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Title: The history of the rise, progress, and establishment of the independence of the United States of America, Vol. 1 (of 3)
        Including an account of the late war, and of the thirteen colonies, from their origin to that period

Author: William Gordon

Release date: April 29, 2025 [eBook #75984]

Language: English

Original publication: New York: John Woods, 1801

Credits: Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)


*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE HISTORY OF THE RISE, PROGRESS, AND ESTABLISHMENT OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, VOL. 1 (OF 3) ***





                                  THE
                                HISTORY
                                 OF THE
                   RISE, PROGRESS, AND ESTABLISHMENT
                                 OF THE
                              INDEPENDENCE
                                 OF THE
                       United States of America:
                               INCLUDING
                      AN ACCOUNT OF THE LATE WAR,
                               AND OF THE
                           THIRTEEN COLONIES,
                   FROM THEIR ORIGIN TO THAT PERIOD.


                       BY WILLIAM GORDON, _D. D._

          _Quid verum *** curo, et rogo et omnis in hoc sum._
                                  HORAT. I Ep. I Lib.

                      THE THIRD AMERICAN EDITION.

                                VOL. I.

                              _NEW-YORK_:
          PRINTED FOR SAMUEL CAMPBELL, NO. 124, PEARL-STREET,
                             BY JOHN WOODS.
                                M.DCCC.I




                                PREFACE.


History has been stiled, “The evidence of time—The light of truth—The
school of virtue—The depository of events.” It is culculated for the
purposes of showing the principles on which states and empires have
risen to power, and errors by which they have fallen into decay, or been
totally dissolved: and of pointing out the fatal effects of intestine
divisions and civil wars, whether arising from the ambition, weakness,
or inattention of princes; or from the mercenary disposition pride, and
false policy of ministers and statesmen; or from mistaken ideas, and the
abuse of government and liberty. It should oblige all, who have
performed any distinguished part on the theatre of the world, to appear
before us in their proper character; and to render an account of their
actions at the tribunal of posterity, as models which ought to be
followed, or as examples to be censured and avoided.

The instructions that events afford, are the soul of history, which
doubtless ought to be a true relation of real facts during the period it
respects. An essential requisite in an historian is the knowledge of the
truth; and, as in order to perfection, he ought to be superior to every
temptation to disguise it: Some have said, that “he should have neither
country, nor particular religion.” The compiler of the present history
can assure the public, that he has paid a sacred regard to truth,
conscious of his being answerable to a more awful tribunal than that of
the public; and has labored to divest himself of all undue attachment to
every person, country, religious name or profession: whenever the reader
is inclined to pronounce him partial, let him recollect that he also is
subject to the like human frailty. A regard to truth has often
restrained him from the use of strong and florid expressions, that he
might not impose upon the reader a pleasing delusion, and lead him into
false conceptions of the events undertaken to be related.

The following work is not confined to the contest between Great-Britain
and the United States of America, but includes all the other parts of
the war which originated from that contest.

In the beginning of the first letter, the reader is acquainted with the
reasons that produced an historacal account of the first settlers in the
Thirteen Colonies, and of their successors, down to the close of 1771.
The insertion of what followed to the commencement of hostilities, was
necessary for the connecting of the two periods.

The form of letters, instead of chapters, is not altogether imaginary,
as the author, from his arrival in America in 1770, maintained a
correspondence with gentlemen in London, Rotterdam and Paris, answering
in general to the prefixed dates.

He apprehended, that by keeping to such form, and making the narrative
agree with the moment to which it related, and by introducing the
various insertions necessary for the authenticating of facts, a present
ideal existence of past events might be produced in the mind, similar to
what is felt when a well executed historical painting is examined. The
better to secure this point, several parts are written in the present
tense. If the author has failed in the execution, it is hoped that the
candid reader will admit of the good intention as an apology.

He has kept, as far as he could, to a chronological order. This has
necessarily interrupted the narrative of particular parts; which, though
a disappointment to some, may prevent the tediousness that might
otherwise have been felt by persons of a different taste. It may at
least serve to prevent or correct the too frequent mistakes of ascribing
prior events, partly or wholly to subsequent facts. The author regrets
his not having given every European letter the immediate resemblance of
being written to him by a correspondent. He flatters himself, that he
has in some measure compensated for that and other defects, by the
general contents of every letter in each volume, prefixed to the same;
by a copious index to the whole at the end of the last; and by a set of
maps, about which neither care nor expence has been spared to render
them valuable.

Struck with the importance of the scenes that were opening upon the
world, in the beginning of 1776, he formed an early design of compiling
their history, which he made known to the late commander in chief of the
American army; and meeting with the desired encouragement from him, he
applied himself to the procuring of the best materials, whether oral,
written, or printed. Oral communications were minuted down while fresh
in the memory; the written were directed immediately to himself in many
instances, in others only imparted: the productions of the European
press could not be received with any regularity or certainty during the
war, but were improved as they could be obtained.

The United States, in congress assembled, favored him with an inspection
of such of their records as could with propriety be submitted to the
perusal of a private person; and he was indulged by the late generals
Washington, Gates, Greene, Lincoln, and Otho Williams, with a liberal
examination of their papers, both of a public and more private nature.

He had the opportunity of acquainting himself with the records of the
first settlers in New-England; and examined those of the Massachusetts
Bay, from their formation as a company to the close of the war,
contained in near thirty folio manuscript volumes.

Dr. Ramsay’s History of the War in Carolina, was communicated to him
while in manuscript; and liberty was granted to make full use of it; the
present opportunity is embraced for acknowledging the benefit received
from it, and for returning grateful thanks to the Doctor. The Americans
remarked, that Dodsley’s Annual Register contained the best foreign
printed summary account of affairs: But it was not possible for writers
on this side the Atlantic to avoid mistakes. That Register and other
publications, have been of service to the compiler of the present work,
who has frequently quoted from them, without varying the language,
except for method and conciseness. He gathered from every source of
intelligence in his power, while at the place of his residence near
Boston; and since his return to his native country, in 1786, has
improved the advantage arising from it.

The accounts here given of American affairs, are so different in several
respects from what have been the conceptions of many on each side the
Atlantic, that it was necessary to insert a variety of letters, papers,
and anecdotes, to authenticate the narrative. The publication of these,
it is presumed, will obtain credit for such parts as could not with
propriety be supported by the introduction of similar proofs.

To write a history worthy the approbation of his friends, and (as far as
his power extended) of the present age, and of posterity; and to
convince mankind, that TRUTH _was his care, his search, and what his
soul was engaged in_, have been the great objects of

                                                             THE AUTHOR.

_London, Oct. 28, 1788._




                          THE GENERAL CONTENTS
                   OF THE SEVERAL LETTERS IN VOL. I.


                          LETTER I. P. 13–72.

The rise of the Puritans and Brownists, p. 14. The Brownists flee to
Holland; remove to America; settle at New-Plymouth; and adopt the
congregational mode of church government, p. 17. The Puritans purchase
and settle the Massachusetts Bay, p. 22. Connecticut and New-Haven
colonies settled, p, 32. The settling of Providence and Rhode-Island
colony, p. 35. New-Hampshire and the Main settled, p. 36. New-York, p.
40. New-Jersey, p. 41. Virginia, p. 45. Maryland, p. 53. Carolina, p.
55. Pennsylvania and Delaware counties, p. 63. Georgia, p. 70.


                         LETTER II. P. 72–104.

The New-York and Massachusetts settlements on the subject of taxation,
p. 72. Parliamentary acts respecting the colonies, p. 75. The latter
co-operate with the mother country, p. 77. The expedition against
Louisburgh, in 1745, p. 81. The Ohio company, in 1749, p. 86.
Hostilities commence in 1754, p. 89. The plan of the Albany congress for
uniting all the colonies, p. 90. The ministerial plan, and Dr.
Franklin’s objections to it, p. 91. General Braddock’s defeat, p. 95.
Lord Loudon and the Massachusetts general court, p. 96. The exertions of
the Massachusetts in the common cause, p. 97. Governor Bernard, p. 98.
Mr. James Otis, p. 100. The Massachusetts people jealous of ministerial
designs against their liberties, p. 101.


                        LETTER III. P. 105–140.

The Massachusetts assembly declare against parliamentary taxation, p.
105. Appoint a committee to correspond with the several assemblies on
the continent, p. 108. The stamp act, p. 111. It occasions a general
discontent in the Massachusetts, p. 117. The Virginia resolves
respecting it, p. 118. A congress meet at New-York, in 1765, p. 120.
Riots at Boston and elsewhere on account of the stamp act, p. 121.
Associations against its operation, p. 123. The stamp act repealed, p.
128.


                         LETTER IV. P. 140–204.

Mr. Samuel Adams chosen a member for Boston, p. 140—as also Mr. John
Hancock, p. 142. Compensation made to the sufferers in the time of the
riots, p. 144. The proceedings of the Massachusetts and New-Yorka
assemblies, p. 145. Mr. Charles Townsend’s bills for taxing the colonies
afresh, p. 146. The New-York legislative power suspended, p. 147. A
board of commissioners established in America, _ibid._ Non-importation
renewed, p. 148–162. The New-England spirit of patriotism approved of at
Philadelphia, p. 149. The Massachusetts assembly agree upon a circular
letter to the rest of the assemblies, p. 151. The new assembly required
to rescind the resolution which gave rise to it, p. 154—refuse, and are
dissolved, p. 155. Mr. Hancock’s sloop Liberty seized, p. 156. Troops
ordered to Boston, p. 161. A convention is called, and meets at Boston,
p. 165. Troops land in the town, p. 166. The letters of the Philadelphia
merchants to the committee at London, p. 168–178. The parliamentary
resolutions against the Massachusetts proceedings, p. 170. The counter
resolves of Virginia and Massachusetts, p. 171–174. Governor Bernard
recalled, p. 182. Goods re-shipped from Boston, p. 185. The act for
repealing the duties on glass, paper, and colours, p. 186. The soldiers
at Boston fire upon the inhabitants, on March 5, 1770, p. 190. Captain
Preston and the soldiers are tried, p. 193. Mr. M‘Dougall, of New-York,
committed to jail for publishing an address to the inhabitants, p. 199.
Massachusetts assembly and lieutenant-governor Hutchinson, p. 201.


                         LETTER V. P. 205–213.

Governor Hutchinson and the Massachusetts general court, p. 205. The
Gaspee schooner burnt, p. 206. Mr. James Warren proposes committees of
correspondence through the Massachusetts, p. 207. Governor Hutchinson,
in his speech to the general court, introduces the subject of the
supremacy of parliament, p. 212.


                         LETTER VI. P. 214–215.

An act for the better securing of his majesty’s dock-yards, ships, &c.
p. 214. The East-India Company empowered to export their own teas, p.
215.


                        LETTER VII. P. 215–229.

The Virginia burgesses resolve to maintain an intercourse with the
sister colonies, p. 216. A number of letters transmitted by Dr.
Franklin, are communicated to the Massachusetts assembly, p. 217. The
measures pursued by the colonies to prevent the introduction of the tea
sent by the East-India Company, p. 218. The proceedings at Boston
relative thereto, p. 220. The tea is thrown into the water, p. 224. The
conduct of the Massachusetts assembly respecting the judges receiving
their support from the crown, p. 227. The sentiments of the professed
patriots in the Massachusetts, p. 228.


                        LETTER VIII. P. 229–236.

A duel occasioned by the letters sent over by Dr. Franklin, p. 229. The
Massachusetts petition for the removal of the governor, dismissed, p.
230. The Boston port-bill, p. 231. The bill for regulating the
government of the Massachusetts, p. 232—for the impartial administration
of justice, _ibid._—for the government of the province of Quebec, p.
235.


                         LETTER IX. P. 237–257.

Governor Gage arrives at Boston, p. 237. The measures pursued relative
to the Boston port-bill, p. 238. The Massachusetts assembly appoint a
committee to attend a general congress, p. 241. The measure is adopted
by other colonies, p. 242. Boston considered as suffering in the common
cause, p. 245. Observations on the port-bill, p. 246. General Gage
alarmed, p. 248. The Massachusetts people prepare to defend their rights
with the sword, p. 249. The courts of judicature suspended, p. 253. Gage
fortifies the entrance into Boston, p. 254—seizes a quantity of powder,
_ibid._ An assembly of delegates form the towns in Suffolk, of which
Boston is the county town, p. 255.


                         LETTER X. P. 258–279.

The general congress meet at Philadelphia, p. 258—write to Gen. Gage, p.
259—make a declaration of rights, _ibid._—enter into a non-importation,
non-consumption, and non-exportation agreement, p. 261—address the
people of Great-Britain, p. 262—their memorial to the inhabitants of
British America, p. 263, address the king, p. 264—the Canadians, p. 266.
Messrs. Galloway and Duane on the side of ministry, p. 267.
Massachusetts provincial congress form and adopt measures for the
defence of the colony, p. 263. Proceedings in Pennsylvania,
Rhode-Island, New-Hampshire, Virginia, Maryland, & South-Carolina, p.
275. The state of the Massachusetts colony, p. 278.


                         LETTER XI. P. 279–304.

The parliament dissolved, p. 279. His majesty’s speech to the succeeding
new one, p. 280. Transcript from Mr. Quincy’s journal, p. 282. Lord
Chatham’s speech, Jan. 30, 1775, p. 286—Lord Camden’s, p. 290. The
petition of the house of commons in favour of the colonist neglected, p.
293. Lord North proposes a joint address from both houses to the king,
p. 296—It occasions great debates, p. 297—is protested against, p. 300.
North’s conciliatory motion, p. 301. Opposition to the bill for
restraining the New-England provinces from fishing on the banks of
Newfoundland, p. 302. The Americans insulted by several in both houses
of parliament, p. 303.


                        LETTER XII. P. 304–319.

The Massachusetts congress meet, p. 305. General Gage sends troops to
Salem, _ibid._ A battle between the whigs and tories at New-York, March
5, 1775, p. 307. The precautions of the Massachusetts people to supply
themselves with military articles, and to prevent a surprise, _ibid._
Gage sends troops to Concord, p. 310—they fire upon the militia at
Lexington, _ibid._ The country rises, p. 311. A reinforcement of British
sent from Boston, p. 312. The origin of the term Yankee, _ibid._ The
royal troops obliged to retreat to Bunker’s-hill in Charlestown
peninsula, p. 314—cross over to Boston, _ibid._—which is invested by the
provincials on every side by land, p. 315. Gage agrees with the
committee of the town, p. 316. Dr. Warren’s letter to him, p. 317. The
provincials no wise prepared for a military contest with Great-Britain,
p. 318.


                        LETTER XIII. P. 319–326.

The fishery restraining bill, and the bill for restraining the commerce
of the colonies, p. 319. Petitions against the coercive acts, and
counter petitions, p. 321. The city of London approaches the throne with
an address, remonstrance, and petition, in favour of the Americans, p.
322. The earl of Effingham resigns his regiment, p. 323. Generals Howe,
Clinton, and Burgoyne, sail for Boston in the Cerberus, p. 324. The news
of the Lexington engagement reaches London, p. 326.


                        LETTER XIV. P. 327–387.

The North-Carolina general assembly meet, p. 327. The effects of the
Lexington engagement, p. 328. The expedition against Tyconderoga, p.
332. The proceedings of the Massachusetts congress, p. 336. Transactions
in and about Boston, p. 341. Governor Hutchinson’s letter books
discovered, p. 344. The acts of the general congress, p. 346. George
Washington, esq. elected commander in chief of the continental forces,
p. 347. The battle at Breed’s-hill, erroneously called Bunker’s hill, p.
350. A speech of the Oneida Indians, p. 360. An answer of the
Stockbridge Indians, p. 361. The reply of the Massachusetts congress, p.
362. The acts of the general congress, p. 363. General Washington’s
arrival at the American camp, and the affairs of the army, p. 365. The
acts of the general congress to the time of their adjourning, p. 369.
Georgia accedes to the union, p. 373. The proceedings of the
South-Carolinians, p. 376—of the North-Carolinians, p. 378—of the
Virginians, p. 380—of the Maryland convention, p. 383. The affairs of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, New-York, and other places, p. 384.


                         LETTER XV. P. 387–431.

The Thirteen United Colonies, p. 387. The proceedings of the
South-Carolinians, p. 388. The nature of the opposition to popular
measures in their colony, p. 389. They send troops into the settlements
of the royalists, p. 392. The measures taken by the North-Carolinians,
p. 393—by the Virginians, p. 394—in regard to Lord Dunmore, p. 395—his
lordship disappointed at Norfolk, _ibid._—in his expectation of being
joined by a considerable force under Connelly, p. 397. The orders of the
Pennsylvania assembly to their delegates in congress, p. 398. The
sentiments of the Jersey assembly, _ibid._ The Asia man of war fires
upon New-York, p. 399. Governor Tryon’s influence alarms congress, p.
400. Letters between Generals Washington and Gage, p. 404. Colonel
Arnold’s expedition into Canada, p. 406. Dr. Churche’s correspondence
with a British officer discovered, p. 410. Falmouth destroyed, p. 412.
The old south meeting-house in Boston turned into a horse riding school,
p. 413. The Massachusetts assembly resolve to fit out armed vessels, p.
416. The steps taken to introduce independency, p. 419. Acts of
congress, p. 422. General Montgomery is sent to Canada, p. 424—appears
before Quebec, p. 430.




                                  THE

                     RISE, PROGRESS, AND CONCLUSION

                                 OF THE

                       NORTH AMERICAN REVOLUTION.




                               LETTER I.


                                           _Roxbury, December 28, 1771._

  MY GOOD SIR,

To your properly understanding the nature and origin of the uneasiness
that has so strongly agitated the colonies of late years, and still
exists, though now somewhat abated; and which has been occasioned by
parliamentary taxation and the modern measures of government; you must
be acquainted with the sentiments and history of the first settlers, no
less than of their descendants and successors.

Several of the most zealous and eminent protestants, in the reign of
_Edward_ the VIth, opposed the popish ceremonies and habits, though
otherwise united to their brethren in religious tenets. The opposition
became more general and determined, after hundreds of them fled to, and
resided in foreign parts, in order to escape the _Marian_ persecutions.
There the sentiments of numbers, through their intercourse with
protestants of other nations, were much changed and improved; and they
were more than ever desirous of proceeding further in the reformation,
than was directed by the service-book of king _Edward_.

Upon the accession of _Elizabeth_, the refugees returned to _England_,
[1558.] loaded with experience and learning, but in the utmost distress
and poverty. Those of the clergy, who could comply with the queen’s
establishment, were quickly preferred. The rest, after being admitted to
preach a while, were suspended, and reduced to former indigence. Several
were offered bishopricks, but declined the tender, on account of the
garments, ceremonies, &c. while the necessity of the times and the
flattering hope of obtaining hereafter an amendment in the constitution
of the church, induced others to accept preferments, though with
trembling.

The queen affected much pomp in religion; was fond of the old popish
ceremonies, in which she had been educated; and thought her brother,
king _Edward_, had gone too far in demolishing ornaments.

The clergy and laity, who sought after greater ecclesiastic purity, in
vain struggled hard for the abolishment of popish ceremonies and habits;
or, at least, leaving the use of them, in divine service, indifferent.
They obtained nothing but the honorable nick-name of PURITANS. The queen
proved an inflexible bigot, and would be obeyed, or punish. The
parliament, in their first session, had very injudiciously passed the
two acts of supremacy and uniformity, without guarding them properly;
and by a clause in the latter, delivered up to the crown, all
ecclesiastic jurisdiction. Men of solid learning and piety, of sober
lives, popular preachers, professed enemies to popery and superstition,
and of the same faith in point of doctrine, with the conformists, were
suspended, deprived, imprisoned and ruined, for not complying with the
use of those garments and ceremonies, which their opponents acknowledged
to be indifferent in themselves; while the sufferers adjudged such
compliance sinful, from their having been abused to idolatry, and
serving as marks and badges of that religion they had renounced.

All the puritans of these times were desirous of remaining in the
church, might they be indulged as to the habits and a few ceremonies,
though they were far from being satisfied with the hierarchy, and had
other objections beside those for which they had been deprived. Instead
of indulgence, their grievances were multiplied, and the penal laws were
rigorously executed. However, the body of the conforming clergy being
extremely illiterate and ignorant, the deprived ministers were employed
as curates or lecturers; and received for their services, a small
consideration from the incumbent, together with the voluntary
contribution of the parish. By their warm and affectionate preaching,
and eminent faithfulness, they gained the hearts of the common people,
who were the more attached to them, the more cruelty was exercised upon
them; and who had the utmost aversion to the popish garments, as their
hatred to popery increased. The preachers appealed to the scriptures.
Their hearers searched them carefully; obtained more and clearer
discoveries of the popish superstitions; grew in their abhorrence of
them; venerated the divine institutions; and longed to have the worship
of the church rendered more pure and primitive. The popularity of the
deprived ministers drew numbers from neighboring parishes. _Puritanism_
spread and gained ground by being persecuted. Its growth was the
greatest grief to the queen and archbishop Whitgift. But neither the
supreme head of the church, nor the primate of all _England_, had policy
or christianity enough to apply the proper remedy, in granting _liberty
of conscience_. Instead of that, new acts were passed, and greater
severities practised. Such inhuman proceedings against protestants of
good moral characters, did not pass unnoticed. They were the subjects of
conversation. The right of acting thus toward fellow creatures, and its
non-agreement with the mild and benevolent principles of christianity,
were freely canvassed. The supreme head and chief dignitaries of the
_English_ church being such intolerable persecutors, it became a
question, “Is she any longer a _true church_ of Christ, and are her
ministers _true_ ministers.”

At length one _Robert Brown_, descended from an ancient and honorable
family, and nearly related to lord treasurer _Cecil_, a fiery zealot,
travelled through the country [1586] a second time, holding forth,
wherever he went, against _bishops_, _ecclesiastic courts_, _ordaining
of ministers_, &c. and gathered a _separate_ congregation. The parties
held, that the _church of_ ENGLAND was not a _true_ church; that her
ministers were not _rightly_ ordained; that her discipline was _popish_
and _anti-christian_; and that all her ordinances and sacraments were
_invalid_. Therefore they would not join with her members in _any part_
of public worship. They not only renounced communion with the _church
of_ ENGLAND, but with _all_ other reformed churches, except they were of
their own model.

These _separatists_ were called _Brownists_, which was long afterward
the common name for all that separated _totally_ from the church of
_England_, even when they disowned the rigid principles of _Brown_ and
his congregation. We must carefully distinguish the _Brownists_ from the
_Puritans_. Most of the latter were for keeping within the pale of the
church, apprehending it to be a _true_ church in its _doctrines_ and
_sacraments_, though defective in _discipline_ and corrupt in
_ceremonies_. They thought it _unlawful_ to separate; submitted to
suspensions and deprivations; when driven out of one diocese, took
sanctuary in another, being afraid of incurring the guilt of _schism_;
and were the chief writers against the _Brownists_.

[1593] A fresh effort was made to crush the _non-conformists_. A most
obnoxious act was passed, for punishing all who refused to come to
church, and every one who persuaded others to oppose the queen’s
authority in ecclesiastic causes, or was present at any conventicle or
meeting. The punishment was imprisonment without bail, till the
convicted agreed to conform, and make a declaration of his conformity.
In case the offender did not sign the declaration within three months,
he was _to abjure the realm, and go into perpetual banishment_. If he
departed not within the time limited, or returned afterward without the
queen’s licence, he was _to suffer death without benefit of clergy_. By
this act, the case of non-conformists was worse than that of felons at
common law. The statute was levelled against the laity, no less than the
clergy. The moderate Puritans evaded it, by going to church when prayers
were nearly ended, and by receiving the sacrament when administered with
some latitude. The weight of it fell upon the _Brownists_, whose
sentiments had gained ground, so that they were increased to near twenty
thousand, besides wives and children, according to the opinion of _Sir
Walter Raleigh_, given in the house of commons, when the bill was read
the second time and debated.[1]

Several were _put to death_ about this period; which excited an odium
against the bishops and high commissioners, who were universally known
to have been at the bottom of the proceedings against them. It was
resolved therefore to send the remainder of the imprisoned into
banishment, instead of continuing to execute them. Others preferred a
voluntary exile, rather than be exposed to the merciless persecutions
that awaited them in their native country. Is it strange that these
persons, thus forced or frightened out of it, for claiming and
exercising the common right of human nature, that of judging for
themselves in matters of religion, should at length think that their
allegiance terminated with their departure; or that those who
commiserated them, inclined to the same sentiment?

The parliament, especially the lower house, perceiving how the queen,
and many of the bishops and ecclesiastics abused their spiritual power;
what mischiefs they brought upon the church; and the miseries to which
honest men were reduced for mere difference in religious sentiments,
attempted repeatedly to regulate matters, and to redress the hardships
of the non-conformists, but was stopped by her majesty, in the most
dictatorial manner. Some of the members, roused by such unwarrantable
acts of sovereignty, spake boldly and freely upon the occasion, and
censured the arbitrary proceedings of the bishops. The queen added to
her other faults, that of sending them to the Tower. But though she
could awe the parliament, imprison its members, and protect her favorite
bishops, she could not overpower the consciences of the non-conformists.

A number of religious people upon the borders of _Nottinghamshire_,
_Lincolnshire_, and _Yorkshire_, having suffered persecution patiently
for years, and searched the scriptures diligently, were at length fully
of opinion, that the _ceremonies_ of the _English_ church were
_unlawful_; that the lordly power of her prelates was contrary to the
_freedom_ of the gospel; and that her offices, courts and canons, had no
warrant in the word of God; but were _popish_. They determined therefore
to shake off that yoke of bondage, viz. human impositions, brought into
the church by popish policy and power, against the superior law of
Christ, the genius of his plain religion and christian liberty. They
resolved [1602] as the Lord’s free people, “_to join themselves by
covenant into a church state; and, agreeable to present or future
knowledge, to walk in all the ways of God, according to their best
abilities, whatever it costs them_.”[2]

The assembly [1606] owing to the distance of habitations, was obliged to
form itself into two distinct religious societies; the one, with which
is our concern, soon had for its pastor the famous Mr. _John Robinson_.
The church kept together about a year; but being extremely harrassed by
persecutors, concluded upon removing to _Holland_. The pious refugees
repaired to and settled at Amsterdam; but after a while removed to
_Leyden_; where they were highly respected, and would have been allowed
some public favor, had it not been for fear of offending England. By
hard and continued labor they obtained a living. The _Dutch_ employed
them before others, for their honest and exemplary behaviour; and
readily trusted them when in want of money. Matters, however, were not
altogether to their mind [1617] and some of the most sensible began to
think of another removal. It was imagined, that if a better and easier
place of living could be had, numbers would join them. The morals of the
Dutch were too dissolute; and they were afraid that their offspring
would become irreligious. Beside, they had an ardent, noble, and godly
desire, of laying a foundation for spreading the religion of _Jesus_
over the remote regions of the earth; and of handing down to future ages
what they thought to be, the pure and unadulterated worship of the great
JEHOVAH. They therefore directed their views to _America_. To those who
objected—the length and danger of the voyage, the difficulties and
calamities to which they should be exposed, the barbarities and
treacheries of the _Indians_, and their inability to support the
expence—it was answered “The difficulties are not invincible, and may be
overcome by fortitude and patience; the ends proposed are good and
honorable; the calling lawful and urgent; the blessing of God may
therefore be expected. We live but as exiles now, and are in a poor
condition. The truce with the _Spaniards_ is hastening to a close.
Nothing but preparations for war are going forward. The _Spaniards_ may
be as cruel as the _Savages_; and famine and pestilence may be as sore
in _Holland_ as in _America_.”

After serious and solemn application to God for direction, they
concluded on carrying the proposal of crossing the _Atlantic_ into
execution; endeavoring to live in a distinct body by themselves, under
the general government of the _Virginia_ company; and suing to his
majesty, king _James_, for _full liberty and freedom of conscience_.

The Virginia company were ready to give them a patent, with as ample
privileges as they could grant; but, notwithstanding the great interest
made by gentlemen of the first character, and by the chief secretary of
state, the king and bishops refused to allow the refugees (though at the
distance of 3000 miles) liberty of conscience under the royal seal. All
they could obtain from his majesty, was a promise that he would connive
at, and not molest them, provided they carried themselves peaceably; but
he would not tolerate them by his public authority. Upon this occasion,
it was wisely observed, “If his majesty’s promise is no security, a
further confirmation will be of little value, though it has a seal as
broad as the house floor, it will not serve the turn, for there will be
means enough found, when wanted, to recall or reverse it; and we must
rest herein on God’s providence.” This reasoning and the hope of being
placed beyond the reach of ecclesiastic courts, prevailed. They resolved
to venture; and after long attendance, much cost and labor, obtained a
patent.

They agreed that the minor part of younger and stronger men, with Mr.
_Brewster_, an elder of the church, should go first, and that the
pastor, Mr. _Robinson_, should remain behind with the majority, for a
future favorable opportunity. Their enemies whispered, that the stats of
_Holland_ were weary of their company; but the reverse was evident from
the following occurrence, viz. the magistrates of the city, when
reproving the _Walloons_ in open court, said, “_These_ English _have
lived now ten years among us, and yet we never had any accusation
against any of them, whereas your quarrels are continual_.”

The colony destined for America, sailed from _Delft-Haven_ for
_Southampton_, July 22, 1620; and there met a ship having some English
friends on board, who proposed removing with them. Both vessels
proceeded to sea; but returned twice into port, on account of defects in
the one from Delft, which was dismissed. Part of the company returned to
_London_, the remainder betook themselves to the ship, and sailed from
_Plymouth_ the 6th of September. After many delays, difficulties and
dangers, they made _Cape Cod_ at break of day on the 9th of November,
and entered the harbor on the 10th. They offered up their devout and
ardent acknowledgments to God for his protection, and had thoughts of
landing; but remarking that they were out of the limits of their patent,
and in a sort reduced to a state of nature; and hearing some, who came
from London, hint, _there is now no authority over us_; they, while on
board, formed themselves into a civil body politic, under the crown of
_England_, for the purpose of framing “just and equal laws, ordinances,
acts, constitutions and offices,” to which they promised “all due
submission and obedience.” This _contract_ was subscribed by forty-one
persons, on Saturday the 11th of November. The whole company of
settlers, men, women, children, and servants, amounted to no more than
one hundred and one, the exact number that left England—for one had
died, but another was born upon the passage.

Enfeebled and sickly, we now behold them at the distance of 3000 miles,
not only from their native country, but the hospitable land where they
lately resided for years, when unfeeling persecution drove them into a
voluntary banishment. They have a long and dreary winter before them,
and are upon the strange coast of an uncultivated wilderness, without a
relation or friend to welcome their arrival, or an house to shelter
them; without even a kind inhabitant to comfort them by tender acts of
humanity, much less a civilized town or city, from which succour may be
obtained on an emergency. Thus circumstanced, they are employed in
making discoveries till the 20th of December, when they concluded upon a
place for immediate settlement, which they afterward name
_New-Plymouth_, in grateful remembrance of the last town they left in
their native country.

The winter proved remarkably mild[3] for the American climate, though
excessively severe to an English constitution; and what with disorders
brought upon them through uncommon labors and fatigues, and their being
exposed to the rigors of the season; and what with the scurvy and other
diseases occasioned by a tedious voyage, and the want of proper
accommodations while making it, they buried by the end of March, 1621,
forty-four of their little society, of whom one-and-twenty were
subscribers to the _contract_. The number of their dead increased to
fifty by the beginning of November, when, to their great joy a vessel
arrived with thirty-five settlers from London. It was years before their
plantation amounted to three hundred people; when nearly so, the council
established at _Plymouth_, in the county of _Devon_, for the planting,
ruling, ordering, and governing of _New-England_, in _America_, granted
them a _patent_, [Jan. 13, 1630] by which their lands were secured
against all English claims.—Be it noted, that they early agreed with,
and satisfied the _Indian_ proprietors.

It would have been astonishing, had not these planters brought with them
opinions favorable to liberty. The arbitrary proceedings of _Elizabeth_
and _James_, produced a spirit of enquiry; and induced the sufferers and
others to canvass the equity of those powers which were so improperly
exercised. When the film of prejudice was removed, it was easy to
discern that tyranny, whether in church or state, could not be
vindicated by reason or revelation; and that Heaven’s permitting it, was
no more a countenance to that, than any other wickedness. Beside, the
_Plymouthians_ had lived for many years among a people who had been
engaged in a bloody war with a cruel unrelenting tyrant, whose
sovereignty they had renounced. The frequent conversation that must have
passed between the Dutch and English refugees, must have improved the
attachment of the last to the cause of freedom. It might also have been
hinted to them, that it began to be the sentiment of some English nobles
and principal commoners, that in case of a removal to America, persons,
without any charter from the crown, were at liberty to establish what
form of government they pleased; and to set up a new state, as fully to
all intents and purposes, as though they were making their first
entrance into civil society.

No wonder then, especially considering the general equality prevailing
among them, that the _Plymouthians_, by their contract before landing,
formed themselves into a _proper democracy_, and that it was entered in
the _Plymouth_ records of [Nov. 15, 1636] “_Finding, that as free born
subjects of the state of_ ENGLAND, _we hither came with all and singular
the privileges belonging to such; in the first place we think good, that
it be established for an act, that, according to the_ [_rights_ supposed
to be wanting] _and due privileges of the subjects aforesaid, no
imposition, law or ordinance, be made or imposed upon them at present or
to come, but such as shall be made and imposed by consent, acccording to
the free liberties of free born subjects of the state and kingdom of_
ENGLAND, _and no otherwise_.” They meant to continue their allegiance to
the crown; to retain their connection with the mother country; to adopt
the general laws of England for the rule of government, wherein they
suited; and to be governed by their own particular acts in other
instances.

Persons devoted to church authority and particular national
establishments, may exclaim against the _Plymouthians_ for their
religious sentiments; but a fair and brief statement of them, it is
apprehended, will be thought the best defence that can be offered by
those who candidly examine the _New-Testament_, and are properly
impressed with the words of our Saviour—_My kingdom is not of this
world_.

When Mr. _Robinson_ and his associates separated from the church of
England, they were rigid _Brownists_. After his removal to Holland, and
there conversing with learned divines, he being a gentleman of a liberal
mind and good disposition, became moderate, as did his people; so that
they who continued rigid _Brownists_ would hardly hold communion with
them. Mr. _Robinson_ and his society did not require of those who joined
them, a renunciation of the church of England. They also acknowledged
the other reformed churches for true and genuine; allowed their own
members occasional communion with them in the word preached and in the
prayers conceived by the preacher before and after sermon, but not in
the sacraments and discipline; and admitted their members, known to them
to be pious, to occasional communion with themselves in the sacraments.
Still it is to be remarked, that they were not admitted because of their
being members of such churches, but on account of their known piety;
their belonging to and continuing in such churches, was not an argument
for rejecting them; nor was it the argument for their reception. Mr.
_Robinson_, however, by his conversation and writings, proved a
principal in ruining _Brownism_; and, in the opinion of some was the
father, of others the restorer, of the _independent_ or _congregational_
churches. Congregational is the term used in _New-England_, the other is
discarded, as seeming to imply too great a separation from sister
churches.

The _Plymouthians_ held, that the Bible was the sole religious code of
protestants; and that every man had a right to judge for himself, and to
try all doctrines by it, and to worship according to what he apprehended
that directed. In doctrinal tenets they agreed with the articles of the
church of England. The main difference between them and other reformed
churches was about hierarchy. They maintained, that no particular church
ought to consist of more persons than could worship in one congregation;
that every man ought, in appearance, to be a true believer in Christ,
and subject to his authority; that when there was a suitable number of
such believers, who thought themselves bound in conscience to do it,
they had a right to embody into a church, by some certain contract or
covenant, expressed or implied; and that, being embodied, they were to
choose all their officers, who were pastors or teaching elders, mere
ruling elders, meant to assist the former, and qualified to teach
occasionally, and deacons who were to manage the temporalities of the
church, to take care of the poor, and to officiate at the Lord’s table,
by providing the bread and wine, laying the cloth, carrying the
elements, &c. [The custom of having ruling elders has now ceased.] The
elders of both kinds were to form the presbytery of overseers and
rulers. They also held, that no churches or church officers, had any
power over other churches or officers, to control or impose upon them,
all having equal rights and privileges. Their own officers were
removable by them upon justifiable reasons; in case of capital errors,
gross misconduct, and the like. When they baptised, they rejected the
sign of the cross, and other ceremonies not enjoined by scripture. They
received the elements of the Lord’s supper, in the table-posture of the
day and place in which they lived. Excommunication they deemed to be
wholly spiritual; and denied that the church or its officers had any
authority to inflict temporal pains and penalties. They considered no
days as holy, but the Lord’s day, which they observed with great
strictness. Solemn fastings and thanksgivings, as the aspects of
providence required, they had a pious regard to, as agreeable to both
natural and revealed religion.

A better sort of emigrants never crossed the _Atlantic_. “They were a
plain, frugal, industrious, conscientious, and loving people; and, for
the day in which they lived, and considering their education, possessed
a good share of politeness. The important light in which they viewed
morality, led them, in many instances to such critical exactness as
would be deemed by the moderns ridiculous; from thence, however, the
community derived substantial benefits. They have been stigmatized as
enthusiasts; but nothing like enthusiasm is to be met with in the
records of any of their transactions, either civil or ecclesiastic.
Their piety indeed was eminent and fervent, but it was also rational;
and their religion was that of the Bible, and had a proper influence
upon their conduct.”

The _Plymouthians_ having cleared the way for other sufferers to settle
in _America_, with less difficulty and danger than what they had
experienced; the fame of their plantation spreading through the western
parts of _England_; and the government in church and state growing more
and more oppressive; the territory of the _Massachusetts-Bay_ was
purchased of the _Plymouth Council_ [1628] and a company soon formed,
who consulted on settling a plantation, to which non-conforming
_puritans_ might emigrate in order to enjoy their own principles in full
security. Their sufferings had been moderated for a few years before
_Elizabeth_’s death. The queen was far advanced in life; the next heir
to the crown was a _presbyterian_, who had subscribed to the _Scotch_
national covenant, and, with hands uplifted to Heaven, had pronounced,
“The _Scotch_ kirk is the purest in the world, and the service of the
kirk of _England_ an evil said mass in _English_, that wants nothing of
the mass but the liftings;” he had interceded for some of the persecuted
ministers; and the bishops were cautious of acting against a party for
whom king _James_ had declared; but upon his ascending the throne, the
fears of the high-churchmen and the hopes of the non-conformists were
soon ended. It was not long before the king became in the church a
furious persecutor of the non-conformists, and in the state as errant a
despot as his cowardice would allow. In stigmatizing for _puritans_, all
who stood by the laws of the land, and opposed his arbitrary government,
though strenuous churchmen, he strengthened the cause of the _church
puritans_; the former, called by way of distinction _state-puritans_,
joining the latter, both together became at length the majority of the
nation.

Still the times were not mended; and the death of _James_ made way for
their becoming much worse. King _Charles_ unfortunately took for his
bosom-counsellor in religious affairs, bishop _Laud_, the most
unqualified person for the purpose, of any to be found in his three
kingdoms; he also resigned himself up to arbitrary councils.

The lowering prospect thickened apace; the _Massachusetts_ company
therefore provided a safe retreat in season. They applied immediately to
the improvement of their purchased territory; and sent out capt. _John
Endicott_ and others, with servants, to begin a plantation; who arrived
at (what is now named) _Salem_. They soon after petitioned for a _royal
charter_, hoping that their existence and powers would be thereby
secured and promoted. They succceeded, and a charter of incorporation
was granted, [March 4, 1629] making them a body politic, by the name of
“The Governor and Company of the _Massachusetts-Bay_ in _New-England_,”
with as full powers as any other corporation in the realm of _England_.
The grant and sale of the _Plymouth Council_ was confirmed. Till the
annual election by the company could commence, the governor,
deputy-governor, and eighteen assistants were specified. The mode of
governing, and of admitting freemen, was prescribed. They were empowered
to elect and constitute such other officers as might be thought
requisite for the managing of their affairs, and to make laws and
ordinances, not contrary to the laws and statutes of the realm, for the
good of the said company and the government of their lands and
plantations, and the inhabitants thereof. They were allowed to transport
persons, whether subjects or strangers, weapons, merchandize, &c. _any
law to the contrary notwithstanding_—such was the dispensing power the
king assumed. He also exempted them from paying custom or subsidy for
seven years; the governor and company, their factors and assigns, were
to pay neither that nor any taxes IN _New-England_ for the _same space_.
All were freed from duties upon goods imported or exported for 21 years,
except the old 5 per cent. custom upon imports after the expiration of
the seven years. All his majesty’s subjects going to and inhabiting the
company’s lands, together with their children, were to enjoy all the
liberties of free and natural subjects within any of his dominions, the
same as though born in England. The king could mean only, that, by
removing to and residing in the Massachusetts, they should not forfeit
for themselves or children the privileges of _Englishmen_, and be
treated as foreigners; and not, that they should be governed by laws and
officers of their own making or choosing, personally or by
representation; for they were evidently distinguished from the governor
and company (of whom it appears to be supposed, that they were to remain
in England) as these were authorized to administer the oaths of
supremacy and allegiance to all and every person or persons, who should
hereafter go to inhabit the lands and premises of the company. Beside,
the governor and company were entrusted with the power of making laws,
ordinances, &c. not contrary to the laws of England; of settling the
government and magistracy of the plantation; and its inhabitants; of
naming all the officers; and of setting forth their several duties,
powers and limits; and the king commanded that all such laws,
ordinances, &c. should be published, in writing, under the common seal
of the company, and thereupon be carefully observed and put into
execution, according to their true meaning. The charter[4] does not once
mention _liberty of conscience_ or _toleration_; tho’ one[5] historian
has inadvertently advanced, that “free liberty of conscience was
likewise granted to all who should settle in the _Massachusetts-Bay_, to
worship God in their own way;” and another[6], “the charter granted
toleration to all christians, except papists.” The assertions apply only
to the charter granted by king _William_ and queen _Mary_.

[April 30, 1629.] The company, in the exercise of their chartered
powers, determined that a governor and council of twelve, residing on
the plantations, should have the sole ordering of its affairs and
government. They appointed Captain _Endicott_ governor, and seven
gentlemen going from England to be counsellors, and directed how the
other five should be elected, together with a deputy-governor and
secratary.

Messrs. _Higginson_, _Skelton_, _Bright_, _John_ and _Samuel Browne_
were of the seven counsellors nominated by the company. The three first,
being ministers, had declared themselves to be of one judgment, and to
be fully agreed on the manner how to exercise their ministry. The
company’s committee in the letter to governor _Endicott_, expressed good
hopes on account of it; and at the same time recommended Messrs. _John_
and _Samuel Browne_ as men who they much respected, being fully
persuaded of their sincere affections to the good of the plantation.[7]
The ministers and passengers coming to settle in it were episcopally
inclined when they left England, though they could not conform to many
ceremonies and customs, nor submit to what they judged different
corruptions, imposed upon their consciences by the king and prelates.
They were also strongly prejudiced against the _separatists_ in which
class the _Plymouthians_ were numbered. But long before they arrived, or
even sailed, a Dr. _Fuller_, a deacon of the church at Plymouth, and
well versed in its discipline, having been sent for, on account of a
fatal sickness which broke out among the emigrants after their arrival
at _Salem_, had, by his conversation with Captain _Endicott_, taken off
the ill effect of common report, and brought him to think favorably of
the outward form of worship espoused by the _Plymouthians_. The
influence of the doctor’s intercourse with the _Salem_ settlers cannot
be thought to have been confined to the Captain. When the business of
organizing a church was brought forward after the arrival of the
consellors, the matter was frequently canvassed, and at length it was
determined to form it, nearly upon the plan of the one at Plymouth; and
to invite the latter to be present by their messengers, at the solemn
ordination of the ministers Messrs. _Skelton_ and _Higginson_, [August
6.] Notwithstanding cross winds the Plymouth messengers were time enough
to give the right hand of fellowship, by which ceremony the two churches
professed mutual affection and communion.

Probably none of the newly arrived settlers had the least idea of such
ecclesiastic proceedings, when they left England; but thought very
differently. Some continued to do so; for Mr. _Bright_, disagreeing in
judgment from the other ministers, removed to a distance before their
ordination; and Messrs. _John_ and _Samuel Browne_, dissatisfied with
the proceedings of the society, separated with several who were like
minded, and set up another. Governor _Endicott_, being of a hot temper,
and not possessed of the greatest prudence, summoned the brothers before
him as ringleaders of a faction; and apprehending that their
conversation and conduct would occasion divisions, sent them back to
_England_, against their own inclination notwithstanding their being
counsellors, thinking himself justified by his public orders.

Let us return to the company in _England_.

[July 28.] Mr. _Matthew Craddock_, the governor, proposed at the general
court, that, for the advancement of the plantation, the encouragement of
persons of worth and quality to transplant themselves and families, and
other weighty reasons, the government of the plantation should be
transferred to its inhabitants, and not be continued in subordination to
the company at _London_. The matter was debated; and it was agreed, that
the persons present should seriously consider the business against the
next general court; it was also requested, that they would in the mean
while, conduct with that privacy, that the affair might not be divulged.
At a month’s end they met, and consented that the government and patent
should be settled in _New-England_, if it could be done legally. They
soon after received letters respecting the difference between governor
_Endicott_ and Messrs. _John_ and _Samuel Browne_; and fearing that
these two had in their private letters defamed the plantation, they
opened and read a number of them, and ordered that none from Mr. _Samuel
Browne_ should be delivered; however, upon application from the
brothers, they directed that they should have a copy of the accusation
sent against them from _New-England_. The company’s letter upon this
business one to Messrs. _Skelton_ and _Higginson_, and another to
governor _Endicott_, intimated, that there had been in the parties
addressed a degree of intemperance; that direct or oblique espersions
had been thrown out against the state; and that undigested counsels had
been too suddenly put into execution. They besides expressed an
apprehension, lest, through an ill construction, the same might make the
company obnoxious to any adversary.[8]

The difference that happened in the plantation, the treatment of the
_Brownes_, and the reports circulated by them, undoubtedly occasioned
much talk. Many would think it strange, that, while the charter was
totally silent upon the head of religion, and several of the grantees
and company though strongly opposed to the tyrannies of the
high-churchmen, were real episcopalians; persons of this profession
should be debarred the right of worshiping according to their own
judgment and consience, and be even expelled the plantation. These
occurrences most probably forwarded the plan of Mr. _Craddock_. The
advice of learned council was ordered to be taken, and it was considered
how to execute the projected removal without offending government.

Among the other weighty reasons which induced them to remove, we must
include the hope of getting beyond the reach of _Laud_ and the high
commissoned court: for the Massachusetts general court declared in 1651,
“That seeing just cause to fear the persecution of the then Bishop and
high commission, for not conforming to the ceremonies, they thought it
their safest course to get to this outside of the world (America) out of
their view, and _beyond their reach_.

[October 20.] The company, at a general court, proceeded to a new
election of officers, who were to repair to and settle in _New-England_.
They chose for governor _John Winthrop_, esq. of _Groton_, in _Suffolk_,
a gentleman well known for his piety, liberality, wisdom and gravity.
The business of transferring the patent and corporation, and of taking
over new settlers, was prosecuted with vigor. The enterprise produced a
general rumour, as its extent and magnitude, the number and principles
of the person engaging in it, opened upon the public. The intentions of
the parties being suspected, and jealousies arising concerning them,
governor _Winthrop_ and other gentlemen, to remove prejudices,
conciliate the minds of the disaffected, and recommend themselves and
their expedition to the favourable regards of all serious christians of
the episcopal persuasion, addressed their brethren in and of the church
of _England_, [April 7, 1630.] and afterwards sailed from _Yarmouth_ in
the isle of _Wight_, for _America_. The signers of the address, pray in
the most solemn manner to be considered as their brethren, and desire it
to be noted, that the principals and body of their company esteem it
their honour to call the _church_ of ENGLAND their dear mother. They
acknowledge, that such hope and part as they have obtained in the common
salvation, they have received in her bosom, and sucked from her breasts.
They declare themselves members of her body, and that, while they have
breath, they shall sincerely endeavour her welfare. They pronounce
themselves a church springing out of her own bowels. Their professions
are made in the strongest language.[9]

[June 12.] The company arrived at _Salem_; and soon were in number more
than fifteen hundred persons from different counties in England. Thy
applyed themselves early to the forming of churches; but, the Rev. Mr.
_Cotton_ (who come from _Boston_ in _Lincolnshire_ to take leave of his
departing friends at _Southampton_) having told them to advise with the
_Plymouthians_ and to do nothing to offend them, and a precedent
existing in the church at _Salem_, they dismissed all the peculiarities
of episcopacy, and preferred the congregational mode in general.
However, they had no settled plan of church-discipline till after the
arrival of Mr. _Cotton_, [1633.] who was considerd as a kind of oracle
in both civil and sacred matters, and gradually moulded all their church
administrations, and thus determined the ecclesiastic constitution of
the colony; therein verifying what Mr. _Robinson_ had judiciously
predicted, when he said “Many of those who have both wrote and preached
against me and my people, were they in a place where they could have
liberty and live comfortably, should do as we do.”[10]

Governor _Winthrop_ inserted in his manuscript history, a couple of
anecdotes, of an earlier date than Mr. Cotton’s arrival, which may
amuse you. “July 30, 1631, Mr. _Ludlow_, in digging the foundation of
his house at _Dorchester_, found two pieces of _French_ money, one was
coined 1596. They were in several places, above a foot within the firm
ground.” “June 13, 1632, At _Watertown_ there was in the view of
divers witnesses, a great combat between a mouse and snake; and after
a long fight, the mouse prevailed and killed the snake.” The minister
of Boston, Mr Wilson a very sincere holy man, gives this
interpretation—“The snake is the devil, the mouse is a poor
contemptable people whom God has brought hither, and who shall
overcome Satan here, and dispossess him of his kingdom.” “At the same
time he told the governor, that before he resolved to come into the
country, he dreamed that he was here, and saw a church arise out of
the earth, which grew up and became a marvellous goodly church.” He
might think his dream divine; but it is easily accounted for as a
common event, arising with the church-building out of a lively
imagination, warmed and directed by a preponderating inclination. If,
instead of interpreting the combat, he had only mentioned, that the
event suggested to him such thoughts, and such an improvement, he
would have evidenced more judgment and an equal degree of wisdom in
seizing the happy circumstance.

The colony increased apace, by frequent and numerous accessions. But “it
appears by private letters, that the departure of so many of the best,
both ministers and private christians, did breed sad thoughts in those
behind of the Lord’s intention in the work, and an apprehension of some
evil days to come upon England; yea, it began to be viewed by the
council as a matter of state, so that warrants were sent to stay the
ships, and to call in the patent; but, upon the petition of the
ship-masters, alledging how beneficial the plantation was, they were
released: Mr. Craddock, however, had strict charge to deliver in the
pattent, and wrote to the company to send it home upon receipt of his
letter. [July, 1634.] The governor and assistants consulted about it,
and resolved to answer Mr. Craddock, but not to return any answer or
excuse to the council for the present[11].”

On the death of the duke of _Buckingham_, _Laud_ became the king’s prime
minister in all affairs of both church and state; and on the death of
Archbishop _Abbot_, he was exalted to the see of _Canterbury_. Possessed
of such powers, he by his pliant tools _made havock of the church,
hauling and committing to prison_ conscientious ministers and laymen who
would not bend to his antiscriptural impositions so that the people were
scattered abroad and passed over the _Atlantic_ into _America_. The
daily inroads of the court on the civil rights of the subject, helped
forward the emigration.

From the beginning of the colony, until the emigration ceased through a
change of affairs in England, [1640.] there arrived in 298 vessels about
21200 settlers (men, women and children) or 4000 families, but they did
not all confine themselves to the _Massachusetts_. Notwithstanding the
numbers that repaired thither when Josselyn visited Boston, in 1638, “he
found it rather a village than a town, there being not above 20 or 30
houses.” These settlers were no less strenuous for their own particular
rights and previleges than the Plymouthians. When the governor and
company removed from _London_ to the _Massachusetts_ they renounced the
appearance of a corporation, and assumed the form of a commonwealth,
varying, as it suited them, from the directions of the charter. The
change of place and circumstances prevented their keeping to it in
certain instances, tho’ not in others; but they could easily satisfy
themselves as to any violations; for “they apprehended themselves
subject to no other laws or rules of government, than what arose from
natural reason and the principles of equity, except any positive rules
from the word of God[12].” Persons of influence among them held, that
birth was no necessary cause of subjection; for that the subject of any
prince or state, had a natural right to remove to any other state or
quarter of the world, when deprived of liberty of conscience; and that
upon such removal his subjection ceased. They called their own a
voluntary civil subjection, arising merely from a mutual compact between
them and the king, founded upon the charter. By this compact they
acknowledged themselves bound; so that they could not be subject to or
seek protection from any other prince, neither could make laws repugnant
to those of _England_, &c. but, on the other hand, they maintained, that
they were to be governed by laws made by themselves, and by officers of
their own electing[13]. They meant to be independent of English
parliaments; and therefore when their intimate friends were become
leading members in the house of commons, and they were advised, on
account of the great liberty to which king Charles left the parliament,
to send over some to solicit for them, and had hopes given that they
might obtain much, the governor and assistants, after meeting in council
upon the occasion, “declined the motion, for this consideration, that,
if they should put themselves under the protection of the parliament,
they must then be subject to all such laws as they should make, or at
least such as they might impose upon them, in which course, (though they
should intend their good, yet) it might prove very prejudicial to
them[14].”

Whatever approbation such sentiments may meet with from the friends of
liberty, these must regret the inconsistencies to which human nature is
subject, in those very persons whose experience should have taught them,
to do unto others, as they would that others should have done unto them,
when they themselves were suffering under the relentless hand of
arbitrary government. But, what is man! [May 18, 1631.] So early as the
second general court after the arrival of the governor and company,
instead of resolving to admit all the suitable and deserving, to a
generous participation of their freedon, they passed the pernicious and
disingenuous order, “For time to come no man shall be admitted to the
freedom of this body politic, but such as are members of some of the
churches, within the limits of the same[15].” They soon after concluded,
that none but such should share in the administration of civil
government, or have a voice in any election. Thus a powerful and
mischievous alliance was formed between the churches and the state. The
ascendency of the clergy was secured and much increased; for no one
could be proposed to the church for a member, unless the minister
allowed it. The ministers were consulted by the general court, in all
matter of great moment; and nothing was determined in such cases,
without a formal reference to them; who, of course, used their influence
with the people to procure an approbation of the measures which they
themselves had advised[16];

[May, 1634.] Instead of the freemen’s appearing personally in the
general court, they for the first time sent deputies, to the number of
twenty-four. This was a variation from the charter which gave no power
to admit representatives. These with the governor, deputy-governor, and
assistants, formed the legislature of the colony, met and voted together
in one apartment till March 1644, when it was ordained, that the
governor and assistants, should sit apart: and thus commenced the house
of representatives, as a distinct body.

The general court assumed spiritual jurisdiction. Being church members,
they might suppose they represented the churches no less than the
colony. [March 8, 1636.] They would approve of no churches, after a
certain period, unless they had the approbation of the magistrates and
elders of most of the churches within the colony; nor would admit to
freedom any of their members. They pressed colonial uniformity in
religion, till they became persecutors[17]. Whatever apology may be made
for the treatment given to episcopalians, baptists and quakers, the
colony cannot be cleared from the charge of persecuting: that however
will not justify those who persecute with reproaches and ill-will the
present generation, now reprobating the intolerance of their
forefathers, which at that period was, more or less, the stain of most
religious parties. “It was not peculiar to the Massachusetts people to
think themselves bound in conscience to use the sword of the civil
magistrate to convince, or cut off heretics, so that they might not
infect the church, or injure the public peace[18].” The true grounds of
liberty of conscience, were not then known or embraced by many sects of
christians. But remember, that the _Massachusetts-Bay_ now surpasses the
mother country, in its regard for the sacred and civil rights of
mankind. It not only exempts those of other denominations from paying to
the support of its own colonial establishments, the congregational
churches; and has been a great number of years in this laudable
practice; but it protects all protestants without requiring any
qualifying subscriptions or tests, and excludes none by partial laws
from the exercise of civil power.

The government was in divers respects absolute. Both magistrates and
general court often judged and punished, in a summary way, without a
jury, according to discretion, as occasions occurred. It was four years
before it was enacted or ordered, that no trial should pass upon any for
life or banishment, but by a jury of freemen: and within three years
after, [1637.] that law was violated even by the general court. They
exercised, while sitting, legislative, judicial and executive powers—a
practice which must ever be dangerous to the rights of a people, even
when allowed to their own annual representatives.

The country at length grew uneasy at these proceedings; were suspicious
that the general court had effected arbitrary government; and earnestly
expected a body of laws to aid and protect them in all their just rights
and previleges[19]. It was the more necessary to comply with the
prevailing expectation, for the business had been long in agitation: not
only so, but a great majority of the inhabitants were not freemen not
being members of the congregational churches, or declining to take up
their freedom, in order to secure an exemption from serving in civil
offices. It was not till 1648 that the body of laws was digested and
printed.

The conduct of the colony on the one hand, and the inveteracy of the
English administration on the other, would certainly have produced a
revocation of the charter, and probably the ruin of the plantation, had
not the disturbances in England prevented. It became a favorite upon the
change that followed them; and while _Oliver Cromwell_ ruled, met with
the utmost indulgence. From 1640 to 1660 it approached very near to an
independent commonwealth[20]. The house of commons in a memorable
resolve of the 10th of March 1642, passed in favour of it, gives
_New-England_ the title of _kingdom_[21]. The commissioners for
_New-England_, sent over by king _Charles_ II. assert in their
narrative[22], that the colony solicited _Cromwell_ to be declared a
free state, which is not unlikely.

It has been already mentioned, that all the persons passing over to the
_Massachusetts_ did not confine themselves to that colony.

[1635.] Several families removed to _Connecticut_ river, by mutual
agreement with their fellow emigrants that remained behind. Plantations
were formed at _Hartford_, _Windsor_ and _Weathersfield_. The
inhabitants being soon after fully satisfied, that they were out of the
Massachusetts limits, and of course jurisdiction, entered into a
combination among themselves, [1639.] became a body politic, without
restraining the freedom of their civil government to the membership of
their churches; and proceeded to the choice of magistrates and
representatives. By the articles of government, it was determined that
there should be annually two general courts; and that no person should
be chosen governor more than once in two years. But it must be observed,
that the same year, in which the families removed from the
Massachusetts, Lords _Say_ and _Brooke_, with other gentlemen, having
obtained a grant, John Winthrop, esq. was appointed governor, took
possission of Connecticut river, and began to erect a fort (which he
called Say-Brooke) to secure the mouth of it. He was supplied with men,
provisions, and all things necessary by a vessel from England, sent by
the grantees, which arrived the latter end of November. Some of the
grantees had in contemplation to transport themselves, families and
effects, to the territory they had obtained; but the design of
emigrating was laid aside, when matters began to take a new turn in
their native country; and at length the agent Mr. _Fenwick_, was
authorized to dispose of their lands, which were purchased, in 1644, by
the people who had removed from the Massachusetts.

[1637.] Two large ships arrived at the _Massachusetts-Bay_ with
passengers from _London_. Great pains were taken to prevail upon them to
remain in the colony; but they hoped by removing to a considerable
distance, to be out of the reach of a general governor, with whom the
country was then threatened. They sent to their friends in _Connecticut_
to purchase of the natives the lands laying between them and _Hudson’s_
river. They laid the foundation of a flourishing colony, of which
_New-Haven_ was the capital. They, as Connecticut, formed a government,
much like the Massachusetts, by a voluntary agreement, without any
charter, or commission, or authority whatsoever, from the crown or other
powers in England. They admitted no one to any office civil or military,
or to have a voice in any election, except he was a member of one of the
churches in New-England. They had no jury either in civil or criminal
cases.

_Connecticut_ and _New-Haven_ continued two distinct colonies for many
years. At length the general court of Connecticut determined to prefer
an address and petition to Charles II. professing their subjection and
loyalty to his majesty, and soliciting a royal charter; and John
Winthrop, esq. who had been chosen governor, was appointed to negociate
the affair with the king. He succeeded, and a royal charter was
obtained, April 23, 1662, constituting the two colonies forever one body
corporate and politic. New-Haven took the affair ill; and for some time
declined the union. But difficulties were amicably settled at last, and
the colonies united by agreement. [1665.]

The royal charter established a pure democracy. Every power, as well
deliberative as active, was invested in the freemen of the corporation
or their delegates, and the colony was under no obligation to
communicate the acts of their local legislature to the king. It was the
same as to the _royal_ charter, granted the next year to _Rhode-Island
and Providence Plantations_.[23]

[1685.] In July various articles of high misdemeanor were exhibited
against the governor and company of Connecticut, and orders were given
to issue a writ of _quo warranto_ forthwith against the colony. The next
year two writs were served by Mr. _Randolph_; and after them a third in
December. This is taken notice of by the governor and company in their
letter of Jan. 26, 1686–7, wherein they mention their readiness to
submit to his majesty’s royal commands; and that, “if it be to conjoin
them with the other colonies and provinces under Sir _Edmund Andros_, it
would be more pleasing than to be joined with any other province.” Such
professed submission probably prevented the _quo warranto’s_ being
prosecuted with effect; and produced an order to Andros to accept the
surrender of the charter and the submission of the colony. Sir Edmond
went to _Hartford_ in October; but when at night he expected the charter
would have been surrendered into his hands, the candle was blown out,
and the charter withdrawn from the table, carried off and secreted by
one of the company: whose extraordinary service was afterwards rewarded
by the general assembly with five shillings, agreeable to the plain
simple manners of the people. He however published in the general court
his orders and commission which every one tacitly obeyed. He dissolved
the former government, and assumed the administration, receiving into
his legislative council the late governor and secretary, for the better
carrying on the business of the colony. The subsequent revolution in
England brought matters back, after a while to the former course; as the
legal validity of the charter was admitted.

The peopling of these three last colonies was owing chiefly to the
_Puritan Ministers_, who, being silenced at home, repaired to
_New-England_, that they might enjoy liberty of conscience; and drew
after them vast numbers of their friends and favorers. They amounted to
seventy-seven before 1641; and though all were not person of the
greatets learning and abilities, they had a better share of each than
most of sheir neighbouring clergy at that period; and were men of
eminent soberiety and virtue, plain, serious, affectionate preachers,
exactly conformable to the doctrines of the church of _England_, and
laboured much to promate a reformation of manners in their several
parishes.—Many planters who accompained or followed them, were gentlemen
of considerable fortunes and of no mean education, who spent their
estates in New-England, and were at the charge of bringing over many
poor families, that were not able of themselves to bear the expence.[24]
The body of laity and clergy, collectively considered, furnishes such a
glorious constellation of characters, as would employ the pen of a
first-rate writer to do them justice; notwithstanding what has been
above remarked of their governmental mistake.

The dangers to which the _New-England_ colonies were early exposed,
induced them to think of confederating for their mutual safety. Articles
were drawn up in 1638; but they were not finished and ratified till the
seventh of September 1643; from which time we are to look upon
_Plymouth_, _Massachusetts_, _Connecticut_ and _New-Haven_ as one body,
in regard to all public transactions with their neighbours, though the
private affairs of each colony were still managed by their own courts
and magistrates.

Pass we on to the settlement of the other _New-England_ colonies.

Mr. _Roger Williams_, who succeeded Mr. _Skelton_, upon his decease, as
pastor of the church at Salem, being banished from the Massachusetts,
repaired with twelve companions to the _Narraganset_ country, [1635] and
had land given him by the _Indian Sachem Canonicus_; of whom he
afterwards purchased the large tract, lying between _Pawtucket_ and
_Pawtuxet_ rivers (the great falls and the little falls, as the Indian
names signify,) and stiled it _Providence_ “from a sense of God’s
merciful providence to him in his distress.” The authority and power of
_Miantonomy_, another Sachem, and his uncle _Canonicus_, awed all the
Indians round to assist him and his few associates. When the
determinations of the Massachusetts general court (occasioned, by what
they called antinomian disputes) banished many, and induced others to
leave the colony, the heads of the party were entertained in a friendly
manner by Mr. _Williams_; [1638.] who advised them to seek a settlement
on _Rhode-Island_, and was very instrumental in procuring it of the
Indian Sachems.

They, to the number of eighteen, incorporated themselves, and began
settling the island. The plantations there and at Providence increased
apace, owing to the liberel sentiments of the first settlers; and in
1643 Mr. _Williams_ went to England as agent, and obtained [March 16,
1644.] “a free and absolute charter of incorporation of _Providence_ and
_Rhode-Island_ Plantations, empowering them to rule themselves, by that
form they might voluntarily agree upon.” They agreed upon a democratic.
Mr. _Williams_ justly claims the honor of having been the first
legislator in the world, in its latter ages, who effectually provided
for, and established a free, full, and absolute liberty of conscience.
This was the chief cause that united the inhabitants of _Rhode-Island_
and those of _Providence_, and made them one people, and one colony. The
foundation principle on which this colony was first settled, was, that
“_every man who submits peaceably to the civil authority, may peaceably
worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience without
molestation_.” When the colony was applied to in 1656 by the four
_United Colonies_ “to join them in taking effectual methods to suppress
the quakers, and prevent their pernicious doctrines being propagated in
the country; the assembly returned for answer “We shall strictly adhere
to the foundation principle on which this colony was first settled.”

[July 8, 1663.] King _Charles_ II. granted an ample charter, whereby the
colony was made a body corporate and politic, by the name of the
_Governor and Company of the English colony of Rhode-Island and
Providence Plantations, in New-England, in America_. The charter
reserved only allegiance to the king without the smallest share of the
legislative or executive powers.

[1685.] A writ of _quo warranto_ was issued out against the colony,
which was brought June 26, 1686. The assembly determined not to stand
suit. After the revolution, they were allowed by government to resume
their charter, no judgment having been given against it.

_New-Hampshire_ and the _Main_ were settled about the same time with the
_Massachusetts_, by different proprietors who had obtained patents, and
whose views were to enrich themselves, by the fishing trade at sea, and
the beaver trade ashore. Religion had little concern in the settlements;
but it had some in the plantation of _Exeter_, on the river
_Pascataqua_; which was began by Mr. _Wheelwright_ (a minister banished
from the Massachusetts, on account of the antinomian dissensions with
which the colony was convulsed) and by a number of his adherents. They
formed themselves into a body politic. Three other distinct governments
were also established on the branches of the said river. These
governments, being altogether voluntary, had no security as to their
continuance; and the several settlers were too divided in opinion to
form any good general plan of permanent administration. Therefore the
more considerate among them treated with the Massachusetts, about taking
them under its protection; which fully suited the wishes of that colony,
as it afforded the heads of it the opportunity of realizing the
construction they had put upon a clause of this charter, by which they
extended their line, so as to comprehend both _New-Hampshire_ and the
_Main_. The business terminated in the incorporation of the two
colonies, on condition that the inhabitants of each should enjoy equal
privileges. They continued long united, and were of one heart and mind
in civil and religious affairs.[25] When separated by the king’s
commission for the government of _New-Hampshire_, the new assembly at
their first meeting, in a letter of March 25, 1680, to the governor of
the Massachusetts, to be communicated to the general court, expressed
their full satisfaction in the past connection; grateful sense of the
care that had been exercised over them; and of their having been well
governed; and an unfeigned desire, that a mutual correspondence between
them might be settled.[26]

The towns in the province of _Main_, after a time, fell into a state of
confusion. The Massachusetts took that opportunity, for encouraging the
disposition which prevailed in many of the inhabitants to submit to
their jurisdiction; and, to forward their compliance, granted the people
larger privileges than were enjoyed by their own; for they were all
freemen upon taking the oath, whereas every where else no one could be
made free, unless he was a church member. The province was made a
county, by the name of _Yorkshire_; and the towns sent representatives
to the general court at _Boston_. Though the major part of the
inhabitants were brought to consent to this regulation, great opposition
was made by some principal persons, who severely reproached the
Massachusetts, for using force in order to reduce the province: but the
people experienced the benefit of it, and were contented. They continued
in union with the Massachusetts until 1665, when a short separation
commenced.

You have now a sketch of the settlement of all _New-England_. It would
have been far more concise, had it not been necessary, to correct the
mistakes frequently committed, by those who publish on the subject; and
to remove the reproaches cast upon the bulk of the inhabitants, on
account of their religious profession. Whether there was any material
difference between them and the other colonies, in regard to the opinion
they entertained of their civil rights, you will be able to observe in
the course of your reading. Their judgment in respect to the exercise of
parliamentary powers over them, may be further known by what _Randolph_
wrote concerning the Massachusetts, in his narrative and letters, after
the restoration; from whence “_it seems to have been a general opinion
that acts of parliament had no other force than what they derived from
acts passed by the general court to establish or confirm them_.”

[1676.] _Randolph_ declared, “No law is in force or esteem there, but
such as are made by the general court; and therefore it is accounted a
breach of their privileges, and a betraying the liberties of the
commonwealth to urge the observation of the laws of _England_.”—“No oath
shall be urged, or required to be taken by any person, but such oath as
the general court hath considered, allowed and required.”—“there is no
notice taken of the act of navigation, plantation, or any other laws
made in _England_ for the regulation of trade.”—“All nations have free
liberty to come into their ports, and vend their commodities without any
restraint; in this as well as in other things, that government would
make the world believe they are a free state, and do act in all matters
accordingly.”—“The magistrates have continually disobeyed his majesty’s
command in his royal letters, of 1662, 64, 65, and those of March last;
ever reserving to themselves a power to alter, evade and disannul any
law or command not agreeing with their humour, or the absolute authority
of their government, acknowledging no superior.”—” He (the governor)
freely declared to me, that the laws made by your majesty and your
parliament obligeth them in nothing, but what consists with the interest
of the colony; that the legislative power is and abides in them
_solely_.[27]

The _Massachusetts_ general court, in a letter to their agents,
mentioned, that not being represented in parliament, they looked not
upon themselves to be impeded in their trade by the acts of trade and
navigation, and that these could not be observed by his majesty’s
subjects in Massachusetts without invading their liberties and
properties, until the general court made provision therein by a law,
which they did in October. Notwithstanding such law, and a subsequent
order, Feb. 15, 1681, “that the act of navigation and the act for the
encouragement of trade, be published in Boston by beat of drum, and all
clauses in said acts relating to the plantation be strictly observed.”
_Randolph_ complained to the commissioners of the customs in England,
because of their not being duly observed. When the people found
themselves in danger of a _quo warranto_, they agreed upon such
emendations of their acts of trade, as to make them accord in all things
with the laws of England. But it was too late. A _quo warranto_ was sent
them, and brought by _Randolph_, Nov. 3, 1683; and the next year a writ
of _scire ficias_ was prosecuted in the court of chancery against the
governor and company, and judgment given, that the charter should be
annihilated. Considering the temper of _Charles_ II. it is rather matter
of astonishment, that the sentiments and conduct of the Massachusetts
government did not provoke him to vacate the charter much sooner.
However mortifying, yet it would have been more prudent, to have
declined contending with the king, when they knew that they must be
vanquished, than virtually to bid him defiance. Such submission might
not have saved them from the arbitrary government that followed, but
could have been of no disservice, had there not been a subsequent
revolution: that event taking place, it would have been extremely
beneficial. They might have been allowed to resume their charter,
nearly, if not wholly.

Before we proceed to the southward, let it be noted, that in 1672, the
English parliament enacted by law, “That if any vessel, which by law may
trade in the plantations, shall take on board any enumerated
commodities, and a bond shall not have been given with sufficient
security to unlade them in England, there shall be rendered to his
majesty, for sugars, tobacco, ginger, cocoa nut, indigo, logwood,
fustic, cotton wool, the several duties mentioned in the law, to be paid
in such places in the plantations, and to such officers as shall be
appointed to collect the same: and for their better collection, it is
enactad, that the whole business shall be managed, and the imposts be
levied by officers appointed by the commissioners of the customs in
England.” This is the first act that imposed customs on the colonies
alone, to be regularly collected by colonial revenue officers. But the
best affected colonies, Barbadoes, Virginia and Maryland, considering
the laws of trade either as inconsistent with their privileges, or
destructive to their infant commerce, hesitated to obey, or elude the
provisions of the laws; and trafficked without restraint, wherever hope
of gain directed their navigators. Charles II. reprimanded them, and his
successors gave standing instructions upon the head, but without
effect.[28]

Governor _Nicholson_ of Maryland wrote to the board of trade, August 16,
1698, “I have observed that a great many people in all these provinces
and colonies, especially in those under proprietaries, and the two
others under Connecticut and Rhode-Island, think that no law of England
ought to be in force and binding to them without their own consent; for
they foolishly say, they have no representatives sent from themselves to
the parliament of England; and they look upon all laws made in England,
that put any restraint upon them, to be great hardships.” These were the
colonial sentiments two years after passing the famous declaratory act
of Willian and Mary, which you will find mentioned below. Molyneux’s
Case of Ireland, asserting openly the same doctrines, was first
published in February, 1697–8.

The colony of _New-York_ demands our next attention. The Dutch had
settled, and named it the _New-Netherlands_. Charles II. resolved upon
its conquest in 1664, and in March granted to his brother the Duke of
York, the region extending from the western banks of Connecticut to the
eastern shore of the _Delaware_, together with _Long-Island_, conferring
on him the civil and military powers of government. Colonel _Nichols_
was sent with four frigates and three hundred soldiers to effect the
business. The Dutch governor being unable to make resistance, the
New-Netherlands submitted to the English crown, in September, without
any other change than of rulers. Few of the Dutch removed; and Nichols
instantly entered upon the exercise of his power, as deputy governor of
the duke of York, the proprietary.

In July, 1673, the Dutch repossessed themselves of the province, by
attacking it suddenly when in a defenceless state. By the peace in
February following it was restored. The validity of the grant, while the
Dutch were in quiet possession having been questioned, the duke of York
thought it prudent to obtain a new one the following June, and _Edmund
Andros_ having been appointed governor, the Dutch resigned their
authority to him in October. Thus was New-York regained; but the
inhabitants were again enslaved to the will of the conqueror; for, being
admitted to no share in the legislature, they were subject to laws to
which they had never assented.

[1681.] To be relieved from a servitude that had degraded the colony,
and now gave dissatisfaction to every one, the council, the court of
assizes, and the corporation of New-York, concurred in soliciting the
duke, “to permit the people to participate in the legislative power.”
The duke, though strongly prejudiced against democratic assemblies, yet
in expectation that the inhabitants would agree to raise money to
discharge the public debts, and to settle such a fund for the future as
might be sufficient for the maintenance of the government and garrison,
informed the lieutenant-governor, in 1682, that “he intended to
establish the same frame of government as the other plantations enjoyed,
particularly in the choosing of an assembly.”

Mr. Dongan was appointed governor in September, and instructed to call
an assembly, to consist of a council of ten, and of a house of
representatives, chosen by the freeholders, of the number of eighteen
members. The assembly was empowered to make laws for the people,
agreeable to the general jurisprudence of the state of England, which
should be of no force, however, without the ratification of the
proprietary. “Thus the inhabitants of New-York, after being ruled almost
twenty years at the will of the duke’s deputies, were first admitted to
participate in the legislative power.”

[1683.] An assembly was called on governor Dongan’s arrival, which
passed an act of general naturalization, in order to give equal
privileges to the various kinds of people then inhabiting the province;
together with an act “declaring the liberties of the people;” as also
one “for defraying the requisite charges of government for a limitted
time.” The legislature was convened once more in August 1684, when it
explained the last act. These seem to have been the only assemblies
called prior to the revolution.

When the duke became king of England, he refused to confirm that grant
of privileges to which, as duke, he had agreed. He established a real
tyranny, and reduced New-York once more to the deplorable condition of a
conquered province.

_New-Jersey_, which was also taken from the _Dutch_ (who were considered
as having no right to any of their settlements in these parts of
America) was included in the grant to the duke of York. The duke
disposed of it to lord _Berkely_ Sir _George Carteret_ who, being sole
proprietors, for the better settlement of it, agreed [1664.] upon
certain constitutions of government, so well relished, that the eastern
parts were soon considerably peopled. One of the stipulations was, “no
qualified person, at any time, shall be any ways molested, punished,
disquieted, or called into question, for any difference in opinion or
practice in matters of religious concernments, who does not acturally
disturb the civil peace of the province; but all and every such person
and persons, may, from time to time, and at all times, freely and fully
have and enjoy his and their judgments and consciences in matters of
religion, they behaving themselves peaceably and quietly, and not using
this liberty to licentiousness, nor to the civil injury or outward
disturbance of others; _any law, statute, or clause contained or to be
contained, usage or custom of the realm of England, to the contrary
thereof in any wise notwithstanding_.”[29] The lords proprietors further
agreed, “for the better security of all the inhabitants in the
province—That _they are not to impose_, NOR SUFFER TO BE IMPOSED, _any
tax, custom, subsidy, tallage, assessment, or any other duty whatsoever,
upon any colour or pretence, upon the said province and inhabitants
thereof, other than what shall be imposed by the authority and consent
of the general assembly_.”[30] What can more strongly express the then
opinion of Lord _Berkely_ and Sir _George Carteret_, as to the
parliaments having no right to tax the inhabitants of the province,
possessed by them as lords proprietors!

[1674.] Lord _Berkely_ sold his moiety of the province to _John
Fenwick_, in trust for _Edward Byllinge_ and his assigns.—After which
the proprietors, _E. Byllinge, William Penn, Gawen Lawrie, Nicholas
Lucas, and Edmund Warner_, of the quaker persuasion, agreed with Sir
_George Carteret_ [1676.] upon a division; and that his moiety should be
called _New East-Jersey_; and theirs _New West-Jersey_. The agreement
respecting the _not imposing or suffering to be imposed any tax, &c._
was adopted: the other stipulation is worded somewhat differently—“No
man, nor number of men upon earth, hath power or authority to rule over
men’s conscience in religious matters; therefore it is consented, agreed
and ordained, that no person or persons whatsoever, within the province,
at any time or times hereafter, shall be any ways, upon any pretence
whatsoever, called in question, or in the least punished or hurt, either
in person, estate or privilege, for the sake of his opinion, judgment,
faith or worship towards God in matters of religion; but that all and
every such person and persons, may from time to time, and at all times,
freely and fully have and enjoy his and their judgments, and the
exercise of their consciences, in matters of religious worship,
throughout all the province.”[31] It was also agreed, “that all
elections be not determined by the common and confused way of cries and
voices; but by putting balls into balloting boxes, to be provided for
that purpose, for the prevention of all partiality, and whereby every
man may freely choose according to his own judgment and honest
intention.”[32]

Soon after, many quakers resorted to _West-Jersey_ from England, and the
country filled apace. But the people early experienced the dreadful
effects of arbitrary power. Major _Andros_ the governor of _New-York_,
imposed 10 per cent. on all goods imported at the _Hoar-kill_,[33] and
demanded 5 percent. of the settlers at arrival or afterwards, though
neither _West-Jersey_, nor the _Hoar-kill_, was legally under his
jurisdiction. They complained of the hardship from the first, but bore
it patiently, till about 1680, when application was made to the duke of
York, who referred the matter to the council, where it rested for a
considerable time, and then was reported in their favour, and the duty
ordered to be discontinued. Among the arguments used by Messrs. _William
Penn_, _George Hutchinson_ and others, chiefly if not all quakers, in
the paper presented to the duke’s commissioners, were these, “Powers of
government are expressly granted, in the cenveyance lord Berkely made
us; for that only could have induced us to buy it; and the reason is
plain, because to all prudent men, the government of any place is more
inviting than the soil: for what is good land without good laws; the
better, the worse. And if we could not assume people of an easy and
free, and safe government, both with respect to their spiritual and
worldly property, that is an uninterrupted liberty of conscience and an
inviolable possession of their civil rights and freedoms, by a just and
wise government, a mere wilderness would be no encouragement; for it
were a madness to leave a free, good and improved country, to plant in a
wilderness, and there adventure many thousands of pounds, to give an
absolute title to another person to tax us at will and pleasure.”
Natural right and human prudence oppose such doctrine all the world
over, as says, “that people free by law, under their prince at home, are
at his mercy in the plantations abroad.” The King’s grant to the duke of
York, is plainly restrictive to the laws and government of England. Now,
we humbly conceive, it is made a fundamental in our constitution, and
government, that the king of England cannot justly take his subjects
goods without their consent: this needs no more to be proved than a
principal; ’tis _jus indigene_, and home-bore right, declared to be law
by divers statutes; as in the great charter, ch. 29 and 34. Ed. III. ch.
2; again 25 Ed. ch. 7.[34] To give up the power of making laws is to
change the government, to sell or rather resign ourselves to the will of
another; and that for nothing; for we buy nothing of the duke, if not
the right of an undisturbed colonizing, with no diminution, but
expectation of some increase of these freedoms and privileges enjoyed in
our own country. We humbly say, that we have not lost any part of our
liberty, by leaving our country; but we transplant to a place with
express limitation to erect no policy contrary to the established
government (of England) but as near as may be to it; and this variation
is allowed but for the sake of emergencies; and that latitude bounded
with these words, _for the good of the adventurer and planter_. This tax
is not to be found in the duke’s conveyances, but is an after business.
Had the planters foreseen it, they would sooner have taken up in any
other plantation in America—[a plain intimation that no such tax was
imposed in any other American plantation.] Beside, there is no end of
this power; for since we are by this precedent assessed without any law,
and thereby excluded our English right of common assent to taxes; what
security have we of any thing we possess? We can call nothing our own,
but are tenants at will not only for the soil, but for all our personal
estates; we endure penury, and the sweat of our brows, to improve them
at our own hazard only. This is to transplant from good to bad. _This
sort of conduct has destroyed government, but never raised one to any
true greatness._[35]

The paper presented to the duke’s commissioners, evidently proves, that
it was the opinion of these gentlemen, who were quakers, that no tax
could be justly imposed upon the inhabitants, without their own consent
first had, and by the authority of their own general assembly. The
report of the council in favour of the aggrieved, and the relief that
followed, were virtual concessions to the same purport. This will not be
judged wholly unprecedented by those who are acquainted with what
happened relative to the county-palatine and city of _Chester_, in the
35th year of the reign of _Henry_ VIII. [1543.] The inhabitants
complained in a petition to the king, that for want of knights and
burgesses in the court of parliament, they sustained manifold damages,
not only in their lands, goods, and bodies, but in the civil and politic
governance and maintenance of the commonwealth of their said county; and
that while they had been always bound by the acts and statutes of the
said court of parliament, the same as other counties, cities, and
boroughs, that had knights and burgesses in said court, they had often
been touched, and grieved with acts and statutes made within the said
court, as well derogatory unto the most ancient jurisdictions,
liberties, and privileges of the said court-palatine, as prejudicial
unto the commonwealth, quietness, and peace of his majesty’s subjects.
They proposed to the king, as a remedy, that it would please his
highness, that it be enacted, with the assent of the lords spiritual and
temporal, and by the commons in parliament assembled, that from the end
of the session, the county-palatine shall have two knights for the said
county, and likewise two citizens to be burgesses for the city of
Chester. The complaint and remedy were thought to be so just and
reasonable, that the relief for which they prayed was granted, and they
were admitted to send representatives to parliament, to guard their
interests and to secure their liberties and privileges.

The reasons for my passing from the Jerseys to Virginia will soon be
obvious.

_Virginia_ was the original name for all the English North-American
continental claims, given in honor to the virgin queen, Elizabeth. King
James, being applied to, granted letters patent to a body of gentlemen
on the 6th of April, 1606, with powers to divide themselves into two
distinct companies, the one consisting of London adventurers, called the
first or southern colony of Virginia; the second or northern colony,
composed of merchants belonging to Bristol, Plymouth and Exeter. The
territory granted to the first or southern colony, was generally called
_Virginia_ without any distinguishing epithet; and retained that name
after the second or northern colony obtained the name of New-England, in
1614.

The London company applied their attention immediately to the forming of
a settlement, and sent off a hundred and ten emigrants, who arrived on
the coast of Virginia, April 29th, 1607: a party landed on the
promontory, called, in honor of the prince of Wales, _Cape-Henry_;
afterward proceeded to and took possession of a peninsula in
James-river, and began a settement at _James-town_. The instructions
given by the company of proprietors, when they sent out their second
supply the following year, show that the most active projectors in
England had for their chief objects discovery and gain, rather than
colonization.

[1609.] A new charter was obtained: many of the first nobility and
gentry were added to the former proprietors, and were incorporared by
the name of “The Treasurer and Company of Adventurers, of the city of
London, for the first colony of Virginia.” To them was granted in
absolute property the lands extending from Cape Comfort along the
sea-coast southward 200 miles, from the same promontory 200 miles
northward, and from the Atlantic westward to the South-sea. The company
was empowered to make ordinances for the colony, and for those on the
seas going thither. There was granted to the treasurer and company and
their assigns, a freedom from all subsidies in Virginia for 21 years,
and from all impositions on importations and exportations to and from
England, or any other of the king’s dominions, “except only the five
pounds in the hundred due for customs.” Little was conceded to the
emigrants by the charter; and much conferred on the corporation. The
colonists were to be governed by the ordinances of a corporation
residing in England, in which they were not represented, and over the
deliberations of which they had no control. The powers of the
corporation were indeed controlable, as it was subject to the
superintendance of the courts of justice within the realm, which could
compel it to act agreeable as well to the grant, as to the laws of the
state.

The adventurers, warmed with golden dreams of great riches, soon fitted
out nine ships, with 500 emigrants, and every necessary for the
establishment of a permanent colony, excepting suitable encouragement to
the settlers. Lord Delaware was appointed captain-general for life. Only
seven vessels arrived safe.

When Mr. Smith, who had governed the colony, departed for England, he
left behind him 500 persons, of whom, what with bad management,
dissensions, attacks from the Indians, waste of provisions, which
occasioned a famine, &c. there remained only sixty of all ages and
sexes, at the expiration of six months. When Sir _Thomas Gates_, the
lieutenant-governor arrived in May, 1610, and saw the calamitous
situation of affairs, he concluded on embarking the colonists and
sailing for England: but before he could proceed to sea, Lord _Delaware_
arrived with three ships, bringing abundant supplies, and carried back
with him to James-town the feeble remains of the colony. He soon
re-established matters; but his health obliging him, he sailed for
England the beginning of the subsequent year, [1611.] leaving about 200
colonists, possessed of health, plenty, and peace with their neighbours.
After his departure they relapsed; but his successor, Sir _Thomas Dale_,
arriving in May with more emigrants, cattle, and provision for a year,
things were again restored. This same year the adventurers obtained a
new charter, by which the two former were confirmed, and they had also
granted to them all the islands situated in the ocean, within 300
leagues of any part of the Virginia coast. The corporation was now
considerably new modelled, and, in order to promote the effectual
settlement of the plantation, licence was given to open lotteries in any
part of England. The lotteries alone, which were the first ever granted
in England, brought 29,000l. into The campany’s treasury. At length
being considered as a national evil, they attracted the notice of
parliament, were presented by the commons as a grievance, and in March,
1620, suspended by an order of council.

Sir _Thomas Gates_ was dispatched with six large ships, carrying 300
colonists, 100 cattle, and useful supplies. He arrived in August: and
parties were sent out from James-town to form distant settlements. He
returned the beginning of 1614, and the administration devolved once
more on Sir _Thomas Dale_, to whom the Virginians owe the introduction
of landed property. In 1615, fifty acres of land were granted to every
emigrant and his heirs, and the same quantity to every person imported
by others. Dale sailed for England in the beginning of 1616, giving up
the trust to Sir _George Yeardley_, as deputy governor, and in this year
the cultivation of tobacco was introduced. It was originally carried
from Tobago to England. Mr. _Argal_, a new deputy, arrived in May, 1617.
He published a variety of edicts, and was guilty of those wrongs and
oppressions, that the treasurer and council appointed _Yeardly_
captain-general, and empowered him to examine into and redress
grievances. Sir George arrived April, 1619, bringing with him several
instructions favourable to freedom, and soon declared his intention of
calling a general assembly, which gave the greatest joy to men, who had
been hitherto subjected to the arbitrary orders of their prince, to the
interested ordinances of an English corporation, or to the edicts of a
haughty governor; and who enjoyed none of those liberties which
Englishmen claim as their birth-right.

In June, Yeardley, pursuant to his instructions from the company, issued
writs for the election of delegates, called burgesses. The colony had
been divided into seven hundreds or distinct settlements, which seemed
to enjoy some of the privileges of boroughs, and from this circumstance
the democratic branch of the assembly has been called to this day the
house of burgesses, though composed almost entirely of the
representatives of counties. The assembly, formed of the governor and
council of state, who were appointed by the treasurer and company, and
of the burgesses chosen by the people, met together in one apartment,
and transacted affairs like the parliament of Scotland of old, which
mode continued till after the restoration of Charles II. Thus convened,
and thus composed, the legislature “debated all matters thought
expedient for the good of the whole.” The laws were transmitted to
England, for the approbation of the treasurer and company, without whose
confirmation they were of no validity. The introduction of an assembly
was attended with the happiest effects. The emigrants, for the first
time, resolved to settle themselves, and to perpetuate the plantation.
The assembly thanked the company for their favour, and begged them “to
reduce into a compendious form, with his majesty’s approbation, the laws
of England proper for Virginia, with suitable additions;” giving as a
reason, “that it was not fit that his subjects should be governed by any
other rules, than such as received their influence from him.” This year
the treasurer and council received a letter, “commanding them to send a
hundred dissolute persons (convicts) to Virginia.” They were accordingly
transported; and were at that period very acceptable to the colonies,”
though the unlimited practice of emptying the English jails on the
American continent has of late years been complained of as a nuisance.
[1602.] The subsequent year must, on account of the introduction of
_African slaves_ into the colonies, be stigmatized as a much viler
æra.—The Hollanders were not then precluded by any law from trading with
the colonies. A Dutch vessel carried to Virginia a cargo of negroes, and
the Virginians, who had themselves just emerged from a state of slavery,
became chargeable with reducing their fellow men to the condition of
brutes.

[1621.] In July, the treasurer and company carried into execution a
resolution formerly taken, for establishing a proper constitution for
the colony. The ordinance they passed, declared that there should be two
supreme councils in Virginia, the one to be called the council of state,
to be appointed and displaced by the treasurer and company, and which
was to advise the governor in governmental affairs; the other was to be
denominated the general assembly, and to consist of the governor and
council, and of two burgesses, to be chosen, for the present, by the
inhabitants of every town, hundred, and settlement in the colony. The
assembly was to determine by the majority of the voices then present,
and to enact general laws for the colony, reserving to the governor a
negative voice. They were to imitate the laws and customs, and judicial
proceedings used in England. “No acts were to be in force till confirmed
by the general court in England: on the other hand, no order of the
general court was to bind the colony, till assented to by the assembly.”
The company having offered territory to those who should either emigrate
themselves, or engage to transport people to the colony, found this
policy so successful, that upward of 3500 persons emigrated to Virginia
during this and the two preceding years.

[1622.] This year was remarkable for a massacre of the colonists by the
_Indians_, which was executed with the utmost subtilty, and without any
regard to age, sex, or dignity. A well concerted attack on all the
settlements, destroyed, in one hour, and almost at the same instant, 347
persons, who were defenceless and incapable of making resistance. The
emigrants, notwithstanding the orders they had received, had never been
solicitous to cultivate the good-will of the natives, and had neither
asked permission when they occupied their country, nor given a price for
their valuable property, which was violently taken away. The miseries of
famine were soon superadded to the horrors of massacre. Of eighty
plantations, which were filling apace, only eight remained; and of the
numbers which had been transported thither, no more than about 1800
survived those manifold disasters.

Frequent complaints having been made to king James of the oppressions of
the treasurer and company, and the before-mentioned calamities being
attributed to their misconduct or neglect, it was determined that a
commission should issue to enquire into the affairs of Virginia and the
Somer-isles, from the earliest settlement of each. Upon the report of
the commissioners, the king concluded on giving a new charter, and
required of the company the surrender of former grants, which being
refused, a writ of _quo warranto_ issued in November, 1623, against the
patents of the corporation; and judgment was given by the court of
king’s-bench against the treasurer and company, in Trinity-term, 1624.
These proceedings “were so conformable to the general strain of the
arbitrary administration of that reign, that they made little impression
at the time, though the Virginia company was composed of persons of the
first quality, wealth, and consequence in the nation.” The company
probably would not have exercised so tame and submissive a spirit, had
they not been wholly disappointed in their visionary prospects, and met
with considerable losses, instead of acquiring enormous profits. They
had obtained from individuals, who sported in their lotteries from the
hope of sudden riches, £. 29,000. but the transportation of more than
9000 English subjects, had cost them £.150,000. They did not, however,
abandon the colony in its distress, while they continued a corporation.
Timely supplies were sent from England to the Virginia settlers, which
so animated them, that they carried on an offensive war against the
Indians, pursued them into their fastnesses, and drove them from the
neighbourhood of those rivers where they had fixed their own
plantations.

As to king _James_, he “assuredly considered the colonies as acquired by
conquest; and that they ought to be holden of his person, independent of
his crown or political capacity; and might be ruled according to his
good will, by prerogative; and he endeavored, agreeable to the strange
œconomy of his reign, to convert them into a mere private estate,
descendable to his personal heirs.”[36]

The Virginia company being dissolved, James took the colony under his
immediate dependence, which occasioned much confusion. Upon his death,
king _Charles_ [1625.] being of the same judgment with his father as to
the government of Virginia, determined to tread in the same steps. In
May he named a new governor and council for Virginia, and invested them
with an authority fully legislative and arbitrary. They were empowered
to make and execute laws, to impose taxes, and enforce payment. Neither
the commission nor instructions mentioned expressly, or even alluded to
an assembly, to the laws of England, or to the acts of the provincial
legislature, as a rule of government. They were required to transport
colonists into England, to be punished there for crimes committed in
Virginia. This system increased the colonial dissatisfaction, which
continued for years, till the Virginians received a letter containing
the royal assurance, that “all their estates, trade, freedom, and
privileges, should be enjoyed by them in as extensive a manner as they
enjoyed them before the recalling of the company’s patent.” On this they
were reconciled, and began again to exert themselves in making
improvements.[37]

Being left for some years in a manner to themselves, they increased
beyond expectation. They remained under the administration of their
governors and other officers, who respected their privileges because
they loved the colony. The governor whom Charles had been anxious to
appoint, had no opportunity of exercising those illegal and
extraordinary powers with which he had been invested. His death in 1627,
put an end to his authority, and prevented the colony’s feeling its full
extent. His successor, _John Harvey_, esq. was nominated in March 1629;
and his commission and instructions were precisely the same with those
of the former. He departed soon after for Virginia. The spirit of his
administration was an exact counterpart of what had too long prevailed
in England. He was severe in his extortions, proud in his councils,
unjust and arbitrary in every department of his government. The
_Virginians_, roused almost to madness by oppression, seized and sent
him prisoner to England, accompanied with two deputies, to represent
their grievances and his misconduct. His behaviour was so thought of,
that he was honored with a new commission which confirmed former powers,
and he was sent back to Virginia in April, 1637. After that, his
government was so excessively oppressive and cruel, that the complaints
of the colonists became at length too loud to be longer neglected, and
his commission was revoked in January, 16389—. During his ten years
administration, the Virginians were ruled rather as the vassels of an
eastern despot, than as subjects entitled to English liberties; but it
is to their credit, that, having tasted the sweets of a simple
government, they opposed with a firm spirit, during the reign of
Charles, the attempts of those who endeavoured to revive the patents,
and to restore the corporation.

Sir _William Berkely_ was appointed governor the beginning of 1639. His
instructions evidenced a prodigious change in colonial policy, which
must be partly ascribed to the then state of affairs in England. He was
directed to summon all the burgesses of the plantations; who with the
governor and council were to constitute the grand assembly, with power
to make acts for the government of the colony, as near as might be to
the laws of England—to cause speedy justice to be administered to all,
according to English forms—and to forbid all trade with foreign vessels
except upon necessity. Thus were the Virginians restored to that system
of freedom which they had derived from the Virginia company, and which
the writ of _quo warranto_ had involved in the same ruin with the
corporation itself.

Civil dissentions however took place, which were embittered by religious
differences, and inflamed by acts made to prohibit the preaching of the
doctrines of the puritans. The discontented party presented a petition
to the house of commons, in the name of the assembly, “praying for the
restoration of the antient patents and corporation government.” But the
governor, council and burgesses, no sooner heard of the transaction,
than they transmitted an explicit disavowal of it. They sent also an
address to king _Charles_ acknowledging his bounty and favor toward
them, and earnestly desiring to continue under his immediate protection.
In 1642, they declared in the form of an act, “that they were born under
monarchy, and would never degenerate from the condition of their births,
by being subjects to any other government.” Nothing could be more
acceptable than this act, which being presented to the king at _York_,
drew from him an answer, in which he gave them the fullest assurances,
that they always should be immediately dependent upon the crown, and
that the form of government should never be changed.

