Philadelphia Sept: 23d: 1794.
Sir
The bearer Mr Jos: Burr is a gentleman, who has been in the
practice of attending surveys of land, for the purpose of making
observations on the soil, situation, climate, waters, rivers, timber,
mines, and such other things as may tend to give a compleat and
perfect knowledge of their nature and value. It is with this view
I have sent him on to view the lands we are taking up in the
neighbourhood of the mines, and have committed to his care Virginia
Warrants for Two Hundred Thousand Acres of land in addition to
the Ten Thousand Acre Warrants, which I forwarded before, and
which you have recd-
In your letter of the 16th. of August which I have recd. you
mention two propositions with respect to the terms upon which you
wish the land to be taken up, one with regard to the first, the other
respecting the second Two Hundred Thousand Acres, and you say
that you had agreed to let the surveyor have 80,000 out of the first
two Hundred Thousand Acres, he paying the expences. do you mean
the surveyors fees, chain carriers, and other incidental expences.
With regard to your two propositions, I do not see the propriety of
your making any distinction betwixt them, the expense and trouble
attending the one will be as great as that of attending the other; and
no more, besides, in all the lands I have taken up in Pennsylvania,
which have amounted to many hundred Thousand Acres, I have
never been asked by the discoverers for more than a third, some
times a fourth, sometimes a fifth, and it is always the business of the
discoverers (in which capacity you and Mr Gnes [Gains?] are to be
considered) to attend and to superintend the surveys. This third the
discoverers divide betwixt themselves in such manner as they can
agree, and as they think proper. In a former letter you hinted, that
you thought it would be more agreeable to the Surveyor to have a
compensation in money, to this I shall have no objection if we can
agree upon the sum, and I shall have no objection to do the same
thing with you if it is agreeable. I have accepted your draft for
five hundred Dollars towards paying for the Kentucky Warrants
as you desire. As soon as the Surveyor has made out the returns Mr.
Burr will proceed with them to Richmond in order to obtain the
Patents.
N. B. Mr Norwell has not brot the deed either from Lynchburgh
or from Richmond-
Thos. Ruston
Take care you do not buy more Warrants than you can find land
for.
Point out to Mr Burr those tracts in the neighbourhood that are to
be disposed of, in order that he may be able to give me some account
of them, and send me the lowest prices and the longest terms of
payment which the owners will be willing to take—