Abigail Adams to Lucy Cranch, April 26, 1787

London April 26 1787—

my dear Neice

I write you a few lines my dear Lucy to thank you for your kind Letter, and to inform
you that I am a Grandmamma ! my Grandson be sure is a fine
Boy, & I already feel as fond of him as if he was my own son, nay I can hardly
persuade myself that he is not, especially as I have been sick for six weeks, I cannot
however Nurse him so well as his mamma, who is already so fond of him, that I sometimes
quote mrs Storer to her. who could have thought it?

He was Christened last thursday 1 by dr
Price and called William after his pappa. in this Country Children are not carried to
church, so we had the Christning in the House and about a dozen of our Friends together
upon the occasion. we supped & drank the young Heroes Health, & that of our
Country and Friends. Mrs Smith dinned below with us, the day 3 weeks frum her
confinement, and I have carried little master to ride 3 or four times
already. he is very quiet and good, but his pappa is already obliged to leave him, &
yesterday morning very reluctantly set of on a journey to portugal, in his way to which
he takes France & Spain, & will be absent we expect near four Months, but thus
it must be with those who are in publick office. at the same time mr Adams set of for
portsmouth in order to hear the examination of a set of villians who have been
counterfeiting the paper money of the American States, and mr Cutting accompanied him,
so that we are quite alone. as soon as mrs Smith is able we shall make a little
excursion into the Country, which I hope will reestablish my Health. My disorder has
been long accumulating, & arises from a Billious state of my Blood. it has afflicted
me spring & fall for several years, and has at last produced a slow intemitting
fever. some days I am able to go out, others not, but it has wholy prevented my
attendance upon Routes dinners 2 theatres
&c and o Lamentable, I have not been able to go to saint James for more than two
months. all this I could have borne with tolerable patience, but what has been really
matter of regret to me, is that I have been dissapointed of Seven Lectures out of 12 to
which I Subsribed, and which I fear I shall never have the opportunity of attending.
they would have afforded me much matter for future recollection & amusement from a
retrospect of the Beauties of Nature, and her various opperations manifested in the
Works of creation, an assemblage of Ideas entirely new, is presented to the mind. the
five Lectures which I attended were experiments in Electricity, Magnetism Hydrostatics
optics pemematicks, all of which are connected with, and are subservient to the
accommodation of common Life. 3 it was
like going into a Beautifull Country, which I never saw before, a Country which our
American Females are not permitted to visit or inspect, untill dr Moyes visited
America, 4 all experimental Phylosophy
was confined within the walls of our Colledges— The Study of Household Good, as milton
terms it, is no doubt the peculiar province of the Female Character. 5 Yet surely as rational Beings, our reason might
with propriety receive the highest possible cultivation. knowledge would teach our Sex
candour, and those who aim at the attainment of it, in order to render themselves more
amiable & usefull in the world would derive a double advantage from it, for in
proportion as the mind is informed, the countanance would be improved & the face
ennobled as the Heart is elevated, 6 for
wisdom says Soloman maketh the face to shine. 7 even the Luxurious Eastern Sage thought not of
rouge or the milk of roses—but that the virtuous wife should open her
mouth with wisdom & the law of kindness dwell upon her Tongue, 8 nor did he think this inconsistant with looking
well to the ways of her household, or suppose that she would be less inclined to
superintend the domestick oeconomy of her family, for having gone beyond the limits of
her dressing room & her kitchen I quote Soloman on this occasion, as we may
naturally suppose the picture drawn of a virtuous wife to be the result of his
experience & his wisdom, after ranging at large amongst the Eastern Beauties: he
pronounces the price of a virtuous woman to be far above rubies & the only character
on which the Heart of a Husband may safely rest— 9 the present mode of fashionable education is not
calculated to form the rising generation upon the system of soloman. futile
accomplishments are substituded in stead of rational improvements settled principals of
Truth integrity & Honour are little attended to, Laudible motives of action &
incentives to virtue, give place to the form of the Body, the Grace of motion, and a
conscious air of superiority which knows neither the Blush of modesty, or diffidence. a
Boarding school miss, that should discover either would be thought quite a novice—

But whither has my subject led me? I must return to the Female sphere & talk to you
of fashions— the Sandals which I send, I fear will prove too large, but the shoe maker
says they are according to the measure. the Novelty of taste has brought the immitation
of the Scotch plad into vogue, Waistcoats Bonets & ribbons are all plad, sashes
&C I send you a specimin of their Beauty and must quit my Pen to pay my devotions to
the kind goddess of Health; whom I am to seek in the Park, or if warm enough in
kensington gardens. Flora & Virtumnus 10 will meet me there. adieu my dear girl. may the best of Heavens blessings rest upon
you

Your ever affectionate

Aunt A Adams May 6th

from the Character of the reviewers I bought Louissa a novel 11 the story of which is very interesting
I send it you for your amusement