They remained unalterably attached to the cause of their sovereign. But
when the commons of England had triumphed over their European opponents,
their attention was turned to the plantations; and an ordinance was
passed in October, 1650, “for prohibiting trade with _Barbadoes_,
_Virginia_, _Bermuda_, and _Antego_.” It recited, that “in Virginia, and
other places in America, their are colonies, which were planted at the
cost, and settled by the people, and by the authority of this nation,
which ought to be subordinate to, and depend upon England—that they ever
had been, and ought to be subject to such laws and regulations, as are,
or shall be made by the parliament—that divers acts of rebellion have
been committed by many persons inhabiting Virginia, whereby they have
set up themselves in opposition to the commonwealth” It therefore
declared them “notorious robbers and traitors.” Persons in power
generally reason alike against those who oppose their authority, and
dispute the legality or equity of their measures, whatever might be
their own sentiments when in a lower station, and while aggrieved by
superiors. The ordinance authorised the council of state to send a fleet
thither, and to grant commissions to proper persons to enforce to
obedience all such as stood opposed to the authority of parliament. In
consequence hereof commissioners were appointed, and a powerful fleet
and army detached, to reduce all their enemies to submission. They were
to use their endeavors, by granting pardons and by other peaceful arts,
to induce the colonists to obey the state of England; but, if these
means should prove ineffectual, then they were to employ every act of
hostility; to free those servants and slaves of masters opposing the
government, that would serve as soldiers to subdue them; and to cause
the acts of parliament to be executed, and justice to be administered,
in the name of the commonwealth. After the arrival of the commissioners
with the naval and military force, the Virginians refused to submit,
till articles of surrender had been agreed upon, by which it was
stipulated, “The plantation of Virginia, and all the inhabitants
thereof, shall enjoy such freedoms and privileges as belong to the free
people of England. The general assembly, as formerly, shall convene and
transact the affairs of the colony. The people of Virginia shall have a
free trade, as the people of England, to all places, and with all
nations.” Virginia shall be free from all taxes, customs, and
impositions whatsoever; and none shall be imposed on them without
consent of the general assembly; and neither forts nor castles shall be
erected, nor garrisons maintained without their consent.”[38]

The hardships the _Virginians_ experienced from restrictions on their
trade under _Oliver Cromwell_, together with their attachment to the
royal family, induced them to seize the occasion of the death of the
protector’s governor, for applying to Sir _William Berkely_, who had
lived privately during the revolutions of the day, to resume the
government of the colony, to which he consented, on their solemnly
promising to venture their lives and fortunes with him for Charles II.
Before they had heard of the death of Cromwell, _Charles_ was proclaimed
by them king of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Virginia. During the
distresses to which the royalists were exposed in England prior to this
event, they resorted to that colony, so that Virginia contained about
30,000 persons at the restoration. Sir William Berkely, in his answer to
the enquiries of the lords of the committee of the colonies, writes,
June 20, 1671, “there are 40,000 persons, men, women, and children, 2000
black slaves, and 6000 christian servants for a short time.” You will
not have your good opinion heightened of him for his adding—“I thank God
there are no free schools, nor printing, and I hope we shall not have
them these hundred years. For learning has brought disobedience, and
heresy, and sects into the world, and printing has divulged them and
libels against the government. God keep us from both!”[39]

You will remark, that, however zealous the Virginians were to honor the
Charles’s with their loyalty, they boldly declined complimenting king,
commonwealth, and protector with their liberties.

_Maryland_ comes now to be considered.

Sir _George Calvert_ was one of the original associates in the great
Virginia company, and continued a member of that corporation during its
existance: and, as secretary of state, he acted as one of the committee
of council for the affairs of the plantations while James I. lived. Sir
George in his reign, having thought proper to alter his religious
sentiments and embrace popery, ingenuously avowed the change. The king
pleased with his sincerity, granted him a part of _Newfoundland_, which
the French at length obliged him to abandon. His majesty further
testified his regard, by creating him Lord Baltimore of Ireland. King
_Charles_, to compensate for his loss of the Newfoundland territory,
gave him a grant of the country on the north side of the
_Chesapeak-bay_.

His Lordship died April 15, 1632, before the patent was made out; on
which his son Cecil took it out in his own name the June following.
Charles, in honor to his royal consort Henrietta Maria, named the colony
Maryland; and, being desirous of gratifying the proprietary all in his
power invested him with as much sovereignty as could well consist with
an immediate subjection to the crown of England. His Lordship, with the
assent of the freemen, or their delegates, whom he was required to
assemble for that purpose, might make laws of what kind soever for the
province, so that they were not repugnant, but agreeable to the
jurisprudence and rights of the realm of England; and he was authorised
to execute the acts of the assembly. There was no clause in the charter
obliging him to transmit their acts to the king for approbation or
dissent: nor any saving of the royal interference in the government of
the colony. Charles reserved to himself and his heirs forever, imposts,
duties, and customs, which the colonies were bound to pay; but declared
in the same charter, “We, our heirs and successors, shall at no time set
and make, or cause to be set, any imposition, custom, or taxation on the
inhabitants of the province, for their lands, goods, tenements, or
chattels whithin the said province.” By this clause the king covenanted
for himself, heirs and successors, that having reserved for ever the
imposts, duties, and customs, he would not contribute toward setting
upon the inhabitants any imposition, custom, or taxation, for their
lands, goods, tenaments, or chattels, within the said province; and
therein bound both himself and them, not to assent to any bill
subjecting the inhabitants to an internal taxation by an external
legislation.

The first emigration consisted of two hundred gentlemen of considerable
fortune and rank, with their adherents, chiefly Roman Catholics, who
hoped to enjoy liberty of conscience, under a proprietary of their own
profession. They sailed from England in November, and landed in Maryland
the beginning of 1633. Governor _Colvert_, brother to lord Baltimore,
very wisely and justly purchased, by presents of various goods, the
rights of the Indians, and with their free consent took possession of
their town, which he called St. Mary’s. The country was settled with so
much ease, and furnished with so many conveniences, that emigrants
repaired thither in such numbers, that the colony soon became popular
and flourishing. A third assembly of freemen was held at St. John’s in
February, 1638–9, when an act was passed “for establishing the house of
assembly.” It inacted that those who shall be elected pursuant to writs
issued, shall be called burgesses, and shall supply the place of the
freemen who chose them—that the gentlemen summoned by the special writ
of the proprietary, and those freemen who shall not have voted at any of
the elections, together with the governor and secretary, shall be called
“the house of assembly”—that all acts assented to by that body, shall be
deemed of the same force, as if the proprietary and freemen had been
personly present. Slavery seems to have gained an early establishment in
Maryland, for an act of this assembly describes “the people” to consist
of all christian inhabitants “slaves only excepted.” The persecuting
laws which were passed by the Viginians, soon after this period against
the puritans, made the latter emigrate in considerable numbers to
Maryland, that they might enjoy, under a popish proprietary, that
liberty of conscience, of which they were deprived by fellow
protestants.

In 1642, the burgesses “desired that they might be separated, and sit by
themselves, and have a negative,”—such was their progress in
entertaining just conceptions of their own democratic rights. The
governor did not grant their request; but they were afterwards more
successful. The assembly of 1649, was assuredly divided into two parts,
and transacted business in the form of an upper and lower house. That
assembly, which convened in April, enacted, that no persons professing
to believe in Jesus Christ, shall be molested in respect of their
religion, or in the exercise thereof, or be compelled to the belief or
exercise of any other religion against their consent, so that they be
not unfaithful to the proprietary, or conspire against the civil
government—that those reproaching any with opprobrious names of
religious distinction, shall forfeit ten shillings to the persons
injured—that any one speaking reproachfully against the blessed Virgin,
or the Apostles, shall forfeit five pounds—but blasphemy against God,
shall be punished with death.

In 1650, a law was passed “for settling this present assembly.” It
enacted, that those who were called by special writ shall form the upper
house—that those who were chosen by the hundreds shall compose the lower
house—and that all bills which shall be assented to by the two branches
of the legislature thus established, and assented to by the governor,
shall be deemed the laws of the province, and have the same effect as if
the freemen were personally present. There was also passed “an act
against raising money without the consent of the assembly.” It
mentioned, “That no taxes shall be assessed or levied on the freemen of
the province, without their own consent, or that of their deputies,
first declared in a general assembly. The printed words and early date
of this Maryland act demand particular notice. The act of the general
assembly and governor were of the same force in their own province, as
acts of parliament in England; and could not be repealed without the
concurring assent of the proprietary, or his deputy, with the other two
estates.

_Carolina_ follows Maryland in the order of existence.

A few adventurers emigrated from the Massachusetts, and settled round
_Cape Fear_, about the time of the restoration. They considered mere
occupancy, with a transfer from the natives, without any grant from the
king, as a good title to the lands which they possessed. They deemed
themselves entitled to the same “civil privileges” as those of the
country from whence they had emigrated. For years they experienced the
complicated miseries of want. They solicited the aid of their
countrymen; and the general court, with an attention and humanity which
did it the greatest honor, ordered an extensive contribution for their
relief. But the final settlement of the province was effected equally
through the rapacity of the courtiers of Charles the II. and his own
facility in rewarding those to whom he was greatly indebted, with a
liberality that cost him little. The pretence which had been used on
former occasions, of a pious zeal for the propagation of the gospel
among the Indians, was successfully employed to procure a grant of the
immense region lying between the 36° of north latitude and the river St.
Matheo, under the 31°. March 24, 1663, this territory was erected into a
province, by the name of _Carolina_, and conferred on lord _Clarendon_,
the duke of _Albemarle_, lord _Craven_, lord _Berkely_, lord _Ashley_,
Sir _George Carteret_, Sir _John Colleton_, and Sir _William Berkely_,
as absolute lords proprietaris for ever, saving the sovereign allegience
due to the crown. The charter seems to have been copied from that of
Maryland, so extensive in its powers, and so noble in its privileges.
The noblemen held their first meeting in May; and at the desire of the
New-England people abovementioned, published proposals to all that would
plant in Carolina. They declared, that all persons settling on Charles
River, to the southward of Cape Fear, should have power to fortify its
banks, taking the oath of allegiance to the king, and submitting to the
government of the proprietaries—that the emigrants might present to them
thirteen persons, in order that they might appoint a governor and a
council of six for three years—that an assembly, composed of the
governor, the council, and delegates of the freemen, should be called as
soon as circumstances would allow, with power to make laws, not contrary
to those of England, nor of any validity after the publication of the
dissent of the proprietaries—that every one should enjoy the most
perfect freedom in religion—that during five years, every freeman should
be allowed one hundred acres of land, and fifty for every servant,
paying only an half-penny an acre—and that the same freedom from customs
which had been confirmed by the royal charter, should be allowed to
every one.

The proprietaries appointed Sir _William Berkely_, then governor of
Virginia, general superintendant of the affairs of the county of
Albemarle, within the boundaries of which, a small plantation, of the
New-Englanders probably, had been established for some years, on the
north eastern shores of the river Chowan. Sir William Berkely repaired
to the county, confirmed and granted lands on the conditions
beforementioned, appointed Mr. Drummond the first governor, and likewise
other officers, and then returned to Virginia.

The assembly of 1666, being dissatisfied with the tenures by which they
held their lands, petitioned the proprietaries, that the people of
Albemarle might hold their possessions on the same terms on which the
Virginians enjoyed theirs, and were gratified.

[1665.] The proprietaries appointed _John Yeamans_, a respectable
planter of Barbadoes, commander in chief of Clarendon county, stretching
from Cape Fear to the river St. Matheo; and he was at the same time
created a baronet. To secure its prosperity, the same powers were
conferred, and the same constitution established, as those which had
made Albemarle happy.

A settlement was also now projected to the southward of Cape Romain,
which acquired the name of Carteret. Thus a variety of separate and
independent colonies, each of which had its own government, its own
assembly, its own customs and laws, were established in Carolina.

In June, 1665, the proprietaries obtained a second charter which recited
and confirmed the former. They were enabled to make laws for the
province, with the consent of the freemen or their delegates: and
likewise to grant titles of honor by creation of a nobility. No one
prerogative of the crown was reserved, except the sovereign dominion.

Samuel Stevens, esq. was appointed governor of Albemarle in October,
1667, and was commanded to act agreeable to the advice of a council of
twelve, the one half of which he was to appoint, the other was to be
chosen by the assembly. The assembly was to be composed of the governor,
the council, and twelve delegates chosen annually by the freeholders.
Various regulations provided for the security of property: and no taxes
were to be imposed without the consent of the assembly. The
proprietaries might mean no more, than that neither they, nor the
governor and council, shall impose taxes without the consent of the
assembly: but the mode of expression tended to confirm the people at
large in the opinion of their being exempted from all taxes which had
not the consent of their own assembly. The settlers had their land
confirmed, and granted to be now held by the free tenure of soccage,
expressing a certain rent and independence. All men were declared
entitled to equal privileges on taking the oath of allegiance to the
king, and of fidelity to the proprietaries.

It was not till 1669 that an assembly constituted as abovementioned was
convened: when it was enacted—“none shall be sued, during five years,
for any cause of action arising out of the country—and none shall accept
a power of attorney, to receive debts contracted abroad.” Hence this
colony was long considered as the refuge of the criminal, and the asylum
of the fugitive debtor.

The proprietaries, at length dissatisfied with every system which they
had hitherto divised for the government of their province, signed in
July, a body of _fundamental constitutions_ compiled by the celebrated
_Locke_, giving as a reason, “That we may establish a government
agreeable to the monarchy of which Carolina is a part, and may avoid
making too numerous a democracy.”

By this edict a palatine was to be chosen from among the proprietaries
for life; who was to act as president of the palatine court, composed of
the whole; which was intrusted with the exection of the powers of the
charter. A body of hereditary nobility was created, and denominated
landgraves and caciques; the former were to be invested with four
baronies, each consisting of 12,000 acres; the latter to have two,
containing one half of that quantity: and those estates were to descend
with the dignities inseparably. There were to be as many landgraves as
counties; and twice as many caciques, but no more. Two fifths of the
counties, stiled signiories and baronies, were to be possessed by the
nobility; the other three fifths, called The colonies, were to be left
among the people.

The provincial legislature, dignified with the name of parliament, was
to be biennial, and to consist of the proprietaries, alias landgraves,
or the deputy of each, of the cacique nobility, of the representatives
of the freeholders of every district, who were to meet in one
appartment, and every member to enjoy an equal vote: but no business was
to be proposed till it had been debated in the grand council, whose duty
it was to prepare bills for the parliamentary consideration. The grand
council was to be composed of the governor, the nobility, and the
deputies of the proprietaries, these being absent; and was invested with
the executive of the province. The church of England alone was to be
allowed a public maintenance by parliament; but every congragation might
tax its own members for the support of its own ministers; and to every
one was allowed perfect freedom in religion. However the most degrading
slavery was introduced by investing in every man the property of his
negro.[40]

These constitutions, consisting of 120 articles, and containing a great
variety of perplexing regulations, were declared to be the sacred and
unalterable rule of government in Carolina for ever; and yet they were
never altogether adopted. The parties engaged in this act of legislation
should have reflected, that the inhabitants had settled no conditions,
which it was no longer in their power to abrogate; and that in the forms
of government which had been actually established, the people had
acquired an interest which could not be taken away without their
consent.

[1670.] A number of emigrants were sent in January, under _William
Sayle_, esq. appointed governor of that part of the coast which lies
south-westward of Cape Carteret, to form a colony at Port-Royal. They
arrived safe; and as it was found impracticable to conform to the
constitutions, it was determined to keep as close to them as possible.
Sayle dying, Sir _John Yeamans_ had his command extended to and over
this colony in August, 1671. This year planters resorted from Clarendon
on the north, and Port-Royal on the south, to the banks of Ashley river,
for the convenience of pasture and tillage; and laid on the first high
land the foundation of old Charles-Town. The proprietaries promulgated
temporary laws, till through a sufficient number of inhabitants,
government could be administered according to the fundamental
constitutions. The temporary laws were of no long duration, being
derided by a people without whose consent they had been established.

In May, 1674, _Joseph West_, esq. was appointed governor of the southern
colony, in the room of Sir John Yeamans, with whose conduct the
proprietaries were dissatisfied. But the difficulty of establishing the
colony was not overcome for years; not till the people repaired to it at
their own expence, and men of estate ventured thither under the firm
persuasion of being fairly treated. In expectation of such treatment,
the dissenters, being harrassed by persecutions in England, and dreading
a popish successor, emigrated to Carolina in great numbers, and made a
considerable part of the inhabitants. They acquired the honor of
introducing religion into the province, while they strengthened it also
by their personal accessions. But the promising appearances of the
country inviting many over of a very different stamp, after a while
disturbances followed.

The planters being informed that the _Oyster-Point_, so delightfully
formed by the confluence of the rivers Ashley and Cooper, was more
convenient than what was fixed upon eight years before, and the
proprietaries encouraging their inclination, they began to remove, and
in the subsequent year laid the foundation of the present Charles-Town,
and built 30 houses [1680.] It was instantly declared the _port_ for the
purposes of traffic, and the _capital_ for the administration of
government. It was long unhealthy; but the adjacent country being now
cleared and cultivated, it is allowed to enjoy the most salubrious air
of Carolina.

Though the province had been formed into manors and baronies, it was not
till 1682, that it was divided into three counties. In the autumn of
this year, governor West held a parliament; and afterwards immediately
resigned his administration to Mr. Joseph Moreton. Thence commenced a
reiterated change of governors. Cyrle, West, Kuerry, Moreton, were
successively appointed. There was a similar change of every public
officer. These changes produced turbulency and faction.

But prior to this period, an insurrection broke out in the colony of
Albemarle, in December, 1677. At the end of two years succesful revolt,
Culpepper, who was deeply concered in the business, was dispatched with
another person to England with a promise of submission to the
proprietaries, on certain conditions. When about to return after
executing his trust, he was impeached by the commissioners of the
customs, for acting as collector without their authority, and embezzling
the king’s revenue in Carolina. He was seized on board a vessel in the
Downs, brought back, and in Trinity-term, 1680, tried by virtue of the
statute of _Henry_ VIII. on an indictment of high treason committed
without the realm. The famous Lord Shaftesbury, then in the zenith of
his popularity, appeared on his behalf, and represented, contrary to the
most undoubted facts, “That there never had been any regular government
in Albemarle, that its disorders were only feuds between the planters,
which could only amount to a riot.” On this _Culpepper_ was acquitted.
He is the first colonist who appears to have been regularly tried in the
court of King’s-bench upon that statute:[41] but he was not transported
from America in order to trial. His acquittal induced the proprietaries
to resolve upon governing, in future, according to the portion of
obedience which the insurgents should be disposed to yield. They
recommended, however, an healing disposition. But the persons bearing
the chief sway, being actuated too much by a vindictive spirit,
proseeded against their opponents by imprisonment, fine, and banishment
The seenes of anarchy produced by these measures were not changed, nor
the condition of the colony mended by the arrival of governor _Seth
Sothel_, in 1683, who was sent in hopes of quieting the disorders by his
authority, as he had purchased Lord Clarendon’s share of the province.
He was guilty of that bribery, extortion, injustice, rapacity, breach of
trust, and disobedience of orders, for five years, that the inhabitants,
driven almost to dispair, seized him with a view of sending him to
England to answer to their complaints: but upon his intreaties, and
offering to submit to their mutual accusations to the next assmbly, they
accepted his proposal. The assembly gave judgment against him in all the
above-mentioned particulars, and compelled him to abjure the country for
twelve months, and the government for ever.

_Charles-town_ having been made the principal port, the first collector
was established there in 1685. The governor and council were at the same
time ordered, not to fail to shew their forwardness in assisting the
collection of the duty on tobacco transported to other colonies, and in
seizing ships that presumed to trade contarary to the acts of
navigation. Little regard was paid to orders so contrary to the views of
every one. An illicit trade was not only practised, but justified under
the clause of the patent, _which the people believed to be of superior
force to the law_.—Though the royal grant of 1665 was passed subsequent
to the act of navigation, the present exemption was insisted upon, with
the same spirit that it was contended during this reign, that a king of
England may dispense with the law. The principle of the Carolinians, and
the doctrine so fashionable at the court of James, were therefore
exactly the same.

_James Colleton_, esq. a proprietary, was appointed governor, in August.
The next year he called an assembly, in which he and his party took upon
them to pass such laws as lost him the affections of the people. During
the ferments that followed, Seth Sothel, whom we have seen banished from
Albemarle, suddenly arrived at Charles-town. Countenanced by a powerful
party, and presuming on his powers as a proprietary, he seized the reins
of government in 1690, notwithstanding the opposition of governar and
council. A general return of member was procured, who readily sanctioned
by their votes whatever was dictated by those that had thus acquired
power. Colleton, whose conduct had been far from blameless, was
instantly impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors, disabled from
holding any office, and banished. Others were fined, imprisoned, and
expelled the province. The proprietaries appointed a new governor; and
the next year, [1692] upon the requisitions of the Carolinians,
abrogated Mr. Locke’s system of laws, _the fundamental constitutions_,
which far from having answered their end introduced only dissatisfaction
and disorders, that were not cured till the final dissolation of the
proprietary government.[42] The operation and fate of Mr. Locke’s system
may convince us of this truth, that a person “may defend the principles
of liberty and the rights of mankind, with great abilities and success;
and yet after all, when called upon to produce a plan of legislation, he
may astonish the world with a signal absurdity.”[43]

Governor _Archdale_ arrived at Carolinia in August, 1695. He managed
with great prudence, and succeeded so well, that the assembly voted him
an address of thanks. He was succeeded by _Joseph Blake_, esq. whose
sentiments were so liberal, that, though a dissenter, he prevailed with
the assembly to settle £ 150 _per annum_ upon the episcopal minister of
Charles-town for ever, and likewise to furnish him with a good house, a
glebe, and two servants. A very different spirit wrought in the earl of
Bath, when he succeeded to the power of palatine [1701.] and became
eldest proprietary. Being a zealot for the church of England, he was
ambitious of establishing its worship, and of excluding
non-episcopalians from a share in the government of Carolina; a similar
principle was at that time too prevalent in England. His views were
seconded by the pliableness of governor _Moor_, who was after a while
succeeded by Sir _Nathaniel Johnson_. Then the assembly being convened,
a bill was brought in for the more effectual preservation of the
government, by requiring all persons chosen members of the assembly, to
conform to religious worship, and receive the sacrament of the Lord’s
supper, according to the usage of the church of England. By this act,
all dissenters were disqualified from sitting in the assembly, though
legally elected, and the candidate who had the greatest number of
voices, after the disqualified dissenter, was to be admitted. The
passing of this act was unconstitutional and oppressive. Another bill
was passed for establishing religious worship in the province, according
to the church of England, and also for the erecting of churches, the
maintenance of ministers, and the building of convenient parsonages.
Both these acts were afterwards signed and settled by John lord
Granville, then palatine, for himself and the other proprietors. In
consequence of the last act, many oppressions were committed by the
government against the dissenters, who laboured under these and other
grievances, till the matter at length was brought before the house of
lords, who having fully weighed the same, addressed the queen in favour
of the Carolinians; and the laws complained of [1706.] were declared
null and void.

An Indian war having broken out in Carolina, and the proprietaries
finding themselves unable to maintain it against the Indians, while
these were supported by the French and Spaniards, [1728.] resolved to
surrender their charter to the crown. One-eighth of the province
belonged to lord Carteret. The proprietors of the other seven-eighths
were to receive for their cession £ 17,500 together with £ 5000 more,
due to them from the province on account of outstanding debts. The
surrender and payment was confirmed by a British act of parliament,
wherein was a clause, reserving always to John lord Carteret, his heirs,
executors, administrators, and assigns, all such estate, right, and
title to one-eighth part of the share of the said provinces or
territories, and to one-eighth part of all arrears as was his due. After
passing the act, the British government applied itself in earnest to
encourage this colony, and _Robert Johnson_, esq. was appointed
governor, and continued such till he died in 1735; in which year
Carolina was divided into two Colonies, North and South, and each placed
under a separate governor.[44]

_Pennsylvania_ and the _Delaware Counties_ next demand our attention.
Mr. _William Penn_, one of the joint purchasers of the western part of
the Jerseys, having received the most exact information of the country
to the westward of the Deleware, while engaged in the administration of
the joint purchase, became desirous of acquiring a separate estate.

He presented a petition to _Charles_ II. in June 1680, stating not only
his relationship to the late admiral; but that he was deprived of a debt
due from the crown, when the exchequer was shut. He prayed for a grant
of land, lying to the northward of Maryland, and westward of the
Delaware; and added, that by his interest he should be able to settle a
province which might, in time, repay his claims. Having the prospect of
success, he copied from the charter of Maryland the sketch of a patent
which in November was laid before the attorney-general for his opinion.
Penn had the same object in view as lord Baltimore had, the guarding
against the exertions of prerogative, which experience had taught both
were very inconvenient. The attorney-general declared the clause of
exemption from taxation illegal: and chief justice North, being of the
same opinion, and observing its tendency, added the saving of the
authority of the English parliament, so that it was stipulated by the
king, for himself and his successors, “that no customs or other
contribution shall be laid on the inhabitants or their estates, unless
by the consent of the porprietary, or governor and assembly, or _by act
of parliament in England_.”

The next year [1681] the patent was granted, in consideration of “the
merits of the father, and the good purposes of the son, in order to
extend the English empire, and to promote useful commodities.” It was
provided by fit clauses, that the sovereignty of the king should be
preserved; and that acts of parliament, concerning trade and navigation
and the customs, be duly observed. Penn was empowered to assemble the
freemen, or their delegates, in such form as he should think proper, for
raising money for the uses of the colony, and for making useful laws,
not contrary to those of England, or the rights of the kingdom. A
duplicate of the acts of the assembly was to be transmitted within five
year to the king in council, and the acts might be declared void within
six months, if not approved.

The novel introduction of the clause subjecting the inhabitants of
Pennsylvania to taxation by act of parliament, might afford an argument
against being so taxed, to all the colonies whose charters contained no
such clause. Dr. Franklin being asked, when examined by the house of
commons, in the time of the stamp act, “Seeing their is in the
Pennsylvania charter, an express reservation of the right of parliament
to lay taxes there, how could the assembly assert, that laying a tax on
them by the stamp act was an infringement on their rights? answered,
“They understand it thus—by the same charter and otherwise they are
entitled to all the privileges and liberties of Englishmen. They find in
the great charters and the petition and declaration of rights, that one
of the privileges of English subjects is, that they are not to be taxed
but by their own consent: they have therefore relied upon it, from the
first settlement, that the parliament never would or could, by colour of
that clause, tax them till it had qualified itself for the exercise of
such right, by admitting representatives from the people to be taxed.”
You will recollect governor Nicholson’s writing in 1698, “a great many
people in all the colonies, especially in those under proprietaries,
think that no law of England ought to be binding to them without their
own consent: for they foolishly say, they have no representatives sent
from themselves to the parliament of England.” [p. 39.]

The Pennsylvanians, it may be noted, were not declared by the patent to
be English subjects. There was no express stipulation, as had been
inserted in all the other colonial patents, “that the Pennsylvanians and
their descendants should be considered as subjects born within the
realm;” for the lawyers who revised it, considered such declaratious as
nugatory, since they were inferred by law.[45] If the right of the
English parliament to tax the colonies could also have been inferred by
law, why was not the express reservation of that right considered
likewise as nugatory.

In May, Penn detached Mr. Markham, his kinsman, with a small emigration,
in order to take possession of the country, and prepare it for a more
numerous colony. Care was taken to order an humane attention to the
rights of the Indians.

[1628] The frame of government for Pennsylvania was published in April.
It was forced from the proprietary by friends, who would not have
settled his country, unless gratified in whatever they demanded. It
underwent a similar fate with the constitutions of Locke; and after a
variety of alterations, was at length wholly laid aside, and a simpler
form established. As a supplement to the frame, there was published, in
the subsequent May, a body of laws agreed upon in England by the
adventurers, which was intended as a great charter, and does honor to
their wisdom as statesmen, to their morals as men, and to their spirit
as colonists.

Mr. _Penn_, desirous of carrying his religion southward to the
Chesapeak, was continually soliciting the duke of York, for a grant of
the _Delaware colony_. The prince at length wearied out, conveyed, in
August, the town of Newcastle, with a territory of twelve miles round;
as also that tract of land extending southward from it upon the Delaware
to Cape-Henlopen. It was known to both parties, that the title of what
was now granted was extremely exceptionable, as the duke could transfer
no other right than mere occupancy in opposition to the legal claim, of
lord Baltimore. Penn, however, who was intent on his own interest in
those parts, immediately assumed the powers of jurisdiction.

When, for the first time, he arrived on the banks of the Delaware,
October the 24th, he found them inhabited by 3,000 persons, composed of
Swedes, Dutch, Finlanders and English. Not only his own colonists, but
the rest, received him with joy and respect. He was accompanied thither
by about 2,000 emigrants, who being either quakers or other dissenters,
wished to enjoy their peculiarities and religion, in a country that
offered a peaceful asylum to the persecuted. Mr. Penn immediately
entered into a treaty with the Indians, and, agreeable to the bishop of
London’s counsel, purchased from them as much of the soil as the
circumstances of the colony required, for a price that gave them
satisfaction: he also settled with them a very kind correspondence. In
December, he convened the first assembly at Chester, consiting of
seventy-two delegates from the six counties, into which they had divided
Pennsylvania and the Delaware colony, soon after denominated the
_territories_. The inhabitants proposed that the deputies might serve
both for the provincial council and general assembly; three out of every
county for the former, and nine for the latter. Their proposals were
passed by the assembly without hesitation into an act of settlement. The
persons returned were declared to be the legal council and assembly, and
every county was empowered to send the same number in future, which in
the same manner should constitute the legislature; and after the
addition of a few other explanations, the modified frame of government
was solemnly recognized and accepted. Then an act was passed, annexing
the territories to the province, and communicating to the one the same
privileges, government, and laws, as the other already enjoyed. Every
foreigner who promised allegience to the king, and obedience to the
proprietary, was at the same time declared to be a freeman, and entitled
to his rights. By the legislative regulation, established as
fundamentals by this assembly, factors who wronged their employers were
to make satisfaction and one-third over—not only the goods, but the
lands of the debtor were subjected to the payment of debts—every thing
which excited the people to rudeness, cruelty, and irreligion, was to be
discouraged and severely punished—no person acknowledging one God, and
living peaceably in society, was to be molested for his opinions or
practice, or to be compelled to frequent or maintain any ministry
whatsoever. It was a principle of the great charter, “that children
shall be taught some useful trade, to the end that none may be idle, but
the poor may work to live, and the rich, if they become poor may not
want.”

Penn, dissatisfied with the act of settlement, without difficulty
created a second frame, agreeing partly with the first, modified
according to the act of settlement in certain particulars, and in some
measure essentially different from both; to which he procured the assent
of the next assembly, in 1683; but which in time shared the fate of the
former.

[1684.] He departed for England. The most violent dissensions followed
almost instantly upon it, the provincial council and the assembly
contending eagerly with regard to their mutual privileges and powers.
Tranquility was not restored by the duputy governor Blackwell, who
entered upon his government in December, 1688.

[1685.] Toward the close of this year Mr. Penn obtained a new grant to
the Delaware colony, which he had been soliciting for some time.

[1688.] The Pennsylvanians and their rulers, when Blackwell entered upon
his administration, were so much engaged in their own contests and
pursuits, and so actuated by the principles of their superior, [the
proprietary whose attachments to James II. during those days are well
known] that they seem to have disregarded that signal revolution which
transferred their allegience and Pennsylvania to the prince and princess
of Orange: for the very laws and government of the province were
administered in the name of the abdicated monarch, long after William
and Mary had been formally proclaimed in other colonies.

It is a singularity in the history of this province, that neither its
various systems, nor its fundamental laws, were communicated to the king
for dissent or approbation, though strongly enforced.[46]

Penn’s adherence to James carried him to such lengths, that he was
considered as an inveterate enemy to the protestant establishment, and
was for some time excepted out of the acts of grace published by William
and Mary; who appointed colonel _Fletcher_, by the same commission,
governor both of New-York and Pennsylvania. In the commission no manner
of regard seems to have been had to the original charter. But when the
assembly met, though sixteen short in number to what had been before
usual, through the change made in the writs, they passed a vote, _nem.
con._ “That the laws of this province, which were in force and practice
before the arrival of this present governor, are still in force; and
that the assembly have a right humbly to move the governor for a
continuation or confirmation of the same.” That and subsequent
assemblies shewed such a fixed determination to secure their rights,
that neither governor nor lieutenant governor could bring them to bend
to their wishes.

In 1696 Penn had so well managed matters at the court of England, that
he was restored to his right of naming a governor; and in the beginning
of 1700 he went to Pennsylvania in person. After the meeting of several
assemblies, he convened one in September, 1701, and informed them of the
indispensable necessity he was under of going to England, to obviate
some ill offices done by his and their enemies with the government
there; but offered to do every thing that was in his power to secure to
them their privileges and properties. The assmbly, in their answer,
expressed their dissatisfaction at the state of both, and required
farther security; to which he gave evasive answers, but offered to leave
the nomination of the deputy governor to themselves; they declined it,
and went upon a new charter of privileges.

This introduced a breach between the members of the province and those
of the territories; the latter insisting upon some particular
privileges, which, when refused by the others, made them withdraw from
the meeting, and it required all the authority and address of the
proprietary to make up the breach. At last, after great heart-burnings
on both parts, just when Mr. Penn was about to embark, a charter of
privileges was presented to him and being ratified by him, became the
rule of government in Pennsylvania. By this important charter liberty of
conscience is granted; and all christians, of whatever denomination,
taking the proper oaths of allegiance and fidelity, are enabled to serve
the government, either legislatively or executively. The exclusion of
all persons from the legislative and executive branches, however
eminently qualified, and well behaved as members of civil society,
unless they are christians, does not accord with that general liberty
which ought to prevail in national communities, now that the existance
of all theocracy is ended by the introduction of the kingdom of Christ.
The piety of the theorist, and the subtilty of the politician, desirous
of securing the support of christians, may introduce the exclusion into
written or printed agreements, but cannot establish a practical
exclusion of persons opposed to christianity. He must be both simple and
uninformed, who will not admit, that many deists have served the
Pennsylvania and other excluding governments, either legislatively or
executively.

By the second article of the charter it is provided, that an assembly
shall be yearly chosen by the freemen, to consist of four persons out of
each county, or of a greater number, if the governor and assembly shall
so agree, on the 1st of October for ever, and shall sit on the 14th
following, with power to choose a speaker and other their officers, and
be judges of the qualifications and elections of their own members;
shall sit upon their own adjournments, prepare bills, impeach criminals,
and redress grievances; and shall possess all other powers and
privileges of an assembly, according to the rights of the free-born
subjects of England, and the customs observed in any of the king’s
plantations in America. If any county or counties shall neglect to send
deputies, those who meet, provided they are not fewer in number than two
thirds of the whole, shall be considered as the legal representatives of
the province.

By the eighth article, in cases of suicide, all property is to descend
to the next heirs, as if the deceased had died a natural death: nor is
the governor to be entitled to any forfeiture, if a person shall be
killed by causualty or accident. The same article provides, that no act,
law, or ordinance whatsoever, shall at any time hereafter be made, to
alter or diminish the form or effect of this charter, or of any part of
it, without the consent of the governor for the time being, and six
parts in seven of the assembly met—that the first article, relating to
liberty of conscience, shall be kept without any alteration inviolably
for ever—and that William Penn, for himself, _&c._ does solemnly
declare, that neither he, _&c._ shall do any thing whereby the
liberties, in this charter contained, nor any part thereof, shall be
infringed; and that if any thing shall be done by any person contrary
thereto, it shall be held of no effect.

This new constitution differed greatly from the original.—The governor
might nominate his own council, and he was left single in the executive
part of the government, and had liberty to restrain the legislative, by
refusing his assent to their bills.—The assembly, on the other hand,
acquired the important privilege of propounding laws, as well as of
amending or rejecting them; but though this new constitution was
thankfully accepted by the province, it was unanimously rejected by the
territories; and affairs stood in this untoward state when the
proprietary sailed for England. The representatives of the province and
those of the territories divided, and acted as two distinct bodies; and
the attempts to unite them proved ineffectual.

The _territories_ consisted of the three counties, _Newcastle_, _Kent_,
and _Sussex_, on the Delaware, and are commonly known by the name of the
three _Lower Counties on the Delaware_.

Notwithstanding Mr. Penn is celebrated as the wisest of legislators, the
assembly, about the year 1704, unanimously came to nine resolutions, in
which they complain with great grief of him, “for undermining his own
foundations; and by a subtle contrivance, laid deeper than the
capacities of some could fathom, finding a way to lay aside the act of
settlement, and dissove his second charter.”[47] He was likewise charged
with having extorted from the province great sums of money. They
complained also of the abuses of surveyors, the clerks of the courts,
and justices of the peace, who, they said, were all put in by the
proprietary, so that he became his own judge in his own cause.—These and
other matters were the heads of a representation, or rather
remonstrance, drawn up and sent to Mr. Penn, then in England, in which
he is represented as an oppressor, and as falsifying his word in almost
every respect, with the provincials.[48]

The disputes which subsisted in Pennsylvania were greatly augmented by
the intemperance of the quakers themselves, who, notwithstanding all
their zeal for liberty of conscience, persecuted about or soon after
1694, George Keith (who had been one of their most famous preachers)
upon his conforming to the church of England; and went so far as to
throw him into prison. They apologized for their conduct by pleading,
that they did not punish him for his religious principles, but for
having insulted the civil government.[49] If this was a good plea, the
New-Englanders might gain great advantages from it, in vindicating
themselves as to many of the severities they practised upon the quakers,
who insulted their civil governments, beyond what will be easily
credited by those who have not had the opportunity of knowing the
transactions of that period, or are not acquainted with the abusive
language of some of the then leaders of that denomination—language which
the body of modern quakers will not vindicate.

It only remains to give a concise account of the settlement of
_Georgia_.

In 1732 a number of gentlemen, considering the vast benefit that might
arise from the tract of land lying between the Savannah and the river
Altamahat petitioned the king for a charter, which was accordingly
granted on the ninth of June. They meant that the country should be made
a bulwark for the southern colonies against the Spaniards; and should
give employment to numbers of people who were burthensome at home to
their friends and parishes. The charter constituted them a corporation,
by the name of trustees for establishing a colony, by the name of
Georgia, including the country from the most northern stream of the
Savannah, to the most southern stream of the Altamaha. The corporation
was to subsist for 21 years; and after the expiration of that term, the
governor and all officers were to be appointed by the crown.

Toward the end of August, Sir William Heathcote recommended in the
strongest terms, to the directors of the bank, the interests of the
colony. His speech had the desired effect, and the members of the court,
after his example, contributed largely toward the undertaking, as did
great numbers of the nobility, gentry, clergy, and others; and the
parliament granted £.10,000. By the beginning of November, about a
hundred and sixteen colonists presented themselves, most of them
labouring people; and were furnished with working tools of all kinds,
stores, and small arms. Mr. _Oglethorpe_, one of the trustees,
generously attended the first set of emigrants to Carolina, where they
arrived in good health on the 15th of January 1733. The Carolinians made
them a present of 100 breeding cattle, besides hogs, and twenty barrels
of rice; and furnished them with a party of horse and with scout boats,
by the help of which they reached the Savannah, where Mr. Oglethorpe,
ten miles up the river, pitched upon a spot for a town; and on February
the 9th, the building of the first house commenced. The colonists were
most generously assisted by the Carolinians and their governor,
cololonel Bull, not only with their purses, but their labour, in raising
the new town, named Savannah, from the river.

Mr. Oglethorpe was waited upon by a numerous deputation from the Lower
Creek Nation, with whom he concluded a treaty; and soon after set out
for Charles-Town, on his return to England, where he arrived in 1734,
bringing with him several Indian chiefs and a war captain. But before
the end of March this year, more emigrants, to the amount of six
hundred, were either sent over by charity, or went at their own expence.

On the 30th of October the Indians embarked for their own country,
having had an allowance while in London of £.20 a week, of which they
spent little, as they commonly ate and drank at the tables of persons of
the highest distinction. They moreover received presents to a very
considerable amount. They embarked at Gravesend, in a ship which carried
over a number of Saltzburghers, being German protestants, who, with
others of their countrymen that followed, settled on the Savannah, a
town they called Ebenezer, and which by their habits of industry and
sobriety soon became considerable. The Georgians made a surprising
progress in clearing their lands and building their houses: and, as an
encouragement, the British parliament granted them a supply of £.26,000
which, with very great private donations, was expended upon
strengthening the south part of Georgia. This being a necessary service
for the colony, the trustees pitched upon the highlanders of Scotland,
160 of whom went over in 1735, settled themselves upon Altamaha river,
and gave the name of Darien to a fort they built there, to which they
afterwards added a small town called New Inverness.

In February, 1736, Mr. Oglethorpe, with about 300 passengers on board
two ships, anchored in the road of Savannah. He soon began building
another town, named Frederica.

[1737.] A misunderstanding subsisting between the courts of London and
Madrid, and advice being sent from South-Carolina to Britain, that the
Spaniards at St. Augustine and the Havannah, were making preparations
for attacking Georgia, the government, at the request of the trustees,
sent thither a regiment of 600 men, any of whom at the end of seven
years might have a regular discharge, and be entitled to a grant of
twenty acres of land. The parliament this year granted the colony
another supply of £.20,000 which enabled the trustees to send over a
fresh embarkation, of persecuted protestants.

On the breaking out of the war between England and Spain, Mr.
Oglethorpe, being invested with a general’s command, proceeded with a
body of troops to attack St. Augustine in 1740, but the expedition
proved unfortunate.

In 1742 Georgia was invaded by about 5000 Spaniards and Indians from St.
Augustine, in about fifty vessels of various kinds, who were repulsed by
the general at the head of the English forces, and a small body of
Indians. Had the Spanish descent proved successful, the Carolinians must
have been in imminent danger: but the general’s good conduct secured
them, and he received congratulatory letters of thanks from several of
the American governors, for his great and important services.[50]

On the review of what you have read, you will note, that the colonists
were very early in declaring, that they ought not to be taxed but by
their own general courts, and that they considered subjection to the
acts of a parliament in which they had no representatives from
themselves, as a hardship—that like true born Englishmen, when
grievously oppressed by governors or others, they resisted, deposed, and
banished; and would not be quieted till grievances complained of were
redressed—and that not a colony, Georgia excepted, was settled at the
expence of government. Toward the settlement of the last, parliament
granted £.56,000 at three different periods.




                               LETTER II.


                                                _Roxbury, July 9, 1772._

The present letter begins with some special colonial transactions
subsequent to the glorious revolution. Upon information of the accession
of William and Mary, the fort at New-York was seized by the rabble,
while the lieutenant governor Nicholson and the council, waited with
anxiety for orders to proclaim their new sovereign. On this occasion,
Jacob Leisler placed himself at the head of the insurgents; and
notwithstanding the protest of the council, possessed himself by force
of a letter transmitted by king William to the lieutenant governor, or
to such as for the time executed the law, and instantly assumed the name
and exerted the authority of governor. He convened two sessions of
assembly in 1690, which passed various laws. But colonel Sloughter, who
had been appointed governor in August, 1689, arriving in March, 1691,
Leisler was made prisoner, and, with others, condemned for treason and
murder; he and his principal adviser were executed. A legal general
assembly was now convened. The precaution taken in the declaration and
bill of rights, by the convention and parliament, to state the claims of
Englishmen, might naturally induce the Yorkers to propose somewhat
similar for themselves, had there been no prior propensity to that
business. But the prevailing opinion of the colonists naturally dictated
to them the seizing of the present fovorable opportunity. The New-York
general assembly passed “an act, declaring what are the rights and
privileges of their majesty’s subjects within the province.” The law
enacts, “That the supreme legislative power and authority under their
majesties, shall for ever be, and reside in a governor and council,
appointed by their majesties, their heirs and successors; and the people
by their representatives met and convened in general assembly.” It
further enacts, “_That no aid, tax, tallage, &c. whatsoever, shall be
laid, assessed, levied, or required, of or on any their majesties
subjects within the province, &c. or their estates, upon any manner of
colour or pretence whatsoever, but by the act and consent of the
governor and council, and representatives of the people in general
assembly met and convened_.” This memorable act was a virtual
declaration, that the inhabitants of the colony had a right to be
represented in assembly, and enjoyed it not as a privilege, through the
grace of the crown.[51] Six years after, in 1697, a negative was put
upon the act, probably by the regency, while the king was absent, which
was from April the 26th, to the middle of November, when he returned
after the peace of Ryswick was settled.

The _Massachusetts_ petitioned for a renewal of their former charter,
but it could not be obtained; and many reasons were assigned for not
granting it, among the rest, its giving them no power to lay taxes and
raise money, especially on inhabitants not being of the company, and on
strangers coming to or trading with them. One of the chief acts of
delinquency alleged in the writ of _scire facias_, issued against their
former charter, was, their having _levied money of the inhabitants_.

[1691.] King _William_ and queen _Mary_ granted a new charter, in which
_Plymouth_, the _Main_, _Acadia or Nova-Scotia_, and the tract lying
between _Nova-Scotia_ and the _Main_, were annexed to and made a part of
the _Massachusetts_. It was complained of, as being not much more than a
shadow of the old; seeing that the appointment of the governor,
lieutenant-governor, secretary, and all the officers of the admiralty,
was vested in the crown; that the power of the militia was wholly in the
hands of his majesty’s governor as captain general; that all judges,
justices, and sheriffs, were to be nominated by the governor, with the
advice of the council; that the governor had a negative upon the choice
of counsellors; that all laws enacted by the general assembly, were to
be sent home for the royal approbation or disallowance: and that no
laws, ordinances, elections, or acts of government whatsoever, were to
be of any validity, without the consent of the governor, signified in
writing. The new charter, however, conferred on the inhabitants a number
of very important privileges, and was to be preferred to the old in many
respects. They were informed by the best civilians, that their religious
liberties were forever secured; and that they could be touched by no tax
or law, but of their own making; which had a good effect in quieting
them under the variations to which they objected.

[1692.] The first act of the _Massachusetts_ legislature, after the
arrival of the charter, was a kind of Magna Charta, asserting and
setting forth their general privileges, and this clause was among the
rest, “_No aid, tax, tallage, assessment, custom, loan, benevolence, or
imposition whatsoever, shall be laid, assessed, imposed, or levied on
any of his majesty’s subjects, or their estates, on any pretence
whatever, but by the act and consent of the governor, council and
representatives of the people, assembled in general court_.” The general
court passed others favourable to liberty, which were perused by the
ministers of England at a distant period; and with the preceding,
disallowed of by the regency in 1695. In December the reasons of this
dissent were transmitted to the governor and council. The following
extract from the letter sent by the committee of plantations, is
subjoined, because of its being so extraordinary and decisive: “Whereas,
by the act for securing the liberty of the subject, and preventing
illegal imprisonments, the writ of Hæbeas Corpus is required to be
granted, in like manner as is appointed by the statute of 31 Charles II.
in England, which privilege has not yet been granted in any of his
majesty’s plantations; it was not thought in his majesty’s absence, that
the said act should be continued in force, and therefore the same hath
been repealed.”

The above extract makes this a proper place for mentioning, that the
ancient colonists being destitute of proper security, for want of an
Hæbeas Corpus act, were in some provinces grievously oppressed. Edward
Randolph, surveyor-general, during the reign of William III. represented
their condition to the board of trade, March 1700; and among other
beneficial regulations, he recommended, “That it being the practice of
governors to imprison the subjects without bail, the Hæbeas Corpus act
should be extended as fully to the colonies as it is in England.” It was
accordingly soon after conferred on Virginia, by queen Anne. The council
in their address said upon the occasion, “We, the council of Virginia,
acknowledge your majesty’s late favour, in allowing us the benefit of
the Hæbeas Corpus act, and in appointing courts of oyer and terminer,
for the more speedy execution of justice, and relief from long
imprisonments.” The lower house, in theirs, said, “We the burgesses now
assembled, do beseech your majesty to accept our sincere thanks for your
many favours bestowed on your subjects of this colony. We shall not
pretend to enumerate the particulars, nor can we omit mentioning those
lately communicated to us by your majesty’s royal instructions to your
governor, wherein you have asserted to your subjects their legal rights
and properties, by allowing them the Hæbeas Corpus act.”[52]

The extension of the Hæbeas Corpus act to the plantations, by queen
Anne, appears to have been only by instructions to the governors, and
not by any act of parliament. By what prerogative could she extend that
act to the colonists, were they not before entitled to its benefit? If
entitled to, it was unjust in any power to deny them the advantage of
the act; and the royal favour to the Virginians, consisted solely in the
queen’s _asserting to her subjects their legal rights and properties_
(as the burgesses expressed themselves) by giving suitable directions on
the business. The high sense of colonial liberty exhibited by the _York_
and _Massachusetts_ general courts, was opposed by the _English_
government.

[1696.] An act was passed by the parliament, declaring that “All laws,
bye-laws, usages and customs, which shall be in practice in any of the
plantations, repugnant to any law made or to be made in this kingdom,
relative to the said plantations, shall be void and of none effect.”

There might be no design on the part of the ministry of taxing any of
the colonies; but about 1696, a pamphlet was published, recommending the
laying a parliamentary tax on one of them. It was answered by two others
much read; which totally denied the power of taxing the colonies,
because they had no representation in parliament to give consent. No
answer, public or private, was given to these pamphlets; no censure
passed upon them; men were not startled at the doctrine, as either new
or illegal, or derogatory to the rights of parliament.[53]

Though the parliament might not then claim the right of taxing, they
claimed the right of punishing disobedience to their laws, with the loss
of charter privileges. In the 11th of _William_ III. an act was passed
[1699.] for the trial of pirates in _America_, in which there is the
following clause, “Be it further declared, _that if any of the
governors, or any person or persons in authority_ there, shall _refuse
to yield obedience to this act_, such refusal is hereby declared to be a
_forfeiture_ of all and every the _charters_ granted for the
_government_ or _propriety_ of such plantation.”

Severity is stamped upon the very face of the act, in making the
disobedience of a governor, the forfeiture of a charter, meant to secure
the liberties of thousands, who might not have any the least power of
preventing such disobedience. The proprieties and charter colonies were
so disinclined to admit of appeals to his majesty in council, and were
thought so to thirst after independence that these and other objections
against them were laid before the parliament, [1701.] and a bill
thereupon brought into the house of lords for re-uniting the right of
government in those colonies to the crown: but better council prevailed,
and matters were left unaltered. Some are for bringing as a precedent
for the parliament’s raising a revenue from the colonies, what was
passed in 1710, viz. “An act for establishing a general post-office for
all her majesty’s dominions, and for settling, a weekly sum out of the
revenues thereof, for the service of the war and other her majesty’s
occasions.” By this act the postage of England, Scotland, Ireland, and
America, were consolidated, to the end that a general post-office might
be established through Great-Britain and Ireland, her colonies and
plantations in North-America and the West-Indies, and all her other
dominions, in such manner as might be most beneficial to the people: and
that the revenue arising form the said office might be better improved.
The consolidation made a new act necessary; and afforded the opportunity
of advancing the rates of letters. The weekly sum amounted to £.700 and
was to be paid out of the revenue for 32 years; the payment was made
perpetual in the third year of her successor, having been soon after
granted, appropriated by another act toward paying off, with interest at
six _per cent._ the principal of £.2,602,200, which government borrowed
of the public. By the act, the post-riders carrying the mail, were
exempted from paying any thing for passing the ferries in North-America,
and the ferryman was subjected to a penalty of five pounds, if he did
not convey them over within half an hour after demanded.

Whatever power over the colonies the parliament might exercise in the
act, the dissimilarity between this and the sugar act, passed in 1764,
will not admit of the former’s being quoted, with propriety, as a
precedent for the latter. The colonists were in no wise uneasy at it,
and considered not the American postage in the light of an internal tax,
designed for the raising of a revenue from them; for it was but a few
comparatively who were affected by it; and these were accommodated in
the conveyance of their letters, received a full equivalent for the
postage of them, and were not bound to send them by the public post,
when they preferred a private conveyence.

In respect of the readiness of the colonies to co-operate with each
other and the mother country, for the general good, they manifested the
same as occasion required.

[1690.] The _Massachusetts_ general court wrote to the several governors
of the neighbouring colonies, desiring them to appoint commissioners “to
meet, advise, and conclude upon suitable methods in assisting each other
for the safety of the whole land.” The governor of _New-York_ was
requested to signify the same to _Maryland_, and parts adjacent.

The commissioners met on the 1st of May, at _New-York_, and were stiled
a _Congress_, as may be concluded from the following paragraph in Mr.
_Stoughton’s_ letter of October 20, 1693, to Lord _Nottingham_:[54] “I
crave leave further to acquaint your lordship, that the governor of
_New-York_ having written unto his excellency the governor here,
signifying his appointment of a meeting at _New-York_, upon the first
Wednesday of this month, of commissioners from the several governments
of _New-England_, _Virginia_, &c. to concert and agree upon a certain
_quota_ of men and money, for the defence of _Albany_, &c. in observance
of their majesties commands; it happened to be at such a time, and under
such a conjuncture of affairs here, that no meet persons could be
procured to attend _that Congress_.” It does not appear, that there was
any congress between the two periods. It may also be observed, that the
first was procured at the motion of the _Massachusetts_ general court,
formed, from the necessity of the day, upon the vacated charter, before
a new one was granted; and that the motion originated in the court, from
zeal for the common safety of the colonies, without any interposition of
their majesties command. We meet with no congress prior to what was thus
procured.

[Oct. 14, 1709.] At the desire of colonel _Vetch_, there was a congress
of several governors, with some of their council and assembly, to
consult upon the intended expedition against _Canada_, and to resolve on
methods for securing the frontiers.

[Oct. 31, 1711.] The _Massachusetts_ house of assembly, at the motion of
lieutenant-general _Nicholson_, advised, to a congress of her majesty’s
governors attended with such persons as the governments might appoint.
The council appointed two, and the house three, out of their respective
bodies, to attend the governor to congress, which appears to have met
afterwards at _New-London_.

But though the conduct of the _Massachusetts_, in their exertions for
the general good, was highly commendable, their behaviour afterward, in
their own colonial affairs, under governor _Shute_, was greatly
censurable.

[1722.] The house of assembly attempted to take from colonel _Shute_,
those powers in matters relative to the war, which belonged to him by
the constitution, and to vest them in a committee of the two houses.
They by degrees acquired, from the governor and council, the keys of the
treasury; and no monies could be issued, not so much as to pay an
express, without the vote of the house for that purpose; whereas by the
charter, all monies were to be paid out of the treasury, “by warrant
from the governor, with the advice and consent of the council.”

The ministry were greatly offended at the governor’s being made uneasy;
for colonel _Shute_ was known at court and the offices of state, under
the character of a very worthy gentleman, of a singular good temper,
fitted to make any people under his command happy. When, therefore, they
found the contrary in the _Massachusetts_, they concluded, that the
people wished to have no governor from _Great-Britain_, but wanted to be
independent of the crown. The cry of the city of _London_ ran
exceedingly against them; and a scheme, that had been long planned for
taking away the charter, had nearly been executed; but was fortunately
frustrated by the indefatigable pains of Mr. _Dummer_, their then agent.
Their own council at home were obliged to a confession of their illegal
proceedings. [Jan. 15, 1725.] An explanatory charter was prepared,
proposed, and accepted. Had it not been accepted, the design was to have
submitted to the consideration of the British legislature, “What further
provision may be necessary to support and preserve his majesty’s
authority in the colony, and prevent similar invasion of his prerogative
for the future.”[55]

It had been usual to give instructions to the several governors, to
recommend to the assembly the establishing of a salary suitable to the
dignity of their post; but the house had always declined complying,
prudently apprehensive, that disagreable consequences might ensue, from
the independency of the governor on the people over whom he was placed.
These instructions were renewed when governor _Burnet_ was appointed to
the chair, who adhering to them, and showing a fixed determination not
to part with govermental rights, warm disputes followed between him and
the house of representatives; whose treatment of him was so
unwarrantable, that the council board [1729.] within a week after the
affair, expressed their concern at the unbecoming and undutiful
treatment given to his excellency, in the message of the house on the
sixth of December.

In divers instances they showed such a disposition to encroach upon the
prerogative, to wrangle with their governor, and to dispute with the
crown, that the ministry and other persons in public offices, as is
natural for those who look for submissive compliance, were much
irritated; and improved to the utmost all advantages to excite
prejudices against them.

It was suggested that they were aiming at independence; and jealousies
were raised in the minds of some, that there was danger of the colonies
setting up for themselves. Nevertheless, it was certain that such a
scheme appeared to the whole country wild and extravagant; because of
the universal loyalty of the people, beyond what was to be found in any
other part of the British dominions, together with the infancy of the
colonies, and their being distinct from one another in forms of
government, religious rights, emulation of trade, and, consequently,
their affections; so that it was not supposable that they could unite in
so dangerous an enterprise.[56]

However, when the _Massachusetts_ petitioned the house of commons,
praying that they might be heard by council on the subject of
grievances, the house took that opportunity of discovering how jealous
it was of the kingdom’s supremacy and uncontroulable authority over the
colony; for the commons having considered the matter, resolved, “That
the petition was frivolous and groundless, a high insult upon his
majesty’s government, and tending to _shake off the dependency_ of the
said colony upon this kingdom, to which, _in law and right, they ought
to be subject_.”

The colonies might object to some acts passed respecting them,
particularly—the act prohibiting the cutting down of pitch and tar
trees, not being within a fence or enclosure—the act prohibiting the
exportation of hats made in the colonies, even from one colony to
another; and restraining all makers of hats from taking more than two
apprentices at a time, or any for less than seven years, and entirely
from employing negroes in the business—the act for the more easy
recovery of debts in his majesty’s plantations and colonies in America,
which made houses, lands, negroes, and other real estates, assets for
the payment of debts. It was passed in 1732, upon the petition of the
English merchants trading to the colonies, who complained, that the
Virginia and Jamaica, a privilege was claimed to exempt their houses,
lands, tenements, and negroes, from being attached for debt; the lords
of trade at the same time represented, that the assemblies of those
colonies could never be induced to divest themselves of these privileges
by any act of their own. But whatever objections were made to the above
acts, no general measure was adopted to obtain their repeal. They
continued in being; but the hatters act was disregarded: and methods
were devised for felling the prohibited trees, when the neighbourhood
wanted a supply. The operation of the act designed for the benefit of
creditors, was too often, as in other countries, weakened or evaded by
the dishonest debtor. Men of principle gave themselves little concern
about its existance, as they had nothing to fear from it, and knew that
the same was intended to prevent persons being cheated out of their
property.

The sugar colonists combined together, and obtained an act against the
trade carried on from the British northern provinces to the Dutch and
French colonies, for foreign rum, sugar, and molasses. The act passed in
1733, laid a duty of nine-pence a gallon on rum, six-pence a gallon on
molasses, and five pounds on every hundred weight of sugar, that came
not from the British West-India islands, and were brought into the
nothern colonies. It was professedly designed as a prohibition from the
foreign islands; but did not answer. It was found expedient, and for the
general benefit, to admit of the molasses, &c. being mostly run into the
colonies, without insisting upon the duties, or making frequent
seizures. The act unhappily produced an illegal spirit of trading; but
was continued by subsequent ones down to 1761; when the duty on the
molasses was reduced to three-pence, to prevent its being run any
longer. The act did not oppropriate the monies to be raised by the
duties, so that when, in length of time, there was a sum in the hands of
the receiver worth remitting, a demur ensued as to the application of
it.

The monies produced by this and other acts, were not considered as real
_taxes_, either by the colonies or the mother country. But some persons
wished to have taxes imposed upon them which would necessarily produce
many good posts and places in _America_ for courtiers; and during the
war with _Spain_, which broke out in 1739, a sheme for taxing the
_British_ colonies was mentioned to Sir _Robert Walpole_. He smiled, and
said, “I will leave that to some of my successors, who have more courage
than I have, and are less friends to commerce than I am. It has been a
maxim with me, during my administration, to encourage the trade of the
_American_ colonies in the utmost latitude; nay, it has been necessary
to pass over some irregularities in their trade with _Europe_; for by
encouraging them to an extensive growing foreign commerce, if they gain
£.500,000 I am convinced, that in two years afterwards full £.250,000 of
their gains will be in his majesty’s exchequer, by the labour and
produce of this kingdom, as immense quantities of every kind of our
manufactures go thither; and as they increase in their foreign American
trade, more of our produce will be wanted. This is taxing them more
agreeably to their own constitution and ours.”

Had the scheme for taxing the colonies been attempted, it would have
occasioned a ferment that must have prevented those exertions in the
common cause, which were given into by the _New-Englanders_, especially
the _Bay-men_, so the inhabitants of the _Massachusetts Bay_ are
frequently called.

War being declared against _Spain_, a requisition of troops was made to
the _Massachusetts_, and a larger number raised and embarked on his
majesty’s service than was required, of whom, scarce one in fifty
returned.

[1744.] Upon receiving the declaration of war with _France_, the general
court, then sitting, made immediate provision for raising forces for
_Anapolis_, in Nova-Scotia: they happily arrived in season; and were the
probable means of saving the country. Divers times afterward,
Nova-Scotia, when attacked by the French, was relieved by the Bay-men;
so that during that unprosperous war, possession was always kept of it
for the crown of Great-Britain.

[1745.] But the most important service to be mentioned, is the reduction
of _Louisburg_. Governor _Shirley’s_ heart was set upon effecting it. He
prevailed upon the two houses to lay themselves under an oath of
secrecy; and then communicated his plan of the expedition. A committee
was appointed to consider it, and were several days in deliberation.
After mature consideration, a majority disapproved of the proposal. The
report was accepted, and the members of the court laid aside all
thoughts of the expedition. By the governor’s influence probably, as
well as with his approbation, a petition from a number of merchants was
presented to the house of representatives, praying a re-consideration of
their vote, and their agreement to the governor’s proposal. A second
committee reported in favour of it. The report was debated in the house
the whole day. It is remarkable that Mr. _Oliver_[57] fell down and
broke his leg, while going to the house, with a full design of opposing
the expedition. His presence would have made a majority, and overset it;
but this accident occasioned his absence; and upon the division in the
house at night, the numbers were equal. The speaker, _Thomas
Hutchinson_, esq.[58] was called upon to give the casting vote; which he
did in favour of it, though he opposed it when in the committee. He was,
probably, prevailed upon thus to vote, that he might secure the favour
of the governor, and render himself the more popular.

[Jan. 25.] The point being now settled, there is an immediate union of
both parties; and all are equally zealous in carrying the design into
execution. Messengers are dispatched as far as _Pennsylvania_, to
entreat the junction of the several governments in the expedition. All
excuse themselves, except _Connecticut_, _New-Hampshire_, and
_Rhode-Island_. The first agrees to raise 500 men, the other two 300
each. _Connecticut_ and _Rhode-Island_ consent also, that their colony
sloops shall be employed as cruisers.

The time for preparing is short. But the winter proves so favourable
that all kinds of out-door business is carried on as well, and with as
great dispatch as at any other season. The appointment of a general
officer is of the utmost consequence. He must be acceptable to the body
of the people; the inlistment depends upon this circumstance. It is not
easy to find a person thus qualified, willing to accept. Colonel
_Pepperrell_[59] has the offer from the governor: but it has rather
pressed into the service than engage voluntarily. His example, in
quitting for the present his extensive mercantile business, has
considerable influence, and induces inferior officers, and even private
soldiers, to quit their smaller concerns, for the service of their
country. Governor Wentworth, of New-Hampshire, offers afterwards to take
the command of the expedition. Two or three gentlemen of prudence and
judgment, are consulted upon the occasion, by governor Shirley, who
finds them clearly of opinion, that any alteration of the present
command, would be attended with the greatest risk of entirely disgusting
both the Massachusetts assembly and soldiers.[60] By the efforts of a
general exertion in all orders of men, the armament is ready, sails, and
arrives at _Canso_ the fourth of April. The _Bay-men_ consist of 3,250
troops, exclusive of commission officers. The _New-Hampshire_ forces
304, including officers, arrived four days before. The _Connecticut_,
being 516, inclusive, arrive on the 25th. The 300 _Rhode-Islanders_ do
not arrive till the place has surrendered.

Toward the end of the month, commodore _Warren_ arrives from the
West-Indies, with a sixty gun ship, and two of forty; and joins another
of forty, which had reached _Canso_ the day before, in consequence of
his orders, received while under sail from _Portsmouth_ in
_New-Hampshire_, on her way to Britain. The men of war sail immediately
to cruise before _Louisburg_. The forces soon follow, and land at
_Chapeaurouge Bay_ the last day of April. The transports are discovered
from the town early in the morning, which gives the inhabitants the
first knowledge of the design.

The second day after landing, 400 men march round behind the hills, to
the north-east harbour, where they get about midnight, and fire all the
houses and store-houses until they come within a mile of the grand
battery. The clouds of thick smoke proceeding from the pitch, tar, and
other combustibles, prevent the garrison’s discovering the enemy, though
but a few rods distant. They expect the army upon them, and desert the
fort, having thrown their powder into a well; but the cannon and shot
are left, and prove of service to the Americans. A party, less than
twenty, come up to the battery the next morning early; and seeing no
signs of men, suspect a plot, and are afraid to enter. At length, an
_Indian_, for a pint of rum, ventures in alone through an embrasure, and
discovers the state of it to the rest, just as a number of French are
re-landing to recover possession. The army has near two miles to
transport their cannon, mortars, &c. through a morass. This must be done
by mere dint of labour. The hardiest and strongest bodies are employed,
and the service performed, agreeable to the advice of major Ezekiel
Gilman, of Exeter, who having been used to draw the masts over the
swamps, proposed making sleds to put the cannon, &c. upon, and then
yoking the men together for draught. The men know nothing of regular
approaches. They make merry with the terms _zigzags_ and _epaulements_;
and taking advantage of the night, go on, void of art, in their own
natural way.

While the forces are busy ashore, the men of war and other vessels are
cruising off the harbour, when the weather permits; and on the
eighteenth of May, capture a French sixty-four gun ship, having 560 men
on board, and stores of all sorts for the garrison. This prize, with the
arrival of other British ships, make the commodore’s fleet eleven by the
12th of June, consisting of a 64, four of 60 guns, one of 50, and five
of 40. It is given out that an attack will be made by sea with the
ships, on the eighteenth, while the army do the like by land. Whether a
general storm is really intended or not, the French seem to expect it,
from the preparations on board the men of war, and do not incline to
stand it. On the fifteenth, a flag of truce is sent to the general,
desiring a cessation of hostilities, that they may consider of articles
for a capitulation. Time is allowed; but their articles are rejected by
the general and commodore, and others offered, which are accepted by the
French, and hostages exchanged. The city is delivered up on the 17th of
June. But as it is the time to expect vessels from all parts to
_Louisburg_, the French flag is kept flying as a decoy. Two East-India,
and one South Sea ship, of the value of £.600,000 sterling, are taken by
the squadron, at the mouth of the harbour, into which they undoubtedly
meant to enter.

The weather proved remarkably fine during the siege; the day after the
surrender the rains began, and continued ten days incessantly, which
would undoubtedly have proved fatal to the expedition, had not the
capitulation prevented. It is not of material consequence for us to
determine whether the land or sea force had the greatest share in the
reduction of _Louisburg_. Neither would have succeeded alone. But there
was certainly the strongest evidence of a generous, noble, public
spirit, in the _New-Englanders_, which first inclined them to the
undertaking, and of a firmness of mind in the prosecution of it; for the
labour, fatigue, and other hardships of the siege were without parallel
in all preceding American operations.[61] The paying of the charges of
this expedition in 1748, lessens not the merit of the New-England
attempt; for they began it when they had no promise, and very little
prospect of being reimbursed. Had it not succeeded, they would not have
been reimbursed, and must therefore have been involved in the greatest
distress. This they foresaw, and yet cheerfully ran the risk for the
public service. It would have cost the crown double the sum paid the
New-England governments, to have sent an armament from Great-Britain for
the reduction of the same place. The colonies met with a heavy loss, not
easily repaired, in the destruction of the flower of their youth, by
camp fevers, other sicknesses, the hardships and distresses of the
siege. Of how much importance Louisburg was in the opinion of the
French, appeared from their demanding two hostages of the first nobility
in Britain as pledges for its restitution.

Should you hereafter read, “The leading men in the government of the
_Massachusetts_, having been guilty of certain mal-practices, for which
they were in danger of being called to an account, projected the
expedition against _Cape Breton_, in order to divert the storm: and
proving successful, the English nation was so overjoyed that they forgot
every other idea in the general transport, so that the planners and
conductors of the expedition, instead of being called to an account for
former misdemeanors, found themselves caressed and applauded”—believe it
not—especially should the writer give “this public notice, I build
nothing upon the present narration; and I only offer it (because not
corroborated by sufficient evidence) as a probable case, and as my own
opinion.”[62] Should he be a D. D. you may think it would have been well
for him to have recollected the complaint of _Jeremiah_, “I heard the
defaming of many; report, _say they_, and we will report;” and so to
have been silent on the head of _Cape Breton_. Should you judge it
uncharitable to retort upon him; yet you may deem it just to remind him
of his own, do you find him using such like expressions as these, “As I
never believed Dr. _Franklin_ in any public matter, excepting in his
electrical experiments, I was resolved to see with my own eyes, whether
what he advanced was true or not, having a strong suspicion that he
fibbed designedly, like Sir _Henry Wotton_’s ambassador, _patriæ
causa_.”[63]

But to return, the year after the reduction of Louisburg [1746.]
Great-Britain entertained the design of reducing _Canada_; and
requisitions were made to the colonies, from New-Hampshire to Virginia,
inclusive. It was expected that they should raise at least 5,000 men;
they voted 8,200; and the _Massachusetts_, to the amount of 3,500, were
ready to embark by the middle of July, about six weeks from the first
notice.[64] Though the expedition was not prosecuted, this did not
lessen the merit of the colonies in preparing to second the views of the
British government.

[1748.] No sooner were the distresses of war closed, by the renewal of
peace, than the colonists, particularly of _New-England_, were alarmed
with the report of an _American Episcopacy_; which it was the most
earnest desire of Dr. _Thomas Secker_, late archbishop of _Canterbury_,
to establish. The doctor, when bishop of _Oxford_, in his sermon before
the society for propagating she gospel, &c. “began those invectives
against the colonists and their religious character, which have been
unwarily continued, and were founded entirely upon misinformations and
misrepresentations of interested persons, the missionaries especially,
who found their account in abusing better christians than
themselves.”[65] This conduct had not the least tendency to reconcile
them to the project, but the direct contrary: and argued a secret
bitterness of spirit, which promised no great moderation, if the scheme
of episcopising succeeded. The talk of introducing bishops into America,
was very warm among the episcopalians in Connecticut; and it is not an
uncharitable conjecture, that it originated from, or was promoted by the
zeal of bishop Secker. During the height of the conversation, a worthy
divine, now at Rhode-Island, had the hopes of a bishopric held out to
him, to induce him to turn episcopalian, though without effect. The
colonists had reason to dread the introduction of episcopacy, for it
could not be thought it should come unaccompanied with such a degree of
civil power as would at length trample upon the rights of other
denominations. An extensive and united hierarchy, however named, when
armed with civil authority and in alliance with state power, is a
dangeaous engine, if under the direction of a crafty politician. The
failure of the episcopising project at this period, might be owing in a
great measure, to the part the _dissenting deputation_ acted upon the
occasion: for which the representatives of the Massachusetts Bay
returned them their thanks, in a message signed by the speaker.[66] But
though the colonies were relieved from this cause of uneasiness, they
were laid under another, by the parliament’s passing an act, enacting,
“That from and after the twenty-fourth of June, 1750, no _mill_ or
_other engine_ for _slitting_ or _rolling_ of _iron_, or any _platting
forge_, to work with a _tilt hammer_, or any _furnace_ for _making
steel_, shall be erected; or, after such erection, continued _in any of
his majesty’s colonies in America_.”

The four New-England colonies, however, had no just reason to complain,
when the power of parliament passed an act [1751.] “to regulate and
restrain paper bills of credit in said governments, and to prevent the
same being legal tenders in payment of money;” as they had made the act
absolutely necessary, that so British creditors might be secured from
being defrauded by a legal tender of a depreciated and depreciating
paper currency.

The year after the peace, a grant of 600,000 acres of the finest
American land in the neighbourhood of the _Ohio_, was made out to
certain noblemen, merchants, and others, of _Westminster_, _London_, and
_Virginia_, who associated under the title of the _Ohio Company_. The
governor of Canada obtained early intelligence of it; and was alarmed
with the apprehension that a scheme was in agitation, which would
forever deprive the French of the advantage arising from the trade with
the _Twightwees_, and cut off the communication so beneficial to the
colonies of _Louisiana_ and _Canada_. He wrote therefore to the
governors of _New-York_ and _Pennsylvania_, acquainting them that the
English traders had encroached on the French territories, by trading
with their Indians; and that if they did not desist, he should be
obliged to seize them wherever they were found. This was the first time
that either French or British had pretended to any exclusive trade with
any Indians, or even the declared friends and allies of either; for it
was expressly stipulated at the treaty of _Utrecht_, that, on both
sides, the two nations should enjoy full liberty of going and coming
among the Indians of either side, on account of trade; and that the
natives of the Indian countries should, with the same liberty, resort as
they pleased, to the British or French colonies, for the purpose of
trade, without any molestation from either the British or French
subjects.

The British Indian trade had been carried on mostly with _Pennsylvania_
by the river _Susquehanna_; a great part of it was now to be diverted
into another channel by the _Ohio company_; who by opening a waggon road
through the country, and building a truck-house at _Will’s-creek_, were
providing for its being carried into _Virginia_ by the _Patomack_. The
Pennsylvania traders, jealous of the Ohio company, were upon the watch
to injure them, which soon offered, when Mr. _Gist_ was employed by the
company, in surveying the lands upon the _Ohio_, in order to their
procuring 600,000 acres of the best and most convenient for the Indian
trade. He carefully concealed his design from the Indians, who were no
less suspicious and inquisitive; and being jealous that he meant to
settle their lands, made use of threats. They were not pacified till
there was delivered to them a pretended message from the king of
Great-Britain. The Pennsylvania traders, actuated by revenge, informed
both French and Indians, what was the service on which he was employed;
and while he was on his progress in the spring of 1771, some French
parties, with their Indians, put the governor of Canada’s menace into
execution, and [1753.] seized the British traders who were trading among
the _Twightwees_, and carried them to a fort they were building on the
south side of lake _Erie_. The British, alarmed at the capture of their
brethren, retired to the Indian towns for shelter, and the _Twightwees_,
resenting the violence done their allies, assembled to the number of
five or six hundred, and scoured the woods till they found three French
traders, whom they sent to Pennsylvania. The French, however, determined
to persist; and proceeded to build a second fort, about fifteen miles
south of the former, upon one of the branches of the Ohio. They also
erected a fort at the conflux of the _Ohio_ and _Wabache_; and thus
completed their designed communication between the mouth of the
_Missisippi_ and the river _St. Lawrence_. Nothing was done by the
Pennsylvania government, so that the French continued to strengthen
themselves without interruption; and encouraged by the little notice
taken of their violence, began to seize and plunder every British trader
they found on any part of the Ohio.

Repeated complaints were made to lieutenant governor _Dinwiddie_, of
Virginia; and as the Ohio company, whose existence depended upon
stopping the French encroachments and pretensions on that river, had
great influence there, that colony was prevailed upon to act with some
vigor.

The lieutenant governor having informed the house of burgesses, on the
first of November, that the French had erected a fort on the Ohio, it
was resolved to send some body to Mr. _St. Pierre_, the French
commandant, to demand the reason of his hostile proceedings, and to
require him at the same time to withdraw his forces. Major _Washington_,
who was of age only on the eleventh of the preceding February, offered
his service on this important occasion. The distance he had to go was
more than four hundred miles; two hundred of which lay through a
trackless desert, inhabited by Indians; and the season was uncommonly
severe. Notwithstanding these discouraging circumstances, the major,
attended by one companion only, set out upon this hazardous enterprise.
He travelled from Winchester on foot, carrying his provisions on his
back. Upon his arrival at the place of destination and delivering his
message, the French commandant refused to comply, denied the charge of
hostilities, and said that the country belonged to the king of France;
that no Englishman had a right to trade upon any of its rivers; and
that, therefore, he would seize, according to orders, and send prisoners
to Canada, every Englishman that should attempt to trade upon the Ohio
or any of its branches. Before major _Washington_ had got back, or the
Virginians had heard of the French commandant’s answer, they sent out
proper people, provided with materials for erecting a fort at the
conflux of the Ohio and Monongahela, whom he met on his return. After
excessive hardships, and many providential escapes, during his long and
tedious undertaking, he arrived safe at Williamsburgh, and gave an
account of his negociation to the house of burgesses the 14th of
February following.

Before the Virginians had finished their fort, the French came upon
them, drove them out of the country, and erected a regular fort on the
very spot where they had been at work. The consent of the Indian
warriors had not been gained by the Virginians, or they would have
supported the British against the French attack.

These proceedings of the French galled the British ministry. The Ohio
Company whose schemes were now demolished, was their fondling. They
could not submit to have their friends so treated; and therefore no
sooner had they the news, than it was resolved to instruct the colonies
to oppose the French encroachments by force of arms. The instructions
were received at Virginia early in the spring of 1754. The Virginians
applied to the other colonies for additional troops. Captain James
Mackay, with his independent company, upon the first order marched with
the utmost expedition from South Carolina to their assistance. Without
waiting for two independent companies from New-York, who were likewise
ordered to assist them, the Virginians resolved by themselves with
Mackay’s company, to oppose the French encroachments; and sent off that
and three hundred men raised by the colony, under the command of late
major, but now colonel Washington. An engagement ensued between a party
of French from fort _Du Quesne_, whom colonel Washington attacked and
defeated, on the twenty-eight of May—which put Mr. _de Villier_ upon
marching down against him with 900 men besides Indians, and attacking
him on the third of July. Washington made so brave a defence behind a
small incomplete intrenchment, called fort _Necessity_, that Villier
seeing what desperate men he had to deal with, and desirous of saving
his own, offered him an honorable capitulation; but the French officer
was careful, in forming the articles, to throw the blame of the war upon
the British, and to make it thought that they were the agressors.

The lords commissioners for trade and plantations, had also recommended
to the several colonies, to appoint commsssioners to meet each other.
Their Lordships designed, that there should be a general league of
friendship, between all the colonies, and the Indians, in his majesty’s
name. The _Massachusetts_ general court not only acceded to the
proposal, but both houses desired his excellency, governor _Shirley_
(April 10.) “to pray his majesty, that affairs which relate to the six
nations and their allies may be put under some general direction as his
majesty shall think proper; that the several governors may _be obliged_
to bear their proportions of defending his majesty’s territories against
the encroachments of the French, and the ravages and incursions of the
Indians.”

[July.] A general meeting of the governors and chief men from several of
the colonies, was held at _Albany_. At this congress, the commissioners
were unanimously of opioion, that an _union of all the colonies_ was
absolutely necessary for their common defence. The plan was, in short,
“That a grand council should be formed of members, to be chosen by the
assemblies, and sent from all the colonies; which council, together with
a governor-general to be appointed by the crown, should be empowered to
make general laws, to raise money in all the colonies for the defence of
the whole.” It was drawn up by Mr. _Hutchinson_, was accepted, and sent
home. Had it been approved and established, _British America_ thought
itself sufficiently able to cope with the _French_ without further
assistance; several of the colonies, in former years, having alone
withstood the enemy, unassisted not only by the mother country, but by
any of the neighbouring provinces. A _stamp act_ was talked of among the
commissioners, of which number was Mr. (now Dr.) _Franklin_, one of the
three from Pennsylvania; and it was thought a proper mode of taxing;
under the apprehension, that in its operation it would affect the
several governments fairly and equally. The idea of a stamp act had been
held out, so early as 1739, in two publications drawn up by a club of
American merchants at the head of whom were Sir _William Keith_,
governor of Pennsylvania, Mr. _Joshua Gee_, and many others. They
proposed, for the protection of the British traders among the Indians,
the raising a body of regulars, to be stationed all along the western
frontier of the British settlements; and that the expence should be paid
from the monies arising from a duty on stamp paper and parchment in all
the colonies to be laid on them by act of parliament. The congress plan
was not agreeable to the views of ministry; another was proposed—“That
the governors of all the colonies, attended by one or two members of
their respective councils, should assemble, concert measures for the
defence of the whole, erect forts where they judged proper, and raise
what troops they thought necessary, with power to draw upon the British
treasury for the sum that should be wanted; and the treasury to be
re-imbursed by a tax laid on the colonies by an act of parliament.” When
you are reminded, that the governors and councils were chiefly of the
king’s appointing, you will be apt to view the scheme as a most subtle
and dangerous contrivance, to provide for favorites, to sap the
liberties of the Americans, and eventually to chain them down to the
most abject slavery. Had the congress plan met with the countenance of
minstry, it might have been adopted after a while; though of that, it
appeared, there could be no certainty; for when the governor laid it
before the _Massachusetts_ assembly in October, the assembly determined,
not to give it the least countenance. The ministerial plan was
transmitted to governor _Shirley_, who was known to be for the British
parliament’s laying the tax. It was communicated by him to Mr. Franklin,
then at his native place, Boston, who soon returned it with a few short
remarks, and the next day sent the governor the following letter, _viz._


                               “SIR,      _Wednesday morning, Dec. 1754_

I mentioned it yesterday to your excellency, as my opinion, that
excluding the people of the colonies from all share in the choice of the
grand council, would probably give extreme dissatisfaction, as well as
the taxing them by an act of parliament, where they have no
representative. In matters of general concern to the people and
especially where burthens are to be laid upon them, it is of use to
consider, as well what they will be apt to think and say, as what they
ought to think; I shall therefore, as your excellency requires it of me,
briefly mention what of either kind occurs to me on this occasion.

First, they will say, and perhaps with justice, that the body of the
people in the colonies are as loyal, and as firmly attached to the
present constitution and reigning family, as any subjects in the king’s
dominions:

That there is no reason to doubt the readiness and willingness of the
representatives they may choose, to grant from time to time such
supplies for the defence of the country, as shall be judged necessary,
so far as their abilities will allow:

That the people in the colonies, who are to feel the immediate mischiefs
of invasion and conquest by an enemy, in the loss of their estates,
lives and liberties, are likely to be better judges of the quantity of
forces necessary to be raised and maintained, forts to be built and
supported, and of their own abilities to bear the expence, than the
parliament of England at so great a distance:

The governors often come to the colonies merely to make fortunes with
which they intend to return to Britain; are not always men of the best
abilities or integrity; have many of them no estates here, nor any
natural connections with us, that should make them heartily concerned
for our welfare; and might possibly be fond of raising and keeping up
more forces than necessary, from the profits accruing to themselves, and
to make provision for their friends and dependants:

That the counsellors in most of the colonies being appointed by the
crown, on the recommendation of governors, are often of small estates,
frequently dependent on the governors for offices, and therefore too
much under influence;

That there is, therefore, great reason to be jealous of a power in such
governors and councils, to raise such sums as they shall judge
necessary, by draft on the lords of the treasury, to be afterward laid
on the colonies by act of parliament, and paid by the people here; since
they might abuse it, by projecting useless expeditions, harrassing the
people, and taking them from their labour to execute such projects,
merely to create offices and employments, and gratify their dependants,
and divide profits:

That the parliament of England is at a great distance, subject to be
misinformed and misled by such governors and councils, whose united
interests might probably secure them against the effect of any complaint
from hence:

That it is supposed to be an undoubted right of _Englishmen_ not to be
taxed but by their own consent given through their representatives:

That the colonies have no representatives in parliament:

That to propose taxing them by parliament, and refuse them the liberty
of choosing a representative council, to meet in the colonies, and
consider and judge of the necessity of any general tax, and the quantum,
shows a suspicion of their loyalty to the crown, of their regard for
their country, or of their common sense and understanding, which they
have not deserved:

That compelling the colonies to pay money without their consent, would
be rather like raising contributions in an enemy’s, country, than taxing
_Englishmen_ for their own public benefit:

That it would be treating them as a conquered people, and not as true
British subjects:

That a tax laid by the representatives of the colonies might easily be
lessened, as the occasion should lessen; but being once laid by
parliament, under the influence of the representations made by
governors, would probably be kept up, and continued for the benefit of
governors, to the grievous burden and discouragement of the colonies,
and prevention of their growth and increase:

That a power in governors to march the inhabitants from one end of the
British and French colonies to the other, being a country of at least
1500 square miles, without the approbation or consent of their
representatives first obtained, might occasion expeditions grievous and
ruinous to the people, and would put them upon a footing with the
subjects of France in Canada, that now groan under such oppression from
their governor, who for two years passed, has harrassed them with long
and destructive marches to the Ohio:

That, if the colonies in a body may be well governed by governors and
councils appointed by the crown without representatives, particular
colonies may as well, or better, be so governed: a tax may be laid on
them all by act of parliament for support of government, and their
assemblies be dismissed as an useless part of the constitution:

That the powers proposed by the _Albany_ plan of union, to be vested in
a grand representative council of the people, even with regard to
military matters, are not so great as those of the colonies of
_Rhode-Island_ and _Connecticut_ are entrusted with by their charter,
and have never abused: for by this plan, the president general is
appointed by the crown, and controuls all by his negative; but in these
governments the people choose the governor, and yet allow him no
negative:

That the British colonies bordering on the French, are properly
frontiers of the British empire; and the frontiers of an empire are
properly defended at the joint expence of the body of the people in such
empire. It would now be thought hard, by act of parliament, to oblige
the cinque ports, or sea coasts of Britain to maintain the whole navy,
because they are more immediately defended by it; not allowing them at
the same time, a vote in choosing the members of parliament; and if the
frontiers in America must bear the expence of their own defence, it
seems hard to allow them no share in voting the money, judging of the
necessity and sum, or advising the measures:

That besides the taxes necessary for the defence of the frontiers, the
colonies pay yearly great sums to the mother country unnoticed; for
taxes paid in Britain, by the landholder or artificer, must enter into
and increase the price of the produce of land, and of manufactures made
of it; and great part of this is paid by consumers in the colonies, who
thereby pay a considerable part of the British taxes.

We are restrained in our trade with foreign nations; and where we could
be supplied with any manufacture cheaper from them, but must buy the
same dearer from Britain, the difference of price is a clear tax to
Britain. We are obliged to carry great part of our produce directly to
Britain, and wherein the duties there laid upon it lessen its price to
the planter, or it sells for less than it would in foreign markets, the
defference is a tax paid to Britain.

Some manufactures we could make, but are fobidden, and must take of
_British_ merchants; the whole price of these is a tax paid to Britain.

By our greatly increasing the demand and consumption of British
manufactures, their price is considerably raised of late years; their
advance is clear profit to Britain, and enables its people better to pay
great taxes; and much of it being paid by us, is a clear tax to Britain.

In short, as we are not suffered to regulate our trade, and restrain the
importation and consumption of British superfluities, (as Britain can
the consumption of foreign superfluities) our whole wealth centres
finally among the merchants and inhabitants of Britain; and if we make
them richer, and enable them better to pay their taxes, it is nearly the
same as being taxed ourselves, and equally beneficial to the crown.
These kind of secondary taxes, however we do not complain of, though we
have no share in the laying or disposing of them: but to pay immediate
heavy taxes, in the laying, appropriation, and disposition of which we
have no part, and which, perhaps, we may know to be as unnecessary as
grievous, must seem hard measure to _Englishmen_; who cannot conceive,
that by hazarding their lives and fortunes, in subduing and settling new
countries, extending the dominion, and increasing the commerce of their
mother nation, they have forfeited the native rights of _Britons_, which
they think ought rather to be given them as due to such merit, if they
had been before in a state of slavery. These and such kind of things as
these, I apprehend, will be thought and said by the people, if the
proposed alteration of the Albany plan should take place. Then the
administration of the board of governors and councils so appointed, not
having any representative body of the people to approve and unite in its
measures, and conciliate the minds of the people to them, will probably
become suspected and odious: dangerous animosities and feuds will arise
between the governors and governed, and every thing go into confusion.

Perhaps I am too apprehensive in this matter; but having freely given my
opinion and reasons, your excellency can judge better than I whether
there be any weight in them; and the shortness of the time allowed me,
will, I hope, in some degree, excuse the imperfections of this scrawl.

With the geatest respect and fidelity, I have the honor to be, your
excellency’s most obedient and most humble servant,

                                                     BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.”


These letters might be transmitted to, and might dispose the ministry to
decline urging their plan of uniting and governing the colonies; but Mr.
Shirley wrote to governor _Wentworth_, of _New-Hampshire_, May 31,
1755—“I may assure your excellency, from every letter I have of late
received from Sir Thomas Robinson, I have reason to think that his
majesty hath a dependance upon a _common fund’s_ being raised in all his
colonies upon this continent, in proportion to their respective
abilities, for defraying all articles of expence entered into for their
common defence; and that such an one must in the end, be either
voluntarily raised, or else assessed in some way or other.” The ministry
discovered a disposition to raise a revenue in them, which induced the
_Massachusetts_ general court [Nov. 6.] thus to instruct their agent;
“It is more especially expected, that you oppose every thing that shall
have the remotest tendency to raise a _revenue_ in the plantations, for
any public uses or services of government;” he wrote to them the
twenty-ninth of May following, “The inclinations I have reason to think
still contitinue for _raising a revenue_ out of the molasses trade.” The
alarming state of public affairs might divert the ministry from pursuing
their inclinations.

It had been concluded to take effectual measures for driving the French
from the _Ohio_; and for the reduction of _Niagara_, _Crown-Point_, and
their forts in _Nova-Scotia_. General _Braddock_ was accordingly sent
from Ireland to Virginia, with two regiments of foot; and when arrived,
and joined by the rest of the forces destined for that service, found
himself at the head of about 2200 men. He had bravery, but wanted other
qualifications to render him fit for the service to which he was
appointed. His severity prevented his having the love of the regulars;
his haughtiness, the love of the Americans; and, what was worse,
disgusted the Indians, and led him to despise the country militia, and
to slight the advice of the Virginia officers. Colonel _Washington_
earnestly begged of him, when the army was marching for fort _Du
Quesne_, to admit of his going before, and scouring the woods with his
rangers, which was contemptuously refused. The general had been
cautioned by the duke of _Cumberland_, to guard against a surprise; and
yet he pushed on heedlessly with the first division, consisting of 1400
men [July 9, 1755.] till he fell into an ambuscade of 400, chiefly
Indians, by whom he was defeated and mortally wounded, on the ninth of
July. The regulars were put into the greatest panic, and fled in the
utmost confusion; the militia had been used to Indian fighting, and were
not so terrified. The general had disdainfully turned them into the
rear: they continued in a body, unbroken, and served under colonel
_Washington_ as a most useful rear-guard; covered the retreat of the
regulars, and prevented their being entirely cut off.

Previous to this, and agreeable to the views of the British ministry,
the _Massachusetts_ assembly, who had never been remiss upon the
prospect of a French war, raised a body of troops, which were sent to
_Nova-Scotia_, to assist lieutenant governor _Lawrence_ in driving the
French from their several encroachments within that province. The
secrecy and dispatch used in this service, was rewarded with success.

The expedition against Niagara was entrusted with governor Shirley; but
failed through various causes.

Sir _William_ (then colonel) _Johnson_, appointed to go against
Crown-Point. The delays, slowness, and deficiency of preparations,
prevented the several colonies joining their troops till about August.
Meanwhile the active enemy had transported forces from _France_ to
_Canada_, marched them down to meet the provincials, and attacked them;
but, meeting with a repulse, lost six hundred men, besids having their
general, baron _Dieskau_, wounded and made prisoner.

The _Massachusetts_ the next year, raised a great armament to go to
_Crown-Point_; but lord _Loudon_, on his arrival, did not think it
proper that the forces should proceed. Afterward a temporary
misunderstanding took place between his lordship and the general court;
from his apprehending that they thought a provincial law necessary to
enforce a British act of parliament, and were willing to dispute upon
that subject. He determined to have no dispute, but that the troops
under his command should be quartered agreeable to what he thought the
public good required; and wrote to governor _Pownall_ [Nov. 15, 1757.]
“I have ordered the messenger to wait but 48 hours in _Boston_; and if,
on his return, I find things not settled, I will instantly order into
_Boston_ the three battalions from New-York, Long-Island, and
Connecticut; and if more are wanted, I have two in the Jerseys at hand,
beside three in Pennsylvania.” Notwithstanding this declaration, on
December the sixth, the legislature passed an act which led him to
conceive that he was under an absolute necessity of settling the point
at once, and therefore he ordered the troops to march. The general court
finding how matters were going, did not venture upon extremities, but
became pliable; so that his lordship wrote, December 26, “As I can now
depend upon the assembly’s making the point of quarters easy in all time
coming, I have countermanded the march of the troops.” The general court
were certainly terrified; and to remove all unfavorable impressions,
said, in the close of the address to the governor [Jan. 6, 1758.] “The
authority of all acts of parliament which concern the colonies, and
extend to them, is ever acknowledged in all the courts of law, and made
the rule of all judicial proceedings in the province. There is not a
member of the general court, and we know no inhabitant within the bounds
of the government, that ever questioned this authority. To prevent any
ill consequences that may arise from an opinion of our holding such
principles, we now utterly disavow them, as we should readily have done
at any time past, if there had been occasion for it; and we pray that
his lordship may be acquainted therewith, that we may appear in a true
light, and that no impressions may remain to our disadvantage.” However
they might not question, whether the authority of acts of parliament,
concerning and extending to the colonies, was made the rule of all
_judicial_ proceedings in the province; yet you are not to infer from
their disavowal of the contrary principle, that they admitted the right
of parliament, either to impose internal taxes, or to controul their
colonial government.

When, happily for the British nation, the great Mr. _Pitt_ was placed at
the head of the ministry, the face of affairs was soon changed; the war
was prosecuted with unexampled success, and the enemy at length driven
out of _America_. But the frequent delays given to the raising of the
necessary supplies, especially in proprietary governments, through the
refusal of their governors or councils, to admit that the estates of the
proprietors should be taxed, led Mr. _Pitt_ to tell Mr. _Franklin_, that
when the war closed, was he in the ministry, he should take measures to
prevent its being in the power of the colonies to hinder government’s
receiving the supplies that were wanted; and he added, that, was he not
in the ministry, he would advise his successors to do it. What these
measures were he did not mention. But toward the close of 1759, or the
beginning of 1760, Mr. _Pitt_ wrote to _Francis Fauquier_, esq.
lieutenant governor of _Virginia_, and mentioned in his letter, that
though they had made grants to the colonies, yet, when the war was over,
they should tax them, in order to _raise a revenue_ from them. Mr.
_Fauquier_, in his answer, expressed his apprehension that the measure
would occasion great disturbance. The answer might divert Mr. Pitt from
his intention. Many months before, the present lord _Camden_ (then Mr.
_Pratt_) said to Mr. _Franklin_, in a course of free conversation, “For
all what you _Americans_ say of your loyalty, I know you will one day
throw off your dependance upon this country; and notwithstanding your
boasted affection to it, will set up for independence.” The other
answered, “No such idea is entertained in the mind of the Americans; and
no such idea will ever enter their heads, unless you grossly abuse
them.” “Very true (replied Mr. _Pratt_) that is one of the main causes I
see will happen, and will produce the event.”

The colonies in general, and the Massachusetts in particular, complied
with the requisitions of the minister, and shewed themselves ready to
support his plans for the reduction of the French power. To assist and
encourage their extraordinary exertions, the parliament granted them
during the war, at different periods, no less than £.1,031,666 13s. 4d.
But though the large importation of specie annually, did not answer one
half or their expences, it was still of such benefit to each government,
that they cheerfully seconded the views of ministry. Upon application
from admiral _Saunders_, the squadron employed against _Louisburg_ and
_Quebec_, was supplied by 500 seamen from the _Massachusetts_; beside,
many were at several times impressed out of vessels on the fishing
banks. The colonies lost by the war 25,000 of their robust young men,
exclusive of sailors. The _Massachusetts_ continually raised the full
number of troops assigned them; nor was it to be ascribed to the
peculiar address of Mr. _Pownall_, who guided them with a silken cord,
and by praising them plentifully, and flattering their vanity, did
business with them in an easy manner; for it was the same after he was
succeded by governor _Bernard_. [August 13, 1760.] Beside their annual
quota of men, in some years of the war they garrisoned Louisburg and
Nova-Scotia, which gave the regular forces opportunity for retaining
Canada. The whole cost they were at upon these accounts, and for
scouting companies sent into the Indian country, and for two armed
vessels built and maintained for the protection of the trade, amounted
to £.754,598 10s. 10½d. sterling. In this sum, the expence of many forts
and garrisons on the frontiers is not included. Add, that no estimate
can be made of the cost to individuals, by the demand of personal
service. They that could not serve in person, who were much the greater
number, when it came to their turn, were obliged to hire substitutes at
a great premium. They also who could not be impressed, to lighten the
burdens of others, advanced largely for encouraging the levies.
Moreover, the taxes were exceeding heavy. A Boston gentleman, of
reputation and fortune, sent one of his rate bills to a correspondent in
London, for his judgment on it; and had for answer, “That he did not
believe there was a man in all _England_ who paid so much in proportion
toward the support of government.” Such was the assessment of the town
in one of the years, that if a man’s income was £.60 per annum, he had
to pay two-thirds or £.40 and in that proportion whether the sum was
more or less; and if his house or land was valued at £.200 per annum, he
was obliged to pay £.72 He had also to pay for his poll, and those of
all the males in his house, more than sixteen years old, at the rate of
14s. 3d. each: and to all must be added, the part he paid of the excise
on tea, coffee, rum, and wine.[67] Other towns and colonies might not
have been assessed so exorbitantly, but some must certainly have been
burdened with taxes.

