THE FANEUIL FAMILY 177 



tongue remained dear to him. He was one of the early 

 members of the Episcopal Charitable Society, and gave a 

 large sum to Trinity church to support the families of the 

 deceased clergy. Indeed, every charity of the time had 

 his name ou its subscription list for a generous sum. 

 While Peter Faneuil was liberal to all good objects, he 

 was scrupulous in his business transactions, and expected 

 to be dealt with justly, in the same spirit in which he 

 dealt with others. He did not like to be wronged out of 

 any amount, however small, as the following extract from 

 his correspondence shows: ''I have been very much 

 surprised that ever since the death of Captain Allen, you 

 have not advised me of the sale of a horse belonging to 

 my deceased uncle, left in your hands by him, which I 

 am informed you sold for a very good price, and I am 

 now to request the favour you would send me the net 

 proceeds in sweetmeats and citron water, your compli- 

 ance with which will stop me from giving some of my 

 friends the trouble of calling you to an account there. I 

 shall be glad to know if Captain Allen did not leave 

 a silver watch and some fish, belonging to a servant of 

 mine, with some person of your island, and with who? 

 I expect your speedy answer." 



As Mr, Brown, the biographer of the family, j)uts it, 

 ''While giving a pound with one hand, he was holding 

 the other for a penny that was j ustly his. ' ' Some branches 

 of his business, although endorsed by the trade and so- 

 ciety of his time as perfectly legitimate, would be found 

 wanting if weighed in the balance of modern commercial 

 integrity — from which we may see that, after all, the 

 standards have been raised instead of lowered, as is often 

 intimated by those pessimistically inclined. Trading with 

 so many ports, he received all kinds of merchandise, 

 wines and other liquors seeming to predominate, while 

 occasionally a negro slave was consigned to him. He 

 lived up to his conscience, however, for he writes to one 

 correspondent : "I would have you know that I am not 



