Interesting letter from banker John Williams of Boston to Samuel Davis, Jr., Cincinnati, Ohio, confirming receipt of a loan payment and commenting at length on the scarcity of money along the east coast. Mentions the depressed cost of grain, beef and pork along with merchandise and labor. Williams says: “The whole commercial operations are deranged. It is anomaly in trade, that we the creditor country are obliged to send specie to Europe to pay balances & purchase merchandise. There is no confidence in bills drawn on the bank houses in England and the specie is shifted for safety.”  Williams’s signature can be compared to that of John Hancock.  Both names are common so further research is in order. Letter in good condition.