that you do not think unfavourably of my late tract on the comparison of Socrates and Jesus. Your flattering invitation to enter farther into the comparison of Jesus with other philosophers, I cannot, at least at present, attend to, tho I should be glad if you, or some other person, would take it up . . .

The rest of the letter is occupied with Priestley’s comments on Jefferson’s outline.

With regard to the copy of his Syllabus sent to Benjamin Rush, Jefferson wrote on May 31, 1813, to Richard Rush, six weeks after the death of his father: “ No one has taken a more sincere part than myself in the affliction which has lately befallen your family, by the loss of your inestimable and ever to be lamented father . . . there may have been other letters of this character written by me to him [i.e. communications which were never intended to go farther]. but two alone occur to me at present, about which I have any anxiety. these were of Apr. 21. 1803. & Jan. 16. 1811. the first of these was on the subject of religion, a subject on which I have ever been most scrupulously reserved. I have considered it as a matter between every man and his maker, in which no other, & far less the public had a right to intermeddle. to your father alone I committed some views on this subject in the first of the letters abovementioned, led to it by previous conversations, and a promise on my part to digest & communicate them in writing . . .

" I very much wish that these letters should remain unseen and unknown. and, if it would be too much to ask their return, I would earnestly entreat of you so to dispose of them as that they might never be seen, if possible, but by yourself, with whom I know their contents would be safe. I have too many enemies disposed to make a lacerating use of them, not to feel anxieties inspired by a love of tranquility, now become the summum bonum of life. in your occasional visits to Philadelphia, perhaps you can lay your hand on them, which might be preferable to the drawing a marked attention to them by letter . . . ”

Richard Rush replied from Washington on June 12: “. . . The two letters which you have particularly designated I will ask permission to enclose to you together with any others that may seem to be of a similar complexion.

"But, as the afflicting event of my father’s death summoned me to Philadelphia whence I have but lately returned, and as it is probable I may not find it practicable to go there again for sometime--perhaps a twelvemonth--I have had thoughts of writing in the meanwhile to my mother in order that your wishes may, through me as the channel of communication, be complied with at an earlier day. Not being on the spot I am not at present the depositary of my father’s manuscripts. Their custody now is chiefly with D ^r. James Rush, the brother next in age to me, to whose discretion and honor all things may be confided; yet it is possible, though not probable, that in the work of looking through voluminous papers some accident or inadvertence (no caution being previously hinted) might exhibit a private letter to some eye from which it had as well be hidden. I know how promply [sic] and sacredly any request I might make either of him or my mother to enclose the letters in question to me would be attended to, and in this doubtful state I will wait until it may be my pleasure to receive at your hands another line . . .”

The other line was sent by Jefferson to Richard Rush on June 17: “ Your favor of the 12 ^th. came to hand yesterday and I thank you for the kind attention you are so good as to pay to the subject of my letters. my entire confidence in the family will render satisfactory to me your addressing any member of it you think proper on the subject of those letters. an occurrence since my letter to you has justified my anxiety to prevent their getting into unfriendly hands. on the 9 ^th. of Apr. 1803. having recieved from D ^r. Priestley his ‘Jesus & Socrates’ compared’ & returning my thanks to him for the work, I mentioned to him my promise of a letter to D ^r. Rush on a similar subject, but on a broader scale, and gave him the outlines of my views of the subject, which I pressed him to undertake, being so much better qualified for it. it was on this occasion he wrote his “Heathen Philosophy compared with revelation.” Twelve days ”