Letter 1437

[fol. 306] Smirna Dear Sr I read by oe convoy all you was pleased to send by my brothe, for wch return you my hearty thanks they were put by carelessness or want of thought into a chest of beer & all spoild how-ever I can make a shift to read ye books, since I am honn’d wth yrs by Dr picanini, & observe ye accts of books printed & in ye press, wch I shall write for by first opportunity I had 50tt worth cast on ye dutch ship cast away last summer on ye coast of Scotland, wch has been a great disapiontmt to me in my business, & I can’t expect them again in less then a year for want of conveyance. I have neer enterd all I can in my Pinax, & shou’d by this have finish’d it, had I had all the books by we wch are necessary. I hope ye wer is at an end, so yt frequent occasion of shipping may present. I presume to inclose a note of such as I want, wch tho necessary are not mote or valuable. I have done ye same to Mr Petiver, in hopes Petuisotyse to procure them, & have writ also to Holland for some if they are not to b met wth in hopes, I beg you’ll be pleas’d to furnish me out of yr own collections, & when you meet them again to buy them at my cost, & in case you can’t, I will faithfully return them assoon as I have enter’d them, & shipping presents this summer, for want of them, I destine to naming & put^ing in method my plants, wch shall lay by for you my duplicates in return of those you write me of. Dr Picanini has distributed copies of most of ye inscriptions I have, & I hear Mr Cishall is about printing them. I write to him by this convoy to let him know I have severall others, wch I send to Ld Pembrooke, & hope to copy as many more if I can possibly make a company strong enough to go next month to Ha[?] [fol. 307] I have laid out about 300tt in medalls & daily collect what I can procure from all parts of this empire, having settled a correspondence in all parts of it, where there is any frenk. but ye Ambassadors who send men or propose every ways & ye French kings agents make them very scarce as well as well as dear. I hap’d to have sent you ye scetch of a fith I lately met wth, wch I don’t find in Sebuanus, Reardeletius or Bellanuis (Mr hass History I have not tho have often writ for it) but not Aikeman, who printed it is so taken up wth finishing what he has begun to send by ye convoy, that he has not time. you shall have it however by first conveyance. I have engag’d him to go a long wth me to Haliarnasso & other places, by whose existence shall have some designes of ruines worth taking; I cou’d wish he wou’d hurry here & paint me facols, wch I frequently uneet not describd by Mr Ray. I hope Mr stuart has brought or sent you some plants from Jamaica; after ye service I did him, I hear nothing of him but yt has return’d & brought me nothing. I have lost all my Botamim corrispondence & tis twice for me too leave of it I knew how the satisfaction of hearing from friends, is ye greatest I can wish for at so great a distance & I hope at yr leisure you will afford me it, & command me in what in can serve you. I am Dear Sr Yr most affect. humble servt W.Sherard Smirna March 25.1709 I beg ye favr.e of you to procure me some peices of looking glass to make perspectuies they are for Dou Bruno Tozzi who is very serviceable to me. he desires also Plukenets Amalthdei Botan. & yr History of Jamaica wch be pleased to send my brother who has orders to pay for them.