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Lot #2
John Adams Letter Signed "with my blind eyes, and palsied hands"

With "blind eyes, and palsied hands," 87-year-old John Adams declines a request, "tantas componere lites non possum"

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Estimate: $2000+
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Description

With "blind eyes, and palsied hands," 87-year-old John Adams declines a request, "tantas componere lites non possum"

LS, one page, 6.75 x 6.75, December 31, 1822. Addressed from Quincy, a letter to his friend Elkanah Watson, in full: “I have received your letter of the 26 — with my blind eyes, and palsied hands — tantas componere lites non possum [I cannot settle so many disputes].” The holographic portions of the letter have been excised and affixed to a larger sheet. In very good to fine condition, with haloing, scattered light staining, and toning. According to the National Archives, this was the last (and briefest) of five letters written to Watson by the 87-year-old Adams in December of 1822, with the latter, impaired by poor vision and arthritis, seemingly too exhausted to comply with any great detail.

Auction Info

  • Auction Title: Fine Autograph and Artifacts Featuring JFK 60th / Presidents
  • Dates: #678 - Ended November 08, 2023





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