Joseph Johnson, letter, to Eleazar Wheelock, 1768, May 2

Author Johnson, Joseph[pers0288.ocp]

2 May 1768[1768-04-02]

Call Number768302

[note (type: abstract): Johnson writes of his progress among the Oneidas, and that the more distant tribes visited by Ralph Wheelock do not seem anxious for missionaries. He also mentions various Moor's students.][note (type: handwriting): Handwriting is small, though mostly clear and legible.][note (type: paper): One large sheet folded in half to make four pages is in fair condition, with moderate creasing, staining and wear. A large tear on two recto/verso appears to result in no loss of text.][note (type: ink): Black-brown.][note (type: noteworthy): The identity of Hannah's brother, mentioned on one recto, is uncertain, and so he has been left untagged. However, he is possibly William[pers0763.ocp]. On two verso, an editor, likely 19th-century, has written "IndMis, +" below the trailer. This note has not been included in the transcription.][note (type: signature): The signature is abbreviated after the body of the letter, yet complete after postscript.]
Persistent Identifier
[Opener]

 [Revd | Rev.]RevdRev. and [Hond | Honoured]HondHonoured [Doct.r | Dr.]Doct.rDr.
I take this Opportunity to [Enform | inform]Enforminform you
that by the [above] kind andkind and Indulge[above] nnt providence of God I am well and would
hope that by the [ſame | same]ſamesame [goodneſs | goodness]goodneſsgoodness you [ſtill | still]ſtillstill Enjoy your [Valuble | valuable]Valublevaluable
Health. — I have, not as yet heard any News from [Onondage | Onondaga]OnondageOnondaga[place0180.ocp]
about what they have determined in Embracing the [Goſpel | Gospel]GoſpelGospel
but the Other day Couple of young Women came from there and
[Enformed | informed]Enformedinformed us that no man-kind was at home, not So much as the
great man; but were all gone a hunting. it looks very [diſcourage‐
‐ing | discourag
ing]
diſcourage‐
‐ing
discourag
ing
at [preſent | present]preſentpresent [amongſt | amongst]amongſtamongst the Back‐nations I fear that they are
too much overcome by french principles:([illegible][guess (h-dawnd): or]or [reather | rather]reatherrather fast in the [divils | devils]divilsdevils
cluches) yet I wonder not, that they dont Embrace the [Goſpel | Gospel]GoſpelGospel — they
have [ſuch | such]ſuchsuch good Examples from the Germans or Dutch and [Chuſe | choose]Chuſechoose
to go to heaven in that way in which they can gratify their vicious
and [deviliſh | devilish]deviliſhdevilish Inclinations. They hear that they [muſt | must]muſtmust not get drunk
if they Embrace the [Goſple | Gospel]GoſpleGospel which your [ſon | son]ſonson[pers0578.ocp] offered to them; which gos
goes hard [againſt | against]againſtagainst their deep Rooted Appetites but if they continue
as they are, they can get drunk and [practiſe | practice]practiſepractice all manner of Evil
and at [laſt | last]laſtlast Expe[above] cct to Enter the long [houſe | house]houſehouse which [the | they]thethey call heaven
[Some where | somewhere]Some wheresomewhere towards the [ſouth | south]ſouthsouth, where [the | they]thethey will be free f[illegible]rom all pain
and have nothing to [Exerciſe | exercise]Exerciſeexercise their minds — this is the Heaven
which the french [friers | friars]friersfriars have [promiſed | promised]promiſedpromised them. the Indians in
general [ſay | say]ſaysay that it is vain and talk very [discourageing | discouraging]discourageingdiscouraging and [ſay | say]ſaysay
that you need not look for them no more; their [be haviour | behaviour]be haviourbehaviour [Shews | shows]Shewsshows Enough
that they have [Refuſed | refused]Refuſedrefused.
I have Begun my [ſchool | school]ſchoolschool the [laſt | last]laſtlast week, and the [Onidasſ | Oneidas]OnidasſOneidas[org0075.ocp] [illegible: [guess (h-dawnd): [ſeem | seem]ſeemseem][ſeem | seem]ſeemseem]
Seem very much to have their minds [ſhuttered | shuttered]ſhutteredshuttered and in a [Ruffel. | ruffle]Ruffel.ruffle
the great men who are hounoured with the care over the Indians
I fear have greatly Erred in [ſome | some]ſomesome things and let too much of their
Cloven foot appear.
I had [propoſed | proposed]propoſedproposed coming down next week (but nNathan[pers0127.ocp] comes in
my Room) and bring down Hannah[pers0244.ocp] [& | and]&and Catarine[pers0113.ocp] to your [ſchool | school]ſchoolschool
and are Obliged to come before [illegible]the time your [ſon | son]ſonson[pers0578.ocp] [appointd | appointed]appointdappointed
and for [theſe | these]theſethese [Reaſons | reasons]Reaſonsreasons. [1.t | 1st.]1.t1st. that they are quite [Uneaſy | uneasy]Uneaſyuneasy to come
down to your [ſchool | school]ſchoolschool[org0098.ocp] [aſ | as]aſas [ſoon | soon]ſoonsoon as [poſsible | possible]poſsiblepossible and could by no
means wait [till | 'til]till'til Thomas[pers0643.ocp] and the [reſt | rest]reſtrest of the Indians came down
[2.d | 2nd.]2.d2nd. is that they have [ſuſpected | suspected]ſuſpectedsuspected [ſome | some]ſomesome Danger that they cant wait
and that is, they are [affraid | afraid]affraidafraid of being Bewitched if [the | they]thethey [ſtay | stay]ſtaystay
and they [ſay | say]ſaysay if they dont come down to your [ſchool | school]ſchoolschool[org0098.ocp] they
[muſt | must]muſtmust go [ſome | some]ſomesome where [Elſe | else]Elſeelse. hannah[pers0244.ocp], brother and [ſeveral | several]ſeveralseveral others are
[thretned | threatened]thretnedthreatened, [like w[illegible]iſe | likewise]like w[illegible]iſelikewise the queen[pers0619.ocp], and I was [adviſed | advised]adviſedadvised to go [of | off]ofoff with them
S[illegible]oon as could be, but the state of things at [preſent | present]preſentpresent I thought I
Would not [above] SufferSuffer for which [Reaſon | reason]Reaſonreason Nathan[pers0127.ocp] comes down. and other [reaſons | reasons]reaſonsreasons
his defect [& | and]&and [Uncapableneſs | incapableness]Uncapableneſsincapableness of [carriing | carrying]carriingcarrying on the [buſsineſs | business]buſsineſsbusiness which he
is [intruſted | entrusted]intruſtedentrusted with. and many other which he can better acquaint than
I can.

