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present state it is passed with difficulty and must be daily
growing worse, so long as there shall be no law to authorise
the opening and repairing it- That this is a subject in
upon which the Legislature and people of Tennessee feel much
affected ^is well known to you all hence you will see the propriety of giving me the
earliest and fullest information of your proceedings, and
of the determination of the President thereon.-

It may not ^however be unnecessary to remind you, that the
Legislature of 1797, complained of the ferry across Clinch as a
grievence in their memorial to the President and Congress, and that
the Legislature of 98 presented the subject to you again in their
instructions by Resolutions, and now in 99 it comes again before
you in form of the present act, this cannot but convince the
President that the people consider themselves labouring under a
great grievence, from which they have a right founded on treaty to
be relieved and redressed [18?] John Sevier

[left margin has '1799' twice, in pencil and pen different than the text]