Elbridge Dec the 20 1839
M^rs Seward,
Dear friend I hope you will pardon
me while I attempt to write you by way of making
A few requests of your husband our Gov. I have
been to New Jersey and Orange County to my son
and daughter. James is now 22 years old he has been Clerk, for
Canfields &c Moristown three years they appear to like
him very much they say he has A very good Idea of buisness
and James is equally well pleasd with his place but thinks
they do not pay him enough they board him and give $450
this he says barely Cloths him his time expires there in June
he told me he thought of selling his land in orange Co and
take the Avails of it of it and going into the Mercantile buis-
ness I feel asthough his land is sunk property and had ra-
ther he would keep it if he could be assisted into buisness as cler-
k where he would be better satisfied I thought perhaps
your husband might know of some place where his
services ware needed and as we are all warm friends
of his and believe him to be A charitable man we hope
he would be willing to assist him – and while I am in-
terceeding for James I will at the same time say A word
for ourselves M^r Seward is somewhat acquainted with father
Stevens and knows that he never assists his children we
owing to some misfortunes are poor my Husband is
A warm whig and is A temperate hard working man
we live on less than forty acres of land and that not very
productive. it lies north east of Jordan it hardly afords
us our bread. M^r Stevens education is sufficient to
do any comon biusness if you could put us in the way
to do better than we can here – we shall consider it an
inestimable favour my health at this time is very poor
I heard a few days since by way of Mrs Pitney of the deaths in
your family I think cos Jennings will be very lonely
M^r Stevens is A man that never puts himself forward
in buisness but says he should be glad to have it without
giving any one trouble Olivia Stevens
M^rs Seward

Mrs William H Seward
Albany
N.York
JORDAN
hOlivia Stevens
Dec 20^th
1839