We Expect one of the French [Miniſters | ministers]Miniſtersministers here this [ſeaſon | season]ſeaſonseason
for which [Reaſon | reason]Reaſonreason I dont love to leave the Indians — —
I have nothing [ſtrange | strange]ſtrangestrange to Acquaint you at [preſent | present]preſentpresent I [ſhall | shall]ſhallshall
go with the Indians next week to their [illegible][guess (cassandrah): hunt]hunt (as all My [ſcholars | scholars]ſcholarsscholars
will go) I have only five Scholars at [priſent | present]priſentpresent and the [Oldeſt | oldest]Oldeſtoldest is 10
years of age hardly worth [ſtaying | staying]ſtayingstaying for. but according to your Sons[pers0578.ocp]
orders I Stay with them; I dont know when I [ſhall | shall]ſhallshall come down
to make a [ſhort | short]ſhortshort [vizit | visit]vizitvisit; I Seem to be [Intirely | entirely]Intirelyentirely Content to be —
[diſpoſed | disposed]diſpoſeddisposed of as Seems [beſt | best]beſtbest in your [ſight | sight]ſightsight. [& | and]&and to be wholly at your —
[diſpoſal | disposal]diſpoſaldisposal. I fare very well at [preſent | present]preſentpresent plenty of [pideons | pigeons]pideonspigeons in our woods.
I want to hear from you My Kind Benefactor (I have[above] havehave been
much troubled in dreams concerning you of late. I fear you are
not well. but this is too much of my Indian principles.) I feel
Sorry about [ſomethings | some things]ſomethingssome things that I did neglect when I was down
and have laid with great [wait | weight]waitweight upon my mind Ever [ſince | since]ſincesince;
I fear I did not do my duty in not hearing your kind advice
of binding [my ſelf | myself]my ſelfmyself to be the LLords however by Gods Grace
[Aſsisting | assisting]Aſsistingassisting me I Endeavour to keep [my ſelf | myself]my ſelfmyself [Uproted | uprooted]Uproteduprooted from the
world and make his word my Rule of Life. ——
no more at [preſent | present]preſentpresent, but I would [deſire | desire]deſiredesire humbly to recommend
[my ſelf | myself]my ſelfmyself to your [ day ly | daily] day lydaily prayers that he would never [ſuffer | suffer]ſuffersuffer me to
Act or do [any thing | anything]any thinganything that will at all [diſgrace | disgrace]diſgracedisgrace the [Cauſe | cause]Cauſecause or the
Religion of [Chriſt | Christ]ChriſtChrist. [& | and]&and to keep me humble, keep me from pride
and all high thoughts of [my ſelf | myself]my ſelfmyself.

