This unsigned letter, dated July 16, 1845, begins “Mr Addams Sir I received your talk of the 13th.” It answers, point by point, Bryan Adams’s letter of July 13, 1845, to James Roach, and it is in the same hand as the unsigned letter of July 8, 1845, in this folder. It was probably written by James Roach.
The writer denies scandalizing Adams or asking the neighbors to shun him, and denies saying anything about Caleb Smith. He says he spoke no harm of Adams’s uncle, Stephen Chapman. He answers the charge that he had spent “five negroes” to pay grog bills by saying that he had bought more in slaves and land than he had ever sold. He condemns Adams’s life with the woman he calls Adams’s “damsel” and mentions “old Sall Smith” and David Adams, Henry Smith, and John Pelt. Bryan Adams replied again on July 20, 1845. The writer’s own words are kept as written below.
Letter probably from James Roach to Bryan Adams – July 16, 1845
Transcription notes: spelling, capitalization and punctuation follow the original. Words in [square brackets] are editorial notes; [?] marks an uncertain reading and [illegible] marks words that could not be read.
Mr Addams Sir I received your talk of the 13th stating that I had scandelised you badly [struck through: and] and hais beged the neighbours not to keep your company nor talk with you Sir I deny those charges and feel satisfyed that you can bring no such pley [?] by any true spoken purson for I have always had and have now two much respect for your family of people to scandalise the first one of them; and reason of its self will tel any reasenable purson that in the live of heaping up scandal on [struck through: illegible] your people as you have it would b to my interest to [interlined: put] down scandal No Bryan I never [struck through: tried to] scandalised you in my life nor never tried to for there would be no use in it you have dun a nough [interlined: your self] in the eyes of thinking people to last you your lifetime without my help if you live to be as old as methusila and as you say what goes over the Devels back wil cum under his belly if you are ever braught to se the same trouble about one of your people that all your people have seen about you and your latter conduct you will I am afrade be like unto Cane your punishment will be greater than you can bear and if you will trouble your self so fur as to ask your father and mother what I have said their about you you will be sattisfyed that I am belied as to what you say I told Caleb Smith it is not so I never told him any such thing but I tel you and you ma tel who you pleas that I think it is a great wonder [struck through: illegible] your damsel [struck through: illegible] had not entrived some way to get her off in the old feald as you mite enjoy what she had with a little more sattisfaction and also have the chance of pissing [?] on her grave and if you are simple anough to think you are Daniel in the den of lions do you go in [interlined: a] lot where there is a fierce mad doge even let alone lions and if he dose not notice you I will try to think you are Daniel and if you prove to be daniel in the den of lions you put your self there and if any purson was tring to help you out you [struck through: illegible] would never let them so I shall not try neither shall I lock you up [interlined: in there] and I no you are not the king for you can’t make no purson think that damsel of yours is respectable more over rightous Mr Addams Sir your dander appears to be up becaus I mentioned your uncle Stephen name Sir did I say ary harms word of him No; you produce that letter sho it to who you pleas and no purson can say that I said harm of him for I knew Stephen Chapman as well and I think a greatdeel better than you and I think myself that he had as good a hart as are Roach as ever was born as you say and a greatdeel better a heart than one Addams that I have lately found out for I did not think as mean as you are that you was meen anough to tell any purson of their mean relation for instance Bryan you have three likely children they ma live to be grown and have a dispute with [struck through: with] some purson or other and ma be told of your conduct saying that you had acted like old John Pelt and he was worse than an Infidel this [?] ma be the case and how would you feel to hear your children told of your conduct you sertainly would feel bad and that man that would tel them of it would deserve something worse than the whipping post he would deserv a bullit drove threw the big end of his heart so Bryan if I was in your place I would trase back my own family of people before I commenced uppon others and se if I could not get a little closser to the gallous than the whipping post and I do think it is allmost as mean a thing as a man can be gilty of to tel an other of his mean relation in anger for there is no man but what has mean relation and if it is me that you spek of as spending five negroes to pay off grog bills I have bought more value in Negroes and land than I [interlined: ever] sold this much I can prove to you if you request it so what [struck through: that] I have spent at grogshops has been my own labour and not yours nor David Addams-es Henery Smiths nor old Sall Smiths as you call her and even if I have spent my own labour at grogshops I think there is more credit in that than there is in spending other peoples labour in supporting whores and [struck through: keeping up] makeing horehous of my own dwelling as you have for you doo no that you slept with that charmer of yours up in your own loft and your wife down below listning at the bedstid crack what do you call that if it is not makeing a horehous of your own dwellin [struck through: further I will state to you that it is the opinion of some that it was a plan laid between you and that woman that you shall Marry old Sall as you cal her] I feel satisfyed Bryan that you take every purson as an enemy that finds fault of your conduct with that woman and if so you ar destitute of friends for there is nos man that can or will undertak to justify [interlined: you] ask [illegible] reason it self or your verry best friends and if they will speek plain and plump [?] and [interlined: not] flatter you they will say that you are living a disgraceful life you yourself cannot help saying so; so it is not me that have disgraced you you have disgraced your self and not noing how to get over it you are willing to pack it on some other purson” fare wel Bryan I leave you to unravel your own ball you will stop when you get to the end I did not when I wrote to you have any wish to make you mad but mean people will get mad at the truth suner than they will at a ly and if I had a flattered you and said go on in the way that you ar going I should been a gentleman too but as it is I am a wrascal I suppose
I donot expect to wost any more paper with you nor I should not have wasted this if you had not told me of the whipping post and last of all I beg of you to trace back your own fammily and let alone them that are dead and gon for just such carrectures as you are wrap[interlined: t] up with is able to fetch any man to the whiping post July 16th 1845
About the original
The letter is not signed and has no address panel. The rest of the fourth page is blank except for ink showing through from the other side.
Source: Letter probably from James Roach to Bryan Adams, 16 July 1845. Roach Family Papers (#346), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, Box 1, Folder a (Correspondence, 1820–1897). Collection guide. Digitized folder: ECU Digital Collections, 0346-b1-fa.
Images courtesy of East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University. View this item in ECU Digital Collections.
Part of the Roach Family Papers collection on East Carolina Roots.