The above statement of expences is thought to be more correct than what
governor Bernard transmitted, in his letter of August 1, 1764, to the
lords of trade, in which he wrote, “From 1754 to 1762, the sums issued
amount to £.926,000 sterling; out of which deduct, received by
parliamentary grant, £.328,000 and the ordinary expences of government
estimated at £.138,000 there remains £.490,000 that is near £500,000
sterling expended by this province in the extraordinary charges of the
war within eight years. An immense sum for such a small state! the
burden of which has been grievously felt by all orders of men.—Whereas
if we compare this with the southern governments, Pennsylvania for
instance, which has expended little more than they have received from
parliament, and Maryland which has expended scarce any thing at all, we
cannot sufficiently admire the inequality of the burden between one
province and another, and when Pennsylvania has not been prevented by
domestic dissensions, and have as it were done their best, they have
sent to the field only 2,700 men, when this province has sent
5,000—5,500, and one year 7,000. And notwithstanding the vast sums this
province has raised, is has, by severe taxations, kept its debt under.

The first part of governor _Bernard’s_ administration was agreeable to
the _Massachusetts_ general court. The two houses, in answer to his
speach, [May, 1761.] said, “It gives us pleasure to see, that the civil
rights of the people are not in danger; nor are we in the least degree
suspicious, that they ever will be, under your excellency’s
administration. The experience we have had of your excellency’s
disposition and abilities, encourage us to hope for a great share of
public happiness under your administration.” The next year the governor
told them, at the close of the session, [April 23, 1762.] “The unanimity
and dispatch with which you have complied with the requisitions of his
majesty, require my particular acknowledgment.” In his sheech he said,
“Every thing that has been required of this province, has been most
readily complied with.”

[May 31, 1763.] Both houses in their address to him expressed themselves
thus: “We congratulate your excellency upon that unanimity which your
excellency recommends, and which was never greater in the province than
at that time.”—The governor at the close of the session, declared his
great satisfaction, in having observed, that the unanimity they assured
him of, had fully evinced itself throughout all their proceedings. But
the lieutenant governor, Mr. _Hutchinson_, gained after a while too much
ascendency over him, and encouraged him in the pursuit of wrong
measures, highly offensive to the colony. He had indeed done him an
irreparable injury, not long after his coming to the chair. Colonel
_James Otis_ (who was repeatedly returned for _Barnstable_, in
_Plymouth_ county, notwithstanding the strenuous efforts which had been
made to prevent it, on account of his siding with government) being a
lawyer, had been promised by Mr. Shirley, when in the chair, to be made
a judge of the superior court, upon an opportunity’s offering. The first
vacancy which happened, was filled up by the appointment of the
secretary’s son-in-law; for which Mr. Shirley apologized by pleading a
promise made to the secretary, and his having forgotten the former one.
Mr. Otis was satisfied with a fresh assurance of the next vacancy, which
was considered by him in the light of a governmental promise; and it was
expected that whenever a new vacancy happened, Mr. Otis would be
appointed. There was no new vacancy till a short time after governor
Bernard entered upon his administration, when chief justice _Sewall_
died.—Upon this death, Mr. _James Otis_, the son, of whom there will be
a call to make frequent mention, expressed himself as follows: “If
governor Bernard does not appoint my father judge of the superior court,
I will kindle such a fire in the province as shall singe the governor,
though I myself perish in the flames.” Mr. Hutchinson, however hurried
to Mr. Bernard, procured a promise, which being once given, the governor
would not retract, and got himself appointed chief justice, by which he
gratified both his ambition and covetousness, his two ruling passions.
The friends of government regretted the appointment, foreboding the
evils it would produce. The governor lost the influence and support of
colonel Otis. The son quitted the law place he held; would never be
persuaded to resume it, or to accept of another; joined himself to the
party which was jealous that the views of administration were
unfavorable to the rights of the colony, and stood ready to oppose all
encroachments; and soon became its chief leader. He signalised himself
by pleading in a most masterly manner, against granting _writs of
assistance_ to custom-house officers. These writs were to give them,
their deputies, &c. a general power to enter any houses, &c. that they
would _say they suspected_. The custom-house officers had received
letters from home, directing them to a more strenuous exertion in
collecting the duties, and to procure writs of assistance. The idea of
these writs excited a general alarm. A strong jealousy of what might be
eventually the effect of them upon the liberties of the people,
commenced. They might prove introductory to the most horrid abuses;
which the meanest deputy of a deputy’s deputy might practise with
impunity, upon a merchant or gentleman of the first character; and there
would be the greater danger of such abuses, by reason of the immense
distance of the scene of action from the seat of government. The voice
of the complainant would not be heard three thousand miles off, after
the servants of government had deafened the ears of administration by
misrepresentations. From this period may be dated the fixed, uniform,
and growing opposition which was made to the ministerial plans of
encroaching upon the original rights and long established customs of the
colony. In 1761, the officers of the customs applied to the superior
courts for such writs. The great opposition that was made to it, and the
arguments of Mr. _Otis_, disposed the court to a refusal; but Mr.
_Hutchinson_, who had obtained the place of chief justice, prevailed
with his brethren to continue the cause till next term; and in the mean
time wrote to England, and procured a copy of the writ, and sufficient
evidence of the practice of the exchequer there, after which, like writs
were granted. But before this was effected, Mr. _Otis_ was chosen one of
the representatives for Boston, by the influence of the friends to
liberty; whose jealousies there and elsewhere, afterward increased
apace, upon hearing that the British officers insisted frequently upon
the necessity of regulating and _reforming_, as they stiled it, the
colonial governments; and that certain travellers were introduced to
particular persons [1762.] with a—“This is a gentleman employed by the
earl of _Bute_ to travel the country, and learn what may be proper to be
done in the grand plan of _reforming_ the _American governments_.” It
was understood that their business was to make thorough observation upon
the state of the country, that so the ministry might be enabled to judge
what regulations and alterations could safely be made in the police and
government of the colonies, in order to their being brought more
effectually under the government of parliament. They were also, as much
as possible, to conciliate capital and influential characters, to
ministerial measures speedily to be adopted. The British ministry have
been greatly mistaken, in supposing it is the same in _America_ as in
their own country. Do they gain over a gentleman of note and eminence in
the colonies, they make no considerable acquisition. He takes few or
none with him; and is rather despised than adhered to by former friends.
He has not, as in Britain, dependants who must act in conformity to his
nod. In _New-England_ especially, individuals are so independent of each
other, that though there may be an inequality in rank and fortune, every
one can act freely according to his own judgment.

But nothing, it may be, excited a greater alarm in the breasts of those
to whom it was communicated, than the following anecdote, viz. The Rev.
Mr. _Whitefield_, ere he left _Portsmouth_ in _New-Hampshire_, on Monday
afternoon, April the second, 1764, sent for Dr. _Langdon_ and Mr. Haven,
the congregational ministers of the town, and upon their coming and
being alone with him, said, “I can’t in conscience leave the town
without acquainting you with a secret. My heart bleeds for _America_. O
poor _New-England_! There is a deep laid plot against both your civil
and religious liberties, and they will be lost. Your golden days are at
an end. You have nothing but trouble before you. My information comes
from the best authority in _Great Britain_. I was allowed to speak of
the affair in general, but enjoined not to mention particulars. Your
liberties will be lost.”[68] Mr. Whitefield could not have heard what
the commons did in the preceding month; his information must have been
of an earlier date, and might have been communicated before he left
Great Britain. Beside the general design of taxing the colonies, the
plan was probably, this in substance—Let the parliament be engaged to
enter heartily and fully into American matters; and then under its
sanction let all the governments be altered, and all the councils be
appointed by the king, and the assemblies be reduced to a small number
like that of New-York. After that, the more effectually to secure the
power of civil government by the junction of church influence, let their
be a revisal of all the acts in the several colonies with a view of
setting aside those in particular, which provide for the support of the
ministers. But if the temper of the people make it necessary, let a new
bill for the purpose of supporting them pass the house, and the council
refuse their concurrence; if that will be improper, then the governor to
negative it. If that cannot be done in good policy, then the bill to go
home and let the king disallow it. Let bishops be introduced, and
provision be made for the support of the episcopal clergy. Let the
congregational and presbyterian clergy, who will receive episcopal
ordination, be supported; and the leading ministers among them be bought
off by large salaries.—Let the liturgy be revised and altered. Let
episcopacy be accommodated as much as possible to the cast of the
people. Let places of power, trust and honor, be conferred only upon
episcopalians, or those that will conform. When episcopacy is once
thoroughly established, increase its resemblance to the English
hierarchy at pleasure.

These were the ideas which a certain gentleman communicated to Dr.
Stiles,[69] when they were riding together in 1765. The Doctor, after
hearing him out, expressed his belief, that before the plan could be
effected, such a spirit would be roused in the people as would prevent
its execution. The good man groaned and replied, “If the commotions now
existing prevail on the parliament to repeal the stamp-act, I am afraid
the plan cannot be accomplished.

In reference to alterations in the civil line, Dr. Langdon informed me,
that governor _Wentworth_ told him, the _Massachusetts_ and
_New-Hampshiere_ were to be one government, under one governor; the
Doctor thought the design of joining _Rhode-Island_ with them was also
mentioned, though of this he could not be certain. The New-England
colonies would have suffered most by the proposed alterations, while
they deserved it the least and were entitled for their ready exertions,
to a return expressive of gratitude. Many of the common soldiers, who
gained such laurels, by their singular bravery on the plains of Abraham,
when Wolfe died in the arms of victory, were natives of the
Massachusetts-Bay. When Martinico was attacked in 1761, and the British
force was greatly weakened by the death and sickness, the timely arrival
of the New-England troops, enabled the former to prosecute the reduction
of the island to an happy issue. A part of the British force being now
about to sail from thence for the Havannah, the New-Englanders, whose
health had been much impaired by service and the climate, were sent off
in three ships, to their native country for recovery. Before they had
completed their voyage they found themselves restored, ordered the ships
about, steered immediately for the Havannah, arrived when the British
were too much reduced to expect success, and by their junction served to
immortalize afresh, the glorious first of August, old stile, in the
surrender of the place on the memorable day; they exhibited at the same
time, the most signal evidence of devotedness to the parent state. Their
fidelity, activity, and courage were such as to gain the approbation and
confidence of the British officers.[70]

As to the religious part of the plan, recollect what has been already
mentioned of archbishop _Secker_; carefully peruse Dr. _Mayhew’s_ noted
answer to one of his publications, and what is related concerning him in
the collection of papers above quoted; and you will scarce doubt, “but
that it was the metropolitan’s intention to reduce all the British
colonies under episcopal authority.” Remember also, that the bishop of
_Landaff_ in his sermon of 1766, assures us, that _the establishment of
episcopacy_ being obtained, “the _American_ church will grow out of its
infant state, be able to stand upon its own legs, and without foreign
help, support and spread itself, and _then this society will be brought
to the happy issue intended_.” Mr. Whitefield said upon it, in his
letter to Mr. _Durell_, “supposing his lordship’s assertions true, then
I fear it will follow, that a society, which since its first institution
hath been looked upon as _a society for propagating the gospel_, hath
been all the while rather _a society for propagating episcopacy in
foreign parts_.”

This letter will close with a few more articles of information. Among
the original instructions to _Benning Wentworth_, esq. governor of
New-Hampshire, signed June 30th, 1761, the 27th says, “you are not to
give your assent to, or pass any law imposing duties on negroes imported
into New-Hampshire:” some of the colonies were for discouraging the
introduction of negroes—for which purpose they wished to lay a duty upon
them. The 69th contains the following direction, “No school-master to be
henceforth permitted to come from England without the licence of the
bishop; and no other person now there, or that shall come from other
parts, shall be admitted to keep school without your licence first
obtained.”

[Feb. 1762.] A law passed in the Massachusetts, entitled, “An act to
incorporate certain persons, by the name of _The society for promoting
Christian knowledge among the Indians in North America_; but was
disallowed at the court of St. James’s the 20th of May, 1763. Mr.
_Jasper Mauduit_, in his letter to Mr. _Bowdoin_ of April 7, 1763,
writes, “So long ago as the 10th of December, I was told at the
plantation-office, that this act was opposed by the archbishop and the
society for propagating the gospel. Mr. _Pownall_ told me that the bill
would not pass; that the lords would not dispute the laudableness of the
design, but there were political reasons for not confirming it; that the
people might apply the money to oppose the missionaries of the church of
England. I answered, I wished that the society for propagating the
gospel had employed their missionaries more among the Indians than they
had hitherto done in North America.” From what passed, the real reasons
for disallowing the bill may be gathered.




                              LETTER III.


                                           _Roxbury, December 24, 1772._

[1763.] Mr. _Israel Mauduit_, the Massachusetts agent, gave early notice
of the ministerial intentions to tax the colonies; but the general court
not being called together till the latter end of the year, instructions
to the agent, though solicited by him, could not be sent in season.

[1764.] The house of representatives came to the following
resolutions—“That the sole right of giving and granting the money of the
people of that province, was vested in them as their legal
representatives; and that the imposition of duties and taxes by the
parliament of Great-Britain, upon a people who are not represented in
the house of commons, is absolutely irreconcileable with their rights.”
“That no man can justly take the property of another without his
consent; upon which original principle, the right of representation in
the same body which exercises the power of making laws for levying
taxes, one of the main pillars of the _British constitution_, is
evidently founded.”

These resolutions were occasioned by intelligence of what had been done
in the British house of commons. It had been there debated in March,
whether they had a _right_ to tax the _Americans_, they not being
represented, and determined unanimously in the affirmative. Not a single
person present ventured to controvert the _right_. Soon after, the sugar
or molasses act was passed; [April 5.] and “it is certainly true, that
till then, no act avowedly for the purpose of revenue, and with the
ordinary title and recital taken together, is found in the statute book.
All before stood on _commercial_ regulations and restraints.”[71] It is
stiled “an act for granting certain duties in the British colonies and
plantations in America, for continuing, amending, and making perpetual,
an act passed in the sixth year of George the second (entitled an act
for the better securing and encouraging the trade of his majesty’s
colonies in America) for applying the produce of such duties, &c.” From
its perpetuating the sugar act of George II. it is called the sugar or
molasses act. It runs thus, “Whereas it is expedient that new provisions
and regulations should be established in improving the revenue of this
kingdom, and for extending and securing the navigation and commerce
between Great-Britain and your majesty’s dominions in America—And
whereas it is just and necessary, that a _revenue_ be raised in
_America_ for defraying the expences of defending, protecting, and
securing the same—We, the commons, &c. toward raising the same, give and
grant unto your majesty, after the 29th of September, 1764, upon clayed
sugar, indigo and coffee of foreign produce—upon all wines, except
French—upon all wrought silks, Bengals and stuffs mixed with silk of
Persia, China, or East-India manufacture—and all calicoes painted,
printed or stained there (certain specified duties)—upon every gallon of
molasses and syrups, being the produce of a colony not under the
dominion of his majesty, the sum of three-pence—the monies arising,
after charges of raising, collecting, &c. are to be paid into the
receipt of his majesty’s exchequer—shall be entered separate, and be
reserved to be disposed of by parliament, toward defraying the necessary
expences of defending, &c. the British colonies.” The wording of the act
might induce the colonies to view it as the beginning of sorrows; and
they might fear that the parliament would go on in charging them with
such taxes as it pleased, for such military forces as it should think
proper.—This ill prospect seemed to the Americans boundless in extent,
and endless in duration.

They objected not to the _parliament’s right of laying duties to
regulate commerce_; but the _right of taxing them_ was not admitted. The
ministerial plan sent to Mr. Shirley in 1754, occasioned much
conversation on the subject, and the common opinion was, that the
parliament could not tax them till duly represented in that body,
because it was not just, nor agreeable to the nature of the English
constitution. But though few or none were willing to admit the _right_,
the generality were cautious, how they denied the _power_, or the
obligation to submit on the part of the Americans, when the power was
exercised. Even Mr. _Otis_ tells us, “we must and ought to yield
obedience to an act of parliament, though erroneous, till repealed.”[72]
“The power of parliament, is uncontrolable, but by themselves, and we
must obey. There would be an end of all government, if one or a number
of subordinate provinces should take upon themselves so far as to judge
of the justice of an act of parliament, as to refuse obedience to it. If
their was nothing else to restrain such a step, prudence ought to do it;
for forcibly resisting the parliament and the king’s law is high
treason. Therefore let the parliament lay what burthens they please upon
us we must, it is our duty to submit, and patiently to bear them, till
they will be pleased to relieve us.”[73] He went so far as to publish
“It is certain that the parliament of Great-Britain has a just and
equitable right, power and authority, to impose taxes on the colonies,
internal and external, on lands as well as on trade.”[74] “The supreme
legislative represents the whole society or community, as well the
dominions as the realm. This is implied in the idea of a supreme power;
and if the parliament had not such an authority, the colonies would be
independent.”[75] But the two last quotations were extorted from him
through fear of being called to an account for the part he had acted, or
for what he had before advanced in print, conversation or debate. His
first pamphlet, _The Rights of the_ BRITISH _Colonies_, which had been
twice read over in the house of assembly within the space of five days,
though guarded by some expressions, had a strong tendency to excite a
powerful opposition to ministerial plans; especially where he says, “I
cannot but observe here, that if the parliament have an equitable right
to tax our trade, it is indisputable, that they have as good a one to
tax the lands and every thing else. There is no foundation for the
distinction some make in England, between an internal and external tax
on the colonies.”[76] These expressions could not but spread a general
alarm through the country, and enflame every planter against
parliamentary taxation. The house had so high an opinion of this
pamphlet, that they ordered it to be sent over to Mr. _Mauduit_, with a
letter, wherein they instructed him to use his indeavours to obtain a
repeal of the sugar act, and to exert himself to prevent a stamp act, or
any other imposition and taxes upon this and the other American
provinces. They do not appear to have made any particular objection to
the term _revenue_ introduced into the sugar act; but to have confined
their objections to the laying on of the duty, when they were not
represented.

The act disgusted the more, because of its being so unseasonable. The
duties were to be paid in specie, while the old means of procuring it
were cut off. The ministry, resolved to prevent smuggling, obliged all
sea officers, stationed on the American coasts, to act in the capacity
of the meanest revenue officers, making them submit to the usual
custom-house oaths and regulations for that purpose. This proved a great
grievance to the American merchants and traders. Gentlemen of the navy
were unacquainted with custom-house laws. Many illegal seizures were
made. No redress could be had but from Britain, which it was tedious and
difficult to obtain. Beside, the _American_ trade with the _Spaniards_
by which the British manufactures were vended in return (for gold and
siver in coin or bullion, cochineal, &c. as occasion served) was almost
destroyed instantly, by the armed ships under the new regulations. The
trade was not literally and strictly according to law, but highly
beneficial; and a thorough statesman would have declined employing his
own navy in crushing it. The trade also from the northern colonies with
the _French West-India_ islands was nearly suppressed. These irritating
measures strengthened the opposition to the sugar act.

[June 13.] The Massachusetts assembly, who were the first representative
body that took the act into consideration, ordered, that Mr. _Otis_ and
four others of the house should be a committee in the recess of the
court, to write to the other governments, and acquaint them with the
instructions voted to be sent to their agent; and that the said
committee, in the name and behalf of the house, should desire the
several assemblies on the continent to join with them in the same
measures. The committee attended to the business; and the end proposed
by it was answered: committees were moreover appointed by divers other
colonies to correspond with the several assemblies, or committees of
assemblies on the continent. Thus a new kind of correspondence was
opened between the colonies, tending to unite them in their operations
against ministerial encroachments on their privileges, and which proved
of great advantage to them afterward.

[Oct. 24.] At the next session a committee was appointed to consider the
state of the province, as it might be affected by certain duties and
taxes laid, and proposed to be laid by acts of parliament upon the
colonies. The consequence was, a committee of the council and house to
prepare an address to the parliament. The lieutenant governor, Mr.
_Hutchinson_, who was of the council, was chairman, but declined drawing
up any. Several were proposed, which expressed in strong terms an
exclusive right in the assembly to impose taxes. He urged the indecency
and bad policy, when they had the resolutions of the house of commons
before them, of sending an address, asserting, in express words, the
contrary. Many days having been spent upon the business, at the desire
of the committee he drafted an address, which considered the _sole
power_ of taxation as an indulgence of which they prayed the
continuance, and it was _unanimously_ agreed to. The petition does not
intimate the least denial of the right of parliament to tax them; but
sets forth the impolicy of the laws, and the hardships brought upon the
petitioners, and prays that they may be relived from the burdens brought
upon them by the sugar sct; that the privileges of the colonies relative
to their internal taxes, which they have so long enjoyed, may be still
continued; or that the consideration of such taxes as are proposed to be
laid upon the colonies may be referred, until the petitioners, in
conjunction with the other governments, can have an opportunity to make
a full representation of the state and condition of the colonies, and
the interest of Great-Britain with regard to them. The proceeding of the
general court was approved of out of doors, until the copy of the
_New-York_ address was received, which was so high, that many of the
friends of liberty were mortified at their own conduct, and if possible,
would gladly have recalled their own doings.[77]

[Nov. 18.] The Massachusetts petition was forwarded by governor Bernard,
and accompanied with a letter to lord _Halifax_; in which he wrote,
“Massachusetts is the only one of the old colonies, that I know of, that
enjoys a specie currency. This reflects great honor upon the province
itself, as it is a great instance of their prudence, who took hold of a
singular opportunity to destroy their paper money, which other colonies
who had it equally in their power neglected. But I fear, that if the
great sums which are expected to be raised in America are to be
transported to Great-Britain, there will soon be an end to the specie
currency of the Massachusetts, which will be followed by a total
discouragement for other provinces to attempt the same in future. In
which case, perpetual paper money, the very negative power of riches,
will be the portion of America.” After arguing against the duties, from
America’s being unable, for want of a sufficient specie currency, to pay
them without being drained of their specie, as it would require a dead
stock of three years value of the annual income of the revenues, he
added, “If due care be taken to confine the sale of manufactures and
Eoropean goods (except what shall be permitted) to Great-Britain only,
all the profits of the American foreign trade will necessarily centre in
Great-Britain; and therefore if the first purpose is well secured, the
foreign American trade is the trade of Great-Britain. The augmentation
and diminution, the extension and restriction, the profit and loss of it
all, finally comes home to the mother country. It is the interest of
Great-Britain, that the trade to both the Spanish and French West-Indies
should be encouraged as much as may well be, and the British West-Indies
should be taught that equitable maxim, _live and let live_. It appeared
to be the decided opinion of the governor, that the sending home the
produce of the duties and taxes proposed, would take from the Americans
the means of trade, and render it impracticable for them to make
remittances to Great-Britain.

The _Virginia_ council and house of burgesses petitioned the king,
presented a memorial to the house of lords, ramonstrated to the house of
commons. _New-York_, _Rhode-Island_, &c. petitioned.

The _New-York_ petition was conceived in such strong terms, and deemed
so inflammatory, that their agent could not prevail on any one member of
the house to present it.

The colonies denied the _parliamentary right of taxation_ many months
before any member of the British parliament uttered a single syllable to
that purpose: and the American opposition to the stamp act was fully
formed before it was known by the colonists that their cause was
espoused by any man of note at home, as _Britain_ is stiled.

Beside the colonial proceedings related above, it must be noted, that
the inhabitants of several places met, and agreed not to buy any
clothing (they could do without) which was not of their own
manufacturing. Divers associations also were formed, all of whom
resolved to consume as few British manufactures as possible.

The raising of a revenue from the molasses trade, and a fund to defray
the expences of denfeding the colonies, were in contemplation nine years
before;[78] but the resolutions taken by the house of commons in the
beginning of this year, might be forwarded by Mr. _Huske_, an
_American_, a native of _Portsmouth_ in _New-Hampshire_, who a short
time before obtained a seat in parliament. Instead of standing forth a
firm advocate for the country which gave him birth, he officiously
proposed to the house laying a tax on the colonies that should annually
amount to five hundred thousand pounds sterling, which he declared they
were well able to pay: and he was heard with great joy and
attention.[79] He, or some other, recollecting that the stamp act was
talked of by the commissioners at Albany in 1754, might suggest that
mode of taxing: for whatever was thought, _the stamp act was not
originally Mr. Grenville’s_.[80]

The dispositon to tax the _Americans_, unless they would tax themselves
equal to the wishes of the ministry, was undoubtedly strengthened by the
reports of their gaiety and luxuary, which reached the mother country:
it was also said, that the planters lived like princes, while the
inhabitants of _Britain_ laboured hard for a tolerable subsistence. The
officers lately returned, represented them as rich, wealthy, and even
overgrown in fortune. Their opinion might arise from observations made
in the American cities and towns during the war, while large sums were
spent in the country for the support of fleets and armies. American
productions were then in great demand, and trade flourished. The people,
naturally generous and hospitable, having a number of strangers among
them, indulged themselves in many uncommon expences. When the war was
terminated, and they had on further apprehension of danger, the power of
the late enemy in the country being totally broken—_Canada_, and the
back lands to the very banks of the _Missisippi_, with the _Floridas_,
being ceded to _Great-Britain_—it was thought they could not well make
too much of those who had so contributed to their security. Partly to do
honor to them, and partly, it is to be feared, to gratify their own
pride, they added to their show of plate, by borrowing of their
neighbours, and made a great parade of riches in their several
entertainments. The plenty and variety of provisions and liquors anabled
them to furnish out an elegant table at comparatively trifling expence.

Mr. _Grenville’s_ intended stamp act was communicated to the American
agents. Many of them did not oppose it. Half their number were placemen,
or dependent on the ministry. Mr. _Joseph Sherwood_, an honest quaker
agent for _Rhode-Island_, refused his assent to America’s being taxed by
a British parliament. Mr. _Mauduit_, the Massachusetts agent, favored
the raising of the wanted money of a stamp duty, as it would occasion
less expence of officers, and would include the West-India islands. But
the scheme was postponed, and the agents authorised to inform the
American assemblies, that they were at liberty to suggest any other way
of raising monies; and that Mr. Grenville was ready to receive proposals
for any other tax that might be equivalent in its produce to the stamp
tax. The colonies seemed to consider it as an affront, rather than a
compliment. He would not have been content with any thing short of a
certain specific sum, and proper funds for the payment of it. Had not
the sums been answerable to his wishes, he would have rejected them; and
he would scarce have been satisfied with less than £.300,000 per annum,
which was judged absolutely necessary to defray the whole expence of the
army proposed for the defence of America: he might rather have expected
that it should amount to what Mr. _Huske_ had mentioned. No satisfactory
proposals being made, he adhered to his purpose of bringing forward the
stamp bill, though repeatedly pressed by some of his friends to desist,
while he might have done it with honor. _Richard Jackson_, esq. had been
chosen agent for the Massachusetts; he, with Mr. _Ingersoll_, Mr.
_Garth_, and Mr. _Franklin_, lately come from Philadelphia, waited on
Mr. _Grenville_ the second of February, 1765, by desire of the colonial
agents, to remonstrate against the stamp bill, and to propose, that in
case any tax must be laid upon America, the several colonies might be
permitted to lay the tax themselves. At this interview Mr. _Jackson_
opened his mind freely on the subject; and Mr. _Franklin_, as must be
supposed, mentioned, that he had it in instruction from the assembly of
_Pennsylvania_, to assure the ministry, that they should alway think it
their duty to grant such aids to the crown as were suitable to their
circumstances, whenever called for in the usual constitutional manner.
Mr. Grenville, however, pertinaciously adhered to his own opinions; and
said, that he had _pledged his word for offering the stamp bill to the
house_, and that the house would hear their objections, &c. &c.

The bill was brought in; and on the first reading, Mr. _Charles
Townsend_ spoke in its favor. He took notice of several things that
colonel _Barre_ had said in his speech against it; and then concluded
with the following or like words: “And now will these _Americans_,
children planted by our care, nourished up by our indulgence, until they
are grown to a degree of strength and opulence, and protected by our
arms, will they grudge to contribute their mite to relieve us from the
heavy weight of that burden which we lie under?”

On this colonel _Barre_ rose, and, after explaining some passages in his
speech, took up Mr. _Townsend_’s concluding words in a most spirited and
inimitable manner, saying, “_They planted by_ YOUR _care_! No, your
oppressions planted them in America. They fled from your tyranny, to a
then uncultivated and unhospitable country, where they exposed
themselves to almost all the hardships to which human nature is liable;
and, among others, to the cruelties of a savage foe, the most subtle,
and I will take upon me to say, the most formidable of any people upon
the face of God’s earth; and yet, actuated by principles of true English
liberty, they met all hardships with pleasure, compared with those they
suffered in their own country, from the hands of those that should have
been their friends. _They nourished up by_ YOUR _indulgence_! They grew
by your neglect of them. As soon as you began to care about them, that
care was exercised in sending persons to rule them, in one department
and another, who were, perhaps, the deputies of deputies to some members
of this house, sent to spy out their liberties, to misrepresent their
actions, and to pry upon them—men, whose behaviour on many occasions,
has caused the blood of those _sons of liberty_ to recoil within
them—men promoted to the highest seats of justice; some who to my
knowledge were glad, by going to a foreign country, to escape being
brought to the bar of a court of justice in their own. _They protected
by_ YOUR _arms_! They have nobly taken up arms in your defence; have
exerted a valor, amidst their constant and laborious industry, for the
defence of a country, whose frontier was drenched in blood, while its
interior parts yielded all its little savings to your emolument. And
believe me, remember I this day told you so, that same spirit of
freedom, which actuated that people at first, will accompany them
still—but prudence forbids me to explain myself further. God knows I do
not at this time speak from motives of party heat; what I deliver are
the genuine sentiments of my heart. However superior to me in general
knowledge and experience the respectable body of this house may be, yet
I claim to know more of America than most of you, having seen and been
conversant in that country. The people, I believe, are as truly loyal as
any subjects the king has; but a people jealous of their liberties, and
who will vindicate them if ever they should be violated—but the subject
is too delicate—I will say no more.” These sentiments were thrown out so
entirely without premeditation, so forcibly and so firmly, and the
breaking off was so beautifully abrupt, that the whole house sat a while
amazed, intently looking, without answering a word.

The London merchants trading to America, being much alarmed on account
of their outstanding debts, petitioned against the stamp act. Their
petition was offered at the second reading of the bill. The rule of the
house, never to receive petitions against money bills, was urged.
General _Conway_ observed, that it appeared undeniable, that the
practice was by no means invariable; at best it was but a practice of
convenience, from which they ought, in the present instance, to vary.
The ministry publicly declared, “_That it was intended to establish the
power of Great-Britain to tax the colonies_.” They were induced to make
a point of it, because most of the petitions from thence denied, in the
strongest terms, the right of Britain to impose taxes. It was evident
that the ministerial forces would prevail, the petition of the London
merchants was therefore withdrawn. After that the others from the
colonies were offered, but rejected upon the plea taken from the rule of
the house. During the debate upon the bill, in this stage of it,
“General _Conway_ denied the _right_ of parliament to tax the
_Americans_, in the most peremptory manner; and urged, with great
vehemence, the many hardships, and what he was pleased to call
absurdities that would follow from the contrary doctrine and
practice.”[81] Alderman Beckford also disputed the right of parliament,
according to Mr. Ingersoll’s letter.

The supporters of the stamp act insisted much upon the colonies being
_virtually_ represented, and mentioned _Leeds_, _Halifax_, _Birmingham_,
_Manchester_, &c. as enjoying a _virtual representation_. Whoever had a
recourse to a _virtual representation_ of the colonies, in vindication
of the parliament’s taxing them, therein acknowledged, that there ought
not to be taxation without representation. But the difference between
_Leeds_, _Halifax_, &c. and the _American_ colonies, is as wide as the
_Atlantic_. The landholders of those towns enjoy a real representation,
if their freeholds yield a certain annual income. Many of the
inhabitants have a choice in the election of members, in one place or
another. The general interests of the freeholders and tenants, electors
and non-electors, are so interwoven, that all are liable to be equally
affected by the same common taxes. The one pays the same duty on his
sugar, tea, coffee, and chocolate, as the other. The relative connection
between them, produces what may be called, with a kind of propriety, a
_virtual representation_; answering, though in a lower degree, to what
the family of a freeholder or freeman enjoys. But was all the soil in
the British colonies a man’s freehold, it would not give him a single
vote for any one member of parliament. There is not an individual in
them, who, should he cross the Atlantic, would have a right to vote in
any election, by virtue of any privileges enjoyed in America. He must be
a freeholder of Britain, or a freeman of some British city, borough, or
corporation, and have a British qualification, before he can elect or be
elected. The interests of _America_ and _Britain_ are not interwoven, as
are those of British electors and non-electors. If the British
parliament impose taxes on the Americans, Britons do not bear with them
their part and proportion in the said taxes. The former are burdened
that the latter may be eased. The monies raised have the nature of a
tribute exacted from a conquered people in a slavish dependence, and not
of a tax voluntarily granted by the voice of freemen, through their own
elected representatives, paying scot and lot with themselves, for the
support of government. Beside, the British parliament are so far removed
from America, that they cannot obtain that full information respecting
the colonies which ought always to accompany the exercise of a taxing
power.

When the question upon the bill, in its last stage, was brought to a
vote, there were about 250 for, and 50 against it. In the house of
lords, so strong was the unanimity, that there was not a single syllable
uttered against the bill; and on the twenty-second of March, it obtained
the royal assent. The night after it was passed, Dr. _Franklin_ wrote
Mr. _Charles Thomson_,[82] “the sun of liberty is set; you must light up
the candles of industry and œconomy.” Mr. _Thomson_ answered, he was
apprehensive that other lights would be the consequence, and predicted
the opposition that followed.

The framers of the stamp act flattered themselves, that the confusion
which would arise upon the disuse of writings, would compel the colonies
to use the stamp paper, and therefore to pay the taxes imposed. Thus
they were led to pronounce it, _a law which would execute itself_. Mr.
Grenville, however, appears to have been apprehensive that it might
occasion disorders; to prevent or suppress which, he projected another
bill, which was brought in the same session, whereby it was to be made
lawful for military officers in the colonies, to quarter their soldiers
in private houses. This seemed intended to awe the people into a
compliance with the other act. Great opposition being made to it, as
under such a power in the army, no one could look on his house as his
own, that part of the bill was dropt; but there still remained a clause,
when passed into a law, to oblige the several assemblies to provide
quarters for the soldiers, and to furnish them with firing, bedding,
candles, small beer, rum, and sundry other articles, at the expence of
the several provinces; which continued in force when the stamp act was
repealed. It equally militated with the other against the American
principle, _That money is not to be raised on English subjects without
their consent_.

Whatever might be urged, government was under no necessity of adopting
the mode of taxing the colonies for their defence, and the securing of
the new ceded countries. Though after the general peace an Indian war
might be continued or renewed, that was no reason for continuing British
forces in America. The colonists were better able to deal with them than
the regulars. The new ceded countries required no great number of troops
to secure them. The colonies were at hand to support the British
garrisons in case assistance was wanted: and they had repeatedly shewed
their readiness upon former occasions. The idea of a dangerous enemy
upon the American continent, was at an end; and the British
administration must have been inexcusable, had they not guarded against
the transferring of one from Europe. It was become futile to
exclaim—“Shall it depend upon the resolutions of a Philadelphia
assembly, whether our fellow subjects shall arm in defence of liberty
and property? Does the fate of a whole continent bear any proportion to
an almost imperceptible encroachment upon the important privilege of an
American, deliberating for a year or two, whether he will pay six-pence
in the pound to save himself and family from perdition?” The danger of
perdition was a mere bugbear, which might frighten the ignorant into an
apprehension that it was absolutely necessary to maintain an army in
America, for the expence of which the colonies should be made to answer;
but the Americans knew better than to startle at the spectre. Had no
more troops been stationed upon the American continent than
circumstances called for, the ministry might have obtained all the aids
it was reasonable for the colonies to have given, by the old mode of
requisition. From the time that they were first considered as capable of
granting aids, the constant mode of obtaining them, was by _requisition
from the crown_, through the governors to the several assemblies; and
the ministers, from _Charles_ II. to the present king, most effectually
recognised the distinction between parliamentary superintendance and
taxation, in their requisitions to the colonies to raise men and money
by acts of assembly. Had this happy method been continued, all the money
that could have been justly expected from them in any manner, might have
been procured without the least breach of that harmony which so long
subsisted between the colonies and the mother country; and it was not
acting wisely to thwart unnecessarily the prejudices of the Americans.
But the imposition of taxes upon them might be introductory to, or a
part of the plan for overturning their civil and religious liberties,
alluded to by the Rev. Mr. _Whitefield_, before even the sugar act had
passed.

The stamp act having passed, the colony agents waited upon Mr. Wheatley
by desire, who told them, that Mr. Grenville did not think of sending
from Great-Britain stamp officers, but wished to have discreet and
respectable persons appointed from among the inhabitants; and that he
would be obliged to them to point out to him such persons. Thus the
agents were drawn in to nominate. Dr. Franklin recommended Mr. _Hughes_
to be chief distributor of stamps in _Pennsylvania_, and Mr. _Cox_ in
the _Jerseys_; and being consulted by Mr. _Ingersoll_, advised him to
accept, adding, _go home and tell your countrymen to get children as
fast as they can_—thereby intimating his opinion of the oppression the
colonists were under, and of their present inability to make effectual
resistance; but that they ought, when sufficiently numerous, to shake
off the yoke and recover their liberty. It is apparent from the
recommendations, and the appointments made in consequence of the
nominations, that the agents were far from thinking that such
disturbances would have been occasioned by the stamp act, or they would
have spared their friends. They certainly expected the act would have
gone down, and the stamp papers have been used. But it was the reverse.

A general discontent through the _Massachusetts_ discovered itself
immediately on the first advice of the acts having passed; but there was
no other expectation among the bulk of the people, than that the act
would be submitted to, and the duty paid; and several who afterward
opposed it violently, made interest with the distributor, that they or
their friends might obtain appointments. The newspapers, indeed, groaned
for the loss of liberty; however, nothing extravagant appeared in them;
but the friends to the claims of the colonies, pleased with Barre’s
sheech, and what he had pronounced the Americans, assumed to themselves
the title of—SONS OF LIBERTY.

In Connecticut the inhabitants were quite inattentive to the fatal
consequences that the act might draw after it in some distant period.
The judges themselves, several of whom were of the council, appeared
perfect secure, and were no ways alarmed. The Rev. Mr. _Stephen Johnson_
of _Lyme_, vexed and grieved with the temper and inconsiderateness of
all orders of people, determined, if possible, to rouse them to a better
way of thinking. He consulted a neighbouring gentleman, an Irishman by
birth, who undertook to convey the pieces he might pen to the
_New-London_ printer, so secretly as to prevent the author’s being
discovered. Three or four essays were published upon the occasion. The
eyes of the public began to open, and fears were excited. Other writers
engaged in the business, while the first withdrew, having fully answered
his intention. The congregational ministers saw further into the designs
of the British administration than the bulk of the colony; and, by their
publications and conversation, increased and strengthened the
opposition.—It became so considerable, that when governor _Fitch_
proposed that he and the counsellors should be sworn agreeable to the
stamp act, colonel _Trumbull_[83] went out, and refused even to witness
to the transaction. Others followed this spirited example, and only four
of the council remained.

In _Virginia_ a general disposition appeared to submit to the stamp act:
but _George Johnston_ and _Patrick Henry_, esqrs. consulted together;
and afterward, at the close of the sessions, when there was but a thin
house, many members being absent preparing to return home, Mr. Henry
brought in a number of resolves.—They were as follows, viz. “Whereas the
honorable house of commons in _England_, have of late drawn into
question how far the general assembly of this colony hath power to enact
laws for laying of taxes and imposing duties, payable by the people of
this his majesty’s most ancient colony—for settling and ascertaining the
same to all future times, the house of burgesses of this present general
assembly, have come to the following resolves:

Resolved, That the first adventurers, settlers of this his majesty’s
colony and dominion of _Virginia_, brought with them and transmitted to
their posterity, and all other his majesty’s subjects since inhabiting
in this his majesty’s said colony, all the liberties, privileges,
franchises, and immunities, that have at any time been held, enjoyed,
and possessed by the people of _Great-Britain_:

Resolved, That by two royal charters, granted by king _James_ I. the
colonists aforesaid are declared and entitled to all liberties,
privileges and immunities of denizens and natural subjects, to all
intents and purposes, as if they had been abiding and born within the
realm of _England_:

Resolved, That his majesty’s liege people of this ancient colony have
enjoyed the right of being thus governd by their own assembly, in the
articles of taxes and internal police; and that the same have never been
forfeited, or any other way yielded up, but have been constantly
recognised by the king and people of _Britain_:

Resolved therefore, That the general assembly of this colony, together
with his majesty or his substitutes, have in their representative
capacity, the only exclusive right and power to lay taxes and imposts
upon the inhabitants of this colony; and that every attempt to vest such
power in any other person or persons whatsoever, than the general
assembly aforesaid is illegal, unconstitutional, and unjust, and hath a
manifest tendency to destroy _British_ as well as _American_ liberty:

Resolved, That his majesty’s liege people, the inhabitants of this
colony, are not bound to yield obedience to any law or ordinance
whatever, designed to impose any taxation whatsoever upon them, other
than the laws and ordinances of the general assembly aforesaid:

Resolved, That any person who shall, by speaking or writing, assert or
maintain, that any person or persons, other than the general assembly of
this colony, have any right or power to impose or lay any taxation on
the people here, shall be deemed an enemy to this his majesty’s colony.”

Upon reading these resolves the _Scotch_ gentlemen in the house, cried
out treason, &c. They were however adopted.—The next day, some old
members got them revised, though they could not carry it to reject them.
As revised they stand thus on the printed journals of the house of
burgesses.

                                               _Thursday, May 30, 1765._

Resolved, That the first adventurers, &c. &c. as above:

Resolved, That by two royal charters, &c. &c.

Resolved, That the taxation of the people by themselves, or by persons
chosen by themselves to represent them, who can only know what taxes the
people are able to bear, or the easiest method of raising them, and must
themselves be effected by every tax laid on the people, is the only
security against a burdensome taxation, and the distinguishing
characteristic of _British_ freedom, without which the ancient
constitution cannot exist:

Resolved, That his majesty’s liege people of this his most ancient and
loyal colony, have, without interruption, enjoyed the inestimable right
of being governed by such laws, respecting their internal policy and
taxation, as are derived from their own consent, with the approbation of
their sovereign or his substitute; and that the same hath never been
forfeited or yielded up, but hath been constantly recognised by the king
and people of _Great-Britain_.

[June 1.] Lieutenant-governor Farquier dissolved the house of burgesses
upon being made acquainted with their resolves.

A manuscript of the unrevised resolves soon reached _Philadelphia_,
having been sent off immediately upon their passing, that the earliest
information of what had been done might be obtained by the sons of
liberty. From thence the like was forwarded on the seventeenth of June.
At _New-York_ the resolves were handed about with great privacy: they
were accounted so treasonable, that the possessors of them declined
printing them in that city. The _Irish_ gentleman alluded to above,
being there, inquired after them, and with much precaution was admitted
to take a copy.—He carried them to _New-England_, where they were
published and circulated far and wide in the newspapers, without any
reserve, and proved eventually the occasion of those disorders which
afterward broke out in the colonies. Till they appeared, it was thought
that the _Rhode-Islanders_ would submit. Murmurs indeed were continually
heard; but they seemed to be such as would die away. The Virginia
resolutions gave a spring to all the disgusted, and they began to adopt
different measures.

The _Massachusetts_ assembly had hit upon a wise and quiet mode of
seeking address, before ever they could be acquainted with what had been
done in Virginia. It was projected and brought on by Messrs. _Otis_,
father and son. They were visiting at _James Warren’s_, esq. of
Plymouth, a son and brother-in-law, he having married Miss _Otis_. The
state of public affairs, and how to get rid of the burdens coming upon
the colonies, were the subjects of conversation. Congresses had often
been held, and though there was no precedent of any one’s being called,
but at the instance of persons authorised or employed by the ministry,
excepting the first congress we read of, which was proposed by the
_Massachusetts_ general court in 1690; yet no reasonable objection could
be made against holding one upon the present emergency, notwithstanding
it might want the sanction of administration.—It was agreed to forward
the meeting of a congress as a proper method for obtaining the removal
of American grievances. The matter was moved in the house of assembly;
[June 6.] the consequence was, an agreement, that “It is highly
expedient there should be a meeting, as soon as may be, of committees
from the houses of representatives or burgesses in the several colonies,
to consult on the present circumstances of the colonies, and the
difficulties to which they are and must be reduced, and to consider of a
general address—to be held at New-York, the first Tuesday of October.”
Within two days, a letter was drafted to be sent to the several
speakers; and at the close of a fortnight, _James Otis_, jun. _Oliver
Partridge_, and _Timothy Ruggles_, esqrs. were chosen the committee for
the Massachusetts. The governor, in his account to the lords of trade,
said, “It was impossible to oppose this measure to any good purpose; and
therefore the friends of government took the lead in it, and have kept
it in their hands. Two of the three chosen are fast friends to
government, prudent and discreet men, such as I am assured will never
consent to any improper applications to the government of
Great-Britain.” Lieutenant governor _Colden_ designedly prorogued the
meeting of the _New-York_ assembly, till after the time appointed for
the congress; but the committee ordered, by the vote of the house of the
eighteenth of October 1764, to be a committee during the recess, to
write to and correspond with the several assemblies or committees of
assemblies on the continent, did, by virtue of that order, meet in
congress; and the house afterward approved of their conduct on the
twentieth of November; and moreover resolved, “that for the obtaining
relief from the operation and execution of the stamp act, and other acts
for levying duties and taxes on the colonies, humble petitions be
prepared to the king, the house of lords, and the house of commons, as
nearly similar to those drawn up by the congress as the particular
circumstances of the colony will admit.”

The assemblies of _Virginia_, _North-Carolina_ and _Georgia_, were
prevented, by their governors, having the opportunity of sending
committees to congress. _The Massachusetts-Bay_, _Rhode-Island and
Providence Plantations_, _Connecticut_, _New-York_, _New-Jersey_,
_Pennsylvania_, the _Delaware Counties_, and _South-Carolina_, had their
respective committees present at the place appointed; and Mr. _Ruggles_
was chosen chairman. The petition to the house of commons being
finished, was signed, though only by member from six colonies; the
committees from _Connecticut_, _New-York_ and _South-Carolina_, not
having been sufficiently empowered. Mr. _Ruggles_, took leave of the
members, Thursday evening the twenty-fourth of October, and came off the
next morning without signing; for which he was afterward censured by the
_Massachusetts_ assembly. Mr. _Otis_ was upon the point of trespassing
in like manner; but was prevented by the influence of Mr. _Thomes Lynch_
of the _South-Carolina_ committee. The congress dissolved on October the
twenty-fifth, having finished the business to which they had been
appointed. The colonies that could not send committees, showed, as
opportunities offered, their approbation of what had been done, by
forwarding to their agents petitions to the like purpose with that of
congress. _New-Hampshire_ had excused their not sending to congress,
from the then situation of their governmental affairs; but the speaker
laying before the assembly the proceedings of congress, on November the
twenty-second, they voted unanimously, “That this house do fully approve
of, and heartily join in the resolves and several petitions agreed to by
the said general congress; and that the speaker, with two others, (all
whose names are mentioned) be empowered to sign the same in behalf of
this house, if not too late; if the general petitions are forwarded, in
that case the said petitions be fairly engrossed, that they sign them in
behalf of the house, and forward them, with duplicates, to _Barlow
Trecothick_ and _John Wentworth_, esqrs. who are appointed special
agents for the house, and are empowered and desired to present the said
petitions, &c.” The committee wrote to these agents on December the
sixth, and concluded with saying, “We in this province have not been so
boisterous and irregular as some others, not because we are insensible
of our distresses, but because we though the present method most likely
to obtain relief.”

The _Virginia_ resolves having had their full operation, and the spirits
of the people being highly inflamed, the colonial disturbances break out
upon the following occasion. Messrs. _John Avery_, jun. _Thomas Crafts_,
_John Smith_, _Henry Welles_, _Thomas Chace_, _Stephen Cleverly_, _Henry
Bass_, and _Benjamin Edes_, to manifest their abhorrence and detestation
of those persons who they supposed were endeavouring to subvert the
British constitution to enslave the colonies, and to alienate the
affections of his majesty’s most faithful subjects in America, provide
and hang out early in the morning of August the fourteenth, upon the
limb of a large old elm, toward the entrance of Boston, over the most
public street, two effigies, one of which by the labels appear to be
designed for the stamp officer; the other is a jack boot, with a head
and horns peeping out of the top. Not only the usual passengers pass
under it, but the report spreads, and draws great numbers from every
part of the town and the neighbouring country. The affair is left to
take its own course; an enthusiastic spirit diffuses itself through the
body of the spectators. In the evening the pageantry is cut down, and
carried in funeral procession, the populace shouting, _liberty and
property for ever_, _no stamps_, &c. &c. They direct their way to a new
building, lately erected by Mr. _Oliver_, which they pull down, falsely
supposing it to be designed for the tsamp office. They go on to his
house, before which they behead his effigy, breaking at the same time
all the windows next the street. They then repair to Fort Hill, on the
ascent of which stands his house, where they burn his effigy. After this
they return to attack his premises; and many of they with clubs, staves,
&c. go to work on the garden, fences, barns, &c. Mr. Oliver had
prudently retired, leaving a few friends behind to keep possession of
the dwelling: these committed some slight indiscretions, the populace
are so enraged, that they force themselves into the lower part of it,
break the windows and destroy the furniture. They disperse about
midnight. The next day [August 15.] Mr. Oliver, fearful of what may
otherwise happen declares that he has written to England, and resigned.
The mob assemble again at night: and, after some expressions of joy for
the resignation, proceed to the lieutenant-governor’s, Mr.
_Hutchinson’s_ house, which they besiege for an hour, though in vain,
insisting repeatedly upon knowing whether he had not written in favor of
the stamp act: at length, through the influence of some discreet
persons, they withdrew and finished their evening’s entertainment at a
bonfire.

[August 26.] Eleven days after, the disorders grew more enormous and
alarming. In the evening a number of persons, disguised and armed with
clubs, sticks, &c. collect in King-street, in consequence of a
preconcerted plan. They go first to Mr. _Paxton’s_, marshal of the court
of admiralty and surveyor of the port; being assured by the owner of the
house, that Mr. Paxton had quitted it with his best effects; and being
invited by him to the tavern to drink a barrel of punch, they accept the
offer, and the house is saved. Having finished the punch, they proceed
to and attack the house of Mr. _William Story_, deputy register of the
court of admiralty; break the windows; force into the dwelling; strip
the office of the books and files belonging to the said court; burn and
destroy them with many other papers; injure and ruin a great part of his
furniture.

It is the opinion of some, that the first movers in the affair, meant
mainly an assault upon the house of the deputy register, who, by various
mal-practices, had made himself highly obnoxious to persons doing
business in his office. But mobs once raised, soon become ungovernable
by new and large accessions, and extend their intentions for beyond
those of the original instigators. Crafty men may intermix with them
when they are much heated, and direct their operations quite differently
from what was at first designed.

How far the scheme of the present mob extended, when it first collected,
is hard to say; but upon leaving Mr. _Story_’s, they proceed to the
house of Mr. _Benj. Hallowell_, comptroller of the customs for Boston;
and to the repetition of similar excesses to what have been just
committed, add the drinking and destroying of liquors in the cellars,
the taking away of wearing apparel, the breaking open of desk and
drawers, and the carrying off thirty pounds sterling in money. Many
being now inflamed with liquor, and numbers having joined them, they
become more riotous, and are ready for any mischief. They hurry away to
Mr. _Hutchinson_’s house with the rage of madmen. He sends off his
children, bars his doors and windows, and means to remain; but is soon
under the necessity of withdrawing, first to one house, then to another,
where he continues till four in the morning, by which time one of the
best finished houses in the colony, has nothing remaining but the bare
walls and floors. Gentlemen of the army, who have seen towns sacked by
an enemy, declare they never before saw an instance of such fury. The
rioters carry off about nine hundred pounds sterling, beside plate,
family pictures, household furniture of every kind, and the apparel of
the lieutenant governor, his children and servants.—They also empty the
house of every thing whatsoever, except a part of the kitchen furniture;
and scatter or destroy all the manuscripts and other papers he has been
collecting for thirty years back, beside a great number of public papers
in his custody. The loss of papers is irreparable.

[Aug. 27.] The next day it was strongly reported by the enemies of Dr.
_Jonathan Mayhew_, that he approved of these doings; and had, indeed,
encouraged them, in a sermon preached the preceding Lord’s day, on
_Gal._ v. 12, 13. This led him to write immediately to Hutchinson; and
in his letter he condoled with him, “on account of the almost
unparalleled outrages committed at his house the preceding evening;” and
said, “God is my witness, that, from the bottom of my heart, I detest
these proceedings; and that I am sincerely grieved for them, and have a
deep sympathy with you and your distressed family on this occasion. I
did, indeed, express myself strongly in favor of civil and religious
liberty, as I hope I shall ever continue to do; and spoke of the stamp
act as a great grievance, like to prove detrimental, in a high degree,
both to the colonies and the mother country, and I have heard your honor
speak to the same purpose. But as my text led me to do, I cautioned my
hearers very particularly against the abuses of liberty, and expressed
my hopes, that no persons among ourselves had encouraged the bringing of
such a burden on their country, notwithstanding it had been strongly
suspected. In truth, Sir, I had rather lose my hand than be an
encourager of such outrages as were committed last night. I do not think
my regard to truth was ever called into question by those that knew me;
and therefore hope your honor will be so just as to give entire credit
to these solemn declarations.”

This same day the superior court began its term. The chief justice, Mr.
_Hutchinson_, attended in his only suit, and necessarily without those
ensigns of office so wisely calculated to procure regard to authority;
while the other gentlemen of the bench and bar, appeared in their
respective robes. The court refused to do any business, and adjourned to
the fifteenth of October, to show their resentment of the insult offered
to the lieutenant governor, as well as their sense of the anarchy to
which the government was reduced. Half a dozen of the dregs of the
people, who, being taken up, refused to discover the ringleaders, were
committed. Three broke jail and fled, against one of whom a bill was
found; against the other three in custody none was found; for it was not
thought safe to prosecute. The temper of the public would not admit of
it, without hazarding further disturbances; and for that reason, one who
was capitally charged with being a principal in the riot, and secured,
was finally dismissed by the justices.

Various causes might contribute toward the outrageous attack upon the
house and property of Mr. Hutchinson. As long back as 1748, the currency
having depreciated to about an eighth of its original value, he, being
then speaker of the house, projected and carried through a bill for
abolishing it, and substituting gold and silver in its place, which made
him extremely obnoxious to several who had lived by fraud, and were much
dissatisfied with the alteration. They then threatened him with
destruction; and retaining their rancour, are supposed to have been
aiders and abettors, if not actors in the riot. A certain gentleman of
great integrity, and who fills a place in the judicial department with
much credit, and to the satisfaction of the public, has expressed a
strong apprehension that the mob was led on to the house by a secret
influence, with a view to the destruction of certain papers, know to be
there, and which, it is thought, would have proved, that the grant to
the New-Plymouth compay on Kennebec river, was different from what was
contended for by some claimants. The papers were never found
afterward.—But Mr. _Hutchinson_ had certainly disgusted the people
exceedingly, by promoting the superior court’s granting writs of
assistance; and by showing himself so strenuous in supporting
government, when become odious, by the measures adopted for obliging the
colonies to pay taxes in compliance with British acts of parliament.—He
was also strongly suspected of having forwarded the stamp act, by
letters written upon the occasion. These circumstances, co-operating
with the general disposition in the people to tumult, produced by a
prevailing persuasion, that they were deprived of the liberties of
Englishmen, will account for the excessive outrages against him in
particular. But their enormity was alarming. No one knew who might be
the next sacrafice. The town of Boston, therefore, beside condemning
them the next day, unanimously voted, “That the select men and
magistrates be desired to use their utmost endeavours to suppress the
like disorders for the future:” and for some time, the magistrates and
private gentlemen, the cadet and other companies, kept watch at night to
prevent further violences.

In justice to Mr. _Hutchinson_, it must be observed, that from his
letters to Messrs. _Bollan_, _Jackson_, and others, it appears, that he
then considered parliament’s taxing the colonies as inconsistent with
the rights of the colonists, and as a mere act of power, without regard
to equity. He was at the trouble of writing a pamphlet in 1764,
cantaining _A brief state of the claim of the colonies, and the
interests of the nation with respect to them_. This, when he had
disguised it so as that it might not be suspected to come from America,
he sent to Mr. Jackson the agent, who was either to suppress or publish
it; and he afterward expressed a surprise at his not having done the
latter. The following are extracts from it.

“The right to new acquired countries, according to the constitution of
England, two hundred years ago, was allowed to be in the crown. The
crown from time to time disposed of these countries not only to their
own subjects, but to foreign princes: particulary _Acadia_ and
_Nova-Scotia_, when begun to be settled by British subjects, were ceded
to _France_, although France had no better claim to them than
New-England: and _Surinam_ was sold to, or exchanged with the _Dutch_.”
He might have adduced in proof of James I. being of opinion, that he had
a personal right to alienate at pleasure new acquired territory, his
granting, in September 1621, _Nova-Scotia_, which he could not inherit
but as king of England, to Sir _William Alexander_, of Menstry,
afterward Lord Stirling, under the seal of Scotland; and his erecting it
into a palatinate, to be holden as a fief of the crown of Scotland.
Under the same seal, and in the same words, the grant was confirmed by
Charles I. in June 1625. The legality of these grants appear not to have
been questioned at the time, which indicates that the prevailing opinion
of the English corresponded then with that of their sovereigns.

Mr. Hutchinson goes on to mention, “_American_ lands in their natural
state are of no value; there is not any colony which has not cost more
to render it capable of rendering profit than it is now worth.”

“In the trading towns, in some of the colonies the last war, one fourth
part of the profit of the trade was annually paid to the support of the
war, and other public charges. In the country towns, a farm which would
not rent for twenty pounds a year, paid ten pounds taxes. Was it from
parental affection to the colonists, and to save them from French
vassalage, that Great-Britain was at such expence; or was it from fear
of losing the advantageous trade she had carried on with her colonies?”

“When there is peace in Europe, what occasion is there for any national
expence in America?”

“It cannot be good policy to tax the Americans; it will prove
prejudicial to the national interests. The advantages proposed by the
increase of the revenue, are fallacious and delusive. You will lose more
than you will gain. Britain reaps the profit of all their trade, and the
increase of all their substance.”

“Your commerce with the colonies will be enough for you, should you have
no commerce elsewhere, if you encourage, the colonies to increase the
consumption of your manufactures for fifty years to come, as they have
done for fifty years past; and with no more than reasonable
encouragement they will infallibly do it, and in much greater
proportion.”

Though the disturbances began in _Boston_ yet they were not confined to
the _Massachusetts_. They broke out in the other colonies; and so near
to the same time, as to excite suspicions that it was not wholly the
effect of accident, but partly of a pre-concerted design. _Rhode-Island_
and _Providence Plantations_ shewed themselves among the foremost in
their opposition to the stamp act.

[Aug. 24.] A gazette extraordinary was published at _Providence_, with
_Vox populi, Vox Dei_, in large letters for the frontispiece; and
underneath, _Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty_. The
publication had a tendency to prepare the people for action. Effigies
were also exhibited; and in the evening cut down and burnt by the
populace.

[27.] About nine in the morning, the people of _Newport_, in
_Rhode-Island_, brought forth three effigies, meant for Messrs.
_Howard_, _Moffat_, and _Johnson_, in a cart, with halters about their
necks, to a gallows near the town-house, where they were hung; after a
while cut down, and burnt amid the acclamations of thousands.

[28.] By the next day there was time enough to hear of what had been
done at _Boston_. The people collected, or rather were mustered afresh,
and beset the house of Mr. _Martin Howard_, jun. a lawyer of reputation,
and a writer in defence of the parliament’s right to tax the colonies.
They destroyed every thing, and left only a shell. They passed on to Dr.
_Thomas Moffat’s_, a physician, one who had warmly supported in
conversation the same right, and behaved in like manner. They intended
doing it to Mr. _Augustus Johnson_, but desisted upon persuasion; and on
his coming to town, and giving it under his hand that he would not
accept the office of distributor of the stamps, unless the public were
satisfied, they became quiet. Messrs. Howard and Moffat hastened on
board a ship of war for personal protection.

The commotions in _Connecticut_ were not equally violent; but Mr.
_Ingersoll_ was the subject of exhibition in several places.

[Aug. 22.] They had their pageantry at _Norwich_, which they committed
to the flames when the day closed.

[26.] They had the same at _Lebanon_; but before they executed and
burnt, they had a parade of a mock trial.

[27.] The next day there was a repetition of the like, excepting the
trial. At length the resentment against the stamp distributor became so
general and alarming, that he resigned his office.

A like resignation takes place in _New-York_, some time in August. It
becomes a necessary point of prudence from the spirit which the citizens
discover. The stamp act is treated with the most indignant contempt, by
being printed and cried about the streets, under the title of, _The
folly_ of ENGLAND _and ruin of_ AMERICA. Toward the end of October the
stamp papers arrive; and Mr. M‘Evers having resigned, lieutenant
governor Colden takes them into _Fort George_. Some extraordinary
preparations for securing them, having displeased the inhabitants,
joined to the dislike they have entertained to Colden’s political
sentiments, [Nov. 1.] and its being the day for the stamp act to take
place, numbers are induced to assemble in the evening. They proceed to
the fort walls; break open his stable; take out his coach; and, after
carrying it through the principal streets of the city in triumph, march
to the common, where a gallows is erected; on one end of which they
suspend his effigy, having in his right hand a stamped bill of lading,
and in the other, a figure for the devil. After hanging a considerable
time, they carry the whole, with the gallows entire, the coach
preceding, in procession to the gate of the fort; from whence it is
removed to the bowling-green, under the muzzles of the guns, where a
bonfire is immediately made, and all, coach included, are consumed amid
the exultations of some thousands of spectators. They go from hence to
major _James’s_ house, before known by the name of _Vaux-Hall_, which is
genteelly furnished, contains a valuable library, and many curiosities,
and has a handsome garden belonging to it. They strip it of every
article, make another bonfire, and consume the whole, beside destroying
the garden; and all because of his being a friend to the stamp act.

[Nov. 2.] The next morning a paper is privately drawn up, and given to a
man to read from the balcony of the coffee-house, to and about which the
citizens are used to frequent; it sets forth the necessity of being
peaceable, and calls upon the inhabitants to turn out with their arms
upon any alarm, and quell all riotous proceedings. The effect it appears
to have upon being heard, is frustrated by captain _Isaac Sears_, who
formerly commanded a privateer, and is bitterly set against the stamp
act. Having been secretly informed in the morning what is to be done, he
is present, and tells the populace who collect about him, “The intention
of the proposal that has been read, is to prevent our having the stamp
papers;” and adds, “but we will have them within four and twenty hours.”
He then flourishes his hat, and cries, “Huzza, my lads.” They
immediately comply in loud shouts. He turns to several gentlemen
present, and says, “Your best way, as you may now see, will be to advise
lieutenant governor _Colden_ to send the stamp papers from the fort to
the inhabitants.” In the evening the mob assemble, and insist upon his
delivering them into their hands. He hopes to satisfy them, by declaring
he will do nothing in relation to the stamps, but leave it to Sir Henry
Moore to do as he pleases on his arrival. The people are not contented;
they will have the stamps, or attempt taking them away by force; which
must probably be attended with much bloodshed. After repeated
negociation, it is agreed that they shall be delivered to the
corporation; which is accordingly done, and they are deposited in the
city-hall, to general satisfaction. Ten boxes of the like, which arrive
afterward, meet with a worse fate, being committed to the flames.

The destruction of major _James’s_ house, (for it was reduced to a
shell) convinced the gentlemen who were standing up for the rights of
the colonies, that it was necessary to have leaders to manage the mob.
It was therefore contrived to call the people together.

[Nov. 6.] They met in the fields; and it was proposed, that a committee
be appointed to open a correspondence with the other colonies. This was
a measure of so serious and important a nature, as to endanger the lives
and property of the committee, especially should the stamp act be
enforced and carried through; and therefore there was no one, for more
than half an hour who would venture to accept. Mr. _James De Lancey_,
who had joined the popular side, in order to secure a seat in the
assembly at the next general election, was nominated; but declined,
pleading his being upon the committee to converse with the lawyers, on
their proceeding to business without stamps, instead of suspending it,
as they appeared to intend. At length, however, captain Sears, with four
others, offered and were approved.

They agreed among themselves to sign all the letters with their several
names, and to open a correspondence with all the colonies. The
_Philadelphians_ were requested to forward their inclosed letters to the
more southern states, and the _Bostonians_ to forward those for
_New-Hampshire_.

Here we see another set of corrosponding sons of liberty originated to
strengthen the opposition of the colonies to parliamentary taxation.

The commotions beyond _New-York_, did not terminate in similar excesses
to what had happened there, at _Newport_ and _Boston_; but the
exhibition of effigies in the day, the burning them at night, and other
marks of displeasure, induced the stamp officers to resign. Some did it
with a better grace than others. Mr. _George Mercer_, distributor for
_Virginia_, arrived in the evening at _Williamsburg_. The people
immediately urged him to resign. The next day he declined acting, in so
genteel a manner, that he had the repeated acclamations of all present.
At night the town was illuminated, the bells were set a ringing, and all
was joy and festivity.

[Oct. 3.] At _Philadelphia_ upon the appearance of the ships having on
board the stamps, all the vessels in the harbour hoisted their colours
half-staff high; the bells were muffled and continued to tool till
evening; and every ccuntenance added to the marks of sincere mourning. A
large number of people chiefly of the presbyterian persuasion, and of
the proprietary party, with _William Allen_, esq. the chief justice’s
son at their head, assembled and endeavoured to procure the stamp
distributor’s resignation. It had been for some time warmly talked of,
that he ought to resign. Mr. _Hughes_ was obnoxious to both the
presbyterian and the proprietary party; but particularly hateful to the
latter as it was his _interest_, _assiduity_, and _influence_, in the
_Pennsylvania_ house of assembly that enabled the province to send home
Dr. _Franklin_ to present their petitions, for a change of govenment
from proprietary to royal—a change highly disagreeable to each party.
The body of quakers seemed disposed to pay obedience to the stamp act,
and so did part of the church of _England_, and of the baptists not
under proprietary influence. But no pains were spared to engage the
_Dutch_ and lower class of people in the opposition; and though Mr.
_Hughes_ held out long,[84] yet he found it necessary at length to
comply.

Mr. _Hood_, stamp distributor for _Maryland_, that he might avoid
resigning fled to _New-York_, and obtained protection in the fort. Upon
Sir _Henry Moor’s_ arrival he left the fort, and went to _Long-Island_.
A number of the freemen crossed over unexpectedly; surprised him;
obliged him to sign a paper, declaring his absolute and final
resignation; and then took him before a magistrate, to whom he read the
paper, and afterward made oath to the matter therein contained.

At _Boston_ they took care to keep up the spirit of liberty, though they
avoided former violence. [Sept. 21.] A new political paper appeared,
under the significant title of “The Constitutional Courant, containing
matters interesting to _liberty_, and no ways repugnant to _loyalty_;
printed by _Andrew Marval_, at the sign of the _Bribe refused_, on
_Constitution Hill, North America_.” It wore a more significant
head-piece—a snake cut into eight pieces, the head part having N E, The
initials of _New-England_ affixed to it, and the rest the initials of
the other colonies to _South-Carolina_ inclusive and in order, NY, NJ,
P, M, V, NC, SC.—The device accompanying them was, JOIN or DIE.

[Nov. 1.] The morning of the day when the stamp act took place, was
ushered in with the tolling of bells. The large old elm (which since the
fourteenth of August, when the riots began, had been adorned with an
inscription, and obtained the name of _liberty tree_, as the ground
under it had that of _liberty hall_—and which gave rise to other trees
being so called, upon an appropriation to popular purposes by the sons
of liberty) was decorated with two effigies. They were cut down at there
o’clock amid the acclamations of thousands, carried about town, then to
the gallows upon the Neck, there hung up again, after a while cut down,
torn in pieces, and scattered. The people repaired home; and the evening
passed away quietly. But a transaction took place afterward not much to
the credit of the town.

[Dec. 16.] Mr. _Oliver_ was called upon by a letter from (as is was
improperly signed) _the true sons of liberty_, to make a public
resignation of his office on the morrow under liberty tree. He desired a
gentleman to interpose, and procure him at least leave to resign in the
town-house; but after several consultations, nothing more could be
obtained than a promise of having no affront offered, and a proposal to
invite the principal persons of the town to accompany him. He was
obliged to repair to liberty tree; there to read his declaration in the
presence of more than two thousand people; and then to swear to it
before a justice, on the spot for that purpose. The cool, firm, and
judicious sons of liberty must condemn this procedure toward the
secretary, as mean, revengeful and cruel. It was torturing his feelings
afresh, as upon a stage, in the most conspicuous manner, after having
been terrified into a resignation four months before; and when it might
be expected, that the bitterness of the resentment against him was
ended.

The opposition to the stamp officers was not confined to the continent.
The people of St. _Kitts_ obliged the distributor and his deputy to
resign. _Barbadoes_ submitted to the act. _Jamaica_ in general cleared
out with stamps; but _Kingston_, as before, without. Upon the continent,
_Canada_ and _Halifax_ submitted.

The general fears that individuals were under, either of distributing or
using stamps, was increased in one government by the following paper,
pasted up at the door of every public office, and at the corner of the
streets—


                              Pro Patria.

The first man that either distributes or makes use of stamped paper, let
him take care of his house, person, and effects.

                      We dare
                                      Vox populi.


The public resentment was kept alive and lively by the contemptuous
treatment which the stamp act itself met with, being openly burnt in
several places with the effigies of the officers; and by caricatures,
pasquinades, puns, bon mots, and such vulgar sayings fitted to the
occasion, as being short, could be most easily circulated and retained,
while, being extremely expressive, they carried with them the weight of
great many arguments.

The resignation of the officers, and the want of persons, either to
undertake the delivery of stamps or to receive and use them, necessarily
laid the colonists under a legal inability for doing business, according
to parliamentary law. They however ventured upon it, and risked the
consequence. The vessels sailed from the ports as before; excepting
that, in some instances, a certificate was given, that the person
appointed to distribute stamped papers in the province, refused to
deliver them, which certificate being handed by the masters to the naval
officer, they were admitted to give bond in his office, and to pass
through the other offices without stamps. The _Rhode-Island_ and
_Providence_ Plantations kept their courts open the whole time, even
when they were suspended in the other colonies. Toward the end of
November it was agreed in _Maryland_ and _Virginia_ to proceed on
business in the usual manner without stamps. In the Massachusetts the
popular party so far prevailed, that the house of assembly resolved,
January the twenty-third, 1766, “That the shutting up the courts of
justice is a very great grievance; and that the judges, justices, and
all other public officers in this province ought to proceed as usual.”
But when the superior court opened, on the eleventh of March, the
parties concerned evaded the prosecuting of business. The lawyers in a
body waited, as usual, upon the judges, on the first day of the term,
before they went into the court. The chief justice, Mr. Hutchinson, not
being present at this meeting, Mr. Peter Oliver said he attended
according to his duty, and that he understood it would be expected that
he and his brethren should proceed in business in defiance of the late
act of parliament: such proceeding, he added, was contrary to his
judgment and opinion; and if he submitted io it, it would only be for
self-preservation, as he knew he was in the hands of the populace: he
therefore previously protested, that all such acts of his, if they sould
happen, would be acts under duress. To which the other judges assenting,
it was proposed to each of the lawyers singly, _Do you desire that
business should proceed contrary to the act of parliament?_ Every one of
them answered in the negative, even Mr. Otis himself.—But they said, it
would be proper to try a cause or two to quiet the people: accordingly
one cause, which had been at issue before the stamp act took place, was
tried and all other civil business was postponed to the middle of April.

Though the violent and righteous proceedings, which have been noticed,
were severely censured by many; and numbers in all the colonies might
seem inclined to submit to the stamp act, yet the right of imposing it
was universally condemned, and the colonial rights as universally
acceded to by the most peaceably disposed. The resolutions of the
_Pennsylvania_ assembly, which met at _Philadelphia_ in September 1765,
were passed _nemine contradicente_; and left upon their minutes, “as a
testimony of the zeal and ardent desire of that house, to preserve their
inestimable rights, which as _Englishmen_ they possessed ever since the
province was settled, and to transmit them to their latest posterity.”
They “resolved, That the only legal representatives of the inhabitants
of this province, are the persons they annually elect to serve as
members of assembly—Resolved, therefore, That the taxation of the people
of this province by any other persons whatsoever, than such their
representatives in assembly, is unconstitutional, and subversive of
their most valuable rights—Resolved, That the laying of taxes upon the
inhabitants of this province, in any other manner, being naturally
subversive of public liberty, must of necessary consequence, be utterly
destructive of public happiness.”[85] There might not be so many quakers
in the house as usual; the times probably occasioned a larger choice out
of other denominations; but there must have been several, and these we
find acquiesced. These resolutions are as much opposed to the claims of
the British parliament, as are those of the _Massachusetts_ assembly,
passed October the twenty-ninth. Indeed the latter dwell more upon the
unalienable essential rights of mankind, of which these cannot be
divested, consistent with the law of God and nature, by any law of
society; and they evidently mark it out, in their opinion, as one of
those rights, that no man can justly take the property of another
without his consent. They also resolved, that a representation in
parliament of the inhabitants of their province, such as the subjects of
Britain actually enjoy, is impracticable for the subjects in
America.[86]—But both assemblies, though their expressions differed,
agreed in resolving, that the extensions of the court of admiralty
within the provinces, is a most violent infraction of the right of
trials by juries. The resolves of the _Maryland_ and _Connecticut_
assemblies, passed, the one September the twenty-eighth, and the other
November the first, breathed the same spirit.[87]

[Oct. 31.] But we have now to attend to a judicious measure pursued by
the _New-York_ merchants, the more effectually to obtain a repeal of the
stamp act. They resolved to direct their correspondents not to ship any
more goods till it was repealed; and that they would not sell any goods
upon commission, which should be shipped from Britain, after the first
of January, unless upon that condition. They were the foremost in
adopting the non-importation agreement; and recommended the like conduct
to the _Massachusetts_, and the neighboring provinces in trade.

[Nov. 7.] The merchants and traders of _Philadelphia_ had a general
meeting, and entered into a similar agreement. Some quakers, who would
not sign the combination, thought it prudent to be governed by the same
restriction; and gave directions that the goods ordered should not be
sent, unless the stamp act was repealed.

It was not till December the ninth, that the merchants and traders of
Boston resolved upon a non-importation. Government may deem such
combinations illegal, as they are apt to do all that are opposed to
their own measures; but surely the case of communities is bad indeed, if
they have not a right voluntarily to agree among themselves, merely to
suspend buying till they can obtain their own terms, when equitable.

The peaceable line pursued in these agreements, had not been attended to
by all who opposed the stamp act. They therefore, for their own safety,
had a recourse to another, which might have drenched the country with
blood, had not the repeal prevented. The way had been prepared by the
publication of a system of politics, which appeared originally in the
New-York papers, the principal point of which was, that the colonies are
no otherwise related to Great-Britain than by having the same king. The
essays meant to propagate and support this system, made their first
appearance in the New-York prints, but most probably some of the
manuscripts were sent from Boston. The New-York sons of liberty had, at
length, a meeting, wherein they resolved, that they would go to the
extremity, with lives and fortunes to prevent the stamp act. This spirit
produced the following agreement between them and the sons of liberty in
Connecticut:

[Dec. 25.] “Certain reciprocal and mutual agreements concessions and
associations made, concluded, and agreed upon by and between the sons of
liberty of the colony of _New-York_, of the one part, and of the sons of
liberty of the colony of _Connecticut_, on the other part, this
twenty-fifth day of December, in the sixth year of the reign of our
sovereign lord _George_ the Third, by the grace of God, of
_Great-Britain_, _France_ and _Ireland_, king, defender of the faith,
and in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and sixty-five.

“The aforesaid parties taking into their most serious consideration the
melancholy and unsettled state of _Great-Britain_ and her
_North-American_ colonies, proceeding, as they are fully persuaded, from
a design in her most insidious and inveterate enemies, to alienate the
affections of his majesty’s most loyal and faithful subjects of
_North-America_ from his person and government—Therefore to prevent as
much as in us lies, the dissolution of so inestimable an union, they do,
in the presence of _Almighty God_, declare, that they bear the most
unshaken faith and true allegiance to his majesty king _George_ the
Third—that they are most affectionately and zealously attached to his
royal person and family, and are fully determined, to the utmost of
their power, to maintain and support his crown and dignity, and the
succession as by law established; and with the greatest cheerfulness
they submit to his government, according to the known and just
principles of the BRITISH CONSTITUTION, which they conceive to be
founded on the eternal and immutable principles of justice and equity,
and that every attempt to violate or wrest it, or any part of it, from
them, under whatever pretence, colour, or authority, is an heinous sin
against God, and the most daring contempt of the people, from whom
(under God) all just government springs. From a sacred regard to all
which, and a just sense of the impending evils that might befal them in
consequence of such a dreadful dissolution, they do hereby voluntarily,
and of their own free will, as well for the support of his majesty’s
just prerogative and the British constitution, as their own mutual
security and preservation, agree and concede to associate, advise,
protect, and defend each other in the peaceable, full, and just
enjoyment of their inherent and accustomed rights as British subjects of
their respective colonies, not in the least desiring any alteration or
innovation in the grand bulwark of their liberties and the wisdom of
ages, but only to preserve it inviolate from the corrupt hands of its
implacable enemies—And whereas a certain pamphlet has appeared in
America, in the form of an act of parliament, called and known by the
name of the _Stamp Act_, but has never been legally published or
introduced, neither can it, as it would immediately deprive them of the
most invaluable part of the British constitution, viz. the trial by
juries, and the most just mode of taxation in the world, that is, of
taxing themselves; rights that every British subject becomes heir to as
soon as born. For the preservation of which, and every part of the
British constitution, they do reciprocally resolve and determine to
march with the utmost dispatch, at their own proper costs and expence,
on the first proper notice (which must be signified to them by at least
six of the sons of liberty) with their whole force, if required, and it
can be spared, to the relief of those that shall, are, or may be in
danger from the _stamp act_, or its promoters and abettors, or any thing
relative to it, on account of any thing that may have been done in
opposition to its obtaining—and they do mutually and most fervently
recommend it to each other to be vigilant in watching all those who,
from the nature of their offices, vocations or dispositions, may be the
most likely to introduce the use of stamped papers, to the total
subversion of the British constitution and American liberty; and the
same, when discovered, immediately to advise each other of, let them be
of what rank or condition soever; and they do agree that they will
mutually, and to the utmost of their power, by all just ways and means,
endeavor to bring all such betrayers of their country to the most
condign punishment—and further, they do mutually resolve to defend the
liberty of the press in their respective colonies from all unlawful
violations and impediments whatever, on account of the said act, as the
only means (under divine Providence) of preserving their lives,
liberties, and fortunes, and the same in regard to the judges, clerks,
attornies, &c. that shall proceed without any regard to the _stamp act_,
from all pains, fines, mulcts, penalties, or any molestation
whatever—and finally, that they will, to the utmost of their power,
endeavor to bring about, accomplish and perfect the like association
with all the colonies on the continent, for the like salutary purposes,
and no other.”

The opposition to the stamp act raged apparently more in New-York and
Connecticut than in the Massachusetts; but the association being agreed
upon, was sent by express to the sons of liberty at Boston, and received
Sunday the second of February, 1766. On its receipt, letters were
forwarded to a few individuals; and on the sixth of February, a circular
letter to the several towns in the colony, containing the association
and the desire of the first original associators to accomplish the like
association, with a request to be informed of the sentiments and
dispositions of the people in such towns. A letter was also sent on the
same subject, to the sons of liberty at Portsmouth, in Hampshire colony.
They met; and in their answer of February the eighth, testified their
approbation of the measure already taken, and their determination to
oppose the execution of the stamp act, &c.

The Boston sons of liberty accepted the proposal of uniting themselves
to _New-York_ and _Connecticut_; and in their letter to the brotherhood
at _Norwich_, proposed to commence a continental union, of which the
latter greatly approved in their answer of February the tenth.

On February the thirteenth, the sons of liberty at _Boston_ wrote a
_circular letter_ to _New-Hampshire_, _Connecticut_, and _New-York_; and
before the month was ended, the _New-Yorkers_ sent circular letters as
far as _South-Carolina_, urging a continental union.

Most of the towns in the _Massachusetts_ having been applied to,
signified “their determination to march with their whole force to the
support of the British constitution, and consequently the relief of
those that shall or may be in danger from the stamp act, or its
abettors.”

It is not to be supposed, that the disorderly proceedings above related,
were chargeable solely on the dregs of the colonies.—The sons of liberty
at New-York, who held regular meetings, were said to be directed by much
greater persons than any that appeared among them. The mobs consisted
not of mere rabble; but were composed much of independent freemen and
freeholders, so that some of the first people in the provinces were
intimidated, and left the cause of the parliament without proper
support. Merchants, assemblymen, magistrates, &c. united directly or
indirectly in the riots, and without their influence and instigation the
lower class of inhabitants would have been quiet; but great pains were
taken to rouse them into action. At _Boston_ such was the protection and
countenance given to the rioters, that some of the principal ringleaders
walked the streets with impunity, no officer daring to attack them, no
attorney-general to prosecute them, no witness to appear against them,
and no judge to sit upon them. But when the enormities are said to have
originated from the Presbyterians and Congregationalists, the charge
must be imputed to malevolence, or to gross ignorance, or a mixture of
both. The gentlemen on the side of government who were upon the spot, in
their letters written at the time, placed them to the account of the
_Virginia_ resolves. Mr. _Hutchinson_ tells his correspondent, “Nothing
extravagant appeared in the papers till an account was received of the
_Virginia_ resolves.” Mr. _Hughes_ writes, “the fire began in
Virginia:”—governor _Bernard_, “the publishing the _Virginia_
resolutions proved an alarm bell to the disaffected:” another, in his
letter to Mr. Secretary _Conway_ from _New-York_, “the resolves of the
assembly of _Virginia_ gave the signal for a general outcry over the
continent.” The _Virginians_ are episcopalians and if there is either
blame or merit in exciting that fixed and spirited opposition to the
stamp act which followed upon their resolves, let them be credited for
the same; to them belongs the honor or disgrace; and solely to
particular colonies the disgrace of the several enormites committed in
them. The bulk of the people at _Boston_ are congregationalists; at
_New-York_, the presbyterians, including the Dutch and foreign
societies, may possibly be fully equal to, or even exceed the
episcopalians. At _Newport_ all denominations are equally encouraged,
and enjoy no ascendency over each other, and therefore might be equally
concerned, the peaceable quakers excepted. At _New-York_ the most
violent actors were episcopalians; at _Boston_ congregationalists;
though here they were joined by a number of episcopalians, and there by
a number of presbyterians.

People in _Britain_ were differently affected by the disturbances in the
colonies. This party was for supporting the authority of parliament at
all adventures, and for enforcing the stamp act, if needful, with the
point of the sword: that for quieting the colonies by the repeal of it.
Happy for them, Mr. _Grenville_ and his party had thrown themselves out
of place on a difference as to the regency bill; so that the marquis of
_Rockingham_, and others in opposition, who were better inclined to the
Americans, came into office, July 10, 1765. The marquis and his friends
did not come to a resolution directly to repeal the act. The main lines
of their own plan were not marked out, nor the repeal determined upon,
until a little before the meeting of parliament. But the choice of the
measure, and of the principle to proceed upon was made before the
session. The papers relative to American affairs were produced to the
house of commons; and it was a kind of plan on all sides, to maintain
the authority of parliament, and by that very authority to give the
colonies every relief the nature of the case required. But the great
commoner Mr. _Pitt_, who neither communicated, nor connected himself
with any one, came to the house and declared, that parliament had _no
right_ to tax the colonies; and said also, _I am glad America has
resisted_. He hereby deranged matters; threw the opposition into a rage;
and reduced the ministry to a necessity of accompanying the repeal, with
a declaratory bill, expressive of the _right_ of parliament to _bind_
the colonies _in all cases whatsoever_.

[1766.] Mr. _Grenville_ moved that the stamp act should be enforced, and
was supported by 134, but opposed by 274—The merchants and manufacturers
joined their efforts with ministry to obtain a repeal. They were alarmed
at the non-importation agreement, and the confusions which existed, as
being necessarily prejudicial to their own interests, and tending to the
destruction of commerce. The ministry did not fail to encourage
petitions, complaining of hardships brought on by the great decay of
trade to the American colonies; and also instructions to members from
the trading and manufacturing towns. The petition of congress was not
admitted; the members not being called together by the authority of the
crown, though a futile, was yet a prevailing argument against its
admission. But the repeal was grounded on the other petitions; and after
a six weeks inquiry into _American_ affairs, was moved for, with the
greatest propriety, by general _Conway_, the secretary, who had opposed
the stamp bill at the second reading, and denied the right of parliament
to tax the Americans. The debate, which ensued, was warm, interesting
and long. But, by three o’clock in the morning, “[Feb. 22.] the house,
by an independent noble spirited and unexpected majority, in the teeth
of all the old mercenary _Swiss_ of the state, in despite of all the
speculators and augurs of political events, in defiance of the whole
embattled legion of veteran pensioners and practised instruments of
court, gave a total repeal to the stamp act, and (if the scheme of
taxing the colonies had been totally abandoned) a lasting peace to the
whole empire.”[88] The motion was carried by 275 against 167. The cyder
counties supported it; for they expected a repeal of the duty on cyder,
and obtained it in April. It has been said, that had not the ministry
bartered the stamp act against the repeal of the cyder duty, they would
not have succeeded.[89] This however must be a false charge, if the
former marked paragraph is strictly true. During the debate, “the
trading interests of the empire crammed into the lobbies of the house of
commons, with a trembling and anxious expectation, and waited, almost to
a winter’s return of light, their fate from the resolution of the house.
When at length, they had determined in their favor, and the doors thrown
open, showed them the figure of their deliverer, in the well earned
triumph of his important victory, from the whole of that grave multitude
there arose an involuntary burst of gratitude and transport. They jumped
upon him, like children on a long absent father. They clung about him as
captives about their redeemer, All _England_ joined in his applause. Nor
did he seem insensible of the best of all earthly rewards, the love and
admiration of his fellow citizens. _Hope elevated, and joy brightened
his crest._”[90]

The ministry had certainly great difficulties to encounter: the
principal originated in the colonies, and were caused by the intemperate
proceedings of the various ranks of men within them. “Their violence
awakened the honor of parliament, especially after Mr. _Pitt’s_ speech,
and thereby involved every friend of the repeal into the imputation of
betraying its dignity. This is so true, that the act could not have been
repealed, had not men’s minds been in some measure satisfied with the
_declaration of right_.”[91] All the _Scotch_ members, save two, voted
against the repeal. Mr. Bollan, who informed lieutenant-governor
Hutchinson of it by letter, omitted mentioning the names of the
gentlemen.

The bill having passed the house of commons, went up to the house of
lords. Lords _Bute_ and _Strange_ publicly declared, that his majesty’s
wish was nor for a repeal. The marquis of _Rockingham_ and Lord
_Shelberne_ went together to the king, and told what was reported. They
were informed, that his majesty had expressed his desire that it should
be inforced; but if it could not be done peaceably and without
bloodshed, it was his sincere desire and intention that it should be
totally repealed. The dukes of York and Cumberland, the lords of the
bedchamber and the officers of the household, were for carrying fire and
sword to America. Most of the bench of bishops joined them. Instead of
ascribing that to a sanguinary disposition, to which their profession
was opposed; let it be imputed to the painful prospect of being hindered
eventually from establishing the English hierarchy whithin the American
colonies. There was in the house of lords, proxies included, for the
repeal 105, against it, 71.

On Wednesday, March the nineteenth, his majesty went to the house of
peers, and passed the bill for repealing the American stamp act; as also
that for securing the dependency of the colonies on the British crown.
On this occasion the American merchants made a most numerous appearance,
to express their gratitude and joy; ships in the river displayed their
colours; houses at night were illuminated all over the city, and every
decent and orderly method was observed, to demonstrate the just sense
they entertained of his majesty’s goodness, and wisdom of parliament in
conciliating the minds of the people on this critical occasion. An
express was dispatched immediately to Falmouth, with letters to the
different provinces, acquainting them with the news of the repeal: that
so their fears might vanish, and give place to joy and exultation.




                               LETTER IV.


                                              _Roxbury, April 14, 1773._

Mr. _Samuel Adams’s_ name will occur frequently in the course of our
correspondence; be it noted, therefore, that the first time of his being
returned for _Boston_, [Sept. 27, 1765] and serving as a representative,
was upon an election occasioned by the death of _Oxenbridge Thacher_,
esq. The deceased belonged to the band of patriots; but when he happened
to think differently from Mr. _Otis_, jun. in the house of assembly, the
latter treated him in so overbearing and indecent a manner, that he was
obliged at times to call upon the speaker to interpose and protect him.
The state of affairs required a particular attention to the political
sentiments of the person who should be chosen. The inhabitants, in
fixing upon Mr. S. Adams, made choice of a member who was zealously
attached to the rights of the Massachusetts in particular, and the
colonies in general, and but little to his own personal interests. He
was well qualified to second Mr. Otis, and learned in time to serve his
own public views by the influence of the other. He was soon noticed by
the house, chosen and continued their clerk from year to year, by which
means he had the custody of their papers, and of these he knew how to
make an advantage for political purposes. He was frequently upon
important committees, and acquired great ascendency by discovering a
readiness to acquiesce in the proposals and amendments of others, while
the end aimed at by them, did not eventually frustrate his leading
designs. He showed a pliableness and complaisance in these smaller
matters, which enabled him in the issue to carry those of much greater
consequence; and there were many favorite points which the sons of
liberty in the _Massachusetts_ meant to carry, even though the stamp act
should be repealed.

[1766.] Mr. _Pitt_’s declaration against the parliament’s right to
impose _internal taxes_, and his saying _I am glad America has
resisted_, were seized with eagerness by the popular leaders in the
colonies. They praised and idolized him for the same, without regarding
what he had declared in favor of the authority of parliament in all
cases of _external taxation_, and for enforcing all laws for that
purpose; and notwithstanding his having said, “If obedience be refused,
I would not suffer a horse-nail to be made in the plantations.” Their
spirits were elated, and they took encouragement from his declaration,
to fortify themselves in their own sentiments upon American liberty.

It is impossible to express or describe the extraordinary joy with which
the body of the Americans received the news of the repeal, though the
power of the vice-admiralty courts remained unabridged, and the
declaratory act was added. The latter was considered by some, as passed
merely to save appearances, while contemned by others, whose wisdom
would have been more evident had they repressed their contempt, whatever
was their opinion. In regard to the former, “the judges of the
vice-admiralty courts in the colonies, had assigned them, by acts of
parliament, a jurisdiction for the recovery of penalties upon the laws
of revenue and trade, without juries for near a century past.”[92] Had a
prudent and moderate temper taken possession of all parties at this
period, it had been happy: but they were so much heated in some
colonies, as to be determined upon opposing each other.

When the choice of members for _Boston_, to represent the town in the
next general court, was approaching, Mr. _John Rowe_, a merchant, who
had been active on the side of liberty in matters of trade, was thought
of by some influential persons. Mr. _Samuel Adams_ artfully nominated a
different one, by asking with his eyes looking to Mr. _Hancock_’s house,
“Is there not another _John_ that may do better?” The hint took. Mr.
_John Hancock_’s uncle was dead, and had left him a very considerable
fortune. Mr. _Samuel Adams_ judged that the fortune would give credit
and support to the cause of liberty; that popularity would please the
possessor; and that he might be easily secured by prudent management,
and might make a conspicuous figure in the band of patriots.

Messrs. _James Otis_, jun. _Thomas Cushing_, _Samuel Adams_, and _John
Hancock_ (who had never been of the house before) were returned for
_Boston_. The town of _Plymouth_ made choice also of a new
representative, the high sheriff of the county, _James Warren_, esq. a
gentleman of real abilities, and who espoused the side of liberty upon
principle. The government wished to have him upon their side, and played
off both threats and promises; however he was immoveable.

[May 28.] The general court met according to charter. The house of
assembly chose Mr. _Otis_ speaker. Governor _Bernard_ negatived, instead
of adopting the conciliating measure of accepting him. The acceptance
might have softened and induced him to have dropped the plan of leaving
out of the council, in the new election, the crown officers and justices
of the superior court; but the refusal confirmed him in it, and by
irritating the house, enabled him to execute it the more easily. The
crown officers were, the lieutenant governor and secretary, Messrs.
_Hutchinson_ and _Oliver_; the others held only provincial commissions.
The opposition assigned as the reason for leaving them out, that they
might redress a grievance long complained of by their constituents, a
dangerous union of legislative and executive powers in the same persons.
But the true ones probably were, the suspicions and dislike they
entertained of and to their political sentiments, and Mr. _Otis_’s
having been negatived. Mr. _Bernard_ retaliated, and excepted against
the six counsellors chosen in the room of the others. Thus the animosity
was increased. Had he negatived two or three only, there might have been
an opening for healing the breach; but now it was otherwise. The liberty
party gained strength, and it was ordered by the assembly [June 12.]
“That the debates of this house be open, and that a gallery be erected
for the accommodation of such as shall be inclined to attend them.” A
gallery was prepared with the utmost expedition, and finished in a few
days. It was viewed as a great acquisition to the common cause; and
certainly served a double purpose. The admission of the people at large
to hear the debates, and to watch the members, restrained some from
speaking with their usual freedom in support of governmental measures;
and encouraged others to indulge themselves in all that animated
language, and those solemn protestations of disinterested zeal for the
rights and privileges of their country, which are so taking with men of
honest minds and plain understandings. But you are not to suppose that
these protestations were always true on this side of the Atlantic any
more than on yours. Many joined the banners of liberty, and violently
opposed the governor and governmental measures, because of the
restraints they were under from the laws of trade, the danger they were
in of suffering by them, and his persisting to give these laws all the
support in his power. The opposition had great advantage in the
political contest, by branding all the supporters of government as
friends to the stamp act, though they knew to the contrary. Both sides
were sensible that the act was merely financial, without any regard to
the political state of America, or any purpose to remove one of its
difficulties.

The house was unanimous in voting, that thanks should be returned to the
duke of _Grafton_ and other noblemen, to Mr. _Pitt_ and other gentlemen,
who had been active and aiding in the repeal of the stamp act. However,
when his majesty’s recommendation to make up the losses of the sufferers
in the late unhappy times, came before them from the governor, with
these words, “The justice and humanity of this requisition is so
forcible that it cannot be controverted; the authority with which it is
introduced, should preclude all disputation about complying with it;”
they objected to the manner in which it was proposed, as being
“derogatory to the honor of the house, and in breach of the privileges
thereof,” and unreasonably declined making compensation; whereas their
privileges might have been preserved uninjured, by a vote to relieve the
sufferers on their own application, out of dutiful respect to the mild
representation of his majesty, and out of humanity and generosity to the
sufferers.

When a compensation was first talked of, it was the general opinion that
it ought to be made, but that it was due from Boston only, and not the
province in general. This thought probably determined the Boston members
to oppose making the compensation even out of the treasury; a way in
which it might have been done, had they and their friends joined the
friends of government. But had the money been ordered out of the
treasury, a subsequent motion might have charged it upon Boston, which
as the tax bill was to be past at that time, would have been easily
effected. The interest of the town induced its members to employ every
circumstance to prevent the compensation’s being voted at present. After
a while repeated advices were received, that the honor of parliament was
engaged to see the compensation made, and that they would certainly take
it in hand, if the provincial assembly refused. It was obvious that the
parliament could enforce payment from a sea port. The people of Boston
grew uneasy that the money was not paid. A town-meeting was called; the
above mentioned expedient was proposed and approved of, and their
representatives were directed to use their influence that compensation
might be granted upon those principles, and the money be paid out of the
treasury.

[Sept.] Mr. _Hutchinson_ and the other sufferers petitioned for
relief.[93] Their petitions were considered; and on the question being
put, “Whether shall compensation be made out of the province treasury?”
it passed in the negative. A bill, however, was finally admitted for
making compensation, which was to be transmitted to the several towns,
for the sentiments of the constituents.

