Letters

LETTERS LETTER ONE James Logan to Thomas Story quarto 2 pp. addressed : To Thomas Story endorsed : London recd & forwarded per thy ffrd J. Askew Philadia, 25th 8**, 1724 T. Story, Esteemed ffriend. After an easie voyage of seven weeks and two dayes from Lond, It pleased God to restore me to my family, whom I found all in health; but in about 3 weeks after, I was visited with a severe Distemper, a kind of feaver of woh several died here, that brought me, in the Opinion of those about me, to the brink of ye grave, nor have I yet fully recovered my former State, tho' thro' mercy I am at present in a fairer way for it than ever before. It was no small trouble to me, as I divers times express'd it to thee from Lond, that I had not the happiness to see thee there. I have not at present treated with thy Attorneys about thy House1 further than to take a Lease of it for 3 years more at ye same Rent, for tho' Lands and Houses were much fain in Value here before I went for Engld, as I particularly wrote to thee, yet our Paper money makes it up in some measure since the last quantity was struck, and therefore I design to make no further 1ThIS may have been Story's house on Second Street which he received as part of his wife's marriage-dower. He sold it to James Logan later (Penn and Logan Correspondence, I. 358, note by Deborah Logan). (17) 18LOGAN-STORY CORRESPONDENCE. words about it. This last Voyage has rather confirmed me in Trade than otherwise, and therefore I am willing to continue in ye same place, having made it as convenient as I could for my business, at my own charge, as long as I shall follow it. Thou knows what I wrote to thee of a family in town in relation to this affair, and if thou continues the same thoughts as expressed in thy Answer to that Letf, Edwd,2 who is now very 2This was, probably, Edward Shippen (1703-1781), who was brought up by James Logan and joined him in partnership in 1732. Besides being mayor (in 1745) he was a Judge of the County Court. His later home was in Lancaster, Pa. He married Sarah Plumley. His father was Joseph Shippen (1678/9-1741), and his grandfather, Edward Shippen (1639-1712), whose daughter, Ann, married Thomas Story in 1706. He was known as "Edward Shippen of Lancaster," and was founder of Shippensburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. Shippen Papers are in the Library of Congress, Washington, D. C. ; Hannah Logan's Courtship; Penna. Magasine, Jan. 1926. Edward Shippen, (1639-1712) was born in Yorkshire and came to Boston, Mass., in 1668, removing to Philadelphia in 1693. He married, first, Elizabeth Lybrand, in 1671, by whom he had sons Edward and Joseph, and daughter Ann who married Thomas Story in 1706. His second wife was a widow, Rebecca Richardson (Mrs. Francis Richardson) and in 1699 "Edward Shippen and his wife Rebecca" are mentioned in the Life of William and Alice Ellis, London, 1849. The third wife was Esther, the widow of Philip James, who brought one child with her. The proposals for this marriage had been laid before Philadelphia M. M., but final permission for the marriage to take place was withheld, owing to circumstances which came to light while the matter was before the Meeting. The wedding took place, however, and on 6 mo. 30, 1706, the M. M. ordered Shippen and his wife to be "labored with" and to discontinue to hold evening meetings at their house. Extracts from a letter from James Logan to William Penn, Junr., dated "August 12, 1706," being omitted portions of the letter printed in Penn and Logan Correspondence, II. 158, have been kindly supplied from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, but they cannot well be given here. The matter ended satisfactorily, for we read in a letter from James Logan to William Penn, 19 V. 1708: "E. Shippen has been a long time fully restor'd amongst frds & therefore, since he acts for thee as...