Sir Hartford Dec. 29. 1784 I have now the satisfaction to acquaint you, that I am in a likely way to bring to pecuniary Punishment, one of the Knaves that were concern'd in the alteration and altering of the Pay Master Generals Certificate N° V. 874 in favour of Benj. Ray, which you will doubtless Remember. I brought to your office on the 25 Nov. last to be examined. The case is as follows. One Roger [undecipherable: probable reading "Welat"] of this State, procured a [undecipherable] to [undecipherable] alter'd Note, by his [undecipherable] little known to be Sold in this City at Auction, by promising them a share of what it sold for on Complaint to a Magistrate, [undecipherable: probable reading "Welat"] was apprehended and examined, and upon Testimony of the woman, [undecipherable: probable reading "deposed"] to the Magistrate, that he altered the Note with fraudulent Intent, that he was ordered to prison unless he gave Bail for Two hundred pounds, for his Appearance for Trial before the Superior Court, which is now sitting, but the Cause is not yet come on— he found Bail— but it is expected that the Bonds will be forfeited by his non appearance— the Circumstances being so strong against him that he has hardly a Chance of Escaping Corporal Punishment, if he should stand Trial — and only by not [undecipherable] to appear, the Forfeiture of the Bonds will be all the public Reparation he, or rather his Bonds men, will be subjected to by the Laws of this State— But besides the criminal prosecution above recited, I have commenced an action against him for Private Damages, to be tried at a County Court in January— and this his non appearance on the Criminal suit, may be taken as an implicit Confession of Guilt, yet he may have the Effrontery to make a Defence in the civil suit, in order to mitigate the Damages therefore my Attorney informs me, that in order to my recovering adequate Damages, it will be necessary to Produce your written Deposition, taken upon oath before a Magistrate or other competent Authority, setting forth the Facts and circumstances that arose on my bringing the note to the Office to be compared with the records, and that Deposition be certified by the Magistrate, and sealed up, and directed to the [undecipherable] County Court, to be held at Hartford in Hartford County and state of Connecticut on the fourth Tuesday of January A.D. 1785 I must therefore entreat the favour of you and the other Gentlemen Assistants, who were present the 25 Nov. last to take the trouble to give your Depositions jointly or severally relative to the subject, in the manner above desired and that you would be pleased to forward the same by the Post, under cover to me, early enough to answer my Purpose, and as it affects the public Interest & credit, I suppose you can get the Letter franked, but if not, don't fail to send it with out— To refresh your memory I send a copy of the Certificate you signed the 25 Nov. & the Purport of which ought to be expressed in the Deposition, and in order to subject the Offender (who is a man of some Property and Family) to the severest mu[lt], it may be requisite to add some circumstances not Contained in the Certificate, which actually took place, if you remember them, namely that upon your discovering the alteration in the sum from 890 Dollars to 800 Dollars and the art— —full manner in which it was executed, you was greatly surprised, and very much alarmed for the Consequences and to prevent the note effectually from defrauding any Body, you began to deface it by drawing a Line of Ink crosswise upon the face of it— and as it appeared to me, you unwilling to let it go out of the office again but upon my making myself known, and giving you the strongest Assurance that I should make no other Use of it than to detect the Author of the Knavery and recover my money, you permitted me to take it away with me— and Justice if you had at that time any thoughts about destroying the altered Note (to prevent fraud and Injury), it will be best to express it in the Deposition, because every Circumstance that tends to prove any Roguery I may have run of loosing my Property or Reputation, must enhance the Damages I sue for— but far be it from me to wish any thing should be inserted in the Deposition but what is strictly true— what ever Charge you may be at, I will chearfully repay as soon as I know what it is— In full persuasion that you will be so obliging as to comply with my present Request, in the first and most authentic Manner & form and in due season for the purpose. I am &c. [undecipherable]