[Dec. 5.] It passed to be engrossed, yeas 53, nays 35; but not without
the house’s resolving, “That it is under a full persuasion that the
sufferers have no just claim or demand on the province.” A needless
resolve, tending to excite disgust in many, without answering any
important purpose. The act granted compensation to the sufferers; and a
free and general pardon, indemnity, and oblivion to the offenders in the
late times. It was disallowed at home, on account of the assembly’s
having incorporated an act of pardon with an act of compensation,
without having obtained his majesty’s previous consent to such an act of
pardon. The sufferers, however, received the compensation, and the
offenders were not prosecuted.

[Nov. 7.] In _Virginia_ a bill passed the house of burgesses, for
erecting a statue to his majesty, as an acknowledgment for repealing the
stamp act, and also an obelisk to commemorate those worthy patriots who
distinguished themselves in bringing about that happy event. And at
_New-York_ [Dec.] an act was passed for making restitution to the
several persons therein named, for losses sustained in the late
commotions. But when the assembly was applied to for carrying into
execution the act of parliament of the preceding year, for quartering
his majesty’s troops, they said in their address to the governor, Sir
_Henry Moore_, “According to the construction put on it here, it is
required that all the forces which shall at any time enter this colony,
shall be quartered during the whole year in a very unusual and expensive
manner; by marching several regiments into this colony, this expence
would become ruinous and insupportable; and therefore we cannot,
consistent with our duty to our constituents, put it in the power of any
person (whatsoever confidence we may have of his prudence and integrity)
to lay such a burden on them,” and so justified their declining to
provide for the troops.

Before closing the account of 1766, be it observed, that the people of
_Connecticut_ failed not to show their resentment against their late
governor’s having qualified, agreeable to what the stamp act enjoined.
There was a meeting of gentlemen at _Hartford_, for concerting a plan
for the choice of a new governor and counsellors, in the room of those,
who with him had taken the oath required. Matters were so managed at
this meeting, that when the election came on, Mr. _Petkin_ was chosen
governor, and colonel _Trumbull_ deputy governor. But the episcopalians,
almost to a man, voted for Mr. _Fitch_; and by thus making a party with
administration against the claims and rights of their colony, rendered
themselves obnoxious.

[Jan. 31, 1767.] The _Massachusetts_ house of assembly continued their
opposition to the lieutenant governor Mr. _Hutchinson_, and resolved,
“That he not being elected a counsellor, has by the charter, no right to
a seat at the council board, with or without a voice, while the
commander in chief is in the province.” March the fifth the council
determined the same; but in their message to the house, expressed their
surprise at what had been done without them, and at its not being
mentioned to the board till February the twenty-fourth. Mr. _Hutchinson_
afterward did not attempt to be present. Lord Shelburne, in answer to
what was transmitted to him by the governor upon the affair, wrote in
September, “the admission of the lieutenant governor, lies after all in
the breast of the council only, as being the proper judges of their own
privileges, and as having a right to determine whom they will admit to
be present at their deliberations.” These proceedings of the
_Massachusetts_ and _New-York_ assemblies, thought to be, in name at
least, two of the most considerable in the colonies, were ascribed to an
unreasonable perverseness of temper; and exasperated the friends of
America by exposing them, however unjustly, to the imputation of
sacrificing the interests of Great-Britain to those of America. They
also encouraged the anti-Americans to resume the plan of taxing the
colonies; and Mr. _Charles Townsend_ pawned his credit to them for
effecting it, and became chancellor of the exchequer. But three of the
ministry opposed in the council taxing the Americans afresh, and it
would have been a blessing had their opinion prevailed.

[May 13.] The chancellor of the exchequer moved for leave to bring in
bills for granting a duty upon paper, glass, painters colours, &c. in
the British American colonies; for settling salaries on the governors,
judges, &c. in North-America; and for taking off the duty on teas
exported to America, and granting a duty of three-pence a pound on the
importation in America. Two bills were at length framed, the one for
granting duties in the British colonies in America, on paper, glass,
painters colours, tea, &c. the other for taking off the duty of a
shilling a pound on all black and singlo tea, and for granting a
drawback on teas exported to Ireland and America. The first received the
royal assent June the twenty-ninth; the last July the second. The
preamble to the first act expresses, that the duties are laid “for the
better support of government, and the administration of the colonies.”
The colonists deemed it unnecessary, unjust, and dangerous to their most
important rights. There is a clause in it enabling the crown, by sign
manual to establish _a general civil list_ throughout every province in
_North-America_, to any indefinite extent, with any salaries, pensions,
or appointments, to any unlimited amount, even to the produce of the
last farthing of the American revenue. The point was now carried, which
had been the object of every minister since the reign of Charles II.
viz. _the establishment of a civil list in America, independent of the
assemblies_. Mr. _Richard Jackson_ spoke in the house of commons against
that part of the bill, and was supported only by Mr. _Huske_, and no
other member. He was convinced, that though the judges ought to be
independent both of crown and people, yet mischiefs might arise from the
independency of governors on the people, much greater than could arise
from their dependence; and that it was not fit that such persons as
governors usually are, should be independent of the people, and
dependent upon the crown for their governments. The act provides, that
after all such ministerial warrants under the sign manual, as are
_thought proper and necessary_, shall be satisfied, the residue of the
revenue shall be at the disposal of the parliament. But who can suppose
that such warrants will ever be satisfied till ministers have provided
for all their friends and favorites? May it not be said upon the plan of
this act, “the mockery of an American revenue proves at last to be the
crumbs that fall from the minister’s table—the residue, indeed, of a
royal warrant, countersigned by the first lord of the treasury.”[94]

An account being received of _New-York_’s having refused to provide for
quartering the troops, Mr. _Grenville_ and his adherents raised such a
clamor against America, that it was thought necessary to bring in a bill
[May 27.] “for restraining the assembly of _New-York_ from passing any
act till they had complied with the act of parliament for the furnishing
his majesty’s troops with the necessaries required by that act;” and it
had the royal assent the second of July. The taking away in this manner
from the province of _New-York_ all the powers of legislation, till they
should comply with the former act, occasioned a general alarm among the
Americans. They now saw that their own colonial parliaments, as they
considered them, were to be bound to what the British ministry might
deem their good behavior, by the acts of a British parliament. Nothing
could be more grating to the sons of liberty in every province. It was
the club of power, which, while it knocked down the _New-York_ assembly,
threatened every other with the like, if not pliable.

A plan of a board of commissioners for the American department, in order
to ease the old board of commissioners of part of its burden through
increasing business, had been in contemplation. It was intended to be
placed in London, in order to be near the treasury, the ultimatum of
revenue matters. Mr. _Paxton_, thought to be the most plausible and
insinuating of mankind though not the most sincere, having left Boston
and gone to Britain, had free access to the chancellor of the exchequer,
Mr. _Charles Townsend_. It is said that he whined, cried, professed,
swore, and made his will in favor of that great man; and then urged the
necessity of an _American board of commissioners_, and his having a seat
at it. He might forward the business. Be that as it may, the chancellor
brought in a bill [June 3.] for establishing a custom-house and a board
of commissioners in America, which also passed into an act at the same
time with the former. Mr. Paxton, for his own convenience and pleasure,
might procure the fixing the board at Boston; but of all places it was
the most improper. The people were, of all others, the most jealous of
infringements on their liberties; and were the least suited to see crown
officers living among them in great state, upon what they could not but
deem, from the mediocrity of their own circumstances, large salaries,
payable from the revenue to be raised from the colonies. The board
should have been placed at _New-York_. Smuggling was as prevalent there
as at Boston. The inhabitants had been long used to crown officers with
splendid appearances; the commanders of his majesty’s troops resided
much among them; numbers of them lived in a higher stile than the
Bostonians; beside, there the commissioners would have had forces at
hand to have supported them, and have met with greater assistance from
the servants of a royal government and their connections. The timing
also as well as the placing of the board, was rather unfortunate; for it
supplied the Americans with the opportunity of propagating that it was
appointed merely to enforce the new duties. By this means the people
were inflamed, and the appointment was pronounced unconstitutional and
oppressive. The duties were to take place after the twentieth of
November; and in the beginning of that month, three of the
commissioners, _Henry Hulton_, _William Burch_, and _Charles Paxton_,
esqs. arrived at Boston; the other two, _John Temple_ and _John
Robinson_, esqs. were in America before. As to the expence of the board
of customs, including the whole, it was a thousand pounds less than that
of the four surveyors general, and the office connected with them at
London. The chancellor had been instrumental in reviving those American
animosities which the repeal of the stamp act had quieted; but did not
live to see the fatal consequences which have followed, as he died the
fourth of September.

[Oct. 28.] A few gentlemen at a private club in _Boston_, having
suggested a non-importation agreement, the thought was improved upon,
till at length the inhabitants, at a town meeting, agreed upon measures
to promote industry, œconomy, and manufactures; thereby to prevent the
unnecessary importation of _European_ commodities. They also voted, that
a subscription paper should be prepared, and a committee appointed to
procure subscriptions to it; by which the parties engaged to encourage
the use and consumption of all articles manufactured in any of the
British American colonies; and after the thirty-first of December
following, not to purchase certain enumerated articles imported from
abroad.

The failure of expected success from these measures, and an apprehension
of disagreeable consequences from an ineffectual opposition, were
probably the motives that induced Mr. _Otis_ at a subsequent
town-meeting [Nov. 20.] to make a long speech on the side of government,
wherein he asserted the king’s right to appoint officers of the customs,
in which number and by what denomination he pleased; and that as to the
new duties, it would be very imprudent in the town to make an opposition
to them, when every town in the province, and every other province in
America seemed to acquiesce in them and be contented. But the proposed
measures were afterward approved of and adopted _Providence_ and
_Newport_.

[Jan. 1768.] The _Connecticut_ towns and _New-York_ followed the
exemple. Still the business laboured without being productive of any
important effects. This engaged the attention of one captain Malcolm, a
small trader, who about eighteen months before had made himself famous
by a violent and successful resistance with sword and pistol to the
custom-house officers, when endeavouring to search his house for
uncustomed goods, under the authority of a writ of assistance. Having,
about the middle of February, safely run the cargo of a schooner from
Fyall, consisting of about sixty pipes of wine, he, within two or three
days, procured a meeting of some merchants and traders at which he
presided. Nothing was determined upon more, than the calling of a
general meeting of the merchants on Friday, March the fourth. This may
be stiled the first movement of the merchants against the new acts of
parliament. The result of this meeting was, that a subscription for not
importing any English goods, except for the fishery, for eighteen
months, should be prepared and carried round the town. It met with no
great encouragement, and many declined subscribing. On this all engines
were set to work; some were threatened and made afraid for their person
and houses; others for their trade and credit.—By such means the
subscription was filled. But the merchants of New-York and Philadelphia
declined to concur in the measure, those of Boston were obliged to give
it up for the present. However, they renewed it within a few months, as
you will learn below.

The _New-England_ spirit of patriotism and œconomy was greatly approved
of at _Philadelphia_: and it was said, that “If America is saved from
its impending danger, New-England will be its acknowledged guardian.”
Periodical pieces were published at Boston on the nature and extent of
British parliamentary power. Hints were thrown out about independency,
and intimations given, that freemen were not to be governed any more
than taxed but by their own consent, in real or virtual representatives.
The power of British legislation over the Americans was questioned, and
virtually denied. Matters were brought to this length, by broaching a
new dispute that should never have been moved again; and which might
happily have lain dorment for half a century or more had no fresh
attempt been made to tax the Americans. Before the stamp act they
allowed the mother country a certain prerogative over them. They
acquiesced in the parliament’s right to make many acts, binding them in
divers internal matters, and regulating their trade. They did not reason
neither then nor immediately after the repeal, “if the parliament has no
right to tax us _internally_, they have none to tax us _externally_, or
to make any other law to bind us.” They admitted the distinction between
internal and external taxation, and between raising money from the
regulation of trade, and raising it for the purpose of a revenue. The
wisdom of parliament should have abode by their concessions, and have
adopted and confirmed their distinction. But being obliged to enter
afresh the field of political controversy, great numbers began to think,
that the want of representation in parliament, freed them absolutely
from any obedience to the power of the British legislature; and that
there was no real, and only a nominal difference between internal and
external taxation, agreeable to what was insisted upon by the party
opposing the repeal of the stamp act. _John Dickinson_, esq. began so
early as in November, 1767, to employ his pen against the act which had
been passed, in a series of _Letters from a farmer in Pennsylvania to
the inhabitants of the British Colonies_. They amounted to twelve; and
in them he ably maintained the rights of the colonists. He closed with a
postscript in these words: “Is there not the greatest reason to hope, if
the universal sense of these colonies is immediately exprest by
_resolves_ of the assembles in support of their rights, by
_instructions_ to their agents on the subject, and by _petitions_ to the
crown and parliament for redress, that those measures will have the same
success now that they had in the time of the stamp act?” The inhabitants
of Boston were so sensible of the eminent service he did to the common
cause, that they wrote to him upon the occasion. It his answer, April
the eleventh, he said, “Never will my heart become insensible till
insensible of all worldly things, of the unspeakable obligation I owe to
the inhabitants of the _Massachusetts Bay_, for the vigilance with which
they have watched over, and the magnanimity with which they have
maintained the liberties of the _British colonies_ on this continent.”
It was probably owing to Mr. _Dickinson’s_ publications, that the
_Pennsylvania_ assembly, early in February, before they knew what
measure the _Massachusetts Bay_, or any other colony, would pursue, took
into consideration the act imposing duties on paper, glass, &c. and gave
positive instructions to their agents, to unite with other agents, in
applying to parliament and praying relief.

It may be justly concluded, from governor _Bernard’s_ letters to lord
Shelburne, that the Massachusetts assembly were inclined to bury in
oblivion the discords occasioned by the stamp act, and to escape other
subjects of future controversy, had not the late chancellor unhappily
revived the animosities. “The house, (says the governor) from the time
of opening the session to this day, has shown a disposition to avoid all
dispute with me; every thing having passed with as much good humor as I
could desire, except only their continuing to act in addressing the
king, remonstrating to the secretary of state, and employing a separate
agent. It is the importance of this innovation which induces me to make
this remonstrance, at a time when I have a fair prospect of having in
all other business, nothing but good to say of the proceedings of the
house.”[95]

“They have acted in all thing, even in their remonstrance, with temper
and moderation: they have avoided some subjects of dispute, and have
laid a foundation for removing some causes of former altercation.”[96]

“I will make such a prudent and proper use of the letter, as, I hope,
will perfectly restore the peace and tranquility of this province, for
which purpose considerable steps have been made by the house of
representatives.”[97]

[Jan. 21.] The _Massachusetts_ house of representatives, in a debate
upon the expediency of writing to the assemblies of the other colonies
upon the continent, with respect to the importance of joining with
them,” put a question on the proposition of writing letters, desiring
those assemblies to join them, which was negatived for this very reason,
because containing the proposition of joining. The house thought
exceptions might be taken at it, as having a tendency to from
combinations; and that it might be considered at home as the appointing
another congress. It is an excellent rule of the house, that no vote
shall be re-considered, unless the number of members present equals the
number at its passing. When they had the same number, eithty-two, which
makes a full house, a motion was made [Feb. 4.] for re-considering the
vote against applying to the other colonies; and the vote of
re-consideration was obtained by a large majority. The same day a
committee was appointed to prepare a letter to be transmitted to the
several houses of representatives and burgesses upon the continent, to
inform them of the measures the house had taken with regard to
difficulties they were apprehensive would arise from the operation of
several acts of parliament for levying duties and taxes on the American
colonies. The committee after deliberating a week, reported the letter,
[Feb 11.] which being read in the house, was accepted almost
unanimously, in the presence of eighty-three members. It began thus:
“Sir, the house of representatives of this province have taken into
their serious consideration the great difficulties that must accrue to
themselves and their constituents, by the operation of several acts of
parliament imposing duties and taxes on the American colonies.” It then
related the measures they had taken in petitioning the king, making
representations to the ministry, &c. and concluded with, “the house is
fully satisfied that your assembly is too generous and enlarged in
sentiment, to believe that this letter proceeds from an ambition of
taking the lead or dictating to the other assemblies. They freely submit
their opinion to the judgment of others, and shall take it kind in your
house to point out to them any thing further that may be though
necessary. This house cannot conclude without expressing their firm
confidence in the king, our common head and father, that the united and
dutiful supplications of his distressed American subjects will meet with
his royal and favorable acceptance.”

[Feb. 25.] _Peter Gilman_, esq. speaker of the _New-Hampshire_ assembly
wrote by order of the house, in answer to the Massachusetts circular
letter—“The sentiments contained in it are highly approved, and the
communication kindly received and gratefully acknowledged. The time of
the house’s existance in that relation is near expiring; they cannot
engage for their successors and can only express their satisfaction in
the Massachusetts proceedings, and declare their hopes, that the next
assembly will heartily concur in sentiments on this affair, and pursue
the same method.” The letter ran in the highest recommendatory strain of
the Massachusetts Bay assembly; and concluded with, “What remains for us
at present, is to offer our daily prayer to the Governor and Lord of the
universe, to avert the impending evil, and to make way for the full
establishment of British liberty in every branch of it, and to quiet
every colony in the enjoyment of all their civil and religious rights
and privileges.” For these courtly expressions, with which the house
declined doing any thing in the business, the next assembly was rewarded
with courtly commendations. The governor, _John Wentworth_, esq. in a
message of October the twentieth, communicated the copy of the following
extract of a letter from Lord _Hillsborough_, of July the ninth: “It is
his majesty’s pleasure that you should assure his faithful subjects in
_New-Hampshire_, that his majesty has nothing more at heart than to
promote their welfare and happiness, whose cheerful obedience to the
laws of this kingdom, and steady resolution in refusing to accede to the
measures and proposals which have been urged with so much indecent
warmth in other colonies, cannot fail to recommend them to his royal
favour and countenance.” The assembly, however, nine days after,
petitioned the king, and mentioned that his royal predecessors granted
them a power of legislation, limited to the approbation or disallowance
of the crown, with the powers and privileges essential to British
liberty, of raising internal taxes by their own representatives. The
petition was most profoundly humble, and so softly worded, that it could
not offend the most delicate ear of the highest parliamentary
prerogative man. By some accident or contrivance, it was not sent till
antiquated and out of season. Mr. _Wentworth_ had gained an ascendency
over the people of his government, by which he kept them from entering
into such spirited measures for the redress of grievances as would be
offensive to ministry. The other colonies adopted a different line of
conduct. The _Virginia_ house of burgesses applauded the _Massachusetts_
representatives for their attention to American liberty; took notice of
the act suspending the legislative powers of _New-York_; and said, “If
the parliament can compel the colonies to furnish a single article to
the troops sent over, they may, by the same rule, oblige them to furnish
clothes, arms, and every other necessary, even to the pay of the
officers and soldiers, a doctrine replete with every mischief, and
utterly subversive of all that is dear and valuable.” The council
concurred with them in all their proceedings; and their agent was
enjoined to consult the agents of the other colonies, and to co-operate
with them in applying for redress. Most of the assemblies upon the
continent, as they had opportunity, approved of the doings of the
Massachusetts, and harmonized with them in resolves and petitions.
[April 22.] But an account of their doings had not reached Great-Britain
long, before lord _Hillsborough_ wrote Gov. _Bernard_ upon the occasion.
For want of fuller and juster information, or of due attention to the
governor’s expressions, the proceeding which originated the circular
letter, was mentioned—“as unfair, contrary to the real sense of the
assembly, and procured by surprise; and therefore” upon this mistaken
principle, the governor was instructed, “so soon as the general court is
again assembled, to require of the house of representatives, in his
majesty’s name, to rescind the resolution which gave birth to the
circular letter from the speaker, and to declare their disapprobation
of, and dissent to that rash and hasty proceeding.” In case they refused
to comply, he was immediately to dissolve them, and to transmit to his
lordship an account of their transactions. [June 21.] The house was
informed of what was required; and three days after, of what they were
to expect if unpliable. Their resolution not being returned within six
days of the last part of the information, the governor sent them word he
could wait no longer, which hastened the business in which they were
engaged.

[30.] A committee of the house reported a letter to Lord _Hillsborough_,
setting forth the several votes and resolutions which passed in the last
house of representatives, relating to the circular letter; and showing
that the whole of these matters was transacted in the height of the
cession in a full house, and by a large majority. The letter was
approved of by 93 out of 105 members present, and ordered to be
transmitted to his lordship. The house agreed also upon a message to the
governor, in which they said, “It is to us incomprehensible that we
should be required, on the peril of a dissolution of the general court,
to rescind a resolution of a former house, when it is evident, that that
resolution has no existence but as a mere historical fact. Your
excellency must know, that the resolution is, to speak in the language
of the common law, not now executory, but to all intents and purposes
executed. If, as is most probable, by the word rescinding is intended
the passing a vote, in direct and express disapprobation of the measure
taken by the former house as illegal, inflammatory, and tending to
promote unjustifiable combinations against his majesty’s peace, crown
and dignity, we must take the liberty to testify and publicly declare,
that we take it to be the native, inherent, and indefeasible right of
the subject, jointly or severally, to petition the king for the redress
of grievances; provided alway, that the same be done in a decent,
dutiful, loyal and constitutional way, without tumult, disorder and
confusion.—If the votes of the house are to be controuled by the
direction of a minister, we have left us but a vain semblance of
liberty.—We have now only to inform you, that this house have voted _not
to rescind_, and that on a division on the question, there were
ninety-two nays, and seventeen yeas.” The message was firm, patriotic,
and spirited; and in some parts allusively severe upon the governor, but
every where decently expressed. The rescinders were governmental
receivers or expectants. They had, or looked for a reward for their
crouching compliance. The next day [July 1.] the governor passed some
necessary acts, and then dissolved the assembly. It is scarce
conceivable how a new assembly of representatives could think themselves
capable of being more grossly insulted, than by being made accountable
for the proceedings of a dissolved and dead one, and by being punished
with immediate destruction for not declaring themselves of opposite
sentiments to their predecessors. Mr. _Otis_, in his speech against
rescinding, said, “When Lord Hillsborough knows that we will not rescind
our acts, he should apply to parliament to rescind theirs. _Let Britain
rescind their measures or they are lost for ever._” His speech, by the
patriotic enthusiasts was extolled to the skies; and by the governmental
ones, was declared to be the most violent, insolent, abusive,
treasonable declamation, that perhaps ever was delivered. While the
matter of rescinding was under consideration, the house received an
answer from _Virginia_, and one from _New-Jersey_, which, though not so
very high as the other, was far from being unfavorable. They had also
intelligence that they might expect the like from other assemblies:
these circumstances probably increased the majority against rescinding.
Had it not been for the mandate to rescind, the sessions might have
terminated prosperously and peaceably; for Mr. _Otis_, though he had
distinguished himself by carrying the objections to the authority of
parliament to the greatest length, had retracted all his former
opinions, in a set speech at the opening of it. He said, he had fully
informed himself of the relation between Great-Britain and her colonies;
and was convinced that the power of parliament over her colonies was
absolute, with this qualification, that they ought not to tax them until
they allowed them to send representatives; and that if the colonies had
representatives, the power of parliament would be as perfect in America
as in England. He then argued for an American representation. This
surprised the assembly, and induced a member on the side of government
to charge the opposition with the intention of making an American
representation necessary, by denying the authority of parliament over
them because not represented. The answers of the other party were
thought to strengthen the suspicion. Upon which Mr. Timothy Ruggles
pointedly said, that as they were determined to have representatives, he
begged leave to recommend to them a merchant who would undertake to
carry their representatives to England for half what they would sell for
when they arrived there. But the best argument to have silenced any of
the opposition, who might interestedly hanker after an American
representation, would have been to have repeated the resolve of the
house on the 29th of October, 1765—“A representation in parliament of
the inhabitants of the province, such as the subjects in Britain
actually enjoy, is impracticable for the subjects in America.” The day
before lord _Hillsborough_ wrote to Mr. _Bernard_ upon the business of
rescinding, a circular letter was written to the governors of the
respective provinces, to accompany a copy of that of the
_Massachusetts_, in which his lordship said, “It is his majesty’s
pleasure, that you should immediately, on the receipt hereof, exert your
utmost influence to defeat this flagitious attempt to disturb the public
peace, by prevailing upon the assembly of your province to take no
notice of it, which will be treating it with the contempt it deserves.”
He then added a closing paragraph meant to influence the assemblies into
a compliance. The circular letter was in some instances received in
time, but produced a very different effect from what was intended. The
_New-York_ assembly had felt the weight of the parliament’s high
displeasure, and been bereaved of legislative power till they should
comply with the billeting act. In the beginning of the year they voted
the sum wanted to the general, for the purchase of salt, pepper and
vinegar, instead of passing an act conformable to the parliament’s act,
which vote was accepted. But when they met at the close of the year,
after having completed a petition to his majesty, another to the lords,
and a remonstrance to the commons, they proceeded to consider the
circular letters from the assemblies of _Massachusetts-Bay_ and
_Virginia_, and unanimously agreed to answer them in the most respectful
manner. They then entered into some very spirited resolves in favor of
liberty, and the rights of their constituents; and appointed a committee
to correspond and consult with any other his majesty’s subjects out of
the colony, either individually or collectively, on any matter or thing
whatsoever, whereby the rights or privileges of the house or its
constituents might be affected. These doings occasioned their being
dissolved.

We are now entering upon another interesting period.

It had been the common practice for the tide-waiter, upon the arrival of
a vessel, to repair to the cabin, and there to remain, drinking punch
with the master, while the sailors and others upon deck were employed in
landing the wines, molasses, or other dutiable goods. The commissioners
of the customs were determined that the laws of trade should be
executed.

Upon the arrival of Mr. _Hancock_’s sloop _Liberty_, _Nathaniel
Bernard_, master, from _Madeira_, the tidesman, _Thomas Kirk_, went on
board in the afternoon. Captain _Marshall_, in Mr. _Hancock_’s employ,
followed; and about nine in the evening, made several proposals to
_Kirk_, which being rejected, captain _Marshall_, with five or six
others, laid hold of, overpowered, and confined him below for three
hours, in which time the wine was taken out, before entry had been made
at the custom-house or naval office. _Marshall_ threatened _Kirk_ in
case of discovery. The captain wrought so hard in unloading the sloop,
that his sudden death, that night, while in bed, before assistance could
be obtained, was generally believed to have been owing to some injury
received from his uncommon exertions. The next morning the master
entered, as it is said, four or five pipes, and swore that was the whole
of his cargo. It was resolved to seize the sloop for a false entry’s
being made; though it was thought by many that no one would undertake
the business.

[June 10.] Mr. _Joseph Harrison_, the collector, and Mr. _Benjamin
Hallowell_, the comptroller, repaired to Hancock’s wharf. Mr. _Harrison_
objected to the unseasonableness of the time, being between six and
seven, when the lower class of people were returning from their day
labour. The seizure however was made before sun-set, so as to be
perfectly legal. Mr. _Harrison_ thought the sloop might lie at the
wharf, after clapping the broad arrow upon her; but Mr. _Hallowell_
judged it would be best to move her under the guns of the _Romney_, and
made signal for her boats to come ashore. The people upon the wharf
cried out, “There is no occasion, she will lie safe, and no officer has
a right to remove her;” but the master of the man of war cut her
moorings and carried her off. Every mean was used to interrupt the
officers in the execution of their business, and numbers swore that they
would be revenged. A mob was soon collected, which increased to a
thousand or two, chiefly of sturdy boys and negroes. The minds of the
people were inflamed by the seizure and removal of the vessel. They had
been before irritated by the captain of the man of war’s pressing some
seamen belonging to the town; add to that; their aversion to the board
of commissioners, the popularity of the owner, and the name of the
sloop—these of course excited their resentments, and wrought them up
into a combustible body. Captain Malcolm, who was deeply engaged in
running the wines, headed a number of men after the seizure, and was
very active in attempting to prevent the sloop’s being removed. Mr.
_Harrison_ was pelted with stones, bricks, and dirt, and received
several blows with sticks, particularly one on the breast, so that it
was with difficulty he could keep from falling; he was afterward
confined to his bed from the injuries he had received. Mr. _Hallowell_,
Mr. _Irving_, inspector of imports and exports, and the collector’s son
were sharers in the treatment. They all escaped with the utmost hazard
of their lives. Mr. _Hallowell_ was confined to his house under the care
of a surgeon from wounds and bruises. Mr. _Richard Harrison_, the
collector’s son, was thrown down, dragged by the hair of his head, and
otherwise treated barbarously. Mr. _Irving_ was beaten with clubs and
sticks; had his sword broken to pieces, and received a few slight
wounds. The mob proceeded to the houses of the collector and
comptroller, broke their windows, and those of Mr. _Williams_, inspector
general, then dragged the collector’s boat through the town, and burnt
it on the common. This was on Friday evening. Saturday and Sunday
evenings are sacred; and the commissioners _Hulton_, _Burch_, _Paxton_
and _Robinson_, esqrs. remained pretty easy; during the outrages, to
avoid insults, they retired from their own to neighbours houses. But
receiving information that further riots were intended, and the governor
telling them he could not protect them, and that there would be no
safety for them in Boston, considering the temper of the people; on
Monday morning early, they sent a card to the governor, to let him know
that they were going on board the Romney, and desired his orders for
their reception at the castle, which he readily gave. They repaired
first on board the man of war, and then proceded from thence to the
castle. The collector and comptroller, and most of the other officers of
the customs withdrew, either then or afterward. [13.] On the Monday
morning large numbers of people were gathered together, and to
appearance regularly formed into parties, under their different leaders,
in several parts of the town. If they meant any thing against the
commissioners, they were disappointed by their having withdrawn. In the
afternoon printed tickets were put up, notifying a meeting of the sons
of liberty the next day at ten o’clock. This prevented all mischief in
the evening. [14.] At the appointed time, thousands of the lower class
met; but the day being rainy, numbers adjourned to Faneuil-hall, and
there agreed to send the constables about to notify a legal town meeting
for the afternoon. Little else was done at this meeting, but the
appointing a committee to wait upon the governor with a petition, the
receiving his answer, writing a letter to a friend, and voting such
instructions as they thought proper to their representatives. The common
talk was that the removal of the sloop was an affront to the town, as it
contained an insinuation, that she would not have been safe if left at
the wharf in custody of a custom-house officer. It was asserted, and
very truely, that there had been no rescue lately; but an invincible
reason existed for it, as no seizure had been lately made. When captain
Malcolm, more that a year and a half back, opposed in an armed manner,
the officers attempting to search his house, such a number of people
assembled about it, when he had got the officers out and shut his gates
against them, that they were glad to retreat without doing their
business. This defiance the of law passed unnoticed and unpunished, so
that the officers never afterward attempted to make a seizure, although
informations were not wanting, until the present time, when they were
ordered by their superiors. About a month after, a schooner was seized
for having thirty hogsheads of molasses on board, and was left at the
wharf in custody of two custom-house officers. July the eighth at night,
thirty men boarded her, confined the officers to the cabin, and carried
off the molasses. The town’s-people were dissatisfied that their
declarations concering the sloop Liberty, that she would have been safe
if left at the wharf, should be so soon falsified. The select men sent
for the master, and ordered him to return the molasses directly under
pain of the displeasure of the town. It was immediately done, and the
molasses put on board again, the day after it was conveyed away.

The day before the town meeting of June the fourteenth, a committee of
both houses was appointed to inquire into the state of the province.
When they made their report, [30.] in speaking of the affair on Friday
the tenth, they said, “The seizure occasioned a number of people to be
collected, who, from the violence and unprecedentedness of the procedure
in carrying off the vessel, _&c._ took occasion to insult and abuse the
officers, and to commit other disorders, _&c._—Resolved, that though the
extraordinary circumstances of said seizure may extenuate the
criminality, yet being of a very criminal nature, and of dangerous
consequence, the two houses delare their utter abhorrence and
detestation of them and resolve that the governor be desired to direct
the attorney-general to prosecute all persons concerned in the said
riot, and that a proclamation be issued, offering a reward for making
discovery, so as the rioters or abettors may be brought to condign
punishment.” Neither rioters not abettors had any thing to fear from
either proclamation or prosecution; and knew themselves to be perfectly
safe, notwithstanding the report; but the politicians saw it was
expedient to say something to save appearances, and well-meaning persons
might join them, in the simplicity of their hearts, believing that the
others intended their words should be productive of the events to which
they seemingly pointed. At the sitting of the superior court in August,
the grand jury was found to have among them several of the abettors of
the Boston rioters, and particularly the famous captain Malcolm, a
circumstance that necessarily quashed all informations and prosecutions,
as it strongly foreboded their issue.

The council in a letter to Lord _Hillsborough_ insinuated, that the
commissioners had concerted a plan, with the design of raising a
disturbance by the seizure of the sloop Liberty. The insinuation must be
placed to the ill will they bore to the commissioners, more than to any
thing beside. On the twenty-ninth of July, they said, “The commissioners
were not obliged to quit the town; there never had been any insult
offered to them; their quitting the town was a voluntary act of their
own; we do not apprehend there was any sufficient ground for their
quitting it.” But it appears from a manuscript in Mr. _Hutchinson_’s
hand writing, that the commissioners applied, December the nineteenth,
to each of the four judges of the superior court separately for their
opinions upon four questions; and that after having conferred together,
they were unanimously of opinion,

“That from the spirit which had been excited in the populace against all
the commissioners of the customs, Mr. _Temple_ excepted, they could not
have remained long in safety at Boston after the seizure of the sloop
Liberty, but would have been in great danger of violence to their
persons and properties from a mob, which, at that time, it was generally
expected would be raised for that purpose:

“That government was insufficient to restrain, suppress or punish the
several mobs, which had been assembled since the fourteenth of August,
1765; and that at the time of the commissioners retiring to the castle,
there was no probability that the same authority could have had any
greater force:

“That they could not have returned to town, and executed their
commission with safety, at any time after they withdrew, before the
arrival of his majesty’s troops:

“And that they knew of no better measure that they could have taken,
than retiring to Castle William.”

Mr. _Temple_ was excepted, for he was not obnoxious to the populace,
being averse to the establishment of the board of commissioners, which
lessoned both his salary and his power. He wished the dissolution of it
and to be restored to his former place of surveyor general of the
customs. Though the rest of the commissioners could not have returned to
have executed their commission with safety, they might most probably
have returned and been safe, had they declined executing the same, which
however was not to be expected. They continued at, but were not confined
to the castle. They rode adout the country at pleasure, without any
interuption from the people.

[June 15.] The commissioners wrote to general Gage, colonel Dalrymple,
and commodore Hood, desiring troops to support them in their office.
Whatever this application might contribute toward the sending of them,
yet it certainly did not give rise to it. Measures had been taken to
procure them long before. Mr. _Paxton_, when in London the preceding
year, told Mr. _Bollan_ repeatedly, that Mr. _Hutchinson_ and some other
of his friends were of opinion, that standing troops were necessary to
support the authority of the government at Boston; and that he was
authorised to inform him of this their opinion. Most probably he was
authorised to inform others also. Mr. _Bollan_ was against sending
troops, and when there was a talk of doing it, endeavoured to prevent
it, and freely related to a gentleman of considerable influence, what
some of the principal merchants said, that they who should send over the
standing troops, would certainly be cursed to all posterity.[98] But the
disposition of some to try the experiment was strengthened by a letter
from the commissioners to the lords of the treasury, received before the
riot happened; and rendered efficacious upon the arrival of governor
_Bernard_’s letters at the secretary’s office, especially that of March,
giving an aggravated detailed account of a terrible disturbance on the
joyous anniversary of the repeal of the stamp act, which general _Gage_,
in his letter of October to Lord _Hillsborough_, declared, from the best
intelligence he could procure, to have been trifling. When the matter
came to be considered, it was agreed to send troops to Boston.
Accordingly, Lord _Hillsborough_, in his secret and confidential letter
to Gen. _Gage_, [June 8.] wrote, “I am to signify to you his majesty’s
pleasure, that you do forthwith order one regiment, or such force as you
shall think necessary, to Boston, to be quartered in that town, and to
give every legal assistance to the civil magistrate, in the preservation
of the public peace, and to the officers of the revenue, in the
execution of the laws of trade and revenue; and as this appears to be a
service of a delicate nature, and possibly leading to consequences not
easily foreseen, I am directed by the king to recommend to you to make
choice of an officer for the command of those troops, upon whose
prudence, resolution and integrity, you can entirely rely.” And on the
eleventh, he informed the governor, that his majesty, from the
representation made by him and the commissioners of the customs, had
directed one regiment at least to be stationed in Boston, and to
garrison, and (if necessary) to repair the castle; and had ordered a
frigate, two sloops, and two cutters to repair to, and remain in the
harbour of Boston, for supporting and assisting the officers of the
customs in the execution of their duty. His lordship’s letter to Gage
being dated two days before the riot occasioned by the seizure of the
sloop Liberty, the order contained in it, could not possibly be founded
on such riot; though the riot, with the subsequent transactions of the
town, might be related as a reason in the resolves afterward drawn up,
exhibiting the necessity of sending a military force to Boston. But
persons in office are liable to fall into mistakes, through the
multiplicity and hurry of business, and for want of due consideration or
better intelligence. In this way you may account for his lordship’s
signing a circular letter, [Sept. 2.] to the governor and council of
_Rhode-Island_, to the following purpose—“Gentlemen, the king having
observed, that the governors of his colonies have, upon several
occasions, taken upon them to communicate to their councils and
assemblies, either the whole or parts of letters from his majesty’s
principal secretary of state, I have it in command to signify, that it
is his majesty’s pleasure that you do not, upon any pretence whatever,
communicate to the assembly, any copies or extracts of such letters,
unless you have his majesty’s particular directions.” This was soon
published in the _Providence_ Gazette after being received. That colony
chooses its own governor annually and he has neither right nor power to
with-hold from the assembly copies of any such letters. Upon another
occasion his lordship gave orders to the governor of _Pennsylvania_, in
case the assembly did not act conformable to what was expected,
immediately to dissolve them; whereas it is the inherent privilege of
that house to set on their own adjournments; and the governor has no
power to dissolve them.

[Nov. 3.] A month after the arrival of the troops at _Boston_ Mr.
_Hancock_ was served with a precept for £.9000 sterling, by the marshal
of the court of admiralty. The marshal having arrested him, demanded
bail for £.3000. Five other gentlemen were arrested for the like sum. He
and the five others gave bail.—The commissioners prosecuted the supposed
owner, and each person they imagined concerned in unloading the wines,
for the value of the whole cargo and treble damages. The vessel seized
was restored after a long detention; and the suits in the courts of
admiralty dropped, March the twenty-sixth, 1769, by a declaration from
the king’s advocate, that his majesty would prosecute no further. It was
idle to think of supporting the prosecution by sufficient evidence. Want
of inclination or fear would prevent witnesses appearing, and corruption
would procure counterevidence from men of no principle, who would
justify themselves from the prosecution’s being built upon acts of
parliament, to which they supposed the colonies owed no obedience; and
would plead, as in too many instances is done at home, that it is not he
who takes, but he who imposes the oath, who is chargeable with the crime
of swearing falsely. The law would not allow the prosecuted any costs or
damages. In this case the allowance would have been unreasonable; the
innocence of the parties could not have been urged in its behalf.

The colonists could not overlook the good effects produced by the former
non-importation agreement; and were earnest for playing off the same
engine against the new attempts of ministry, to saddle them with the
payment of taxes. About the beginning of April, several gentlemen of
_Boston_ and _New-York_, wrote to others at _Philadelphia_, in order to
learn, whether they would unite with them in stopping the importation of
goods from _Great-Britain_, until certain acts of parliament should be
repealed, which were thought to be injurious to their rights, as freemen
and British subjects. A numerous meeting of merchants followed, when an
address was read to them. It set forth the claims of the colonies, and
then went into an enumeration of grievances, which the colonists had
long borne, and seemed willing to forget, had they not been alarmed
afresh by the late proceedings of the ministry. The address remarked,
that, in the act obliging the several assemblies to provide quarters for
the soldiers, &c. a power is granted to every officer, upon obtaining a
warrant from any justice (which warrant the justice is empowered and
ordered to grant, without any previous oath) to break into any house by
day or by night, under pretence (these are the words of the act) of
searching for deserters. It pointed out to them the danger they were in,
of having erected over them a despotic government, to rule them as
slaves. It called upon them to deliberate, by what means they might
defend their rights and liberties, and obtain a repeal of the obnoxious
acts. It urged them to join in the measure proposed by their brethren of
_Boston_ and _New-York_; and closed with “_United we conquer, divided we
die_.” The _Pennsylvania_ merchants agreed with the other colonies in
opinion, that the revenue acts were unconstitutional; but declined
adopting the non-importation agreement, as they believed it to be
premature. They knew that multitudes in Great-Britain would suffer much
by a suspension of trade with her, whenever it should be carried into
execution; and judged that it ought not to be made use of but as the
last and most certain remedy, when petitions proved ineffectual. They
saw clearly that the acts were manifestly injurious to the British
trade, and hoped the parliament would therefore find it expedient to
repeal them; and were willing to allow a proper time for the repeals
being effected. These reasons induced them to refuse complying with the
solicitations of their neighbours. But the merchants and traders of
Philadelphia agreed upon a memorial, wherein they stated their
grievances, which was transmitted to their mercantile friends in London,
on whose assistance they relied for an application to government for
relief; and this they hoped to obtain as to some of the chief, though it
might not be all the articles of complaint.

But the _Boston_ merchants and traders having been drawn in, partly by
their connections with the politicians and the fear of opposing the
popular stream, agreed upon a new subscription paper, [Aug. 1.] wherein
they engaged as follows:—“We will not send for or import from
Great-Britain, either upon our own account, or upon commissions, this
fall, any other goods than what are already ordered for the fall
supply.”—“We will not send for or import any kind of goods or
merchandise from Great-Britain, _&c._ from the first of January, 1769,
to the first of January, 1770, except salt, coals, fish-hooks and lines,
hemp and duck, bar lead and shot, wool-cards and card-wire.”—“We will
not purchase of any factor or others, any kind of goods imported from
Great-Britain, from January, 1769, to January, 1770.”—“We will not
import on our own account, or on commissions, or purchase of any, who
shall import from any other colony in America, from January, 1769, to
January, 1770, any tea, glass, paper or other goods commonly imported
from Great-Britain.”—“We will not, from and after the first of January,
1769, import into this province any tea, paper, glass, or painters
colours, until the act imposing duties on those articles shall be
repealed.” The subscription paper was carried about town; and, at
length, generally signed, though several respectable merchants remained
non-subscribers. The same month the _Connecticut_ and _New-York_
merchants came into similar agreements; and those of _Salem_, the
beginning of September. Some merchants had undoubtedly the foresight to
provide for an abstinence from importation for a year, by unusually
large orders.

A report having been spread that governor _Bernard_ had intimated his
apprehensions that one or more regiments were to be daily expected at
_Boston_, a meeting of the inhabitants was called, and a committee
appointed to wait on him to know the grounds of his apprehensions, and
to pray him to issue precepts forthwith for convening a general
assembly. He acknowledged his having received those informations which
produced such apprehensions, but said they were of a private nature. The
calling of another assembly he told them could not be complied with,
till his majesty’s commands were received. The answer being reported, it
was resolved, “That the freeholders, and other inhabitants of the town
of Boston, will, at the peril of their lives and fortunes, take all
legal and constitutional measures to defend all and singular the rights,
liberties, privileges, and immunities, granted in their royal charter.”
It was also declared to be the opinion of those present, “That a
suitable number of persons to act for them as a committee in convention,
with such as may be sent to join them from the other towns, should be
now chosen, in order that such measures may be consulted and advised, as
his majesty’s service, and the safety of the province may require.” It
was then voted, “That the select men of Boston should write to the
select men of the other towns, to acquaint them with the foregoing
resolutions, and to propose, that a convention be held at Fanueil-hall
in Boston, on the twenty-second instant.” It was afterward voted, “That,
as there is an apprehension, in the minds, of many, of an approaching
war with France, those inhabitants who are not provided, be requested to
furnish themselves forthwith with arms.

[Sept. 22.] The _convention_, consisting of committees from ninety-six
towns and eight districts, met as proposed; and after conference and
consultation, petitioning the governor, declaring that they only
considered themselves as private persons, making loyal professions,
expressing their aversion to standing armies, to tumults and disorders,
their readiness to assist in suppressing riots and preserving the peace,
and recommending patience and regard to good order, they broke up and
went home on Thursday the twenty-ninth. Advice was received the day
before, that the men of war and transports from Halifax, with some
hundreds of troops, were safe arrived at Nantasket harbour, a few miles
below Castle William. Two days before the convention closed, they
dispatched a letter to Mr. _Berdi_, containing a representation of what
had taken place, with such papers and instructions as were judged most
suitable to the circumstances of their assembly.

When the news was first received of troops being ordered to Boston,
broad hints were thrown out that they should never land; and to
strengthen the appearance of an intention to oppose them, a barrel was
placed upon the beacon, supposed to be a tar barrel, to have been fired
to call in the country upon the troops appearing, which was afterwards
found to be an empty nail barrel. Many of the deputies came down to the
convention, with instructions and dispositions to prevent the Bostonians
involving the province in the fatal consequences of their own furious
devices. Numbers were from the beginning sensible of the impropriety and
danger of their proceeding, and desirous by a moderate conduct, to
correct the one and ward off the other. The governor’s message to them
after their address, was high, and might tend to keep some of them in
awe, as the troops were thought to be at no great distance. When Mr.
_Otis_ joined them, instead of being violent he was quite moderate: and
when Mr. _Samuel Adams_ attempted to launch out into the same free and
unrestrained language to which he was accustomed in the house of
representatives, he was presently silenced.

The convention having finished in the above manner, the persons just
named assumed to themselves the moderation of those whom they called
together for very different purposes. The governor himself was not
always wholly ignorant of what was going forward among the sons of
liberty. He kept up an acquaintance with some of them, and by that
means, at times, procured useful intelligence, while he gave his
informers the strongest assurance that their names should not be quoted,
nor any communication be made of it, which could make them suspected.
Too much occasion was given for this paragraph, which soon after
appeared in the New-York Journal. “I blame the Bostonians for having
given some room for the idle reports of their designing to oppose the
landing of the troops, by the ridiculous puff and bombast (for which our
eastern brethren have always been too famous) of warning every man to
provide himself with a good firelock, ammunition, &c. under the
disingenuous jesuitical pretence of the prospect of a French war, full
as absurd and hypocritical as is the pretence of a military
establishment in America for its protection and defence.”

When the troops from Halifax were daily expected, the governor would
have prevailed upon the council to have provided quarters for them in
Boston, but they refused; and in answer to what he advanced, said, “the
troops are by act of parliament, to be quartered no where else but in
the barracks, until they are full: there are barracks enough at the
castle to hold both the regiments; and it is therefore against the act
to bring any of them into town.” However, the orders of general _Gage_
to lieutenant-colonel _Dalrymple_ were positive to land one of them at
Boston. But in the interim, captain Montresor, the engineer arrived,
with letters of a subsequent date, from general Gage, for the governor
and the colonel, wherein the general mentioned, that it being reported
and believed from a number of private letters and the publications, that
the people in and about Boston had revolted, he had therefore sent the
captain to assist the forces, and enable them to recover and maintain
the castle, and such other posts as they could secure. Upon this the
colonel altered his plan, and concluded to land both regiments at Boston
without loss of time. The fleet therefore was immediately put into
motion, and the next morning commanded the whole town.—Every thing being
fully prepared, near upon fourteen[99] ships of war lying with their
broadsides to the town, having springs on their cables, and their guns
ready for firing instantly upon the place, in case of the least
opposition; about one o’clock at noon, October the first, the troops
began landing, under cover of the ships cannon, without molestation; and
having effected it, marched into the common, with muskets charged,
bayonets fixed, drums beating, fifes playing, &c. making with the train
of artillery, upward of 700 men. In the evening, the select men were
required to quarter the two regiments in town, but absolutely refused.
One of the regiments, however, being without their camp equipage, was
humanely permitted to enter Faneuil-hall and its chambers, about nine
o’clock at night, that so the men might enjoy a temporary shelter. The
next being Lord’s day, the town or state-house was opened in the
evening, by order of the governor, for the reception of the troops, who
took possession of all the chambers, except the one appropriated for the
meeting of the council. He certainly stretched his authority in several
points; but particularly in thus acting. This step was an insult not
only to the town, as it was a great annoyance to the gentlemen and
merchants, who had been accustomed to make the lower floor their
exchange, but to the whole colony, as the representatives chamber was
now possessed by the soldiery. After the quarters of the troops were
settled, the main-guard was posted directly opposite to, and not twelve
yards from the state-house with two field pieces pointed to it. It was
with no small indignation that the people beheld the representatives
chamber, court-house, and Faneuil-hall—seats of freedom and
justice—occupied by troops, and guards placed at the doors, and the
council passing through the guards in going to their own chamber. They
resented also the common’s being covered with tents, and alive with
soldiers; their marchings and counter-marchings to relieve the guards;
the town’s being a perfect garrison, and the inhabitants being
challenged by the sentinels, as they passed and repassed. Persons
devoutly inclined, complained much of being disturbed at public worship
on the sabbaths, with drums beating, and fifes playing, to which they
had never been accustomed in the Massachusetts. Quarters being obtained
for the troops, the council were required to provide barrack provisions
for them, agreeable to act of parliament; but resolutely declined going
into any measure which might be construed into a submission to the said
act. The opposition of the council to the quartering of, and providing
for the troops, was so encouraged and strengthened by Mr. _James
Bowdoin_, who was one of them, that Mr. _Hutchinson_, in his letter of
November 6, ascribed the whole to his management. It was thought that
the peaceable landing of the troops was not what some of the ministry
either expected or desired; and that they were in hopes, that the folly
and rage of the town and colony would have led them into an hostile
opposition, and thereby have afforded an opportunity for giving them
some naval and military correction. Under this apprehension, the
gentleman who delivered the first dispatches from governor Bernard,
containing the account of the troops having landed, &c. narrowly watched
the countenance and conduct of the person who read them, and was
confirmed in such opinion. But had he not possessed that opinion, it
might not have been excited by what he observed. The sentiments of the
military differed so extremely from those of the Bostonians, who were
unjustly viewed as rebelliously inclined, that it was not to be wondered
at that they were insulted and abused, and that quarrels should ensue,
tho’ they did not proceed soon to a dangerous height. Undoubtedly the
inhabitants could not be continually blameless; there would necessarily
be some rash and imprudent persons among such a multitude; but the
greatest rashness and imprudence lay in the sending of troops on a
service which could have been effectually and better executed by a naval
force properly stationed and employed. Ships of war might have possessed
the harbour till the commissioners could have executed their office with
safety.

The committee of merchants in London paid a due attention to the
memorial sent them by the merchants and traders of Philadelphia, and
took pains to obtain relief from the grievances therein complained of,
though without effect. The department to which they applied, afforded
little hopes of redress in a way that might put an end to the
differences that had arisen between Great-Britain and her American
colonies. The act imposing duties on glass, paper, &c. was acknowledged
to be inexpedient; but it was added, “Such has been the unjustifiable
conduct of some in America, that the present juncture is not a proper
season for a repeal.” Administration was firmly resolved to oppose it
with their utmost strength, while it should be insisted on by threats on
the part of the colonists, for in that light they consider the steps
which had been taken by them to obtain redress It was said, “If a proper
disposition appears in the colonies, and their merchants, in a
succeeding session, shall think proper to petition parliament on the
principle of expediency only, there is every reason to believe that no
part of administration will object to the repeal.” But the minister did
not declare what was the proper disposition he expected. No sooner were
the Philadelphians apprised, by the receipt of this information, that no
hope remained of a repeal in that session, than they unanimously entered
into the very agreement, which some months before, when proposed to
them, they had declined; and it was their opinion, that as the agreement
had been formed on mature deliberation, the people of the province would
firmly adhere to it. Of this they gave notice to the committee of
merchants in London, by letter of April 8, 1769. In that letter,
remarking upon the information they had received, they wrote—“It would
become persons in power to consider, whether even the unjustifiable
behavior of those who think themselves aggrieved, will justify a
perseverance in a matter confessed to be wrong. Certain it is, that the
wisdom of government is better manifested, its honor and authority
better maintained and supported, by correcting the errors it may have
committed, than by persisting in them, and thereby risking the loss of
the subjects affections. We are apprehensive that persons in power are
greatly abused, and that the people of America have been grossly
misrepresented, otherwise the steps which they have taken to obtain
redress, could never be looked upon as threats. Threats they never
intended; but as all the American colonies were equally affected, it was
thought that their joint petitions would have more weight; and for this
end the several assemblies communicated their sentiments to each other.
This step, to the inexpressible surprise of all America, is represented
as “a flagitious attempt, a measure of a most dangerous and factious
tendency, &c. The dissolution of assemblies that followed, and the
measures pursued to enforce the acts in America, awakened the fears, and
exasperated the minds of the people to a very great degree. They
therefore determined not only to defeat the intent of the acts, by
refraining from the use of those articles on which duties were laid, but
to put a stop to the importation of goods from Great-Britain. This is
the only threat we know of; and if this is sufficient to engage the
ministry to oppose a repeal of the acts, we apprehend the ministry must,
by a change of measures, endeavour to regain the affections of the
people before they can be induced to alter their determinations.”

“The Americans consider themselves as British subjects, entitled to all
the rights and privileges of freemen. They think there can be no liberty
without a security of property; and that there can be no property, if
any can, without their consent, deprive them of the hard-earned fruits
of their labour. They know that they have no choice in the election of
the members of parliament; and from their situation never can have any.
Every act of parliament therefore, that is made for raising a revenue in
America, is in their opinion, depriving them of their property without
their consent, and consequently is an invasion of their liberty.”

“If then the acts cannot be repealed while the ministry objects, and if
to remove the objections the Americans must give up their sentiments, we
must candidly confess we have little hopes of a repeal ever taking
place; much less it is to be expected, that the merchants will presume
to petition parliament on the principle of inexpediency only, when every
assembly on the continent are applying for a repeal on the principle of
_right_.”

“Happy had it been for both countries if the idea of raising taxes in
America had never been started; however, if the acts complained of are
repealed, and no other of the like nature are attempted hereafter the
present unhappy jealousies will, we believe, quickly subside, and the
people of both countries in a short time, return to their usual good
humor, confidence and affection.”

If ministry thought that the resolves of the house of lords, the
preceding December, would have put a stop to non-importation agreements
and the spirited exertions of the colonists, they soon found themselves
much mistaken. It can scarce be imagined, but that some of the
Philadelphia gentlemen had received the account of such resolves; for
the above letter was in answer to London ones of January 4th and 26th,
and yet they proceeded as has been related.

The resolve censured the votes, resolutions and proceedings of the house
of representatives of _Massachusetts_ of January and February; as also
the declarations, resolutions and proceedings in the town of _Boston_.
They pronounced the election of deputies to sit in convention, and the
meeting of such convention, daring insults offered to his majesty’s
authority, and audacious usurpations of the powers of government. The
lords then ordered an humble address to be presented to his majesty, in
which they expressed their satisfaction in the measure his majesty had
pursued; gave him the strongest assurances, that they would effuctually
support him in such further ones as might be found necessary to maintain
the civil magistrates, in a due execution of the laws, within the
Massachusetts Bay; and beseeched him to direct the governor to take the
most effectual methods for procuring the fullest information, touching
all treasons committed within that government since the 30th of
December, 1767, and to transmit the same, with the names of the persons
most active in the commission of such offences; in order that his
majesty might issue a special commission for hearing and determining the
said offences, within the realm, pursuant to the statute of the 35th
year of _Henry_ VIII.

The resolutions and address were sent down to the house of commons for
their concurrence. Colonel _Barre_ opposed them; and directing himself
to the ministry, said, “Away with these partial resentful trifles,
calculated to irritate, not to quell or appease, inadequate to their
purpose, unworthy of us! Why will you endeavor to deceive yourselves and
us? You know that it is not this place only that disputes your right,
but every part. They tell you, that you have no right from one end of
the continent to the other. My sentiments of this matter you well know.
Consider well what you are doing. Act openly and honestly. Tell them you
will tax them, and that they must submit. Do not adopt this little,
insidious, futile plan. They will despise you for it.” However on the
ninth of February, they were agreed to and returned with some
amendments; and the address was ordered to be presented to both houses.
The _Massachusetts_, with becoming firmness, constantly asserted their
rights, which drew down upon them ministerial vengeance. They had no
general assembly when the resolves and address reached America, the last
having been dissolved for refusing to comply with the mandate to
rescind, and the time appointed by charter for calling another not being
arrived. But the _Virginia_ house of burgesses entered upon the subject.
They met on the eighth of May, and on the sixteenth took into serious
consideration the state of the colony, being alarmed at the distress in
which all America was likely to be involved. They came to several
necessary resolutions, copies of which they gave their speaker, with
particular directions to transmit them without delay to the speakers of
the several houses of assembly on the continent; whose concurrence in
the like was requested.

The resolves express, “That the sole right of imposing taxes on the
inhabitants of the colony, is now, and ever hath been legally and
constitutionally vested in the house of burgesses, with consent of the
council, and of the king, or his governor for the time being—That it is
the privilege of the inhabitants to petition their sovereign for redress
of grievances, and that it is lawful to procure the concurrence of his
majesty’s other colonies in dutiful addresses, praying the royal
interposition in favor of the violated rights of America—That all trials
for treason, misprison of treason, or for any felony or crime
whatsoever, committed by any person residing in said colony, ought to be
in and before his majesty’s courts within said colony; and that the
seizing any person residing in the colony, suspected of any crime
whatsoever, committed therein and sending such person to places beyond
the sea to be tried, is highly derogatory of the rights of British
subjects, as thereby the inestimable privilege of being tried by a jury
from the vicinage, as well as the liberty of producing witnesses on such
trial, will be taken away from the party accused.” These resolutions
were followed by a humble address to his majesty, beseaching his royal
interposition to quiet the minds of his royal subjects in the colony,
and to avert those dangers and miseries which will ensue from seizing
and carrying beyond sea the inhabitants of America, to be tried in any
other manner than by the ancient and long established mode of
proceeding.

[May 17.] The next day Lord _Bottetourt_ sent for them, and said, “Mr.
speaker, and gentlemen of the house of burgesses, I have heard of your
resolves, and augur ill of their effects. You have made it my duty to
dissolve you, and you are dissolved accordingly.” The gentlemen who
composed the house, being, reduced by the dissolution to private
persons, repaired immediately to another place, that so they might
consider what measures were proper to be taken, and chose the late
speaker _Peyton Randolph_, esq. moderator.

[18.] They entered into an association unanimously [which they
subscribed and recommended to all merchants, gentlemen, traders and
others] against importing any goods taxed, and many other articles;
against wines, against importing and purchasing negroes, &c.

The next month the Maryland gentlemen and merchants entered into a
non-importation agreement similar to the Virginian.

The _South-Carolinians_ followed the example.

The inhabitants of _Charlestown_ broke off all commerce with the _Rhode
Islanders_ and _Georgians_, whom they charged with having acted a most
singularly infamous part, from the beginning of the present glorious
struggle for the preservation of American rights. This had its effect,
and _Georgia_ came into the non-importation agreement September the
nineteenth; _Providence_, October the tenth; but _Rhode-Island_ not till
the thirtieth.

[Oct.] The _North-Carolina_ assembly came to the like resolution with
the _Virginia_ house of burgesses, for which governor _Tryon_ dissolved
them. Upon that, the gentlemen who had composed it, repaired to the
court-house, chose the late speaker moderator, and came to a resolution
for an association against importing, _&c._ comformable to what had been
done elsewhere. Thus the non-importation agreement became general, and
was forwarded by the very means applied for its prevention. Meetings of
the associators were regularly held. Committees were appointed to
examine the cargoes of all vessels arriving from Britain; and regular
votes and resolutions of censure were passed in those meetings, upon
such as refused to concur in the associations, and their names published
in the newspapers as enemies to their country. The decrees of those
committees met with a respect and obedience denied to the constitutional
authority of government. In some cases goods imported from Britain were
locked up in warehouses, under the care of the committees, and in a few
instances returned. _Portsmouth_, the only sea-port in _New-Hampshire_,
never came into the non-importation agreement. Governor _Wentworth_ had
address enough to prevent it, and keep all quiet. There are few private
schools in that colony, and the bulk of the people are very illiterate.
If a person can write a note of hand, read a chapter, and cypher to the
rule of three, he passes for a man of learning. Men, whose capacities
remain small for want of use and improvement, and who have little
knowledge, are liable to be duped by those who possess superior rank and
abilities. The associations were as general, and in common as well
observed as could reasonably be expected, considering the disadvantages
and losses they necessarily occasioned to many. But it is not to be
thought, that there were no collusions; that all the goods belonging to
the professing sons of liberty, which were stored, remained in the
warehouses, without being conveyed out upon particular occasions, and to
serve certain purposes; that all, who had given their names or honors
not to import, did not privately order some of the prohibited articles
to please themselve, families or neighbours; that when, some months
afterward, the zeal of the daughters of liberty in several of the
colonies, proscribed the drinking of tea, and rendered the disuse of it
a universal fashion, all were so true to their engagements, as not to
sip their green or bohea in secret, or under a new name; and that all
who associated or agreed to the storing of their goods, did it
voluntarily and without compulsion. The fear or appearance of a mob
often produced a compliance in persons who would gladly have retained
their goods till they could have turned the same into cash; and brought
them to own, that they were willing that they should be stored, just as
they would have been willing at sea to have thrown them overboard to
escape personal shipwreck. The committees had the arts of persuasion;
and in some places their most powerful arguments for reducing the
obstinate were not known to be used by them.

The importer is sent for, and desired to come into the agreement; he
declines; he must sell; his livelihood depends upon it. Arguments are
used for his complying, and he is urged, soothed and entreated; but it
avails nothing. He is determined at all hazards to dispose of his goods
as purchasers offer. Some of the mobility, or their leaders, are told,
that the importer cannot be prevailed upon. In a day or two he finds
himself surrounded; in danger of an assault; is terrified; inquires the
reason; and upon learning it, hurries to the committee; begs their
interposition; complies with what was before desired of him; hopes that
they will restore him to the good graces of his fellow townsmen or
citizens, and thanks them for their promised assistance, not in the
least suspecting the depth of their contrivance. Every committee
however, had not this prudent forecast, whereby to accomplish their
designs without exposing their own characters.

We have hitherto omitted recording the transactions of the
_Massachusetts_ assembly in the persent year, the _Virginia_ house of
burgesses demanding a prior attention, but now proceed to them.

[May 31.] The general court being called together according to charter,
a committee from the house of representatives remonstrated to his
excellency, “That an armament by sea and land investing this metropolis
(_Boston_) and a military guard with cannon pointed to the door of the
state house where the assembly is held, are inconsistent with that
dignity and freedom with which they have a right to deliberate, consult,
and determine. They expect that your excellency will, as his majesty’s
representative, give effectual orders for the removal of the above
mentioned forces by sea and land out of this port, and the gates of this
city during the session of the said assembly.” The governor returned for
answer, “gentlemen, I have no authority over his majesty’s ships in this
port, or his troops within this town.”

[June 1.] He negatived eleven of the persons elected to form the
council.

[13.] The house in a message to him declared—“The use of the military
power to enforce the execution of the laws, is, in the opinion of this
house, inconsistent with the spitit of a free constitution, and the very
nature of government. This military force is uncontroulable by any
authority in the province: it is then a power without any check here,
and therefore it is so far absolute. What privilege! what security then
is left to this house!”

It was not urged, whatever the case might admit; “The governor is the
king’s _locum tenens_, and his office entire. The chief civil and
military authority being by the British and our constitution
inseparable, the king cannot serve them. An independent military tends
to the utter overthrow of the civil power. The operations of the great
seal, which is _clavis regni_, cannot be controlled by the privy seal,
the king’s signet, sign manuel, or significations of his pleasure by his
secretary; in other words, our charter cannot be infringed by any of
these.”

The house firmly declined doing business surrounded with an armed force,
so that the governor the next day adjourned the court to Cambridge.

[July 6.] His excellency sent a message to them, with the accounts of
the expenditures already incurred by quartering his majesty’s troops,
desiring funds to be provided for discharging the same, and required a
provision for the further quartering the forces in Boston and
Castle-Island, according to act of parliament.

[7.] The house of assembly, as though they meant by it to despise the
parliamentary resolves, no less than maintain their own privileges,
passed a number of resolves, and among them the following:

“That a general discontent on account of the revenue acts, an
expectation of a sudden arrival of a military power to enfore said acts,
an apprehension of the troops being quartered upon the inhabitants, the
general court dissolved, the governor refusing to call a new one, and
the people almost reduced to a state of despair, rendered it highly
expedient and necessary for the people to convene by their committees;
to associate, consult, and advise the best means to promote peace and
good order; to present their united complaints to the throne, and
jointly to pray for the royal interposition in favor of their violated
rights. Nor can this procedure possibly be illegal, as they expressly
disclaim all governmental acts:

“That the establishment of a standing army in this colony, in time of
peace, is an invasion of natural rights:

“That a standing army is not known as a part of the British
constitution:

“That sending an armed force into the colony, under pretence of
assisting the civil authority, is highly dangerous to the people,
unprecedented and unconstitutional.”

The last is the same with that of Virginia.

[12.] The governor called upon them to answer, whether they would or
would not make provision for the troops.

[15.] The house, by message, after remarking upon the mutiny or
billeting act, answered, “As we cannot consistently with our own honor
or interest, much less with the duty we owe to our constituents, so we
never shall make any provision of funds for the purposes in your several
messages.” Upon that the governor prorogued them to the tenth of
January, to meet at Boston.

_South-Carolina_ assembly, no less than the _Massachusetts_, ventured to
disobey the mutiny act, and adopted similar resolutions to those of
_Virginia_. The _Maryland_ lower house entered partly into similar ones,
but the last was omitted, and the first more strongly expressed. The
_Delaware_ counties early followed the lead of _Virginia_, and adopted
their last resolve _verbatim_; and toward the close of the year, the
_New-York_ assembly concurred in their resolves with Virginia.

The proposal of parliament for transporting persons from America in
order to trial in _Great-Britain_, pursuant to the statute of _Henry_
VIII. excited a general alarm through the continent. The procedure they
recommended was not wholly without precedent. The case of Culpeper has
been already related. Under queen Anne, in 1710, the ringleaders of an
unnatural contention in _Antigua_, wherein the governor was murdered,
were brought to Great-Britain, tried, and many of them convicted and
executed upon this statute. Precedents, however, will never reconcile
sensible men to practices which, though legal, are fraught with cruelty,
and liable to the most horrid abuses. Beside, the statute was become
obsolete.

The _Virginia_ house of burgesses, in their address to his majesty,
expressed themselves with propriety upon this subject—“When we consider,
that by the established laws and constitution of this colony the most
ample provision is made for apprehending and punishing all those who
shall dare to engage in any treasonable practices against your majesty,
or disturb the tranquility of government; we cannot, without horror,
think of the unusual, and permit us, with all humility, to add
unconstitutional and illegal mode recommended to your majesty, of
seizing and carrying beyond the sea, the inhabitants of America
suspected of any crime, and of trying such persons in any other manner
than by the ancient and long established course of proceedings; for how
truly deplorable must be the case of a wretched American, who having
incurred the displeasure of any one in power, is dragged from his native
home and his dearest domestic connections, thrown into a prison, not to
wait his trial before a court, jury or judges, from a knowledge of whom
he is encouraged to hope for a speedy justice, but to exchange his
imprisonment in his own country for fetters among strangers. Conveyed to
a distant land, where no friend, no relation will alleviate his
distresses, or minister to his necessities, and where no witness can be
found to testify his innocence; shunned by the reputable and honest, and
consigned to the society and converse of the wretched and abandoned, he
can only pray, that he may soon end his misery with his life.”

We have been reviewing the noble and animated proceedings of the
_Virgians_ and others in behalf of liberty; and cannot but regret that
the existence of slavery and its effects among them, should administer
the least occasion for any one’s writing concerning them. “The last
resolves of the Virginia burgesses deserve a very hard name. It is
indeed laughable, to see a few dissipated bashaws, tyrants over a parcel
of wretched negro slaves, meet together and give themselves airs against
Great-Britain upon the subject of liberty—this applies to all the
southern colonies. The spirit of independence in _New-England_, is more
consistent and characteristic of the people; but _Virginia_, and the
_Carolinas_ are but _petit maitres_ in the business.”[100]

It is time to cross the Atlantic, and advert to what was doing in
_Britain_. An attempt in the house of commons, to bring on a repeal of
the obnoxious act before the session closed, proved ineffectual. It was
objected from every quarter, that it was not a proper time. Lord
_North_’s language upon the occasion was, “However prudence or policy
may hereafter induce us to repeal the late paper and glass act, I hope
we shall never think of it _till we see_ AMERICA _prostrate at our
feet_.” When the session was over, the ministry, with a view, it might
be, of soothing the Americans into a better temper, managing their
respective assemblies, and bringing them to retract their resolutions,
and open the trade as before, gave out, that at the next session the
American grievances should be redressed; and lord _Hillsborough_ wrote a
circular letter to every colony [May 13.] mentioning “their intention to
propose, in the next session of parliament, taking off the duties upon
glass, paper and colours, upon consideration of such duties having been
laid contrary to the true principles of commerce; and assuring each,
that his majesty’s ministers, “at no time entertained a design to
propose to parliament to lay any further taxes on America, for the
purpose of raising a revenue.” Lord _Botetourt_ following the directions
he had received, so to explain measures as might re-establish mutual
confidence and affection between Great-Britain and her colonies, made
the matter known to the _Virginia_ house of burgesses in a speech, and
then declared, “It is my firm opinion that the plan which I have stated
to you will certainly take place, and that it will never be departed
from. I shall exert every power with which I am or ever may be legally
invested, in order to obtain and maintain, for the continent of America,
that satisfaction which I have been authorised to promise this day, by
the confidential servants of our gracious sovereign, who, to my certain,
knowledge, rates his honor so high, that he would rather part with his
crown, than preserve it by deceit.” The house, in their address to him,
expressed their hope and confidence in a manner that implied fear and
distrust; but willing to make the best improvement of what his lordship
said, closed with—“We esteem your lordship’s information, not only as
warranted, but even sanctified by the royal word.” The conduct of
ministry contained the idea of a public renunciation of all further
future taxation of America for a revenue; and the house appeared to view
it in that light.

But the circular letter was far from satisfying the American sons of
liberty in general. The evident exception of the duty on tea, and the
professed design of repealing upon commercial principles, excited their
apprehensions, and confirmed them in the opinion, that the ground of
present grievances was not to be abandoned, but to be reserved for a
future opportunity of making fresh essays for the imposition of internal
taxes. The merchants and traders, therefore, of _Boston_, soon after the
knowledge of it, called a meeting, and unanimously voted, that the
taking off the duties on the articles of glass, paper, and colours,
would by no means relieve the trade from the difficulties it was under.
They then confirmed their former agreement, to send for no goods
contrary thereto, unless the revenue acts were repealed.

Though the testimony of the Pennsylvania assembly against the resolves
of parliament, and in favor of the Virginia resolves, the repeal of all
the revenue acts, and a redress of all grievances, was wanting; yet the
Philadelphia committee of merchants, whose character and influence in
the present business weighed more than that of the assembly, failed not
to express their minds fully to the committee in London, long after the
circulatory letter was a matter of notoriety. They thus wrote [November
25.] “Though we are not favored with an answer to our letter of the
eighth of April last, yet as the liberty of America is at stake, and the
minds of the people here are much agitated, and as the continuation of
the unhappy dispute between the parliament and the colonies must not
only affect your and our interest, but the general interest and
happiness of both countries, we think it our duty to apply to you again,
and earnestly request you would use your best endeavors with those in
the administration, to restore tranquility, and re-establish the
colonies in the enjoyment of their ancient rights and privileges. We are
very sensible that the prosperity of the colonies depends upon their
union and connection with Great-Britain. In this sentiment all the
Amecans concur, yet they cannot bring themselves to think, that for this
reason they ought to be divested of liberty and property. Yet this must
be the case, if the parliament can make laws to bind the colonies in all
cases whatever—can levy taxes upon them without their consent, dispose
of the revenues thus raised without their controul, multiply officers at
pleasure, and assign them fees to be paid without, nay, contrary to and
in direct violation of acts of assembly regularly passed by the colonies
and approved by the crown—can enlarge the power of admiralty courts,
divert the usual channels of justice, deprive the colonists of trials by
a jury of their countrymen, in short, break down the barriers which
their forefathers have erected against arbitrary power, and enforce
their edicts by fleets and armies. To such a system of government the
Americans cannot tamely submit; not from an impatience of subordination,
a spirit of independence, or want of loyalty to their king; for in a
quiet submission to just government, in zeal, affection, and attachment
to their king, the people of the colonies dare to vie with any of the
best of their fellows-subjects; but from an innate love of liberty and
the British constitution.

“In our last we intimated our fears that the ministry were greatly
abused, and the people of America grossly misrepresented, by some who
did not wish well either to Great-Britain or the colonies. The letters
of one of our American governors (Bernard) and the memorials of a board
lately erected among us, not to mention other documents laid before the
public, evince that our fears were but too well grounded. From these it
is apparent, that every sly art has been used to incense the ministry
against the colonies; every argument that malice could invent has been
urged to induce them to overturn the ancient foundations of liberty.
Nay, to compass their base ends, they have declared in express terms,
and taken uncommon pains to make the ministry believe, that “there has
been a long concerted and extensive plan of resistance to the authority
of Great-Britain in all the provinces, and that a seizure made at Boston
had hastened the people there to the commission of actual violence
sooner than was intended.

“In justice to the province where we reside, and indeed to all America,
we beg leave to assure you, that such representations are without any
just foundation, and that nothing can be a greater deviation from truth.
Though at the same time we confess, that the ends accomplished by these
and such like infamous slanders and vile arts, have given a general
alarm, and caused a universal uneasiness in the minds of the Americans.
They now see a rod of power held over their heads; they begin to feel
the severities of a court, that by its late enlarged jurisdiction is
empowered to break in upon the proceedings of the common law courts; and
they have anxious fears for the existence of their assemblies, which
they consider as their last and only bulwark against arbitrary power.
For if, say they, laws can be made, money levied, government supported,
and justice administered, without the intervention of assemblies, of
what use can they be? They are no essential member of the constitution.
And being useless and unessential, is there not reason to fear they will
quickly become disagreeable and then be wholly laid aside? And when that
happens, what security have we for freedom, or what remains for the
colonists, but the most abject slavery?

“These are not the reasonings of politicians, but the sentiments and
language of the people in general. For with great truth we may say, in
no country is the love of liberty more deeply rooted, or the knowledge
of the rights inherent to freemen more generally diffused, and the
principles of freedom and government better understood than among the
British American colonies.

“For this reason we think ourselves obliged to inform you, that though
the merchants have confined their agreements to the repeal of the act
laying a duty on tea, paper, glass, &c. yet nothing less than a repeal
of all the revenue acts, and putting things on the same footing they
were before the late innovations, can or will satisfy the minds of the
people. The fleets and armies may overawe our towns; admiralty courts
and boards of commissioners, with their swarms of underlings, may by a
rigorous execution of severe unconstitutional acts, ruin our commerce,
and render America of little use to the people of Britain; but while
every farmer is a freeholder, the spirit of liberty will prevail, and
every attempt to divest them of the privileges of freemen, must be
attended with consequences injurious to the colonies and the mother
country.

“In a matter of so great importance you will excuse this freedom. We
consider the merchants here and in England, as the links of the chain
that binds both countries together. They are deeply concerned in
preserving the union and connection.—Whatever tends to alienate the
affections of the colonists, or to make them averse to the customs,
fashions, and manufactures of Britain, hurts their interest. While some,
therefore, from ambitious views and sinister motives, are laboring to
widen the breach, we whose private interest is happily connected with
the union, or which is the same, with the peace and prosperity of both
countries, may be allowed to plead for an end to these unhappy disputes;
and that by a repeal of the offensive acts, the cause of jealousy and
uneasiness may be removed, tranquility restored, harmony and mutual
affection re-established, and trade return to its usual channel.”

The names of the committee on the back of the draft from which the above
has been copied, were, _Alexander Huston_, _John Rhea_, _John Cox_,
_John Gibson_, _Joseph Swift_, _James Mease_, _J. M. Nesbit_, _William
West_, _Robert Morris_, _Charles Thomson_, _Daniel Benezet_, _William
Fisher_, _George Roberts_, _Samuel Howell_, and _Thomas Mifflin_.

The stationing of troops in _Boston_ might afford greater personal
security to the commissioners than what they could otherwise have
enjoyed, and might induce them or their underlings to exceed the bounds
of their commission, or of prudence, but could not prevent smuggling, or
protect informers from insult and abuse. Even skippers, bound to
different parts of the colony, had their vessels stopt and libelled, for
having uncleared articles of trifling consequence on board. Persons who
ventured to lodge informations, when discovered, were often subject to a
treatment which gave them a ridiculous appearance, and laid them under a
difficulty to clear themselves of the dress imposed upon them. They were
stripped, well tarred, and then covered with feathers. The punishment
took so with the lower class of people, that afterward it was not
confined to informers, but was also applied by them to others who
offended their dread majesty. There was a degree of intemperance and
indiscreetness on the part of the commissioners and custom-house
officers, which tended to irritate; whereas the utmost lenity and
forbearance were requisite in order to general tranquility. Mr. _Eliot_,
at _New-York_, where smuggling was as prevalent as at Boston, found it
necessary to wink at many irregularities, that he might prevent
disturbances and ill humor among the body of merchants. The
commissioners expressed their dissatisfaction, and wanted him to alter
his line of conduct: he stated the case to a friend at home, and by his
influence was secured from such like directions in future. They
transmitted to Britain such representations of Mr. _Otis_, jun. as
provoked him to insert a publication in the Boston gazette, which
brought on an affray at the coffee-house between him and Mr. _Robinson_,
one of the commissioners, from the latter’s attempting to pull the other
by the nose, because of some expressions in the said publication. Mr.
Robinson being in danger of coming off with the worst, several of the
company fell upon Mr. Otis; some of whom held him, while others struck
him with canes or different weapons. A friend passing along, observed
what was doing, pressed in and rescued Mr. Otis, though he himself
suffered considerably from the assailants. The noise soon drew
multitudes about the house, when Mr. Robinson and his associates
prudently retreated by means of a backdoor.[101] This procedure of the
revenue officers (for no military one was present) opened a large field
of altercation and multiplied quarrels, which were before too frequent
between the king’s officers and the leaders of opposition.

Governor _Bernard_ could carry nothing in the govermental way through
the presence of the troops, but was continually losing ground, and
growing more and more obnoxious to the inhabitants; so that he was
abused in scurrilous publications, for which the Boston gazette was
notorious. They were craftily calculated for the meridian where they
first appeared, and suited the too levelling disposition of the
_Bay-men_; after the politicians had encouraged a spirit of
licentiousness, in order to weaken the force of government, and
counteract the designs carrying on against their liberties: but their
want of decency offended many of the sons of liberty in the other
colonies. Heavy threats were also thrown out against the governors
personal safety. Of these however he was regardless; and being asked by
a friend, how he could venture to walk about alone at his country seat,
only five miles from the center of Boston, and whether he was not
afraid, he answered, “No, they are not a blood-thirsty people.”

At length it was thought proper to recal him, as said, to lay before his
majesty the true state of the province: this he signified to the
assembly in the month of June. Before they were prorogued they embraced
the occasion for drawing up a petition to his majesty in which, after
complaints of him, they entreated that he might be for ever removed from
the goverment of the province. When his letters, written home in
confidence, came to be exposed to public view, it would have argued
great weakness to have continued him, unless it was designed to adopt
his plans, and support him by force at all adventures. Governor Bernard
was too open, and had too little command of his temper; and suffered his
resentment to get the better of what ought to have been his political
judgment. Every governor should divest himself of resentment, especially
in his public capacity, as his own happiness, and that of the governed
require it.

Men of spirit may be drawn, when they will not be forced—Sir Francis,
instead of aiming his censures at individuals, directed them against
whole bodies. Thus he charged the council with servility to the
populace, the pleasing of whom, he said, was the rule of their conduct,
and also both houses of the general assembly expressly, in his speeches,
with oppugnation against the royal authority, declaring that they had
left gentlemen out of the council, only for their fidelity to the crown.
Such charges strengthened the hands of those whom he most opposed, by
touching the honor of the whole. Had they been true, they should have
been suppressed or mentioned only in private; but though the substance
of them even was true, when applied to individuals, it might be
otherwise when applied to the body, the majority of whom might act upon
different principles. Political leaders frequently throw out motives, by
which to catch and conduct the well-intentioned, differing from those by
which they themselves are actuated. Sir Francis did not possess those
mollifying arts which the ferment of the times required; and was more
ready to aggravate disorders than to apologize for them. It was common
for him in his official letters, to stile the opposition the faction,
even while he owned that it comprehended the majority of the assembly. A
parental governor would have thrown in many hints to have lessened the
displeasure of persons in power, on account of offences committed at
three thousand miles distance, under an enthusiastic attachment to the
cause of liberty, at a period when divers outrages were perpetrated at
home, by mobs in various parts of the kingdom. He evinced too great an
inclination to make the worst of every thing; and at times hearkened to
and transmitted the strangest rumours. He was a principal instrument in
bringing the troops to Boston. It was a favorite measure with him and
the lieutenant governor long before it was executed. While he professed
himself a friend to the province, he was endeavoring to undermine its
constitution, and to obtain an essential alteration in the charter,
through an appointment of the council by the king, instead of its
continuing in the election of the general court, where the
representatives of the people necessarily carried it, whenever they
united.

Toward the end of June he had the fairest opportunity of getting the
troops removed from the Massachusetts, but opposed the measure. General
Gage desired general Mackay to consult with him concerning the necessity
of continuing the troops at Boston, and to procure his opinion in
writing, whether his majesty’s service required that troops should
remain there any longer, and what number, whether one or two regiments.
It is impossible to express his surprise at the proposition. The
knowledge of it, so far as it reached, occasioned a consternation among
the civil officers of government, its friends, and the importers of
goods from Great-Britain. Gage, in a letter, requested his opinion, and
assured him he should not publish it, or make it known on this side the
Atlantic. He immediately answered, that he had no hesitation to declare
his opinion that it would be detrimental to his majesty’s service to
remove any of the two regiments remaining; and that it would be quite
ruinous to the cause of the crown to draw all the troops out of Boston;
but that he was inclined to think, that a regiment in town, and another
at the castle, might be sufficient. He had time enough in which to have
ripened a plan with the court for the removal of the troops, to the joy
of the country, and with safety to the civil officers and supporters of
government. But he too early for his own peace and the happiness of his
government, deviates from the line of conduct marked out for him by lord
Halifax immediately after his appointment, when it was recommended to
him to see and converse with governor Pownal, of whom his lordship wrote
in the same letter, “It is impossible to pursue a better plan of
government than what he directed himself by.” However, his conduct was
so agreeable to the ministry, that a title was secured him. He was
created a baronet, March the twentieth, 1769; and his majesty took upon
himself the whole expence of passing the patent, which added greatly to
the honor done him, as it was a favor seldom or ever before granted. Sir
Francis, during his eleven years residence in America, made very little
advance in his estate. The Boston sons of liberty had great advantages
against him, from the early intelligence procured by the supposed author
of Junius Americanus, and forwarded for safety under an unsuspected
coarse paper cover, to Mr. Thomas Bromfield, glover, at Boston. Sir
Francis was astonished to find that the contents of his letters from
ministry were known by them as soon as by himself. When he embarked from
the castle on board the Rippon man of war, for Great-Britain, August the
first, few lamented his departure. Even his friend, the lieutenant
governor, Mr. Hutchinson, regretted not his recal; by it he gained an
opening for succeeding to the chair, to which he had been long looking,
and was in hopes of being advanced.

Boston and New-York entered into the non-importation agreement so early
as August the preceding year; before the present was out they began to
be embarrassed, and numbers grew weary of their engagement. Advantage
was taken of these circumstances. The British officers, either of their
own thought, or through hints from home, offered merchants the liberty
of having their goods directed to them, as though intended for the army;
and many were got in under that cover, especially at New-York. Several
persons imported into Boston and sold freely, without its being
particularly noticed, while a few only were called to an account and
exposed in the newspapers. This occasioned an alarm; and the people
assembled at Faneuil-hall [Jan. 23, 1770.] in consequence of a
notification, upon the business of preventing the non-importation
agreement’s being rendered abortive.

Mr. _Theophilus Lillie_, observing the gross partiality which prevailed
in suffering some to sell, while a few others were proscribed;
determined upon selling his goods also. To point him out as inimical to
the agreement, and a person whose shop was to be shunned, a piece of
pageantry was placed before the door. Mr. _Richardson_, attempting to
remove it, was driven into his house by a number of boys, and there
attacked by stones through the windows. Provoked, rather than endangered
by the assault, he fired and killed _Christopher Snider_ [Feb. 22.] a
lad of eleven years old, who was recorded in the public prints as the
first martyr to the noble cause of liberty. The boy was buried with the
greatest respect imaginable, according to the custom of the country; and
such was the number of people following the corpse, that the foot
procession extended a full quarter of a mile. The event tended rather to
promote than injure the non-importation agreement. Boys, small and
great, and undoubtedly men, had been and were encouraged, and well paid
by certain leaders, to insult and intimidate those who had avowedly
counteracted the combination, and still persevered. The lieutenant
governor in April, attempted prevailing upon a merchant of the first
estate and character, to promote an association in opposition to the
non-importation agreement, but to no purpose; and received for answer,
“Until parliament makes provision for the punishment of the
confederacies, all will be ineffectual, and the associates will be
exposed to popular rage.” Another meeting was called to determine
whether the goods already arrived and those expected, should be sent
back to Britain. A gentleman having received a letter from a member of
parliament, in which it was said, that shipping back £.10,000 of goods
will do more than storing £.100,000 and the same being communicated, the
scale, when upon a balance, was turned, and all the importers belonging
to the town submitted to send their goods back; and in May many were
re-shipped on board captain Scott. The leaders gave out that it was done
voluntarily; and yet the major part of the merchants wished to see the
trade free from restraint; but having in the height of their zeal,
called in the populace as their servants, to intimidate those who
refused to join in the combination, they were now forced to submit to
them as their masters, under the influence of a few of the merchants,
who still adhered to their first plan. Several of the last importers
begged with tears, that they might be allowed to house their goods, but
it was not granted. One who had been pretty sturdy, had a committee of
tradesmen sent him, with an axe-man, a carpenter, at their head, who
told him that there were a 1000 men waiting for his answer, and if he
did not comply, there was no saying what would be the consequences. The
strength of the argument prevailed; and a day or two after the paper
published that he complied voluntarily. The Bostonians moreover resolved
to break off all trade with the Newport people, because of their
duplicity, and breaking through the non-importation agreement. The next
month Hartford followed the example of Boston. But about the same time
the New-Yorkers, by dexterous management, were brought to agree to
import—“every thing except such articles as are, or may hereafter be,
subject to duty for the purpose of raising a revenue in America.”
Government gained a party in the committee of merchants, who took
advantage of the charges brought against Boston of importing large
quantities of goods; and Mr. Hancock was complained of for suffering
them to be brought in his vessels. By these means they prepared the
minds of the people for the execution of the plan they had concerted.
They did not call a meeting of the citizens, in which the vote of the
populace, procured by the arts of individuals, might prevail; but went
through the several wards, and took the sense of the principal
inhabitants separately, when it appeared that the majority were for
importing. Upon the receipt of letters from Philadelphia and Boston, the
sense of the inhabitants was again taken, and turned out as before. They
were severely censured by the Philadelphians for their defection, and by
others also. The letter of the committee to the merchants at Boston,
informing them what agreement they had adopted, was contemptuously torn
to pieces. When those Yorkers who were in the interest of government,
began to concert their plan, they rested on assurances of what would be
done in parliament, and knew not, for certain, that the duties on glass,
paper and colours had been taken off; but the news of the obnoxious act
being so far repealed, reached the continent before they had fully
perfected the business, on the 10th of July.[102]

The New-Yorkers were in general faithful, while their non-importation
agreement lasted; more so, it was thought, than the Bostonians. These
suffered much in their reputation among the sons of liberty at New-York
and Philadelphia, for the large quantities of goods found by some of the
newspaper publications, to have been imported into Boston. Some of the
inhabitants were desirous of rolling away much of the reproach, by
pointing out that, a considerable part of the goods charged to the score
of Boston, belonged to Salem, Marblehead, and other ports; but when the
non-importation agreements were ended, it was omitted, and thus they
continued to lie under greater disgrace than really belonged to them.
While the New-York plan was carrying on, a trial was made by about a
dozen persons, to frighten the gentlemen who were inclined to import,
from so doing, but it failed, the populace had been secured.

[April 12.] The king gave his assent to the act for repealing the duties
on glass, paper, and colours. The tea duty was professedly continued as
a pepper corn rent, for the point of honor, and as a badge of
sovereignty over the colonies. The ministry might also mean to use it in
some future period, for deeper purposes than could be then fathomed.
They intended in the beginning of the session to bring in a bill against
American associations; but the violence of party was such, that it was
thought the times would not admit of it. The strong opposition made to
ministerial measures at home, was certainly helpful to the cause of the
colonies, and encouraged them to go those lengths which they would
otherwise have scarce ventured upon. This, however, was not to be
charged to the anti-ministerialists, as an evil for which they were
answerable. Let ministers attempt at any time to make unjustifiable
inroads upon the liberties of British subjects, their opponents are
bound in duty, as the guardians of the public, to use all warrantable
efforts to disconcert them and the mischief which follows is to be
placed to the account of those who render the opposition a necessary
measure.

The news of a partial repeal did not satisfy the colonists. But they
attempted in vain to keep up the non-importation agreement after the
defection of New-York. The Boston merchants at length, in a meeting held
at the coffee-house in October, unanimously voted to alter it, and adopt
the same plan of importing with that of the New-Yorkers. It appeared to
be the sense of the one and the other, and also of the Philadelphians,
that no tea should be imported; and that if any was brought into the
several ports, it should be smuggled to avoid paying the duty. The
Virginia house of burgesses, in a petition to his majesty, expressed
their exceeding great concern and deep affliction upon finding, that the
several acts imposing duties for the purpose of raising a revenue in
America, were continued; and said, “A partial suspension of duties, and
these such only as were imposed upon British manufactures, cannot remove
the too well grounded fears and apprehensions of your majesty’s
subjects, whilst impositions are continued on the same articles of
foreign fabric, and entirely retained upon tea, for the avowed purpose
of establishing a precedent against us.” The present year was marked by
a different scene of blood than what offered in February, which could
not be introduced in the order of time, without breaking the thread of
the preceding narration.

Outrages had been committed by the soldiers; and frequent quarrels had
happened between them and the inhabitants of Boston, who viewed the
military as come to dragoon them into obedience to statutes,
instructions, and mandates that were thoroughly detested. Each day gave
rise to new occurrences which augmented the animosity. Reciprocal
insults soured the tempers, and mutual injuries embittered the passions
of the opposite parties. Beside, some fiery spirits who resented the
indignity of having soldiers quartered among them, were continually
exciting the town’s people to quarrel with the troops. Not only so, but
a pompous news-paper account of a victory obtained by the inhabitants of
New-York over the soldiers there in an affray, undoubtedly excited the
resentment of the military at Boston, and exultations among their
opponents, and thus increased the ferment. Every thing tended to a
crisis; and it is rather wonderful that it did not exist sooner, when so
many circumstances united to hasten its approach. The lieutenant
governor did not attend to those things properly, and was not
sufficiently careful to prevent consequences, by strongly urging the
officers to keep their men in the barracks as much as possible, and to
maintain the strictest discipline. He was desirous of recommending
himself both to them and the commissioners, and therefore was very
cautious lest he should offend either.

At length a private of the twenty-ninth regiment, passing along in the
morning [March 2.] near Mr. John Gray’s ropewalk, being provoked by
insulting words, resented it, and being overpowered, went off; but soon
returned with a dozen soldiers, between whom and the ropemakers an
affray ensued, which terminated in the defeat of the former; who in the
afternoon armed themselves with clubs, and were on their way to renew
the action, but were stopped. On this many of the town’s people were so
enraged, that they determined on fighting it out with the soldiers on
the Monday. The Rev. Dr. _Eliot_ was told of the determination on the
Saturday; and was also informed that the bells were to be rung to
assemble the inhabitants together; so that when on the Monday evening he
heard them ring, he was not alarmed with an apprehension of its being on
account of a fire’s breaking out in the town, which is generally the
case.[103] It does not appear that any militia were called in before the
firing upon the people, or that any regular plan was formed for
compelling the troops to move from the town; it is absurd to think, on
the other hand, that there was a settled plot for employing the soldiers
to massacre the inhabitants. But from the characters, principles, and
politics of certain persons among the leaders of the opposition, it may
be feared, that they had no objection to a rencounter, that by
occasioning the death of a few, might eventually clear the place of the
two regiments. That some design was on foot, which might be attended
with danger in the execution, may be gathered from lieutenant-colonel
Marshall’s saying, when giving evidence for the crown—“The bells were
ringing, and the people began to collect as they do at the cry of fire,
and I began to think it was fire. I had a mind to go out, but I had a
reluctance, because _I had been warned not to go out that night_;”
meaning in which the men were shot.[104]

[Mar. 5.] Between seven and eight o’clock at night, unusual numbers are
met coming from the south end of the town, with sticks in their hands,
and serious consequences are apprehended from it. About the same time
parties, amounting in the whole to near two hundred, several with great
sticks or clubs, proceed from the north end, some of whom say, “let us
go to the south end and join our friends there, and attack the damned
scoundrels and drive them out of the town; they have no business
here.”—More people than common, with large sticks, are observed running
from all quarters toward King-street. The north end parties collect in
and about Dock-square, and attack several soldiers belonging to Murray’s
barracks about nine o’clock: upon an officer’s coming up, these are
ordered to their barracks, and when got in, with much difficulty, are
immediately confined. The mob follow the officer to the gate, and
provoke the soldiers by the most abusive language, and dare them to come
out. They are hardly rastrained by their officers from doing it. While
these things are transacting, some are calling _town born turn out_,
twenty or thirty times over; others cry _fire, fire_, in different
places, the more effectually to draw people out of their houses, and to
increase their numbers; and soon after the nine o’clock bell has ceased,
the bells are set a ringing, which those who are not better informed,
imagine to be the alarm of fire.

Upon the soldiers being restrained to the barracks, the mob are desired
by one or more considerate persons to return home. A few comply, but the
generality have something further to engage their attention. Numbers
employ themselves in tearing up the stalls of the market-place in
Dock-square, for the purpose they express while calling out, “Damn the
dogs, where are they now? Let us go and kill that damned scoundrel of a
sentry, and then attack the main-guard.” The body of the mob when they
have finished their repeated attacks upon the barracks, are addressed in
the street by a tall large man in a red cloak and white wig. After
listening to what he has to offer, in the space of three or four minutes
they huzza for the main-guard, and say, “We will do for the soldiers.”
They separate into three divisions, and take different routs for
King-street, one through the main-street. A party, who have collected at
Oliver’s-dock, bend their course toward the same point. In the mean
time, the sentry before the custom-house is assaulted while upon duty. A
boy comes up, and pointing to him, says, “There is the son of a bitch
that knocked me down.” About twenty young fellows, eighteen years old,
call out, “kill him, kill him, knock him down.” Their behavior obliges
him to load his gun. They pelt him with snow-balls, pieces of ice, and
any thing that offers, and halloo, “fire and be damned.” They advanced
upon him; oblige him to retreat; he mounts the steps, and knocks at the
door for admission. Meeting with no relief in this way, more persons
collecting in the street, and his danger increasing, he calls out to the
main-guard, within hearing, for protection. Captain Preston, the officer
of the day, being told that the ringing of the bells is the signal for
the inhabitants assembling to attack the troops, repairs to the
main-guard; and learning the situation of the sentry, sends off a
corporal and six men to protect both him and the king’s chest in the
custom-house. The soldiers march off with their pieces unloaded, and the
captain follows to prevent disorder. Ere they have formed, that part of
the mob which comes through the main-street, and appears to be headed by
the mulatto Attucks, and to contain a number of sailers, upon coming to
the town-house, exclaim—“Damn the rascals, this will never do; the
readiest way to get rid of those people, is to attack the main-guard;
strike at the root, this is the nest.” The soldiers are pelted while
going to defend their comrade; and, when upon their station, are served
as was the single sentry, have snow-balls, large pieces of ice, sticks
and other things thrown at them, and are obliged to load for their own
safety. The reproachful language with which they are abused exclusive of
a plenty of oaths and execrations, is, “Come on you rascals, you lobster
scoundrels, you bloody-backs, you cowards, you dastards for bringing
arms against naked men; fire if you dare; fire and be damned, we know
you dare not.” and much more to the same purpose. The reason for saying
“you dare not fire,” is probably to be found in the doctrine latey
advanced, “that soldiers, while on duty, may upon no occasion whatever
fire upon their fellow-subjects, without the order of a civil
magistrate.” The mob press in upon the soldiers, advance to the points
of the bayonets, are desired to keep off, and are treated with cautious
attention. This may be owing to apprehensions of danger to themselves in
case of contrary conduct. The shouts, huzzas, threats, screams, and
almost yells of the mob, with the ringing of the bells to increase the
general confusion, may justly alarm them; but their precaution soon
avails nothing. While they are pushing off the people, without once
leaving their station or attempting to follow them, the mulatto, and
about a dozen persons, several in sailors habits, come down to the spot,
give three cheers, surround the soldiers, and strike their guns with
clubs, crying out to the others, “Do not be afraid of them, they dare
not fire; kill them, kill them; knock them over.” The mulatto aims a
blow at captain Preston, strikes down one of the guns, seizes the
bayonet with his left hand, and shows a hardy disposition answering to
the threats which have been uttered. At this instant, there is a
confused cry of “damn your bloods why don’t you fire,” and partly from
persons behind the captain. Firing succeeds. Montgomery, whom the
mulatto has assaulted, after recovering his legs, and relieving his gun
by a sudden twitch, is the first that fires, and his assailant falls.
After six or eight seconds, another fires, the other five follows in
quick succession. It is agreed, that only seven out of the eight
soldiers discharge their pieces, and that no one fires twice. Three
persons are killed; five are very dangerously wounded, and a few
slightly. Most are either passengers going through the street, or
unassisting spectators. It is well that no more are killed, considering
that there were from fifty to a hundred about the soldiers. They ran off
at the firing, but soon assemble again to take away the dead and
wounded.

