Palmer, Thomas

To His Excellency the Right Honorable General Lord Charles Henry /
Somerset, Governor and Commander in Chief of His Majesty’s /
Castle, Town and Settlement 7+c 7+c 7+c of the Cape of Good Hope. /
The Memorial of Richard Harvey of Grahams Town Tanner /
and Currier. most humbly. /
Sheweth /
That your Memorialist from the visitations of Pro=vidence /
by the storm of wind and the floods in the Month of October /
1823 met with very heavy los+ses, his buildings were destroyed /
and the greatest part of his stock in trade Lost, and and he was at /
that period attacked with a Rheumatic Fever, brought on by his /
perseverance to save that little property he could from devastation, /
which laid him on a sick bed and deprived him of the entire /
use of his limbs, but his feelings will not allow him to say more /
on so melancholy a subject. Suffice it to say that your Memo=rialist /
made an application to the Gentlemen of the Committee /
for managing the Settlers Fund, stating his deplorable case, but /
received no reply, and on his making some enquiry (some time /
after), of M\r/ M. Onkruydt, who had been to Cape Town and /
who had promised to lay his case before the Committee and to /
recommend him as a fit Object of their commiseration, M\r/ On=kruydt /
informed your Memorialist, that the Gentleman of the /
Committee should say. „[That as your Memorialist was a single /
man, therefore he could fight his own Battle],” Your Memorialists /
feelings were (on this Communication by M\r/ Onkruydt) wounded /
beyond measure, yet your Memorialist conceived that these /
Gentlemen who formed a Committee of a humane and charitable /
institution could not have made use of such harsh expres+sions, /
applied to a fellow creature, who had lost all his property (through /
the awful visitations of a wise and all-seeing Providence) and /
which he had accumilated by the sweat of his brow, and who /
was at that period labouring under a heavy affliction, reduced /
to abject poverty and depending on his humane fellow creatures /
for nourishment and support. /
Your Memorialist addres+sed a Memorial to your Ex=cellency /
in the Month of March last, ([being only then informed /
of/
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your Excellency having been pleased to order a loan, to be appro=priated /
for the relief off and for the Settlers on distres+s, occasioned /
by the failure of their crops and other causes, [and particularly by /
the storm and floods in the Month of October 1823.] praying your Excel=lency /
to grant him a loan of 1000 Rds. out of the Colonial Loans /
for himself and his partner in trade, to which your Memorialist /
did not receive any reply and your Memorialist addres+sed and the /
Memorial to your Excellency in the Month of May following to which /
he received no written reply, but he received an intimation from /
Harry Rivers Exq\r/ the Landdrost of Albany [of the loan of 500 Rds /
having been granted to him,] and about a fortnight or three weeks /
prior to William Hayward Esq\r/ the civil Commis+sioner leaving /
Grahams Town, the Landdrost’s promises began, when your Me=morialist /
named the surities, which were approved off by the /
Landdrost, and was ordered by him, to be in attendance on the /
Board of Landdrost and Heemraaden, in justification of his /
application and to produce his surities to execute the Bond. Your /
Memorialist and his proffesed surities, were in attendance for /
three succes+sive days, [to no purpose], and he was ordered by the /
Landdrost day after day to attend the Court untill about the 10\th/ /
day of October last, when he Received a Draft from the Land=drost /
of which the following is a Copy. /
To G. Rietz+z esq\r/ District Agent for Albany /
Fourteen days after right pay M\r/ Thomas Palmer or order the /
sum of Five hundred Rixdollars, being for a loan granted to /
him by the Colonial Government /
Sign’d Harry Rivers /
Landdrost of Albany /
Prior to, not afer he received the before Mentioned Draft, [was your /
Memorialist before the Board of Landdrost in justification of his /
claim for the required loan, nor have he since been called upon with /
his surities for the execution of the Board.] /
Your Memorialist on the Receipt of the Draft for 500 Rds was /
told by the Landdrost, „[that if he would Keep it for a few days he /
would give him the Money for it, as he expected Remittances from /
Cape Town by the next post]”. Your Memorialist waited post after /
post, but heard nothing further from the Landdrost, he therefore /
tried to get the Draft discounted in Graham’s Town, which he /
could /
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could not effect. one person only, namely M\r/ Thompson Shop /
Keeper agreed to advance your Memorialist 100 Rds upon it pro=vided /
he would lay out a part in Shop goods. Your Memorialist /
was obliged from pres+sing neces+sity to comply with M\r/ Thompson’s /
terms to prevent an execution (which had long been threatened ) /
on his property by M\r/ Ralph Goddard on account of Geo. Nelson /
your Memorialist’s late partner in trade, the land on which their /
busines+s had been carried on, having been purchased of M\r/ Godd=ard, /
the lower end of which land according to an agreement, /
was to be considered as joint property, now as George Nelson could /
