{"id":640,"date":"2011-02-18T06:05:34","date_gmt":"2011-02-18T13:05:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/?p=640"},"modified":"2011-02-19T08:16:56","modified_gmt":"2011-02-19T15:16:56","slug":"the-ladies-of-boston-stage-a-coffee-party","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/the-ladies-of-boston-stage-a-coffee-party","title":{"rendered":"The Ladies of Boston Stage a Coffee Party"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>This week&#8217;s puzzle, like last week&#8217;s is taken from one of the many letters from Abigail Adams to John Adams.\u00c2\u00a0 It was written on July 31, 1777.\u00c2\u00a0 In it she recounts how a miserly bachelor gets his comeuppance from the ladies of the town.<\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td width=\"100\">            <style type=\"text\/css\">\r\n                table.cf7-db-table {\r\n                    margin-top: 1em;\r\n                    border-spacing: 0;\r\n                    border: 0 solid gray;\r\n                    font-size: x-small;\r\n                }\r\n\r\n                br {\r\n                                        mso-data-placement: same-cell;\r\n                }\r\n\r\n                table.cf7-db-table th {\r\n                    padding: 5px;\r\n                    border: 1px solid gray;\r\n                }\r\n\r\n                table.cf7-db-table th > td {\r\n                    font-size: x-small;\r\n                    background-color: #E8E8E8;\r\n                }\r\n\r\n                table.cf7-db-table tbody td {\r\n                    padding: 5px;\r\n                    border: 1px solid gray;\r\n                    font-size: x-small;\r\n                }\r\n\r\n                table.cf7-db-table tbody td > div {\r\n                    max-height: 100px;\r\n                    overflow: auto;\r\n                }\r\n            <\/style>\r\n            \r\n        <table id=\"cftble_761395889\" class=\"cf7-db-table\" >\r\n            <thead>\r\n                        <tr>\r\n            <th title=\"puzzle-solver\"><div id=\"Contact form 1,puzzle-solver\">puzzle-solver<\/div><\/th>            <\/tr>\r\n                        <\/thead>\r\n            <tbody>\r\n                            <tr>\r\n                <td title=\"puzzle-solver\"><div id=\"1300603987.0000,puzzle-solver\">Scott Johnson<\/div><\/td><\/tr>                <tr>\r\n                <td title=\"puzzle-solver\"><div id=\"1299152004.0000,puzzle-solver\">Francois<\/div><\/td><\/tr>                <tr>\r\n                <td title=\"puzzle-solver\"><div id=\"1298129626.0000,puzzle-solver\">Matthew<\/div><\/td><\/tr>                <tr>\r\n                <td title=\"puzzle-solver\"><div id=\"1297832391.0000,puzzle-solver\">Claire<\/div><\/td><\/tr>            <\/tbody>\r\n        <\/table>\r\n        <\/td>\n<td>If you have a problem with the flash working for you, you may wish to use the <a href=\"http:\/\/wwtft.com\/puzzles\/coffee\/coffee.png\">static version<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If you succeed in doing the puzzle, we&#8217;ve implemented a way for you to get credit for your efforts! (see the box on left)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>\r\n    <object classid=\"clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000\" id=\"swfobj_0\" width=\"90%\" height=\"660\">\r\n      <param name=\"movie\" value=\"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/puzzles\/coffee\/cwf_live.swf?version=6.1.13&amp;puzzleFileName=coffee_puzzle.xml\" \/>\n      <param name=\"base\" value=\"\/puzzles\/coffee\" \/>\r\n      <!--[if !IE]>-->\r\n      <object type=\"application\/x-shockwave-flash\" data=\"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/puzzles\/coffee\/cwf_live.swf?version=6.1.13&amp;puzzleFileName=coffee_puzzle.xml\" width=\"90%\" height=\"660\" base=\"\/puzzles\/coffee\">\r\n      <!--<![endif]-->\r\n        \r\n      <!--[if !IE]>-->\r\n      <\/object>\r\n      <!--<![endif]-->\r\n    <\/object>\r\n<br \/>\n<strong>31 July. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I have nothing new to entertain you with, unless it is an account of a new set of mobility, which has lately taken the lead in Boston.\u00c2\u00a0 You must know that there is a great scarcity of sugar and coffee, articles which the female part of the state is very loth to give up, especially whilst they consider the scarcity occasioned by the merchants having secreted a large quantity.\u00c2\u00a0 There had been much rout and noise in the town for several weeks.\u00c2\u00a0 Some stores had been opened by a number of people, and the coffee and sugar carried into the market, and dealt out by pounds.\u00c2\u00a0 It was rumored that an eminent, wealthy, stingy merchant (who is a bachelor) had a hogshead of coffee in his store, which he refused to sell to the committee under six shillings per pound.\u00c2\u00a0 A number of females, some say a hundred, some say more, assembled with a cart and trucks, marched down to the warehouse, and demanded the keys, which he refused to deliver. Upon which, one of them seized him by his neck, and tossed him into the cart.\u00c2\u00a0 Upon his finding no quarter, he delivered the keys, when they tipped up the cart and discharged him ; then opened the warehouse, hoisted out the coffee themselves, put it into the truck, and drove off.<\/p>\n<p>It was reported, that he had personal chastisement among them; but this, I believe, was not true.\u00c2\u00a0 A large concourse of men stood amazed, silent spectators of the whole transaction.<\/p>\n<p>Adieu. Your good mother is just come; she desires to be remembered to you; so do my father and sister, who have just left me, and so does she, whose greatest happiness consists in being tenderly beloved by her absent friend, and who subscribes herself ever his PORTIA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It seems as though the puzzles are too hard, so this week we&#8217;ve made it a bit easier.  Whether or not you&#8217;re up to the challenge, it&#8217;s worth reading this short letter from Abigail Adams to her husband John.  The ladies of Boston didn&#8217;t take kindly to a greedy store keeper&#8217;s gouging ways.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":""},"categories":[129],"tags":[177,186,187,188],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.whatwouldthefoundersthink.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}