The whole town is immediately in the greatest commotion. Their drums
beat to arms, and there is a constant calling out, “to arms, to arms,
turn out with your guns.” The townsmen assemble in the next street, to
the amount of some thousands. The lieutenant-governor repairs to captain
_Preston_, and upon coming up, asks him, “how came you to fire upon the
people without the orders of a civil magistrate?” The captain begins to
apologize for what had happened, by saying, “_we were insulted_;” and is
about adding more, but recollecting the impropriety of the place, stops
short, and asks Mr. _Hutchinson_ to walk up into the guard room, where
he means to finish what he has begun; but the lieutenant-governor goes
to the council chamber. The captain’s words are observed by some
gentlemen, who attend Mr. Hutchinson, and are considered as conceding to
the implied charge of having given direction to fire, and are remembered
to his disadvantage. Mr. Hutchinson cannot avoid exposing himself in the
midst of the enraged inhabitants, upon whom he prevails to disperse till
morning. It having been a clear moon-light night, persons have been
enabled to distinguish what passed.

[March 6.] The next morning the people collected in vast bodies. The
lieutenant-governor summons a council. Before any debate commences,
lieutenant-colonel _Dalrymple_, and lieutenant-colonel _Carr_ attend,
being informed that they may if they will. The town meets in full
assembly, and choose a committee, who, while the business is largely
discussing in council, wait upon the lieutenant-governor and deliver him
a message, declaring, “It is the unanimous opinion of the meeting, that
nothing can rationally be expected to restore the peace of the town, and
prevent blood and carnage, but the immediate removal of the troops.”
Colonel Dalrymple signifies to Mr. Hutchinson, his readiness to place
the 29th regiment, which has rendered itself in a special manner
obnoxious, in the barracks at the castle.

In the afternoon the lieutenant-governor receives another message,
acquainting him, that it is the opinion of the meeting, consisting of
near three thousand people, that nothing but a total and immediate
removal of the troops will satisfy. Mr. _Samuel Adams_, one of the
committee, in his venerable grey locks, and with hands trembling under a
nervous complaint, tells colonel _Dalrymple_, “If you can remove the
29th regiment, you can also remove the 14th; and it is at your peril if
you do not;” and continues talking to him in such a resolute tone, and
with such strong implications, as nearly to communicate the trembling to
the colonel. Mr. _Hutchinson_ wishes to get clear of the council, but
finds it impossible; and therefore lays the matter before them. Several
declare their apprehensions of more bloodshed, unless the troops are
removed. Mr. _Royal Tyler_ in his zeal for effecting it, say to him, “It
is not such people as formerly pulled down your house who conduct the
present measures. No; they are people of the best characters among us,
men of estates, men of religion. They have formed their plan for
removing the troops out of town, and it is impossible they should remain
in it. The people will come in from the neighboring towns; there will be
ten thousand men to effect the removal of the troops, who will probably
be destroyed by the people, be it called a rebellion, or occasion the
loss of our charter, or be the consequence what it may.” When Mr.
_Tyler_ said, _they have formed their plan_, it was not to be understood
that the plan was formed prior, but subsequent to the bloodshed of the
preceding evening. His representations might be aggravated: even when
there is not a natural cast for the hyperbole, persons inflamed by
passion, will imperceptibly have a recourse to the figure. Mr.
Hutchinson tells the council, “Nothing shall ever induce me to order the
troops out of town.” They, upon that, unanimously advise him to request
colonel Dalrymple to order them to the castle. To the colonel he says,
“I have nothing to do with it, it lies wholly with you.” While they are
pressing him, the people are informed, that the colonel is ready to
remove the rigiments, if the lieutenant governor will only join in
desiring it. He inclines to stand out, and to leave it with the colonel
and council to settle as they can agree about the business. He
deliberates till near night, dreading lest any one measure he may adopt,
shall lessen him in the opinion of the ministry and endanger his
advancement. At length the secretary, Mr. _Oliver_, perceiving how
artfully matters are managed, whispers him in the ear, “you must either
comply or determine to leave the province.” This prevails; he complies
with the advice of the council, and the general ferment begins to
subside. The troops, however, are not removed so early as is expected by
the town; they continue till the next Monday; and upon the colonel’s
being asked the reason, he mentions that it lies at the door of the
lieutenant governor, who shuffles with the colonel, in hope that some
occurrence will exist, which may exempt him from being charged with
occasioning the removal of the troops by the interposition of his
advice.

Meanwhile captain Preston and his party are committed to jail. One of
the wounded men dies. It is determined to bury the four persons[105] in
one vault, and in a peculiarly respectful manner. [March 8.] The
generality of the shops in town are shut. All the bells of Boston,
Charlestown, and Roxbury, are ordered to toll in the most doleful tone.
The corpses form a junction in King-street, where they fell when the
soldiers fired. Hence they proceed in orderly succession through the
main street, followed by an immense concourse of people, so numerous as
to be obliged to go in ranks of six a-breast, and the whole closed by a
long train of carriages belonging to the principal gentry of the town.
Thus are they distinguished and honorably attended to the place of
interment, with unparalleled pomp, not on account of personal merit, but
to express the vehement indignation of the inhabitants against the
slaughter of their brethren, by the British soldiery quartered among
them, in violation, as they imagine, of their civil liberties.

[October 24.] Captain Preston’s trial begins. Messrs. John Adams and
Josiah Quincy are his council. They are warm in the cause of liberty,
and offend several of their own party by undertaking the defence of the
prisoner; but faithfully employ their distinguished abilities in his
behalf. The trial does not finish till the thirtieth. While carrying on,
Mr. Quincy pushes the examination and cross-examination of the witnesses
to such an extent, that Mr. Adams, in order to check it, is obliged to
tell him, that if he will not desist, he shall decline having any thing
further to do in the cause. The captain and his friends are alarmed, and
consult about engaging another counsellor; but Mr. Adams has no
intention of abandoning his client. He is sensible that there is
sufficient evidence to obtain a favorable verdict from an impartial
jury; and only feels for the honor of the town, which he apprehends will
suffer yet more, if the witnesses are examined too closely and
particularly, and by that mean more truth be drawn from them than what
has an immediate connection with the soldiers firing, by or without the
orders of the captain. When the trial is ending, judge Lynde, toward the
close of his speech, says, “Happy am I to find, after such strict
examination, the conduct of the prisoner appears in so fair a light; yet
I feel myself deeply affected, that this affair turns out so much to the
disgrace of every person concerned against him, and so much to the shame
of the town in general.” The jury returned their verdict—Not guilty.

[Nov. 27.] On Tuesday commences the trial of William Wemms, James
Hartegan, William M‘Cauley, Hugh White, Matthew Killroy, William Warren,
John Carrol, and Hugh Montgomery, soldiers in the 29th regiment, for the
murder of Crispus Attucks, Samuel Gray, Samuel Maverick, James Caldwell,
and Patrick Carr, the last of whom did not die till ten days after he
was wounded. The soldiers have the same counsel that was engaged for
their captain. The trial is continued from day to day, Sunday excepted,
till Wednesday, December the fifth. Attempts were made to prejudice the
people against the prisoners, one especially in a certain weekly paper
the day before the trial began. The publication included an insult on
the supreme court, and expressed the greatest malignity of heart.—To
counteract the baneful effects of all such proceedings, Mr. Quincy, in
his address to the justices and jury, observes—“We must steel ourselves
against passions, which contaminate the fountain of justice. Let it be
borne deep upon our minds, that the prisoners are to be condemned by the
evidence _here in court_ produced against them, and by nothing else.
Matters heard or seen abroad, are to have no weight; in general they
undermine the pillars of justice and truth. As though a series of _ex
parte_ evidence was not enough, all the colours of the canvas have been
touched in order to freshen the wounds, and by a transport of
imagination we are made present at the scene of action. The prints
exhibited in our houses have added wings to fancy, and in the fervor of
our zeal, reason is in hazard of being lost. The pomp of funeral, the
horrors of death, have been so delineated, as to give a spring to our
ideas, and inspire a glow incompatible with sound, deliberate judgment.
In this situation, every passion has alternately been predominant. They
have each in turn subsided in degree, and they have sometimes given
place to despondence, grief, and sorrow. How careful should we be, that
we do not mistake the impressions of gloom and melancholy, for the
dictates of reason and truth! How careful, lest borne away by a torrent
of passion, we make shipwreck of conscience!

“Many things yet exist sufficient to keep alive the glow of indignation.
I have aimed at securing you against the catching flame. I have
endeavored to discharge my duty in this respect. What success will
follow those endeavors, depends on you, gentlemen. If being told of your
danger will not produce caution, nothing will. If you are determined in
opinion, it is in vain to say more; but if you are zealous enquirers
after the truth; if you are willing to hear with impartiality, to
examine and judge for yourselves, enough has been said to apprize you of
those avenues at which the enemies of truth and justice are most likely
to enter, and most easily to beset you.”

When the evidence in favor of the prisoners is finished, Mr. Quincy
resumes his address—“I stated to you, gentlemen, your duty in opening
this cause. I pointed out the dangers to which you were exposed. How
much need was there that you should suspend your judgment till the
witnesses were all examined!—How different is the complexion of the
case? Will not all this serve to show every honest man the little truth
to be attained in partial hearings? This trial ought to have another
effect; it should serve to convince us all of the impropriety, nay,
injustice, of giving a latitude in conversation upon topics likely to
come under a judicial decision; the criminality of this comduct is
certainly inhanced, when such loose sallies and discourses are so
prevalent as to be likely to touch the life of a citizen. In the present
case, how great was the prepossession against us! and I appeal to you,
gentlemen, as to what cause there now is to alter our sentiments.”

In the course of pleading, he is under a necessity of saying,—“And here,
gentlemen, I must first tell you by what law the prisoners are _not_ to
be tried or condemned. And they most certainly are _not_ to be tried by
the _Mosaic_ law: a law we take it, especially designed for the
government of a peculiar nation, who being in a great measure under a
theocratical from of government, its institutions cannot, with any
propriety, be adduced for our regulation in these days. It is with pain,
therefore, I have observed any eadeavor to mislead our judgment on this
occasion, by drawing our attention to the precepts delivered in the days
of Moses: and by disconnected passages of scripture, applied in a manner
foreign to their original design or import, there seems to have been an
attempt to touch some peculiar sentiments which we know are thought to
be prevalent; and in this way we take it, an injury is like to be done,
by giving the mind a bias it ought never to have received, because it is
not warranted by our laws.”

“We have heard it publicly said of late, oftener than formerly,
_Whosoever sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed_. This
is plainly, gentlemen, a general rule, which like all others of the kind
must have its exceptions—a rule, which if taken in its strict literal
latitude, would imply, that a man killing another in self-defence, would
incur the pains of death—a doctrine that certainly never prevailed under
the _Mosaical_ institution; for we find the _Jews_ had their six cities
of refuge, to which the man-slayer might flee from the avenger of
blood.” Let it be observed _en passant_, that it was ordained that the
man-slayer should abide in the city of refuge till the death of the
high-priests, so every person to escape such confinement and restraint,
would be extremely careful lest he should prove the casual occasion of
another’s death; and would not venture upon gratifying a settled or
sudden evil disposition, by needlessly slaying a fellow-creature,
because it would pass for chance-medly. But to go on in company with Mr.
Quincy. “And so, that _the_ MURDERER _shall flee to the pit_, comes
under the same consideration. And when we hear it asked, as it very
lately has been,” Who DARE stay him? “I answer, if the laws of our
country stay him, you ought to do likewise; and every good subject
_dares_ to do what the law allows. But the very position is _begging the
question_; for the question now in issue is, whether either of the
prisoners is _a murderer_ in the sense of our laws, what is murder and
what not, is a _question of law_ arising upon facts stated and allowed.”

“Again, you shall take no satisfaction for the life of a _murderer_, who
is _guilty of death_.” Here again is a begging the question; and
moreover the words _guilty of death_, if rightly considered, must be one
of those general rules which always have their exceptions. But in the
margin of our great bible, we find them rendered _faulty to die_.
Against a position of this kind we have no objection. If we have
committed _a fault_, on which our laws inflict the punishment of
_death_, we must suffer. But what fault we have committed, you are to
inquire; or rather you, gentlemen, are to find the _facts proved in
court against us_, and the judges are to see and consider what the law
pronounces touching our offence, and what punishment is thereby
inflicted as a penalty.”

Mr. John Adams, in his pleadings, produces from the best authorities,
those rules of law which must govern all cases of homicide, and
particularly that which is before the court; and then considers the
evidence, to see whether any thing has occurred that may be compared to
the rules of law. He enters into a minute consideration of every witness
produced on the crown side; and endeavours to show from the evidence on
that side, that the assault upon the party was sufficiently dangerous to
justify the prisoners; at least that it was sufficiently provoking to
reduce to manslaughter the crime even of the two, who are supposed to be
proved guilty of having killed. He then proceeds to consider the
testimonies of the witnesses for the prisoners; and concludes with—“I
will enlarge no more on the evidence, but submit to you,
gentlemen.—Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes,
our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the
state of facts and evidence: nor is the law less stable than the fact.
If an assault was made to endanger their lives the law is clear, they
had a right to kill in their own defence. If it was not so severe as to
endanger their lives, yet if they were assaulted at all, struck and
abused by blows of any sort, by snow-balls, oyster-shells, cinders,
clubs, or sticks of any kind, this was a provocation for which the law
reduces the offence of killing down to manslaughter, in consideration to
those passions in our nature which cannot be eradicated.—To your candor
and justice I submit the prisoners and their cause.”

“The law, in all vicissitudes of government, fluctuations of the
passions, or flights of enthusiasm, will preserve a steady undeviating
course; it will not bend to the uncertain wishes, imaginations, and
wanton tempers of men. To use the words of a great and worthy man, a
patriot, and an hero, an enlightened friend of mankind, and martyr to
liberty, I mean ALGERNON SIDNEY, who from his earliest infancy sought a
tranquil retirement under the shadow of the tree of liberty, with his
tongue, his pen, and his sword. “The law (says he) no passion can
disturb. ’Tis void of desire and fear, lust and anger. ’Tis mens _sine
affectu_; written reason; retaining some measure of the divine
perfection. It does not enjoin that which pleases a weak, frail man, but
without any regard to persons, commands that which is good, and punishes
evil in all, whether rich or poor, high or low. ’Tis deaf, inexorable,
inflexible.” On the one hand it is inexorable to the cries and
lamentations of the prisoners; on the other it is deaf, deaf as an adder
to the clamors of the populace.”

The judges when summing up the evidence to the jury, and giving their
opinions of the constructions of law upon the evidence apply themselves
to the removing of those bad impressions, which may possibly have been
made upon the jury by the misconstruction of scripture passages. Says
one of them—“In the course of this year you doubtless have heard much of
the law given to the _Jews_ respecting homicide, as well as of the
precept given to Noah, that _whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall
his blood be shed_. Whence it has been inferred, that whosoever
_voluntarily_ kills another, whatever the inducement or provocation may
be, is a _murderer_, and as such ought to be put to death.—But surely
not only the avenger of blood, and he who killed a thief breaking up a
house in the night, were exceptions to that general precept, but also he
who killed another in his own defence. Even the Jewish doctors allowed
this, and that justly; because the right of self defence is founded in
the law of nature.” It appears upon the trial, that the facts related
above, under the fifth of March are well attested. There are no less
than _thirty-eight_ witnesses to prove a design to attack the soldiers.
Six of whom the council for the king have produced. Nigh _thirty_
witnesses have sworn to words of provocation uttered against the
prisoners, as daring them to fire, and threatening to kill them; and
_twenty-five_ have witnessed to _ice_, _snow-balls_, _sticks_, &c. being
thrown at them, ten, of whom are witnesses for the crown.—There is
evidence that Patrick Carr, one of the deceased, repeatedly declared and
confirmed the same but a few hours before he died—that he went with a
design against the soldiers; that he thought they were abused and would
have fired before; that he forgave and did not blame the man, whoever he
was that shot him; that he blamed himself for going to the riot, and
might have known better, for he had seen soldiers called to quell riots,
but never saw any bear half so much before. The jury withdrew for about
two hours and a half. Upon comparing the evidence, they cannot be
convinced that the soldiers were not too hasty in firing. Was there
evidence of all having fired, they would convict all of manslaughter;
but it is agreed on all hands, that no more than seven guns were fired,
consequently one is innocent, and they choose that the guilty shall
escape rather than one innocent person be convicted.[106] They return
into court and agree, that as to Wemms, Hartegan, M‘Cauley, White,
Warren, and Carrol, they are not guilty, on which they are immediately
discharged. As to Killroy and Montgomery, they agree that they are not
guilty of murder, but of manslaughter. Both pray the benefit of clergy,
which is allowed; each is burnt in the hand in open court, and
discharged. [Dec. 5.] The trial has been long, but the issue of it, as
well as of that of the captain’s, may be brought in proof of the
integrity of Boston juries, venturing to give upright verdicts in
defiance of popular opinions.

[Dec. 12.] Edward Manwaring, esq. John Munroe, gentleman, Hammond Green,
boat-builder, and Thomas Greenwood, labourer, were tried for being
present, aiding, assisting, &c. William Warran in the murder of Crispus
Attucks. The whole evidence consisted in one witness’s declaring that he
saw two flashes from the custom-house, one from the balcony, the other
from a chamber window, and a person in the balcony with a gun or pistol
in his hand; and in the testimony of a French boy, servant to Mr.
Manwaring, who swore to his being at the custom-house when the soldiers
fired, and to a story of persons firing out of the chamber window. The
falsehood of the whole evidence was immediately detected by a number of
the most creditable witnesses, so that the jury acquitted the prisoners
without going from their seats.

In the pleadings upon the trials, (of the soldiers especially) Mr. John
Adams discussed the subject of homicide so largely, and showed so fully
by what a variety of circumstances it was reduced to manslaughter, that
the popular leaders perceived the necessity of altering their plan of
opposition to the military, and from thence forward promoted a
particular attention to the militia and the manual exercise, that the
country might be qualified for repelling arms by arms, whenever the same
should be requisite for the preservation of their liberties.

The ferment occasioned by the minesterial measures did not subside in
the New-York colony any more than in the Massachusetts.

About the middle of January, and at night, the _liberty-pole_ was cut
down by the soldiery, which enraged the inhabitants, and produced much
disturbance and riot afterward between them and the troops. The soldiers
posted up papers about the city against the sons of liberty which
occasioned a considerable affray.—The opposition soon expressed their
determination to preserve, by erecting a new _liberty-pole_, strongly
secured with iron, to prevent its being demolished. The _May-poles_ in
different parts of the continent had changed their names, or given place
to _liberty-pole_, after the exhibition upon the liberty tree at Boston
during the stamp act. The conduct of the soldiers was probably owing to
the measures which had been taken the preceding month, in order to
prevent the assembly’s granting money for the support of the troops. The
assembly had in their former session, voted to supply his majesty’s
troops quartered in the colony, which gave great umbrage. To quiet the
people they made a unanimous declaration, that it should be the last
supply they would ever grant, until their grievances were redressed, and
it gave satisfaction. But the house in the present session, passed a
vote for a further supply of £.2000 which greatly inflamed the minds of
the inhabitants. Two papers were published upon the occasion: the one
addressed _to the betrayed inhabitants of the city and colony of_
NEW-YORK, and signed A SON OF LIBERTY: the other signed LEGION, desiring
the inhabitants to meet in the fields. The papers were voted _false_,
_seditious_, and _infamous_ libels by the assembly, who desired the
lieutenant governor to issue out proclamations, offering a reward for
the discovery of the authors, £.100 for the first, and £.50 for the last
A stripling who had been journeyman to the printer of the first, but
discharged for bad behavior, allured by the proffered reward, lodged a
complaint against his late master, who was terrified into a discovery of
Mr. _M‘Dougall_ as the publisher. Mr. _M‘Dougall_ was by the chief
justice’s warrant brought before him, and upon refusing to give bail was
committed to jail. [Feb. 8.] In consequence of the second paper, about
1400 inhabitants met, and appointed Mr. _John Lamb_ to propound
questions relative to the vote of the assembly. After explaining it, the
question was put, “Do you approve of the vote?” _No_ was the answer. He
proceeded, “Are you for giving money to the troops, on any consideration
whatsoever?” It was again _No_. There were but about half a dozen for
the affirmative upon either of the questions. He then asked, “Will you
appoint a committee to communicate the whole of this transaction to your
members?” _Yes_ was the word. They then appointed for the committee,
Messrs. _Isaac Sears_, _Casper Wister_, _Alexander M‘Dougall_, _Jacobus
Van Zandt_, _Samuel Broome_, jun. _Erasmus Williams_, and _James Van
Vaurk_.—The meeting in the fields, and the transactions at it, were
several weeks before the discovery and commitment of Mr. _M‘Dougall_.
Mr. _Lamb_ was called before the house to answer for his conduct; but in
the mean time the committee wrote to the speaker, acknowledging
themselves, in every respect parties with him, and answerable for each
step that had been taken, and ready to defend their conduct in a
constitutional manner. When Mr. _Lamb_ appeared before the assembly, he
told them that he had assembled with the rest of his fellow-citizens,
and had proposed _questions_, which as a citizen, a freeman, and an
_Englishman_, he had a right to do, and was surprised to hear it
controverted. The house finding that they had to do with the men of sens
and resolution, who were determined upon supporting the rights of their
countrymen and fellow citizens, gave up the point and dismissed them.
Their vote of £.2000 for the troops soon passed into a law: but the
deficiency demanded by the lieutenant governor as arrears amounted to
upward of £.1000 was left unpaid. Had there been a provision for the
arrears; the compliance of the mutiny act would have been formal and
complete. The matters were carried so far must be attributed to an
extraordinary and sudden coalition in the assembly between politicians,
who had long been at mortal variance.

[April.] The grand jury found a bill against captain _M‘Dougall_, but
the trial was put off; and he was bailed out of jail.—When he house met
again toward the close of the year, he was ordered to attend at their
bar. The speaker asked him whether he was the author or publisher of the
address, &c. He declined answering, and assigned his reasons. It was
resolved, that in his reply he denied the authority of the house, and
was therefore guilty of a high contempt. On his refusing to ask pardon
of the house, he was ordered into custody, and the speaker issued his
warrant to the jail-keeper of the city to receive and keep him prisoner
until he should be discharged by due course of law. He remained in jail
till the assembly was prorogued on the 25th of the following February
1771, when he was enlarged after a confinment of near three months. It
was not till March the 27th that he was discharged from his
recognizance, by the supreme court then sitting at _New-York_, (without
having been brought to a trial) after having been under bonds for near
twelve months, and suffered twenty and three weeks actual imprisonment.
He was the first sufferer for liberty after the commencement of the
united efforts of the American sons to frustrate the ministerial plans
for encroaching upon, and eventually subverting their long claimed and
enjoyed rights and privileges. This honor belongs to a gentleman born in
Scotland, and who is indeed, what he signed himself, _A son of Liberty_.
He bore his imprisonment with fortitude; but the disagreeableness of it
was much lessened, and the disgrace of it wholly removed, as the
citizens of the highest and best characters ladies and gentlemen
resorted to the place of his confinement. His character as well as his
case was good; so that the most virtuous espousers of the latter were
neither afraid nor ashamed, by their repeated visits, to afford him
their public countenance.

The _Massachusetts_ again demands your attention.

[May 31.] The new general court met at _Cambridge_; the house
remonstrated against being held there, or at any other place than
_Boston_; and by a majority of 69 out of 102, voted it to be a very
great grievance, and resolved not to do business out of _Boston_; on
which the lieutenant governor prorogued them.

[July 25.] They met again, but the assembly refused to do business; and
in their message to Mr. _Hutchinson_, insited upon the right of people
to appeal to heaven in disputes between them and persons in power, when
there is an abuse of power; but they softened what they advanced, by
saying “We would, however, by no means be understood to suggest, that
this people have occasion at present to proceed to such extremity”; and
yet they afterward added, “these and other grievances and cruelties, too
many to be here enumerated, and too melancholy to be much longer borne
by this people, we have seen brought upon us by the devices of the
ministers of state.” They were prorogued afresh.

[Sept. 26.] They met a third time. The lieutenant governor told them
that the garrison at the castle in the pay of the province was to be
withdrawn by order of his majesty, and the fortress to be garrisoned by
regular forces. His orders were to deliver the possession of the fort to
such officer as general _Gage_ should direct to take the command of it.
The information excited a suspicion in the assembly, who despaired of
obtaing a removal to Boston by persisting in a refusal to do business;
the leaders therefore procured this vote: [Sept. 29.] “Rosolved, that
the next Wednesday [Oct. 3.] be observed by the two houses as a day of
prayer, to seek the Lord for his direction and blessing,” which went up
to the council, and was unanimously concurred. Men of profane cast are
too prone to ridicule religion, because of its being made a
stalking-horse to serve the purposes of politicians. Would they confine
their wit and satire to the parties offending, the correction would be
proper. But let not the well-intentioned and undesigning children of
devotion, be charged with hypocritical canting, because they are imposed
upon and duped by the subtelty of guides, who, like most thorough-paced
politicians, can change themselves into angels of light, that they may
perfect their devices.

[Oct 9.] The house resolved to proceed to business from absolute
necessity, protesting against the restraint the general court was held
under to do it out of _Boston_. A few days after, they sent to the
lieutenant governor to know whether he held the command at the _Castle_.
“If the custody and government of that fortress,” said they, “is now
lodged with the military power, independent of the supreme civil
magistrate within this jurisdiction, it is so essential an alteration of
the constitution as must justly alarm a free people.” His answer was so
worded, as to leave the assembly, in general, ground for concluding that
the military in the castle were dependent upon himself the same as were
the provincials. When he delivered it up, he repaired thither, sent for
the keys, and upon colonel _Dalrymple’s_ coming into the state room with
his officers, gave them to him, and lodged with him the custody and
government of the fort; but retained some trifling appearances of
superior command. He soon learnt, however, that he could not come at a
flag when in want of it, or even oars for a boat, without applying to
general _Gage_.

[Nov. 6.] The representatives resolved, that the merchants having
receded from their non-importation agreement, &c. they would discourage
prodigality, extravagance, and the use of foreign superfluities; and
promote industry, frugality, and their own manufactures in the several
towns they represented.

[7.] They appointed a committee of correspondence to communicate
intelligence to the agents and others in Great-Britain, and to the
speakers of their several assemblies through the continent, or such
committees as they have appointed or may appoint.

Before the lieutenant governor prorogued them, he observed to them, that
since they had discovered a resolution to remove unnecessary obstacles,
they had done more business, notwithstanding all the inconveniencies
from the place of holding the court, which they had insisted upon, than
he remembered to have been done in the like space of time since he had
shared in public affairs.

[April 3, 1771.] The following spring-session produced nothing very
material, but afforded him the pleasing opportunity of acquainting the
general court, in form, of his being appointed captain-general and
commander in chief over the province. The council presented a
congratulatory address, and expressed their satisfaction at his
appointment. Upon the question in the house of assembly, whether to
appoint a committee to prepare an address, their was a negative. The
house, however, afterward requested the removal of the general court to
_Boston_ which was not granted.

[May 29.] They met, as the year before, at _Cambridge_. In three weeks
the assembly protested against his excellency’s convening them there,
and afterward appointed a committee of correspondence.

[July 4.] The governor informed the house, that by his majesty’s
instruction, he was forbidden giving his consent to such an act as
subjects the officers of the crown to be taxed, by the assessors in the
towns where they reside, for the profits which they receive from their
commissions, although their offices have no relation to the province, so
that the tax-bill must be qualified.

[5.] The house, by message, expressed their surprise and alarm at the
reason assigned for his not assenting to the tax-bill, and said, “We
know of no commissioners of his majesty’s customs, nor of any revenue
his majesty has a right to establish in _North-America_. We know and
feel a tribute levied and extorted from those, who, if they have
property, have a right to the absolute disposal of it.”

Had it been known, how insignificant the taxes were which the officers
of the crown were required to pay, it is hard to conceive how wisdom
could have dictated such instruction, and have ventured to give a fresh
disgust to those, who were already too much irritated. However, the
governor’s instructions did not oblige him to confine the general court
to _Cambridge_, and he might have removed them to _Boston_; but by
showing a firmness in opposing their desires, while they protested
against the restrant they were under, he meant to recommend himself to
the ministry. By the same intention he was induced, in a great measure,
to refuse his consent to the grants made to Mr. _Bollan_ and Mr. _De
Berdt’s_ executors by this assembly, as he had done in respect to those
made by the preceding. These refusals served to keep up the animosity.

The disposition to import goods into the Massachusetts, in defiance of
the laws of revenue and trade, and to support such practices by open
violences upon the officers, whose duty it was to carry the laws into
execution, broke out upon many occasions; and, as usual, the magistrates
declined giving their assistance and support, being in principle opposed
to such laws, as fundamentally defective in point of rectitude. The like
disposition to import goods prevailed in the other colonies; but there
was no call to go into the like open violences.

[Dec. 3.] Mr. Otis, jun. was carried off in a post-chaise, bound hand
and foot, his reasoning powers being wholly deranged. This calamity,
which somewhat lessens the weight of opposition to ministerial measures,
is to be imputed, not to any effects of the affray with Mr. _Robinson_,
but rather to the high tone given to his animal frame by the strength of
his passions, and a failure in the point of temperance. The sons of
liberty would have sustained an excessive loss, had this event taken
place in the early stage of the opposition; but the times had brought so
many able persons of similar sentiments into the general court, who had
been training for four years, and were conversant with the political
management of public business, that the plans of the Massachusetts
anti-governmental party suffered no derangement.

An opportunity now offers of mentioning, that Sir Alexander Gilmour,
baronet, and George Dempster, esq. were the gentlemen who so nobly
distinguished themselves by voting for the repeal of the stamp act,
while all the other Scotch members present voted against it.

After what has been written and transmitted, you will judge yourself
under an obligation to return me speedy information of all that is doing
in Great-Britain relative to the American colonies.




                               LETTER V.


                                               _Roxbury, June 25, 1773._

[1772.] The annual elections of the _Massachusetts_ were in favor of the
friends to colonial liberty; but the state of Mr. _Otis_’s mind
necessarily occasioned his being left out of the list of the _Boston_
representatives.

[May 28.] The general court still met at _Cambridge_, but the governor
adopted a conciliating measure, in declining to negative Mr. _Hancock_,
who was again chosen one of the council.—He had been repeatedly chosen,
and till now as repeatedly negatived; he declined, however, taking his
seat at the board, choosing to remain in the assembly as one of the
Boston members.

[June 13.] Mr. _Hutchinson_ acquainted the house, in answer to a
message, that his majesty had made provision for his support; and then,
after requiring the opinion and advice of the council, upon their oaths,
whether he might now remove the general court to Boston, consistent with
the signification of his majesty’s pleasure to him, and receiving their
unanimous opinion and advice in the affirmative, adjourned them to meet
at Boston. He might have asked and received that very advice long
before.

A committee having been appointed to consider the matter of the
governor’s support being provided for by the king, reported and observed
[July 10.] “That the king’s providing for the support of the governor is
a most dangerous innovation. It is a measure, whereby not only the right
of the general assembly of this province is rescinded, but the highest
indignity is thrown upon it. It is an infraction of the charter in a
material point, whereby a most important trust is wrested out of the
hands of the general assembly.” And the house, the same day, declared by
a message to the governor, “That the making provision for his
excellency’s support, independent of the grants and acts of the general
assembly, and his excellency’s receiving the same, is an infraction upon
the rights of the inhabitants granted by the royal charter.”

The payment of the governors by the crown, is not relished by the
colonies, as it makes them entirely dependent upon that, and wholly
independent of the people and provincial assemblies; and as it destroys
the mutual check which each branch of the legislature ought to have upon
the others, and that balance of power which is essential to all free
governments. It will be a new source of complaint. On the other hand,
the affair which has happened in _Rhode-Island_ government will prove a
fresh provocation to ministry, and tend to fix them in their plans
respecting the colonies.

Lieutenant _Duddington_, the commander of the late armed schooner the
_Gaspee_, had been remarkably assiduous in supporting the laws against
smuggling, and in searching after contraband goods, by which he had
given great offence. He had also brought upon himself the resentment of
many, by firing at the _Providence_ packets (employed in transporting
goods and passengers from thence to _Newport_, and _vice versa_) in
order to oblige the masters to take down their colours, and by chacing
them even into the docks when it had been refused. The _Providence_
packet coming up as usual with colours flying and company on board,
probably a party of pleasure, as is frequent in the summer season, and
refusing to take them down, the lieutenant fired a shot, which being
disregarded, he chaced. [June 9.] It was near upon, or quite high water.
The packet stood in with the land as close as consisted with safety,
designing that the _Gaspee_ should be run a-ground in the chace. The
design succeeded. The Gaspee was soon fast, and could not stir, the tide
having done flowing. The packet proceeded to town. The situation of the
Gaspee, and resentment against the commander, excited the thought of
attacking and destroying her. Mr. _John Brown_, a considerable merchant
of _Providence_, was the principal in the business. Captain _Whipple_
was immediately employed to beat up for volunteers, and a number offered
and engaged to go upon any service for which they were wanted. Several
whale boats were procured and filled with armed men. Mr. Brown
accompanied them in the expedition. Captain Whipple, as they proceeded,
observed to Mr. Brown, that he might lose his life, and that he had a
family, and therefore he required that care should be taken of them in
case of his death. Mr. Brown engaged to do it should that happen. [June
10.] About two o’clock in the morning, they boarded and carried the
schooner, as she lay a-ground about seven miles below Providence. Mr.
Brown himself was the first on board. The lieutenant was wounded. He and
the crew were put on shore, and every thing valuable belonging to him
was taken out and saved for him; after which the Gaspee, with all her
stores, was burned.

Though a reward of five hundred pounds, together with a pardon, if
claimed by an accomplice, has been offered by proclamation for
discovering and apprehending any of the persons concerned: yet the
commissioners appointed to try the matter, have transmitted accounts to
ministry, that _they can obtain no evidence_. If any one had wished to
give evidence, that he might get the reward, yet the thought that he
should risk his life, or be obliged to fly the country and become a
perpetual exile, would naturally have overcome such propensity. It was
too hazardous to turn informer. Some who were secured, in expectation
that they would give intelligence, were assisted by the populace in
making their escape, before any thing material could be learnt from them
by the commissioners.

Governor _Hutchinson_ and his adherents having been used to represent
the party in opposition, as only an uneasy factious few in Boston, while
the body of the people were quite contented; Mr. _Samuel Adams_ was
thereby induced to visit Mr. _James Warren_ of _Plymouth_. After
conversing upon the subject, the latter proposed to originate and
establish committees of correspondence in the several towns of the
colony, in order to learn the strength of the friends to the rights of
the continent, and to unite and increase their force. Mr. Samuel Adams
returned to Boston, pleased with the proposal, and communicated the same
to his confidents. Some doubted whether the measure would prosper, and
dreaded a disappointment, which might injure the cause of liberty. But
it was concluded to proceed. The prime managers were about six in
number; each of whom when separate, headed a division; the several
individuals of which, collected and led distinct subdivisions. In this
manner the political engine has been constructed. The different parts
are not equally good and operative. Like other bodies, its composition
includes numbers who act mechanically, as they are pressed this or that
way by those who judge for them; and divers of the wicked, fitted for
evil practices when the adoption of them is thought necessary to
particular purposes, and a part of whose creed it is, that in political
matters the public good is above every other consideration, and that all
rules of morality when in competition with it, may be safely dispensed
with. When any important transaction is to be brought forward, it is
thoroughly considered by the prime managers. If they approve, each
communicates it to his own division; from thence, if adopted, it passes
to the several subdivisions, which form a general meeting in order to
canvass the business. The prime managers being known only by a few to be
the promoters of it, are desired to be present at the debate, that they
may give their opinion when it closes. If they observe that the
collected body is in general strongly agains the measure they wish to
have carried, they declare it to be improper; is it opposed by great
numbers, but not warmly, they advise to a re-consideration at another
meeting, and prepare for its being then adopted; if the opposition is
not considerable, either in number or weight of persons, they give their
reasons, and then recommend the adoption of the measure. The principal
actors are determined upon securing the liberties of their country, or
perishing in the attempt.

The news of his majesty’s granting salaries to the justices of the
superior court, afforded them a fair opportunity for executing the plan
of establishing committees of correspondence through the colony. The
most spirited pieces were published, and an alarm spread, that the
granting such salaries tended rapidly to complete the system of their
slavery.

[Nov. 2.] A town meeting was called, and a committee of correspondence
appointed, to write circular letters to all the towns in the province,
and to induce them to unite in measures. [Nov. 19.] The committee made a
report, containing several resolutions contradictory to the supremacy of
the British legislature. After setting forth, that all men have a right
to remain in a state of nature as long as they please, they proceed to a
report upon the natural rights of the colonists as men, christians and
subjects; and then form a list of infringements and violations of their
rights. They enumerate and dwell upon the British parliament’s having
assumed the power of legislation for the colonies in all cases
whatever—the appointment of a number of new officers to superintend the
revenues—the granting of salaries out of the American revenue, to the
governor, the judges of the superior court, the king’s attorney and
solicitor general. The report was accepted; copies printed, and six
hundred circulated through the towns and districts of the province, with
a pathetic letter addressed to the inhabitants, who were called upon not
to doze any longer, or sit supinely in indifference, while the iron hand
of oppression was daily tearing the choicest fruits from the fair tree
of liberty. The circular letter requested of each town a free
communication of sentiments on the subjects of the report, and was
directed to the select men, who were desired to lay the same before a
town meeting, which has been generally practised, and the proceedings of
the town upon the business have been transmitted to the committee at
Boston. This committee have their particular correspondents in the
several towns, who upon receiving any special information, are ready to
spread it with dispatch among the inhabitants. It consists of twenty-one
persons, of heterogeneous qualities and professions. The governor, in
expectation of exciting prejudice, and fixing a stigma upon them, their
connections and proceedings, has written to a gentleman in power,
“Strange that a government, which within a century would suffer no
person to be free of the commonwealth who was not one of their church
members, should now take for their leaders, men who openly contemn all
religion, and should join deacons and atheists in one trust; and that
they should be instigated to this by some of the clergy, who make the
highest pretences to devotion; and yet the spirit of political party
produces all this.” He would gladly receive them all into his own arms,
and be devoutly thankful for them, were they to change sides and join in
supporting his administration. But he has unwarily acknowledged, that
the government, or the great body of the people in their legislative and
ruling capacity are in the opposition, which therefore cannot consist
merely of a few factious leaders; and he appears not to have
recollected, that men of opposite principles and characters will unite
heart and hand, in keeping off a general calamity, which will involve
them all in one and the same ruin. The towns in general have chosen
committees of correspondence, and resolved in a stile agreeable to the
wishes of the Bostonians. But the resolutions have not been alway drawn
up by the townsmen. An inhabitant of _Petersham_ applied to that worthy
and disinterested son of liberty, Mr. _Quincy_, whom you will recollect
to have been of the counsel for captain Preston and the soldiers, for
his assistance, and was furnished with the following draft, intended for
Boston, excepting the introduction and the paragraphs marked with a
star, which were added by some other person.

[Jan. 4, 1773.] At a meeting of the freeholders and other inhabitants of
the town of _Petersham_ in the county of _Worcester_, duly assembled
according to law, held by adjournment on the 4th of January, 1773, the
committee chosen on the 30th ult. made the following report, viz. “The
town having received a circular letter from the town of _Boston_,
respecting the present grievances and abominable oppressions under which
this country groans, have thereupon taken into their most serious
consideration the present policy of the British government and
administration, with regard to Great-Britain and these colonies; have
carefully reviewed the mode of election, and the quality of the electors
of the commons of that island; and have also attentively reflected upon
the enormous and growing influence of the crown, and that bane of all
free states, a standing army in the time of peace; and in consequence
thereof are fully confirmed in opinion, that the ancient rights of the
nation are capitally invaded, and the greatest part of the most precious
and established liberties of _Englishmen_ utterly destroyed: And whereas
the parliament of Great-Britain, by various statutes and acts, have
unrighteously distressed our trade, denied and precluded us from setting
up and carrying on manufactures highly beneficial to the inhabitants of
these territories; restricted and prevented our lawful intercourse and
commerce with other states and kingdoms; have also made laws and
institutions touching life and limb, in disherison of the ancient common
law of the land; and moreover have in these latter times, robbed and
plundered the honest and laborious inhabitants of this extensive
continent of their property, by mere force and power; and are now
draining this people of the fruits of their toil, by thus raising a
revenue from them, against the natural rights of man, and in open
violation of the laws of God.

This town, in union with the worthy inhabitants of Boston, now think it
their indispensable duty to consider of the premises and the present
aspect of the times, and to take such steps as upon mature deliberation
are judged right and expedient; and hereupon this town

Resolved, That with a governor appointed from Great-Britain (especially
at this day) during pleasure, with a large stipend, dependant upon the
will of the crown, and controuled by instructions from a British
minister of state, with a council subject to the negative of such a
governor, and with all officers, civil and military, subject to his
appointment or consent, with a castle in the hands of a standing army,
stationed in the very bowels of the land; and that amazing number of
placemen and dependants with which every maritime town already swarms,
no people can ever be truly virtuous, free, or brave:

Resolved, That the parliament of Great-Britain, usurping and exercising
a legislative authority over, and extorting an unrighteous revenue from
these colonies, is against all divine and human laws. The late
appointment of salaries to be paid to our superior court judges, whose
creation, pay, and commission depend on mere will and pleasure,
completes a system of bondage equal to any ever fabricated by the
combined efforts of the ingenuity, malice, fraud, and wickedness of man:

* Resolved, That it is the opinion of this town, that a despotic,
arbitrary government, is the kingdom of this world, as set forth in the
New-Testament, and is diametrically opposite to the establishment of
christianity in a society, and has a direct tendency to sink a people
into a profound state of ignorance and irreligion; and that, if we have
an eye to our own and posterity’s happiness (not only in this world, but
the world to come) it is our duty to oppose such a government:

* And further resolved, That the depriving the colonies of their
constitutional rights, may be fitly compared to the dismembering the
natural body, which will soon affect the heart; and it would be nothing
unexpected for us to hear, that those very persons who have been so
active in robbing the colonies of their constitutional rights, have also
delivered up the constitution of our mother country into the hands of
our king:

Therefore resolved, That it is the first and highest social duty of this
people, to consider of, and seek ways and means, for a speedy redress of
these mighty grievances and intolerable wrongs; and that for the
obtaining of this end, this people are warranted, by the laws of God and
nature, in the use of every rightful art and energy of policy, stratagem
and force.

* And while we are thus under these awful frowns of divine Providence
and involved as this people are in heavy calamities, which daily
increase in number and severity, it is highly becoming towns and
individuals to humble themselves before Almighty God, seriously to
commune with their own hearts, and seek carefully with tears, for the
causes of the prevailing distresses of the land; and while it is
apparent, that pristine piety and purity of morals, have given place to
infidelity, dissipation, luxury, and gross corruption of mind and
morals, there is a loud call for humility, lamentings and reformation;
and it is at this time eminently incumbent on one and all, to seek at
the throne of the great God for those special and remarkable
interpositions of divine Providence, grace and mercy, which have so
ofter saved New-England from both public and private distress and
misery: and as there is great reason to believe, that in past times we
have too much depended upon the exertions of worldly wisdom and
political devices, it becomes us in our present melancholy situation to
rely no longer on an arm of flesh, but on the arms of that all-powerful
God, who is able to unite the numerous inhabitants of this extensive
territory, as a band of brothers in one common cause—who can easily give
that true religion, which shall make us his people indeed; that spirit,
which shall fit us to endure temporal hardships for the procurement of
future happiness; that spirit of valor and irresistable courage, which
shall occasion our aged and our youth to jeopard their lives with joy,
in the high places of the field, for his name and service sake, for the
preservation also of this goodly heritage of our fathers, for the sake
of the living children of our loins, and the unborn millions of
posterity.

* We believe that there are very many, who in these days have kept their
integrity and garments unspotted, and hope that God will deliver them
and our nation for their sake. God will not suffer this land where the
gospel hath flourished, to become a slave of the world; he will stir up
witnesses of the truth; and in his own time, spirit his people to stand
up for his cause, and deliver them. In a similar belief, that patriot of
patriots, the great _Algernon Sidney_, lived and died, and dying
breathed a like sentiment and prophecy, touching his own and the then
approaching times, a prophecy, however, not accomplished until a
glorious revolution.

Approved of by vote of the town, without contradiction.

                                                SYLVANUS HOW, per order.


The govornor, instead of overlooking in his speech, the proceedings of
the towns, has been induced by them to broach the dispute about the
supremacy of the parliament; and has fallen into the snare which
probably some of the politicians had laid for him, expecting to get the
majority of the general court to declare against it. He designed to
recommend himself to the ministry by obtaining a victory: but they will
not thank him for increasing their embarrassments.

[Jan. 25.] The council in their answer, said “The stamp act, with some
preceding and succeeding acts of parliament, subjecting the colonies to
taxes without their consent, was the original cause of all the
uneasiness that has happened since, and has occasioned also an inquiry
into the nature and extent of the authority by which they were made.”

This was the truth. When the stamp act took place, “some people, under
the notion of zeal for liberty, ran into the most excessive
licentiousness, and were guilty in one place and another of the most
lawless, unjust, and tyrannical proceedings; such as pulling down and
destroying houses, abusing persons, endangering men’s lives, destroying
their property, breaking windows, delivering prisoners out of the hands
of justice, putting many into great fear, all contrary to the laws of
the province: but there was nothing of this kind before.”[107] Let me
add, that in all my researches not an instance has occurred to me of the
mob’s having been the death of a single individual, though they might
have proceeded to the most criminal lengths also, had they not been
gratified or diverted from their pursuits. But before that fatal act,
there was not a more loyal, orderly, and peaceable people than the
Americans in general through the whole British empire. All ranks and
conditions gloried in their connection with Great-Britain; rejoiced in
her friendship and protection; and triumphed in her prosperity.

Toward the close of their answer, the house of assembly expressed a
concern at their having been reduced by the speech to the unhappy
alternative, either of appearing by their silence to acquiesce in the
governor’s sentiments as to the supremacy of parliament, or of freely
discussing the point. The house might be concerned, but the leaders were
pleased with the opportunity. The governor replied; and the house in
their rejoinder told him “Although the colony may have submitted _sub
silentio_ to some acts of parliament, that they conceived might operate
for their benefit, they did not conceive themselves bound by any of its
acts which they judged would operate to the injury of individuals.” The
people at large believe, that the house has the best of the argument,
and are confirmed in their opposition to the claims of parliament.

The house voted the usual salaries to the judges of the superior court
early in the session. The governor delayed giving his assent to the
grants; which produced a message to him, requesting his making known the
difficulty that prevented his assenting; to this it was answered, that
he had received information, that his majesty had been pleased to order
salaries to be allowed to the justices of the superior courts, &c. By
this answer the house gained the opportunity of sending a second
message, [Feb.] in which they expressed their resentment at the many
attempts made, effectually to render null and void those clauses in
their charter upon which the freedom of their constitution depends; and
said that they were more and more convinced, that it had been the design
of administration to introduce an arbitrary government into the
province. They declared at the close, their impatience to know, “that
the justices will utterly refuse ever to accept of support in a manner
so justly obnoxious to the people of the province, it being repugnant to
the charter, and utterly inconsistent with the safety of the rights,
liberties, and properties of the people.” To add the greater weight to
their sentiments, and make them the more regarded by all persons, they
come to several resolves [March 3.] respecting the salaries and the
judges; among the rest, “that their dependence on the crown, especially
while they held their commissions during pleasure, tends to the
subversion of justice and equity, and to introduce oppression and
despotic power; and that while they hold during pleasure, any who shall
accept of and depend upon the pleasure of the crown for his support,
independent of the grants of the general court, will discover that he is
an enemy to the constitution, and has it in his heart to promote the
establishment of an arbitrary government in the province.”

The measures pursued on each side the Atlantic are not calculated to
promote harmony.




                               LETTER VI.


                                               _London, August 7, 1773._

  FRIEND G.

You will receive from me without further application, regular accounts
of what is doing on this side the Atlantic, in relation to the colonies.

The burning of the _Gaspee_ schooner near Providence, has given the
chief rise to “an act for the better securing his majesty’s dock yards,
magazines, ships, ammunition and stores.” If the button of a marine’s
coat, the oar of a cutter’s boat, or the head of a cask belonging to the
fleet, are included under the comprehensive term _stores_, then
according to the act, a person wilfully and maliciously destroying, or
aiding and assisting in destroying the same, is to suffer death on being
convicted. But what will affect you more than all the rest is that the
act is extended to the colonies, and subjects a person to a trial at the
pleasure of his majesty, his heirs or successors, in any shire or county
in Great-Britain. Your own feelings will furnish you with the best
comment on this new extension of parliamentary power.

The supporting of the authority of parliament was the only cause
assigned by the minister himself, for retaining the tea-duty, at the
very time when he acknowledged it to be as anti-commercial a tax, as any
of those which he had repealed upon that principle. It now appears that
government had something more in contemplation.

The East-India Company, feeling the bad effects of the colonial
smuggling trade, (occasioned by the retention of the duty) in the large
quantities of tea which remained in their warehouses unsold, requested
the repeal of the three-pence per pound in America, and offered that,
upon its being complied with, government should retain six-pence in the
pound on the exportation. Thus the company presented the happiest
opportunity which could have offered, for honorably removing the cause
of difference with America. Here was an opening for doing right, without
infringing the claims on either side. The company asked, and their
situation required relief. It could not be alledged, that it was done at
the instance of American discontent. The minister was requested and
intreated, by a gentleman of great weight in the company, and a member
of parliament, to embrace the opportunity; but it has been rejected. New
contrivances have been set on foot to introduce the tea, attended with
the three-penny duty into all the colonies. Various intrigues and
solicitations have been used to induce the chairman and deputy chairman,
to undertake this rash and foolish business. It has been protested
against as contrary to the principles of the company’s monopoly; but the
power of ministry has prevailed; and the insignificant three-penny duty
on tea, is doomed to be the fatal bone of contention between
Great-Britain and America. A bill has been passed into an act, [May 10.]
for enabling the company to export their own teas. In consequence of it
they have adopted the system, and are become their own factors. They
have come to a resolution of sending 600 chests of tea to
_Philadelphia_, the like quantity to _New-York_ and _Boston_, beside
what is designed for other places; several ships are accordingly
freighted for different colonies, and agents appointed for the disposal
of the commodity.

The several colonies will undoubtedly consider the scheme as calculated
merely to circumvent them into a compliance with the revenue law, and
thereby to open the door for an unlimited taxation; for if taxation can
be established in this instance, it will be extended to others.
Consequences will not fail to convince the minister, that it would have
been far more eligible to have repealed the duty, than in this way to
attempt its establishment. It will be needless for me to assure you,
that you may upon all occasions command the assistance of

                                                               Your, &c.

N. B. Some of the captains have refused to take the tea on board.




                              LETTER VII.


                                              _Roxbury, March 28, 1774._

Before you have an account of the American proceedings in respect to the
teas of the East-India Company, you must be presented with some matters
of an earlier date.

[May 14, 1773.] The Bostonians persisted in discovering on every
occasion, a determined opposition to ministerial measures. Twelve days
before the election day, the town resolved, “That if the council apply
for Faneuil-hall for to dine in on the anniversary election day, the
select men should not grant it but upon the express conditions that
neither the commissioners of the customs, nor their attendants, nor the
officers of the army and navy, stationed here for the purpose of
enforcing unconstitutional acts of parliament by military execution, be
invited.” It has been an established custom for the governor, council,
and many other gentlemen, to dine there on that day; but the resolve
prevented an application, and occasioned their dining elsewhere, with
the commissioners and officers.

Whether the votes of _Boston_, sent to _Virginia_, as the patriots say,
or their own private letters might or might not lead to it, the house of
burgesses resolved, in the beginning of March, to maintain an
intercourse with the sister colonies. They therefore appointed a
committee of eleven persons, “whose business it should be to obtain the
most early and authentic intelligence of all such acts and resolutions
of the British parliament, or proceedings of administration, as may
relate to or affect the British colonies, and to keep up and maintain a
correspondence and communication with their sister colonies.” They then
resolved, “That their speaker transmit to the speakers of the different
assemblies their resolutions, to be laid before their assemblies, and
requesting their appointing committees.” Nothing could be more
acceptable to the _Massachusetts_ assembly. It was the first particular
business they entered upon when they met. [May 28.] They came to several
resolves, and were careful in the first to speak highly in praise of
_Virginia_. They appointed a committee of fifteen members, and directed
them “to prepare a circular letter to the speakers, requesting them to
lay the same before their respective assemblies, in confidence that they
will comply with the wise and salutary resolves of the house of
burgesses of _Virginia_.” _Connecticut_, _Rhode-Island_, _Maryland_, and
_New-Hampshire_, entered into similar measures; but the answer ordered
by the _New-Hampshire_ assembly, to be given to the speakers of
_Virginia_ and _Rhode-Island_, was guardedly expressed; they gave
assurance that their sister colonies might rely upon their sincerely
joining them in every constitutional plan for securing the rights of
America. The institution of these committees tends greatly to unite the
colonies, and to render them more alert and formidable in resisting the
encroachments of ministry. They by this mean become early prepared to
meet new and unexpected occurrences; and are drawn in to look upon
themselves as jointly interested in each others safety and public
concerns.

An event has happened in the _Massachusetts_, which has excited on the
part of the people, the utmost indignation and animosity; on the side of
the governor and other, the greatest confusion.

The agent, Dr. _Franklin_, has by some means yet unknown, obtained and
sent over to Mr. Bowdoin, a number of letters, to be communicated by
him, after perusal, to a few trusty gentlemen, viz. the honorable James
Pitts, Mr. Thomas Cushing, Mr. Samuel Adams, Dr. Winthrop, Dr. Chauncey,
and Dr. Cooper: it is added, they are to be returned and put into the
place whence they were taken. The letters are signed _Tho. Hutchinson_,
_And. Oliver_, _Ch. Paxton_, _Thomas Moffat_, _Robert Achmuty_, _Nath.
Rogers_, _George Rome_. Though they were partly private and
confidential, they were designed to procure public coercive measures;
and tended to incense the mother country against her colonies, and by
the steps recommended, to widen the breach, which they have undoubtedly
effected. Their contents were the subject of conversation and solicitous
enquiry; till at length Mr. _Sam. Adams_ acquainted the assembly [June
2.] that he had perceived the minds of the people to be greatly agitated
with a prevailing report, that letters of an extraordinary nature had
been written and sent to England, greatly to the prejudice of this
province—that he had obtained certain letters, which with the consent of
the gentleman from whom he had received them, might be read in the house
under certain restrictions, namely, that the said letters be neither
printed nor copied in whole or in part; the proposal was considered, and
they were read under the said restrictions. A committee of the whole
house afterward reported, “that the tendency and design of said letters
was to overthrow the constitution of this government, and to introduce
arbitrary power into the province.”—Yeas 101—Nays 5.

The restrictions under which the letters were communicated, were
invalidated by contrivance; and in a week’s time [June 9.] Mr. _Hancock_
acquainted the house that he had received copies of certain letters,
which he supposed were copies of the letters before the house, and moved
that they might be compared. The next day [June 10.] one of a committee
appointed to consider some means whereby the house might be honorably
and fully possessed of the letters, reported, “That Mr. S. Adams had
acquainted him, that having conversed with the gentleman from whom he
received the letters, he was authorised to inform the house, that the
said gentleman consented (as he found that copies of said letters were
already abroad, and had been publicly read) that the house should be
fully possessed of them, to print, copy, or make what use of them they
pleased, relying on the goodness of the house, that the original letters
be returned, they retaining attested copies for their use.” Mr. S. Adams
being called upon, declared the same. [June 16.] At length the assembly
resolved to petition the king to remove governor _Hutchinson_ and
lieutenant governor _Oliver_ for ever from the government of the
province. [June 22.] They agreed also to furnish the council with the
original letters upon the express condition, that the board would by no
means suffer them to go out of their hands. The council complied with
the insulting stipulation aimed at the governor; and upon his requiring
the letters for examination, refused to deliver them into his hands, but
sent a committee to open them before him, that he might examine the hand
writing. [June 24.] To this indignity he was obliged to submit, as well
as to the mortification of acknowledging the signature. After which they
resolved, “that the removal of the governor and lieutenant governor will
be promotive of his majesty’s service.”

The _Boston_ committee of correspondence, that they might add weight to
the doings of the general court, enclosed the governor’s letters and
also the resolves of the house, in a spirited circular letter, and sent
them to the several town clerks through the province, to be communicated
to their respective towns.

The house of assembly in their petition and remonstrance to his majesty,
charged the governor and lieutenant governor with being betrayers of
their trusts and of the people they governed, and with giving private,
partial, and false information; declared them enemies to the colony; and
prayed for justice against them, and for their speedy removal. So
prevalent was the resentment, that these charges, with many others, were
carried through by a majority of 82 to 12.

To enter now upon the subject of the TEA. While the bill for allowing
the East-India Company to export it, was in parliament, letters from
Britain insinuated into the minds of the colonists, that a plan was laid
to bring them into a snare; that a noble resistance on this occasion,
would free them from the slavery intended for them; that if this
opportunity was lost they never would have another; and that if they
suffered the ships to land the tea, and the duty to be paid, they would
rivet their own chains. The British merchants have been alarmed with the
thought of the losses which must necessarily accrue to themselves from
the exportations of the company, and from the sales going through the
hands of consignees; and have contributed to the strengthening of that
resistance to which the people were already inclined; through their
prevailing jealousy at the reservation of the tea duty when the other
duties were repealed. The united opposition of the colonies was to be
secured; but the event was precarious. The _Bostonians_ were much
suspected by the sons of liberty in the other provinces, on account of
the many goods which were imported into the town during the general
non-importation agreement, and agreement of the teas contrary to the
agreement respecting that article. _New-York_ and _Philadelphia_ had
kept to the agreement, and had run all the teas that the market
demanded; but there had been imported into _Boston_, from the beginning
of 1768 to the end of last year, not less than 2714 chests, by more than
a hundred different persons. Mr. Hutchinson and his sons were
considerable importers. It was evident that the body of merchants could
not be depended upon. Mr. _Thomas Mifflin_, of Philadelphia, being at
Boston, put it therefore to the sons of liberty, when the teas were
expected, “Will you engage that they shall not be landed? If so, I will
answer for Philadelphia.”—They pledged their honor.

[Oct. 2.] The inhabitants of _Philadelphia_ assembled, and unanimously
entered into various resolves, in which they censured the resolution of
the East-India Company to send out their tea to America, subject to the
payment of duties on its being landed, as an open attempt to enforce the
ministerial plan, and a violent attack upon the liberties of America;
and declared it to be the duty of every American to oppose this attempt,
and that whoever should directly or indirectly countenance it, was an
enemy to his country. They then fixed upon a committee to wait on the
gentlemen, reported to be appointed to receive and sell the tea, and to
request their resigning. Within three days the whole number resigned;
Messrs. _Whartons_ and _Brown_, without making the least difficulty; the
other two, not till the treatment they met with (on appearing at the
coffee-house) for the shuffling answer they had given, convinced them
that it was not safe trifling with the public opinion. Since this
meeting, the Boston sons of liberty have assured by letter the sons of
liberty at Philadelphia, that no tea shall be landed.

At _New-York_, when captain _Sears_ and captain _M‘Dougall_ heard that
the tea was to be sent, they concluded that an opposition to it was
necessary, and agreed upon contriving to unite the tea-smugglers, the
merchants, and the sons of liberty in that service; and that captain
_M‘Dougall_ should write against the design of introducing and vending
the tea agreeable to the ministerial plan, but should remain concealed
as the author. A few of each class were called together, and the mode of
opposition settled. Publications, tending to spread and increase the
alarm of imminent danger to the liberties of the country, appeared
periodically. As the time approached for the arrival of the tea ships,
the publications became more spirited and threatening. [Nov. 5.] An
hand-bill addressed to the friends of liberty and commerce was
circulated through the city, calculated to provoke resentment against
all the encouragers of the tea plan. Afterward written papers were stuck
up at the coffee-house and other places [Nov. 8.] menacing destruction
to any person who should accept a commission for the sale of the
_East-India_ Company’s teas, or be an accessory. In rather more than a
week, there was published [Nov. 18.] a paper signed _Legion_, addressed
to the stated pilots of the port, and all others whom it might concern,
directing them how to proceed in reference to any tea-ship, and
requiring them, at their peril, to bring her no farther than the Hook.
In another paper, signed the _Mohawks_, the tea-ship is said to be laden
with fetters, forged for them in Great-Britain, and every vengeance is
denounced against all persons, who dare in any manner to contribute to
the introduction of these chains. In December, the _London_, captain
_Chambers_, and the tea ship arrived on the same day; the former came up
directly to the wharf, the other remained at the _Hook_, and was watched
till she returned, by a vessel stationed there for the purpose. On her
arrival a committee waited on the consignees, who, agreeable to a former
promise, assured them that they would neither receive nor sell the tea,
as it came liable to an _American duty_. Captain Chambers ventured to
bring seventeen chests on a private account, which were taken and thrown
overboard into the harbor. Had the company’s ship come to the wharf, she
would probably have been burnt, for captain _Sears_ and five others had
determined upon it, and provided themselves with combustibles for that
purpose.

At _Philadelphia_, printed papers were dispersed, warning the _Delaware_
pilots not to conduct any of the tea ships into harbor, as they were
only sent for the purpose of enslaving and poisoning all the Americans;
and at the same time plainly intimating, that it was expected they would
apply their knowledge of the river, under the colour of their
profession, so as effectually to secure their country from such an
imminent danger.

In most places the consignees were obliged to relinquish their
appointments, and to enter into engagements not to act in that capacity,
and no other persons daring to receive the cargoes consigned to them,
the captains of the New-York and Philadelphia ships, from these
circumstances, and the knowledge of the risk they ran from the
determined resolution of the people, concluded upon returning directly
to Great-Britain, without entangling themselves by any entry at the
custom-houses. But it was otherwise in the _Massachusetts_.

Methods were taken to spirit up the people at large by fugitive pieces,
hand-bills, resolves of town-meetings, the mutual intercourse of
committees, and the like. [Nov. 3.] At length some hundreds of the
inhabitants of _Boston_ and the neighboring towns, meet at
_Liberty-tree_, agreeable to a notification issued the day before, “for
to hear the consignees resign and swear, that they will re-ship any
teas, that may by the _East-India_ Company be assigned to them.” The
consignees are in general obnoxious to the public by reason of their
near and intimate connections with the governor, on whose support they
depend. They are not terrified into an appearance at the place proposed;
but meet together by agreement at the store of Mr. _Clark_, who is one
of them, in King-street. A committee is appointed by the assembly to
wait upon them with a message, to which they pay no regard. The people,
who attend the committee as spectators, upon this force open the doors
of the ware-house, and enter with great violence; and then attempt
getting up stairs into the compting-house but are driven back. [Nov. 5.]
The sons of liberty not having succeeded in this procedure, a
town-meeting of the freeholders and other inhabitants is called. A large
number is collected; and it is agreed to adopt the resolves of the
citizens of Philadelphia. A committee is chosen to wait upon the
consignees, who decline complying with the request of the town by
letters, which tho’ decent, are the next day voted daringly affronting,
when the meeting is immediately dissolved. Some of the sons of liberty
are fearful of pushing the matter too far, lest the town, and then the
colony, should be drawn into a quarrel with Great-Britain. To such it is
said, “It must come to a quarrel with Great-Britain and the colony,
sooner or later; and if so, what can be a better time than the present?
Hundreds of years may pass away before the parliament will make such a
number of acts in violation of the British constitution as it has done
of late years, and by which is has excited so formidable an opposition
to the measures of ministry. Beside, the longer the contest is delayed,
the more administration will be strengthened. Do not you observe, how
the government at home are increasing their party here, by sending over
young fellows to enjoy appointments, who marry into our first families,
and so weaken the opposition? By such like means, and by multiplying
posts and places, and giving them to their own friends, or applying them
to the corruption of their antagonists, they will increase their own
force faster in proportion, than the force of the country party will
increase by population. If then we must quarrel before we can have our
rights secured, now is the most eligible period. Our credit also is at
stake; we must venture; and unless we do, we shall be discarded by the
sons of liberty in the other colonies, whose assistance we may expect
upon emergencies, in case they find us steady, resolute and faithful.”
They conclude to venture onward.

[Nov. 18.] A new town-meeting is called, and a new committee appointed
to wait upon the consignees, to know whether they will resign their
appointment; to which they answer, “It is out of our power to comply
with the request of the town.” This answer may be built upon solemn
engagements not to resign; otherwise it is hard to conceive how it
should be more out of their power, than the power of the Philadelphia
consignees, who have resigned six weeks ago. It is a managed affair
between them and the governor, who calls a council for advice [Nov. 19.]
upon measures proper for preserving the peace, and for supporting the
authority of government. While the council are debating a petition of
the consignees is presented, praying leave to resign themselves and the
property committed to them, to his excellency and their honors as the
guardians of the people. After debate, the further consideration is
postponed to the 23d, then to the 27th, then to the 29th, when the
council make a few observations, decline complying with the petition,
and advise his excellency to renew his orders to the justices and
others, to exert themselves for the security of his majesty’s subjects,
the preservation of peace and good order, and for preventing all
offences against the law. About this time the consignees, consisting of
the governor’s sons, cousins, and particular friends, remove to the
castle for personal safety. The day before the last meeting of the
council, captain _Hall_ in the _Dartmouth_, came to an anchor near the
castle, having on board one hundred and fourteen chests of tea; and on
the day of their meeting comes into the harbour. On the same day a
notification is posted up in all parts of the town, inviting every
friend to his country to meet at nine o’clock to make united resistance
to the most destructive measures of administration. The Meeting of the
people at Boston and the neighbouring towns, is continued by adjournment
to the next day, [Nov. 30.] when it is determined that the tea shall be
returned. Faneuil-hall being too small for the assembly, they adjourn to
the Old South Meeting-house, and confirm the former determination by
voting, “that the tea shall not be landed, that no duty shall be paid,
and that it shall be sent back in the same bottom.” They further vote,
“that Mr. _Rotch_, the owner of the vessel, be directed not to enter the
tea at his peril, and that captain _Hall_ be informed, and at his peril
not to suffer any of the tea to be landed.” They also appoint a watch of
twenty-five men to be a guard upon the Dartmouth, lying at _Griffin’s_
wharf. A letter is received from the consignees, offering to store the
teas till they can write and receive further orders; but the proposal is
rejected. Mr. _Greenleaf_, the sheriff, appears and begs leave to read a
proclamation from the governor, which requires the people forthwith to
disperse and to surcease all further proceedings. He is allowed to do
it; and, upon finishing, there is a loud and general hiss. The people
afterward vote, “that captain _Bruce_, on his arrival do conform to the
votes respecting Hall’s vessel; that no tea from Great-Britain be landed
or sold till the act imposing the duty is repealed; that the captain of
the present watch be desired to make out a list for the next night, and
so on, until the vessels leave the harbor; that should the watch be
molested, that the inhabitants be alarmed by the tolling of the bells at
night, and the righing of them in the day; that six persons be appointed
to give notice to the country towns, upon any important occasion; that
every vessel arriving with tea have a proper watch, and that their
brethen in the country be desired to afford their assistance on the
first notice.” They determine to carry their votes and resolves into
execution at the risk of life and property; thank their brethren in the
neighbouring towns, and then dissolve the meeting.

After the dissolution, the committee of correspondence for the town of
Boston held their meetings, and invite the like committees of the
adjacent towns to join them; several do it; the whole jointly assume the
direction of all that relates to the teas of the East-India Company.
They keep a constant military watch of twenty-five men every night,
generally with fire arms, to prevent the tea being privately landed. The
vessels belonging to captains _Bruce_ and _Coffin_, are upon their
arrival ordered to Griffin’s wharf.

[Dec. 14.] The people of Boston and the neighboring towns, that have
agreed to act in concert with Boston, meet at the Old South
Meeting-house, and conclude upon ordering Mr. _Rotch_ to apply
immediately for a clearance for his ship. Meanwhile the governor
receiving intimation that she would be sent to sea, and that it might
not be through the ordinary channel by the castle, acquaints admiral
_Montague_, and desires him to take the proper precautions, on which the
admiral orders the Active and King Fisher to be fitted for sea, and to
fall down and guard the passages out of the harbour. The governor
likewise renews in writing his orders to colonel _Leslie_, to suffer no
vessel, coasters excepted, to pass the fortress from the town without a
permit signed by himself. A sufficient number of guns are loaded on this
special occasion.

The assembly are acquainted, that the collector cannot give Mr. _Rotch_
a clearance, until the vessel is discharged of dutiable articles. [Nov.
16.] Mr. _Samuel Philips Savage_, of _Weston_, is chosen moderator. The
number assembled from town and country is thought to be some thousands.
Upon the present crisis several gentlemen deliver their sentiments; and
Mr. _Josiah Quincy_, jun. his to the following purpose;—“It is not, Mr.
Moderator, the spirit that vapors within these walls that must stand us
in stead. The exertions of this day will call forth events, which will
make a very different spirit necessary for our salvation.—Whoever
supposes, that shouts and hosannas will terminate the trials of the day,
entertains a childish fancy. We must be grossly ignorant of the
importance and value of the prize for which we contend; we must be
equally ignorant of the power of those who have combined against us; we
must be blind to that malice, inveteracy, and insatiable revenge, which
actuate our enemies public and private, abroad and in our bosom, to hope
that we shall end this controversy without the sharpest, the sharpest
conflicts——to flatter ourselves that popular resolves, popular harangues,
popular acclamations, and popular vapor, will vanquish our foes. Let us
consider the issue. Let us look to the end.—Let us weigh and consider,
before we advance to those measures which must bring on the most trying
and terrible struggle this country ever saw.”

About three o’clock in the afternoon the question is put, “Will you
abide by your former resolution with respect to not suffering the tea to
be landed?” It passes in the affirmative, _nem. con._

Mr. _Rotch_ is ordered to make a protest, and procure a pass for his
vessel. He waits upon the governor at Milton, who offers to give him a
letter to the admiral for protection, which he declines, fearing in that
case the rage of the people, and being in no concern about his ship, as
that is not the object of resentment, but the tea. He intimates to the
governor, that some of the leaders of the people wish the ship to go
down and be stopped at the castle, “for then they will be rid of the
affair, and may say they have done all in their power.” While Mr. Rotch
is absent, the speakers in the meeting keep the people together by
engaging their attention till he returns, which is before six o’clock,
when he informs the body, that upon applying to the governor for a pass,
he received for answer, “I cannot give you a pass consistent with the
laws and my duty to my king, unless the vessel is properly qualified
from the custom-house.”—Upon this there is a great deal of disputing,
when a person disguised like an Indian, gives the war-whoop in the front
gallery, where there are few if any besides himself. Upon this signal it
is moved and voted that the meeting be immediately dissolved.—The people
crowd out and run in numbers to Griffin’s wharf. At the same instant a
number of persons, chiefly masters of vessels and ship-builders from the
north end of the town, about seventeen, though judged to be many more as
they run along, cross Fort Hill, dressed as Indians, and repair to the
tea ships; and in about two hours hoist out of them and break open 342
chests of tea, and discharge their contents into the salt water. They
are not in the least molested. The multitude of spectators upon and
about the wharf, serve as a covering party. The whole business is
conducted with very little tumult, and no damage done to the vessels or
any other property; when finished, the people return quietly to their
own towns and habitations.

Prior to the destruction of the tea, captain _Loring_ in a brig, being
the fourth and last vessel on the East-India Company’s account, was cast
ashore at Cape-Cod; and what tea was saved has been conveyed to the
castle.

The arrival of the tea ships first at Boston, the consignees refusing to
resign, though they had the example of others to induce them, and the
governor’s resolution to pay no regard to the voice of the public,
brought on the destruction of the tea. The sons of liberty were
sensible, that if it was landed and stored, it would some how or other
obtain a sale; and that the virtue of the people, to decline buying and
using a commodity to which they were so attached from love and habit,
was too precarious a ground on which to risk the salvation of their
country. They have been obliged, but with the utmost reluctance, to
venture upon a desperate remedy. Many of their friends, who are not
acquainted with circumstances, or do not attend to them, may be ready to
censure them severely. But had the tea been landed, the union of the
colonies in opposing the ministerial schemes would have been dissolved;
and it would have been extremely difficult ever after to have restored
it. The fulfilment of their solemn declaration, that the tea should not
be landed, though in a way which would not have been chosen had any
other effectual one offered, has secured them the good opinion and
confidence of their co-patriots in other parts. The governor has that
influence with the consignees, that he could undoubtedly have prevailed
on them to resign; but he has encouraged them to the contrary; and
therefore what he has written, “It has been absolutely out of my power
to prevent the destruction of the tea, without conceding to the
unreasonable demands of a lawless set of men, and thereby giving
government up and rendering myself obnoxious to my sovereign,” will
scarce be admitted as a sufficient justification. Sovereigns themselves,
upon special emergencies, wisely give place to the opinions and wishes
of their subjects; but are often disgraced and forced into difficulties,
through the want of like wisdom in their representatives. Had the
governor given a pass for the ship in the present instance, he would not
have been viewed by considerate persons as breaking either the laws or
his oath. Cases offer, when statute laws and oaths of office are
required to give place to the supreme law of society, the safety of the
community. Had he looked back to the time of the stamp act, he would
probably have found many precedents of ships having permits from his
predecessor in office, Sir Francis Bernard, to pass the castle without
being duly qualified for want of stamps; and yet the granting them did
not render Sir Francis obnoxious to his sovereign.—But the truth was,
Mr. _Hutchinson_ had repeatedly urged government at home to be firm and
persevering; this was a favorite topic on which he was often insisting;
he himself therefore could not think of yielding; and then he would not
believe that the people were determined at all adventures to perfect
their engagements; but expected that when the critical moment came, they
would desist. Whereas when that moment came, and the tea on board the
Dartmouth, captain Hall was in danger of being seized and secured by the
custom-house officers, who might have been supported by admiral
Montague, the sons of liberty projected the destruction of it in the
manner above related: and in order to make short work of the whole
business, and prevent their repeating the preceding formalities, they
did not confine their operations to the tea on board the Dartmouth, but
extended them to the teas brought in afterward by captains Bruce and
Coffin.

Some expected that the destruction of the tea will issue in the
destruction of the charter, which will make the inhabitants of the
colony furious beyond expression. One gentleman, apprehensive of the
fatal consequences that will follow upon the parliament’s meddling with
the charter, the great darling of the people, has written freely and
fully upon the subject to his correspondent, an influential member in
the house. Another, being desirous of learning the real sentiments of
the more moderate party, and of such as have not plunged themselves into
the politics of the day, has conversed with several of them; but has
discovered in them the warmest indignation and the highest resentment at
the thought of being deprived of their charter. A major in the militia
(whom Mr. Hutchinson honored with the commission, for his good conduct
as foreman of the jury on the trial of the soldiers for killing the
persons on the 5th of March, 1770) told him, “Sir, you know that I am a
friend to government, and wish to support it; but if there is an attempt
to take away our charter, I will fight up to my knees in blood in
defence of it.” The gentleman has perceived such a spirit to predominate
among all the people, that he has judged it right to communicate his
knowledge to Sir Francis Bernard, and to acquaint with his apprehensions
as to the fatal consequences which will follow upon the adoption of
violent measures. He has written also to another friend upon the
subject, in hope that the intelligence will get to the ministry, and
prove beneficial to the public by preventing harsh proceedings. At
Charleston the Carolinians have unloaded the tea, and stored it in
cellars, where it cannot be used, and where it will finally perish.

Let me pass from hence to relate the doings of the Massachusetts
assembly respecting the judges, which you will probably pronounce
intemperate.

The house being informed, that each of the judges refused to take more
than one half of the sum granted them the last year, which they
considered as implying on the part of the judges, a determination to
accept of their support from the crown, resolved, “That it is the
incumbent duty of the judges explicitly to declare, whether they are
determined to receive the grants of the general assemble, or to accept
of their support from the crown; and their delaying any longer to let
the public know their determination, will discover that they have little
or no regard for the peace and welfare of the province; and in such case
it will be the indispensable duty of the commons of this province, to
impeach them before the governor and council. Four of the judges, in the
beginning of February, 1774, acquainted the house they had received
their whole salary granted them by the general court, and not any part
of the grant made by the crown, and that they were determined still to
receive the grants of the general assembly, which was pronounced
satisfactory. But the chief justice, Peter Oliver, esq. sent them a
letter [Feb. 3.] informing them, That since being upon the bench
seventeen years, he had suffered above three thousand pounds sterling;
that he had been encouraged not to resign with the hope of a support,
but never had been relieved; that he had taken his majesty’s grant from
the 5th of July, 1772, to the 5th of January, 1774, and that without his
majesty’s leave he dare not refuse it.

[Feb. 11.] The house resolved, “That Peter Oliver hath, by his conduct
proved himself an enemy to the constitution of this province, and is
become justly obnoxious to the good people of it; that he ought to be
removed from the office of chief justice; and that a remonstrance and
petition to the governor and council for his immediate removal be
prepared”—yeas 96—nays 9.

[Feb. 24.] The house prepared to exhibit articles of impeachment, in
their own name, and the name of all the inhabitants of the province,
against the chief justice. His excellency excepted to the proceedings of
the house as unconstitutional; for which reason he could not give them
any countenance.

[March 1.] They prepared articles of high crimes and misdemeanors
against the chief justice, to present to his excellency and the council,
in which they said, “The salary, and hopes of augmentation must have the
effect of a continual bribe, and expose him to a violation of his oath.
His accepting hath betrayed the baseness of his heart and the lust
covetousness, in breach of his engagements to rely solely on the grants
of the assembly, necessarily implied and involved in his accepting said
office. By receiving a grant out of the revenue unjustly extorted from
the American colonies, he hath as far as lay in his power, put a
sanction on, and established the said revenue, counteracted the
reasonable petitions of the people to his majesty, and in defiance of
the known sense of the body of this people, hath wickedly endeavoured to
increase the discontent and jealousies of this people and the grievance
aforementioned.”

[March 9.] It was resolved, “That the house have done all that in the
capacity of representatives can be done for the removal of Peter Oliver;
and it must be presumed, that the governor’s refusing to take any
measure therein, is because he also receives his support from the
crown.”

It is not to be thought, that the leading gentlemen in these proceedings
expected to obtain the removal of the chief justice; but by the help of
them, they rendered him and the governor more and more obnoxious to the
body of the people; added to the dignity and importance of the house in
the eyes of the representatives, by placing them upon an apparent level
with the house of commons in Britain; and preservd the general animosity
against ministerial measures from falling into a decline.

The real, genuine sentiments of the professed patriots may be desired;
let me therefore mention, that these are divided in wish and opinion.
The great body of them through the several colonies, and even in this,
aim at no more than the removal of all the innovations since the
expiration of the war. They want to have matters revert back to the
state in which they were when the peace commenced, and to be fixed in
that state. They wish most ardently to continue in union with
Great-Britain; and abhor the thought of a separation. They judge that it
would be neither safe not beneficial; that it is infinitely more
eligible to have the protection of the mother country, and to remain
under her shadow; and that no greater happiness can be enjoyed by them,
than a thorough restoration of harmony and affection between them and
the parent state, so as to obliterate the remembrance of all past
animosity. But there are a few in this colony who hanker after
independency, and will be likely to bend their whole influence for the
obtaining of it, whenever there is the least opening to encourage their
efforts. At the head of these we must place Mr. _Samuel Adams_ who has
long since said in small confidential companies—“The country shall be
independent, and we will be satisfied with nothing short of it.” At one
time his influence was small, owing to defects in pecuniary matters,
especially as collector of the taxes for Boston, in which office he
served for years. He was accountable to the town for between one and two
thousand pounds; but a great part of it had never been gathered. What
with not pressing the payment of the taxes in time, as is too generally
the case; not calling when the money happened to be ready and other
casualties, no inconsiderable sum was lost. His necessities probably
(for he appears to be addicted to no extravagances) urged him to supply
himself, time after time, from the cash in hand, without attending to
the accumulation of the balance against him till called upon to settle.
The town had several meetings upon the business; at length, by the
exertion of his friends, a majority was obtained for the relinquishment
of the demand upon him. Since his first election into the house in 1765,
his influence had been gradually increasing, until he has obtained a
great ascendency in directing the town of Boston, and the house of
representatives, and conseqently the council. His abilities and policy
will foster the idea of independency, by the aids of those very
severities the ministry may adopt, in order to compel the colonies into
a submission to parliamentary authority in all cases whatever.




                              LETTER VIII.


                                                 _London, July 2, 1774._

The letters sent over to the Massachusetts by Dr. Franklin, have
produced a duel between Mr. _Whateley_, the banker, brother to the late
secretary to the treasury, and _John Temple_, esq. in which the former
was dangerously wounded. This has led the doctor to inform the public,
that both the gentlemen are totally ignorant and innocent as to the
transaction and its circumstances about which they fought. He declares
that he alone was the person who obtained and transmitted to Boston the
letters in question and says—“Mr. W. could not communicate them, because
they were never in his possession; and for the same reason they could
not be taken from him by Mr. T.” The doctor justifies his own conduct,
and concludes with telling the world, he “thought it his duty to
transmit them to his constituents.” But if they were sent over to be
communicated to a few confidential gentlemen only, instead of being
addressed to the speaker of the assembly, or one of the committee
appointed to correspond with him, with orders to lay them before the
house, how were they _transmitted to his constituents_? There is
something mysterious in this business, which it is apprehended will not
bear a discovery at present. It is suspected that the letters were
procured out of some public office; and that Mr. Temple is not so
perfectly ignorant of all circumstances as the doctor’s language seems
to express.

[Jan. 29, 1774.] The merits of the petition, presented some time ago by
the doctor as agent for the Massachusetts, praying for the removal of
the governor, came on to be heard before the privy council. It is
reported, that Mr. _W——_, wandering from the question before their
lordships, poured forth such a torrent of virulent abuse on Dr.
_Franklin_ as scarce ever before took place in judicial proceedings. His
reproaches appeared to some present to be incompatible with the
principles of law, truth, justice, propriety and humanity. And it was
thought it would have redounded more to the honor of their lordships,
had they seemed to enjoy less the lashes which the doctor underwent; and
had they expressed their dissatisfaction by reducing the orator to the
remembrance of the exalted characters before whom he uttered such
language. The petition was dismissed, and the doctor is displaced from
the office of deputy post-master general for the colonies. The
philosopher may recollect in some future day the liberties taken with
him before the privy-council on the twenty-ninth of January, and take
ample revenge on British ministers and courtiers.

[March 7.] A message from his majesty, on account of the late
disturbances in America, was presented to both houses. Particular
mention was made of the outrage committed by the people at Boston.
Matters are now brought to a crisis, and ministry are bent upon
vigorous, sperited measures. To prevent opposition from the merchants,
the public papers were filled with writings on the subject, which
painted the misconduct of the colonies in the strongest colours, and
urged in particular the impossibility of the future existence of any
trade to America, if this flagrant outrage on commerce, as it is
pronounced, went unpunished. These, with other endeavors, had the
proposed effect. The resentment against the Americans became as high and
as strong as could be desired, within the house; but the storm was to be
directed against the _Massachusetts_. The minister, in debate, stated
that the opposition to the authority of parliament had always originated
in that colony; and that that colony had always been instigated to such
conduct, by the irregular and seditious proceedings of Boston. It was
become necessary therefore to begin with that town. He had forgot, or
would not mention, that the violent opposition to the stamp act
originated in Virginia.

[Mar. 14.] Leave was given to bring in a bill “for the immediate removal
of the officers concerned in the collection of the customs from Boston,
and to discontinue the landing and discharging, lading and shipping of
goods, wares and merchandises at Boston, or within the harbor thereof.”
At the first introduction of the bill it was received with general
applause. Mr. _Bollan_, however petitioned to be heard for the
Massachusetts council, and in behalf of himself and other inhabitants of
Boston. The commons refused to admit his petition, though a few days
back they had received one from him as agent for the council. The lords
were actually hearing him on a petition, as a person duly qualified. On
the third reading of the bill another petition was presented in the name
of several natives and inhabitants of North America; which insisted
strongly on the injustice of the act, and its tendency to alienate the
affections of America; and expressly declared, that the attachment of
America could not long survive the justice of Great-Britain. The
minority members maintained that the bill stood simply as a proscription
of one of the greatest trading towns in the British dominions from the
use of their port, and from all the commerce by which thousands obtained
their bread. “Have we not (say they) given an extent of power to his
majesty to prevent the port of Boston from ever being reinstated, if the
king should think proper? A fine is laid; the trade is prohibited until
it is paid; and when the fine is paid, the town may be as far from
recovering her trade as ever. The act provides, that the crown must have
satisfaction, and that the laws of trade and revenue should be obeyed.
There is a sting in this. The act, under pretence of an indemnity to the
East-India Company, is meant to enforce the submission to taxes. America
will see this; and the cause of Boston will be made the cause of all the
colonies. They are all as guilty as Boston. Not one has received the
tea; some have destroyed it, others sent it back.” But all opposition
was ineffectual; for the projected measures of government were
immutable. The bill passed; and was carried up to the house of lords,
where it was warmly debated, but, as in the house of commons, passed
without a division.

[March 31.] It received the royal assent.

The Boston port bill formed only one part of the coercive plan proposed
by ministry. A bill was soon brought in for “the better regulating the
government of the Massachusetts Bay.” The purport of it was, to alter
the constitution of the province, to take the whole executing power out
of the hands of the democratic part, and to vest the nomination of
counsellors, judges, and magistrates of all kinds, including sheriffs,
in the crown, and in some cases in the king’s governor, and all to be
removeable at the pleasure of the crown.

In the debates it was asked of ministry, whether the colonies already
regulated nearly in the manner proposed by the bill, were more
submissive to the right of taxation than the Massachusetts. It was
justly argued, the disorder lay much deeper than the forms of
government; that the people throughout the continent were universally
dissatisfied; and that the uneasiness and resistance was no less in the
royal governments than in any other. Mr. _Bollan_ again made an effort
in favor of his province; but the commons refused to receive his
petition. The ministry having carried the preceding bill, prepared
another, without which, it was said, the scheme would be entirely
defective.

[April 21.] Lord _North_ presented the third bill “for the impartial
administration of justice in the cases of persons questioned for any
acts done by them in the execution of the law, or for the suppression of
riots and tumults in the _Massachusetts Bay_.” This bill provided, that
in case any person was indicted in that province for murder, or any
other capital offence, and it should appear to the governor that the
fact was committed in the exercise or aid of magistracy, in suppressing
tumults and riots, and that a fair trial could not be had in the
province, he should send the person so indicted, &c. to any other
colony, or to Great-Britain to be tried. The charge on both sides was to
be paid out of the customs. The minority opposed this bill with great
vehemence. They insisted that having no sort of reason for impeaching
the tribunals of America, the real intention was to set up a military
government, and provide a virtual indemnity for all the murders and
capital outrages which might be committed by the barbarous hands of
authority. From the impossibility of prosecuting in Great-Britain, they
strenuously maintained that this was holding out encouragement for all
kinds of lawless violence. Colonel _Barre_’s speech upon the occasion,
commanded the attention of the whole house, and closed admirably, with
“You have changed your ground. You are becoming the aggressors, and
offering the last of human outrages to the people of America, by
subjecting them in effect to military execution. Instead of sending them
the olive branch, you have sent the naked sword. By the olive branch, I
mean a repeal of all the late laws, fruitless to you and oppressive to
them. Ask their aid in a constitutional manner, and they will give it to
the utmost of their ability. They never yet refused it when properly
required. Your journals bear the recorded acknowledgments of zeal with
which they have crontributed to the general necessities of the state.
What madness is it that prompts you to attempt obtaining that by force,
which you may more certainly procure by requisition. They may be
flattered into any thing, but they are too much like yourselves to be
driven. Have some indulgence for your own likeness; respect their sturdy
English virtue; retract your odious exertions of authority; and remember
that the first step toward making them contribute to your wants, is to
reconcile them to your government.”

The publications of the day quote an old member rarely in opposition, as
having closed his speech with these remarkable words—“I will now take my
leave of the whole plan. You will commence your ruin from this day. I am
sorry to say, that not only the house has fallen into this error, but
the people approve of the measure. The people, I am sorry to say it, are
misled. But a short time will prove the evil tendency of this bill. If
ever there was a nation running headlong into ruin it is this.” It is
much questioned by many, whether the member did not mistrake in
saying—The people. The same natives of America who petitioned against
the Boston port-bill [May 2.] renewed their endeavours by a petition
against these two bills.—It was pointed with an uncommon energy and
spirit; and strongly indicated the effects that these bills would
produce in the place where they were intended to operate. It was
admitted to lie on the table, and had no other notice taken of it.

Both bills were opposed in the house of lords, and the minority entered
on each a very strong protest. On both however in each house, the number
of the minority continued all along very low and inadequate. Mr.
_Bollan_ applyed for a hearing in the house of lords upon the last bill,
but was refused. He has stood up in defence of the rights and liberties
of the Massachusetts, when no other of the numerous advocates of the
colonies, out of parliament, have appeared to check the torrent of the
most grievous proceedings against them, in like manner, by their
learning and fortitude.

Upon the first of the two bills, the protesting lords _Richmond_,
_Portland_, _Abingdon_, _King_, _Effingham_, _Ponsonby_, _Rockingham_,
_Abergavenny_, _Leister_, _Craven_ and _Fitzwilliam_, dissented among
other reasons, “because definitive legal offence, by which a forfeiture
of the charter is incurred, has not been clearly stated and fully
proved, neither has notice of this advers proceeding been given to the
parties effected; neither have they been heard in their own
defence—because all the judges are to be nominated, not by the crown,
but by the governor; and all except the judges of the superior court,
are to be removable at his pleasure, and expressly without the consent
of that very council, which is to be nominated by the king; the sheriff
is made changeable by the governor and council, as often and for such
purpose as they shall think expedient, whereby the governor and council
are intrusted with powers, with which the British constitution has not
trusted his majesty and privy council, and have the means of returning
such a jury in each particular case, as may best suit with the
gratification of their passions and interests, so that the lives and
properties of the subject are put into their hands without control.” The
protesting lords took occasion to mention concerning the Boston
port-act, “that, unexampled on the records of parliament, it had been
entered on the journals of the house as voted _nemine dissentiente_, and
had been stated in the debate of the day, to have been sent to the
colonies as passed without a division in either house, and therefore as
conveying the uncontroverted universal sense of the nation; and that an
unfair advantage had been taken, on the final question for passing the
penal bill, of the absence of those lords who had debated it for several
hours, and strongly dissented from it on the second reading, the period
on which it is most usual to debate the principle of a bill.”

On the second bill, the protesting lords _Richmond_, _Fitzwilliam_,
_Ponsonby_, _Rockingham_, _Portland_, _Craven_, _Leister_, and
_Manchester_, dissented among other reasons “because the bill amounts to
a declaration, that the house knows no means of retaining the colonies
in due obedience, but by an army rendered independent of the ordinary
course of law in the place where they are employed; because the bill
seems to be one of the many experiments toward an introduction of
essential innovations into the government of the empire.” They said,
“The authority given by this bill to compel the transportation from
America to Great-Britain, if any number of witnesses at the pleasure of
the parties prosecuting and prosecuted, without any regard to their age,
sex, health, circumstances, business or duties, seems to us so
extravagant in its principle, and so impracticable in its execution, as
to confirm us further in our opinion of the spirit which animates the
whole system of the present American regulations.”

[May 20.] His majesty gave his assent to both bills.

The session was drawing near to the usual time of recess, and the
greater number of the members were retired into the country. In this
situation a bill was brought into the house of lords, “For making more
effectual provision for the government of the province of _Quebec_, in
North-America.” It passed through that house with little if any
observation. When it came down to the house of commons, it met with a
very different reception. The principal objects of the bill were, to
ascertain the limits of the province, which were extended far beyond
what were settled as such by the king’s proclamation of 1763—to form a
legislative council for all the affairs of the province, except
taxation, which council was to be appointed by the crown, and the office
to be held during pleasure, and his majesty’s Canadian Roman Catholic
subjects were to be entitled to a place in it—to establish the French
laws and a trial without jury in civil cases, and the English laws, with
trial by jury in criminal—and to secure to the Roman Catholic clergy,
except the regulars, the legal enjoyment of their estates, and of their
tythes from all who were of their own religion. The minority insisted,
that the Protestant religion, by this establishment, enjoyed at best no
more than a toleration. “The popish clergy,” they said, “have a legal
parliamentary right to maintenance, the protestant clergy are left to
the king’s discretion. Why are not both put at least on an equal
footing, and a legal support provided for both?” The minority was
uncommonly small; nevertheless the bill produced much greater uneasiness
and discontent out of doors, than any of those for punishing the old
colonies. The present policy of it is, among other things, to gain,
through the influence of the priests, the assistance of the laity in
subjugating the other provinces.

[June 22.] It received the royal assent, when his majesty went to the
house, at the close of the session; the business of which being ended,
the ministry entertained the most sanguine expectations that the
submission throughout America would be immediate, and that complete
obedience and tranquility would be secured. The speech from the throne
expressed similar sentiments. The triumphs and mutual congratulations of
all who have supported the ministerial plan, within doors and without,
are unusually great. These may be owing, not a little, to the assurances
that governor Hutchinson has repeatedly given to many, that if the
parliament would but act with resolution, and adopt spirited measures, a
speedy submission would take place without any call for fighting.

By the Quebec act, the total revenue of the province is consigned, in
the first instance, to a warrant from the lord of the treasury, for the
purpose of pensioning judges during pleasure, and the support of a civil
list totally unlimited. The first lord of the treasury, without controul
of parliament, is therefore in actual possession of the revenues of one
American province, under the authority of an act of parliament, with no
other obligation expressed, than in general to defray the expences of
the administration of justice, and to support civil government. The
residue, as in the tea act, is to be reserved for the disposal of
parliamentary despotism committed into the hands of the crown and its
minister; for the crown of Great-Britain is constituted as absolute in
the province, under an act of parliament, as any despot that ever
existed in the world. Hence is inferred what ministers would do through
all America, did they possess the power.[108]

Your present governor, general Gage, has been appointed as the most
proper person to see to the execution of the laws which have been passed
respecting both the colony and its capital; when he has settled matters,
and established order and due submission to the power of parliament, Mr.
Hutchinson is to return and resume the chair. The last, since his
arrival, has been graciously received; his influence with ministry will
continue, till events convince them that they have been greatly mistaken
in relying upon his judgment on American subjects. A commission during
pleasure has passed the great seal, granting to general Gage full power
and authority, where he shall see cause, to pardon and remit all
treasons, murders, felonies, crimes, and misdemeanors whatsoever, and
all fines or penalties whatsoever incurred in the Massachusetts.




                               LETTER IX.


                                              _Roxbury, Sept. 28, 1774._

The appointment of general Gage to the government was not thought of by
Mr. Hutchinson. He expected to have been entrusted with the execution of
the ministerial plan; and was rather disconcerted when he found it to be
otherwise. Before he left the colony, he was presented with a few
addresses; one by a number of gentlemen, conceived in very respectful
terms, but against which many others entered a protest. Had he applied
himself vigorously and steadily to the healing of the breach between the
colonies and the parent state, instead of calling upon ministry to force
submission, he would have been a blessing, and had the love of all; but
now it will be well if he does not prove a curse to both countries, and
make himself odious to the latest posterity.