not pay M\r/ Goddard for the purchase of the land, and a desolution /
of partnership having taken place, it was agreed, that the premises /
should be Relinquished to M\r/ Goddard, on conditions, that he should /
transfer the same to your Memorialist on the same terms as it /
was sold to George Nelson. /
viz+. for the sum of Rds 400 /
George Nelson had paid the 100 /
first instalment /
your Memorialist paid out 100 /
of the loan granted him /
200/
Rds 200 balance is to be /
paid by your Memorialist in 12 Months with the interest thereon. /
Your Memorialist agreed with George Nelson (on dividing /
the stock in trade) to take the premises and to pay M\r/ Goddard the /
300 Rds then due, and to pay all the outstanding debts, and George /
Nelson to take all the debts due to the firm and the stock in trade /
to be equally divided in order to effect this much deserved purpose /
and to save your Memorialist’s moiety of the premises from the /
threatened execution he relied on obtaining the loan of 1000 Rds. /
from the Colonial Loans, this loan would have placed him beyond /
the Reach of troublesome creditors, and as he had other views, name=ly /
that of making it equal to his increasing trade, and his Re=liance /
thereon was such, that he ordered a Baik hill to be /
made, which would cost 200 Rds, he intended to build 7+ Room to /
work it also a dwelling house, all this your Memorialist /
was anxious (and he is still) to effect, for the purpose of altering /
his condition in life, and enter into the holy state of Matrimony. /
Your Memorialist cannot refrain from once more directing /
your /
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Your Excellency’s attention to the promise made him by the Land=drost, /
[to cash the Draft (he had given him on G. Reitz+ Erf) and /
that in a few days], on which promise your Memorialist could not /
place any reliance, [particularly as the Landdrost had kept him for /
six or seven weeks, and that, in daily attendance, after he had in=formed /
him, of his prayer for a loan having been granted,] Your /
Memorialist during all this protraction, was unable to attend to /
his busines+s, and the los+s of his own daily labour, amounted [at the least /
to the sum of 200 Rds], and when your Memorialist did /
receive the Draft for 500 Rds. from the Landdrost, he was obliged /
to make a very great sacrifice by placing it in the hands of M\r/ /
Thompson, [when he only obtained the sum of 100 Rds], its true, that /
M\r/ Thompson did not charge him for discount, but your Memoralist /
was under the neces+sity of taking goods to the amount of 40 Rds. for /
which goods he was obliged to submit to {the} /an extra\ charge {*} /
{*} /to what he would otherwise {*} have had to pay\ [had he been in the pos+ses+sion] /
[of ready money]. M\r/ Thompson gave your Memorialist a note of hand /
payable at 28 days, for the remainder of the Draft, reckoning 14 days for /
its payment and the time which would elapse by the Post to and from /
Cape Town, [The Draft neither being acceptable or honoured when due, ] /
M\r/ Thompson refused to advance to pay your Memorialist any further sum /
on it, and he also refused to pay your Memorialist order on him /
for 40 Rds given to a person who he had Contracted with for all the /
hides and skins he obtained by his trips to the Fair held at Fort /
Wiltshire with the Caffre Nation. these circumstances which your /
Memorialist could not foresee, (not had he the least idea, [that the] /
[Landdrost of Albany’d Draft on G. Reitz+ would not be accepted ] /
or not ultimately paid when due)] has put your Memorialist to /
[very serious inconveniences, and he is fearful to some expence, ] /
as in the event of the Draft not being paid, M\r/ Thomson will /
cite your Memorialist before the Court of Landdrost and Heemraaden /
for the Cash he has already advanced, this will of course create /
heavy law expences, which your Memorialist is not able to pay, /
had your Memorialist received the 500 Rds in Cash, which he /
had every reason to expect ([and even a promise]) it would have /
been of material service to him, which is evident, when he can /
prove beyond a shade of contradiction, that in the first twelve /
Months after he commenced busines+s with his partner George /
Nelson, they were obtaining a comfortable livelihood, they had a /
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good stock in trade, and ere the storm and floods in October /
1823, they had erected a building 70 feet by 16 which cost them /
2000 Rds. /
Your Memorialist begs further to state to your Excel=lency, /
that he has applied to M\r/ Thompson for the Draft which /
he refuses to return, nor would he furnish him with a Copy of /
it. /
Your Memorialist most humbly prays your Excel=lency /
will take his case into serious consideration and in=vestigate /
the cause [of the Landdrost’s Draft on G. Reitz+ Esq\r/ for ] /
[500 Rds in favour of your Memorialist, not having been accep=ted], /
and that your Excellency will be pleased (under all the /
circumstances of his stated case) to grant him a further /
loan of 1000 Rix dollars out of the Colonial Loands, for which /
your Memorialist will find eligible and undeniable per=sonal /
security /

And your Memorialist as he is in duty bound will /
every pray /

Graham’s Town /
November 22 1824 /
Tho\s/ Palmer /