Another Letter and Loan Note

Here is another letter / loan note.  I assume they are written by the same person as they are on adjacent pages and in the same hand.  You may click on the images below to enlarge them.

The first part of the letter reads as follows:

Sir I cant but condole your unhappy Condition and as I had

the happiness to Participate in your Prospearity So give me

leave leave to Share with you as a friend and bear a part

As much as may be in your Sufferings and I intreat you.

How grievous So ever Such a restrain may Proove to So noble

And generous a Sole as yours that you would not afflict

yourself but bare with your wanted Patieunt and bravery

This your misfortune and as a true Christan what

Cannot at Preasent be helpt or redressed Considering

That Such Casualies and mischances frequently befall

Mankind and let it move immediately Sir be your

Comfort and Consolation that it happens by any

Neglect or Extravagance of your own that your

Fortune and Circumstances are Sunk thus low but

By Ineveitable loses and mischances that have Even

Concerned your Diligence and baffled your Industry

Insomuch that I think I may Say that fortune

her Self Strives against you however be not any

Ways Cast Down but think that you may yet live

Not only to overcome the Storm of adversity but to

See many Prosperous Days Remember the Eclips

holy jobe Sufferred and with him also be Comforted

That your healp is in the lord and that god will

Not leave nor for Sake those that trust in him

These things Eye thought fit to Put you in mind of

In hopes they may Establish you in an Unconquerable

Resolutions to undergo what is layd upon you till it

Cant be Redressed and So till I have the opportunity to

Pay you a Visit I take leave to Subscibe myself Sir

          Your Constant and faithful  friend to serve you

Quite the letter of lament.  This person must have been in pretty bad shape to have been compared to "holy jobe".

The second, adjacent letter, in the same hand reads:

Acquittance in full for money in the way of of trade

or lent without any obligation may the 3 – 176?

Then Received of mr John Jones the Sum of ten

Pounds Due from him to me upon account and

Is in full of all in all manner of Debts Dues

Or Demands Due from him to me or any ways

Depending between us which in law or Equity

I Cant justly or lawfully Demand or lay Clame

In witness thareof I have Set my hand the Day

of the Date and year above mentioned

                  Witness                Alexander Summuels

I do not know if these letters are really related.  I am also not sure of the actual date of the second letter, but it does not appear to be in the 1770's.  If not, why was it included in this book?  I do not know of an Alexander Summuels (Or Alexander Samuels).

Loan Notes Witnessed at Mill Prison

There are several very interesting notes or letters in Nutter's notebook that appear to be unrelated to him. How or when they were put in the notebook are questionable and whether these were original documents or just copies is unknown. For example, here is one with several interesting aspects...

It reads:

"From a Single bill for money with Payment, Be it known unto all men by these Presents that I John Brown of Derby in the County of Derby gentleman Do owe and Stand Indebted unto John Da... (possibly Davis) of Chester in the County of Chester the Sum of twenty Pounds of lawful money of England and to be Paid the Said John Brown his heirs Executors Administrators or assigns at and upon the Seventeenth Day of September next Ensuing the Date here of Which Payment will and truly to be made.  I bind Myself my heirs Executors and administrators to the Said John brown his heirs Executors Administrators Or assigns in the Penal Sum of forty Pounds of the Like money firmly by these Presents.  In witness There of I Set my hand and Seal the Second Day of June in the forth year of the reign of our Suvring lord the Congres of the States of Amaricka and in the year of our lord 1778.  Signed Sealed and Delivered.

John Dimond

Henery Lunt Witness"

Clearly this is some sort of loan note originally written on 2 June 1778.  I have trouble making sense of this whole affair.  It appears that John Brown is borrowing 20 pounds from John Da... but that the sum borrowed will not be paid until the 17th of September 1778.  Davis? was also bound to eventually pay double if he did not make the 20 pound load as agreed.  It was common for prisoners at Mill Prison to borrow money from others to assist in their escape.  Is this the reason for the loan?  Did Jacob Nutter participate at all in this transaction or was this note written in the notebook before he purchased it, possibly in August of 1778.

There is also the interesting mixture of English money and reference to the Congress of the United States.  Perhaps this is due to the two American witnesses to this transaction.

Who John Brown was I do not know.  There are at least two references to John Brown I have run across, one of them being an english sailor later on the Bonhomme Richard.

If the second party listed in the note was truly John Davis, then it might make sense.  There was a John Davis, identified as an Englishman, on the Lexington, and he is listed in Nutter's book as being in the first gang that was released from prison 5 October 1778 to join the British Navy.

Henry Lunt is was one of the Dolton's crew originally sailing with Jacob Nutter who eventually went on to serve as one of the lieutenants of the Bonhomme Richard under John Paul Jones.

John Dimond was a Marblehead man and part of a prize crew from the brig Freedom.  Their prize ship was captured 29 April 1777 and this is how Dimond came to be at Mill Prison.

Nutter's Notes Concerning Prisoners Released to the British Navy 1778.

On the back inside cover of Jacob Nutter's notebook he made the notation "Left mill prison the 5th of October 1778.  Then there is a list of names.  There is a second group of names with the notation "Second gang october the.....

Charles Herberts journal describes what these gangs represented and why they were being released.

