18 MEMOIR OF 



have been at liberty to accept the doctor's generous invi- 

 tation. This he did, with emotions of joy which are 

 uttered in the following simple and affecting reply, dated 

 April 4th, 1815. 



" I have this hour received your last letter, and I can 

 assure you, that language is inadequate to express to 

 you my sincere, unfeigned joy, for the pleasing news you 

 have communicated to me. Let the manner in which 

 these lines are penned, convince you of the state of my 

 mind at present. I was, thirty minutes before I received 

 your letter, on the point of going to a printer, in this 

 city, to seek employment, and, but for Providence, I 

 should have done so. You may suppose that, as soon as 

 I read your letter, I abandoned this intention and re- 

 turned to my sister's house,* * with fire in each eye and 

 paper in each hand,' to answer your epistle of friendship's 

 own dictating. I must lay this aside for a short time, 

 till my mind becomes settled and undisturbed. I stopped 

 at the line above, in order that I might recover a small 

 degree of composure, in order to express myself as I 

 ought, to so good a friend. I will certainly comply with 

 your request, should it please God to continue my health 

 and strength during the ensuing week. Should it please 

 the mercy of Providence to suffer me to take up my re- 

 sidence with you, I shall endeavour, by the most inde- 

 fatigable study and diligence, to give you the satisfaction 



* Mrs. Stella Miller, of Baltimore. 



