header does not contain any mixed case attribute values.
Summary of errors found in this document:
Number of dates with invalid 'when' attributes: | 0 |
Number of nested "hi" tags: (consider merging the @rend attributes, or using other tags) | 0 |
Number of tags with invalid 'rend' attributes: | 0 (out of 23) |
Number of people/places/organizations with unknown keys: | 0 (out of 22) |
Number of "add" tags with unknown 'place' attributes: | 0 (out of 1) |
Mixed case attribute values in header (potential error): | 0 (out of 108) |