Sold – Jefferson Most Values Understanding, Discretion, A

Thomas Jefferson. Tobias Lear was a young Harvard graduate when selected by George Washington to serve as his private secretary. Arriving at Mt. Vernon in 1786, he handled the flood of correspondence received and sent by the general, did the estate’s accounting, and acted as tutor to Washington’s adopted children. Lear remained as secretary when Washington was selected as first President of the United States, and served in that capacity in New York and Philadelphia. He married, and the young Lears were so loved by both the President and First Lady that they were treated as members of the Washington family. They moved in presidential circles, and Washington himself was godfather to their son. By 1793, with Washington serving a second and final term in office, Lear was ready to benefit from his connections and influence and go into business. His plan was to take advantage of the coming into being of the brand new capital city of Washington, D.C., which was under construction and expected to become a thriving port on the Potomac. Money to erect the great government buildings was being raised through the sale of lots, and the far-sighted Lear bought Lot #9 on the river, making him one of the capital’s first developers. In order to establish himself in the lucrative overseas trade, he determined to travel to Europe to personally court foreign businessmen and investors. But tragedy struck in the summer of 1793, when his beloved wife Polly became one of 5,000 people killed in Philadelphia in a savage epidemic of Yellow Fever. Polly’s death may have come from a mosquito bite while strolling in the presidential garden, or during a shopping trip along the docks with the First Lady. The Washingtons attended the funeral, which was remarkable, as the President hated funerals and very seldom came to one; Jefferson was likely there as well. Afterwards Lear determined to resume his plan to go to Europe, with, as his biography states, “letters of commendation from no less than the likes of Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton and George Washington himself.” This is the actual letter from Jefferson. Autograph Letter Signed as Washington’s Secretary of State, one page 4to, Philadelphia, November 5, 1793, to Joseph Fenwick, U.S. consul at Bordeaux, France. “The bearer hereof, Mr. Lear, proposing to establish himself in commerce in the new city of Washington, he now sets out to visit such parts of Europe as he supposes may furnish him either articles or connections in the mercantile line useful for his position. He is well known as the late secretary to President Washington, and I can further assure you that he is a person of great understanding, discretion, activity & of the most perfect integrity. Having for him a very high esteem, which an acquaintance of considerable intimacy has proved him to merit, I take the liberty of recommending him, not only to the ordinary protection & aids of your office, but to any other attentions or services you can render him, assuring you they will be considered as particular favors conferred on Dear Sir Your most obedt. & humble servt., Th: Jefferson.” This letter was not only a favor to Lear, but also a tip of the hat to his mentor, President Washington. It is additionally important in that when Jefferson states what were the best and most positive things he could say about Lear, he says quite a lot about the qualities he himself most highly valued. One of America’s most intellectual presidents thought first of understanding, the ability to grasp and comprehend. Ever the politician and diplomat, he thought next of discretion. His choice of activity, by which he clearly meant the energy to get things done, is a surprising one for such a studious man and shows a different side of Jefferson, a side exhibited in his later vigourous actions in the purchase of the Louisiana Territory and the dispatching of Lewis and Clark to explore it. That integrity should be on his short list is telling, but not unexpected from a man whose integrity placed him in office after office, including, lastly, the presidency. A unique and important letter.