I am [vexed] Sir; one cannot be more vexed at the fact that you should have reason to complain about the conduct of my son, for the whole thing, when well considered, is due only to bad advice, and lack of experience; they have goaded his self-esteem, and perhaps he has been immature enough to boast in the house to which he goes, that this plantation should fall to him, to him alone. You have every means to destroy this presumption; it is known at Philadelphia that you have the same rights as I have, and that you are doing nothing but for our mutual advantage. I am writing to him on this subject, for he does not speak of it to me, and I am giving him the rebuke that his indiscretion deserves. Read this letter, and have the kindness to seal it before delivering it to him. You tell me that I can refer, in regard to his conduct, to the report that Mr. Miers Fisher has given of it in his long letter of the month of September; that, unhappily, I have not received, for Mr. Fisher tells me nothing about him, neither what is good nor bad. As to going to that country, this seems well nigh impossible; to recall my son is not easier; the reasons which made me send him out [there] still remain. Only an instant is needed to make him change from bad to good; his extreme youth and his petulance are his only faults, and if you have the goodness to give him the indispensable, he will soon feel the necessity of making friends with you, and he can be of great service if you use him for your own benefit.
It is necessary then, my dear Sir, that we endeavor, by gentleness, to reclaim him to his duty. If you are indulgent with him, it will be I who should be under every obligation to you. I hope that the enclosed letter will work a change with him. This is my only son, my heir, and I am old. When Mr. Miers Fisher shall have shown my letter to the would-be father-in-law, he will see that he is mistaken in his calculation upon the assumed marriage of his daughter, for if it should take place without my consent, all help on my part would cease from that instant; this, if you will have the kindness, is what you may say to the would-be father-in-law, that I do not wish my son to marry so young.
Your letters of the 28th of October and the 12th of November are in the country.[97] I cannot reply categorically upon their contents; I will examine them, and will tell you in my next what I think about them. Your family, which I have seen, is well. Our ladies thank you for your kind remembrance. I am....
When the preceding letter was written young Audubon was on his way to France, to protest, as he said, against Dacosta's treatment of him. At the date of the letter which follows, he was at Couëron, hunting birds with Dr. d'Orbigny.
Jean Audubon to Francis Dacosta
Nantes, 14 June, 1805
To Mr. Dacosta, Philadelphia:
I have received, at this very moment, your letter of the 8th of April. I have replied to your preceding by duplicate. Like yourself I am greatly astonished that you should not have received the contracts which I forwarded to you at once. I have reserved copies of these papers, which I have literally copied.