[Closer]
is the [day ly | daily]day lydaily prayer of your
poor pupil and Humble [ſervant | servant]ſervantservant.

 [Joſph | Joseph]JoſphJoseph [Johnſon | Johnson]JohnſonJohnson[pers0288.ocp].
 [Kanoarohare | Kanawalohale]KanoarohareKanawalohale[place0114.ocp] May [2.d | 2nd.]2.d2nd. [1768-05-02]
 AD 1768[1768-05-02]. —
[Postscript]
PS. [pleaſe | please]pleaſeplease [ſir | sir]ſirsir to [over look | overlook]over lookoverlook my [haſt | haste]haſthaste,
and the many Blunders which I [Soppoſe | suppose]Soppoſesuppose
are in this paper. I have no time to write
it over or correct it. dont [Expoſe | expose]Expoſeexpose it. [ſo | so]ſoso
I remain your Humble [ſervant | servant]ſervantservant
 [Joſeph | Joseph]JoſephJoseph [Johnſon | Johnson]JohnſonJohnson[pers0288.ocp].
[below] To —To —
 [below] [Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Eleazar Wheelock[pers0036.ocp] D.D.[Mr | Mr.]MrMr. Eleazar Wheelock[pers0036.ocp] D.D.

[note (type: editorial): Blank page.]

[Trailer]
From [Jos: | Joseph]Jos:Joseph Johnson[pers0288.ocp]
 May [2.d | 2nd.]2.d2nd. 1768[1768-05-02]

To. —
 The [Revd | Rev.]RevdRev. [Doctr | Dr.]DoctrDr. Wheelock[pers0036.ocp].
 In.
 [New-Eng-land | New England]New-Eng-landNew England [place0158.ocp]
[left] [Pr | Per]PrPer favour of}
Nathan Clap}[pers0127.ocp]
[Pr | Per]PrPer favour of}
Nathan Clap}[pers0127.ocp]
Document Summary

People identified in this document:

id Text in document Role in header Authorized Name
pers0578.ocp your ſon son mentioned Wheelock, Rodulphus
pers0127.ocp Nathan mentioned Clap, Nathan
pers0244.ocp Hannah mentioned Hail, Hannah
pers0113.ocp Catarine mentioned Catarine
pers0643.ocp Thomas mentioned Thomas
pers0244.ocp hannah mentioned Hail, Hannah
pers0619.ocp the queen mentioned Queen, the
pers0578.ocp your Sons mentioned Wheelock, Rodulphus
pers0288.ocp Joſ ph Joseph Johnſon Johnson writer Johnson, Joseph
pers0288.ocp Joſeph Joseph Johnſon Johnson writer Johnson, Joseph
pers0036.ocp Eleazar Wheelock recipient Wheelock, Eleazar
pers0288.ocp Jos: Joseph Johnson writer Johnson, Joseph
pers0036.ocp Rev d Rev. Doct r Dr. Wheelock recipient Wheelock, Eleazar
pers0127.ocp Nathan Clap} mentioned Clap, Nathan

