★ Keep up to date with the latest news - subscribe to the Transcribe Bentham newsletter; Find a new page to transcribe in our list of Untranscribed Manuscripts
Irkutsk June 16th O.S. 1782
Not a Scrap of a letter had I received from England or scarcely from
Petersbourg since October last while I was at Perme till today when
the post brought me at once 7 from my father & you. My father's
are dated one Septr 14th the other Octr 18th. Yours are of the 1st & 13th of
August. 11th & 15th of Septr & the 21st of October. I have also received
some interesting news from Petersbourg, and I would wish to
take the opportunity of the post which sets out in 2 days to answer
yours at least. Some of your letters and more particularly your
representation of the advice which Ld Shelburne is so kind as to
give me quite disconcerts all my plans: but I believe I must
begin by giving you some account of them as they hitherto stood
which is what I have not attempted to do since I left
Catherineberg. In a letter from that place dated the beginning of
January last I mentioned to you the terms which I thought the best
to make engagements on with private people relating to improvements
in fabricks manufacturies &c. The saltworks near Solikamskaja
served me as example and I told you how much one of the proprietors
seemed disposed to enter into such terms. I about the same
time wrote to Petersbourg to my friend Hyman that he might sound
a person who had before wished to have some such engagements
with me how far such terms would be agreeable to him. By this
part I have in answer to that enquiry an assurance that he most
perfectly approves of the terms the and further assurances of
the liberal way of thinking sentiments of this said person together with pressing
advice to enter into such a kind of association with him immediately.
This man's business is to greater amount than any other's I
have heard of in the Empire. His protection at Court is also the
best, on which account as well as that of his riches Governors
of course bow down to him. His chief affairs lie about the
black sea. He there farms the duties on some articles, builds ships
for the Crown supplies the army & the crown in general with
almost all necessaries, has falsicks of various kinds, and is clearing
the waterfalls of the Dnieper at his own private expense.
|
Identifier: | JB/539/289/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 539.
|
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
1782-06-16 |
|||
|
539 |
|||
|
289 |
|||
|
001 |
|||
|
Correspondence |
|||
|
Samuel Bentham |
|||