[May 13.] When general Gage landed on the long wharf, it was thought
from appearances, that he had apprehensions of being ill treated by the
inhabitants; but though they were highly incensed at the port-bill,
which they had just received, they behaved toward him with the greatest
decency. He was complimented by the council, the gentlemen in the
commission of the peace, and others, and afterward sumptuously
entertained.

The next day there was a numerous town-meeting to consider the
port-bill; when they resolved, “That it is the opinion of this town,
that if the other colonies come into a joint resolution to stop all
importation from and exportation to Great-Britain, and every part of the
West-Indies, till the act be repealed, the same will prove the salvation
of North-America and her liberties; and that the impolicy, injustice,
inhumanity, and cruelty of the act, exceed all our powers of expression:
We therefore leave it to the just censure of others, and appeal to God
and the world.” Copies of the act arrived in different parts; were
multiplied with incredible expedition; and circulated through the
colonies, by which the whole country was inflamed. In some places they
were printed upon mourning paper, with a black border, and cried about
the streets under the title of _a barbarous, cruel, bloody and inhuman
murder_; in others, great bodies of the people were called together by
advertisement, and the obnoxious law burned with great solemnity,
similar to what was done in the time of the stamp act.

When the Boston port-bill arrived at New-York, captain Sears and
M‘Dougall wrote to the committee at Boston, assuring them of the support
of the New-Yorkers. The letter was published without their names. The
Yorkers would have fixed a censure upon them, but could get no proof of
their being the writers. Captain Sears and M‘Dougall called the people
together by a publication. They collected, and after a violent
opposition from the tories, who had brought their whole strength upon
the occasion, a vote was obtained for appointing a committee on account
of the port-bill, which was to consist of fifty-one. The tories fearing
the worst, had provided a list; but all lists were taken off the table
at Mr. Sears’s motion, when nominations took place, and the number of
whigs and tories was nearly equal. Mr. Sears got another added, which
made the committee fifty-two. The whigs in it insisted that there must
be a congress. The violence of captain Sears’s temper, and his influence
over the populace, induced the tories to fall in with the proposal of
one, rather than be exposed to the dangers of a mob; but they expected
that they should prevent it. A letter was sent to the Boston committee,
with a recommendation to them to appoint time and place. They approved
of a congress, but declined making the appointments. The York committee
considered the answer; and it was carried to write to them afresh upon
the subject. The tories were caught; for having agreed to the motion for
a congress, they could not hinder it by all their contrivances. You must
admit of my using, for brevity sake, the term _whig_ and _tory_ for the
_pro’s_ and _con’s_ on the subject of full redress to American
grievances. When better can be met with, they shall be adopted; but they
are universally applied in this manner by the liberty party.

The Boston committee of correspondence were sensible that the utmost
delicacy and precaution in the use of words and expressions, were
requisite in the present state of affairs; that so their enemies might
not disappoint them of that support for which they were to make a
general application to all the colonists, and whom they addressed on the
head of the port-bill, and the distresses coming upon the inhabitants,
with the utmost respect; they were careful to insert in all their
letters, “It is hoped that Boston will be considered _as suffering in
the common cause_.”

While these letters were circulating, the period arrived for the meeting
of a new general court, which assembled at Boston, [May 25.] when the
services of the election day were carried on as usual; but the hearts of
many felt sad with the apprehension that it would be the last of the
kind. Their forebodings were increased, by the number and characters of
the elected counsellors whom governor Gage negatived, not less than
thirteen. He laid nothing before the court more than the ordinary
besiness of the province; but gave them notice of their removal to Salem
on the first of June in pursuance of the act. Learning that the house of
assembly, to avoid removing were hastening through the necessary
business, with the greatest expedition, he adjourned the general court
to the seventh of June, then to meet at Salem. Before that day the
inhabitants of several towns and cities, in different parts of the
continent, concurred in expressing the greatest disapprobation of the
measures pursued against Boston, an abhorrence of the new act, and a
condemnation of the principles on which it was founded, with a
resolution to oppose its effects in every manner, and to support their
distressed brethren, who were to be the immediate victims. At
Philadelphia a subscription was set on foot for the support of such poor
inhabitants of Boston, as should be deprived of the means of subsistence
by the operation of the act. The Virginia house of burgesses appointed
the first of June to be set apart as a day of fasting and humiliation,
devoutly to implore the divine interposition, for averting the heavy
calamity which threatened destruction to their civil rights, and the
evils of a civil war; and for giving one heart and one mind to the
people, firmly to oppose every injury to the American rights. This
occasioned their dissolution; but before they separated, eighty nine of
the members entered into an association, in which they declared, “That
an attack made on one of our sister colonies, to compel submission to
arbritrary taxes, is an attack made on all British America, and
threatens ruin to the rights of all, unless the united wisdom of the
whole be applied.” They recommended to the committee of correspondence,
to communicate with the several committees of the other provinces, on
the expediency of appointing deputies from the different colonies, to
meet annually in general congress, to deliberate on those measures,
which the united interests of America might from time to time require.

[June 1.] Business was finished at the custom-house in Boston at twelve
o’clock at noon, and the harbour shut up against all vessels bound
thither; and after the fourteenth none were to be allowed to depart. The
day was devoutly kept at Williamsburgh in Virginia, as a day of fasting
and humiliation. There was a solemn pause in the business of
Philadelphia. If we except the Quakers, near nine-tenths of the citizens
shut up their houses; and the bells were rung, muffled, all the day. It
was observed in other places as a day of mourning.

[June 7.] The Massachusetts general court met at Salem according to
adjournment, and a committee was appointed to consider and report the
state of the province. Mr. _Samuel Adams_ observed, that some of the
committee were for mild measures, which he judged no way suited to the
present emergency. He conferred with Mr. _Warren_ of Plymouth upon the
necessity of giving into spirited measures, and then said, “Do you keep
the committee in play, and I will go and make a _caucus_[109] against
the evening; and do you meet me.” Mr. Samuel Adams secured a meeting of
about five principal members of the house, at the time specified; and
repeated his endeavours against the next night; and so as to the third,
when they were more than thirty: the friends of administration knew
nothing of the matter. The popular leaders took the sense of the members
in a private way, and found that they should be able to carry their
scheme by a sufficient majority. They had their whole plan compleated,
prepared their resolves, and then determined upon bringing the business
forward. But before they went upon it, the door-keeper was ordered to
let no one whatsoever in, and no one was to go out: however, when the
business opened, a ministerial member pleaded a call of nature, which is
always regarded, and was allowed to go out. He then ran to give
information of what was doing, and a messenger was dispatched to general
Gage, who lived at some distance. The secretary was sent off to dissolve
the general court; found the door fastened; knocked for entrance, but
was answered, that the house was upon very important business, which
when they had finished they would let him in. As he could obtain no
entrance, he read the proclamation upon the steps leading to the
representatives’ chamber, in the hearing of several members and others
on the out-side with him, and immediately after in the council, thus
dissolving the general court. The house, while sitting with their doors
shut, appointed _Thomas Cushing_, _Samuel Adams_, _Robert Treat Pain_,
_James Bowdoin_ and _John Adams_, esqrs. as their committee to meet
other committees, that might be convened the first of September at
Philadelphia, voted them five hundred pounds lawful (seventy-five pounds
sterling) each, and chose a treasurer. They recommended also to the
several towns and districts, the raising the said sum, by equitable
proportions, according to the last provincial tax—a recommendation which
had all the force of a law. It was a triumph to many of the sons of
liberty to think that the house had out-generalled the governor.

Sometime before the dissolution of the general court, near upon three
hundred citizens of _Philadelphia_ met and appointed a committee to
write to Boston. Their letter was temperate and firm. They acknowledged
the difficulty of offering the inhabitants advice upon the sad occasion
that existed; wished first to have the sense of the province in general;
and observed that all lenient applications for obtaining redress should
be tried, before recourse was had to extremities. They remarked that it
might perhaps be right to take the sense of a general congress, before
the desperate measure of putting an entire stop to commerce was adopted;
and that it might be right at any rate, to reserve that measure as the
last resource when all other means had failed. They mentioned, that if
the making of restitution to the East-India Company for their teas would
put an end to the unhappy controversy, and leave the people of Boston
upon their ancient footing of constitutional liberty, it could not admit
of a moment’s doubt what part they should take; but they added, it was
not the value of the tea, it was the indefeasible right of giving and
granting their own money, a right from which they could never recede,
that was now the matter of consideration.

The importance and necessity of a general congress was soon felt by
every colony, so that the measure taken by the Massachusetts was
gradually adopted by the others.

_Maryland_, whose zeal in the cause of liberty was ardent, had a meeting
of the committees appointed by the several counties, at the city of
Annopolis, who elected five deputies for that province [June 25.] “to
attend a general congress, at such time and place as may be agreed on,
to effect one general plan of conduct, operating on the commercial
connection of the colonies with the mother country, for the relief of
Boston and preservation of American liberty.”

This meeting commenced three days before the election of deputies; and
considering the distance of Salem from Annopolis, cannot be ascribed to
the transaction of the Massachusetts assembly on the seventeenth; beside
it appears from the words _at such time and place as may be agreed on_,
that the committees did not know that the Massachusetts assembly had
mentioned the convening of a general congress on the first of September
at Philadelphia.

When the opinion of the Boston town-meeting respecting a joint
resolution of the colonies to stop all importation and exportation till
the port-bill was repealed, arrived in South-Carolina, it was
represented to a number of the principal gentlemen in Charlestown. The
mode proposed was thought to be of too much consequence to be adopted
without the universal consent of the people. It was therefore determined
to request a meeting of the inhabitants. That this might be as general
as possible, circular letters were sent by express to every parish and
district within the colony.

[July 6.] A great number from almost every part of South-Carolina met at
Charlestown. The proceedings of parliament against Boston and the
Massachusetts Bay were distinctly related to this convention of the
people; on which, without one dissenting voice, they came into various
resolutions. Among others they resolved, “That five gentlemen be
appointed deputies on the behalf of this colony, to meet the deputies of
the several colonies in North-America in general congress, to consider
the act lately passed, and bills depending in parliament, with regard to
the port of Boston and province of Massachusetts, also the grievances
under which America labors, with full power and authority, in behalf of
us and our constituents, to concert, and effectually to prosecute, such
legal measures (by which we for ourselves and them most solemnly engage
to abide) as in the opinion of the said deputies, and of the deputies so
to be assembled, shall be most likely to obtain a repeal of the said
acts, and a redress of these grievances.”—That, while the oppressive
acts relative to Boston are enforced, we will cheerfully, from time to
time, contribute toward the relief of such persons there, whose
unfortunate circumstances may be thought to stand in need of most
assistance:”—“That a committee of ninety-nine persons be now appointed,
to act as a general committee, to correspond with the committees of the
other colonies, and to do all matters and things necessary to carry the
resolutions into execution; and that any twenty-one of them met
together, may proceed on business—their power to continue till the next
general meeting.”

The appointment of the above-mentioned deputies was recognized, ratified
and confirmed by the house of assembly, at their next session, on the
second of August.

The Connecticut house of representatives, in expectation of the event
during their recess, empowered a committee of nine, in case a congress
of commissioners from the several colonies should be convened, to meet
and choose delegates to serve for that colony, and to correspond with
other committees. Mr. _Silas Deane_ was of the committee, and being
ambitious of going to congress, schemed their meeting at New-London,
(instead of Hartford) where through the influence of a most worthy
father-in-law, his own policy, and his _own_ vote, he obtained a
majority of _one_, and became one of the four Connecticut delegates,
though not viewed by those who know him most, as a person of the
greatest integrity, or the truest patriotism.

At _Philadelphia_, a petition signed by near nine hundred freeholders
was presented to Mr. Penn, the governor, entreating him to call a
general assembly as soon as possible. This request being refused, the
province proceeded to the election of deputies, who soon after met at
_Philadelphia_. The resolutions passed at this meeting, carry the marks
of cool and temperate deliberation, as well as affection to the mother
country, more than those of any others; and are at the same time equally
firm in the determination of supporting the colonial rights.

In them the deputies set out with the strongest professions of duty and
allegiance, and express their abhorence of every idea of an
unconstitutial dependence on the parent state, and the most ardent
wishes for a restoration of the former harmony. They reprobate in the
strongest terms the act and bills relative to the _Massachusetts-Bay_,
and declare that they consider their brethren at Boston, as suffering in
the common cause. They insist upon the absolute necessity of a congress
to consult together and form a general plan of conduct for all the
colonies. They acknowledge, that a suspension of the commerce of that
large trading province with Great-Britain, will greatly distress
multitudes of their industrious inhabitants, but pronounce themselves
ready to offer that sacrifice, and much greater, for the preservation of
their liberties; however, they express their desire, that congress will
first try the gentle mode of stating their grievances, and making a firm
and decent claim of redress. They conclude with declaring, that that
province will break off all commercial intercourse whatever, with any
town, city or colony, and individuals in them who shall refuse, or
neglect to adopt and carry into execution, such general plan as shall be
agreed upon in the congress.

They did not undertake to appoint the delegates, but left it to the
Pennsylvania assembly, [July 22.] who soon after fixed upon seven
gentlemen.

At a meeting of delegates, from the different counties in _Virginia_ at
_Williamsburgh_, beside the warmest professions of allegiance and
loyalty, and several resolutions in common with the other colonies, they
passed others, which considering the circumstances of the colony, with
its immediate dependence on the mother country for the disposal of its
only staple commodity, must be considered as very deserving of
attention, because strongly indicating the true spirit of that people.
They resolved not to purchase any more slaves from Africa, the
West-Indies, or any other place; that their non-importation agreement
should take place on the first of the following November, and that if
the American grievances were not redressed by the tenth of August 1775,
they would export after that time, no tobacco, nor any other goods
whatever to Great-Britain. They recommended the cultivation of such
articles of husbandry, instead of tobacco, as might form a proper basis
for manufactures of all sorts; and particularly, the improvement of the
breed of sheep, the multiplying of them, and the killing as few as
possible. [Aug. 5.] They chose as delegates to a general congress,
_Peyton Randolph_, _Richard Henry Lee_, _George Washington_, _Patrick
Henry_, _Richard Bland_, _Benj. Harrison_ and _Edmund Pendleton_, esqrs.

At Newport, in Rhode-Island, an animated paper was circulated, with the
motto JOIN or DIE. The state of Boston was represented as a siege, and
as a direct hostile invasion of all the colonies. “The generals of
despotism (it says) are now drawing the lines of circumvallation around
our bulwarks of liberty, and nothing but unity, resolution and
perseverance, can save ourselves and posterity from what is worse than
death—Slavery.” The general assembly of the colony chose two deputies to
represent the colony in a general congress; who were legally authorised
for that service, [Aug. 10.] under the hand and seal of the governor.

All the other colonies, from New-Hampshire to South-Carolina
inclusively, adopted the measure of electing representatives to meet in
general congress.

To judge aright of the present alarming state of affairs, you must
observe, that it does not arise from the discontent of a turbulent or
oppressed nobility or gentry, so that by bringing over a few of the
leaders, the rest will follow of course, or persist only to their own
ruin; nor does it depend upon the resolution or perseverance of a body
of merchants and dealers, so that every man, habitually studious of his
immediate interest, will tremble at the thought of those consequences
which may essentially affect it: nor will a few lucrative jobs or
contracts split the colonists into numberless factions. On the contrary,
the great force of the opposition consists in the landholders throughout
America. The British lands in this continent, are, in general, and more
especially in the New-England colonies, the Jerseys, and in part of
New-York and Pennsylvania, portioned out in such freeholds as afford
that mediocrity of condition to the possessors, which is sufficient to
raise strong bodies and vigorous minds; but seldom that superabundance
which proves so fatal to both, in old and refined countries. The
American freeholders, from many circumstances, are more enthusiastic
lovers of liberty, than ever were the English yeomanry. The body of them
are too bold to be despised without danger, and now that they are
united, too numerous to be bribed. Human nature being the same in every
quarter of the globe, had moderation instead of compulsion been
employed, several who are at present zealous leaders, might have been
secured, and ministry (in colonies of such different manners, interests,
and principles, and on these accounts strongly inclined to variance with
each other) might have carried many points which they will now find it
difficult or impossible to do, since they have united them, by
evidencing a design of subjugating each to a mode of government to which
all, without exception, are averse in the highest degree.

The Boston committee of correspondence received the most encouraging
answers to their letters; and were assured that the town of Boston was
considered _as suffering in the common cause_. They had more than the
strongest expressions to console them, they had the substantial evidence
of facts. Ministry promised themselves mighty advantages from making
_Salem_ the seat of government, with the privilege of an open port,
while the neighboring one, in itself of much greater consequence, was
shut. But the merchants and freeholders of the town discovered a most
noble spirit, which will prove a sore disappointment to them. If it was
expected that incurable envy, jealousy, or animosity, would be excited
between the two towns, and that the refractory capital being abandoned
and left alone to ruminate upon her forlorn situation, would soon be
reclaimed and brought to a full sense of her duty; the very reverse will
mortify.

[June 18.] The day after the dissolution of the general court, the
merchants and freeholders of _Salem_ presented an address to the
governor, and in it expressed the most generous sentiments. They said,
“We are most deeply afflicted with a sense of our public calamities; but
the miseries that are now rapidly hastening on our brethren in the
capital of this province, greatly excite our commiseration, and we hope
your excellency will use your endeavors to prevent a further
accumulation of evils on that already sorely distressed people.”—“By
shutting up the port of Boston, some imagine that the course of trade
might be turned hither and to our benefit; but nature, in the formation
of our harbor, forbids our becoming rivals in commerce with that
convenient mart. And were it otherwise, we must be dead to every idea of
justice, and lost to all feelings of humanity, could we indulge one
thought to seize on wealth, and raise our fortunes on the ruin of our
suffering neighbors.” The governor was treated with the highest respect,
and mention was made of their hoping much from his general character, as
well as from his wisdom and mildness in another command. They expressed
the stronges attachment to the mother country, the deepest concern for
the present unhappy troubles, and the most fervent wishes for a speedy
and happy reconciliation, to obtain which they were willing to sacrifice
every thing compatible with the safety and dignity of British subjects.

_Marblehead_, a sea-port, about three miles from Salem, and equally far
with the last from Boston, but a town of no great trade, being engaged
chiefly in the cod fishery, testified its regard and compassion for the
capital, by letting the suffering merchants have the free use of its
wharfs and stores. Its inhabitants offered also to attend the lading and
unlading of their goods, and transact for them all the business to be
done at their port, without putting them to the smallest expence.

The pity and resentment of the country at large, were excited by
observations published on the Boston port-bill. Those of Mr. _Josiah
Quincy_, jun. were most generally read and admired. He observed—“The
Boston port-bill condemns a whole town unheard, nay, uncited to answer;
involves thousands in ruin and misery, without suggestion of any crime
by them committed; and is so constituted that enormous pains and
penalties must ensue, notwithstanding the most perfect obedience to its
injunctions. The destruction of the tea, which took place without any
illegal procedure of the town, is the only alledged ground of consigning
thousands of its inhabitants to ruin, misery and despair. Those charged
with the most aggravated crimes, are not punishable till arraigned
before disinterested judges, heard in their own defence, and found
guilty of the charge. But here a whole people are accused, prosecuted by
they know not whom, tried they know not when, proved guilty they know
not how, and sentenced to suffer inevitable ruin. Their hard fate cannot
be averted by the most servile submission, the most implicit obedience
to this statute. Their first intimation of it was on the tenth of May,
and it took place the first of June, thence to continue in full force,
till it shall sufficiently appear to his majesty, that full satisfaction
hath been made by, or in behalf of the inhabitants of Boston, to the
East-India Company, for the damage sustained by the destruction of their
tea; and until it shall be certified to his majesty, by the governor or
lieutenant governor of the province, that reasonable satisfaction has
been made to the officers of the revenue and others, for the riots and
insurrection mentioned in it. So short a space is given for staying the
torrent of threatened evils, that the subject, though exerting his
utmost energy, must be overwhelmed and driven to madness by terms of
deliverance which deny relief till his ruin is inevitable.”

Others said, “Had punishment been only threatened, had it been in our
option whether we would submit or suffer, the reason for complaint would
have been less. But without previous warning in the proposal of any
terms that might have prevented the coming of evil upon us, it is
inflicted with ineffable vengeance; so that should we servilely submit
to all required, we must notwithstanding suffer almost total ruin. The
conditions upon which alone our sufferings are to be removed, far from
being fixed with precision, are so loose and indeterminate, that a
governor may perpetuate them during his political existence, the king in
council not being enabled to open the port without his certificate. The
wharfs and landing places at Boston, which are the property of numerous
individuals, are, as to the use of them, wherein only their value
consists, wrested out of their hands and put into the king’s, to be
disposed of at his pleasure. Two wharfs indeed are to be opened again,
when his majesty shall think proper; but the residue are for ever
interdicted the exercise of commerce.”

The rough drafts of the bills, “for the better regulating of the
government of the Massachusetts-Bay;” and “for the impartial
administration of justice in it,” as well as of that “for quartering the
troops in America,” upon their arrival at Boston, were instantly
circulated through the continent, and filled up whatever was before
wanting, of violence and indignation in most of the colonies. Even those
who were moderate, or seemed wavering, now became resolute and
resentful. Nothing was to be heard of but meetings and resolutions.
Liberal contributions for the relief of the distressed Bostonions were
every where recommended, and soon practised. Numberless letters were
written from districts, towns, and provinces, to the people of Boston,
in which, besides every expression of sympathy and tenderness, they were
commended for their past conduct, and strongly exhorted to a
perseverance in that virtue which had brought on their sufferings. It
was in vain that the friends of government attended a town-meeting, and
attempted to pass resolutions for the payment of the tea, and for
dissolving the committee of correspondence; they found themselves lost
in a prodigious majority, and had no other resource than drawing up a
protest against the proceedings of that body. The Boston committee of
correspondence apprehended themselves so fixed in the good opinion of
the public, that they ventured to frame and publish an agreement,
entitled, _A solemn league and covenant_.

[June 29.] General Gage was so alarmed at the idea of _a solemn league
and covenant_, that he issued a strong proclamation against it, stiling
it an unlawful, hostile, and traiterous combination. He charged all
magistrates to apprehend and secure for trial, such as should have any
share in aiding or abetting the foregoing or any similar covenant. The
charge was needless; for the engagement was so unguardedly expressed,
and so extremely ensnaring, that it was severely censured by many of the
best and warmest sons of liberty in and about Boston, who refused to
give it support; so that however it might be venerated out of the
colony, it sunk into obscurity at home; and changed its form into one
that was less exceptionable, and yet equally well calculated to stop the
trade with Great-Britain, and that accorded with those entered into
about the same time, in various parts of the continent, without any
previous concert with each other, any more than with Boston. The
coincidence of sentiments and measures given into by individuals and
assemblies, larger and smaller, in the several and more distant
colonies, without any previous contrivance, has been so remarkable, that
persons the furthest removed from superstition, have inclined to ascribe
it to a special providence of God. They have been seemingly actuated by
one and the same spirit, nearly at the same instant. When letters have
been dispatched from Boston to fellow-patriots afar, asking or giving
advice; letters from these have been upon the road, giving or asking the
very advice which was wanted—the like in other matters. Not that there
is a uniformity in all points through the continent. The people may be
divided into two great classes. One is for rushing headlong into the
greatest extremities, without waiting till other measures are tried, or
receiving the general sense of the colonies; and though eager for
holding a congress, would leave it nothing to do but to prosecute the
violence which they have began. The other is averse to violent measures,
till all other means are ineffectually tried. They wish further
applications to be made to Britain, and the grievances they complain of,
with the rights which they claim, to be clearly stated and properly
presented. This, they say, can be effectually done only by a general
congress. There is a third party, who are friends to the British
administration, or rather who do not totally disapprove of its measures;
but their voice is so low, that except in a few particular places, it
can scarcely be distinguished. The friends to colonial rights have a
great advantage over them, not only from the goodness of their cause,
but their possessing most of the presses on the continent. These are
chiefly in the hands of the whigs, and news-papers publishing essays and
other compositions against the prevailing opinions of the people, have
not a universal spread, and cannot prove so profitable to the
proprietors, as those on the other side of the question. The command
which the sons of liberty have of the press, gives them the superiority
in point of influence, over their antagonists in the periodical
publications of the day.

As the Boston port bill prohibits all water carriage, beside shutting up
the port, the merchants are under the necessity of adopting the
expensive mode of bringing their goods from Salem or Marblehead, all the
way round, through Cambridge and Roxbury, to Boston. Had they been
allowed to bring them to Charlestown by land, and thence to cross them
over by water, they would have saved a fourth of the way. But it is
pleasing to observe what trade is going forward, notwithstanding the
embarrassments with which it is clogged. Boston is exhibiting a scene of
patience, fortitude, and perseverance, which will make them renowned in
history. Though liberal contributions have been made, are raising, and
will be raised, for the succour of sufferers; yet it may be easily
conceived, that in a town containing several thousand inhabitants, who
have subsisted chiefly by commerce and the various kinds of business
subservient to it, and where the maintenance of many families depends
merely upon the locality, the cutting off of that grand source of their
employment and subsistence, must occasion great distresses
notwithstanding every relief. Even the rich are not exempt from the
general calamity, as a very considerable part of their property consists
in wharfs, warehouses, stores, and those numerous erections which are
destined to the purposes of commerce, but are now no longer profitable.

The people at large have been for some time preparing to defend their
rights with the point of the sword. They see that they are either to be
terrified or driven into submission, by an armed force; and are for
providing against both. The countrymen, in returning from Boston, are
daily bringing out guns, knapsacks, &c. Every one appears desirous of
being well accoutred. They have arms in general, the militia law
requiring it of all within a certain age. Note—They are fond of
shooting, are accustomed to it from early life, and are special
marksmen. They are perfecting themselves in their exercise. Handling the
musket and training, are the fashionable amusements of the male
inhabitants, while the females encourage them to proceed. The sound of
drums and fifes is constantly saluting your ears. Husbands and wives,
parents and children, brothers and sisters, lovers, the young and the
old, seem possessed of, or rather to be possessed by a martial spirit,
and are fired with an enthusiastic zeal for liberty. In most places, but
particularly in _Berkshire_ and _Worcester_ counties, where the
influence of government was supposed to prevail most, nothing is to be
seen or heard of, except the purchasing of arms and ammunition, the
casting of balls, and the making of all those preparations which testify
the most immediate danger, and determined resistance.

The high military tone of the country people, is to be placed chiefly to
the account of the two bills “for regulating the government of the
Massachusetts,” and “the impartial administration of justice in it.”
These bills have proposed so thorough a change in the civil and
religious liberties of towns and individuals, that they view themselves
as intentionally deprived of every privilege, and reduced to the
necessity of fighting for all they hold dear to them. It is of the
utmost consequence that juries should not be packed. The accustomed mode
of electing them is excellent, but liable to abuse, and there “may have
been instances wherein persons who have no regard to religion and to
divine revelation, have been really picked up to serve a turn.”[110] But
this will not justify that most execrable alteration of leaving it in
the power of the governor and council, through the aid of the sheriff,
to obtain such a jury in each cause, as may best suit their passions and
interests, whereby the lives and properties of the subjects are put into
their hands without controul.[111]

It is also to be enacted, by the regulating bill, that after the first
of August, 1774, there shall be no town-meetings, without the leave of
the governor or lieutenant governor, in writing, expressing the special
business of such meetings, first obtained, except the annual meetings in
March, for the choice of select men, constables, and other officers; and
in May, for the election of representatives, and meetings to fill up the
offices aforesaid, on death or removal; and that no other matter shall
be treated of at such meetings except the election of aforesaid officers
or representatives, nor at any other meeting, except the business
expressed in the leave given. A more obnoxious alteration could scarce
have been invented.

Every town is an incorporated republic. The select men, by their own
authority, or upon the application of a certain number of townsmen,
issue a warrant for the calling of a town-meeting. The warrant mentions
the business to be engaged in, and no other can be legally executed. The
inhabitants are warned to attend; and they that are present, though not
a quarter, or tenth of the whole, have a right to proceed. They choose a
president by the name of moderator, who regulates the proceedings of the
meeting. Each individual has an equal liberty of delivering his opinion,
and is not liable to be silenced or browbeaten by a greater or richer
townsman than himself. Every freeman or freeholder, as the business
regards either the freeholders in particular or the freemen at large,
gives his vote or not, and for or against, as he pleases; and each vote
weighs equally, whether that of the highest or lowest inhabitant. At
these town-meetings the people are used to debate and conclude upon
instructions to their representatives respecting matters before, or
likely to come before the general court—freely to express their
sentiments regarding public transactions—to agree upon the choice of a
minister, and the salary they shall give him—upon building or repairing
the meeting-house, and upon a variety of other interesting matters,
which concern the exercise of their civil or sacred privileges. All the
New-England towns are upon the same plan in general, though different in
certain particulars. In the colony of Rhode-Island they have no minister
paid by the town, as a town, nor is it allowed by the government; the
salary is not a town charge, but is made up out of the voluntary
contributions of the denomination to which he is joined.

From the free exercise of all the above cited rights, the Massachusetts
inhabitants are to be suspended by the aforesaid enacting clause. When
they wish, or have occasion to hold meetings for any of the above
purposes, they will be obliged to apply to the governor, who may put a
negative upon every application, and who will have it in his power to
prevent their settling a minister when the pulpit is become vacant, till
he can be well assured that the person on whom the choice will fall,
either does or will incline to support governmental measures.

The bill for the impartial administration of justice, the people
consider as threatening them with military execution, if they comply not
with that for the better regulating of the government. The English blood
which they have derived from their forefathers, without corrupting it by
foreign mixtures, for they have been too national to encourage, like
some colonies, the settlement of foreigners among them—that blood boils
in their veins at those two bills, and fires them to a military
opposition. The inhabitants of Connecticut mean not to be idle
spectators of the fate of their sister colony, which can only be a
prelude to their own, and are therefore giving in to equal exertions for
stemming the approaching torrent.

Soon after general Gage’s arrival, two regiments of foot, with a small
detachment of the artillery, and some cannon, were landed at Boston, and
encamped on the common. These troops were by degrees reinforced by the
arrival of several regiments from Ireland, New-York, Halifax, and at
length from Quebec. The arrival and station of these troops, was far
from being agreeable to the inhabitants; nor was the jealousy in any
degree less in the minds of their neighbors of the surrounding counties.
The dissatisfaction was increased by placing a guard upon Boston Neck,
the narrow isthmus which joins the peninsula to the continent; for which
measure the frequent desertion of the soldiers was the assigned reason.
Individuals have encouraged such desertion; and the Boston committee
have not failed to contribute to the temptation, by making the situation
of the soldiery as disagreeable as they could, and by counteracting all
endeavors to render it comfortable. They act systematically for the
prevention of all supplies for the British troops. Through their
connection with the neighboring committees, the farmers and others are
prevented from selling them straw, timber, slitwork, boards, in short
every article excepting provisions necessary for their subsistence. The
straw which is purchased for their service is daily burnt. Vessels with
brick intended for the army are sunk, and carts with wood are
overturned. Thus, by some contrivance or other, purchases are either
prevented, or when made, the king’s property is destroyed in every
manner in which it can be effected. While these things are doing, a
trifling circumstance gives the inhabitants of Boston a full earnest of
the support they may expect from the country in case of extremity, and
an opportunity of knowing the general temper of the people. A report
spreads, that a regiment posted on the Neck, has cut off all
communication with the country, in oder to starve the town into a
compliance with any measures which may be proposed to it. Upon this
vague report, a large body of the inhabitants of Worcester county
assemble, and dispatch two messengers express to Boston, to discover the
truth of the information. These envoys acquaint the townsmen, that if
the report had been true, there were several thousand armed men ready to
have marched to their assistance. They tell them further, that they are
commissioned to acquaint them, that even though they should be disposed
to a surrender of their liberties, the people of the country will not
think themselves at all included in their act; that by the late act and
the bills pending in the British parliament when the last intelligence
was received, their charter was utterly vacated; and that the compact
between Britain and the colonies being thus dissolved, they are at full
liberty to combine together, in what manner and form they think best,
for mutual security.

[August 4.] The governor, by a proclamation for the encouragement of
piety and virtue, the prevention and punishment of vice, profaneness and
immorility, has exasperated the minds of the people, owing to the
insertion of _hypocrisy_ among the immoralities. They have been scoffed
at and reproached by enemies, and those of looser manners, for a
pharisaical attention to outward forms and the appearances of religion;
and therefore view this insertion as an intended insult. With the new
acts, the governor received a list of thirty-six new counsellors, who
agreeable to the new regulations, have been appointed by the crown,
contrary to the method prescribed by the charter.—About twenty-four of
the gentlemen have accepted, so that there is a sufficient number to
attempt carrying on the business of government. But the courts of
judicature at Boston are suspended, for the grand jurors refuse to take
the oaths, and to act under new judges and laws. The petit jurors
decline serving, on account of _Peter Oliver_, esq. standing impeached
by a late honorable house of commons of the province, and of the judges
of the superior court being made to depend upon the crown. Not only so,
but the great and petty juries through the colony, unanimously refure to
act in any manner under the new regulations; and the clerks of the court
have found it necessary to acknowledge their contrition in the public
papers, for issuing the warrants by which the juries were summoned, and
not only to declare that they will not act so again, but to apologize
for what they have done. At Great Barrington and some other places, the
people assembled in large bodies, and filled the court-house and avenues
in such a manner, that neither judge nor officer could obtain entrance;
and upon the sheriff’s commanding them to make way for the court, they
answered, “We know no court, nor any other establishment, independent of
the ancient laws and usages of our country, and to none other will we
submit, or give way upon any account.”

At Salem the merchants, freeholders and other inhabitants, were by
hand-bills summoned to meet on Wednesday the twenty-fourth, to consider
on measures for opposing the execution of divers late acts of
parliament. The day preceding the intended meeting, [August 23.] the
governor, who resides within a few miles of the place, published a
proclamation prohibiting all persons from attending. The proclamation
being disregarded, a company of soldiers were ordered into town to
disperse the meeting; but before they got to it, the business was
finished, and the inhabitants withdrawn. Three of the gentlemen were
apprehended, but gave bonds to appear in court, and so were discharged.

The proceedings of the people, and their manifest dispositions, have
alarmed the general, who has thought it necessary for the safety of the
troops, as well as to secure the important post of Boston, to fortify
the entrance at the Neck, which affords the only communication, except
by water, between the town and the continent. His own personal safety,
while at his country residence in Danvers, would have been endangered,
had not the prudence of Samuel Holten, esq. M. D. a genuine, determined,
but considerate son of liberty, cooled and moderated the temper of his
neighbors.

_William Brattle_, esq. frequently an elected counsellor under the
charter, having given a hint to the governor to secure the provincial
ammunition, he sent two companies of soldiers across the river long
before day-break, [Sept. 1.] who possessed themselves of the powder in
the arsenal at Charlestown. The news circulated apace, and in the
morning the inhabitants of the neighboring towns, to the amount of
several thousands, assembled at Cambridge, mostly in arms. They
proceeded to the lieutenant governor Oliver’s house, and to the house of
several of the new counsellors, and of others who they thought had shewn
themselves unfriendly to the province. Some of the consellors were
obliged to resign, and to declare they would no more act under what are
pronounced the arbitrary laws lately enacted—It was with difficulty that
the multitude was restrained from marching to Boston, there to demand a
delivery of the powder, and, in case of refusal, to attack the troops.
This collection of people, and the confusion necessarily attending their
transactions, gave rise to a rumor, that the fleet and troops were
firing upon the town of Boston, which flew with amazing rapidity through
New-England; and in less than 24 hours after, there were between 30 and
40,000 men in arms, some of whom marched from 20 to 30 miles toward
Boston before they were undeceived. This report, and the seizure of the
powder, roused the inhabitants in the other colonies beyond New-England,
so that they immediately began learning the military exercise. The
transaction at Cambridge produced such other risings in the colony, as
obliged more of the new council to resign or to flee to Boston; whither,
by the close of the month, the commissioners, the custom-house officers,
and all who have made themselves particularly obnoxious, by taking an
active and decided part against the country, repaired for protection.
Thus is the seat of government at Salem abandoned, and the apparatus of
a custom-house removed to a place, which an act of parliament has
proscribed from all trade.

About this time the governor’s company of cadets, consisting of Boston
gentlemen, disbanded themselves, and returned him the standard he
presented them upon his arrival. This slight was owing to his taking
away the commission from Mr. Hancock, who was colonel of the corps. But
Mr. John Murray, a colonel of the militia, having accepted a seat in the
new council, twenty-four officers of his regiment resigned their
commissions in one day. Such is the prevailing spirit, that all persons
accepting offices under the new laws, or preparing to act in conformity
to them, are declared enemies to their country, and threatened
accordingly.

The seizing of the powder, and the withholding from the legal
proprietors what is lodged in the magazine of Boston, and the design
carrying into execution of repairing and manning the fortifications at
the entrance of the town, have occasioned the holding an assembly of
delegates from the several towns and districts in the county of Suffolk,
of which Boston is the county town. After a most spirited preamble, they
resolved, among other things [Sept. 9.] “That no obedience is due from
this province to either or any part of the late acts, but that they be
rejected as the attempts of a wicked administration to enslave
America—that so long as the justices are appointed or hold their places
by any other tenure than that which the charter and the laws of the
province direct, they must be considered as unconstitutional officers,
and as such no regard ought to be paid to them by the people of this
country—that if the justices shall sit and act during their present
disqualified state, this county will bear harmless all sheriffs, jurors,
and other officers, who shall refuse to carry into execution the orders
of said courts—that it be recommended to the collectors of taxes and all
other officers who have public monies in their hands, to retain the
same, and not to make any payment thereof to the provincial county
treasurer, until the civil government of the province is placed upon a
constitutional foundation, or it shall be otherwise ordered, by the
proposed provincial congress—that the persons who have accepted seats at
the council board, by virtue of a mandamus from the king, have acted in
a direct violation of the duty they owe to their country; this county do
recommend it to all who have so highly offended, and have not already
resigned, to make public resignation on or before the 20th of this
instant, September; all refusing so to do, shall, after said day, be
considered by this county, as obstinate and incorrigible enemies to this
country—that the fortifications begun and now carrying on upon Boston
Neck, gives us reason to apprehend some hostile intention against that
town—that the late act establishing the Roman Catholic religion in
Quebec, is dangerous in an extreme degree to the Protestant religion,
and to the civil rights and liberties of all America—that whereas our
enemies have flattered themselves that they shall make an easy prey of
this numerous brave people, from an apprehension that they are
unacquainted with military discipline; we therefore, for the honor and
security of this county and province, advise, that such persons be
elected in each town as officers in the militia, as shall be judged of
sufficient capacity, and who have evidenced themselves the invincible
friends to the rights of the people, and that the inhabitants do use
their utmost diligence to acquaint themselves with the art of war, and
do for that purpose appear under arms at least once every week—that
during the present hostile appearances on the part of Britain, we are
determined to act merely upon the defensive so long as such conduct may
be vindicated by reason and the principles of self-preservation, but no
longer—that as we understand it has been in contemplation to apprehend
sundry persons of this county, we do recommend, should such measure be
put in practice, to seize and keep every servant of the present
government throughout the province, until the persons so apprehended be
restored uninjured—that we recommend to all persons, not to engage in
any routs, riots, or licentious attacks upon the properties of any
person whatsoever, as being subversive of all order and government; but
by a steady, manly, uniform, and persevering opposition, to convince our
enemies, that in a contest so important, in a cause so solemn, our
conduct shall be such as to merit the approbation of the wise, and the
admiration of the brave and free of every age and of every country.”
They then drew up an address to the governor, and voted that doctor
_Joseph Warren_ (a physician, an amiable gentleman, who wishes for a
reconciliation between the colonies and the parent state, upon a redress
of grievances, and aims not at independency) with others, be a committee
to wait on his excellency, to inform him how the country is alarmed, and
to remonstrate against the fortifications making on the Neck, and the
repeated insults offered by the soldiery to persons passing and
re-passing into Boston, and to confer with him on those subjects. The
governor was waited upon to know if he would receive the committee with
the address; but desiring a private copy of it, that when he received
them he might be ready with a prepared answer, he was furnished with it,
and afterwards fixed on Monday the 12th for receiving the committee. The
doings of the county delegates, and a copy of the address to the
governor have been sent off by express to the general congress, now met
at Philadelphia. On the Monday, when the committee had delivered the
address of the county, he answered to it, “I have no intention to
prevent the free egress and regress of any person to and from the town
of Boston. I shall suffer none under my command to injure the person or
property of any of his majesty’s subjects; but it is my duty to preserve
the peace, and to prevent surprise; and no use will be made of the
cannon, unless the hostile proceedings of the people shall render it
necessary.” The patriots are waiting earnestly for the opinion of
congress on the Suffolk resolves, in hopes that they will be approved
of; and if so, they will go on with greater resolution and courage; for
they will consider such approbation as a declaration that the colony
will be supported by congress, in case hostilities are necessary for the
preservation of its liberties, and is also justifiable in arming and
training the militia.

Mr. _Quincy_ is upon the point of sailing for Britain, at the request of
several co-patriots. Be so obliging as to pay a proper attention to him;
you will be pleased at finding him so intelligent a gentleman, and may
rely upon his information. Shall keep the letter open, that if the sense
of congress is received time enough, it may be forwarded.

P. S. The sons of liberty are in high spirits. The Suffolk resolves were
before congress on Saturday morning, the 17th, and were considered;
after which it was _resolved unanimously_, “That this assembly deeply
feels the suffering of their countrymen in the _Massachusetts Bay_,
under the operation of the late unjust, cruel, and oppressive acts of
the _British_ parliament—that they most thoroughly approve the wisdom
and fortitude with which opposition to these wicked ministerial measures
has hitherto been conducted, and they earnestly recommend to their
brethren, a perseverance in the same firm and temperate conduct, as
expressed in the resolutions determined upon at a meeting of the
delegates for the county of _Suffolk_, on Tuesday the 6th instant (that
was the day of their first meeting, but they did not finish till the
9th) trusting that the effect of the united efforts of _North-America_
in their behalf, will carry such conviction to the _British_ nation, of
the unwise, unjust, and ruinous policy of the present administration, as
quickly to introduce better men and wiser measures.—“_Resolved
unanimously_, That contributions from all the colonies, for supplying
the necessities and alleviating the distresses of our brethren at
Boston, ought to be continued, in such manner, and so long as their
occasions may require.” Mr. Quincy sails to-day.




                               LETTER X.


                                            _Roxbury, February 3, 1775._

The measures pursued by the British ministry, for subjecting America to
parliamentary authority in all cases whatever, have united the twelve
colonies, from New-Hampshire to South-Carolina, inclusively, into a
compact body. Many on the side of government flattered themselves that
the event would never exist. They had no small ground for it,
considering that several of the colonies clash in their particular
interests; have been frequently quarreling about boundaries and other
matters; differ greatly in manners, customs, religion and constitutions;
and have local prejudices, jealousies, and aversions. But they have been
pressed by a common danger, threatening the most valuable rights of each
individual province, so that they have all elected delegates to meet in
a general congress, to consult in what way to obtain a redress of
grievances and ward off the impending ruin. The ministerial influence in
New-York has not prevailed, as was expected, to keep that colony from
joining the others. Great dependance was had upon their monied men; but
the cause of liberty was too popular, and the numbers that espoused it
too many and too independent, either to be bribed or overawed.

[Sept. 5.] The delegates being arrived at Philadelphia, from all the
colonies except North-Carolina, they met in general congress, and
proceeded to the choice of a president, when _Peyton Randolph_, esq. was
unanimously elected, and Mr. _Charles Thomson_ was unanimously chosen
secretary. They resolved, that “in determining questions, each colony
shall have one vote.” Before they engaged in any special business, the
North-Carolina delegates joined them. The number of the whole, when
together, is fifty-two beside the president. The first important service
wherein they engaged, you have had an account of in the preceding
postscript. In their subsequent resolutions [Oct. 8.] they declared,
“That if the late acts of parliament shall be attempted to be carried
into execution by force, in such case all _America_ ought to support the
inhabitants of the _Massachusetts Bay_ in their opposition—that if it be
found absolutely necessary to remove the people of Boston into the
country, all America ought to contribute toward recompensing them for
the injury they may thereby sustain—and that every person who shall
accept, or act under any commission or authority derived from the act of
parliament changing the form of government and violating the charter,
ought to be held in detestation. They have written a letter to general
_Gage_ [Oct. 10.] in which they express the deepest concern at his
proceeding in a manner that bore so hostile an appearance, and which
even the oppressive acts of parliament did not warrant. They represent
the tendency this conduct must have to irritate and force the people,
hitherto well disposed to peaceable measures, into hostilities, which
may prevent the endeavors of congress to restore a good understanding
with the parent state, and may involve us in the horrors of a civil war.
They express their hope, that the general, to quiet the minds of the
people, will discontinue the fortifications in and about Boston, prevent
any further invasions of private property, restrain the irregularities
of the soldiers, and give orders that the communication between the town
and country may be open, unmolested, and free.

The general in his answer, said “No troops have given less cause for
complaint, and greater care was never taken to prevent it; and such care
and attention was never more necessary from the insults and provocations
daily given to both officers and soldiers. The communication between the
town and country has been always free and unmolested, and is so still.”
This assertion may appear perfectly just to a military gentleman; but
may be otherwise thought of by one in a civil department, who means that
the entrance into a town should have neither guards nor sentinels,
either to stop or challenge passengers, whether by night or by day. The
general intimated, that the hostile preparations throughout the country,
and the menaces of blood and slaughter, made it his duty to fortify the
Neck. He concluded with—“I ardently wish, that the common enemies to
both countries may see, to their disappointment, that these disputes
betwen the mother country and the colonies, have terminated like the
quarrels of lovers, and increased the affection which they ought to bear
to each other.”

The congress have also made a declaration of rights (contained within a
number of resolves) to which they say the _English_ colonies of
North-America are entitled by the immutable laws of nature, the
principles of the English constitution, and their several charters or
compacts. In the first of these are life, liberty, and property, a right
to the disposal of any of which, without their consent, they have never
ceded to any sovereign power whatever. They mention, that their
ancestors, at the time of their emigration, were entitled to all the
rights, liberties, and immunities of free and natural born subjects
within the realm of England; and that by such emigration they by no
means forfeited, surrendered or lost any of those rights; but that they
were, and their descendants now are, entitled to the enjoyment of all
such of them as their local and other circumstances enabled them to
exercise. They then state, that the foundation of English liberty, and
of all free government, is a right in the people to participate in their
legislative council; and proceed to show, that as the colonists are not,
and from various causes, cannot be represented in the British
parliament, they are entitled to a free and exclusive power of
legislation in their several provincial legislatures, where their right
of representation can alone be preserved, in all cases of taxation and
internal policy, subject only to the negative of their sovereign, in
such manner as had heretofore been used.

To qualify the extent of this paragraph, which may seem to leave no
means of parliamentary interference, for holding the colonies to the
mother country, they declare, that from the necessity of the case, and a
regard to the mutual interests of both countries, they cheerfully
consent to the operation of such acts of the British parliament as are,
_bona fide_, restrained to the regulation of their external commerce,
for the purpose of securing the commercial advantages of the whole
empire to the mother country, excluding every idea of taxation, either
internal or external, for raising a revenue on the subjects in America,
without their consent.

They resolved, “That the respective colonies are entitled to the common
law of England, and more especially to the great and estimable privilege
of being tried by their peers of the vicinage; to the benefit of such of
the English statutes as existed in the time of their colonization, and
which they have found to be applicable to their several and other local
circumstances; and to all the immunities and privileges granted and
confirmed to them by royal charters, or secured by their several codes
of provincial laws—that they have a right to assemble peaceably,
consider of their grievances, and petition the king; and that all
prosecutions, prohibitory proclamations, and commitments for the same,
are illegal—that the keeping a standing army in these colonies, in times
of peace, without the consent of the legislature of that colony in which
such army is kept, is against law—that it is rendered essential to good
government, by the English constitution, that the constituent branches
of the legislature be independent of each other; that therefore the
exercise of legislative power, by a council appointed, during pleasure,
by the crown, is unconstitutional, and destructive to the freedom of
American legislation.”

They proceeded to claim, in behalf of themselves and constituents; and
to insist on the foregoing articles, as their indisputable rights and
liberties, which cannot be legally taken from them, altered, or
abridged, by any power whatever, without their own consent, by their
representatives in their several provincial legislatures. They then
resolved concerning eleven acts of parliament, or parts of acts, passed
in the present reign, that “they are infringements and violations of the
foregoing rights, and that the repeal of them is essentially necessary,
in order to restore harmony between Great-Britain and the American
colonies.” Among these is the Quebec bill, which is termed “an act for
establishing the Roman Catholic religion in the province of Quebec,
abolishing the equitable system of English laws, and erecting a tyranny
there, to the great danger (from so total a dissimilarity of religion,
law and government) of the neighboring British colonies, by the
assistance of whose blood and treasure, the said country was conquered
from France.”

After specifying their rights, and enumerating their grievances, they
mention, that in hopes of being restored to that state in which both
countries formerly found happiness and prosperity, they have for the
present only resolved to pursue the following peaceable measures, viz.
to enter into a non-importation, non-consumption, and non-exportation
agreement; and to prepare an address to the people of Great-Britain, a
memorial to the inhabitants of British America, and a loyal address to
his majesty.

By the association they have bound themselves, and intentionally their
constituents to a strict observance of fourteen articles. They have
agreed by the second, that after the first day of December next, they
will wholly discontinue the slave trade, and will neither hire their
vessels nor sell their commodities to those who are concerned in it—by
the third, that from that day, they will not purchase or use any tea
imported on account of the East-India Company, or any on which a duty
hath been or shall be paid; and from and after the first of March next,
they will not purchase or use any East-India tea whatever, nor any of
those goods they have agreed not to import, which they shall have cause
to suspect were imported after the first of December, except such as
come under the directions afterward mentioned—by the fourth, that the
non-exportation agreement shall be suspended to the tenth of September,
1775, after which, if the acts objected to, are not repealed, they will
not, directly nor indirectly, export any commodity whatsoever, to
Great-Britain, Ireland, or the West-Indies, except rice to Europe—by the
fifth, that they will never more have any commercial intercourse with
any British merchants, who may ship goods in violation of, and with a
view of breaking the association—by the eighth, that they will encourage
frugality, œconomy, and industry, promote agriculture, arts, and
manufactures, discourage every species of extravagance and dissipation,
and will wear no other mourning than a piece of crape or ribbon—by the
fourteenth and last, that they will have no trade, dealings, or
intercourse whatsover, with any North-American colony or province, that
shall not accede to, or that shall hereafter violate the association;
but will hold them as inimical to their country. This association, which
is to continue in force till the above acts, or parts of acts, wherein
they relate to the colonies, are repealed, has been signed [Oct. 24.] by
all the members of congress.

In their address to the people of Great-Britain, the congress pay the
highest praise to the noble and generous virtues of their and our common
ancestors, but in a way which rather reproaches you with a shameful
degeneracy. They tell you not to be surprised that they, who are
descended from the same common ancestors, should refuse to surrender
their liberties and the constitution you so justly boast of, to men who
found their claims on no principles of reason, and who prosecute them
with a design, that by having _our_ lives and property in their power,
they may with the greater facility enslave _you_. They complain of being
oppressed, abused, and misrepresented, so that it is become a duty to
themselves and their posterity, and to the general welfare of the
British empire, to address you on this very important subject. They call
upon you yourselves, to witness to their loyalty and attachments to the
common interest of the whole empire; to their efforts in the last war;
and to your own acknowledgment of their zeal, and your even reimbursing
them large sums of money, which you confessed they had advanced beyond
their proportion, and far beyond their abilities. They proceed to state
and examine the measures and the several acts of parliament, which they
consider as hostile to America, and represent the probable consequences
to your country should ministry be able to carry the point of taxation,
and reduce the colonies to a state of perfect slavery. They ingeniously
endeavor to render theirs a cause common to both countries, by showing
that such success might, in the end, be as fatal to the liberties of
Britain as to those of America. “Take care (say they) that you do not
fall into the pit preparing for us.” After denying the several charges
of being seditious, impatient of government, and desirous of
independency, which they assert to be calumnies, they declare, that if
neither the voice of justice, the dictates of the law, the principles of
the constitution, nor the suggestions of humanity, can restrain your
hands from shedding of human blood in such an impious cause, they must
tell you, “That they never will submit to be hewers of wood, or drawers
of water for any ministry or nation in the world.” They afterward make a
proposal, which if duly attended to, may afford a favorable basis for
negociation—“Place us in the same situation that we were in at the close
of the last war, and our former harmony will be restored.” The same
truth was transmitted to some of the ministry, by the late reverend Mr.
_Whitefield_, before his death, in 1770, at Newburyport, in nearly the
following words, “Would you have peace and harmony restored through the
colonies, you must attend to the military phrase, _right about, as you
were_.” The like sentiment was confirmed by a subsequent letter from
another quarter, after a designed conference upon the subject with
_Thomas Cushing_ and _Samuel Adams_, esqrs. of Boston, and _Thomas
Lynch_, esq. of South-Carolina. The congress conclude their address by
expressing the utmost regret at their being compelled by the over-ruling
principles of self-preservation, to adopt measures detrimental to
numbers of their fellow-subjects in Great-Britain and Ireland, in the
suspension of their importations from both these kingdoms. They finally
rest their hope of a restoration of that harmony, friendship, and
fraternal affection between all the inhabitants of his majesty’s
kingdoms and territories, so ardently wished for by every true and
honest American, upon the magnanimity and justice of the British nation,
in furnishing a parliament of such wisdom, independence, and public
spirit as may save the violated rights of the whole empire, from the
devices of wicked ministers and evil counsellors, whether in or out of
office.

Congress, in their memorial to the inhabitants of British America,
inform the colonies, that they have diligently, deliberately, and
calmly, enquired into all the measures which have excited the present
disturbances; and that upon the whole they find themselves reduced to
the disagreeable alternative of being silent, or betraying the innocent,
or of speaking out, and censuring those they wish to revere. They prefer
the course dictated by honesty, and a regard for the welfare of their
country. After stating and examining the several laws which have been
passed, and the measures which have been pursued with respect to
America, since the conclusion of the late war to the present period,
they enquire into the motives for the particular hostility against the
town of Boston and province of Massachusetts Bay; though the behavior of
the people in other colonies, has been in equal opposition to the power
assumed by parliament; notwithstanding which no step had been taken
against any of them by government. This they represent as an artful
systematic line of conduct, concealing several designs, adding, “It is
expected that the province of the Massachusetts Bay will be irritated
into some violent action that may displease the rest of the continent,
or that may induce the people of Great-Britain to approve the meditated
vengeance of an imprudent and exasperated ministry. If the unexampled
pacific temper of that province shall disappoint this part of the plan,
it is hoped the other colonies will be so far intimidated as to desert
their brethren suffering in a common cause, and that thus disunited, all
may be subdued.” They proceed to state the importance of the trust which
has been reposed in them, and the manner in which they have discharged
it; and deeply deplore the necessity which pressed them to an immediate
interruption of commerce, and apologize with saying, “We are driven by
the hands of violence into unexperienced and unexpected public
convulsions, and are contending for freedom so often contended for by
our ancestors.” “The people of England,” say they, “will soon have an
opportunity of declaring their sentiments concerning our cause. In their
piety, generosity, and good sense, we repose high confidence, and cannot
upon a review of past events, be persuaded that _they_, the defenders of
true religion, and the assertors of the rights of mankind, will take
part against their affectionate protestant brethren in the colonies, in
favor of our open and their own secret enemies, whose intrigues for
several years past have been wholly exercised in sapping the foundations
of civil and religious liberty.” Toward the close, they have these
words, “We think ourselves bound in duty to observe to you, that the
schemes agitated against these colonies have been so conducted, as to
render it prudent that you should extend your views to the most unhappy
events, and be in all respects prepared for every contingency.”

The address of congress to his majesty, is clothed in the habit of an
humble petition, wherein they beg leave to lay their grievances before
the throne. After an enumeration of them, they implore his clemency for
protection against them; and impute all their distresses, dangers, and
fears, to the destructive system of colony administration adopted since
the conclusion of the last war. They express their apprehension, that as
his majesty enjoys the signal distinction of reigning over freemen, the
language of freemen cannot be displeasing; adding, “Your royal
indignation, we hope, will rather fall on those designing and dangerous
men, who, daringly interposing themselves between your royal person and
your faithful subjects, and for several years past incessantly employed
to dissolve the bonds of society, by abusing your majesty’s authority,
misrepresenting your American subjects and prosecuting the most
desperate and irritating projects of oppression, have at length
compelled us, by the force of accumulated injuries, too severe to be any
longer tolerable, to disturb your majesty’s repose by our complaints.”
They beg leave to assure his majesty, that in regard to defraying the
charge of the administration of justice and the support of civil
government, such provision has been and will be made, as has been and
shall be judged, by the legislature of the several colonies, just and
suitable to their respective circumstances; and that for the defence,
protection and security of the colonies, their militias, if properly
regulated as they earnestly desire may be immediately done, would be
sufficient, at least in times of peace; and in case of war his faithful
colonists will be ready and willing, as they ever have been when
constitutionally required, to demonstrate their loyalty, by exerting
their most strenuous efforts in granting supplies and raising forces.
They say, “We ask but for peace, liberty and safety. We wish not a
diminution of the prerogative, nor do we solicit the grant of any new
right in our favor. Your royal authority over us, and our connection
with Great-Britain, we shall always carefully and zealously endeavor to
support and maintain.”—“We present this petition only to obtain redress
of grievances and relief from fears and jealousies, occasioned by the
system of statutes and regulations adopted since the close of the late
war, by the abolition of which system, the harmony between Great-Britain
and these colonies, will be immediately restored. In the magnanimity and
justice of your majesty and parliament we confide for a redress of our
other grievances, trusting, that when the causes of our apprehensions
are removed, our future conduct will prove us not unworthy of the
regard, we have been accustomed in our happier days to enjoy. For,
appealing to that Being who searches thoroughly the hearts of his
creatures, we solemnly profess, that our councils have been influenced
by no other motive, than a dread of impending destruction.” They implore
his majesty in the most solemn manner, as the loving father of his
people, connected by the same bands of law, loyalty, faith and blood,
not to suffer the transcendant relation, formed by these ties to be
further violated, in uncertain expectation of effects, that if attained,
can never compensate for the calamities through which they must be
gained. They most earnestly beseech him, that his royal authority and
interposition may be used for their relief; and that a gracious answer
may be given to their petition. The close is a prayer, that his majesty
may enjoy every felicity through a long and glorious reign, and that his
descendants may inherit his prosperity and dominions till time shall be
no more.

The congress, a week after resolving upon the association, an address to
the people of Great-Britain, a memorial to the inhabitants of the
colonies, and an address to his majesty, further resolved, “That an
address be prepared to the people of Quebec, and letters to the colonies
of St. John’s, Nova-Scotia, Georgia, East and West Florida, who have not
deputies to represent them in this congress.”

Their address to the French inhabitants in Canada, discovers the most
dexterous management, and the most able method of application to the
temper and passions of the parties, whom they endeavor to gain. They
state the right they had, upon becoming English subjects, to the
inestimable benefits of the English constitution; and that this right
was further confirmed by the royal proclamation in 1763, plighting the
public faith for their full enjoyment of those advantages. They impute
to succeeding ministers an audacious and cruel abuse of the royal
authority, in withholding from them the fruition of the irrevocable
rights, to which they were thus justly entitled. They undertake to
explain to them, some of the most important branches of that form of
government from which they are debarred; and in so doing, quote passages
from their countryman Montesquieu, whom they artfully adopt as a judge
and an irrefragable authority upon this occasion. They then proceed to
specify and explain, under several distinct heads, the principal rights
to which the people are entitled by the English constitution; and these
rights they truly say, defend the poor from the rich, the weak from the
powerful, the industrious from the rapacious, the peaceable from the
violent, the tenants from the lords, and all from their superiors.

They attempt pointing out numberless deformities in the Quebec bill, and
placing them in those points of view which should render it odious to
mankind. They renew their applications to the passions and partiality of
the Canadians; and at length introduce Montesquieu as addressing them
thus: “Seize the opportunity presented to you by Providence itself. You
are a small people compared with those who with open arms invite you
into a fellowship. A moment’s reflection should convince you, which will
be most for your interest and happiness, to have all the rest of
North-America your unalterable friends, or your inveterate enemies. Your
province is the only link wanting to complete the bright and strong
chain of union. Nature has joined your country to theirs. Do you join
your political interests. The value and extent of the advantages
tendered to you are immense. Heaven grant that you may discover them to
be blessings after they have bid you an eternal adieu.” They endeavor to
obviate the jealousies and prejudices which might arise from the
difference of their religious principles, by instancing the case of the
Swiss Cantons, whose union is composed of Roman Catholic and Protestant
states, living in the utmost concord and peace with one another, and
thereby enabled to defy and defeat every tyrant that had invaded them.
The congress, upon this article, appear to have winked out of sight
their complaint about eatablishing the Roman Catholic religion in
Quebec, and to expect that it would be unknown to the Canadians, or give
them no umbrage. They declare, that they do not ask them to commence
hostilities against the government of their common sovereign, but only
invite them to consult their own glory and welfare, and to unite with
them in no social compact. They conclude by informing them, that the
congress had, with universal pleasure, and an unanimous vote, resolved,
That they should consider the violation of their rights, by the act for
altering the government of their province, as a violation of their own;
and that they, should be invited to accede to their confederation.

Before this address was perfected and signed, congress resolved, [Oct.
21.] “That the seizing, or attempting to seize any person in America, in
order to transport such person beyond the sea, for trial of offences
committed in America, being against law, will justify and ought to meet
with resistance and reprisal.” They have also agreed, that another
congress shall be held on the tenth day of May next, unless the redress
of grievances be obtained before that time.

The general congress having finished their deliberations, dissolved
themselves [Oct. 26.] The impartial world will go near to acknowledge,
that the petitions and addresses from the congress have been executed
with uncommon energy, skill, and ability; and that abstractedly
considered, in respect to vigor of mind, strength of sentiment, and
patriotic language, they would not disgrace any assembly whatsoever. The
studied attention that congress have paid to the Massachusetts Bay and
its distressed capital, will both console and invigorate the
inhabitants. Many, however, of the congressional acts were neither
carried unanimously, nor without much debate. Mr. Galloway, of
Pennsylvania, and Mr. Duane, of New-York, inclined to the side of
ministry. The former became a member at the earnest solicitation of the
assembly, and refused compliance till they had given him instructions
agreeable to his own mind, as the rule of his conduct. These
instructions they suffered him to draw up: they were briefly to state
the rights and the grievances of America, and to propose a plan of
amicable accommodation of the differences between Great-Britain and the
colonies, and of a perpetual union. September the twenty-eighth a plan
was proposed by him, which was debated a whole day, when the question
was carried, six colonies to five, that it should be resumed and further
considered; but it at length fell through. The ten resolutions which the
congress came to in their declaration, expressing their indubitable
rights and liberties, met with very considerable opposition. Mr. Duane,
and others who drew with him, perplexed the proposals made by the high
sons of liberty, so that the congress did not come to a single
resolution for more than a fortnight, neither in stating their rights
nor their grievances.—When six days before that declaration, on October
the eighth, the resolution was passed, “That the congress approve the
opposition of the inhabitants of the Massachusetts Bay to the execution
of the late acts; and if the same shall be attempted, &c.” Galloway and
Duane not only opposed, but wanted to have their protests entered; which
being refused, on their return from congress they gave each other a
certificate, declaring their opposition to that question, as they
thought it a treasonable one.[112] In some stages of their proceedings,
the danger of a rupture with Britain was urged as a plea for certain
concessions. Upon this Mr. S. Adams rose up, and among other things
said, in substance, “I should advise persisting in our struggle for
liberty, though it was revealed from Heaven that 999 were to perish, and
only one of a thousand to survive and retain his liberty. One such
freeman must possess more virtue, and enjoy more happiness than a
thousand slaves; and let him propagate his like, and transmit to them
what he hath so nobly preserved.” It was a flight of patriotism, serving
to show the temper of the speaker; but the sentiment is so hyperbolical,
as to throw it far beyond the reach of practice. Mr. S. Adams having
seen an happy issue to the important deliberations of the general
congress, after his return repaired to the Massachusetts provincial
congress, to aid in their deliberations.

General Gage, by the advice of his new council, issued writs for the
holding of a general assembly at Salem, on the 5th of October. The
events which afterward took place made him think it expedient to
counteract the writs, by a proclamation for suspending the meeting of
the members returned. But the legality of the proclamation was called
into question; and the new members, to the number of 90, met according
to the precepts, on the day and at the place appointed. Having waited
that day, [Oct. 5.] without the presence of the governor, or any
substitute for him, to administer the oaths and open the session, on the
next day they appointed a committee to consider the proclamation; and on
the third, resolved themselves into a provincial congress, to be joined
by such others as have been or shall be chosen, to take into
consideration the dangerous and alarming situation of public affairs.
The following day they met in provincial congress, and adjourned to
Concord, about 20 miles from Charlestown, and when there, chose Mr.
Hancock president. They proceeded to appoint a committee to wait upon
the governor with a remonstrance, in which they apologize for their
meeting, from the distressed state of the colony; express the grievous
apprehensions of the people; assert that the rigor of the Boston
port-bill is exceeded by the manner in which it is carried into
execution; and complain of the late laws, and the hostile preparations
on Boston Neck. They conclude with adjuring him to desist immediately
from the construction of the fortress at the entrance into Boston, and
to restore that pass to its natural state. The governor was involved in
some difficulty as to giving them an answer, for he could not
acknowledge the legality of their assembly. Necessity however prevailed.
He expressed great indignation at the idea’s being formed, that the
lives, liberties, or property of any people, except avowed enemies,
could be in danger from English troops; and observed, that
notwithstanding the enmity shown to the troops, by withholding from them
almost every thing necessary for their preservation, they had not yet
discovered the resentment which might justly have been expected to arise
from such hostile treatment. He reminded them, that while they
complained of alterations made in their charter by acts of parliament,
they were themselves, by their present assembling, subverting that
charter, and now acting in direct violation of their own constitution;
he therefore warned them of the rocks they were upon, and to desist from
such illegal and unconstitutional proceedings. But they were not in the
least diverted from prosecuting their measures. They adjourned to and
met at Cambridge [Oct. 17.]

[Oct. 21.] A committee was appointed to draw up a plan for the immediate
defence of the province. It was concluded to raise and enlist a number
of minute-men, now for the first time so called, from their being to
turn out with their arms, at a minute’s warning. Upon the debate for
raising money to purchace military articles, a thousand pounds lawful (a
fourth less than sterling) was moved for and seconded; then two
thousand. The country members, in common, had no conception of the
expences attending warlike operations; and were dreadfully afraid of
voting away their own and their constituents money, however necessary
the expenditure of it. They are generally persons of good understanding
in matters within their own sphere, but are not competent judges of
those that lie without it; and being accustomed only to small sums,
startle at the mention of those which to them have the comparative
appearance of enormously large; and yet it is needful to humor their
want of scientific knowledge, to prevent disgust and obtain their
support. Of this the more intelligent members of the assembly were
sensible—Therefore the debate was closed by appointing a committee to
give in an estimate of the articles wanted, together with their cost;
this being done, the committee of safety were empowered to assemble the
militia, when they shall judge the same necessary for the defence of the
inhabitants of the province; and the committee of supplies to purchase
ammunition, ordnance, stores, &c. not exceeding the value of £.20,837
lawful, or £.15,627, 15s. sterling—a glorious sum with which to oppose
the power and riches of Great-Britain! The committee of safety and the
committee of supplies, consist of different persons, and are intended
for different purposes. The first, beside being empowered to assemble
the militia, are invested with other authority for the safety of the
province, and are to recommend to the committee of supplies the
purchasing of such articles as may be deemed necessary. The last are to
assist the committee of safety not only by purchasing supplies, but by
affording them help for executing the measures which may be thought by
them requisite for the public benefit. Both are to sit and to continue
to do business when there is a recess of the provincial congress, as
also when none existeth. It is resolved [Oct. 25.] That all matters
shall be kept private; but in such a numerous assembly it is next to
impossible to effect it. Were all equally true to the same cause, each
will not have the like power of retaining a secret.

[October 27.] The honorable Jedediah Pribble, the honorable Artemas
Ward, and colonel Pomeroy, all of whom have seen some service in the
last war, were elected general officers, to have the command of the
minute-men and militia, in case they should be called out to action.

[October 29.] The provincial congress adjourned to November 23.

As winter approached, the governor ordered temporary barracks to be
erected for the troops. But such was the dislike to their being provided
for in any manner, that the select men and committees obliged the
workmen of the town to quit their employment, for fear of subjecting
themselves to the resentment of their countrymen. The governor had as
little success in endeavoring to procure carpenters from New-York; so
that it has been with the greatest difficulty that he has gotten those
temporary lodgments erected. He has endeavored also to procure some
winter covering from that city; but the merchants have refused complying
with any part of the order, and returned for answer, “They never will
supply any article for the benefit of men who are sent as enemies to
their country.” The general had thoughts at one time, of erecting a fort
upon Beacon-hill. The Boston committee obtained the plan of it, waited
upon him, and informed him that they heard he had such a design, and
that if he proceeded to execute it, he would get himself into
difficulties. He would not own that he had any such intention, but
attempted rather to make them believe the contrary; on which they
produced the plan, and told him it was the same that was presented to
him the night before.

On the other hand, the Massachusetts committee of safety; were not
inattentive to their duty. They recommended to the committee of supplies
[Nov. 2, 8, 14, 20.] the procuring of pork, flour, rice, and peas, and
the depositing of the same partly at Worcester and partly at Concord.
They further advised the procuring of all arms and ammunition that could
be got from the neighboring provinces; and of spades, pick-axes,
bill-hooks, iron shovels and pots, mess-bowls, cannon, ball, &c. &c.

Every thing now served to increase the mutual apprehension and animosity
between the government and the people. Those of Boston professed to be
under no small terror, from an apprehension of danger to their property,
liberties, and lives. The soldiers, on the other hand, considered
themselves in the midst of enemies. Each side made profession of the
best intentions in the world for its own part, and showed the greatest
suspicion of the other. In this state of doubt and profession, matters
were made still worse by a measure which seems not of sufficient
importance in its consequences, to justify its having been hazarded at
so critical a season. This was the landing of a detachment of sailors by
night, from the ships of war in the harbour, who spiked up all the
cannon upon one of the batteries belonging to the town.

In the mean time, through the disposition and promptitude of the people,
the resolutions and recommendations of the provincial congress, had all
the weight and efficacy of laws. At length the governor was induced to
issue a proclamation [Nov. 10.] in which they were charged with
proceedings generally understood as nearly tantamount to treason and
rebellion. The inhabitants were accordingly prohibited in the king’s
name, from complying in any degree with the requisitions,
recommendations, directions, or resolves of that unlawful assembly.

[Nov. 23.] When the provincial congress met again, having Mr. Samuel
Adams present with them, they pushed their preparations for hostile
opposition. These exertions suited not the feelings of many in congress.
Through timidity they began to sicken at heart, and upon the plea of
sickness begged leave to return home, and were indulged. Mr. S. Adams
penetrated the cause of their complaint; and in order to stop the
epidemical distemper, expressed his great willingness, that when members
were not well, they should be allowed to return, but proposed that they
should be enjoined, upon getting back, to inform the towns that they
were no longer represented, that so others might be sent to supply their
absence. The proposal soon cured the malady; for the disordered chose to
remain in congress rather than incur the displeasure of their
constituents, and be supplanted by new successors.

The provincial congress resolved upon getting in readiness 12,000 men,
to act upon any emergency; and directed that a quarter of the militia
should be enlisted as minute-men, who were allowed the liberty of
choosing their own officers, and were to receive pay. They sent persons
to New-Hampshire, Rhode-Island, and Connecticut, to acquaint them with
what was doing, and to request that they would prepare their respective
quotas to make up an army of 20,000 men when wanted. Upon this a number
of gentlemen were sent from these colonies, to consult and settle with a
committee of about twenty, chosen by the congress for the purpose. There
was a difficulty about fixing what should be the precise period for
opposing general Gage’s troops; at length it was determined, that they
should be opposed whenever they marched out with their baggage,
ammunition, and artillery; for this would carry in it an apparent
intention of acting hostilely in support of British measures.

[Dec. 6.] A committee was appointed to correspond with the inhabitants
of Canada; and it was resolved, that the following letter be addressed
to the several ministers of the gospel, within this province:


  “REV. SIR,

We cannot but acknowledge the goodness of Heaven, in constantly
supplying us with preachers of the gospel, whose concern has been the
temporal and spiritual happiness of this people. In a day like this,
when all the friends of civil and religious liberty are exerting
themselves to deliver this country from its present calamities, we
cannot but place great hopes in an order of men who have ever
distinguished themselves in their country’s cause; and do therefore
recommend to the ministers of the gospel, in the several towns and other
places in this colony, that they assist us in avoiding that dreadful
slavery with which we are now threatened.”


The ministers of New-England being mostly congregationalists, are from
that circumstance, in a professional way, more attached and habituated
to the principles of liberty than if they had spiritual superiors to
lord it over them, and were in hopes of possessing in their turn,
through the gift of government, the seat of power. They oppose arbitrary
rule in civil concerns, from the love of freedom, as well as from a
desire of guarding against its introduction into religious matters. The
patriots, for years back have availed themselves greatly of their
assistance. Two sermons have been preached annually for a length of
time, the one on general election day, the last Wednesday in May, when
the new general court have been used to meet, according to charter, and
elect the counsellors for the ensuing year; the other some little while
after, on the artillery election day, when the officers are reelected,
or new officers are chosen. On these occasions political subjects are
deemed very proper; but it is expected that they be treated in a decent,
serious, and instructive manner. The general election preacher has been
elected alternately by the council and house of assembly. The sermon is
stiled _the Election Sermon_, and is printed. Every representative has a
copy for himself, and generally one or more for the minister or
ministers of his town. As the patriots have prevailed, the preachers of
each sermon have been the zealous friends of liberty; and the passages
most adapted to promote and spread the love of it, have been selected,
and circulated far and wide by means of news-papers, and read with
avidity and degree of veneration, on account of the preacher and his
election to the service of the day. Commendations, both public and
private, have not been wanting to help on the design. Thus by their
labors in the pulpit, and by furnishing the prints with occasional
essays, the ministers have forwarded and strengthened, and that not a
little, the opposition to the exercise of that parliamentary claim of
right to bind the colonies in all cases whatever.

The clergy of this colony are as virtuous, sensible, and learned a set
of men, as will probably be found in any part of the globe of equal size
and equally populous. The first settlers were early attentive to the
providing of suitable persons to fill their pulpits with dignity. They
saw the importance of it, and in 1636 the general court gave some
hundred pounds toward a public school at Newton; but Mr. John Harvard, a
worthy minister of Charlestown, dying in 1638, and bequeathing between
seven and eight hundred pounds to the same use, the school took the name
of Harvard College by an order of court, and the town upon the occasion
changed its name for that of Cambridge.—This college has been encouraged
ever since, and is the first upon the continent. It is the _alma mater_
to whom the youth of this colony in particular, are sent, whether
designed for the pulpit, the bar, or other callings. Here they receive
the rudiments of those qualifications by which they are enabled to serve
their country in a civil or sacred department. The salaries of the
ministers are moderate, but in general sufficient for their support, by
the aid of good œconomy. They cannot approve of often bringing politics
into the pulpit, yet they apprehend it to be right upon special
occasions. Who but must admit, that “it is certainly the duty of the
clergy to accommodate their discourses to the times; to preach against
such sins as are most prevalent, and to recommend such virtues as are
most wanted. For example, if exorbitant ambition and venality are
predominant, ought they not to warn their hearers against the vices? If
public spirit is much wanted, should they not inculcate this great
virtue? If the rights and duties of magistrates and subjects are
disputed, should they not explain them, show their nature, ends,
limitations, and restrictions?” You have frequently remarked, that
though the partizans of arbitrary power will freely censure that
preacher who speaks boldly for the liberties of the people, they will
admire as an excellent divine, the parson whose discourse is wholly in
the opposite strain, and teaches that magistrates have a divine right
for doing wrong, and are to be implicitly obeyed; men professing
christianity, as if the religion of the blessed Jesus bound them tamely
to part with their natural and social rights, and slavishly to bow their
neck to any tyrant; as if Paul was faulty in standing up for his Roman
privileges, that he might escape a scourging, or falling a sacrifice to
the malice of his countrymen, when he appealed unto Cæsar.

[Dec. 8.] The provincial congress choose colonel Thomas and colonel
Heath, additional generals, and soon after dissolved themselves, that
they might be at home in time to keep thanksgiving with their families.
It has been long a custom in the colony to have a fast day in the
spring, and a thanksgiving late in the fall of the year, or in the
beginning of winter, when the heads of families collect their children
around them; and beside attending the religious exercises of the day,
feast upon a plentiful though not a splendid table, and are innocently
merry. The observation of this day they call “_a keeping thanksgiving_.”
The appointment of both days, belongs in an orderly way, to the
governor; but in these extraordinary times the provincial congress
appointed the public thansgiving, on which among other enumerated
blessings, a particular acknowledgment was to be made to the Almighty,
for the union which so remarkably prevails in all the colonies.

The assembly of Pennsylvania met toward the close of the year, and were
the first legal body of representatives that ritified unanimously all
the acts of the general congress, and appointed delegates to represent
them in the new congress, to be held the ensuing May. It is thought that
they were in a great measure dragged into it, from the fear of a
provincial convention.

No sooner did they receive at Rhode-Island the account of the royal
proclamation, prohibiting the exportation of military stores from
Britain, but the people seized upon and removed from the batteries about
the harbour, above forty cannon, of different sizes. The assembly also
passed resolutions for procuring arms and military stores by every mean,
and from every quarter in which they could be obtained, as well as for
training and arming the inhabitants.

When copies of these resolutions and of the proclamation, arrived at
Portsmouth, in New-Hampshire, the people of the province were spirited
up to make their first hostile movement. Though governor Wentworth’s
influence could not prevent their appointing deputies, holding a
convention at Exeter, and choosing delegates for the continental
congress, yet he had the address to moderate their tempers, and to keep
them from acts of violence. But the example of their neighbors, and the
alarming situation of affairs, at length roused them to uncommon
exertions. [Dec. 14.] More than four hundred men collected, and beset
his majesty’s castle at Portsmouth. Captain Cochran, who commanded,
ordered three four pounders to be fired on them, and then the small
arms; before he could be ready to fire again, the fort was stormed on
all quarters, and the assailants immediately secured both him and his
men, and kept them prisoners about an hour and a half, during which they
broke open the powder-house, took all the powder away, except one
barrel, and having put it in boats and sent it off, released him from
his confinement.

The hardy inhabitants of Marblehead, used to all the toils and dangers
of a sea-faring life, being out of employ, have attended to military
exercise for hours, three days in a week, and will soon constitute a
fine regiment of soldiers. The gentlemen of the place have encouraged
them by their own example, and made it profitable to them. Something
similar has been practised at Salem and other towns. The militia of the
colony will, therefore, acquire some knowledge of arms before they are
called to engage in actual service, should that unhappily be the issue
of present measures.

The Virginia militia officers, under the command of lord Dunmore,
convened at Fort Gower, on November the fifth, have shown what may be
expected from them; for though they resolved to bear the most faithful
allegiance to his majesty, they declared that the love of liberty and
attachment to the real interests and just rights of America, outweighed
every other consideration, and that they would exert every power within
them for the defence of American liberty, when regularly called forth by
the unanimous voice of their countrymen.

Barnstable, in New-England, and Ridgefield, in Connecticut, have
distinguished themselves in adopting measures different from the other
towns in their respective colonies. But the New-York representatives
have given the greatest disgust. After the assembly’s taking into
consideration the regulations agreed upon at the grand congress,
respecting commerce, they rejected the same. This however was thought to
be compensated for, by the late resolution of the Pennsylvania
convention [Jan. 23, 1775.] wherein they have declared, “That if the
petition of the continental congress should be disregarded, and the
British administration should determine by force to effect a submission
to the late arbitrary acts of the British parliament; in such a
situation, we hold it our indispensable duty to resist such force, and
at every hazard to defend the rights and liberties of America.” The
convention likewise recommended in particular the making of salt,
gun-powder, salt-petre, and steel. Among the many sons of liberty of
which they were composed, Mr. Charles Thomson was eminent for inflexible
spirit; but Mr. Thomas Mifflin was as the very soul of the capital and
province. Such are his natural and acquired accomplishments, his
unwearied exertions, his zeal, his address, his sprightliness, that he
enlightens and invigorates every thing around him.

The inhabitants of Maryland were no less zealous on the present critical
occasion, than those of the most active provinces. They were all in
motion, forming county meetings, entering into associations, choosing
committees, and recommending measures for carrying the resolutions of
the continental congress into effectual execution. The convention has
appointed a sum of money for the purchase of arms and ammunition. Every
person who refuses to contribute to the purchase, is deemed an enemy to
his country. Many of the principal gentlemen are ambitious of appearing
in arms to defend its liberties. They have taken the power of the
militia out of the hands of the governor, and established it by their
own authority, for the defence of the Massachusetts as well as of
themselves; and thus have shown to all the world, their approbation of
New-England measures. The lower counties of the Delaware have acted in
like manner.

[Jan. 27.] The New-Hampshire assembly, in answer to a letter from
Maryland, has gone further than ever before, in saying, “You may depend
upon the ready concurrence of this house, with the measures thought
necessary to be pursued by the other colonies in the great cause of
liberty.”

But the province did not trust to the complection of the assembly. A
convention of deputies was appointed by the several towns, and held at
Exeter, when the proceedings of the continental congress were
unanimously approved; and members chosen to represent them at the
ensuing one, two days before the assembly gave their answer.

Most of the New-Yorkers accommodate themselves to the measures appointed
by the general congress.

The general committee in Charleston, South-Carolina, upon receiving an
account of these measures, immediately convened a provincial congress,
and procured a return of representatives from every parish and district
in the colony, by which mean the body consisted of more than two
hundred, while the constitutional assembly amounts to no more than
forty-nine. The increase of the representatives naturally served the
cause of the country, by engaging a greater number of leaders in support
of it. This first provincial congress met on the eleventh of January;
they have unanimously approved the proceedings of the general congress,
and resolved to carry them into execution. Committees of inspection and
observation have also been appointed, whose business it is to see that
the public resolutions are universally obeyed, that so they may not be
broken through the selfishness of individuals. This is the prevailing
mode of guarding against such selfishness in every colony.

From the former success of non-importation agreements, and a belief that
the trade of America is indispensably necessary to Britain, it is
generally hoped and expected in the southern states, that the obnoxious
acts will be repealed. They have no idea of an appeal to the sword,
notwithstanding all the military parade that exists. A bloodless
self-denying opposition is the whole of their real intention, and all
the sacrifice that they imagine will be required. Similar sentiments
prevail among great numbers in the Massachusetts; who, while they are
preparing for war, expect that present appearances will never terminate
in it; for that Great-Britain will not fight with her best customers,
but will relax and accommodate when they find the Americans absolutely
determined to use their arms rather than submit.

Persons who discover great anxiety about the continuance of trade, are
considered as selfish, preferring private interest to the good of the
country; and under this thought, the intemperate zeal of the populace in
some places, transports them beyond the limits of moderation, to apply
singular punishments to individuals who counteract the general sense of
the community.

There is however to appearance an amazing agreement through the
continent; and it may be imagined, that the inhabitants of the twelve
colonies have but one heart, and but one understanding. Assemblies,
conventions, congresses, towns, cities, private clubs and circles, are
seemingly animated by one great, wise, active, and noble spirit—one
masterly soul, enlivening one vigorous body. All their acts tend to the
same point, the supporting of the measures of the continental congress.
But be assured there are great numbers in every colony, who disapprove
of these measures—a few comparatively, from principle and a persuasion
that the same are wrong, and that they ought to submit to the mother
country—some through attachment to the late governmental authority
exercised among them—many from self-interest—but the bulk for fear of
the mischievous consequences likely to follow. The professing friends of
liberty have acted in a spirited manner, while the others have lain
still. Such as have discovered a disposition to oppose popular measures,
have not been supported, and therefore have declined making further
efforts, and absented themselves from town and other meetings. The
popular cry being against them, they have sought personal peace and
safety in remaining quiet. But could the truth be ascertained, it would
probably be discovered, that in most of the town and other meetings,
even in New-England, far more than half the parties having a right to
attend, from various causes were absent; and that there were a great
many among the absentees, who were such, because they knew that matters
would be carried at such meetings contrary to their own sentiments. Not
only so, but it may be reasonably supposed, and time may prove, that
several in assemblies, conventions, and congresses, voted against their
own opinion, to secure themselves from resentment, and to promote their
present interest.

An inclination has appeared in several of the governmental gentlemen now
in Boston, to attempt opening the court at Worcester, and to support it
by the aid of two regiments. It has been the subject of conversation.
When the proposal of marching them came to be considered in council, it
was laid aside. The governor was well pleased with the determination. He
certainly does not wish to bring on a rupture.

Now let me conclude with giving you a picture of the Massachusetts
colony, which you will be inclined to pronounce an uncommon and
astonishing curiosity. Some hundred thousand people are in a state of
nature, and yet as still and peaceable at present, as ever they were
when government was in full vigor. We have neither legislators, nor
magistrates, nor executive officers. We have no officers but military
ones; of these we have a multitude, chosen by the people, and exercising
them with more authority and spirit than ever any did who had
commissions from a governor. The inhabitants are determined never to
submit to the act destroying their charter, and are every where devoting
themselves to arms. To force upon them a form of government to which
they are absolutely averse, may not be within the omnipotence of a
British parliament. The attempt has produced a suspension of all legal
authority, and yet individuals enjoy the same security as before, even
when they differ from the public sentiment, have they the prudence to
moderate their tempers and observe a neutrality. By accommodating
themselves so far to the times, they are safe at home and abroad.

The fortitude with which the town of Boston supports its present
distresses, and the determination it discovers to endure as much as
human nature can, rather than betray the American cause, and endanger
the liberties of posterity, will secure it the encomiums of future
generations. Not a town or city in all the colonies, would have been
likely to have exhibited so glorious a spectacle, had it been called out
to a similar trial; and all the friends of American liberty through the
continent, may congratulate themselves that the storm of ministerial
vengeance has fallen first upon the capital of the Massachusetts, as in
consequence of it they have enjoyed the opportunity of providing against
the worst that may be attempted, in order to reduce them to subjection.




                               LETTER XI.


                                                _London, March 3, 1775._

A strange supineness prevailed for some time after my last was closed,
among the great body of the English nation; and the colony contests were
little regarded. Numbers flattered themselves, that as things had
formerly so often appeared at the verge of a rupture, without actually
arriving at it, some means would be found for accommodating the present
dispute. The opinion also was circulated, that a continuance of
resolution persisted in, would certainly put an end to the contest,
which (it was said) had been nourished wholly by former concessions;
people in general were therefore inclined to trust the trial of
perseverance and resolution to a ministry who valued themselves upon
these qualities. The times have been highly favorable to any purpose
which only required the concurrence of the parliament and the
acquiescence of the public. Administration has taken advantage of these
circumstances [Sept. 30, 1774.] and the late parliament has been
dissolved a twelvemonth before the expected time. This may be meant as a
preparatory step to the most coercive measures with America; but in a
new house of commons, ministry will be left at large, to choose or alter
their line of conduct as incidents may vary, and if necessary can throw
all the odium of the late laws upon the former parliament.

[Nov. 30.] His majesty in his speech informed the new one, that a most
daring spirit of disobedience to the law, still unhappily prevailed in
the Massachusetts, and had broken forth in fresh violences of a criminal
nature; that these proceedings had been encouraged in other colonies,
and unwarrantable attempts been made to obstruct the commerce of the
kingdom, by unlawful combinations; that such measures had been taken,
and such orders given, as were judged most proper for carrying the laws
into execution; and that they might depend upon a firm resolution to
withstand every attempt to weaken the supreme authority of the
legislature over all the dominions of the crown, his majesty being
assured of receiving their support while acting upon these principles.

The proposed address in the house of commons, produced a considerable
debate; and the minister was reminded of the mighty effects he had
predicted from the late acts against America—They were to humble that
whole continent in the dust, without further trouble, and the punishment
of Boston was to strike an universal panic on all the colonies; that
refractory town would be totally abandoned, and instead of obtaining
relief, a dread of the same fate would even prevent the appearances of
pity. But the address was carried, without any amendment, by a majority
of more than three to one.

That from the house of lords was couched in strong terms, and was warmly
debated. It was rendered memorable by a protest, thought to be the first
upon an address, and which was very pointed; it concluded with the
following remarkable declaration: “But whatever may be the mischievous
designs, or the inconsiderate temerity which leads others to this
desperate course, we wish to be known as persons who have disapproved of
measures so injurious in their past effects and their future tendency,
and who are not in haste, without enquiry or information, to commit
ourselves in declarations which may precipitate our country into all the
calamities of a civil war.”[113] The address was carried by a majority
of 63 to 13.

Notwithstanding the hostile tone of the speech, and the great majority
that supported the addresses, there appeared an irresolution on the side
of ministry; and previous to the Christmas recess they seemed evidently
to shrink from all contest upon American subjects. The national
estimates were entirely formed upon a peace establishment; and the
minister of the naval department publicly asserted in the house of
lords, that he knew it would be fully sufficient for reducing the
colonies to obedience. He spoke with the greatest contempt both of the
power and courage of the Americans; and held that they were not
disciplined, nor capable of discipline, and that formed of such
materials, and so indisposed to action, the numbers, of which such
boasts had been made, would only add to the facility of their defeat.

The establishment will indeed be fully sufficient, if the ministry mean
to employ the navy only, and to recal the military. Ships may effect
that with little hazard and expence, which if once attempted by
soldiers, may plunge the nation into enormous disbursements, and yet not
be accomplished. A few ships of the line stationed singly near the
capital ports of the colonies, and a number of frigates employed as
cruisers to stop the Americans from sending any vessels to sea; and this
measure continued, would at length weary out the inhabitants of the
towns and cities upon the sea-coast of the continent, and induce one or
other of them to submit; and if but one link of the chain give way, the
whole would soon come to the ground; and were the sea-ports once brought
to adjust the present dispute with administration, the towns in the back
country might be gradually inclined to the same, whatever may be their
present apprehensions. The proper application of the navy to the
American contest, would also exclude all foreign interference.

The congressional proceedings were received before the Christmas recess,
and ministry were disposed to retract their violent measures and to
redress American grievances. To this end, application was made, under
the auspices of the minister, to the body of the American merchants,
desiring them to frame petitions for the redress of American grievances
and the restoration of American rights, and promising compliance with
them, as it was most agreeable to the ministry to repeal the obnoxious
acts, seemingly in consequence of petitions at home. While this was in
agitation, letters were received from New-York, assuring that the
assembly would reject the proceedings of the general congress, and that
there would be a separation of that colony from the rest. Fresh hopes
were conceived from the prospect of a division, upon which ministry
reverted to measures more adapted to their own inclination.[114]

But during the recess, persons began to consider the consequences which
might follow the congressional proceedings, and a general alarm was
spread. This produced several meetings of the North-American merchants
in London and Bristol; and petitions to parliament were prepared and
agreed upon in both places. But the times were so altered from what they
were formerly, that no mercantile opposition could prove efficacious by
endangering the continuance of the ministry.

On the first day of the meeting after the recess, the nobleman at the
head of the American affairs, laid the papers belonging to his
department before the lords, on which lord Chatham rose, and expressed
his utmost dissent and disapprobation of the whole system of American
measures.

Being in possession at present of your friend Mr. Quincy’s journal,
wherein he gives a particular account of his lordship’s speech, of the
copies of several letters sent by himself to America, and of other
matters, permit me to transcribe from the same, and give you the
thoughts and expressions of Mr. Quincy, with the dates.

[Nov. 11, 1774.] Viewed Plymouth docks. My ideas of the riches and
powers of this great nation are increased to a degree I should not have
believed if it had been predicted to me. I am not in any measure
reconciled to the British plan of taxing America, but I should with
cheerfulness accede to a contribution from the colonies (they being the
sole judges of the time and quantity of their grants) toward the charges
of the British government.

[Nov. 18.] This morning J. Williams, esq. informed me, that governor
Hutchinson had repeatedly assured the ministry, that a union of the
colonies was utterly impracticable; that the people were greatly divided
among themselves in every colony; and that there could be no doubt but
that all America would submit; that they must, and would soon. Several
of the nobility and ministry assured Dr. Franklin of the same facts.

[Nov. 19.] Lord N—— repeatedly said to me, “We must try what we can do
to support the authority we have claimed over America; if we are
defective in power, we must sit down contented, and make the best terms
we can; and nobody then can blame us after we have done our utmost; but
till we have tried what we can do, we can never be justified in
receding; and we ought to, and shall be very careful not to judge a
thing impossible because it may be difficult; nay, we ought to try what
we can effect, before we can determine upon its impracticability.”

[Nov. 24.] To ——. “The following language hath been reiterated to me in
various companies,”—“We are afraid of nothing but your division and your
want of perseverance. Unite and persevere—you must prevail—you must
triumph.”

“From parliament expect no favor but what proceeds from fear. Depend not
upon commercial plans for your safety.—Dr. Franklin is an American in
heart and soul. His ideas are not contracted within the narrow limits of
exemption from taxes, but are extended upon the broad scale of total
emancipation.—He is explicit and bold upon the subject.”

[Nov. 26.] Governor P—— assured me, that all the measures agains America
were planned and pushed on by Bernard and Hutchinson. They were
incessant in their applications to administration, and gave the most
positive assurances of success.

[Dec. 6.] Mr. commissioner M—— waited on me. In the course of
conversation he said, “You can have no idea of the taxes of this
kingdom, and the distress of our poor. They are extreme poor and
wretched indeed—every thing here is taxed to the utmost. The colonies
must relieve us; they must ease us of our taxes, &c.” He also affirmed
to me, that governors Bernard and Hutchinson were principally attended
to in the late measures against the colonies. But he added, that
government had found many things had turned out different from
Hutchinson’s representation, and had not been at all conformable to what
he foretold.

To ——. “My whole time is employed in endeavoring to serve my country. I
find every body eager to hear, most people willing to be set right, and
almost all grossly ignorant of the American world. It is agreed on all
hands, that your courage—your courage, I repeat it—will be brought to
the test.—Should it prove answerable to your ostentations, and worthy of
your ancestors, your friends will amazingly increase—your hearty friends
will be in raptures. Prepare—prepare I say, for the worst.

“Many of your friends here, in both houses, will not take a decisive
part till they see how you act in America. For should they take a
determined part now in favor of that country, and in a short time
America give back, their hopes of rise into power and office (which are
the hopes of all British statesmen) would be for ever at an end.
Therefore, till the colonists discover that union and spirit, which all
parties here agree must force success, you are not to expect any great
exertions in your favor. But when once there is a conviction that the
Americans are in earnest, that they are resolved to endure all hazards
with a spirit worthy the prize (and not till then) will you have many
firm, active, persevering, and powerful friends. For, strange as it may
seem, there is a great doubt here, among many, whether you are really in
earnest, in the full force and extent of those words.”

[Dec 12.] Lord —— appeared a very warm friend to the Americans; and
said, “If they continue united, they must have all they ask.” He
particularly mentioned, that lord M—— last sessions, assured the house
of lords, that the plan they had laid would go down in America, _sine
clade_; and also that he had the best intelligence what might be carried
through there. His lordship had no doubt that such assurances was
grounded on Hutchinson’s information.

[Dec. 14.] To E——. “Your countrymen must seal their cause with their
blood. They must preserve a consistency of character. THEY MUST NOT
DELAY. They must——or be trodden down into the vilest vassalage—the
scorn—the spurn of their enemies—a by-word of infamy among all men.”

[Dec. 16.] To E——. “Permit me to congratulate my countrymen on the
integrity and wisdom with which the congress have conducted. Their
policy, spirit, and union, have confounded their foes and inspired their
friends. All parties agree in giving them a tribute of honor and
applause. My lord N—— endeavored to explain away his expression—“I will
have America at my feet.” Beware of the arts of negociation.”

“By the way, there is no doubt but the ministry sent large sums to
New-York, in order to bribe your continental delegates. It was openly
avowed and vindicated; and great boast was made of ministerial success
in this way, with the delegates from New-York. It was said, that they
had effected a dis-union which would be fatal to the cause of America.
You can’t well imagine the chagrin with which the ministry received the
result of that glorious body. They are viewed as the _northern
constellation_ of glorious worthies, illuminating and warming the new
world.”

To Joseph Reed, esq. (of Philadelphia.)

