John Quincy Adams to Thomas Boylston Adams

As the Bankers at Amsterdam have agreed to pay the bill for 7.500. florins it will not be necessary to do any thing further on that subject. I hope you will be able to go on without drawing any more from them until the new year, but you know what sort of dependence I have placed upon the repayment of the 200ƒ from the beginning.

I regret that you should be troubled with so many affairs at once. They come as usual "by Batallions". However a little exercise of official business will be of no disservice to you, & as for the copying you may be assured of my anxiety to have an end to that.

I believe that at present my departure will rest upon the pleasure of the wind and weather only. Mr: Skinner and his vessel have come down, and I expect to take passage with him. Mais il ne faut jamais jurer de rien.

As Mr: Short has given his directions relative to the delivery of his letters of recreance, and you intend to execute them I have only to thank you for it in his behalf & my own.

The matter of the flag may rest for the present. I am not certain however that I shall not be obliged to recur to it after all.

Sorrow loves company says the proverb. We have here a couple of Gentlemen arrived from Hamburg this morning. They have been twenty three days in coming, in the midst of the violent gales, which I have escaped. There is some consolation in saying "it might have been worse".

My Philosophy holds out as yet. It is a comfortable doctrine, that our strength is proportioned to our trials; but I am sometimes ready to think that the observation should be inverted.

Since I know you have received my former letters I am relieved from much anxiety, and I readily conceive that in the hurry of a visit to Court, my request for the late Leyden Gazettes slipped from your memory. It is of no consequence and I mention it only to renew the request in case the wind should continue Westerly, until \the/ return of \the/ frost.

A propos, speaking of Newspapers, as you are not in the habit of reading Dutch, the Rotterdam & Haerlem papers may be dropped.

Having so good reason to conclude that my letters now prove tedious to you in proportion to their length, I shall after requesting to be kindly, remembered to all friends, but especially to the Amiable Baron only add the assurance of invariable affection / from your Brother.