Alexander Hamilton

4 pages (12 1/4 x 7 1/4 in.; 311 x 184 mm) on a bifolium, n.p., n.d., [New York, ?ca. 1782–83], unsigned, being a draft In Hamilton's hand of a complaint between plaintiff Samuel Dodge and defendant Samuel Crandell for non-payment for the purchase of a farm owned by Dodge, with numerous strike-throughs, insertions, and side-notes; in a perfect state of preservation.

4 pages (12 1/4 x 7 1/4 in.; 311 x 184 mm) on a bifolium, n.p., n.d., [New York, ?ca. 1782–83], unsigned, being a draft In Hamilton's hand of a complaint between plaintiff Samuel Dodge and defendant Samuel Crandell for non-payment for the purchase of a farm owned by Dodge, with numerous strike-throughs, insertions, and side-notes; in a perfect state of preservation.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The draft is for a complaint filed by Hamilton on behalf of Samuel Dodge, against Samuel Crandell, for failure to pay in full for the 1779 purchase of Dodge's farm near Poughkeepsie, New York.

As with many veterans, when Hamilton returned home from the war, he divided his time between rocking the cradle and studying law. To Lafayette, he wagged: "I have been employed for the last ten months in rocking the cradle [of his son Philip, born in January 1782] and studying the fleecing of my neighbors" (3 November 1782, Papers of Alexander Hamilton, ed. Syrett, 3:191–193). In addition to providing him with a respectable and lucrative living, Hamilton viewed the law as the most expeditious route to political influence and power—thirty-four members of the Constitutional Congress were lawyers (Chernow, p. 167). Ordinarily, the New York Supreme Court stipulated that those reading the law serve a three-year apprenticeship before appearing in court. However, the rule was waived for returning veterans who had begun their law studies before the war. Hamilton qualified as he had been reading law at King's College before joining the militia in 1775. Instead of clerking under a practicing attorney, he chose to instruct himself, and availed himself to the fine law library of his friend (and former roommate at King's College) James Duane. By July 1782, just six months after embarking on his intensive study of the law, he passed the bar exam as an attorney qualified to prepare cases before the New York State Supreme Court. In October, he was further approved to argue cases before the court as a "counselor."