[Dec. 17.] “Sure I am that the ministry have no where such sanguine
hopes of a defection as from that quarter (New-York.) Their influence is
no where so forcibly extended; it is certain they will be astonishingly
disappointed if they do not find a sensibility to their touch. Lord C——
said in the house of lords, the other day, “Were I an American, I would
resist to the last drop of my blood.” Your parliamentary friends say,
snatch the opportunity for peace and reconciliation. Your sanguine and
warm partizans say, “You are united and inspired now, circumstances that
may never happen again. Seize the happy and glorious opportunity for
establishing the freedom and social felicity of all America. There is a
tide in the affairs of men.”

[Jan. 2, 1775.] While (at Bath) viewing the most magnificently elegant
new rooms, in company with colonel Barre, he said, pointing to the
pictures taken from the ruins found at Herculaneum, “I hope you have not
the books containing the draughts of those ruins with you.” I replied,
“There was one set I believed in the public library at our college.”
“Keep them there (said he) and they may be of some service as a matter
of curiosity for the speculative, but let them get abroad and you are
ruined. They will infuse a taste for buildings and sculpture; and when a
people get a taste for the fine arts, they are ruined. ’Tis taste that
ruins whole kingdoms. ’Tis tase that depopulates whole nations. I could
not help weeping when I surveyed the ruins at Rome. All the remains of
the Roman grandeur are of works which were finished, when Rome and the
spirit of Romans were no more, unless I except the ruins of the Emilian
baths. Mr. Quincy, let your countrymen beware of taste in their
buildings, equipage and dress, as a deadly poison.”

Colonel Barre also added, in the course of conversation—“About fourteen
or fifteen years ago, I was through a considerable part of your country;
for, in the expedition against Canada, my business called me to pass by
land through Pennsylvania, New-Jersey, York and Albany; and when I
returned again to this country, I was often speaking of America, and
could not help speaking well of its climate, soil and inhabitants; for
you must know, sir, America was always a favorite with me. But will you
believe it, sir, yet I assure you it is true, more than two-thirds of
this island at that time, thought the Americans were all negroes.” I
replied, “I did not in the least doubt it; for if I was to judge by the
late acts of parliament, I should suppose that a majority of the people
of Great-Britain still thought so, for I found that their
representatives still treated them as such.” He smiled, and the
discourse dropped. The colonel was among those who voted for the Boston
port-bill.

[Dec. 20.] Attended the debates of the house of lords.—Good fortune gave
me one of the best places for taking a few minutes.

Lord Chatham rose like Marcellus. “Viros superiment omnes.” He seemed to
feel himself superior to those around him. His language, voice and
gesture, were more pathetic than I ever saw or heard before at the bar
or senate. He seemed like an old Roman senator, rising with the dignity
of age, yet speaking with the fire of youth.

The illustrious sage stretched fourth his hand with the decent solemnity
of a Paul, and rising with his subject, he smote his breast with the
energy and grace of a Demosthenes. He opened with some general
observations on the importance and magnitude of the American quarrel (as
he called it.) He enlarged upon the dangerous and ruinous events that
were coming upon the nation in consequence of the present dispute, and
the measures already begun and now carrying on by his majesty’s
ministers. He arraigned their conduct with great severity and freedom.
He then proceeded:

“My lords, these papers from America, now laid for the first time before
your lordships, have been, to my knowledge, five or six weeks in the
pocket of the minister. And notwithstanding the fate of this kingdom
hangs upon the event of this great controversy, we are but this moment
called to a consideration of this important subject. My lords, I do not
want to look into one of those papers; I know their contents well enough
already. I know that there is not a member in this house but is
acquainted with their purport also. There ought therefore to be no delay
in entering upon this matter; we ought to proceed to it immediately. We
ought to seize the first moment to open the door of reconciliation. The
Americans will never be in a temper or state to be reconciled (they
ought not to be) till the troops are withdrawn. The troops are a
perpetual irritation to these people: they are a bar to all confidence,
and all cordial reconcilement. I therefore, my lords, move—That an
humble address be presented to his majesty, most humbly to advise and
beseech his majesty, that, in order to open the way towards an happy
settlement of the dangerous troubles in America, by beginning to allay
ferments, and soften animosities there; and above all, for preventing,
in the mean time, any sudden and fatal catastrophe at Boston, now
suffering under the daily irritation of an army, before their eyes,
posted in their town, it may graciously please his majesty, that
immediate orders may be dispatched to general Gage, for removing his
majesty’s forces from the town of Boston, as soon as the rigor of the
season, and other circumstances indispensible to the safety and
accommodation of the said troops, may render the same practicable.”

“The way, my lords, must be immediately opened for reconciliation. It
will soon be too late. I know not who advised the present measures. I
know not who advises to a perseverance and enforcement of them; but this
I will say, that whoever advises them ought to answer for it, at his
utmost peril.—I know that no one will avow, that he advised, or that he
was the author of these measures: every one shrinks from the charge. But
somebody has advised his majesty to these measures, and if his majesty
continues to hear such evil counsellors, his majesty will be undone. His
majesty indeed my wear his crown; but the American jewel out of it, it
will not be worth the wearing.”

“What more shall I say? I must not say, that the king is betrayed; but
this I will say, the NATION is ruined. What foundation have we for our
claims over America? What is our right to persist in such cruel and
vindictive measures against that loyal and respectable people? They say
you have no right so tax them without their consent. They say truly.
Representation and taxation must go together: they are inseparable. Yet
there is hardly a man in our streets, though so poor as scarce to be
able to get his daily bread, but thinks he is the legislator of America.
_Our_ American subjects is a common phrase in the mouth of the lowest
orders of our citizens; but property, my lords, is the sole and entire
dominion of the owner: it excludes all the world besides the owner. None
can intermeddle with it. It is a unity; a mathematical point. It it at
atom; untangible by any but the proprietor. Touch it—and the owner loses
his whole property. The touch contaminates the whole mass; the whole
property vanishes. The touch of another annihilates it; for whatever is
a man’s own, is absolutely and exclusively his own.”

“In the last parliament all was anger—all was rage. Administration did
not consider what was practicable, but what was revenge. _Sine clade
victoria_ was the language of the ministry last sessions, but every body
knew, an idiot might know, that such would not be the issue. But the
ruin of the nation was a matter of no concern, if administration might
be revenged. Americans were abused, misrepresented, and traduced in the
most atrocious manner, in order to give a colour, and urge on the most
precipitate, unjust, cruel, and vindictive measures that ever disgraced
a nation.”

           Gnossius hæc Rhadamanthus habet _durissima_ regna,
               _Custig at_ que, AUDIT que dolos.

“My lords, the very infernal spirits, they _chastise_, _castigatque_:
sed _auditque_, my lords. The very spirits of the infernal regions HEAR
_before_ they _punish_. But how have these respectable people behaved
under all their grievances? With unexampled patience, with unparalleled
wisdom. They chose delegates by their free suffrages: no _bribery_, no
_corruption_, no INFLUENCE here, my lords. Their representatives meet
with the sentiments and temper, and speak the sense of the continent.
For genuine sagacity, for singular moderation, for solid wisdom, manly
spirit, sublime sentiments and simplicity of language, for every thing
respectable and honorable, the congress of Philadelphia shine
unrivalled. This wise people speak out. They do not hold the language of
slaves; they tell you what they mean.—They do not ask you to repeal your
laws as a favor; they claim it as a right; they demand it. They tell
you, they will not submit to them; and I tell you the acts must be
repealed; they will be repealed; you cannot enforce them. The ministry
are checker-mated. They have a move to make on the board; and yet not a
move but they are ruined.

Repeal, therefore, my lords, I say. But bare repeal will not satisfy
this enlightened and spirited people. What! repeal a bit of paper:
repeal a piece of parchment! That alone won’t do, my lords. You must go
through. You must declare you have no right to tax; then they may trust
you; then they will have confidence in you. I have heard a noble lord
speak, who seemed to lay some blame upon general Gage. I think that
honorable gentleman has behaved with great prudence and becoming
caution. He has entrenched himself and strengthened his fortifications.
I don’t know what he could do more. His situation puts me in mind of a
similar transaction in the civil wars of France, when the great Condee
on one side, and Marshall Turenne on the other, with large armies lay
many weeks very near each other. Turenne, conscious of the terrible
consequences of a victory to himself and country, though the armies were
several days in sight of each other, never came to a battle. On his
return to the court of France, the queen asked him, “Why, Marshall, I
think you lay several days in sight of your enemy, and you might have
been up with him at any time; pray why did you not take him?” The
general very shrewdly replied, “Should I have taken him, please your
majesty, I was afraid all Paris would have taken me.”——My lords, there
are three millions of whigs. Three millions of whigs, my lords, with
arms in their hands, are a very formidable body. ’Twas the whigs, my
lords, that set his majesty’s royal ancestors upon the throne of
England. I hope, my lords, there are yet double the number of whigs in
England that there are in America. I hope the whigs of both countries
will join and make a common cause. Ireland is with the Americans to a
man. The whigs of that country will, and those of this country ought, to
think the American cause their own. They are allied to each other in
sentiment and interest, united in one great principle of defence and
resistance; they ought therefore, and will run to embrace and support
their brethren. The cause of ship-money was the cause of all the whigs
of England. _You shall not take my money without my consent_, is the
doctrine and language of whigs. It is the doctrine and voice of whigs in
America, and whigs here. It is the doctrine in support of which I do not
know how many names I could—I may call in this house; among the living I
cannot say how many I could, to join with me and maintain these
doctrines with their blood; but among the dead I could raise an host
innumerable. And, my lords, at this day, there are very many sound,
substantial, honest whigs, who ought, and who will consider the American
controversy as a great common cause.”

“My lords, consistent with the preceding doctrines, and with what I have
ever and shall continue to maintain, I say, I shall oppose America
whenever I see her aiming at throwing off the navigation act, and other
regulatory acts of trade, made _bona fide_ for that purpose, and wisely
framed and calculated for reciprocation of interest, and the general
extended welfare and security of the whole empire. It is suggested such
is their design. I see no evidence of it. But to come at a certain
knowledge of their sentiments and designs on this head, it would be
proper first to do them justice. Treat them as subjects before you treat
them as aliens, rebels, and traitors.”

“My lords, deeply impressed with the importance of taking some healing
measurs at this most alarming distracted state of our affairs, though
bowed down with a cruel disease, I have crawled to this house, to give
you my best experience and counsel; and my advice is to beseech his
majesty, &c. &c. This is the best I can think of. It will convince
America that you mean to try her cause in the spirit and by the laws of
freedom and fair enquiry, and not by codes of blood. How can she now
trust you, with the bayonet at her breast? She has all the reason in the
world now to believe you mean her death or bondage.”

“Thus entered on the threshhold of this business, I will knock at your
gates for justice without ceasing, unless inveterate infirmities stay my
hand. My lords, I pledge myself never to leave this business: I will
pursue it to the end in every shape. I will never fail of my attendance
on it, at every step and period of this great matter, unless nailed down
to my bed by the severity of disease. My lords, there is no time to be
lost; every moment is big with dangers. Nay, while I am now speaking,
the decisive blow may be struck, and millions involved in the
consequence. The very first drop of blood will make a wound that will
not easily be skinned over. Years, perhaps ages may not heal it. It will
be _irritabile vulnus_, a wound of that rancorous, malignant, corroding,
festering nature, that in all probability it will mortify the whole
body. Let us then, my lords, set to this business in earnest, not take
it up by bits and scraps as formerly, just as exigencies pressed,
without any regard to the general relations, connections and
dependencies. I would not by any thing I have said, my lords, be thought
to encourage America to proceed beyond the right line. I reprobate all
acts of violence by her mobility, but when her inherent constitutional
rights are invaded, those rights that she has an equitable claim to the
full enjoyment of by the fundamental laws of the English constitution,
and ingrafted thereon by the fundamental laws of nature, then I own
myself an _American_, and feeling myself such, shall to the verge of my
life, vindicate those rights against all men who strive to trample upon
or oppose them.”

From the effects of this speech on the great audience without the bar,
and from my own emotions and feelings, the miracles of ancient
eloquence—_the blaze of genius and the burst of thought_—with which
Grecian and Roman orators have been said to work wonders in the senate
and the field, no longer appeared fabulous.

Lord Camden spoke next on the side of America, and in support of the
motion. He equalled lord Chatham in every thing but that fire and pathos
which are the _forte_ of his lordship. In learning, perspicuity, and
pure eloquence, probably no one ever surpassed lord Camden.

His lordship opened briefly upon the nature of property, the right of
taxation, and its inseparability from representation. “My lords (he
said) I will not enter into the large field of collateral reasoning
applicable to the abstruse distinctions touching the omnipotence of
parliament. The declaratory law sealed my mouth. But this I will say,
not only as a statesman, politician and philosopher, but as a COMMON
LAWYER, my lords, you have no right to tax America. I have searched the
matter. I repeat it, my lords, you have no right to tax America. The
natural rights of man, and the immutable laws of nature, are all with
that people. Much stress is laid on the supreme legislative authority of
Great-Britain, and so far as the doctrine is directed to its proper
object, I accede to it. But it is equally true, according to all
approved writers on government, that no man, agreeable to the principles
of natural or civil liberty, can be divested of any part of his property
without his consent. Every thing has been staked on this single
position, that acts of parliament must be obeyed; but this general,
unconditional, unlimited assertion, I am far from thinking applicable to
every possible case that may arise in the turn of times. For my part, I
imagine that a power resulting from a trust arbitrarily exercised, may
be lawfully resisted; whether the power is lodged in a collective body,
or single person, in the few or the many. However modified makes no
difference. Whenever the trust is wrested to the injury of the people,
whenever oppression begins, all is unlawful and unjust; and resistance
of course becomes lawful and right. But some lords tell us seriously,
that administration must reduce the Americans to obedience and
submission; that is, you must make them absolute and infamous slaves,
and _then_——what? We will, say they, give them full liberty. Ah! is this
the nature of man? No my lords, I would not trust myself, _American_ as
I am, in this situation. I do not think I should, in that case, be
myself for giving of them liberty. No, if they submitted to such unjust,
such cruel, such degrading slavery, I should think they were made for
slaves; that servility was suited to their nature and genius. I should
think they would best serve this country as their slaves; that their
servility would be for the benefit of Great-Britain; and I should be for
keeping such _Cappadocians_ in a state of servitude, such as was suited
to their constitution, and might redound much to our advantage.”

“My lords, some noble lords talk very much of resistance to acts of
parliament. King, lords, and commons, are fine sounding names. But, my
lords, acts of parliament have been resisted in all ages. King, lords,
and commons, may become tyrants as well as others. Tyranny in one or
more is the same. It is as lawful to resist the tyranny of many as of
one. Somebody once asked the great Mr. _Seldon_ in what law-book, in
what records or archives of the state, you might find the law for
resisting tyranny. “I don’t know (said Mr. Seldon) whether it is worth
your while to look deeply into the books upon this matter; but I’ll tell
you what is most certain, that it has always been the custom of
England—and the custom of England is the law of the land.”

“There is a gentleman, whom I need not name, his works are well received
and well known, who avoids stating any rule when resistance is lawful;
and he lays down the revolution as the only precedent. He says, that the
various circumstances, events, and incident that may justify, cannot be
defined; but the people at large will judge of their welfare and
happiness, and act accordingly. The same writer says, that whenever a
case exactly similar in all its parts and circumstances to the
revolution, when a case shall run upon _all fours_ with that, then the
law seems to be settled that resistance is lawful. I do not pretend to
quote his words. I think his meaning is very much as I have stated it.
But undoubtedly in cases in many respects dissimilar, but in equal
degree tyrannical and oppressive, resistance may be lawful, and the
people in all ages, countries, and climes, have at times known these
things, and they have, and will for ever act accordingly.”

Lord Shelburne, in the course of his argument, said, “My lords, we know,
we all know, that justice and injustice, right and wrong, are not at all
considered in the course of our parliamentary proceedings. We all know
that nothing is debated in parliament for information or conviction, but
for mere form. Every thing is considered in the cabinet, and brought
into parliament, not for consideration, but for the sanction of the
legislature, and the screening the counsellors of the king. The measures
of parliament are the measures of the minister; and the measures of this
minister are very often those of his commissioner.” The marquis of
Rockingham also supported the motion.

Lords Littleton, Suffolk, Gower, Townsend, Rochford, and Weymouth, spoke
in opposition. I omit relating what their lordships said, lest I should
be suspected by any who may see this journal, of an unfair report of
their speeches. But a very remarkable saying of lord G—— I cannot omit.
His lordship said, “I am for enforcing these measures (and with great
sneer and contempt) let the Americans sit talking about their natural
and divine rights, their rights as men and citizens, their rights from
God and nature.”

The house, at about ten, divided after the preceding debates on the
question.—Contents 18—Non-contents 77, including proxies.

Thus far from Mr. Quincy’s papers.

The language of the lords in administration, was high and decisive. And
it was declared, that the mother country should never relax till America
confessed her supremacy; and it was acknowledged to be the ministerial
resolution, to enforce obedience by arms.

The principal trading and manufacturing towns in the kingdom, having
waited to regulate their conduct as to American affairs, by that of the
merchants of London and Bristol, followed the example of these two great
commercial bodies, and prepared petitions upon that subject to be
presented to parliament.

[Jan. 23.] The petition from the merchants of London was of course the
first delivered, and it was moved to be referred to the committee
appointed to take into consideration the American papers; but it was
moved by way of amendment on the ministerial side, that it should be
referred to a separate committee to meet on the 27th, the day succeeding
that appointed for the consideration of American papers. This was
objected to as a shameful pitiful evasion; but upon the question’s being
put, the amendment was carried, 197 against 81, who supported the
original motion.

A similar fate attended the petitions from Bristol, Glasgow, Norwich,
Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, and some other
places; all of which, in turn, were consigned to what the opposition
termed the committee of oblivion.

[Jan. 26.] On the day appointed for the consideration of American affair
a second and very strong petition was presented from the merchants of
London. On which it was moved, that the order for referring the
merchants petition to a separate committee should be discharged, and
that it should be referred to a committee of the whole house, appointed
to consider the American affairs. The indignity and mockery offered to
so great a body as the merchants of London by the late resolution, which
with an insidious affectation of civility, received the petition with
one hand, and threw it out of the window with the other, was painted in
strong colours. All the debates, on the subject of the petitions, were
attended with an unusual degree of asperity, and even acrimony on the
side of opposition. The conduct also of the late parliament was
scrutinized without mercy, and its memory treated with more than want of
respect. A gentleman, remarkable for a sarcastic poignancy in his
observations, in sketching a short history of that parliament, said,
that they began their political life with a violation of the sacred
right of election in the case of Middlesex; that they had died in the
act of popery, when they established the Roman Cotholic religion in
Canada; and that they had left a rebellion in America as a legacy. The
question was rejected upon a division by a very great majority.

Though it was then late, a petition was offered from Mr. Bollan, Dr.
Franklin, and Mr. Lee, stating that they were authorised by the American
continental congress, to present a petition from the congress to the
king, which petition his majesty had referred to that house, and that
they were enabled to throw great light upon the subject: they prayed to
be heard at the bar in support of the said petition. A violent debate
ensued. The ministry alledged, that the congress was no legal body, and
none could be heard in reference to its proceedings, without giving that
illegal body some degree of countenance. It was answered, that the
congress, however illegal as to other purposes, was sufficiently legal
for presenting a petition. It was signed by the names of all the persons
who composed it, and might be received as from individuals. It was said,
That it was their business rather to find every plausible reason for
receiving petitions, than to invent pretences for rejecting them; that
the rejection of petitions was one principal, if not the most powerful
cause of the present troubles: and that this mode of constantly
rejecting their petitions, and refusing to hear their agents, would
infallibly end in universal rebellion, and not unnaturally, as those
seem to give up the rights of government, who refuse to hear the
complaints of the subject. The ministry insulted the petition as
containing nothing but pretended grievances, while they refused to hear
and discuss it. It was rejected by 218 to 68. This rejection must have
been foreseen by all who knew, that on the fourth of the month, Lord
Dartmouth, by the king’s orders, had written a circular letter to the
governors of his majesty’s colonies, requiring them to use their utmost
endeavors to prevent the holding of any more congresses; and that the
American grievances were in the letter termed _pretended_. This letter
was written a few days after the petition had met with an apparent
gracious reception, and had been promised a due consideration; but
probably not before favorable advices had been received respecting the
New-York assembly.

It was evident, that both houses of parliament were ready to adopt any
measures which administration should propose; and it was confidently
believed and asserted, that when the merchants and manufacturers were
deprived of all hopes of preventing the operation of force, it would
then become their interest to give all possible effect to it. They would
thus become by degrees, a principal support of that cause which they now
so eagerly opposed.

The opinion of the efficacy of a forcible mode of proceeding in America,
and the hopes of compelling a great body at home to concurrence, have
made the ministers more and more resolved to go through, and complete
the plan with which they have begun. It may however be much doubted,
whether they suspect that the American contest will end in blood. Some
of them in all probability have such a firm reliance upon Mr.
Hutchinson’s judgment, as to flatter themselves that the colonists will
give way to those appearances of coercion, which they have adopted, and
mean further to adopt; and so have engaged in the present hazardous
politics, in hopes of enjoying a bloodless conquest, and therein a
complete triumph over all opposition.

[Feb. 8.] Lord Chatham persevered in the prosecution of his conciliatory
scheme with America, and accordingly brought into the house of lords the
outlines of a bill, which he hoped would answer that salutary purpose,
under the title of “A provincial act for settling the troubles in
America, and for asserting the supreme legislative authority, and
superintending power of Great-Britain over the colonies.”

This bill caused a variety of discussion within and without doors. The
ministry observed, that it was a proposition of reconciliation by
concession, which was cause sufficient to induce them to reject it;
their plan being, at present, to show a firm resolution not to give way
in any instance, while the opposition in America continued. It was usual
in parliament to reject, on the first proposition, any bill for any
object allowed to be necessary; and promising, however faintly or
rudely, any plan for obtaining the end proposed. But the proceeding on
this occasion was different. They condemned without reserve the bill in
the whole, and in all its parts; and it was moved, and strongly
supported by all the lords on the side of administration, that the bill
be rejected in the first instance. The noble framer defended himself and
his bill from the numerous attacks which were made on both, with great
spirit and vigor. The indignity offered him, seemed to renew all the
fire of youth; and he retorted the sarchasms, which were levelled at him
from different quarters, with a most pointed severity. The nature of the
subjects debated, and the state of temper on both sides, produced much
warmth, severe altercation, and even personal animadversion. The bill
was rejected by a majority of 61 to 32, not being allowed to lie upon
the table. The rejection of it may be of no disservice to the colonists.
It contained in it, a proposal to require of congress the making of a
free grant to the king, of a certain perpetual revenue, subject to the
disposition of the British parliament; and congress was to adjust the
proportions of the several charges to be borne by each province toward
the general contributory supply. Had it passed into an act, the
colonists might not have united in the proposal, but dangerous divisions
have followed, so that you may have no occasion to regret its fate,
especially as that will strengthen your union, and increase your
friends.

A petition was presented to the commons, from the planters of the sugar
colonies residing in Great-Britain, and the merchants of London trading
to those colonies, setting forth the distress to which the West-India
islands will be reduced, unless the former harmony between this kingdom
and the American colonies is restored. Like all the former upon the
subject, it was referred to the established petition committee. The day
it was presented, the minister opened his designs in respect to America.
Having prepared the way by a speech, he moved for an address to the
king, and for a conference with the lords, that it might be the joint
address of both houses. The address returns thanks for the communication
of the American papers; and declares, that they find from them, that a
_rebellion_ actually exists within the province of the Massachusetts
Bay; that the parties concerned in it have been countenanced and
encouraged by unlawful combinations and engagements entered into, in
several of the other colonies; that they never can relinquish any part
of the sovereign authority over all the dominions, which by law is
vested in his majesty and the two houses of parliament; but they ever
have been, and always shall be ready to pay attention and regard to any
real grievances of any of his majesty’s subjects, which shall in a
dutiful and constitutional manner be laid before them; but at the same
time they beseech his majesty to take the most effectual measures to
enforce due obedience to the authority of the supreme legislature; and
in the most solemn manner assure him, that at the hazard of their lives
and properties, they will stand by him against all rebellious attempts,
in the maintenance of the just rights of his majesty and the two houses
of parliament.

Lord North then gave a sketch of the measures he intended to pursue,
which were to send a greater force to America, and to bring in a
temporary act to put a stop to all the foreign trade of the different
colonies of New-England, particularly their fishery on the banks of
Newfoundland, till they returned to their duty.

The address was so loaded with consequences, the extent of which could
not be defined, that it called up all the powers of opposition; and even
some few of the most moderate in the house seemed to feel a kind of
horror, at entering upon a measure so dangerous in the tendency, and
inexplicable in the event.

A gentleman, of the first eminence in the law, followed the minister
through the whole detail of his speech, and answered the different
positions. He insisted, that having examined with legal precision the
definitions of treason, the Americans were not in rebellion, and said,
“Whatever the disorders may be, they are created by the conduct of
those, whose views are to establish despotism, and which are manifestly
directed to reduce America to the most abject state of servility, as a
prelude to the realizing the same wicked system in the mother country.”
He concluded by maintaining, that an opposition to arbitrary measures is
warranted by the constitution, and established by precedent.

The other gentlemen of the minority entered but little into the
juridical part of the debate; but maintained, that it would be imprudent
for the parliament at this time to _declare_ the disturbances
rebellious. They said, “It is well known no act of violence has been
committed in the Massachusetts Bay, which has not been equalled by
something similar in every other province, and sometimes even exceeded
by acts of a more heinous nature; that therefore the only effect of this
violent, but partial declaration of rebellion, will be to delude
ourselves into preparations of hostility, as if against one province
only, when in truth we have to contend with twelve.”

On the other side, the crown lawyers and ministerial debaters
maintained, that such Americans as come within certain descriptions, and
have been guilty of certain acts, and still persevere in the support and
commission of such acts, are in a state of actual rebellion; that the
punishment of a few of the worst sort of traitors, such as Hancock and
his crew, may be sufficient to teach the rest their duty in future; and
that the boasted union of the colonies will dissolve the moment
parliament shows itself resolved on vigorous and severe measures. Some
gentlemen of rank in the army, treated all idea of resistance by the
Americans with the utmost contempt. They said, “They are neither
soldiers, nor ever can be made so, being naturally of a pusillanimous
disposition, and utterly incapable of any sort of order or discipline;
and by their laziness, uncleanliness, and radical defect of
constitution, they are disabled from going through the service of a
campaign, but will melt away with sickness before they can face an
enemy; so that a slight force will be more than sufficient for their
complete reduction.” Many ludicrous stories to that purport were told,
greatly to the entertainment of the house. A motion however was made for
an amendment, which, upon a division, was rejected by a large majority,
304 against 105. The question being then put for the address, was
carried by nearly The same majority.

But the minority had not done with the business. [Feb. 5.] Upon
receiving the report from the committee a few days after, a noble lord
made a motion to re-commit the address, and supported it with many
arguments. He stated our domestic situation, and inferred the
impropriety and danger of a declaration from that house, of the
existence of a rebellion in any part of our dominions; and showed the
desperate measures into which it might precipitate the Americans, and
the advantage that might be taken of such an occasion by our powerful
and watchful neighbors, whose ancient enmity and jealousy were much
increased by the glory we had acquired, and the disgrace and loss they
had suffered in the last war. He said, “My head and my heart join in
deprecating the horrors of a civil war, which will be rendered still
more dreadful, by its involving in it certain consequences, a foreign
one with the combined forces of great and powerful nations.”

This motion introduced the longest and most interesting debate that had
taken place in the new parliament. It was acknowledged on all hands,
that the present crisis was the most perilous and intricate in which the
nation had been involved since the revolution. It was contended by those
who opposed the motion, that the Americans were not to be won by
kindness, or retained by benefits; and that the tenderness, which had
been constantly practised by government, had produced the present fatal
consequences. The danger from foreign powers supporting the Americans,
was said to be imaginary: and it was still contended by several that an
appearance of vigorous measures, with some reinforcement of the troops
at Boston, would prove sufficient to quell the disturbances in America,
without the drawing of blood.

On the other side, the address was stigmatized as cruel, sanguinary, and
unjust. It was urged, “The Americans have given the strongest and most
unequivocal demonstrations of their filial piety toward the mother
country. They have fought and bled by our side. In the present state of
distraction, they require no more for the restoration of harmony, than
to be placed in the same situation they were in at the close of the last
war. They have been nursed up, for a long series of years, in ideas of
certain rights, of which, the electing of their own representatives, and
the disposal of their own money for the public service only through
them, are among the principal. If this is an error, the crown and
parliament are equally faulty with the Americans, having in their whole
conduct constantly nourished the delusion. At the time of the repeal of
the stamp-act, two of the first names of this kingdom, for ability as
well as legal knowledge, beside many others, utterly denied the right of
taxation. Is it then to be wondered at, that the Americans, with such
authorities on their side, are tenacious of a right so invaluable in its
nature, which has at all times been considered as the distinction
between freemen and slaves, which has been confirmed by so long a
prescription, and upon which, to this instant, the wisest and honestest
men, even in the mother country, are divided in opinion?—Philip the
second, and his seventeen provinces, are the counterpart of what we are
acting. In comparing the probability of events, can any man say,
Great-Britain has such a prospect of victory in the event as Spain might
then have expected? If we imagine that the powers of Europe will sit
still during this contest, we must suppose a system of policy now to
prevail, or rather an extension of folly, all over Europe, which never
before was known in any period of its existence.

Much ill temper appeared in every part of the house in the course of
these debates. The ministry were charged with acting uniformly and
systematically upon tory and arbitrary principles, which had thrown the
whole empire into a state of confusion and distraction. “In a word,” it
was said, “the short and simple question before the house is, whether we
shall lose the colonies, or give up our ministry.”

The ministry, on the other hand, talked much about faction at home, and
republican principles; and the Americans being spirited up to their
rebellion by incendiary writers and speakers in England. After a debate,
which continued till half an hour after two in the morning, the motion
for the re-commitment of the address was rejected by nearly the former
majority.

When it was moved in the house of lords, to fill up the blank, left open
in the address, by the insertion of the words, “The lords spiritual and
temporal, &c.” to render the instrument the joint act of both houses, a
debate ensued. The questions of treason, rebellion and constructive
treasons, were deeply entered into by two great law lords, who differed
totally in their legal and political sentiments, and carried on a long
argument between them, with great warmth and ability; in which a large
stock of professional and general learning was displayed on each side.
It is to be lamented, that with all the boasted excellency of our
constitution, a question of so vast magnitude as to include in its
consequences, the lives, fortunes, and honors of all the subjects of
this empire, still remains involved in such obscurity, as not only to
admit of a difference of opinion, but that even the great oracles of the
law are bewildered in its darkness. This extraordinary debate was
attended with some singular circumstances. Lord Mansfield, to the great
surprize of most of his auditors, condemned, in very explicit and
unreserved terms, the measure of laying on the duties in 1767, which he
declared to be the most absurd and pernicious that could be advised, and
the cause of all the present impending evils. The duke of Grafton, Lord
Shelburne, and Lord Camden, who were at that time cabinet counsellors
and held the first offices in the state, declared separately in their
places, that they had no share in that measure, nor had ever given any
approbation. The manner in which a measure of ministry was carried
against the opinion of ministers was not explained. A disclosure
relative to a matter, which had already convulsed the whole empire, and
was still more to be dreaded in its future consequences, excited general
amazement, mixt with indignation and regret in individuals. The fatal
and over-ruling secret influence, which had so long guided and marred
all public affairs, was deplored and animadverted upon in different
parts of the house.

When the question came to be put, whether to agree with the commons in
the address, by inserting the words necessary to fill up the blank, it
was carried by a prodigious majority. But the lords Richmond, Craven,
Archer, Abergavenny, Rockingham, Wycombe, Courtenay, Torrington,
Ponsonby, Cholmondeley, Abington, Portland, Camden, Effingham, Stanhope,
Scarborough, Fitzwilliam and Tankerville, protested against “an address
amounting to _a declaration of war_, which is founded on no proper
parliamentary information, which follows the rejection of every mode of
conciliation, which hold out no substantial offer of redress of
grievances, and which promises support to those ministers, who have
inflamed America, and grossly misconducted the affairs of
Great-Britain.”

[Feb. 9.] The address was delivered, and an answer given, wherein his
majesty assured both houses, that they might depend upon his taking the
most speedy and effectual measures for enforcing due obedience to the
laws, and the authority of The supreme legislature.

On that or the preceding day, the petition and memorial from the
assembly of _Jamaica_ to his majesty, was laid before the commons. It
was drawn up in very strong terms. The petitioners entered into a full,
free, and argumentative discussion of the late claims of the mother
country, and of the rights of the colonies: the former of which they
combated, and the latter defended with great force. They equally
deplored and beheld with amazement, a plan almost carried into execution
for reducing the colonies into the most abject state of slavery; and
they supplicated the throne, and demanded and claimed from the
sovereign, as the guarantee of their just rights, that no laws should be
forced upon them, injurious to their rights as colonists or Englishmen;
and that, as the common parent of his people, his majesty would become a
mediator between his European and American subjects.

[Feb. 10.] The next day the minister moved for leave to bring in a bill
to restrain the trade and commerce of the New-England provinces, to
Great-Britain, Ireland, and the British West-India islands, and to
prohibit them from carrying on any fishery on the Banks of Newfoundland,
and other places therein to be mentioned, under certain conditions, and
for a limited time. In answer to the objections made to it while the
subject of debate, the charges of injustice and cruelty were denied; and
the contrary maintained; it was declared to be necessary; and it was
observed, that though the innocent were involved with the guilty, and
friends with foes, the necessity might be lamented, but could not be
helped. The motion for a bill was carried by a majority of three to one.

In the progress of the bill, the London merchants and traders interested
in the American commerce, petitioned against it, and were allowed to be
heard. In consequence of this a long train of witnesses were examined,
and it appeared, That in 1764, the four New-England colonies employed in
their several fisheries, no less than 45,880 ton of shipping, and 6002
men, and that the produce of their fisheries in the foreign markets for
that year, amounted to £.322,220 16s. sterling—that the fisheries were
greatly increased—that all the materials used in them, except salt, and
the timber of which their vessels were built, were taken from this
country, and that the nett proceeds of the fish were remitted here—and
that there was near a million of money owing from New-England to the
city of London only. They stated to the house, that the calamities
consequent upon the bill must fall in a particular degree, upon the
innocent. The case of the inhabitants of Nantucket, would be
particularly hard. They amounted to some thousands; nine-tenths of them
quakers, inhabiting a barren land; but by an astonishing industry they
kept 140 vessels in constant employ, eight in the importation of
provisions for the island, and the rest in the whale fishery.

[Feb. 20.] While the bill was pending, lord North amazed all parties,
and seemed for a time nearly to dissolve his own, by a _conciliatory
motion_ in regard to America. It proposed, “That when the governor,
council, and assembly, or general court, of his majesty’s provinces or
colonies, shall propose to make provision, according to their respective
conditions, circumstances, and situations, for contributing their
proportion to the common defence (such proportion to be raised under the
authorities of the general court or general assembly of such province or
colony, and disposable by parliament) and shall engage to make provision
also for the support of the civil government, and the administration of
justice in such province or colony, it will be proper, if such proposal
should be approved by his majesty in parliament, and for so long as such
provision shall be made accordingly, to forbear, in respect of such
province or colony, to levy any duties, tax, or assessment: or to impose
any further duty, tax, or assessment, except only such duties as it may
be expedient to impose for the regulation of the commerce, the nett
produce of the duties last mentioned to be carried to the account of
such province, colony or plantation, respectively.” The numerous high
prerogative party, who had ever opposed any relaxation in favor of the
colonies, heard the proposition with horror, and considered themselves
as abandoned or betrayed. They pronounced it a shameful prevarication,
and a mean departure from principle; and finally concluded with
declaring, that they would make no concessions to rebels with arms in
their hands; and that they would enter into no measure for a settlement
with the Americans, in which an express and definitive acknowledgment
from them of the supremacy of parliament was not a preliminary article.
A gentleman of the long robe, and who has lately distinguished himself
for his zeal in promoting all the measures for reducing the colonies
(Mr. W——) had the address in a few minutes to hush the commotion, by
convincing the mal-contents, that the _appearance_ of concession,
lenity, and tenderness, which had so much alarmed them, were of such a
nature, that they could not interfere with the most rigid measures which
they wished to enforce. The gentlemen in opposition said, “The motion is
insidious, base and treacherous in the highest degree.”—The minister
acknowledged it to be a cheat, and designed for the purpose of
dis-uniting the Americans; but it will tend only to consolidate that
common mass of union into which they have been thrown by the Boston port
act. The question was carried by a majority of three to one.

[Feb. 27.] A petition from the merchants, traders, and principal
inhabitants of Poole in Dorsetshire, was presented, in avowed opposition
to that from London, and in support of the principle of the
fishery-bill. This petition set fourth, that the restraints upon the
colonies would not by any means be injurious to commerce; and that the
foreign markets might be amply supplied, by extending the Newfondland
fishery from England.—They concluded by soliciting, no less for their
own immediate advantage, than for the universal benefit of their
country, such encouragement as parliament should think proper.

A petition was also delivered from the Quakers in behalf of their
brethren and others, the inhabitants of Nantucket, in which they stated
their innocence and industry, the utility of their labours to themselves
and the community, the hazards attending their occupation, and the
uncertainty of their gains; and showed, that if the bill passed into a
law, they must shortly be exposed to all the miseries of a famine.

In every stage of the bill, the debate re-kindled; and in the course of
it, the minority observed, “When it was thought wisdom to overthrow
established privileges, and to combat national prejudices, by starting
the new claim of taxation, the Americans went no further than to deny
our right of internal taxation. Having gained the point of urging them
to question one right, we soon convinced them, both by argument and
practice, that an external tax might be made to answer all the purposes,
and to produce all the mischiefs of internal taxation. They then denied
our right of taxing for supply. Parliament then proceeded to deprive
them of their charter, and to change the course of justice and trials.
Then they were pushed to deny the power of internal legislation. But
still they had hitherto never formally rejected the power of parliament
to bind their trade. We are now to convince them, however, that if but a
single branch of legislative power is left to this country, we can
distort that branch in such a manner, that it shall include all the
purposes of unlimited tyranny.” It appeared upon evidence, at the bar of
the house, that by the operation of the bill, many thousands of innocent
inhabitants would be reduced to the sad alternative, either of perishing
through want at home, or of removing to some other less rigorous
government for protection and support; so that a famine among the
New-Englanders was predicted, as the consequence of the bill.

Some gentlemen on the other side of the question, acknowledged the
harshness of the measure; but lamented its being indispensably
necessary. A much greater number contended, that the bill was in an high
degree merciful, and that the New-England colonies did not want
resources to prevent a famine. A few went so far as to regret that the
bill did not convey punishments adequate to the crimes of the Americans,
and to dread that the famine which had been strongly prognosticated, and
pathetically lamented, would not take place.

Mr. Quincy sails to-morrow for the _Massachusetts_. He is very far from
being well; and has been attended upon repeatedly by Dr. Fothergill. The
doctor thinks the Bristol air and water would give him perfect health;
and it is greatly against his own opinion and inclination that he takes
the voyage. But he risks his life for the good of his own colony in
particular, and of America in general. His most intimate friends insist
upon his going directly to Boston. They say no letter can go with
safety; and that he can deliver more information and advice, _viva
voce_, than can or ought to be written. They urge that by going now, if
he arrives safe, he must be of great advantage to the American cause.

He is to tell the people of your colony, by no means to take any step of
great consequence (unless on a sudden emergency) without the advice of
the continental congress; and is to repair to that honorable body, when
met at Philadelphia.

You will hear from him, how egregiously the Americans have been insulted
by several in both houses of parliament, in being pronounced dastardly
cowards and paltroons, _to be looked into submission_ at the approach of
a regiment; and that if this is your true character, there will be no
great exploit in the brave general _Grant_’s marching successfully, with
only five regiments, from one end of the continent to the other, of
which he has declared himself capable. It is said that an American durst
not look at a red coat. The senator holds this language in the senate;
and the general at the head of an army. It passes for a maxim, and it is
thought scepticism to doubt it. Every subaltern, upon half-pay, looks
upon himself as qualified for subduing America. If a man says otherwise,
the finger is pointed at him as to an enemy of his country. Mr. Quincy
will be likely also to give you the name of the member, who in a late
speech adulterated the English tongue, that he might gratify his
inveteracy by punishing you with _starvation_.

By a future opportunity you will receive an account of the progress of
the restraining and fishery bill, through the house of lords; of the
further proceedings of parliament and ministry; and of the national
complection.




                              LETTER XII.


                                              _Roxbury, April 26, 1775._

While the Massachusetts had no provincial congress, the active friends
of government had an opportunity to try their strength in a few places,
and to attempt resisting the general current, by refusing a compliance
with the resolutions of the colony congress; but the dissentients were
overwhelmed by numbers, and their attempts proved abortive.

The royal proclamation prohibiting the exportation of military stores
from Britain, his majesty’s speech, and the addresses of the new
parliament, in the opinion of many, cut off all hopes of reconciliation,
more especially in New-England.

[Feb. 1.] The new Massachusetts congress met at Cambridge, and Mr.
Hancock was unanimously chosen president. They adjourned to Concord in
about a fortnight, that the distance might afford them greater personal
security, and render them less liable to interruption by any measures of
the governor, That the colony might be somewhat prepared for the sorest
trial, they urged in the strongest terms, the militia in general, and
the minute-men in particular, to spare neither time, pains, nor expence,
at so critical a juncture, for perfecting themselves forthwith in the
military discipline. They passed resolutions for the providing and
making of fire-arms and bayonets, and renewed the prohibition of their
predecessors, against supplying the troops at Boston, with any of those
necessaries peculiarly requisite for the military service. The committee
of safety had directed in the beginning of January, that all the cannon,
mortars, cannon-balls and shells, should be deposited at Worcester and
Concord, in the same proportion as was done by the provision; and while
the congress was sitting, [Feb. 13, 21.] voted, “that the committee of
supplies do purchase all the powder they can, and also all kinds of
warlike stores, sufficient for an army of fifteen thousand men to take
the field.”

The propriety of the precautions taken to guard against a surprise, was
manifest from the following event.

[Feb. 26.] General Gage receiving intelligence that cannon and carriages
were deposited in the neighborhood of Salem, sent a corps of troops from
the castle, under lieutenant colonel Leslie, on board a transport, to
seize and bring them away. They landed at Marblehead, proceeded to
Salem, found nothing there, and passed on to the draw-bridge leading to
Danvers, where a number of people assembled, and those of the opposite
side took up the bridge to prevent their crossing. The officer ordered
it to be let down; the people peremptorily refused, saying, “It is a
private road, and you have no authority to demand a passage this way.”
On this refulal he determined to make use of the boats which were at
hand; his intention was perceived, and the owners jumped into their own
boats, and with their axes scuttled them, to make them useless for the
present; during the transaction there was some scuffle between them and
the soldiers. Things were apparently tending to an extremity. The
reverend Mr. Bernard, a congregational clergymen of Salem, and other
gentlemen, urged the letting down of the draw-bridge; but it was not
done, till much time had been spent in altercation, during which period
the articles that colonel Leslie was after, were conveyed away. When the
opportunity of crossing offered, he marched about thirty rods, to the
spot where the artificers had been employed in making carriages, &c. but
finding nothing, and it being now late in the evening, returned and went
on board the transport without meeting with any molestation. This
expedition took place on the Lord’s day, which might contribute to its
ending happily without mischief. On any other day when the people were
not attending public worship, but dispersed about and following their
secular business, the landing of the troops would have been discovered,
and some quarrel might have ensued while they were making it good, or
afterward upon their march. The governor probably pitched upon the
Lord’s day, in hopes that it would prevent every painful catastrophe;
but the expedition spread an alarm.

The Massachusetts congress were displeased with the proceedings of the
New-York general assembly; who renounced all concern with the late
continental congress, declined choosing delegates for the proposed new
one, and in their own single capacity sent a petition to the king, a
memorial to the lords and a remonstrance to the house of commons. In the
remonstrance they represented the grievances under which they labored,
by the innovations that had been made in the constitutional mode of
government since the close of the last war. They renounced the most
distant desire of independence, acknowledged the supreme government of
the British parliament over the whole empire, and their authority to
regulate the trade of the colonies: remonstrated in the behalf of their
brethren in the Massachusetts, for whose distresses they could not help
feeling; but at the same time expressed their disapprobation of the
violent measures pursued in some of the colonies. They claimed a
restoration of those rights which they enjoyed before the close of the
war; but without entertaining an idea of diminishing the power of the
mother country, or lessening the dignity of parliament. Should the
ministry embrace the offering thus given by the general assembly of
New-York, they may possibly separate this central province from the
others, and break the communication between the northern and the
southern. But the apprehension of such an event is abated by the
intelligence which the Massachusetts congress have received from the
city of New-York. The whig citizens, whose hearts were set upon having
delegates for the new continental congress, upon the assembly’s
declining to appoint them, contrived to collect their fellow-citizens
[Mar. 5.] together in order to obtain their opinion. When assembled in a
body, there was a confused cry of “Congress, or no Congress?” After much
altercation the tories had a recourse to compulsive reasoning and began
dealing about their blows.—The whigs were in the worst situation, not
being provided with similar arguments, till two of their party repaired
to an adjoining cooper’s yard, from whence they drew forth to the
assistance of their friends a number of hoop-sticks, which they reduced
to a proper length, and forwarded to the combatants. The whigs, being
thus supplied, soon carried the day by club-law, and beat their
opponents off the ground. The tories, being worsted, and not a little
terrified lest the fury of captain (whom they term in a way of reproach
king) Sears, should lead him to head a mob, and do them some capital
injury, promoted a provincial convention, which otherwise would not have
existed. The battle royal at New-York, will prove the turning point as
to that colony.

The Massachusetts congress continued their session, and recommended the
sixteenth of March to be observed as the annual day for fasting and
prayer, which was kept accordingly by the inhabitants of Boston, no less
than of the country. But they did not presume to rely upon religious
exercises in the neglect of those civil means which prudence prescribed.
The people, both within and without, used every device for conveying
safely from Boston into the country, all kinds of military articles,
which might be wanted in case of a rupture. Cannon balls, and such like
heavy stores, were put into carts, and carried out over the Neck, under
the appearance of loads of dung. Half barrels of gun-powder were put
into butchers peds, or the hampers of the market people, and brought out
under some slight, negligent, and unsuspected cover, as they returned
home in the evening. Cartridges were packed up in candle boxes, and sent
off under that deception; but some were at length discovered. The
soldiers on the Neck did not make many prizes; however, one day [Mar.
18.] they seized 13,425 musket cartridges, with 3000lb. weight of ball,
which, though private property, the general was warranted in refusing to
restore, on the application of the owner.

That general Gage might not succeed in seizing any military stores in
the country, should he send out troops upon that errand, the committee
of safety had voted four days before, “that members from this committee
belonging to Charlestown, Cambridge, and Roxbury, be desired to procure
at least two men, for a watch every night, to be placed in each of these
towns, and that said members be in readiness to send couriers forward to
the towns where the magazines are placed, when sallies are made from the
army at night.”

[April 23.] The select men of the town of Billerica presented a most
spirited remonstrance to general Gage, on account of an inhabitant of
that town’s being tarred and feathered, and much abused on the 8th of
the month, by a party of his majesty’s 47th regiment, under the command
of lieutenant-colonel Nesbit. The firmness, resolution, and freedom,
with which the people both of town and country have conducted, when
their business called them to an intercourse with the governor, have
often embarrassed and convinced him, that they were not wholly destitute
of sterling courage. There might be some ground for punishing the person
whose case produced the remonstrance; but the punishment should have
been under the direction of a civil, and not a military officer, and of
another kind; for, though it may be deemed a retaliation, upon the
country, it has tended greatly to irritate.

The Massachusetts congress were solicitous to keep their proceedings
from coming to the knowledge of general Gage; but from several
circumstances which occurred, they entertained a strong suspicion that
they had some one among them, who betrayed their counsels. A gentleman,
who is not a stranger to many considerable defects in the moral and
political character of Dr. Church, is apprehensive that he is the
person; but is exceedingly cautious of mentioning his suspicion,
considering the high reputation in which the doctor is among the sons of
liberty.

[Mar. 30.] General Gage marched out about eleven hundred men into the
country; who doing much damage by throwing down the stone fences,
occasioned a committee’s waiting upon the Massachusetts congress on the
Saturday, when upon the point of adjourning, which kept them sitting
till they received, on the Monday following, accounts by a vessel from
Falmouth, of what parliament had done and was doing in relation to their
colony.

It was a providential circumstance that they had so early intelligence,
and obtained it before general Gage had received his dispatches: they
were careful to improve it. The intelligence spread fast, and induced
more of the inhabitants of Boston to remove out of the town. A number
had been for some time withdrawing themselves. The town was liable to be
converted instantly, at the discretion of the governor, into a secure
prison; and the people of it might be held as hostages for the conduct
of the province at large, or be kidnapped and sent to England, to stand
trial for supposed offences. Continuance in it was hazardous to many,
who had distinguished themselves by taking an active part against the
measures of government. But the dauntless courage of some such inclined
them to remain, though there was no knowing what private orders might be
sent to general Gage, who was not inattentive to the service in which he
was employed, while he evidenced a prevailing desire after a peaceable
accommodation. He sent private orders to the commanding officer at
New-York, to purchase up all the duck, blankets, pick-axes, pots, and
other articles proper for camp service. Application was made by the
officer to the Philadelphia merchants, who penetrated the design, and no
less nobly than unanimously refused a compliance. Three of the New-York
merchants had for some time been buying up, selling, and sending the
several articles to Boston; but at length a stop was put to their
proceedings by the influence of captain Sears, who, upon his return to
Philadelphia, urged that they might want those things themselves, and
made a considerable stir upon the occasion. But a great number were
purchased at Portsmouth, before the discovery of the general’s
intention.

The news of the parliamentary proceedings encouraged the soldiery to
insult the people more than ever; their conduct seemingly intimated,
that they meant to provoke the other to begin a quarrel; while these
bore all with patience, as they were determined not to be the
aggressors. Nothing was wanting but a spark to set the whole continent
in a flame. The important moment, big with inconceivable consequences,
was evidently approaching, when, through accident or design, it would be
applied to those combustibles which had been long collecting.

The grenadier and light infantry companies were taken off duty, upon the
plea of learning a new exercise, which made the Bostonians jealous that
there was some scheme on foot. A daughter of liberty, unequally yoked in
point of politics, sent word, by a trusty hand, to Mr. Samuel Adams,
residing, in company with Mr. Hancock, at Lexington, about thirteen
miles from Charlestown, that the troops were coming out in a few days.
Upon this their friends at Boston were advised to move out their plate,
&c. and the committee of fafety voted, “that all the ammunition be
deposited in nine different towns; and that other articles be lodged,
some in one place, some in another, so as to the 15 medicinal chests,
2000 iron pots, 2000 bowls, 15,000 canteens, and 1100 tents; and that
the six companies of matrosses be stationed in different towns.”

Mr. Adams inferred from the number to be employed, that these were the
objects, and not himself and Mr. Hancock, who might be more easily
seized in a private way, by a few armed individuals, than by a large
body of troops, that must march for miles together under the eye of the
public.

The provincial stores had been hitherto deposited at Worcester and
Concord. To the last of these places, but half the distance of the other
from Boston, the general turned his attention; and, being continually
pestered by the repeated solicitations of the American tories, with whom
he was surrounded, and who persuaded him there was no danger of
resistance, their whig countrymen being too cowardly, he determined,
without the advice of the council, when and in what way to attempt the
seizure of the many stores supposed to be in that place.

[April 18.] A number of officers dined together at Cambridge, and toward
night scattered themselves upon the road leading to Concord; and took
their station so as to be ready to intercept any expresses going from
Boston to alarm and raise the country with intelligence of the troops
being upon their march. When the corps was nearly ready to proceed upon
the expedition, Dr. Warren, by a mere accident, had notice of it just in
time to send messengers over the Neck and across the ferry, on to
Lexington, before the orders for preventing every person’s quitting the
town were executed. The officers intercepted several; but some, being
well mounted, escaped their vigilance; and the alarm being once given,
spread apace, by the ringing of bells and the firing of signal guns and
vollies. By eleven at night, eight hundred grenadiers and light
infantry, the flower of the army, embarked at the common, proceeded and
landed at Phipps’s farm, from whence they marched for Concord, under the
command of lieutenant-colonel Smith, aided by major Pitcairn, who led
the advanced corps.

[April 19.] About two in the morning, the Lexington company of militia,
to the amount of one hundred and thirty, repaired to the green, close in
with the meeting-house. The air being chilly, and the intelligence
respecting the regulars somewhat uncertain, the men, after the
roll-call, were dismissed, with orders to appear again at beat of drum.
Some went home, others to the adjoining public house. Word being brought
between four and five, that the troops were not far off, they that were
at hand collected, to the number of about seventy, by the time the
regulars made their appearance. They were mostly in a confused state,
and a few only were drawn up. There were present at the time about forty
spectators without arms. The militia were too few to think of beginning
an attack. But major Pitcairn rode round the meeting (as the
meeting-house is generally called) and approaching them called out,
“_Disperse you rebels, throw down your arms and disperse_.” An instant
compliance not taking place, which he might construe into contempt, he
rode a little further, fired his pistol, flourished his sword, and
ordered the soldiers to fire, with which they complied, huzzaing upon
the occasion. This produced an immediate dispersion; but the firing was
continued. Individuals finding they were fired upon, though dispersing,
had spirit enough to stop and return the fire. Three or four were killed
upon the green; the rest, making the whole number of the slain eight,
were shot on the other side of the walls and fences, over which they had
fled in order to escape. During this interesting period, Messrs. S.
Adams and Hancock, whose residence was near at hand, quitted and removed
to a further distance. While walking alone, Mr. Adams exclaimed, “_Oh!
what a glorious morning is this!_” in the belief that it would
eventually liberate the colony from all subjection to Great-Britain. His
companion did not penetrate his meaning, and thought the allusion was
only to the aspect of the sky. Lest it should be said and believed, that
the meeting was crowded with militia, before and during the fire, let me
mention that there were only a man and a boy in it. The detachment
marched on to Concord. The people of the town, having received the
alarm, drew up in order for defence; but observing that the regulars
were too numerous, retired over the north bridge and waited for
reinforcements from the neighboring towns. A party of light infantry
followed, and possessed themselves of the bridge, while the main body
entered the town, and proceeded to execute their commission. They
disabled two twenty-four pounders, and destroyed their carriages and
seven wheels for the same, with their limbers beside sixteen wheels for
brass three pounders, and two carriages with limber and wheels for two
four pounders. They threw 500lb. of ball into the river, wells, and
other places; and broke in pieces about sixty barrels of flour, half of
which was saved. These were all the stores that they could discover and
destroy, on the account of which a civil war has commenced between the
colonies and the parent state. The inhabitants of Britain may see
reason, for many ages, to curse the memory of the man or men, who has or
have been at the foundation of this fatal catastrophe, should they ever
be known. The militia being reinforced, Mr. John Butterick, of Concord,
major of a minute regiment, and who commanded, ordered the men not to
give the first fire, that so the provincials might not be the
aggressors, for he was ignorant of what had passed at Lexington. Upon
his advancing with them, the light infantry retired to the Concord side
of the river, and began pulling up the bridge; and on his approaching
nearer, immediately fired, and killed captain Isaac Davis of Acton (who
with his company of minute-men made the front) and one of the privates.
The fire was returned, a skirmish ensued, and the troops were forced to
retreat, having several men killed and wounded, and lieutenant Gould
(who would have been killed had not a minister present prevented) with
some others taken. One of their wounded, who was left behind, attempting
to get up, was assaulted by a young fellow going after the pursuers to
join them, who, not being under the feelings of humanity, barbarously
broke his skull with a small hatchet, and let out his brains, but
neither scalped him nor cut off his ears. This event may give rise to
some malevolent pen to write, that many of the killed and wounded at
Lexington, were not only scalped, but had their eyes forced out of the
sockets by the fanatics of New-England; not one was so treated either
there or at Concord. You have the real fact. The poor object languished
for an hour or two before he expired.

The party was joined by the main body; and the whole detachment
retreated with the utmost expedition; for all the country was now up in
arms, and attacked the troops on every quarter. In their march of six
miles back to Lexington, they were exceedingly annoyed, not only by
those who pressed upon their rear; but by others, who fired upon them
from behind the stone walls and other coverts, which supplied the place
of lines and redoubts to the provincials. At Lexington they were joined
by a detachment under lord Percy.

The news of what had happened at Lexington, in their way to Concord,
flew to Boston and the neighborhood. But the slaughter of the militia
men was carefully concealed from general Gage, who was not made
acquainted with it till late in the afternoon. He had however, early
intelligence of the rising of the country, and therefore detached, about
eight in the morning, lord Percy, with 16 companies of foot, and a
number of marines, 900 men in the whole, and two pieces of cannon, to
support colonel Smith. The brigade marched out, playing, by way of
contempt, _Yankee Doodle_, a song composed in derision of the
New-Englanders, scornfully called _Yankees_. A smart boy observing it as
the troops passed through Roxbury, made himself extremely merry with the
circumstance, jumping and laughing, so as to attract the notice of his
lordship, who, it is said, asked him at what he was laughing so
heartily; and was answered, “To think how you will dance by and by to
_Chevy Chace_.” It is added, that the repartee stuck by his lordship the
whole day.

You may wish to know the origin of the term _Yankee_. Take the best
account of it which your friend can procure. It was a cant, favorite
word with farmer Jonathan Hastings, of Cambridge, about 1713. Two aged
ministers, who were at the college in that town, have told me, they
remembered it to have been then in use among the students, but had no
recollection of it before that period. The inventor used it to express
excellency. A Yankee good horse, or Yankee cider, and the like, were an
excellent good horse, and excellent cider. The students used to hire
horses of him; their intercourse with him, and his use of the term upon
all occasions, led them to adopt it, and they gave him the name of
Yankee Jon. He was a worthy honest man, but no conjurer. This could not
escape the notice of the collegiates. Yankee probably became a by-word
among them, to express a weak, simple, aukward person; was carried from
the college with them when they left it, and was in that way circulated
and established through the country (as was the case in respect to
_Hobson’s choice_,[115] by the students at Cambridge, in Old England)
till, from its currency in New-England, it was at length taken up and
unjustly applied to the New-Englanders in common, as a term of reproach.

The junction of the brigade under lord Percy, with the detachment under
colonel Smith, gave the last a breathing time, especially as they now
had cannon, which awed the provincials from pressing upon the rear in a
direct line. But the whole force ventured not to halt long; for far and
wide the minute-men and militia were collecting, in order to cut off
their retreat to Boston. They soon renewed their march; constant
skirmishing succeeded, and a continued fire, though often irregular and
scattering on their side, as well as on the part of the provincials. The
close firing from behind the walls, by good marksmen, for such were
almost all the provincials, put the troops into no small confusion, and
made it so dangerous for the officers, that they were more attentive to
their safety than in common. Major Pitcairn quitted his horse, which was
taken with the pistols in the holsters. The soldiers loaded and fired
over the stone walls, when there was not a single man behind them. They
were incommoded by the wind’s blowing the smoke directly back upon them
all the time they were retreating; during which they burnt some houses,
attempted others, and plundered many of every thing valuable, destroying
what they could not carry off. They killed several innocent unarmed
persons; and murdered two old men at Menotomy. Before they reached this
place, a few Americans, headed by the Rev. Mr. Payson, of Chelsea, who
till now had been extremely moderate, attacked a party of twelve
soldiers, carrying stores to the retreating troops, killed one, wounded
several, made the whole prisoners, and gained possession of their arms
and stores, without any loss whatever to themselves. The regulars, when
near Cambridge, were upon the point of taking a wrong road, which would
have led them into the most imminent danger, but were prevented by the
direction of a young gentleman residing at the college; by which mean
they made good their retreat a little after sun-set over Charlestown
Neck, to Bunker’s Hill, but spent and wore down by the excessive
fatigues they had undergone, having marched that day between thirty and
forty miles, here they remained secure till the next day, when they
crossed at Charlestown ferry, and returned to Boston.

Lieutenant-colonel Smith was much displeased with the soldiers firing at
Lexington; probably general Gage had given orders that they should not
fire unless they were first fired upon. Major Pitcairn undoubtedly
directed them to fire, from the mistaken apprehension he had entertained
of American resolution, for he has the character of a good tempered
officer. There were never more than about four hundred provincials
together, attacking at one and the same time; and often scarce that
number. But as some tired and gave out, others came up. They had very
little appearance of discipline. Privates and officers fired away as
they had opportunity of doing execution, without waiting for the word of
command; and used their knowledge of the country to gain the
opportunity, by crossing fields and fences, of acting as flanking
parties against the regulars, while these proceeded along the road.
Colonel Pickering, of Salem, had the command of a fine well exercised
provincial regiment; had he pushed on with his men, so as to have headed
the British before they had gained Charlestown Neck (and he was near
enough) they must have clubbed their firelocks, for they were quite
wearied out with the services of the day, and had but a round or two of
ammunition remaining. No satisfactory reason has been assigned for the
want of greater alertness in colonel Pickering’s regiment. The British
officers are astonished, chagrined, and mortified beyond measure at what
has happened. It’s death to all their glorying; their best troops have
been obliged in this manner to flee before a number of _Yankees_, “when
all the officers in general did every thing that men could do, and when
the soldiers behaved with their usual intrepidity.”[116] They are sore
at heart upon the occasion. They have had 1 lieutenant killed, 2
lieutenant-colonels wounded, Smith is one, 2 captains and 9 lieutenants
wounded, 1 lieutenant missing, 2 ensigns wounded, 1 sergeant killed, 7
wounded, 2 missing, 1 drummer killed, 1 wounded, 62 rank and file
killed, and 157 wounded; in all, 65 killed, 180 wounded, and 28 made
prisoners; total, 273.

Of the provincials, 50 have been killed, 34 wounded, and 4 are missing;
in all, 88. The following officers and gentlemen are of the number, viz.
justice Isaac Gardner, of Brookline, capt. Isaac Davis, of Acton, capt.
Jonathan Wilson, of Bedford, lieut. John Bacon, and sergeant Elisha
Mills, of Needham, and deacon Josiah Haines, of Sudbury, killed; capt.
Eleazer Kingsbury, of Needham, capt. Samuel Williams, of Cambridge,
captains Charles Miles, Nathaniel Barret, and George Minot, of Concord,
capt. Oliver Barnes, and deacon Aaron Chamberlain, of Chelmsford,
wounded. The persons who have fallen, are regretted with the deepest
concern, and are honored not only as patriots, but as martyrs, who have
died bravely in the cause of their country.

Captains John Ford and Oliver Barron, and deacon Davis, all of
Chelmsford, distinguished themselves in the course of the day. It can be
fully proved that captain Ford killed five regulars. James Howard, a
private in the Acton company, and a regular coming out of a house,
caught sight of each other, and discharged their pieces at the same
instant; both shots taking effect, the last dropt down dead, and the
first expired a few hours after. A big boy joined in the chace of the
retreating troops, and was very expert in firing at them; at length a
ball from the enemy grazed his head, and produced a flesh wound; he soon
recovered the shock, bound up his head with a handkerchief, and renewed
his pursuit.

Two British officers who have been taken, and the privates who are
wounded and prisoners, are treated with humanity by the provincials; and
general Gage may, if he pleases, safely send his surgeons to dress and
attend them.

If the contest is to become general between the colonies and the mother
country, it may be deemed a happiness for them that it has commenced in
the Massachusetts, where all the inhabitants are so connected with each
other by descent, blood, uniformity of manners, similarity of civil and
religious sentiments, mediocrity of circumstances, and a general
equality, that the killing of a single individual interesteth the whole
province in the event, and makes them consider it a common cause.

The inhabitants are now everywhere in arms; and collecting in such
numbers about Boston, that they will not only invest the town
effectually, but excite disagreeable apprehensions in general Gage. No
one is suffered to go in or out at present. The provincials have for
their commander in chief, a native of the Massachusetts, general Ward;
the honorable Jedediah Pribble having, more than a month ago, declined,
on account of his bad health. General Ward might have pleaded the like
excuse; but he wishes to serve his country to the utmost of his
abilities, and is ready to risk his life in the cause of American
liberty. He is to be trusted, being a gentleman of great integrity. His
commission as commander in chief of the Bay troops, was delivered to him
on the 20th of April, by the provincial congress. Three days after, they
chose general John Thomas, lieutenant-general.

The day general Ward received his commission, the committee of safety
sent letters to New-Hampshire and Connecticut, with an account of the
enemy’s proceedings the day before, and praying all the assistance in
their power. The next day they agreed upon enlisting 8000 men out of the
Massachusetts forces; but the provincial congress being adjourned from
Concord to Watertown, resolved the succeeding day, “that an army of
30,000 men be immediately raised and established; that 13,600 be by this
province; and that a letter and delegate be sent to the several colonies
of Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode-Island.” Head-quarters are at
Cambridge; and the students quit the college that the provincials may be
accommodated. General Thomas commands at Roxbury. He is a cool,
courageous, discerning and active officer, well qualified for guarding
the important post he occupies, and preventing the enemy’s making a
sally over the Neck into the country should they be inclined to attempt
it; but for the present they are more afraid of being attacked.

General Gage, to secure the people within from taking up arms against
the king’s troops, in case of an assault, has agreed with the committee
of the town [April 22.] after a long conference, that upon the
inhabitants in general lodging their arms in Faneuil-Hall, or any other
convenient place, under the care of the select men, all such inhabitants
as are inclined, may depart from the town with their families and
effects; that those who remain may depend upon his protection; and that
the arms aforesaid, at a suitable time, shall be returned to the owners.
The town agreed to this proposal, and their vote upon it was read by the
committee, upon their return to his excellency, who accepted it; and
further agreed, that the inhabitants may remove from town by land and
water with their effects, within the limits specified by the port act.
He also informed the committee, that he would desire the admiral to lend
his boats to facilitate the removal of the effects of the inhabitants;
and that he would allow carriages to pass and repass for that purpose.
He said likewise, that he would take care that the poor, who may remain
in town, shall not suffer for want of provisions after their own stock
is expended; and desired that a letter might be written to Dr. Warren,
chairman of the committee of congress, that those persons in the
country, who may incline to remove into Boston with, their effects may
have liberty so to do without molestation.—An account of these
proceedings was sent to Dr. Warren; who was further informed by the town
committee [April 25.] “Permission will be given for 30 waggons to enter
the town at once, to carry away the effects of the inhabitants; so soon
as those have returned to the end of the causeway leading to Roxbury,
then others will be permitted to come in. None will be permitted to
enter till after sun-rise, nor remain after sun-set. If any vessel or
boat now in the harbour, be employed to remove the inhabitants effects,
security must be given that it be returned. It is expected that leave be
obtained for some persons to go to the different parishes, to give
notice to such persons who incline to come, with their effects, into
Boston, that they may come without molestation; and it is desired, that
the waggons and vessels employed to come to carry away the goods of the
inhabitants of Boston, may bring the effects of those who are desirous
to leave the country, they paying half the charge.

[April 26.] Doctor Warren has this day written to general Gage:


  “SIR,

The unhappy situation into which this colony is thrown, gives the
greatest uneasiness to every man who regards the welfare of the empire,
or feels for the distresses of his fellow men; but even now much may be
done to alleviate those misfortunes which cannot be entirely remedied;
and I think it of the utmost importance to us, that our conduct be such,
as that the contending parties may entirely rely upon the honor and
integrity of each other, for the punctual performance of any agreement
that shall be made between them. Your excellency, I believe, knows very
well the part I have taken in public affairs. I ever scorned disguise. I
think I have done my duty; some may think otherwise; but be assured,
Sir, as far as my influence goes, every thing which reasonably can be
required of us to do, shall be done; and every thing promised shall be
religiously performed. I should now be very glad to know from you, Sir,
how many days you desire may be allowed for such as desire to remove to
Boston with their effects, and what time you will allow the people in
Boston for their removal. When I have received the information, I will
repair to congress, and hasten, as far as I am able, the issuing a
proclamation. I beg leave to suggest, that the condition of admitting
only thirty waggons at a time into the town, appears to me very
inconvenient, and will prevent the good effects of a proclamation
intended to be issued for encouraging all waggoners to assist in
removing the effects from Boston with all possible speed. If your
excellency will be pleased to take the matter into consideration, and
favor me as soon as may be with an answer, it will lay me under a great
obligation, as it so nearly concerns the welfare of my friends in
Boston. I have many things which I wish to say to your excellency, and
most sincerely wish I had broken through the formalities which I thought
due to your rank, and freely told you all I knew or thought of public
affairs; and I must ever confess, whatever may be the event, that you
generously gave me such an opening as I now think I ought to have
embraced; but the true cause of my not doing it, was the knowledge I had
of the vileness and treachery of many persons around you, who I suppose
had gained your entire confidence.

                                                          I am, &c. &c.”


The committee of safety have sent letters to Rhode-Island and
Connecticut, importuning immediate assistance; and that as large a
number of troops as can be spared, may be immediately marched forward,
well stocked with provisions and ammunition, and accompanied with as
large a train of artillery as can be granted. They express their
determination, at all events, to act their parts with firmness and
intrepidity, knowing that slavery is far worse than death.

The committee appointed to examine into the damages done on the 19th, at
Cambridge, Lexington, and Concord, have reported, that by fire, robbery,
and destruction, the same are as follows: at Cambridge, £.901 16s. 5d.
1–4; at Lexington, £.1320 16s. 0d. 3–4; and at Concord, £.206 2s. 5d.
1–4; in all £.2428 14s. 11d. 1–4. sterling. The parties exhibited their
accounts on oath, and the greatest care was taken that the state of the
damages might be just.

My friend Quincy has sacrificed his life for the sake of his country.
The ship in which he sailed, arrived at Cape Ann within these two days;
but he lived not to get on shore, or to hear and triumph at the account
of the success of the Lexington engagement. His remains will be
honorably interred by his relations. Let him be numbered with the
patriotic heroes who fall in the cause of liberty; and his memory be
dear to posterity. Let his only surviving child, a son of about three
years, live to possess his noble virtues, and to transmit his name down
to future generations. You have my warmest acknowledgments for your last
manuscript. See that you embrace every safe opportunity of continuing
your correspondence; you will find me in that line of conduct.

The supreme power now extant in the Massachusetts, has given their first
naval commission to captain _John Derby_, of Salem, who is entrusted by
the provincial congress with dispatches for Dr. Franklin, containing an
account of the Lexington fight, and an address to the inhabitants of
Great-Britain. He sails without delay. In the address the congress
profess to place much dependence on the honor, wisdom, and valor of
Britons; from which they hope for their interference in preventing the
prosecution of present measures. They make great professions of loyalty;
but declare, that they will not tamely submit to the persecution and
tyranny of a cruel ministry; and that they are determined to die or be
free. They appeal to Heaven for the justice of their cause. Should not
an accommodation take place, Heaven must grant them its special
protection, or they will be crushed before the power of Britain,
notwithstanding all that the other colonies can do for them; unless the
officers who are employed against them, are not supplied with an
adequate force, or are wretchedly defective in courage, inclination,
activity, prudence, or other military abilities; or unless some foreign
power for its own interest, and to injure the parent state, takes them
by the hand. Their military stores are scarce worth mentioning. They
reckon upon sixteen field pieces. It is well if six of them are
calculated for much actual service. There are four brass ones, of a
small size, that may answer a good purpose. They have a few large iron
cannon, two or three mortars and howitzers, cannon ball, and shells; but
they have only eighty-two half barrels of powder belonging to the public
store; most towns have a small quantity, that however will be soon
exhausted. Considering what ought to be the case to warrant a reasonable
expectation of success in a military contest with a nation that abounds
in all the apparatus of war, they may be pronounced destitute of every
article but men; and, though these are not wanting in natural courage,
it will take a considerable time to make them thorough good soldiers.
They have neither money nor magazines.




                              LETTER XIII.


                                                _London, June 12, 1775._

The restraining and fishery bill did not pass through the house of lords
with less opposition than what it had met with in the house of commons.
Upon the motion for committing it after the second reading, the marquis
of _Rockingham_ opposed it with great ability, and in the course of his
speech showed, that in 1704, the whole amount of the exports to the
New-England colonies was only about £.70,000 annually; that in 1754, it
had arisen to £.180,000, in the succeeding ten years to £.400,000, and
in the last ten years, had nearly doubled that sum.

The bill was carried by a majority of more than three to one; but was
productive of a protest, signed by sixteen lords. It is particularly
distinguished, by the severe censure passed upon a lord high in office,
who in the late debates, most unadvisedly threw out a charge of general
cowardice against the Americans.

The fishery bill had scarce cleared the house of commons, when lord
North brought in another, [March 9.] “To restrain the trade and commerce
of the colonies of New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and
South-Carolina, to Great-Britain, Ireland, and the British islands in
the West-Indies, under certain conditions and limitation.” While this
bill was in agitation, a long series of evidence, in behalf of the
West-India merchants and planters, was laid before the house. It
appeared, that upon a very moderate computation, the capital in the
West-India islands, consisting of lands, buildings, negroes and stock of
all kinds, did not amount to less than £.60,000,000. sterling; that
their exports of late years to Britain, ran to about 190,000 hogheads
and puncheons of sugar and rum annually; amounting in weight to 95,000
tons, and in value about £.4,000,000 exclusive of a great number of
smaller articles, and of their very great export to North-America; that
their growth was so rapid and improvement so great, that within a few
years, their export of sugar to this kingdom was increased 40,000
hogsheads annually, amounting to about £.800,000 in value. The
probability, was apparent, that more than half of the capital of
£.60,000,000 was either the immediate property of persons resident in
this country, or owing to them; and also that the revenue gained above
£.700,000 a year upon the direct West-India trade, exclusive of its
eventual and circuitous products, and of the African trade.

[March 20.] Mr. Burke made a number of conciliatory propositions with
respect to the colonies, contained in a set of resolutions, which he
accompanied and elucidated by a celebrated speech. He traced that
unconquerable spirit of freedom, that violent passion for liberty, by
which the colonists are distinguished from all other people of the
world, from the sources of their descent, education, manners, religious
principles, forms of government, and distance from the head of the
empire. He made it appear, that the whole exports to North-America, the
West-Indies, and Africa, in 1704 (from England it must be, for the union
of the two kingdoms had not then taken place) amounted only in value to
£.569,930 but the comparative value of money at that period, was much
greater than at present. In 1772, the exports from Great-Britain to the
same places, amounted at a medium, to no less than £.6,024,171. He also
shewed that the _whole export_ trade of England, including that to the
colonies, amounted in 1704, only to £.6,509,000. Thus the trade to the
colonies alone was in 1772, within less than half a million of being
equal to what was carried on by England with the whole world, at the
beginning of the present century. However astonishing this general
increase of the whole colonies may appear, the growth of the province of
Pennsylvania is still more extraordinary. In 1704, the whole exports to
that colony, amounted to no more than £.11,459 and in 1772, they were
risen to £.507,909 being nearly fifty times the original demand, and
almost equal to the whole colony export at the first period.—This
astonishing growth of the colonies, within little more than half a
century, and the prodigious share they contribute to our greatness,
makes them a matter of the first importance to ourselves, and must
excite the admiration of future ages.

The previous question was moved on the first proposition, and carried by
270 to 78; and thus ended the business.

But the ill success which has attended all conciliatory propositions
hitherto, excepting those which have originated from government, did not
deter Mr. Hartley from making a similar attempt. [April 27.] The motion,
however, was rejected without a division.

During the progress of the second restraining bill, an additional clause
was moved for by the minister; whereby the counties of Newcastle, Kent
and Sussex, on the Delaware, were included in the prohibitions of that
bill, and carried without a division.

While these matters were transacting, several petitions were received
from manufacturing towns in Britain and Ireland, against the coercive
acts. Some counter petitions were also received, calling for an
enforcement of the laws of Britain, as the only means of preserving a
trade with the colonies. Much altercation arose on the truth of the
facts alledged on both sides, as well as on the manner of obtaining the
signatures, and the quality o£ those who signed. The minority insisted,
that the most who signed the war petitions, as they called them, were
persons who had little or no interest in the American trade, but of that
description of warm and active party men, commonly called tories. And
they entered into several examinations to prove the truth of the former
part of their assertion. This produced many long and hot debates. Other
petitions were presented to the crown, and equally disregarded; one from
the British settlers in Canada, against the Quebec bill; one from the
quakers, in which besides endeavoring to diffuse the influence of that
spirit of peace which is the predominant principle in their religious
system, they declared themselves persuaded, that there are not in his
majesty’s extensive dominions, subjects more loyal, and more zealously
attached to his royal person, his family and government, than in the
provinces of America, among all religious denominations. His majesty,
however, went in person to the house, and gave the royal assent to the
restraining and fishery bill, in the usual form. In this season of
public discontent, when the minds of all were agitated on one side or
other, the city of London, not discouraged by the fate of all its
applications for a number of years past, once more approached the throne
with an address, remonstrance, and petition [April 10.] upon a subject,
and in a manner as little calculated to obtain a favorable reception, as
any of the preceding. In this remonstrance they recapitluated the whole
catalogue of American grievances; declared their abhorrence of the
measures which had been pursued, and were then pursuing; and justified
the resistance to which the Americans had been driven, upon the great
principles of the constitution; “actuated by which,” they said, “at the
glorious period of the revolution, our ancestors transferred the
imperial crown of these realms to the illustrious house of Brunswick.”
They beseeched his majesty immediately and for ever to dismiss from his
councils, those ministers and advisers who had been at the bottom of the
preceding measures. His majesty delivered the following answer: “It is
with the utmost astonishment, that I find any of my subjects capable of
encouraging the rebellious disposition which unhappily exists in my
colonies in North-America. Having entire confidence in the wisdom of my
parliament, the great council of the nation, I will steadily pursue
those measures which they have recommended for the support of the
constitutional rights of Great-Britain, and the protection of the
commercial rights of my kingdom.”

The earl of Effingham has uniformly opposed the whole system of measures
pursued against the Americans, and finding that the regiment in which he
served was at length destined for America, and thinking it inconsistent
with his character, and beneath his dignity to enforce measures with his
sword, which he had so utterly condemned in his legislative capacity
[Mar. 12.] he wrote a letter of resignation to the secretary of war. In
it he deeply regretted his being necessitated to quit the military
profession; but said, “I cannot, without reproach from my own
conscience, consent to bear arms against my fellow-subjects in America,
in what, to my discernment, is not a clear cause.” Pity that it is not a
point of honor with all military officers, to consider the merits of the
cause wherein their swords are to be employed, and when they are not
satisfied in their own judgments, to practise as the noble earl has
done. Such a point of honor might hinder many a war.

The British ambassador at the Hague, applied to the States to forbid
their subjects supplying the Americans with arms, ammunition, gun-powder
&c. and they by proclamation prohibited the exportation of all such
articles, in Dutch or foreign ships, from any of their dominions,
without licence, on penalty of forfeiting about £.90 sterling. Judge
whether the profits of the voyage will not be so great as to make it
worth the merchants while to run the risk of that sum. Let the American
vessels repair to Holland, and the Dutch will furnish them with
gun-powder in large glass bottles of several gallons dimensions, under
the notion of spirits, or liquor of one kind or other.[117] France was
also applied to, and could have crushed all assistance, by express
prohibition; but only told her subjects, that if they afforded any, it
was at their own risk; tantamount to—if you will venture, you may. Spain
roundly refused giving the least hindrance to her subjects.

[March 13.] His majesty went to the house of peers, and gave the royal
assent to the bill for restraining the trade of New-Jersey,
Pennsylvania, &c. Thus the probability of the colonies dividing from
each other is lessened, and their union becomes more established. Some
future proceedings in the provinces of New-York and North-Carolina will
be likely to consolidate the whole continent.

The American fisheries being now abolished, measures were necessary to
supply their place, and to guard against the consequences of the foreign
markets either changing the course of consumption, or falling into the
hands of strangers. It was also expedient to pay a greater attention to
the interests of Ireland, than what had been practised for many years.
The minister therefore moved for a committee of the whole house [Mar.
27.] to consider of the encouragement proper to be given to the
fisheries of Britain and Ireland. The committee, in its progress,
granted several bounties to the ships of Britain and Ireland, for their
encouragement in prosecuting the Newfoundland fishery; and two
resolutions were introduced and passed, in favor of the latter kingdom.
Complaints, however, were made, that clauses were insidiously stolen
into the act, to prevent its operating in any considerable extent. The
committee agreed also to the granting of bounties for encouraging the
whale fishery, and to take off the duties payable upon the importation
of oil, blubber, and bone, from Newfoundland, &c. and on the importation
of seal skins.

Ministry have not confined themselves to the making of laws; they have
also sent out against the Americans, generals Howe, Clinton, and
Burgoyne, in the Cerberus [Mar. 28.] The transports with troops to
reinforce governor Gage, sailed a week after from Cork.

[May 15.] Toward the close of the session, Mr. Burke acquainted the
house with his having received a paper of great importance from the
general assembly at New-York. He observed that it was a complaint, in
the form of a remonstrance, of several acts of parliament, some of which
they affirmed had established principles, and others had made
regulations subversive of the rights of English subjects. He afterward
moved that it might be brought up. The minister immediately moved an
amendment, which proved an indirect but effectual negative upon Mr.
Burke’s motion. The amendment was carried by a majority of 186 to 67;
the question being then put on the amended motion, it was rejected
without a division. The New-York memorial to the lords was brought in by
the duke of Manchester, who moved for its being read. After some
altercation the question was called for, and upon a division, the motion
was rejected by a majority of 45 against 25. The petition to the king
was received, but the prayer of the petition was not granted. Such is
the fate of the applications made by the general assembly of New-York,
for a redress of their supposed grievances. It must tend to widen the
breach between Britain and the colonies.

[May 17.] Lord Camden presented a petition to the house of lords, from
the British inhabitants of the province of Quebec, in which they stated
their grievances, and implored their lordships favorable interposition
that the Quebec act might be repealed or amended, and that they might
enjoy their constitutional rights, privileges, and franchises. His
lordship, after expatiating on the evils of the act, proposed a bill,
which was read, for the repeal of the late act. This measure was
strongly opposed by administration, and a motion was made by lord
Dartmouth, that the bill be rejected, which was carried by a majority of
60 out of 88, there being only twenty-eight lords who supported the
bill. Much censure having been expressed or implied, both within doors
and without, relative to the whole conduct of the bishops in the Canada
transactions, the reverend father of that bench, stood up during the
debate to justify the Quebec act, so far as it related to religious
matters, which he did upon the principles of toleration, the faith of
the capitulation, and the terms of the definitive treaty of peace, but
many were far from being convinced, that these principles required such
a full and perfect establishment of the popish religion, as is granted
by the act itself.

[May 18.] Sir George Saville presented to the house of commons, another
petition from the same inhabitants of Quebec, in which, among other
things, they represented with too much truth, that the petition to his
majesty, in the name of all the French inhabitatnts of that province,
and upon which the late law had been avowedly founded, was not fairly
obtained, and had neither received the concurrence of the people in
general, nor even been communicated to them, but had been carried about
in a secret manner, and signed by a few of the noblesse, advocates, and
others, who were in their confidence. They affirmed that the inhabitants
in general were as much alarmed as themselves, at the introduction of
the Canadian laws. They concluded by praying, that the said act might be
repealed or amended. Sir George examined and laid open the week or
obnoxious parts of the act, and threw new light even upon those which
had already undergone the highest degree of colouring, and then
concluded his speech with moving for a repeal of the late act for the
better government of the province of Quebec. Considerable debates
ensued, in the course of which the minister avowed his intention, if it
should become necessary, of arming the Canadians against the other
colonies. But he declared his firm persuasion, that the troubles in
America, would be speedily and happily settled without blood-shed.
Notwithstanding this declaration it was whispered, that he was uneasy
and from what general Gage wrote last, dreaded the news by the April
packet. For some, who professed to have the best information, asserted
that orders were sent to apprehend Messrs. Cushing, Samuel Adams,
Hancock and others, and to transport them to Great-Britain; and that the
receipt of these orders had been acknowledged; but that second orders
had been dispatched to hang them at Boston. Sir George Saville’s motion
was rejected by a majority of more than two to one, the numbers being
174 to 86.

[May 26.] The speaker, when he presented the money bills for the royal
assent, gave an assurance in his speech to his majesty, that if the
Americans persisted in their resolutions, and the sword must be drawn,
the commons would do every thing in their power to maintain and support
the supremacy of this legislature.

The king gave his royal assent to the several bills, both public and
private, which remained to be passed into acts; and closed the session
by a speech from the throne, in which he expressed the most perfect
satisfaction in the conduct of the parliament, during the course of
their session; and his persuasion, that the most salutry effects must,
in the end, result from measures formed and conducted on such
principles, as those on which they had acted. A favorable representation
was made of the pacific disposition of other powers, and the usual
assurence given of endeavoring to secure the public tranquility.

[May 28.] Captain Derby arrived with his dispatches for Dr. Franklin got
to London in the evening, and delivered them to Dr. Lee, as the other
agent had left the country. The circulated accounts of the action were
vague; is was plain however, that the troops had been worsted; and that
government feared it, though they disclaimed all knowledge of what had
happened.

The Sukey, captain Brown, though she sailed four days before captain
Derby’s vessel, did not arrive till the ninth of June with general
Gage’s dispatches. The Gazette has given us the govermental account of
the Lexington engagement. From the praises bestowed upon officers and
men for their activity and bravery, it is evident, that the Americans
made the business of the day a hard, difficult and dangerous service to
them. The nation in general is not so shocked with this transaction as
the importance of it requires. It was a fatal mistake to send soldiers
instead of shipping; and no less so to order them to Boston, instead of
planting them in New-York (where government has a strong interest) and
securing a fortified line of communication from thence to Canada, with
which to divide he southern from the New-England colonies.

Six more regiments of foot have received orders to hold themselves in
readiness to embark for America. They are encouraged by an expectation,
into which they are drawn by the informations given them, of possessing
farms and other confiscated property.




                              LETTER XIV.


                                             _Roxbury, August 15, 1775._

  MY DEAR SIR,

To prevent an omission, let me begin with mentioning, that when governor
Martin met the general assembly of North-Carolina, at Newbern [April 4,
1775.] he made a speech to them in a high governmental strain; and
expressed his expectation that they would oppose so dangerous a step as
the unwarrantable measure of appointing delegates to attend a congrees
in Philadelphia. He also told them that they were most peculiarly called
upon to oppose a meeting of delegates which the people had been invited
to choose, and who were appointed to assemble at that very time and
place, in the face of the legislature. The assembly, in their answer,
justified the meeting of the people, and said, “Be it far from us even
to wish to prevent the operations of the convention now held at
Newbern.” They also took the opportunity, the first that had been given
them, to express their warm attachment to their sister colonies in
general, and their heart-felt compassion for the deplorable state of the
town of Boston, and to declare the fixed resolution of the colony to
unite with the other colonies in every effort to retain their just
rights and liberties.

Let me now enter upon the narration of the effects of the Lexington
engagement, out of the Massachusetts colony. The news of it flew with
the utmost rapidity; and influenced the minds of all people, answerable
to their various apprehensions and attachments.

Col. _Putnam_ served with the Connecticut troops under Gen. Amherst the
last war. By his courage and conduct he secured to himself a good share
of reputation. When peace commenced, he returned to the civil line of
life. Of late he has occupied a tavern, with a farm annexed to it. Such
a junction is frequent in New-England, and the occupation not at all
inconsistent with a Roman character. The Lexington news was brought him
while working in a leathern frock and apron, at a stone wall, with which
to fence in his land. This was about eleven o’clock in the morning.
After giving his men some direction how to proceed he went home, got his
horse, and rode to the neighboring towns, to acquaint the militia
officers and others with what had taken place. As he was returning, he
found some hundreds mustered, who informed him that they had appointed
him their general, and were determined to march off immediately. He said
that he was not ready, had no money about him, and must go and get some.
They supplied him from among themselves; on which he gave proper orders
for their marching after him, and went forward in his check shirt, upon
the same beast, and got to Concord the next morning by sun-rise, having
rode, as he supposed, from eleven o’clock of the preceding morning, not
less than a hundred miles within the eighteen hours. The militia that
followed him, marched with a quick step till they reached the place of
destination.

Mr. _Benedict Arnold_ of New-Haven, had been chosen captain of a
volunteer company by the inhabitants, when they began to prepare for
whatever might happen. No sooner did the Lexington news reach him, than
he called his company together, and asked them whether they would march
off with him the next morning for the neighbourhood of Boston, distant
150 miles.—They agreed; and at the proper time paraded before the tavern
where a committee was sitting. He applied to the gentlemen for powder
and ball; they demurred supplying him, as he was not duly authorized.
The captain, in haste to fly to the help of his suffering brethren,
proposed procuring the supply by force if needful, to which the
volunteers consented. He then sent for the committee, and informed them
what he was determined upon. Colonel Wooster came out, and would have
persuaded him to wait till he had received proper orders; to which capt.
Arnold answered, “_None but God Almighty shall prevent my marching_.”
The committee perceiving his fixed resolution, supplied him; and he
marched off instantly, and with his company reached the American
head-quarters by the 29th of April.

[April 23.] The news reached New-York on the Lord’s day. On hearing it,
capt. Sears conceived the design of stopping all vessels going to
Quebec, Newfoundland, Georgia, and Boston; several were about to sail.
He consulted Mr. Lamb, who joined in the measure. They then wrote a
letter to the committee of Philadelphia, assuring them that all vessels
would be sopt at New-York, and signed it with their names, that so the
assurance might be relied upon. The express being sent off, they
contrived to assemble the people, without its being known upon what
business; and when they were met, it was concluded upon to shut up the
custom-house. The officer was waited on, who considering the expediency
of a compliance, ordered the keys to be delivered up to capt. Sears. The
merchants whose vessels were cleared out, dared not to admit of their
sailing. The Philadelphia committee, relying upon the assurance that had
been given them, so managed as that it was agreed, to shut up their port
also against all vessels going to the before mentioned places.

The hostilities in the Massachusetts threw the city of New-York into
such a state of tumult, that it was judged expedient, with a view of
restoring tranquility and good order, to appoint a general committee of
a hundred, for the city and county of New-York, which answered. [May 5.]
This committee addressed a letter to the lord mayor, aldermen, and
common council of the city of London, which was signed by seventy-seven
of them. In it they declared, that “The disposal of their own property,
with perfect spontaniety, and in a manner wholly divested of every
appearance of constraint, is their indefeasible birth-right. This
exalted blessing they are absolutely determined to defend with their
blood, and to transfer uncontaminated to their posterity.” They
professed their readiness to submit cheerfully to a regulation of
commerce by the legislature of the parent state, excluding in its
nature, every idea of taxation; but reprobated the minister’s
conciliatory plan. They gave assurance, “That America is grown so
irritable by oppression, that the least shock in any part is, by the
most powerful and sympathetic affection, instantaneously felt through
the whole continent—that while the whole continent are ardently wishing
for peace upon such terms as can be acceded to by Englishmen, they are
indefatigable in preparing for the last appeal.” “Near the close they
said, “We speak the real sentiments of the confederated colonies on the
continent, from Nova-Scotia to Georgia, when we declare, that all the
horrors of a civil war will never compel America to submit to taxation
by authority of parliament.” They concluded with expressing their
confidence of the most vigorous exertions of the city of London to
restore union and mutual peace to the whole empire.

[May 6.] The next day an association was signed by upward of a thousand
of the principal inhabitants of the city and county. They in the most
solemn manner declared, that they associated to endeavor carrying into
execution whatever measure might be recommended by the continental
congress, or be resolved upon by their own provincial convention, for
the purpose of preserving their constitution, and opposing the execution
of the oppressive acts of the British parliament, until a reconciliation
between Great-Britain and America, on constitutional principles, can be
obtained; and that they would in all things follow the advice of their
general committee, respecting the purposes aforesaid, the preservation
of peace and good order, and the safety of individual and private
property.

The inhabitants armed themselves also with great diligence and industry.
But it is not to be inferred from these strong appearances, that there
is a real and general union in sentiment among the New-Yorkers. They are
much divided; though each party has thus coaleasced with a view of
serving its own particular interest. The tories have joined, to prevent
the violence which might otherwise exist, and to check the progress of
the sons of liberty. The whigs have joined, in hope of drawing the
others into such lengths in opposing ministerial measures as are
reprobated by them at present.

The New-Jersey people, on receiving the Lexington news, took possesion
of the province treasury, in which there was about £.20,000 part of it
is appropriated to the payment of the troops they are now raising for
the defence of the liberties of America.

The citizens of _Philadelphia_, beside stopping the vessels as before
related, were spirited up to attempt perfecting their preparations for
the most serious and painful contest.

The governor of the province laid before the assembly the minister’s
conciliatory plan; and observed to them that they were the _first_
assembly on the continent to whom it had been communicated. After
considering it, they said, “If no _other_ objection to the plan
proposed, occurred to us, we should esteem it a desertion of sister
colonies, connected by an union founded on just motives and mutual
faith, and conducted by general councils, for a single colony to adopt a
measure so extensive in consequence, without the advice and consent of
those colonies engaged with us by solemn ties in the same common cause.”
The complection of the assembly has been changed. In the choice of
deputies for the approaching congress, made last December, Mr. Galloway
was left out; and on the sixth of May, the house added three more to the
number of their deputies, and the first on the list was Dr. Franklin.
Thus have they, since his arrival, expressed their approbation of his
conduct, and their confidence in his abilities. The plan has been since
proposed to other colony assemblies, but with no better success than in
Pennsylvania.

The account of the action arrived at Baltimore, in Maryland, in six
days; The inhabitants immediately seized upon the provincial magazine,
containing 1500 stand of arms, &c. They also stopped all exports to the
fishing islands, and those colonies which have refused to unite with
their brethren in the common cause; and all supplies to the navy and
army at Boston.

In Virginia a provincial congress met in March, for want of a legal
assembly, and took measures for arraying the militia, the militia laws
being expired; and recommended to each county the raising of a volunteer
company for the better defence of the country. On the 20th of April the
governor employed the captain of an armed vessel to convey, by night, on
board his ship, from the public magazine, out of about one and twenty,
fifteen half barrels of powder, containing 50lb. each. The citizens of
Williamsburg were greatly alarmed, so that the mayor and corporation
addressed his lordship upon the occasion, who, in his answer, informed
them, that hearing of an insurrection in a neighboring county, he had
removed the powder from the magazine to a place of perfect security; and
that whenever it was wanted on any insurrection, it should be delivered
in half an hour. The news of the seizure soon reached Hanover county,
upon which captain Patrick Henry, and the other volunteers of the
county, marched for Williamsburg, with a view of securing the public
treasury from the like catastrophe, and of obtaining a return of the
powder, or a compensation for it. More than a hundred and fifty, all
well accoutred, and making a martial appearance, advanced within 15
miles of the capital; but a sufficient sum of money being paid by the
receiver-general to compensate for the powder, and the citizens engaging
to guard the public treasury and magazine, they dispersed, and returned
to their respective homes.

The value of the whole magazine was very inadequate to the alarm and
disturbance which the governor’s measure excited.—Neither powder nor
muskets were sufficient to answer any essential purpose, or even to
justify apprehension.

His lordship was exceedingly irritated at the behavior of the people,
and threw out threats. Those of setting up the royal standard, of
enfranchising the Negroes, and arming them against their masters, and of
destroying the city; with other expressions of a similar tendency, not
only spread a general alarm thro’ the colony, but excited a kind of
abhorrence of government, and an incurable suspicion of its designs.
Meanwhile, several public meetings were held in different counties, in
all of which the seizing of the powder, and the governor’s threats were
reprobated in the strongest terms. The news of Lexington engagement
arriving when the minds of the Virginians were in such a ferment, tended
to increase their apprehensions, and of course attention to the militia
and volunteer companies.

It was not long ere the same news reached Charleston, in South-Carolina.
The hopes of the inhabitants, that the non-importation and
non-exportation agreements would induce the parent state to recede from
her demands, were blasted on the arrival of a packet from London, the
19th of April; but when the Lexington news was received, they concluded
that the colonies were to be dragooned into slavery. The thought excited
the greatest indignation; but they paused upon considering their
situation. The province, for near two hundred miles coastways, was
accessible to the British fleets and armies. It had but a few trifling
fortifications, and these held by British officers. The western
frontiers were exposed to the savages; and the Negroes might be
prevailed upon, by insinuations, to slay their masters. The governor had
the command of the militia; and all the officers had their commissions
from him. The inhabitants were quite defenceless, without arms,
ammunition, cloathing, ships, money, or men skilled in the arts of war.
The stores of the merchants afforded no supplies of a warlike nature; no
exception having been made in the general scheme of non-importation.
They could not, however, brook a mean submission to the dictates of
Britain; and therefore determined upon a manly and virtuous resistance.
Accordingly, on the night after intelligence of actual hostilities were
received, a number of the principal gentleman of the town, possessed
themselves of twelve hundred stand of arms, with the accoutrements;
removed them directly from the royal arsenal, and afterward distributed
them among the men enlisted in the public service.

Let us return to notice an expedition planned in Connecticut.

