The Agricultural Papers of George Washington 89 



would enable me, or the documents in my possession allow, to 

 give such information of the actual state of the farms, as to 

 enable persons at a distance to form as distinct ideas as the 

 nature of the thing is susceptible of, short of one s own view ; 

 and, having communicated the motives which have inclined me 

 to a change in my system, I will announce to you the origin 

 of them. 



First, few ships, of late, have arrived from any part of 

 Great Britain or Ireland without a number of emigrants, and 

 some of them, by report, very respectable and full-handed 

 farmers. A number of others, they say, are desirous of 

 following, but are unable to obtain passages ; but their coming 

 in that manner, even if I was apprized of their arrival in time, 

 would not answer my views, for the reason already assigned ; 

 and which, as it is the ultimatum at present, I will take the 

 liberty of repeating, namely, that I must carry my plan into 

 complete execution, or not attempt it; and under such 

 auspices, too, as to leave no doubt of the exact fulfilment ; and, 



Secondly, because, from the number of letters which I 

 have received myself, and, as it would seem, from respectable 

 people, inquiring into matters of this sort, with intimations 

 of their wishes, and even intentions of migrating to this 

 country, I can have no doubt of succeeding. But I have 

 made no reply to these inquiries, or, if any, in very general 

 terms ; because I did not want to engage in correspondences 

 of this sort with persons of whom I had no knowledge, nor 

 indeed leisure for them, if I had been so disposed. 



I shall now conclude as I began, with a desire, that if you 

 see any impropriety in making these sentiments known to 

 that class of people, who might wish to avail themselves of 

 the occasion, that it may not be mentioned. By a law, or by 

 some regulation of your government, artisans, I am well 

 aware, are laid under restraints ; and for this reason, I have 



