Partly printed DS, signed “J. Adams,” one page both sides, 7.5 x 4.25, no date [circa 1760s–early 1770s]. A legal summons for William Bowes of Boston related to a plea of trespass. Adams has added a handwritten endorsement on the reverse: “And the Pl[ain]t[iff]s consenting to the Liberty reserved in the Def[endan]t’s plea afor. say the same is an insufficient answer & that They are not by Law held to reply thereto wherefore They pay Judgment for the Damages aford. & Costs....” Countersigned by Samuel Quincy (1735–1789), a British Loyalist who served as Solicitor General of Massachusetts and as special prosecutor at the Boston Massacre Trials. In very good condition, with light toning to vertical folds, trimming to bottom edge, light show-through of ink, and a few smudges to Adams’s handwritten text. The writing is dark and clear throughout. Auction LOA John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and R&R COA.
