Preeson Bowdoin to William Short, 7 April 1785

         The Husband is ugly & jealous: the Wife beautiful & kind. He settles at Paris as Match Maker, and I assure the Love of his Wife will be a great & most agreable acquisition to you. When I come to Paris I will endeavour to procure you an interview with her, nothing is more easy than to decive a husband, provided the Wife is willing We can desire his presence at some hôtel, that one of our friends wants a Match our friend being in the secret, will bargain a long time and not purchase during this Marché, we are paying our respects to Madame, Wont this do? The day I took leave of her here, I kissed her she squeezed my hand dropt a Tear, and bid me adieu, au plaisir de vous revoir à Paris m’a-t elle dit [Looking forward to seeing you again, she said to me]— The husband all this time wished me at the Devil, She could not then stop me her address but she was so kind as to leave it at the Inn, with a request to the Servant— to give that to Mon^s— Bowdoin— When I see you we will talk more of this affair— Our friends Fitzhughs I suppose now are Nice, when I left them they intended there— I have not heard from them since— They will be in Paris this Spring— M^r. Bolling left this about 3 weeks past for London on his way to Virginia with hopes of being next year a Member of Congress— c'est un drole de corps [It is a strange body]— How does M^r. Jefferson do? how does the treaty of commerce go on?  This I hope is not an imprudent Question— You have no thought of a trip to holland this Spring, ' I wish you had, I am bound there from thence shall set out for Virginia, have you any late News from that Quarter?, I have none? I shall have time to receve a nother letter from you before I leave this—

                                                              I am Sincerely yours—