Places identified in this document:

id Text in document Authorized Name
place0114.ocp Kanoarohare Kanawalohale Kanawalohale
place0180.ocp Onondage Onondaga Onondaga
place0158.ocp New-Eng-land New England New England

Organizations identified in this document:

id Text in document Authorized Name
org0075.ocp OnidasſOneidas Oneida Nation
org0098.ocp your ſchoolschool Moor’s Indian Charity School

Dates identified in this document:

Standard Form Text
1768-05-02 May 2,d2nd 1768
1768-05-02 May 2.d2nd.
1768-05-02 AD 1768
1768-05-02 May 2.d2nd. 1768

Regularized text:

Type Original Regularized
variation Kanoarohare Kanawalohale
modernization 2,d 2nd
modernization Revd Rev.
modernization Doct.r Dr.
variation Enform inform
modernization ſame same
modernization goodneſs goodness
modernization ſtill still
variation Valuble valuable
variation Onondage Onondaga
modernization Goſpel Gospel
variation Enformed informed
variation diſcourage‐
‐ing
discourag
ing
modernization preſent present
modernization amongſt amongst
variation reather rather
variation divils devils
modernization ſuch such
variation Chuſe choose
modernization deviliſh devilish
modernization muſt must
variation Goſple Gospel
modernization ſon son
modernization againſt against
variation practiſe practice
modernization laſt last
modernization houſe house
variation Some where somewhere
modernization ſouth south
modernization Exerciſe exercise
variation friers friars
modernization promiſed promised
modernization ſay say
variation discourageing discouraging
variation be haviour behaviour
variation Shews shows
modernization Refuſed refused
modernization ſchool school
variation Onidasſ Oneidas
modernization ſeem seem
modernization ſhuttered shuttered
variation Ruffel. ruffle
modernization ſome some
modernization propoſed proposed
variation appointd appointed
modernization theſe these
modernization Reaſons reasons
modernization 1.t 1st.
modernization Uneaſy uneasy
modernization aſ as
modernization ſoon soon
modernization poſsible possible
variation till 'til
modernization reſt rest
modernization 2.d 2nd.
modernization ſuſpected suspected
variation affraid afraid
modernization ſtay stay
modernization Elſe else
modernization ſeveral several
variation thretned threatened
modernization like w[illegible]iſe likewise
modernization adviſed advised
variation of off
modernization Reaſon reason
modernization reaſons reasons
variation Uncapableneſs incapableness
variation carriing carrying
variation buſsineſs business
variation intruſted entrusted
modernization Miniſters ministers
modernization ſeaſon season
modernization ſtrange strange
modernization ſhall shall
modernization ſcholars scholars
variation priſent present
modernization Oldeſt oldest
modernization ſtaying staying
modernization ſhort short
variation vizit visit
variation Intirely entirely
modernization diſpoſed disposed
modernization beſt best
modernization ſight sight
modernization diſpoſal disposal
variation pideons pigeons
variation ſomethings some things
variation wait weight
modernization ſince since
variation my ſelf myself
modernization Aſsisting assisting
variation Uproted uprooted
modernization deſire desire
variation day ly daily
modernization ſuffer suffer
variation any thing anything
modernization diſgrace disgrace
modernization Cauſe cause
modernization Chriſt Christ
variation day ly daily
modernization ſervant servant
modernization Johnſon Johnson
modernization pleaſe please
modernization ſir sir
variation over look overlook
variation haſt haste
variation Soppoſe suppose
modernization Expoſe expose
modernization ſo so
modernization Joſeph Joseph
modernization Mr Mr.
modernization Doctr Dr.
variation New-Eng-land New England

Expanded abbreviations:

Abbreviation Expansion
Hond Honoured
the they
& and
Joſph Joseph
Jos: Joseph
Pr Per

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Summary of errors found in this document:

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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 40)
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