He died much respected,--by no one more than his son, Robert Richard
Randall, who had an immense admiration and reverence for his memory.
It was he who, in 1790, bought the Elliott estate from "Baron"
Poelnitz, for the sum of five thousand pounds--a handsome property of
some twenty-four acres covering the space between Fourth and Fifth
avenues, Waverly Place and approximately Ninth Street. The Elliott
house which has been described as being of "red brick with white" was
clearly a rather pretentious affair, and stood, says Mrs. Lamb, so
that Broadway when it was laid down "clipped the rear porch."
It is a curious fact and worthy of note that the old, original house
stood undamaged until 1828, and that, being sold at auction and
removed at that date, its materials were used in a house which a few
years ago was still in good condition.
Robert Richard Randall was also, like his father, known as "Captain,"
though there is no record of his ever having gone to sea as a sailor.
Indeed he would scarcely have been made an "honourary" member of the
Marine Society had he been a real shipmaster. Courtesy titles were _de
rigueur_ in those days, when a man was popular, and he appears to have
been thoroughly so.
When it came time for him, too, to die, he paid his father's calling
what tribute he could by the terms of his will.
His lawyer--no less a person that Alexander Hamilton himself--called
to discuss the terms of this last document. By the bye, Hamilton's
part in the affair is traditional and legendary rather than a matter
of official record;--certainly his name does not appear in connection
with the will. But Hamilton was the lawyer of Randall's sister, and a
close family friend, so the story may more easily be true than false.
This, then, is the way it goes: Alexander Hamilton was summoned to
make out the last will and testament, or at least, to advise
concerning it. Randall was already growing weak, but had a clear and
determined notion of what he wanted to do with his money. This was on
June 1, 1801. The dying man left a number of small bequests to
friends, families and servants, before he came to the real business on
his mind. His bequests, besides money, included, "unto Betsey Hart, my
housekeeper, my gold sleeve buttons," and "unto Adam Shields, my
faithful overseer, my gold watch," and "unto Gawn Irwin, who now lives
with me, my shoe-buckles and knee-buckles." Adam Shields married
Betsey Hart. They were both Scotch--probably from whatever part of
Scotland the Randalls hailed in the first place.
When these matters were disposed of, he began to speak of what was
nearest his heart. He had a good deal of money; he wanted to leave it
to some lasting use. Hamilton asked how he had made his money, and
Randall explained he had inherited it from his father.
"And how did he get it?" asked the great lawyer.
"By honest privateering!" declared Captain Tom's son proudly.
And then, or so the story goes, he went on to whisper:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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