<hi rend="bold"> Letter from Joseph Caldwell to William R. Davie, August 25, [1796]:</hi> Electronic Edition. Caldwell, Joseph, 1773-1835 Funding from the University Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill supported the electronic publication of this title. Text scanned (OCR) by Brian Dietz Images scanned by Bari Helms Text encoded by Amanda Page First Edition, 2005 ca. 12K The University Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina 2005

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 University of North Carolina Papers (#40005), University Archives, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Letter from Joseph Caldwell to William R. Davie, August 25, [1796] Joseph Cald[well] 4 pages, 4 page images [1796] Call number 40005 (University Archives, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

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Text transcription of this document was produced by OCR (optical character recognition) from R. D. W. Connor's A Documentary History of the University of North Carolina 1776-1799 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1953), Vol. II, p. 50-52. Used by permission of the publisher (www.uncpress.unc.edu).

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 </bibl> </taxonomy> </classDecl> </encodingDesc> <profileDesc> <langUsage> <language id="eng">English</language> </langUsage> <textClass> <keywords scheme="unc_history"> <list> <item> Any special keywords assigned for this project </item> </list> </keywords> </textClass> </profileDesc> <revisionDesc> <change> <date>2005-06-15,</date> <respStmt> <name>Amanda Page</name> <resp/> </respStmt> <item>finished TEI/XML encoding.</item> </change> </revisionDesc> </teiHeader> <text id="unc05-12"> <body> <div1 type="official letter"> <pb id="unc05-12-p01" n="1"/> <head>Letter from <name key="pn0000268" reg="Caldwell, Joseph" type="person" rend="yes" id="JC">Joseph Caldwell</name> to <name key="pn0000399" reg="Davie, William Richardson" type="person" rend="yes">William R. Davie</name>, August 25, [1796]</head> <opener> <dateline> <name reg="Princeton University" key="name0000909" type="place" rend="yes">College of New Jersey</name>. <date>Aug. 25<hi rend="sup">th</hi> [1796]</date></dateline> <salute>Sir,</salute></opener> <p>I received a day or two ago your letter date[d the] 27<hi rend="sup">th</hi> of July, mentioning that the <name key="name0000107" reg="Board of Trustees" rend="yes" type="organization">trustees</name> of [the] <name key="name0001146" reg="University of North Carolina" rend="yes" type="organization">University</name> of your state had resolved to invite m[e to accept] its professorship of mathematics and natura[l phi]losophy. The letter you directed M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person" rend="yes"> Harris</name> to wr[ite to] me I had the satisfaction to receive some ti[me] ago, and had such full information from it, tha[t I] was able to compare without difficulty my pre[sent] situation with the one you offer. Of my acce[pt]ance you may perhaps have been informed [by] M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> before this. I shall arrange my af[fairs] in such a manner as to be ready to start fr[om] this place in the course of the first week in O[ctober.] The reasons why it would be out of my pow[er to] set out sooner, I conclude, you have learne[d from] M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name>. I have supposed that four weeks will be sufficient time for the journey and [torn] of consequence I shall be at <name key="name0000165" reg="Chapel Hill, NC" type="place" rend="yes">Chapel Hill</name> at the time M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> mentions, which is betwee[n the] end of October and the middle of Novembe[r.] I read an account in one of our papers of a[n ex]amination at <name key="name0001146" reg="University of North Carolina" type="organization">the University</name>, some time [ago] which was pleasing in the information it gav[e of] the organized state of the institution, and of the <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/><pb id="unc05-12-p02" n="2"/>students. M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> enumerated to me [torn] the professorships that had been instituted. [Amo]ng them is a professorship of Chymistry, which [he do]es not mention as being filled. I communicated [this] to D<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="x" reg="x" type="person">Maclean</name>, who is professor here in that [scien]ce. After having deliberated for some time [he] determined to write to M<hi rend="sup">r</hi><name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> to know from [him] the terms of the office. He did so. A few <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> afterwards I received your letter, and it then appear[ed] most proper and direct, tho' he had written to Mr <name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> to address himself to [you] on the subject. His salary here is small— [torn] drawn from a fixed and permanent fund. [torn]ven from the students, but from the private [torn]es of the <name key="name0000107" reg="Board of Trustees" type="organization">Trustees</name>. There are no prospects [at] present of which I know, of its arising from [any sou]rce less precarious. Dr <name key="x" reg="x" type="person">Maclean</name> came from [torn] to this country, and has with him such [torn] station of his knowledge and skill in Chymis[try] and surgery from men of the highest eminenc[e] in [t]hose professions there, as have left no doubt [in the] minds of those to whom they have been [exhi]bited of his knowledge being of the most solid — [sub]stantial kind— of his having obtained it from [torn] and indefatigable study, not unattended with [the] strongest proof of happy and successful genius.<pb id="unc05-12-p03" n="3"/> Since he has been here, which is about a year, [he] has written and delivered a course of lectures on C[hymistry.] The graduates of the college who reside in this [torn] have attended his lectures and experiments an[d] have given their opinion entirely in his favor. [I have] no doubt the trustees of this college would be [torn] unwilling to lose him, but they cannot pla[ce any] inducements before him, which they thems[elves] could think ought to detain him. I shewed your offer to Dr <name key="x" reg="x" type="person" rend="yes">Smith</name>, and he con[cur]red with the rest of my friends in advising m[e] to accept of it. He told me also that he himself should have no objections to accepting ge[ne]rous proposals from <name key="name0000107" reg="Board of Trustees" type="organization">the Trustees</name>. He ment[ioned] particularly that if they would give him [the] direction of the plan of the building and <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> environs he should feel no attachment to his settlem[ent] here sufficient to keep him. It will perhaps be [ex]pedient to direct a letter to D<hi rend="sup">r</hi> <name key="x" reg="x" type="person" rend="yes">Smith</name> if you [torn] <name key="name0000107" reg="Board of Trustees" type="organization">the Trustees</name> should think it desirable to <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> (and I do not now hesitate to say that as far [as] the reputation of this college depends upon its [im]mediate professors, you have an opportunity of transferring it in a great measure to the<gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> of your state.) I am, Sir, your very humle Sert <name key="pn0000268" reg="Caldwell, Joseph" type="person">JOSEPH CALD[WELL ]</name><gap reason="[unrecovered]"/></p> </div1> <div1 type="postscript"><pb id="unc05-12-p04" n="4"/> <p>I shewed to Dr <name key="x" reg="x" type="person">Maclean</name> who is professor of Chymistry <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> the account M<hi rend="sup">r</hi> <name key="pn0000684" reg="Harris, Charles Wilson" type="person"> Harris</name> gave of the state of the univer[sity] <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> he observed that the professorship of chymistry was <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> said to be filled. After some days had passed he <gap reason="[unrecovered]"/> to me and mentioned that he was determined to write [to] <name key="x" reg="x" type="person">Harris</name> to know the terms of the office.</p> <p>[Addressed:] <name reg="Davie, William Richardson" key="pn0000399" type="person">William R. Davie</name>Esqr<lb/> <name key="name0000455" reg="Halifax, NC" type="place" rend="yes">Halifax <lb/>North Carolina</name></p> </div1> </body> </text> </TEI.2>