to you, because the debt he & Bell undertook to pay, is, or will be, paid without your paying it, or any part of it. The question, then, is, ``How are you injured?'' By diverting so much of the assets of Bell's estate, to the payment of the Fry debt, the general assets are lessened, and so, will pay a smaller dividend to general creditors; one of which creditors I suppose you are, in effect, as assignor of the note to W. P. Speed. It incidentally enlarges your liability to W. P. Speed; and to that extent, you are injured. How much will this be? I think, $100- or $120- being the dividend of 25 or 30 per cent, that Hurst's half of the Fry debt, would would [sic] pay on the W. P. S. debt. Hurst's undertaking was, in effect, that he would pay the whole of the Fry debt, if Bell did not pay any part of it; but it was not his undertaking, that if Bell should pay the whole of it, he would refund the whole, so that Bell should be the better able to pay his other debts. You are not losing on the Fry debt, because that is, or will be paid; but your loss will be on the W. P. S. debt,---a debt that Hurst is under no obligation to indemnify you against. Hurst is bound to account to Bell's estate, for one half of the Fry debt; because he owed half, and Bell's estate pays all; and if, upon such accounting any thing is due the estate from Hurst, it will swell the estate, and so far enlarge the dividend to the W. P. S. debt. But when Bell's estate shall call Hurst to account, he will will [sic] I am informed show that the estate, after paying the whole of the Fry debt is still indebted to him. If so, not much, if any thing can come from that quarter---nothing, unless it can be so turned, as to compel him [to?] pay all he owes the estate, and take a dividend only, upon what the estate owes him. If you had paid the Fry debt yourself, you could then turn on Hurst and make him refund you; but this would only bring [you?] where you started from, excepting it would leave Bell's estate able to pay a larger dividend; and Hurst would then turn upon the estate to contribute one half, which would enlarge the indebtedness of the estate in the same proportion, and so reduce the dividend again. I believe the only thing that can be done for your advantage in the matter, is for Bell's administrator to call Hurst to account for one half the Fry debt, and then fight off, the best he can, Hurst's claim of indebtedness against the estate.
I should be much pleased to see [you?] here again; but I must, in candour, say I do not perceive how your personal presence would do any good in the business matter.
You, no doubt, assign the suspension of our correspondence to