This is from Charles Herbert's book "Relic of the Revolution" published in 1847. 

The list of men from Nutter's notebook are as follows:

Left mill prison the 5th day of October 1778
John Burnell
Richard Howard
William Smith
Edward Speeler
James Lowrey
John Davis
Umphery Potter
William Orsburn
David Clark
Frances Colburn
Bartholemy Barrell
William Bright
Robert Macelary
William Hall
Robert Richey
Frances Courtlen
William Creber
William Carpenter
Thomas Welch
Benjeman Loceet
Nichles Shais
Edward Lewas
Thomas Marles
Andrew Grase
William Deton
John George Stamfield
William Anderson
Benjaman Rigle
Thomas Runnels
Joseph Holt
Henery Beckley
Ellexander Fraser

The Second Gang:

 

Alexander Neal
James Lyons
Samuel Williams
Matthew Clear
Matthew Branson
John Steward
John Dagon
Joseph Engerson
Aaron Twidgley
Edward Hart
John Wigens
Willian Foord
Cuf Scott a negro

These names listed, match very closely with those names listed at the back of Herbert's book. 

What Was the Source of Nutter's Arithmetic Book?

I became quite interested to understand where the arithmetic examples in Jacob Nutter's notebook came from.  There were many references to variations of something called the "Rule of Threes" written in very formal language.  In addition there were many numbered arithmetic problems including multiplication, division currency conversions, and weights and measures.

There was one clue in the body of the text that eventually allowed me to track down the original source of this material.  Here is a clip from Nutter's journal with that clue:

It reads "See more of this in my yong algebraist Companion".  This seemed to be a clear reference to a text book.  Upon research on the internet I found, that yes, indeed, there was a "Young Algebraist Companion" by a Daniel Fenning, who was apparently well known for writing text books in the mid-18th century in England.  Further research showed that one of his other books was called the "British Youth's Instructor.  I was able to find a copy of one page of this book from a college libary collection that was shown on line.  Here is the page from that book:

Next I searched through the Nutter notebook and found this:

The exact same problems!!  I found the source!  Since then, I found a complete copy of Fenning's book on the internet through Google.  Here is a copy of the cover page:

Here is another comparison between the two books.

 So, now I know where the arithmetic problems originated from.  But how did the text get into the Prison?  According to Charles Herbert's detailed journal of his time spent at Mill Prison, The Reverend Robert Heath, one of the Commissioners assigned by the British government to look after the prisoner's welfare, would periodically bring to the prisoners various books donated by the local population who were sympathetic to the American cause.  It is likely that Fenning's book was donated to the prisoners and circulated about the prison for self improvement.  In 1778 the prisoner conditions began to improve and they were allowed pen and paper along with books and many began self studies to keep their minds occupied and perhaps Jacob Nutter had an opportunity to hand copy the original text.

My research also indicates that Richard Dale, one of the American officers a Mill Prison at the same time as Nutter, and later first Lieutenant of the Bonhomme Richard, also maintained a math notebook at Mill Prison which is now with his other papers at the Library of Congress.  Someday, if I have a chance to go to Washington again, I would like to look at his notebook to see if there is any similarity to Nutter's.

Exploration of the Contents of Nutter's Prison Notebook

When first looking at the arithmetic book we started by searching for direct references to Jacob Nutter.  Here are clips from the scanned journal of what we found in no particular order:

 

You may click on the images to enlarge them.

The first clip is a reference to the death of Volentine (Valentine) Nutter in 1786; clearly a note made six years after Jacob returned home from France.  Valentine was one of Jacob's older siblings.  Other genealogical records confirm this as the date of Valentine's death.

The second clip appears to be in a child's hand and has the words Kittery and Berwick.  There are some other scribbles elsewhere in the book and some abc's perhaps indicating a child had been given the book to  practice their handwriting.

The third clip shows Jacob Nutter's name along with the well written "Kittery January 21st AD 1806.  It is not clear whether Jacob wrote this, or perhaps it was his son, Jacob Jr. who was born in 1776.

The fourth clip shows Jacob's notation about purchasing the book at Mill Prison the 24th day of August.  Prise one Shilling.  It is not clear which year he bought the book but based on my research I believe it was 1778.  There is another notation "Jacob Nutter his hand and his...:  Then, "Cear of the Shoresman Samuel Clarck for Curon of the Same"  Dated 1786.  I am not exactly sure what it means, but I believe that curon is an older english word related to the word currency, or something of equal value.  If anyone knows, I would like to understand more.

The fifth clip, in pencil says "Received of the Purser 2 Shirts 1 Pare of Shoos 1 frock 1 Pair of trowsers the 23 of June.  There is no year listed but the only June possible would have been June of 1780 while Alliance lay at L'Orient Harbor just before weighing anchor for America.

The sixth and last clip directly related to Nutter or his family is a clarification of the note above and clearly written after the fact.  It reads "Received of the Purser of the Continental Ship Alliance June the 23 1780 Two Shirts Wone Pare of Shoos Wone Frock Wone pare of trowsers  From which I Served the 30 of aprill 1779 Untill the year 1780 September 6".  Perhaps he made better note of government goods supplied upon his discharge on 6 September 1780.