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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Dundas, David, Sir, Bart (1749-1826) to James Dundas

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02549.17 Author/Creator: Dundas, David, Sir, Bart (1749-1826) Place Written: Richmond (London), England Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 24 May 1781 Pagination: 4 p. ; 22 x 19 cm. Order a Copy

Mentions the marriage of D. Erskine and the parliamentary elections. Describes his first visit to the opera, which he detested. Compares listening to songs in foreign languages (he does not understand) to "those poor bigots who say their prayers in latin, which they know nothing at all of." Describes the performance, particularly the pantomine, which he considered an absurd spectacle.

Sir David Dundas, 1st Bart of Richmond, was a doctor who was appointed Sargent Surgeon to King George III in 1791.
James Dundas was a lawyer in Edinburgh, Scotland, and David's younger brother.

Dundas, David, Sir, Bart, 1749-1826
Dundas, James, 1752-1831

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