Oh, dear!

"Saturday, Jan 27th - Cloudy. Wind W.N.W. The Dolphin, Capt. Collins, and Mr. Silvanus Cobb in his Schooner Sail for Halifax before Daylight or one of them, Cobb, did not go till Sunrise. The Wind Starts in to N.W. &c. Very Slippery, & Cold.
   About ten of the Clock in the morning, Capt. Ephraim Dean was taken Suddenly Ill. Supposed to be an Apoplectick fit. He Lived till about 1 O'Clock, when he expired. I understand he was as well as usual about his Business, untill he Complained his tongue was Swelld or Num, that he could not well Speak.  He was perceived to Faulter Immediately, & was only able to Answer two or three questions in a Low Voice, after which he Never Spake more, but Continued to Ly as if a Sleep till a Little before he expired he had Some Struggles. This Death is a Loud Call to the Living, & is a Great & publick Loss to the place, more especially to his Distressed Family & work men, &c."

The Diary of Simeon Perkins 1780-1789, p. 354, courtesy of The Champlain Society who makes it available through http://eir.library.utoronto.ca/.

My doctor husband said it sounds like a stroke. Ephraim Dean was born the 17th of October in 1734. His birth was recorded in the Barstable, MA Vital Records 1625-1903, (courtesy of NEHGS library). I still have to find where he is buried in Liverpool - I got a clue from Simeon where he described the corps [sic] being carried to the back of the Meeting House. Maybe he is there... he is not listed in any of the graveyards in Liverpool.

Ephraim is my 4th great grandfather on the Mack side.