The necessity of securing Tyconderoga, was early attended to by many in
New-England; but some Connecticut gentlemen were first in attempting the
measure. Secrecy was essential to success; and delay might be dangerous.
There was no waiting to consult the continental congress; beside, it
would not have been safe to have communicated the scheme to that body,
as it was known there would be individuals in it, on whose fidelity the
Americans could not rely. Messrs. Deane, Wooster, Parsons, and others,
undertook the affair. They applied to the assembly for a loan, which was
furnished, to the amount of about eighteen hundred dollars, on which
they gave bonds to be accountable. General Gage had set the example of
attempting to seize upon military stores, and by so doing had commenced
hostilities; so that retaliation appeared more than warrantable, even an
act of self-defence. The expedition went on with rapidity. Several
militia captains pushed forward to Salisbury, to acquaint Messrs.
Blagdens (nephews to your former acquaintance, the carpenter, of the
same name) with the design, and to procure their assistance. One was
ill, the other[118] joined in the proposed manœuvre. After a little
deliberation, they concluded upon spending no time in obtaining men; but
having provided a sufficient quantity of powder and ball, set off on
horseback for Bennington to engage colonel Allen. They conferred with
him opon their arrival; and then tarried with others to bake bread, and
prepare other necessaries, while the colonel went on to raise the men
who were wanting, and who were to meet the managers at Castelton. While
these were on their way to the place of rendezvous, they were met by a
countryman, apparently an undesigning honest traveller, but who was
either himself well-skilled and a principal, or had been well-tutored by
some one or other, that had either suspected or gained knowledge of the
expedition, and meant to render it abortive. They addressed him, “From
whence came you?—From Ty[119], left it yesterday, at such an hour. Has
the garrison received any reinforcement? Yes; I saw them; there were a
number of artillery men and other soldiers. What are they doing? Are
they making fascines? Don’t know what fascines are. They are tying up
sticks and brush in bundles, and putting them where the walls are down.”
Mr. Samuel Blagden put many insnaring questions about the dress and
trimmings of the men, &c. The answers tended to confirm the man’s story.
The company was staggered; and it being debated in council, whether they
should not return as they had no cannon, it was determined by a majority
of one only, to proceed. At Castleton they met colonel Allen with his
men, and altogether made two hundred and seventy persons; two hundred
and thirty of them were _green mountain boys_, so called from their
residing within the limits of the Green Mountains; as the Hampshire
grants are denominated, from the range of green mountains that runs
through them. They are a brave hardy generation, chiefly settlers from
New-Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut[120]. Sentries were placed
immediately on all the roads, to prevent any intelligence being carried
to Tyconderoga. After the junction at Castleton, colonel Arnold arrived,
with only a single servant. The day after his getting to Cambridge with
his volunteer company, he attended on the Massachusetts committee of
safety, and reported that there were at Tyconderoga, 80 pieces of heavy
cannon, 20 of brass from 4 to 18 pounders, 10 or a dozen mortars, a
number of small arms, and considerable stores; and that the fort was in
a ruinous condition, and as he supposed garrisoned by about forty men.
Upon this the committee, on the third of May, appointed him a colonel of
four hundred men, whom he was to inlist and march for the reduction of
Tyconderoga. The colonel was known only to Mr. Blagden. A council was
called; his powers were examined; and at length it was agreed, that he
should be admitted to join and act with them, that so the public might
be benefitted. It was settled, however, that colonel Allen should have
the supreme command, and colonel Arnold was to be his assistant; with
which the latter appeared satisfied, as he had no right by his
commission, either to command or interfere with the others, who were not
only out of the Massachusetts line, but the subjects of another colony.
The names of the leaders, besides what have been mentioned, were Messrs.
Motte, Phelps’s (two brothers) Biggelow, Bull, and Nichols, beside
colonels Easton, Brown, and Warner, and captain Dickinson.

After it had been determined in a council to set off the next morning
early for Ty, and some of the managers had retired, a second council was
held, and it was concluded to proceed that very night, leaving Messrs.
Blagden, Biggelow, and Nichols, with a party of men, thirty in all,
officers included, to march early in the morning for Skeensborough, and
secure major Skeen, his negroes and tenants. This council might have
been occasioned by the return of captain Noah Phelps, who the day
before, having disguised himself, entered the fort in the character of a
countryman wanting to be shaved. In hunting for a barber, he observed
every thing cirtically, asked a number of rustic questions, affected
great ignorance, and passed unsuspected. Before night he withdrew, came
and joined in his party, and the morning guided them to the place of
destination.

Colonel Allen, with his 230 _green mountain boys_, arrived, at Lake
Champlain, and opposite to Tyconderoga, on the ninth at night. Boats
were procured with difficulty; when he and colonel Arnold crossed over
with 83 men, and landed near the garrison. Here a dispute took place
between the colonels, the latter became assuming and swore he would go
in first, the other swore he should not. The gentlemen present
interposed and the matter was accommodated upon the footing that both
should go in together. They advanced along side of each other, colonel
Allen on the right hand of colonel Arnold, and entered the port leading
to the fort, in the gray of the morning, [May 10.] A sentry snapped his
fusee at colonel Allen, and then retreated through the covered way to
the parade; the main body of the Americans followed, and immediately
drew up. Captain De la Place, the commander, was surprised a bed in his
room. He was ordered to give up the fort; upon his asking by what
authority, colonel Allen replied, “I demand it in the name of the great
Jehovah and the continental congress.” The congress knew nothing of the
matter, and did not commence their existence till some hours after: when
they began their session, they chose the honorable _Peyton Randolph_
president, and Mr. _Charles Thomson_ secretary, each with a unanimous
voice; and having agreed “That the reverend Mr. Duchee be requested to
open the congress with prayers to-morrow morning,” and appointed a
committee to acquaint him with their request, adjourned till the next
day. Had captain De la Place been upon the parade with his men, he could
have made no effectual resistance. The fort was out of repair, and he
had but about thirty effectives. Could he have gained timely
intelligence, he might have procured a reinforcement from St. John’s.
You have the particulars of the military stores taken at Tyconderoga
below[121]. After colonel Allen had landed, the boats were sent back for
the remainder of the men under colonel Seth Warren, but the place was
surprised before he could get over. Immediately upon his joining the
successful party, he was sent off to take possession of Crown Point,
where a sergeant and twelve men performed garrison duty; but the
greatest acquisition was that of more than 100 pieces of cannon. The
complete command of Lake Champlain was of high importance to the
Americans, and could not be effected without their getting possesion of
a sloop of war lying at St. John’s at the bottom of the lake. It was
determined to man and arm a schooner lying at South Bay, and that
colonel Arnold should cammand her, and that colonel Allen should command
the batteaus, a name generally affixed to boats of a particular
construction, calculated for navigating the lakes and rivers, and
drawing but little water, though heavily laden. The wind being fresh in
the south, the schooner out sailed the batteaus, and colonel Arnold
surprised the sloop. The wind shifting suddenly to the north, and
blowing fresh, in about an hour’s time colonel Arnold sailed with the
prize and schooner for Tyconderoga, and met colonel Allen with his
party.

The surprise of Skeensborough was so conducted, that the negroes were
all secured, and major Skeen, the son, taken while out a shooting, and
his strong stone house possessed, and the pass compleatly gained without
any bloodshed, the same as at Tyconderoga. Had the major received the
least intimation, the attempt must have miscarried; for he had about
fifty tenants nigh at hand, besides eight negroes and twelve workmen.

Colonel Allen soon left Tyconderoga, under the command of colonel
Arnold, with a number of men, who agreed to remain in garrison.

[May 18.] When the news of Tyconderoga’s being taken reached the
continental congress, they earnestly recommended it to the committees of
the cities and counties of New-York and Albany, immediately to cause the
cannon and stores to be removed from thence to the south end of Lake
George; but that an exact inventory should be taken of them, “in order
that they may be safely returned, when the restoration of the former
harmoney between Great-Britain and these colonies, so ardently wished
for by the latter, shall render it prudent and consistent with the
over-ruling law of self-preservation.” Whatever may be the drift of a
few in congress, the body wish to keep the door upen for an
accommodation. This was apparent in the advice they gave the
New-Yorkers, three days before the preceding recommendation. The city
and county of New-York applied to them for information how to conduct
towards the troops expected there. The congress resolved, “that it be
recommended, for the present, to the inhabitants of New-York, that if
the troops which are expected, should arrive, the said colony act on the
defensive, so long as may be consistent with their safety and security;
that the troops be permitted to remain in the barracks, so long as they
behave peaceably and quietly, but that they be not suffered to erect
fortifications, or take any steps for cutting off the communication
between the town and country, and that if they commit hostilities or
invade private property, the inhabitants should defend themselves and
their property, and repel force by force; that the warlike stores be
removed from the town; that places of retreat, in case of necessity, be
provided for the women and children of New-York; and that a sufficient
number of men be imbodied, and kept in constant readiness for protecting
the inhabitants from insult and injury.”

Let us come to the Massachusetts.

Mr. Hancock having been chosen at the last election, on December 5,
1774, one of the delegates to the general congress; and the time
approaching when it became necessary for him to prepare for his journey,
Dr. Joseph Warren was chosen president of the provincial congress pro
tempore.

[April 27.] The inhabitants of Boston lodged with the select men,
according to agreement with general Gage, 1778 fire arms, 634 pistols,
273 bayonets, and 38 blunderbusses. The same day the provincial congress
recommended to the inhabitants of the sea-ports, the removal of their
effects, &c.

[April 28.] A circular letter was written to the several towns of the
colony, wherein after noting the affair of the nineteenth, it was said,
“we conjure you, by all that is dear, by all that is sacred, that you
give all assistance possible in forming the army. Our all is at stake.
Death and devastation are the certain consequences of delay. Every
moment is infinitely precious. An hour lost may deluge your country in
blood, and entail perpetual slavery upon the few of your posterity, who
may survive the carnage. We beg and intreat, as you will answer it to
your country, to your consciences, and above all as you will answer it
to God himself, that you will hasten and encourage, by all possible
means, the inlistment of men to form the army; and send them forward to
head-quarters at Cambridge, with that expedition which the vast
importance and instant urgency of the affair demand.” This address was
attended to; the men discovered a readiness to turn out for the
salvation of their country, and the women applied themselves with
cheerfulness to the fitting out of their husbands, fathers and brothers,
for the important expedition, while the dangers of it were overlooked or
disregarded. After a few days continuance before Boston, great numbers
returned home, some to follow their business, and others to procure
necessaries for the time they had enlisted or meant to enlist for.
During the interval between this return, and the provincials resorting
afresh to the place of rendezvous, the land entrance into and out of the
town by the Neck, was next to unguarded. Not more than betwixt six and
seven hundred men, under colonel Lemuel Robinson of Dorchester, were
engaged in defending so important a pass, for several days together.—For
nine days and nights the colonel never shifted his clothes, nor lay down
to sleep, as he had the whole duty upon him even down to the adjutant,
and as their was no officer of the day to assist. The officers, in
genearl, had left the camp, in order to raise the wanted number of men.
The colonel was obliged therefore, for the time mentioned, to patrole
the guards every night, which gave him a round of nine miles to
traverse.

[May 1.] The Massachusetts congress alloted to the different towns, the
five thousand poor expected out of Boston.—Rhode-Island and Connecticut
had made paper-money, with which to furnish a plentiful substitute for
cash, and to answer present exigencies. The men repairing from these
colonies, for the defence of the Massachusetts, were supplied with this
money; the Massachusetts therefore resolved, that it should pass in all
payments.

The general assembly of Connecticut appointed Dr. Johnson, and Oliver
Wolcot, esq. a committee from their body, to wait upon general Gage, and
desired the governor to write in their name to the general, relative to
the situation of public affairs, and the late unfortunate transactions
in the Massachusetts. He wrote on the twenty-eighth of April: and the
committee repaired to Boston with the letter. Both the provincial
congress and the committee of safety were greatly alarmed at the
transaction. The first wrote [May 2.] to the delegates, whom they had
sent to the colony, representing to them the fatal consequences that
might follow, upon any one colony’s undertaking to negociate separately,
either with parliament, ministry or their agent here. The last wrote to
the colony itself, intreating it to afford immediately all possible aid.
Governor Trumbull acquainted them, in his answer of May the 4th, that
they need not fear their firmness, deliberation and unanimity, to pursue
measures which may appear best for common defence and safety; and that
Connecticut will be cautions of trusting promises, which it may be in
the power of any to avade.

[May 3.] On the same day, on which general Gage sent a sensible and
respectful answer to governor Trumbull, the Massachusetts congress
empowered the receiver general to borrow £.75,000 sterling upon notes,
bearing an interest of six _per cent._ that so they might support their
forces; they also forwarded dispatches to the general congress,
containing accounts of their proceedings. In their letter they
mentioned, “The sudden exigency of our public affairs, precluded the
possibility of waiting for your direction in these important measures,
more especially as a considerable reinforcement from Great-Britain is
daily expected in this colony, and we are now reduced to the sad
alternative of defending ourselves by arms or submitting to be
slaughtered.” They modestly suggested the necessity of a powerful army
on the side of America. They took notice, that the inhabitants of many
of their sea-ports had removed, and were removing their families and
effects, to avoid destruction from the ships of war; and expressed their
confidence in the wisdom and ability of the continent to support them,
so far as it should appear necessary for the common cause of the
American colonies.

[May 4.] The committee of safety wrote to the governor and company of
Connecticut, most earnestly pressing them to send immediately three or
four thousand men, that so an important post might be secured, which
otherwise the enemy would be likely to possess themselves of, as soon as
their reinforcement arrived. The troops were desired to be forwarded in
companies as fast as they could be got ready. They sent also to
Rhode-Island, and urged their marching a body of troops to assist on the
like occasion. They proceeded to resolve, “That the public good requires
that government in full form ought to be taken up immediately.” Advice
was received, that a number of transports with troops were just arrived
at Boston from England.

[May 5.] That provincial congress resolved, “The general Gage has, by
the late transactions, and many other means, utterly disqualified
himself from serving this colony as a governor, or in any other
capacity; and that therefore no obedience is in future due to him; but
that on the contrary, he ought to be considered and guarded against, as
an unnatural and inveterate enemy to the country.”

[May 9.] The committtee of safety ordered the commanding officers of ten
neighbouring towns, to march one half of the militia, and all the
minute-men under their command, forthward to Roxbury that so the British
troops might not come and possess themselves of that post. Before it was
properly strengthened general Gage entertained such design. General
Thomas, who commands there, gained information of what was intended, on
the day it was to be executed. His whole force consisted only of seven
hundred men. The post comprehended a large broad high hill. A road leads
to the top of it, visible in some parts to persons at the entrance into
Boston; it passes over the hill and descends into a hollow, from whence
you can turn off, and passing circuitously enter again upon the said
road. The general took advantage of this circumstance, and continued
marching his seven hundred men round and round the hill, by which he
multiplied their appearance to any who was reconnoitering them at
Boston. The dress of the militia was extremely various, and consisted of
their common clothing, which prevented the discovery of a deception,
that might otherwise have been soon detected, had they worn a uniform
and possessed regimental ensigns. This warlike imposition most probably
prevented general Gage’s attacking and carrying the post, by the
possession of which he would have had it in his power to direct his
march to any part of the country he pleased. The colonels of the several
regiments were ordered to repair immediately to Cambridge, with the men
they had inlisted; and part of the cannon and stores to be removed to
some distance of security; and breast works to be erected at different
places to prevent the enemy’s passing into the country from Boston Neck,
and to annoy them if they crossed the river and advanced through
Charlestown, or if they attempted going by water to Medford. The
Massachusetts congress concluded on disarming the disaffected
inhabitants; and that no person should move with his effects out of the
colony, unless leave was granted.

[May 15.] They resolved upon a letter to the eastern tribe of Indians,
to secure their friendship, and engage them on the side of the colonies,
and proposed to raise a company of them to serve in the war. Four days
after the committee of safety voted, that captain John Lane have
enlisting papers for raising such company. The provincials reprobate in
the bitterest terms, the idea of the Indians being imployed by the
ministry against themselves; so that there is a seeming inconsistency in
their attempting to engage them against the British troops. But let it
be remembered, that the Indians will probably take part with the one
side or the other; for through a restless warlike temper, they are not
in common disposed to observe a neutrality; and that there is a wide
difference between employing them against armed soldiers and letting
them loose upon defenceless settlers, men, women and children.

Skirmishes were occasioned at different times and places, by the
attempts of each party to carry off stock from the small islands, with
which the bay of Boston is agreeably interspersed, and afforded the mixt
spectacle of ships, boats and men engaged by land and water. These small
engagements were not trifling in their consequences. The advantage was
generally on the side of the Americans, which elated their spirits. They
also learnt from them to face danger, and to run hazards; and it is by
being habituated to these, that probably the greatest quantum of courage
is acquired. Frequent skirmishes are good preparatives, by which to
qualify raw soldiers to fight as veterans in set battles.

[May 21.] Two sloops and an armed schooner with soldiers, sailed to
Grape-Island to get hay. The provincials followed them as soon as the
tide admitted, drove them off by their approach, burnt all the hay,
about eighty ton, and brought off the cattle from the island.

[May 24.] A committee having been appointed to inquire what was the
stock of powder in certain towns, reported, that in thirty-nine towns in
Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, Plymouth and Worcester, there were 67 3–4
barrels. The rest of the towns in the colony had none worth mentioning.
How painful a circumstance, the small quantity of powder, to those
Americans, who have any idea of the great consumption which war
occasions! The want of it had been sensibly felt for some time; and
therefore, beside the adoption of other measures, orders were given for
the importation of that, and other military stores, but it must be long
before they can be procured in this way, should they come safe.

[May 25.] The Cerberus arrived at Boston with the three generals, Howe,
Clinton, and Burgoyne. They were so assured in their own mistaken
apprehensions that there would be no occasion to draw the sword in
support of ministerial measures, that they had prepared to amuse
themselves with fishing and other diversions, instead of expecting to be
engaged in military service. They were astonished at the situation of
affairs, and when in company with generals Gage and Haldiman, asked how
the sortie happened. General Haldiman answered, “I knew nothing about
it, till the barber came in to shave me, and said that the troops were
gone out, and that they had been fighting. I did not choose that he
should know I got my information from him. I therefore called my
footman, and sent him out upon a frivolous errand, well knowing, that if
there was any truth in what the barber reported, he would bring me word
of it, which he did. In this way I became acquainted with what had
happened.” The newly arrived generals declared their surprise in the
significant looks which followed this relation from the second in
command.

[May 27.] About six hundred of the Massachusetts and New-Hampshire
forces were employed to bring off the stock from Hog-Island and
Noddles-Island, which lie contiguous; the intervening passage is
fordable at certain times of the tide. A party went on and fired the hay
and barn on Noddles-Island, on which a number of marines crossed from
Boston; and, upon the provincials retreating to Hog-Island, were decoyed
down to the water side, when a hot action commenced, which did not close
with the day. The king’s troops amounted to some hundreds, and were
supported by an armed schooner of four six pounders and twelve swivels,
an armed sloop, and the barges all fixed with swivels. The provincials
were commanded by general Putnam. Dr. Warren’s zeal and courage would
not admit of his remaining at a distance; upon hearing what was going
forward, he repaired to the spot to encourage the men. They had two
pieces of artillery, which were well served, and did considerable
execution. The night was very dark, but the action continued all through
it. Toward morning the schooner got aground upon Winnisimmet ferry ways;
the British were obliged to abandon her, and the provincials boarded,
and after stripping her of every thing valuable, set her on fire. They
lost not a man, and had only three wounded, not one mortally. The
regulars were said to have suffered very much, not to have had less than
two hundred killed and wounded. The loss was probably greatly
exaggerated; that, however, had a good effect on the provincials. The
affair was matter of no small triumph to them, and they felt upon the
occasion, more courageous than ever.

[May 30.] The provincials went afresh on Noddles-Island, and burnt the
mansion house, which answered no good purpose whatever. But there are
too many who destroy property merely because of its having belonged, or
being supposed to belong to those Americans who have taken the opposite
side of the question in the present controversy. The stock, consisting
of between five and six hundred sheep and lambs, twenty head of cattle,
besides horses, was taken off by them in the course of the day. The next
day five hundred sheep and thirty head of cattle were removed off
Pettick’s-Island by a party under colonel Robinson. On the night of June
the second, eight hundred sheep and lambs, together with a number of
cattle, were carried off Deer-Island, by a corps of provincials under
major Greaton.

The agreement with general Gage, relative to the inhabitants leaving the
town of Boston, was well observed in the beginning; and their request
was granted, with the approbation of all. But after a short time, they
were detained upon the plea that persons going from thence for the goods
of those who chose to abide there, were not properly treated. The
embarrassments and delays which the inhabitants had to contend with,
induced the provincial congress to order the sending of a letter to
general Gage, to remonstrate with him upon the subject. The letter
however, did not answer. The truth is, after a number were allowed to
depart, great clamors were raised. Such persons as were, or pretended to
be well affected to the British government, alledged that none but the
ill-inclined were for removing, and that when they were safe with their
effects, the town would be set on fire. A demur soon afterward arose
about the meaning of the word _effects_, whether merchandise was
included; and the general being sensible, that the permitting articles
of that kind to be carried out, might strengthen the Americans in their
resistance, would not admit of their removal. This proved a hardship to
many who quitted the town, as it deprived them of the resource for
living in their accustomed affluence. In a variety of instances, the
passports were so conducted, that families were cruelly divided; wives
were separated from their husbands; children from their parents; the
aged and the sick from their relations and friends, who wished to attend
and comfort them. The general was very averse to the allowing of women
and children to leave Boston, thinking they contributed to the safety of
the place, and prevented his being attacked; but of that no real danger
existed, notwithstanding the high tone of the people without, and the
intimations of some within the town. Numbers of the poor and hapless
were however sent out, and several of them infected with, or not fully
recovered from the small-pox, by which mean the provincials were greatly
endangered.

These were employed in collecting their force, from every quarter with
all possible dispatch, which could not be dispensed with, considering
the reinforcements which had arrived, and were arriving at Boston. [June
3.] But they were distressed for want of money; and a letter was
dispatched by the Massachusetts congress, to their receiver-general,
upon the absolute necessity of paying the colony forces immediately, and
directing his attendance forthwith; and also acquainting him, that a
gentleman at Salem had £.375 sterling, which he was willing to lend the
province, and which would be of the utmost importance to pay directly to
the soldiers, and might prevent the greatest mischiefs. The want of cash
obliged them to have a recourse to province notes, which they struck off
night and day, for the advance pay of the men who had inlisted.

[June 10.] They were better off as to provision, and established a too
plentiful allowance, beyond what the troops could expend. By the general
return of the army at Cambridge, it amounted on the ninth to 1581
officers, commissioned, sergents, &c. and 6063 privates, in all 7644.
But such was the want of regularity, that no dependence could be had
upon its exactness. The number of privates was probably much aggravated.
Too many of the officers did not scruple to make false returns for their
own emolument. The large proportion of them shows that the regiments
were far from being full, or were much over-officered. Several of the
Massachusetts officers are miserable tools, and must be discarded sooner
or later. It is owing to their having been elected by the very privates
they command; and to the resignations of a number who had governmental
commissions, but have thrown them up from an apprehension that the
Americans will not succeed; this gave an opening to a set of fellows
totally destitute of both courage and honor, to push themselves forward
and get chosen.

[June 12.] General Gage issued a proclamation offering a pardon in the
king’s name, to all who should forthwith lay down their arms, and return
to their peaceable occupations, except Samuel Adams and John Hancock.
All who did not accept of the proffered mercy, who should protect,
assist, conceal or correspond with such, were to be treated as rebels
and traitors. It also declared, that as a stop was put to the due course
of justice, martial law should take place till the laws were restored to
their due efficacy. The proclamation had no other effect than to put the
provincials upon looking out for the operations which were to succeed
[June 14.] The Massachusetts congress chose their president, Dr. Warren,
second major-general in their own forces; the first having been chosen
the day before.

A discovery has been made which will deliver down to posterity the name
of governor Hutchinson, loaded with infamy. An accident has thrown into
the hands of the Americans, the books of his copied letters to the
ministry and others, in his own hand writing. By means of them, the
several charges brought against him, of his enmity to his own colony, of
his consummate duplicity of his advising ministry to alter the charter,
and to use force for the establishment of their plans, and of his
assuring them that they would meet with no effectual resistance from the
boasting sons of liberty, whose courage would certainly fail them when
put to the trial, have been authenticated beyond the possibility of a
denial.

When he quitted the province all his furniture was left behind in his
seat at Milton. After the Lexington engagement, the committee of the
town removed it in order to save it from being totally ruined. Mr.
Samuel Hanshaw,[122] desirous of seeing how the house looked, when
striped of all the furniture, repaired thither with the gentleman who
had the key. He went at length up into a dark garret, where he
discovered an old trunk, which he was told was left behind, as it
contained nothing but a parcel of useless papers. Curiosity led him to
examine them, when he soon discovered at letter book of Mr.
Hutchinson’s, which he secured, and then posted away to Dr. Warren, to
whom he related what had happened; on which an order was soon sent to
general Thomas, at Roxbury, to possess himself of the trunk. It was
brought to his quarters; and there through the imprudent exultations of
some about the general, the contents were too often exposed to person
resorting thither, and some single letters conveyed away; one for the
public good, it being thought that if the same was generally known, it
might be of disservice in the present moment as it had not a favorable
aspect upon the staunch patriotism of Mr. Hancock. The letter books and
other papers were afterward taken proper care of; and have been
submitted to my inspection. Many of his letters beside what have already
appeared, will be printed; those you meet with as his, in the Boston
Gazette, or actually taken from it, you may depend upon as genuine and
faithfully copied.

Mr. Hutchinson behaved much to the satisfaction of the public as judge
of probates. He was ready to assist, in a most obliging manner, the
widow and the orphan with his advice, whenever their business called
them before them. As chief justice he was not exceptionable, only when
he supported the cause of government against the claims of the people.
When in the chair of the first magistrate, his appointments to different
offices were generally of men will qualified for discharging the duties
of the same, though mostly supporters of government; he was advised by a
British naval officer to secure Mess. Hancock and S. Adams by promoting
them; but replied that though such a scheme might answer in regard to
Mr. H. it would not as to Mr. A. for it would be only giving him more
power to aid him in his opposition and that he should not be able
afterward to remove him. Under the charter the governor cannot remove
from offices without the consent of the council; and Mr. Hutchinson knew
that Mr. S. Adams’s interest in the council would be greater than his
own. He was used to profess the warmest attachments to the good of his
native colony, and that he was ever aiming to promote its happiness; and
would frequently show the letters he had written about the time of the
stamp act, in opposition to that measure. He ingratiated himself by his
free, familiar and condescending intercourse with the common people,
whom he would join, walk, and converse with in his way, from the meeting
to his seat. On these accounts he had a number of friends and advocates,
who thought highly of him; but since the discovery of his letters, they
begin to own that they were deceived in the man, and wofully mistaken in
the good opinion they entertained of him. He will be execrated in
America, if not in Great-Britain.

The dispatches forwarded to the general congress from the Massachusetts
the beginning of May, led on to their resolving themselves into a
committee of the whole to take into consideration the state of America.
Before they finished this great business, they resolved, unanimously,
“That all exportations to Quebec, Nova-Scotia, the island of St. John’s,
Newfoundland, Georgia, except the parish of St. John’s, and to East and
West Florida, immediately cease, and that no provision of any kind, or
other necessaries, be furnished to the British fisheries, on the
American coasts, until it be otherwise determined by the congress.” The
parish of St. John’s was excepted, as it had sent a delegate to
congress. They continued to sit in a committee from day to day till the
24th, when the honorable Peyton Randolph being under a necessity of
returning home, and the chair being thereby vacated, they unanimously
chose the honorable John Hancock, esq. president.

[May 26.] A report from the committee being read, the congress came
unanimously into certain resolutions; and among other matters they
resolved, “That the colonies be immediately put into a state of defence:
but that, as they most ardently wish for a restoration of the harmony
formerly subsisting between the mother country and these colonies, for
the promotion of this most desirable reconciliation, an humble and
dutiful petition be presented to his majesty.” It was then resolved, but
not unanimously, “That measures be entered into for opening a
negociation, in order to accommodate the unhappy disputes subsisting
between Great-Britain and these colonies, and that this be made a part
of the petition to the king.”—Afterward, “That the militia of New-York
be armed and trained, and in constant readiness to act at a moment’s
warning.”

Mr. Dickinson, the author of the farmer’s letter, is now a member of
congress for Pennsylvania. His heart was much engaged in bringing about
a reconciliation, and he labored hard in procuring a second petition to
the king; but it was opposed by several, and occasioned strong debates
for several days. However for the sake of congressional harmony, it was
at length unanimously agreed to; as they that opposed it had not the
least idea of its proving effectual, from a full persuasion that the
British ministry would be so irritated, by what had happened on April
the nineteenth, as to reject all tenders short of full submission.—These
nevertheless declined voting, that measures for a negociation should
make a part of the petition. Since the Lexington engagement, many of the
New-Englanders believe that the contest must end in absolute slavery or
real independence.

[May 29.] Congress wrote a letter to the Canadians, stiling them _the
oppressed inhabitants of Canada_, and themselves _friends and
countrymen_. It was designed to persuade them, that their present form
of government is a form of tyranny, and that they, their wives and
children, are made slaves, to prevent their taking a part against the
colonies in the present contest, and to procure a union of all in
defence of common liberty.

[June 2.] It was resolved, “That no provisions of any kind be furnished
or supplied to, or for the use of the British army or navy, in the
Massachusutts Bay, or of any transport.”

[June 7.] Congress, for the first time, stiled the colonies THE TWELVE
UNITED COLONIES, in a resolve, “That Thursday, the 20th of July, be
observed throughout the twelve united colonies, as a day of humiliation,
fasting and prayer.” From henceforward the _united colonies_ will come
into use.

[June 8.] Major Skeen (the father) of Skeensborough, with other
officers, upon their arriving the evening before at Philadelphia, in a
vessel from London, were taken into custody.—Congress being informed of
it, and the said Skeen had been lately appointed governor of the forts
of Tyconderoga and Crown-Point, and had declared that he was authorized
to raise a regiment in America; they appointed a committee to examine
his papers, as also those of a lieutenant in the regulars.

[June 9.] They having been applied to by a letter of May 16th from the
Massachusetts convention, for their explicit advice, resolved, “That
no obedience being due to the act of parliament for altering the
charter of the colony of Massachusetts Bay, nor to a governor or
lieutenant-governor who will not observe the directions of, but
endeavor to subvert that charter, the governor and lieutenant-governor
of that colony are to be considered as absent, and their offices
vacant; and as there is no council there, and the inconveniences
arising from the suspension of the power of governments are
intolerable; that, in order to conform as near as may be to the spirit
and substance of the charter, it be recommended to the provincial
convention to write letters to the inhabitants of the several places
entitled to representation in assembly, requesting them to choose such
representatives; and that the assembly, when chosen, do elect
counsellors; and that such assembly or council exercise the powers of
government, until a governor of his majesty’s appointment will consent
to govern the colony according to its charter.

[June 10.] It was recommended to the united colonies to collect
salt-petre and sulphur, and to manufacture the same into gun-powder, for
the use of the continent.

[June 14.] Congress agreed to the resolutions of the committee of the
whole house, “That six companies of expert riflemen be immediately
raised in Pennsylvania, two in Maryland, and two in Virginia; and that
each company, consisting of sixty-eight privates, beside officers, march
as soon as completed, and join the army near Boston, to be there
employed as light infantry.”

[June 15.] They proceeded to choose by ballot a general to command all
the continental forces, and _George Washington_, esq. was unanimously
elected.

[June 16.] The president informed him of the choice which the congress
had made, and of their requesting his acceptance of that employment.
Colonel Washington, standing in his place, answered,

  “Mr. _President_,

“Though I am truly sensible of the high honor done me in this
appointment, yet I feel great distress from a consciousness, that my
abilities and military experience may not be equal to the extensive and
important trust. However, as the congress desire it, I will enter upon
the momentuous duty, and exert every power I possess in their service,
and for the support of the glorious cause. I beg they will accept my
most cordial thanks for this distinguished testimony of their
approbation.

“But, lest some unlucky event should happen unfavorable to my
reputation, I beg it may be remembered by every gentleman in the room,
that I this day declare, with the utmost sincerity, I do not think
myself equal to the command I am honored with.

“As to day, Sir, I beg leave to assure the congress, that as no
pecuniary consideration could have tempted me to accept this arduous
employment, at the expense of my domestic ease and happiness, I do not
wish to make any profit from it. I will keep an exact account of my
expences. Those, I doubt not they will discharge, and that is all I
desire.”

The colonel did not aspire to the honor of commanding the army; he was
rather solicitous to avoid it, upon an apprehension of his inadequacy to
the importance of the service. The partiality of congress, however
assisted by a _political motive_, rendering his reasons unavailing; and
led him to “_launch into a wide and extensive field, too boundless for
his abilities, and far, very far beyond his experience_,” as his
prevailing modesty induced him to express himself. He is doubtless
active, attentive to business, temperate, humane, formed for gaining and
securing the affections of officers and soldiers, far from haughty and
supercilious, though naturally reserved, which is a quality that may
secure him from answering, without offending many improper questions,
that the New-Englanders will be likely to ask, for they are amazingly
addicted to inquisitiveness; this is greatly owing to the equality that
prevails among them, and leads them into those mutual freedoms, which
are censured in places where distinction in fortune and rank are far
more prevalent and disproportioned. The personal appearance of the
colonel is noble and engaging. He certainly possesses strong powers of
mind, which will tend much to supply in a short season, any present
deficiencies, that the want of more extensive reading, and of more
practical knowledge in military matters, may inevitably occasion. His
days have been spent in America, and he has had little opportunity of
seeing service. As you have already been informed, in 1755, he prevented
the total ruin of the British troops after general Braddock’s defeat, by
covering their retreat with his rangers; but he has never been
accustomed to the command of a regular regiment, to which is to be
imputed his saying to the volunteers he lately commanded in Virginia,
that a gun and a good sword or hanger was all the soldier wanted,
without mentioning a word of the bayonet—it was all that the ranger
wanted. When the last French war was closed, the cessions made to
Britain in these American regions, cut off all expectation of future
hostile armies in the country; and made the professed study of the arts
of war superfluous to a person inclined to the pleasure of a plantation.

Though the late Rev. Mr. Davis, whom you well remember when at London,
inserted the following note in a sermon of his on some special occasion,
“I may point out to the public that heroic youth colonel Washington,
whom I cannot but hope Providence has hitherto preserved in so signal a
manner for some important service to his country;” yet as no human
knowledge could, at that period, fathom the events of the present day,
and as there was no evidence of its being in a degree prophetic, it can
be ascribed only to the admiration the author felt while contemplating
the character of the colonel. But his being a person of strict honor and
probity, was undoubtedly a main reason with congress for electing him to
the chief command of the American army. They are fully persuaded of his
patriotism, that it is not pretended; that he will not betray the cause
of the united colonies; that he will not lavish away those scanty
supplies, which call for the greatest œconomy; that he will never prey
upon the vitals of his country to enrich himself, nor countenance others
in doing it; that while he is entrusted with the power of the sword he
will pay a sacred regard to the civil rights of his fellow-subjects; and
that he will not add needless barbarity to the unavoidable horrors and
calamities of war. He does not understand French; the knowledge of which
many will view as an important accomplishment, especially should the
continuance of the present rupture make the aid of France hereafter a
desirable acquisition. But should the times ever induce French
adventurers to repair in shoals to head-quarters, he may bless his
ignorance for securing him from many impertinent, long, and tiresome
applications of military men, of no eminence and little worth, mere
soldiers of fortune, who are after rank and riches, both which the
united colonies should deal out with a parsimonious hand, in
accommodation to their own circumstances. He entered on the forty-fourth
year of his age the 11th of last February. You will wish to know the
_political motive_ which may have swayed colonel Washington. You must
not look for it in any supposed neglect on the part of the British
government, after he had done them such eminent service in covering the
retreat of the troops in 1755. This may be insinuated to lessen his
character. But did he even think himself slighted at the time, he would
scarce have remembered it, much less have harbored any resentment upon
the occasion, for twenty years together. The _political motive_ must
certainly have been of another nature. It was probably complex. A common
danger has united the colonies; but has not eradicated all the
jealousies that before existed among them. New-York, Pennsylvania, and
the colonies to the southward, have not such confidence in the
Massachusetts Bay, as to admit that one of their own natives should be
the commander in chief. There is too great a nationality among the
Bay-men; such a one might be unduly prejudiced in favor of his own
colony. Beside, colonel Washington and the other colonists were in
pursuit of an honorable accommodation, and had not the most distant
thought of separating from Great-Britain. They could not be certain,
whatever was the case at present, that the Massachusetts would not
shortly aim at a separation; it was then a matter of consequence who
headed the army. Whatever some of the Massachusetts delegates might wish
in their hearts, they perceived the necessity of accommodating
themselves to the inclinations of others at such a crisis; and hence the
unanimity with which colonel Washington has been elected; for though it
was by ballot, it was not without pre-concerted counsel.

[June 17.] A draught of general Washington’s commission was agreed to,
and ordered to be fairly transcribed, signed, and delivered to him;
after which the congress declared, that they would maintain and assist,
and adhere to him, with their lives and fortunes, in the maintenance and
preservation of American liberty. They then proceeded to choose by
ballot, Artemas Ward, esq. first major-general, Horatio Gates
adjutant-general, and Charles Lee, esq. second major-general. Two days
after, they choose Philip Schuyler, esq. third major-general, and Israel
Putnam, esq. unanimously, fourth major-general.

Having attended to the proceedings of the general congress down to the
choice of their first officers to command the continental army, let us
return to the Massachusetts.

[June 15.] The committee of safety, having received various accounts of
the movements of general Gage’s army, and of his intention soon to make
an attempt to penetrate into the country, recommended to the congress
the ordering of all the militia to hold themselves in readiness to march
on the shortest notice; and to the council of war, the maintaining of
Bunker’s Hill by a sufficient force posted thereon, and the taking of
such steps respecting Dorchester Neck, as to them should appear to be
for the security of the colony. Bunker’s Hill is just at the entrance of
the peninsula of Charlestown, and is considerably high and large.

[June 16.] Orders were issued, that a detachment of a thousand men,
under colonel Prescott, do march at evening, and entrench upon the hill.
By some mistake Breed’s Hill, high and large like the other, but
situated on the furthest part of the peninsula next to Boston, was
marked out for the entrenchment instead of Bunker’s. The provincials
proceeded therefore to Breed’s Hill; but were prevented going to work
till near twelve o’clock at night, when they pursued their business with
the utmost diligence and alacrity, so that by the dawn of day they had
thrown up a small redoubt, about eight rods square. Such was the
extraordinary silence which reigned among them, that they were not heard
by the British on board their vessels in the neighboring waters. The
sight of the works was the first notice that the Lively man of war had
of them, when the captain began firing upon them, about four in the
morning. The guns called the town of Boston, the camp, and the fleet, to
behold a novelty which was little expected. The prospect obliged the
British generals to alter the plan which they meant to execute the next
day. They grew weary of being cooped up in Boston; and had resolved upon
making themselves masters of Dorchester Heights, and securing the _elbow
room_ which general Burgoyne proposed enjoying. But the present
provincial movement prevented the expedition. They were now called to
attempt possessing themselves of _Breed_’s Hill; on which the
provincials continued working, notwithstanding a heavy fire from the
enemy’s ships, a number of floating batteries, and a fortification upon
_Copp_’s Hill in Boston, directly opposite to the little American
redoubt. It is called Copp’s Hill, though the original name was Cope’s
Hill, from the name of the first owner. An incessant shower of shot and
bombs was rained by the batteries upon the American works, and yet but
one man was killed. The Americans continued laboring indefatigably till
they had thrown up a small breast-work, extended from the east side of
the redoubt to the bottom of the hill, but were prevented completing it
by the intolerable fire of the enemy. By some unaccountable error, the
detachment which had been working for hours, was neither relieved nor
supplied with refreshment, but was left to engage under these
disadvantages.

Between twelve and one o’clock, and the day exceeding hot, a number of
boats and barges, filled with regular troops from Boston, approach
Charlestown. The men are landed at Moreton’s Point. They consist of four
battalions, ten companies of the grenadiers, and ten of light infantry,
with a proportion of field artillery, but by some oversight their spare
cartridges are much too big for them, so that when the Americans are at
length forced from their lines, there is not a round of artillery
cartridges remaining. Major-general Howe and brigadier-general Pigot,
have the command. The troops form, and remain in that position till
joined by a second detachment of light infantry and grenadier companies,
a battalion of the land forces, and a battalion of marines, making in
the whole near upon 3000 men. Generals Clinton and Burgoyne take their
stand upon Copp’s Hill, to observe and contemplate the bloody and
destructive operations that are now commencing. The regulars form in two
lines, and advance deliberately, frequently halting, to give time for
the artillery to fire, but it is not well served. The light infantry are
directed to force the left point of the breast-work, and to take the
American line in flank. The grenadiers advance to attack in front,
supported by two battalions, while the left, under general Pigot,
inclines to the right of the American line. One or two of the
continental regiments had been posted in Charlestown; but afterward
removed to prevent their being cut off by a sudden attack; so that the
British are not hurt in the least by any musketry from thence, whatever
may hereafter be pretended; neither do generals Clinton and Burgoyne
perceive any[123] though properly stationed for observing all that
passes. General Gage had for some sime resolved upon burning the town,
when once any works were raised by the Americans upon the hills
belonging to it;[124] and while the British are advancing nearer and
nearer to the attack, orders come to Copp’s Hill for executing the
resolution; soon after a carcass is discharged, which sets fire to an
old house near the ferry way; the fire spreads, and most of the place is
instantly in flames. The houses at the eastern end of Charlestown are
fired by men landed from the boats. The regulars derive no advantage
from the smoke of the conflagration, for the wind suddenly shifting,
carries it another way, so that they have not the cover of it in their
approach. The provincials have not a rifleman among them, not one being
yet arrived from the southward; nor have they any rifle guns; they have
only common muskets, nor are these in general furnished with bayonets;
but then they are almost all marksmen, being accustomed to sporting of
one kind or other from their youth. A number of the Massachusetts troops
are in the redoubt and the part of the breast-work nearest it. The left
of the breast-work, and the open ground stretching beyond its point to
the water side, through which there has not been the opportunity of
carrying the work, is occupied partly by the Massachusetts forces, and
partly by the Connecticut, under capt. Nolton of Ashford, and the
New-Hampshire, under colonel Stark.

By the direction of the officers, the troops upon the open ground pull
up the post and rail fence, and carrying it forward to another of the
same kind, and putting some newly mowed grass between them, form a
slight defence in some parts. General Warren joins the Massachusetts
forces in one place, and general Pomeroy in another. General Putnam is
busily engaged in aiding and encouraging, here and there as the case
requires. The provincials are impatiently waiting the attack of the
enemy. What scenes now offer to our view! Here, a large and noble town,
consisting of about 300 dwelling houses, and near upon 200 other
buildings, in one great blaze, burning with amazing fury, being chiefly
timber, with but little exception. The only place of worship, a large
commodious meeting house, by its aspiring steeple, forms a pyramid of
fire above the rest. There, in Boston, the steeples, houses, and
heights, are covered with the inhabitants, and those of the military,
whose duty does not call them elsewhere. Yonder, the hills around the
country, and the fields, that afford a safe and distinct view of the
momentous contest, are occupied by Americans of all ages and orders. The
British move on steadily, but slowly, instead of using a quick step;
which gives the provincials the advantage of taking surer and cooler
aim. These reserve their fire till the regulars come within ten or
twelve rods, when they began a furious discharge of small arms, by which
the enemy is arrested, and which they return for some time without
advancing a step. The stream of American fire is so incessant, and does
such execution, that the regulars retreat in disorder, and with great
precipitation toward the place of landing, and some seek refuge even in
their boats. The officers are seen by the spectators on the opposite
shore running down to them, using the most passionate gestures, and
pushing them forward with their swords. At length they are rallied; but
march with apparent reluctance up to the entrenchment. The Americans
again reserve their fire, till the enemy come within five or six rods;
then discharge their well directed pieces, and put them a second time to
flight. Such is the loss already sustained, that several of the officers
say, “It is downright butchery to lead the men on afresh against the
lines.” But British honor is at stake; these must therefore be carried.
General Howe and the officers double their exertions. General Clinton
perceiving how the army is staggered, passes over, without waiting for
orders, and joins them in time to be of service. The united and
strenuous efforts of the different officers are again successful,
notwithstanding the men discover an almost insuperable aversion to
renewing the attack. The Americans are in want of powder, send for a
supply, but can procure none; for there is but a barrel and a half in
the magazine. This deficiency disables them from making the same defence
as before; while the British reap a farther advantage by bringing some
cannon to bear so as to rake the inside of the breast-work from end to
end; upon which the provincials retreat within their fort. The regular
army now makes a decisive push. The fire from the ships and batteries
and field artillery is redoubled. The officers in the rear goad on the
soldiers, and the redoubt is attacked on three sides at once. The
provincials are of necessity ordered to retreat; but they delay, and
keep the enemy at bay for some time with the butt end of their muskets,
till the redoubt is half filled with regulars; the works of which are
easily mounted, a few hours only having been employed in throwing them
up.

While these operations are going forward, at the breast-work and
redoubt, the light infantry are engaged in attempting to force the left
point of the former, through the space between that and the water, that
they may take the American line in flank. They exhibit repeated proofs
of undaunted courage; but the resistance they met with is as formidable
and fatal as what their fellow soldiers experienced in the other
quarter. Here the provincials also, by command, reserve their fire till
the enemy is near, and then pour in their shot upon the infantry with
such a true direction, and amazing success, as to mow them down in
ranks. Some of them are slightly guarded by the rail fences above
mentioned: but others are quite exposed, and more than is needful; and
the regulars will have no reason in future to charge them with fighting
unfairly, because of their using defences not formed by military rules
and workmen. The engagement between the two parties is kept up with
great resolution, but the well-aimed fire of the Americans does
astonishing execution; and the strenuous exertions of the regulars
cannot compel them to retreat, till they observe that their main body
has left the hill: when they give way but with more regularity than
could be expected from troops who had been no longer under discipline,
and in general never before saw an engagement.

The courage and conduct of the provincials that opposed the light
infantry, saved their co-patriots, who were overpowered and obliged to
retreat from the fort; and who must otherwise have been cut off, as the
enemy, but for such opposition, would have been instantly upon the back
of the redoubt. While these brave men were retreating, general Warren
was shot in the back part of his head, on the right side:[125] having
mechanically clapt his hand to the wound, he dropt down dead.

The retreat of the Americans lay over the Neck, which joined the
peninsula of Charlestown to the main land; and the Glasgow man of war
and two floating batteries were so stationed as to rake every part of it
with her shot, it was feared that they would be cut off after all, but
they retired with very little loss. The incessant fire kept up by the
ship and batteries across the Neck from the beginning of the engagement,
prevented any considerable reinforcements getting to the hill; but this
was owing more to the cowardice of some provincial officers than to the
execution of the shot.

The number of Americans engaged, including those who dared to cross the
Neck and join them, amounted only to fifteen hundred; but the unengaged,
who appeared in various parts, did, by their different movements, lead
many of the Boston spectators to apprehend, at that distance, that they
consisted of some thousands.

It was feared by the Americans, that the British troops would push the
advantage they had gained, and march immediately to head-quarters at
Cambridge, about two miles distant, and in no state of defence. But they
advanced no further than to Bunker’s Hill, of which they possessed
themselves the night of their retreat from Lexington; and here they
threw up works for their own security. The provincials did the same upon
Prospect Hill in front of them, about half way to Cambridge. The
apprehensions of each side in regard to the other appeared to be
similar. Both were guarding against an attack, in hopes of preventing
it. Had the resolution of either led on immediately to a fresh
engagement, the day would probably have been far more decisive. But the
loss of the peninsula damped the courage of the Americans, and the loss
of men depressed the spirits of the British. A veteran officer, who was
at the battles of Dittengen and Minden, and at several others in
Germany, has said, that for the time the engagement lasted, and the
number of men in it, he never knew any thing equal it. There was a
continued sheet of fire from the provincials for near half an hour, and
the action was hot for about double that period. In this short space,
the loss of the British, according to general Gage, amounted to 1054, of
whom 226 were killed, of these 19 were commissioned officers, including
a lieutenant-colonel, 2 majors, and 7 captains; 70 other officers were
wounded. Among those more generally regretted, were lieutenant-colonel
Abercrombie and major Pitcairn, who occasioned the first shedding of
blood at Lexington. The battle of Quebec, in the late war, with all its
glory, and the vastness of the consequences it produced, was not so
destructive to the British officers as this affair of an American
entrenchment, the work of only a few hours. Even at the battle of
Minden, where the British regiments sustained the force of the whole
French army for a considerable time, the number of officers killed,
including two who soon died of their wounds, was only 13, and the
wounded remaining 66; their whole loss in killed, was 291, in wounded
1037, together 1328.[126] That the officers suffered so, must be imputed
partly to their being aimed at by the Americans; and this may account
for most of those who were near the person of general Howe being slain
or disabled. It was a wonder that the general himself escaped. The men,
habituated to take sight, would naturally aim at the officers, without
expecting or waiting for orders, from an apprehension that much
confusion would follow upon their dropping. Gage’s account of the killed
and wounded is large, but does not equal by much, what has been given to
one of the select men of Boston, remaining in the town, by a sergeant
who declared he had seen the returns from the proper persons, the total
of which was 1325. The light infantry and grenadiers, the moment they
presented themselves, lost three-fourths of their men, and in a few
instances more. Of one company only three or five, and of another only
fourteen escaped. A number of tories served as volunteers, several of
whom were killed. The unexpected resistance of the Americans called
forth all the courage and exertions of the British officers, which did
not fail upon the occasion; but whatever commendations they are entitled
to upon that account, the Americans are certainly entitled to a proper
portion of the like, for having made the same necessary. These have now
wiped away the reproaches unjustly cast upon them by their enemies in
Britain. Let such praise the spirited conduct of general Howe and of
general Clinton, and attribute in a great measure the success of the day
to the firmness and gallantry of general Pigot; but let them no more
pronounce the colonists cowards, who will fly at the very sight of a
grenadier’s cap. The British, beside gaining the peninsula, took thirty
wounded prisoners, and five pieces of cannon out of six.

The loss of the provincials has been trifling. The killed and dead of
their wounds, are 139; the wounded living, 278; and the missing 36, in
all 453. They deeply regret the deaths of major general Warren, of
colonel Gardner of Cambridge, of lieutenent-colonel Parker, of
Clemsford, who was wounded taken prisoner, and perished in Boston jail;
of major Moore and major M‘Clany, who were the only officers of
distinction that they lost. But the death of general Warren will be most
severely felt and occasions the greatest sorrow. His enemies bear
testimony to his importance, by triumphing at his fall, and rating it as
better to them than 500 men. Neither resentment nor interested views,
but a regard to the liberties of his country induced him to oppose the
measure of government. He stepped forward into public view, not that he
might be noted and admired for a patriotic spirit, but because he _was_
a patriot. He was a gentleman of integrity, in whom the friends of
liberty could confide. The soundness of his judgment enabled him to give
good advice in private consultations. His powers of speech and reasoning
commanded respect and gained him influence in the provincial congress.
He aimed not at a separation from, but a coalition with Britain, upon a
full redress of grievances, and a reciprocal intercourse of interests
and affection. He was valued in private life for his engaging manners,
and as a physician for his professional abilities. The death of an
amiable consort had made his life of the greatest importance to his
children; he was willing however to risk it in the service of the
public. His intrepidity and zeal for the cause he had espoused, together
with the electing voice of the provincial congress, induced him to enter
upon the military line. Within four days after his appointment to a a
major-generalship, he fell a noble sacrifice to the natural rights of
mankind. He was of a middling size, and, of a lowish stature. The ladies
pronouced him handsome.

The tories exulted upon the acquisition of the peninsula of Charlestown;
but the experienced officers in the British service thought the
advantage too dearly purchased, and their countenances became gloomy
upon the occasion. The reason for it has been increasing from the
frequent and multiplied deaths of the wounded. These have suffered
greatly for want of fresh provisions and other supplies, which the
country alone could furnish: many would have survived, had they been as
well nursed as the wounded Americans out of Boston, of whom but few have
died; with regard to the wounded prisoners in town, there are complaints
of their having been ill-treated.

The burning of Charlestown, now a heap of ruins, though before the
present troubles, a place of great trade, has not had the least tendency
toward discouraging the provincials from prosecuting their opposition to
ministerial measures, whatever might have been the intention of general
Gage. It has not excited fear, but resentment, wrath and execration.
Such military executions may distress and impoverish, but will not
subdue the colonists. They might answer for the old world, but are not
calculated for the new.

In the opinion of many, general Howe was chargeable with a capital error
for landing and attacking as he did. It might originate from too great a
confidence in the forces he commanded, and in too contemptuous an
opinion of the enemy he had to encounter. He certainly might have
entrapped the provincials by landing on the narrrowest part of
Charlestown Neck, under the fire of the floating batteries and ships of
war. Here he might have stationed and fortified his army, and kept up an
open communication with Boston by a water carriage, which he would have
commanded through the aid of the navy, on each side of the peninsula.
Had he attempted this manœuvre, the provincials on observing it must
have made a rapid retreat from Breed’s Hill, to have escaped having his
troops in their rear, and being inclosed. It is said that general
Clinton proposed it. The rejection of the proposal, if really made, has
greatly weakened the British army, and probably prevented the ruin of
the American.

The colonists may regret, that general Howe conquered at Breed’s Hill;
but had the provincials driven him back into Boston it might have been
of far greater detriment to the common cause, than the present situation
of affairs. The Massachusetts colony would scarce have been easy under
the appointment of general Washington to the chief command, had general
Ward been crowned with the laurels of victory. The victory, as it
stands, will make the appointment go down easily, and prevent
objections. Not only so, but it has occasioned Gage’s dividing his army
to secure the conquest he has made. He has another post to maintain
which will employ so great a force, as to cramp his future operations.
Besides, had the British been driven back into Boston, they might have
removed to New-York, which would have answered their general design
better than remaining cooped up in their present position. In that city
and colony they would have had many more friends. There it is that the
ministry have their greatest influence. That would have been the
securest place for the troops, and where they might have procured those
supplies from the country which they are now deprived of. By early
reinforcements from Great-Britain, it might have been made so strong a
post, as to have commanded the North-river, and cut of the communication
between the colonies which that separates.

The provincials have been indefatigable in throwing up works and
securing the most exposed parts of their lines, with strong redoubts,
covered with artillery. They had strangely neglected fortifying the
passage from the Neck to the post of Roxbury, and even the post itself:
but since the Breed’s Hill battle they have compensated for the defect;
and to make their defence the more perfect have pulled down a very good
house (on a point where the road coming from Boston divides) which was
built by governor Dudley, and to whose false politics many are ready to
ascribe the early origin of those designs which the ministry are now
endeavoring to accomplish. The ministerial army abound in military
stores and artillery, and are not sparing in throwing shells and
supporting a great cannonade upon the provincial works, especially at
Roxbury. It was terrifying at first to raw troops, who, not being
accustomed to, expected to suffer greatly by it. Some damage has been
done among the houses in the street, one or two have been burnt, and a
man or two killed. But the provincials stationed there have found by
experience, that tho’ the noise is great, the damage is trifling, and
therefore despise it. They are so hardened by repeated firing, that a
cannonading is no more minded than a common thunder shower.

Breed’s Hill engagement excited fresh desires in the inhabitants of
Boston to leave the town. The select men had given repeated assurances
to general Gage, that they had delivered up their arms according to
agreement. In order to justify his detaining them [June 19.] he issued a
proclamation, in which he declared, that he had full proof of the
contrary, and that many had been perfidious in that respect, and had
secreted great numbers. Some few might secrete their sporting guns, or
curious arms. No doubt however is to be made, but that the greatest
part, or nearly all the training arms were delivered up. The impartial
world will scarcely acquit him of having been guilty of a notorious
breach of faith, even admitting his own plea. If individuals had not
complied with the proposal of delivering up their arms, yet as the
community had done it, the innocent were entitled to all the benefits of
the agreement. Numbers were afterward allowed to quit the town, but not
to take their effects, tho’ that was stipulated in the beginning; the
allowance, however, was thought to be owing to a desire of reducing the
consumption of provisions, when a scarcity was approaching.

The day the proclamation appeared, the chiefs and warriors of the
_Oneida_ tribe of Indians, directed the following speech to governor
Trumbull, to be communicated by him to the four New-England provinces:

“As my younger brothers of the New-England Indians, who have settled in
the vicinity, are now going down to visit their friends, and to move up
parts of their families that were left behind—with this belt, by them, I
open the road wide, clearing it of all obstacles, that they may visit
their friends and return to their settlements here in peace.

“We Oneidas are induced to this measure on account of the disagreeable
situation of affairs that way; and we hope by the help of God, they may
return in peace. We earnestly recommend them to your charity through
their long journey.

“Now we more immediately address you our brother, the governor, and the
chiefs of New-England.

“Brothers!—We have heard of the unhappy differences and great contention
between you and Old England. We wonder greatly, and are troubled in our
minds.

“Brothers! Possess your minds in peace respecting us Indians.—We cannot
intermeddle in this dispute between two brothers.—The quarrel seems to
be unnatural.—You are _two brothers of one blood_.—We are unwilling to
join on either side in such a contest, for we bear an equal affection to
both you Old and New-England.—Should the great king of England apply to
us for aid—we shall deny him.—If the colonies apply—we will refuse.—The
present situation of you two brothers, is new and strange to us.—We
Indians cannot find, nor recollect in the traditions of our ancestors,
the like case, or a similar instance.

“Brothers!—For these reasons possess your minds in peace, and take no
umbrage that we Indians refuse joining in the contest.—We are for peace.

“Brothers!—Was it an alien, a foreign nation, who had struck you, we
should look into the matter.—We hope through the wise government and
good pleasure of God, your distresses may be soon removed, and the dark
clouds be dispersed.

“Brothers!—As we have declared for peace, we desire you will not apply
to our Indian brethren in New-England for assistance.—Let us Indians be
all of one mind, and live with one another; and you white people settle
your own disputes betwixt yourselves.

“Brothers!—We have now declared our minds—please to write to us, that we
may know yours. We the sachems and warriors, and female governesses of
_Oneida_, send our love to you, brother governor, and all the other
chiefs in New-England.”

Signed by _William Sunoghsis_, _Nicklasha Watshaleagh_, _William
Kanaghquaesea_, _Peter Thayeheare_, _Jimmy Tekayaheare Nickhis
Aghsenhare_, i. e. garter; _Thomas Yoghtanowea_, i.e. spreading the dew;
_Adam Ohonwano_, _Quedellis Agwerondongwas_, i. e. breaking of the
twigs; _Handereheks Tegahsweahdyen_, i. e. a belt (of wampum) extended;
_Johnko Skeanendo_, _Thomas Teondeatha_, i. e. a fallen tree. Above a
hundred years back, a sachem of a family which was becoming extinct,
adopted a numerous family, and to commemorate their own decay and
extinction, called the adopted _Teondeatha_, which name is perpetuated,
as are several of their family names.

The speech was dated from _Kononwarohare_, i. e. a head erected on a
pole.

My friend the Rev. Mr. Samuel Kirkland, a missionary among the Oneidas,
and who understands the language, interpreted and wrote the above. He
tells me, that the Indian names of men, rivers and places, have often
special meanings, alluding to events or qualities, as is much the case
in the Hebrew language. The Indians are very deliberate in their
speeches, often pausing, to engage a closer attention to what they
deliver. They have a prevailing species of politeness, frequently
wanting in the conversation of civilized Europeans, too apt to pronounce
them savages and barbarians. They give close attention to the person
addressing them. They do not interrupt him while speaking, but wait till
he has finished; and consider it as great rudeness to be interrupted. In
their councils every one is heard with patience in all that he has to
say; profound silence reigns among the audience, to the exclusion o£ all
disturbance, and there are no private confabulations

The above Indian speech seems to refer to one which had been delivered
to the provincial congress eleven days before, by the Stockbridge
delegate, being the answer of the Indians dwelling there, to a message
of the former congress. This answer was—“Brothers! we have heard you
speak by your letter—we thank you for it—we now make answer. Brothers!
you remember when you first came over the great waters I was great and
you was little, very small. I then took you in for a friend, and kept
you under my arms, so that no one might injure you; since that time we
have ever been true friends; there has never been any quarrel between
us. But now our conditions are changed. You are become great and tall.
You reach to the clouds. You are seen all round the world. I am become
small, very little. I am not so high as your heel. Now you take care of
me, and I look to you for protection. Brothers! I am sorry to hear of
this great quarrel between you and Old England. It appears that blood
soon must be shed to end this quarrel. We never till this day understood
the foundation of this quarrel between you and the country you came
from. Brothers! Whenever I see your blood running, you will soon find me
about you to revenge my brother’s blood. Although I am low and very
small, I will gripe hold of your enemy’s heel, that he cannot run so
fast and so light as if he had nothing at his heels.

“Brothers! You know I am not so wise as you are, therefore I ask your
advice in what I am now going to say—I have been thinking before you
come to action, to take a run to the westward, and feel the mind of my
Indian brethren the six nations, and know how they stand, whether they
are on your side or for your enemies. If I find they are against you, I
will try to turn their minds. I think they will listen to me, for they
have always looked this way for advice concerning all important news
that comes from the rising of the sun. If they hearken to me, you will
not be afraid of any danger from behind you. However their minds are
affected, you shall soon know by me.—Now I think I can do you more
service in this way, than by marching off immediately to Boston, and
staying there; it may be a great while before blood runs. Now as I said,
you are wiser than I, I leave this for your consideration, whether I
come down immediately or wait till I hear some blood is spilled.

“Brothers! I would not have you think by this that we are falling back
from our engagements. We are ready to do any thing for your relief, and
shall be guided by your counsel.

“Brothers! One thing I ask of you, if you send for me to fight, that you
will let me fight in my own Indian way. I am not used to fight English
fashion, therefore you must not expect I can train like your men. Only
point out to me where your enemies keep, and that is all I shall want to
know.”

This speech was delivered the eleventh of April, 1775, by the chief
sachem of the _Moheakounuck_ tribe of Indians, residing at Stockbridge,
after sitting near two days in council. The provincial congress ordered
the following reply on the eighth of June, viz.

“Brothers! We this day, by the delegate from Stockbridge, first heard of
your friendly answer to our speech to you by captain William Goodrich,
which answer we are told you made to us immediately by a letter, which
we have not yet received. We now reply.

“Brothers! You say that you was once great, but that you are now little;
and that we were once little, but are now great. The supreme spirit
orders these things. Whether we are little or great, let us keep the
path of friendship clear which our fathers made, and in which we have
both travelled to this time. The friends of the wicked counsellors of
our king, fell upon us, and shed some blood soon after we spake to you
last by our letter. But we, with a small twig, killed so many, and
frightened them so much, that they have shut themselves up in our great
town called Boston, which they have made strong. We have now made our
hatchets, and all our instruments of war sharp and bright. All the chief
counsellors who live on this side the great water, are sitting in the
grand council-house in Philadelphia; when they give the word, we shall
all as one man fall on, and drive our enemies out of their strong fort,
and follow them till they shall take their hand out of our pouches, and
let us sit in our council-house, as we used to do, and as our father’s
did in old times.

“Brothers! Though you are small, yet you are wise. Use your wisdom to
help us. If you think it best, go and smoke your pipe with your Indian
brothers toward the setting of the sun, and tell them of all you hear
and all you see; and let us know what their wise men say. If some of
your young men should have a mind to see what we are doing here, let
them come down and tarry among our warriors. We will provide for them
while they are here.

“Brothers! When you have any trouble, come and tell it to us, and we
will help you.”

  To captain Solomon _Ahhaunnauwaumut_, chief sachem of the
      _Moheakounuck_ Indians.

[June 20.] the Massachusetts congress wrote to the several towns, that
the continental congress resolved on the 9th instant, “that no obedience
being due to the act of parliament for altering the charter of the
colony, &c.” and directed them to elect one or more freeholders to
represent them in a great and general court, to be held upon the 19th of
July, at Watertown. They also chose colonel Heath major-general, in the
place of the late general Warren.

[June 22.] Before general Washington left Philadelphia, the continental
congress chose by ballot, eight brigadier-generals—Seth Pomeroy, esq. of
the Massachusetts colony, the first; Richard Montgomery, esq. of
New-York, the second; David Wooster, esq. of Connecticut, the third;
William Heath, esq. of the Massachusetts, the fourth; Joseph Spencer,
esq. of Connecticut, the fifth; John Thomas, esq. of the Massachusetts,
the sixth; John Sullivan, esq. of Hampshire, the seventh; and Nathaniel
Greene, esq. of Rhode-Island, the eighth; and resolved, that the
officers in the army should receive their new commissions through the
hands of the general.

The same day they resolved, “That a sum not exceeding 2,000,000 of
Spanish milled dollars, be emitted by the congress, in bills of credit,
for the defence of America; and that THE TWELVE CONFEDERATED COLONIES
(thus they are termed) be pledged for the redemption of the bills.” This
is an expedient, without which they are not able to prosecute the
defence of America, as they have neither money nor revenues to recur to.
Some few of the delegates know, from what has happened in the northern
colonies, that the effects of a paper emission will be bad when it
becomes plentiful; has no stable fund for the speedy redemption of it;
and cannot be exchanged in the common intercourse of business for specie
or specie value. But the risk of smaller and personal evils must take
place rather than the total subversion of the rights of the united
colonies be endangered. No one delegate therefore opposed the present
expedient. As the news of Breed’s Hill battle had reached them by means
of a quick conveyance, they resolved, “That Pennsylvania raise two more
companies of riflemen, and that the whole eight be formed into a
battalion, to be commanded by such officers as shall be recommended by
the assembly or convention of said colony.”

Measures being pursued in North-Carolina to defeat the American
association, they resolved [June 26.] “That it be recommended to all in
that colony, who wish well to the liberties of America, to associate for
the defence of American liberty, and to embody themselves as militia,
under proper officers; and that in case the assembly or convention of
that colony shall think it absolutely necessary for the support of the
American association and safety of that colony to raise a thousand men,
this congress will consider them as an American army, and provide for
their pay.” They have gone too far to recede from the use of force, and
so must employ it wherever wanted to secure their friends, till the
point in dispute with Great-Britain is settled. The zeal, activity, and
unanimity of those Pennsylvanians in general, whose principles admit of
hostile resistance, have superceded the necessity of such like
resolutions in respect to them. The Philadelphia militia have been
formed into three battalions for some time; and in the beginning of the
month these, consisting of 1500 men, an artillery company of 150, with
two twelve and four six pound brass field pieces; a troop of light
horse, several companies of light infantry, rangers, and riflemen, in
the whole about two thousand, marched to the common, and having joined
in brigade went through the manual exercise, firing and manœuvres (with
a dexterity scarcely to be expected from so short a practice) in the
presence of the members of the continental congress, and several
thousand spectators. A considerable number even of the quakers, have
joined in the military association of the city. There is one company
composed entirely of gentlemen belonging to the religious denomination
of people they are convinced that weapons of war may be lawfully
employed in defending their national rights and liberties, though they
are averse to all offensive operations to gratify ambition covetousness
or revenge. The Pennsylvanians are careful to order the militia of the
counties to be frequently exercised. The colony has put on the most
martial appearance.

About the begining of June a committee of congress drew up a declaration
containing an offer to Great-Britain, “That the colonies would not only
continue to grant extraordinary aids in time of war, but also, if
allowed a free commerce, pay into the sinking fund such a sum annually
for one hundred years, as should be more than sufficient in that time,
if faithfully applied, to extinguish all the present debts of Britain.
Or, provided this was not accepted, that to remove the groundless
jealousy of Britain, that the colonies aimed at independence, and an
abolition of the navigation act which in truth they have never intended:
and also, to avoid all future disputes about the right of making that
and other acts for regulating their commerce for the general benefit
they would enter in a covenent with Britain, that she should fully
possess and exercise that right for one hundred years to come.” This
declaration was never entered upon the minutes of congress, for before
that could be done, they received the accout of the two restraining
acts, which proved its ruin.[127]

They resolved, “That in case any agent of the ministry shall induce the
Indian tribes, or any of them, to commit actual hostilities against
these colonies, or enter into an offensive alliance with the British
troops, thereupon the colonies ought to avail themselves of an allience
with such Indian nations as will enter into the same, to oppose such
British troops and their Indian allies.”

[July 2.] General Washington, accompanied by general Lee and other
gentlemen, arrived at Cambridge. A committee from the Massachusetts
congress repaired to Springfield, about a hundred miles from Boston, on
the way to Connecticut, there to receive them, and provide proper
escorts for them from thence to the army. They had been treated with the
highest honors in every place through which they passed; and been
escorted by large detachments of volunteers composed of gentlemen. The
general was addressed by the provincial congress of New-York as he came
along. They expressed their joy in his appointment; and toward the close
said, “We have the fullest assurances, that whenever this important
contest shall be decided by that fondest wish of each American soul, an
accomodation with our mother country, you will cheerfully rasign the
important deposit committed into your hands, and re-assume the character
of our worthiest citizen.” The general, after declaring his gratitude
for the regard shown him, added, “Be assured, that every exertion of my
worthy colleagues and myself, will be extended to the re-establishment
of peace and harmony, between the mother country and these colonies; as
to the fatal but necessary operations of war, when we assumed the
soldier, we did not lay aside the citizen and we shall most sincerely
rejoice with you, in that happy hour, when the establishment of American
liberty, on the most firm and solid foundations, shall enable us to
return to our private stations, in the bosom of a free, peaceful and
happy country.” Since his arrival he has been addressed in the most
affectionate and respectful manner by the Massachusetts congress. You
must have a recourse to the public prints for his whole answer, but take
the beginning for a specimen, “Gentlemen, your kind congratulations on
my appointment and arrival, demand my warmest acknowledgments and will
be ever retained in grateful remembrance. In exchanging the enjoyments
of domestic life for the duties of my present honorable but arduous
station, I only emulate the virtue and public spirit of the whole
province of Massachusetts Bay, which, with a firmness, and patriotism
without example in modern history, has sacrificed all the comforts of
social and political life, in support of the rights of mankind, and the
welfare of our common country. My highest ambition is, to be the happy
instrument of vindicating those rights, and to see this devoted province
again restored to peace, liberty, and safety.” This paragraph was
extremely gratifying to the persons to whom it was directed.

The general began to give out the congressional commissions, but
suspended all further delivery when general Putnam had received his,
upon learning that the appointments so degraded general Thomas by
ranking him far below is juniors in office, that he could not with any
propriety continue in the army on that footing, but must decline serving
the country in a military capacity. The several generals regretted the
mistake, and wished to have the difficulty removed. Washington
acquainted the congress with it, upon which they appointed him first
brigadier-general, in the room of Seth Pomeroy, who had never acted
under his commission, and was too far advanced in life.

General Green testified his regard for the commander in chief, by
addressing him on his appointment and arrival, and by declaring the
satisfaction he should feel in serving under his command. He was joined
in the address by the officers of his brigade. If other generals and
officers have done the like, it has not come to my knowledge. This
singular instance of respect must make a favorable and lasting
impression on the mind of general Washington. The general, after a
careful inspection, could not estimate the continental army at more than
14,500 men capable of duly, who had to defend an extent of at least
twelve miles. But such has been the precaution and guard exercised on
every side of Boston, that the regiment of light cavalry arrived there,
has not set foot beyond the garrison, and serves only to create new
wants, and to increase the inconveniencies of the people as well as of
the British army. The hay growing upon the islands, together with the
sheep and cattle remaining upon them, proved an object of necessary
attention:—but the continentals possessing a number of whale boats, and
being masters of the shores and inlets, were successful in burning,
destroying, or carrying off those essential articles of supply,
notwithstanding the number of British ships of war and armed vessels.

[July 11.] A party of 500 continentals went at night from the Roxbury
camp, and getting into 65 whale boats, proceeded to Long-Island, and
brought off 15 of the enemy, about 20 head of cattle, and 100 sheep. The
next day [July 12.] they went again and burnt the hay, &c., when there
was considerable fighting between them and the British boats and
schooners. About six days after, a number burnt the light-house on an
island, nine miles below Boston, at the entrance of the harbour, though
a man of war lay within a mile of the place.

Since the arrival of the continental generals, the regulations of the
camp have been greatly for the better. Before, there was little
emulation among the officers: and the soldiers were lazy, disorderly and
dirty. The freedom of which the New-Englanders have alway been
accustomed, makes them impatient of controul, and renders it extremely
difficult to establish that discipline so essential to troops, in order
to success. Discipline will not inspire cowards with courage, but it
will make them fight. The army has been thrown into three grand
divisions: general Ward commands the right wing at Roxbury; general Lee
the left at Prospect Hill; and the centre, in which is included a corps
de reserve, is commanded by general Washington. Adjutant-general Gates
has been of special service in arranging the army. His military skill in
those matters has supplied the want of it in others. The public cannot
be too thankful for this benefit. Every officer and private begins to
know his place and duty. Method and punctuality are growing into use,
and becoming habitual. The troops will shortly have the mechanism and
movements, as well as the name of an army.

The continental lines are so strengthened, the number of redoubts and
mounted cannon so many, as to make an attack upon Cambridge, or a
penetration into the country that way impracticable. The British
according to the intelligence obtained from Boston, have lost by death,
including the slain, and those who died of their wounds near upon 2500,
since the nineteenth of April.

General Washington acquainted congress, that the allowance of provisions
to the troops and the mode of delivering out, are different from what
has fallen within his experience, and must prove very wasteful and
expensive. The high pay of the soldiers,[128] which greatly exceeds that
of the British will make a more œconomical plan necessary. But the most
painful information he had to communicate, was that of the want of
powder. [August 13.] He discovered, that the whole stock of the army at
Roxbury, Cambridge, and the adjacent places, consisted but of ninety
barrels or thereabouts: that there were no more than 36 in the
Massachusetts magazine, which with the stock of New-Hampshire,
Rhode-Island and Connecticut, made but 9937lb. not more than nine rounds
a man. The continentals remained in this destitute condition for about a
fortnight or more, till the Jersey committee of Elizabeth-Town, upon
receiving the alarming news, sent on a few tons, which they were obliged
to do with the greatest privacy, lest the fears of their own people, had
it been known, should have stopt it for their own use, in case of an
emergency. During this interval, the scarcity of powder became a camp
talk; and a deserter carried the account of it to Boston. The British
dared not to rely upon the intelligence, having been so often deceived.
Beside, though they had met with unexpected proofs of American courage,
yet they could not believe the colonists possessed of such consummate
assurance, as to continue investing them, while so destitute of
ammunition. They rather suspected a deep laid plot to ensnare them.

All the riflemen are arrived in camp. The congressional resolve, for
raising eight hundred, passed on the fourteenth of June, and on the
twenty second they agreed upon two additional companies of
Pennsylvanians. No orders were dispatched before the fourteenth, and the
expresses had to ride three or four hundred miles to the persons
directed to raise them. The men to the amount of 1430, were raised,
completely armed, most with their own rifles, and accoutred for the
field with such expedition as to join the army at Cambridge, one company
on the 25th of July, the rest on the 5th and 7th of August; all had
marched from four to seven hundred miles. The whole business was
performed in less than two months, without a farthing advanced from the
continental treasury.

The present is a good time for relating what the congress have been
doing.

[July 6.] They agreed to a _Declaration_ in behalf of the colonies,
_setting forth the causes and necessity of their taking up arms_. After
enumerating the injuries they had suffered, they reprobated the
principles of lord North’s conciliatory plan, without naming it, and
said, “Parliament adopted an insidious manœuver, calculated to divide
us, to establish a perpetual auction of taxations, where colony should
bid against colony, all of them uninformed what ransom would redeem
their lives.” They went on to mention the perfidy of general Gage in
breaking his agreement with the inhabitants of Boston—the wanton burning
of Charlestown, and a considerable number of houses in other places—the
seizure of their ships and vessels—the instigation of the Canadians and
Indians to fall upon them. They then said, “We are reduced to the
alternative of choosing an unconditional submission to the tyranny of
irritated ministers, or resistance by force. The latter is our choice.
We have counted the cost of this contest, and find nothing so dreadful
as voluntary slavery. Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to
surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and
which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot
endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that
wretchedness which inevitably awaits them, if we basely entail
hereditary bondage upon them.”

“Our cause is just. Our union is perfect. Our internal resources are
great; and if necessary _foreign assistance_ is undoubtedly attainable.”
This intimation of _foreign assistance_, was not founded upon any
private information, but flowed solely from the persuasion that one or
more foreign powers will readily embrace the opportunity of a fixed
breach between Great-Britain and the colonies, to weaken the power of
the first by assisting the last. But that they might not by their
declaration, disquiet the minds of their friends and fellow-subjects,
congress assured them, that they meant not to dissolve that union which
had so long and so happily subsisted between them and Britain. They
concluded thus, “With an humble confidence in the mercies of the supreme
and impartial Judge and Ruler of the universe, we most devoutly implore
his divine goodness to protect us happily through this great conflict,
to dispose our adversaries to reconciliation on reasonable terms, and
thereby to relieve the empire from the calamities of civil war.”

The declaration of congress has been read with religious solemnity by
the chaplains, to the different bodies of the American army about
Boston, and received with loud acclamations by the troops, and the
numerous spectators who were present upon the occasion. The same day
that congress agreed upon the declaration, they resolved upon a letter
of thanks to the lord mayor, aldermen, and livery of the city of London,
for their virtuous and spirited opposition to the oppressive and ruinous
system of colony administration adopted by the British ministry.

[July 8.] The petition to the king being ready, it was signed by the
members present. It is a decent, dutiful, and truly filial petition, and
deserves to be written in letters of gold, for the sentiments it
breathes toward the parent state. Had money been wanting to have
purchased it, it would have been wisdom to have bought it at any price.
If properly received, it may be made the basis of an internal compact
between Great-Britain and her American colonies, which may to all ages
bid defiance to the intrigues of France, and the murmurs of rotten
hearted men, either in Britain or America. The sincerity of it may be
called into question by the ministry. Let them put the sincerity of it
to the test, by promoting a compliance with the contents, and so
over-reach those individual delegates who may wish a continuance of the
present quarrel. The colonies, as yet, desire no more than a redress of
grievances, and security against a repetition of them. They most
ardently long for a firm and indissoluble union with the parent state,
upon these grounds. Thus it is with the army. It is the wish of general
Washington particularly, and such is its reasonableness, that he hopes
and expects that the contest will be shortly terminated, so as to admit
of his eating his next Christmas dinner at his own delightful residence
on _Mount Vernon_.

The same day the congress agreed to an _Address to the inhabitants of_
Great-Britain—In it they said, “We have again presented an humble and
dutiful petition to our sovereign; and to remove every imputation of
obstinacy, have requested his majesty to direct some mode by which the
united applications of his faithful colonists may be improved into a
happy and permanent reconciliation. We are willing to treat on such
terms as can alone render an accommodation lasting; and we flatter
ourselves that our pacific endeavors will be attended with a removal of
ministerial troops, and a repeal of those laws, of the operation of
which we complain, on the one part, and a disbanding of our army, and a
dissolution of our commercial associations, on the other.” They, after
that, insinuated the danger the inhabitants of Britain would be in of
losing their freedom, in case their American brethren were subdued. The
address is intended to conciliate the minds of the inhabitants of
Britain to the measures that the colonists have already taken, or may be
obliged further to take, and to obtain the countenance of the former.

The petition to the king, the address to the inhabitants of
Great-Britain, and the letter to the lord mayor, &c. were ordered to be
sent under cover to Richard Penn, esq. whom the president was to
request, in behalf of the congress, to join with the colony agents in
presenting the petition to the king. Mr. Penn sailed four days after
this order, for England.

[July 12.] The congress agreed upon appointing commissioners to
superintend Indian affairs in behalf of the colonies.—Proper talks to
the Indians were ordered to be prepared, which were reported the next
day [July 13.] and accepted.

[July 18.] The congress resolved to recommend to all able-bodied
effective men in each colony, between sixteen and fifty, immediately to
form themselves into regular companies of militia; to acquire military
skill, and to be well prepared for defence; and that a fourth part of
the militia in every colony be selected for minute-men, and be ready to
march wherever their assistance may be required. It was earnestly
recommended to those who could not conscientiously bear arms in any case
to contribute liberally to the relief of their distressed brethren, and
to do all other services to their oppressed country, which they could
consistently with their religious principles. They also proposed that
each colony should appoint a committee of safety, to direct all matters
necessary for the security of their respective colonies, in the recess
of their assemblies and conventions; and should make such provision, by
armed vessels or otherwise, as might be judged expedient for the
protection of their harbours and navigation on their sea-coasts, against
all hostile cutters and ships of war.

[July 20.] This being the day appointed for the continental fast,
congress agreed to meet, and go in a body to divine service both parts
of the day. They requested Mr. _Duche_ to preach before them in the
morning, and Dr. _Allison_ in the afternoon. But before the service,
they met time enough to read some dispatches brought by express from
general Schuyler, and a letter from the convention of Georgia, setting
forth that the colony had acceded to the general association, and
appointed delegates to attend the congress.

The day was kept at Philadelphia as the most solemn fast ever held in
that city. It was religiously observed throughout the united colonies.
The united synod of New-York and Philadelphia had published a pastoral
letter some time before; it was read on that day in the churches under
their care, which are very numerous. They said in it, “As the whole
continent, with hardly any exception, seem determined to defend their
rights by force of arms, it becomes the peculiar duty of those who
profess a willingness to hazard their lives in the cause of liberty, to
be prepared for death, which to many must be a certain, and to every one
is a possible or probable event. It is well known to you (otherwise it
would be impudent thus publicly to profess) that we have not been
instrumental in inflaming the minds of the people, or urging them to
acts of violence and disorder. Perhaps no instance can be given, on so
interesting a subject, in which political sentiments have been so long
and so fully kept from the pulpit, and even malice itself has not
charged us with laboring from the press; but things are now come to such
a height, that we do not wish to conceal our opinions as men. Suffer us
therefore to exhort you, by assuring you, that there is no army so
formidable as those who are superior to the fear of death. Let,
therefore, every one who, from generosity of spirit, or benevolence of
heart, offers himself as a champion in his country’s cause, be persuaded
to reverence the _Lord of Hosts_, and walk in the fear of the _Prince of
the kings of the earth_, and then he may, with the most unshaken
firmness, expect the issue either in death or victory.”

After several other exhortations, they offered six advices, in substance
as follows: 1st, Let every opportunity be taken to express your
attachment to king George and the revolution principles. We recommend
esteem and reverence for the person of the prince, who has probably been
misled into the late and present measures by those about him; neither
have we any doubt, that they themselves have been in a great degree
deceived by false information from interested persons residing in
America.—2dly, Be careful to maintain the union which at present
subsists in all the colonies, on which the success of every measure
depends.—3dly, We earnestly beseech all societies to watch over their
members, and discourage luxury of living, public diversions, and gaming
of all kinds.—4thly, We recommend a regard to public order and peace;
that all persons conscientiously pay their debts, and to the utmost of
their power serve one another, so that the evils inseparable from a
civil war may not be augmented by wantonness and irregularity.—5thly, We
recommend to all ranks, but particularly to those who may be called to
action, a spirit of humanity and mercy. We recommend that meekness and
gentleness of spirit which is the noblest attendant on true valor. That
man will fight most bravely, who never fights but when it is necessary,
and who ceases to fight as soon as the necessity is over.—Lastly, We
would recommend to all societies, not to content themselves with
attending devoutly on fasts, but to continue habitually in prayer, and
to have frequent voluntary meetings for solemn intercession with God on
the important trial.”

The accession of Georgia, was owing much to the exertions of the
reverend Dr. Zubly; who roused the attention of many in the province to
the alarming situation of American affairs; so that at length a general
election was held for delegates to set in provincial congress. They met
on the fourth of July in Savannah: and requested the governor to appoint
a day of fasting and prayer throughout the province, that a happy
reconciliation might soon take place between America and the parent
state, and that, under the auspicious reign of his majesty and his
descendants, both countries might remain united, virtuous, free and
happy, till time should be no more. His excellency James Wright
consented, as the request was expressed in such loyal and dutiful terms,
and the ends proposed such as every good man most ardently wished. They
chose the reverend Dr. Zubly, and four others, delegates to represent
the province in the continental congress; and at once entered into all
the spirit of the resolutions formed by the other colonies, and adopted
similar. They declared, that, though their province was not included in
the late restraining bill, they considered that circumstance rather as
an insult than a favor, as being meant to break the union of the
provinces, as being grounded on the supposition, that the inhabitants of
the excepted province could be base enough to turn the oppression of
America into a mean advantage. They also agreed upon an humble address
and representation to his majesty, which as it was not deficient in a
certain freshness of colouring, had the appearance of novelty.

[July 25.] The congress agreed in an address to the assembly of Jamaica:
and in it said, “We receive uncommon pleasure from observing the
principles of our righteous opposition distinguished by your
approbation. We feel the warmest gratitude for your pathetic mediation
in our behalf with the crown. The peculiar situation of your island
forbids your assistance. But we having your good wishes to the friends
of liberty and mankind, shall always derive consolation.”

They also resolved, That a body of forces, not exceeding five thousand,
be kept up in the New-York department:—and that a further sum of one
million Spanish milled dollars, be struck in bills of thirty dollars
each.

[July 26.] They established a post-office, to reach from Falmouth, in
New-England, to Savannah, in Georgia; and then unanimously elected
Benjamin Franklin, esq. post-master general.

[July 27.] They proceeded to the establishment of an hospital for an
army of 20,000 men; and elected Benjamin Church, to be director of and
physician in it.

[July 28.] They agreed to an address to the people of Ireland, and in it
furnished them with a true state of the colonial motives and objects,
the better to enable them to judge of the conduct of the colonists with
accuracy, and to determine the merits of the controversy with
impartiality and precision. They then anticipated the golden period,
when liberty, with all the gentle arts of peace and humanity, should
establish her mild dominion in the western world, and erect eternal
monuments to the memory of those virtuous patriots and martyrs, who
shall have fought and bled, and suffered in her cause. Toward the close
the language is, “Accept our most greatful acknowledgments for the
friendly disposition you have always shown toward us.—We know that you
are not without your grievances—We sympathize with you in your distress,
and are pleased to find that the design of subjugating us, has persuaded
administration to dispense to _Ireland_ some vagrant rays of ministerial
sunshine.—Even the tender mercies of government have long been cruel
toward you.—In the rich pastures of Ireland, many hungry parricides have
fed, and grown strong to labour in its destruction.” In the body of it,
a shaft is elegantly pointed at one of the British generals.—“_America_
is amazed to find the name of _Howe_ in the catalogue of her
enemies:—she loved his brother.” The former lord _Howe_ fell by the shot
of a French Indian, after landing on the left toward the bottom of Lake
George, and while heading his corps and marching under the command of
general Abercrombie, to attack Tyconderoga. The Massachusetts assembly,
to express their affection and strong sense of his worthy character, had
a monument erected to his memory in Westminster-abby.

[July 29.] The quotas of the several colonies toward the common expence
was settled, for the present, subject to a future revision and
correction.

[July 31.] The assemblies of New-Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia,
having referred to the congress the resolution of the house of commons,
comprehending lord North’s conciliatory plan, they expressed their
opinion upon it, to the following purpose, viz. “The colonies are
entitled to the sole and exclusive privilege of giving and granting
their own money. As they possess a right of appropriating their gifts,
so are they entitled at all times to inquire into their application.
This privilege of giving or withholding their monies, is an important
barrier against the undue exertion of prerogative.

“The proposition contained in the resolution is unreasonable and
insidious: _unreasonable_, because, if we declare we accede to it, we
declare without reservation, we will purchase the favor of parliament,
not knowing at the same time at what price they will please to estimate
their favor; it is _insidious_, because individual colonies, having bid
and bidden again, till they find the avidity of the seller too great for
all their powers to satisfy, are then to return into opposition, divided
from their sister colonies, whom the minister will have previously
detached by a grant of easier terms, or by an artful procrastination of
a definitive answer. The suspension of the exercise of their pretended
power of taxation being expressly made commensurate with the continuance
of our gifts, these must be perpetual to make that so. The proposition
is altogether unsatisfactory, because it imports only a suspension of
the mode, not a renunciation of the pretended right to tax us; because
too, it does not propose to repeal the several acts of parliament
complained of as grievances.

“Upon the whole, this proposition seems to have been held up to the
world, to deceive it into a belief that there was nothing in dispute
between us, but the mode of levying taxes; and that the parliament
having now been so good as to give up this, the colonies are
unreasonable if not perfectly satisfied: whereas, in truth, our
adversaries still claim a right of demanding _ad libitum_, and of taxing
us themselves to the full amount of their demand, if we do not comply
with it. This leaves us without any thing we can call property.”

Congress had reprobated the conciliatory plan in their address to the
British inhabitants; but now they discussed it fully, and exposed its
futility. The next day, August the first, they adjourned to Tuesday the
fifth of September.

The declaration of congress, their petition to the king, their address
to the inhabitants of Great-Britain, the other to the people of Ireland,
and their opinion upon the resolution of the house of commons, must
evidence to the world, that they have men of the first abilities among
them, whose writings will vie with the public declarations and acts of
any powers, on the greatest occasions, in respect to art, address and
execution.

When you consider the variety of climates, soils, religions, civil
governments, commercial interests, &c. which were represented in the
former congress, and the late session of the present; and the various
occupations, educations and characters of the gentleman who composed
them; you will judge, that the general harmony and unanimity which
prevailed in them, is scarcely to be paralleled. At the revolution, such
mighty questions as, “Whether is the throne vacant or not? Whether shall
the prince of Orange be king or not?” were determined in the convention
parliament, by small majorities—the last question by two only. The great
majorities, the almost unanimity, with which most capital questions have
been decided in the continental congress, will be considered by numbers
in no other light than as the happiest omens; or rather as providential
dispensations in favor of the colonies; as well as the clearest
demonstrations of their cordial, firm, radical, and indissoluble union.

The adjournment of congress affords the delegates the best means of
consulting with their constituents, as to what further measures it may
be necessary to adopt: as also certain individuals who may look forward
to independency, a much more favorable opportunity of ripening their
designs by private, personal intercourse with special confidents, than
can be enjoyed by an epistolary correspondence. By well-timed hints,
they may scatter those sentimental seeds, which shall at length produce
events not at present suspected even by the persons attending to such
hints.

The Georgia delegates did not come on, and join the congress before the
session was closed.

The inhabitants of South-Carolina were so zealous, and the alarm spread
by the Lexington engagement so extensive through the colony, that 172
members met in provincial congress, [June 1.] agreeable to the summons
issued three and twenty days before by the general committee.

[June 2.] They unanimously resolved, that an association was necessary,
which was drawn up and signed by their president Henry Laurens, esq. and
all the members present. In it they declared—“Thoroughly convinced that,
under our present distressed circumstances, we shall be justified before
God and man, in resisting force by force, we do unite ourselves under
every tie of religion and honor, and associate as a band in the defence
of an injured country against every foe—hereby solemnly engaging, that,
whenever our continental or provincial councils shall decree it
necessary, we will go fourth, and be ready to sacrifice our lives and
fortunes to secure her freedom and safety. This obligation to continue
in full force until a reconciliation shall take place between
Great-Britain and America, upon constitutional principles—an event which
we most heartily desire. And we will hold all those persons inimical to
the liberty of the colonies who shall refuse to subscribe this
association.” This was afterward prettly generally subscribed by the
inhabitants.

[June 5.] It was resolved to raise two regiments of foot, and a regiment
of rangers; and to put the town and province in a respectable posture of
defence. The provincial congress were sensible that the expences would
be great. But it was the language there, as well as in the other
colonies, among the friends to freedom, “_We will freely give up half,
or even the whole of our fortunes to secure our liberties_.” Bills of
credit were struck, which, through the consent and enthusiasm of the
people, supplied the present emergency.

So great was the military order among the gentlemen, that candidates for
commissions were four times more than could be employed; and in the
number were many of the first families and fortunes. The militia
officers resigned their commissions under the governor, and by their own
consent were subjected to the orders of the provincial congress.

Thus the popular leaders, in a few weeks, had an army and treasury at
their command. Thirteen gentlemen were chosen a council of safety.

While this congress was setting, lord William Campbell, governor of the
province, arrived, and was received with all the demonstrations of joy
usual on similar occasions.

[June 12.] The congress waited on him with an address, in which they
disclosed to him the true causes of their present proceedings; and
declared, that no love of innovation, no desire of altering the
constitution of government, no lust of independence, had the least
influence upon their councils; but that they had been impelled to
associate and take up arms, solely for the preservation, and in defence
of their lives, liberties and properties. They entreated his excellency
to make such a representation of the state of the colony, and of their
true motives, as to assure his majesty, that he had no subjects who more
sincerely desired to testify their loyalty and affection, or would be
more willing to devote their lives and fortunes in his real service. His
lordship returned a very mild and prudent answer.

[June 22.] They adjourned, having first delegated a great part of their
authority to the council of safety and the general committee; the former
of which is in the nature of an executive, and the latter of a
legislative authority. It was particularly recommended to the general
committee, to take effectual methods to have the association signed
through the province, and to demand from the non-subscribers the reasons
of their refusal.

The non-subscribers have been advertised as inimical to the liberties of
America, and all intercourse between them and the associators
interdicted. An oath of neutrality has been required of all, to which
some have agreed; others refusing have been disarmed; and a few, who
would not enter into any engagements for the public security, have been
confined to their houses and plantations.

In these kinds of interesting civil broils, matters are generally
carried to an excess, and policy often tramples upon truth and justice.
Among the non-subsribers, there may have been several real friends to
the liberties of America, who could not in conscience subscribe the
association.

The South-Carolinians, having agreed upon a military opposition, were
resolved to defend Charlestown to the last extremity; and yet the whole
quantity of powder in the colony did not exceed three thousand pounds. A
military opposition, not being originally designed or expected by them
any more than by the people of the other colonies, there was the like
inattention as elsewhere, in regard to the providing of stores. Reduced
now to the alternative of fighting or submitting, they took
extraordinary methods to obtain a supply. The inhabitants of
East-Florida, having never joined in measures of opposition to Britain,
the ports of that province were open for the purposes of trade.

Twelve persons, therefore, authorised by the council of safety, sailed
from Charlestown for that coast; and by surprise, boarded a vessel near
the bar of St. Augustine, though twelve British grenadiers, of the 14th
regiment, were on board. They took out fifteen thousand pounds of
powder, for which they gave a bill of exchange to the captain; and
having secured a safe retreat to themselves, steered for Beaufort, and
from thence by an inland navigation escaped their pursuers, and got safe
to Charlestown.

North-Carolina was no less spirited than South. The militia were arrayed
and exercised, and other measures taken to support whatever opposition
they might be called to make against the British adherents. Governor
Martin was equally vigorous, though not equally successful. He expected,
by means of the back settlers, Scotch inhabitants, and Highland
emigrants, to have made a stand against the patriotic party, and
therefore took pains to fortify his palace at Newbern; but before it
could be effected, his attempting to move the palace guns, alarmed the
committee of the place; who, at the head of a body of armed men,
interposed, seized and carried off six pieces of artillery, which lay
behind the palace. This occasioned the governor’s making a precipitate
flight to Fort Johnson on Cape-Fear river. The people, apprehensive that
he would strengthen, and prepare it for the reception of a force to be
employed in reducing the colony, and concluding, that he would encourage
the slaves to revolt, in case of the failure of all other means to
maintain the king’s government; collected at Wilmington under colonel
Ashe, who had resigned his governmental commission, [July 17.] and
accepted one from popular authority. The colonel designed removing the
king’s artillery from the fort; but the cannon and stores were secured
in time, by order of the governor, who retired on board the king’s sloop
the Cruiser.

[July 18.] Colonel Ashe, in the dead of the night, entered the fort,
fired it, and reduced the houses and buildings to ashes. The next day he
compleated the destruction of its wooden defences, to which the fire had
not extended; and burnt the houses, and desolated every thing in the
neighborhood of the place, that so they might prove of no benefit to the
governor.

The Newbern committee apprehending he means to erect the king’s
standard, and to commence hostilities, have resolved “That no person or
persons whatsoever have any correspondence with him, on pain of peing
deemed enemies to the liberties of America, and dealt with accordingly.”
Persons, throughout the united colonies, dread being advertised for
_enemies to the liberties of America_.

In treating of Virginia, we must go back to captain Henry’s advancing
with his volunteers toward Williamsburgh. The alarm it occasioned, put
lord Dunmore upon converting his palace into a garrison, fortifying it
in the best manner he could, and surrounding it with artillery. From
thence he issued a proclamation, charging Mr. Henry and his followers
with rebellious practices, and attributing the present commotions to
disaffection in the people, and a desire of changing the established
form of government; which served only to increase the discontent. On the
other hand, the Virginians, in their county meetings, applauded Mr.
Henry’s conduct; and insisted, that they wanted nothing but to preserve
their ancient constitution, and only opposed innovations. The
disturbances they charged to the governor’s late conduct. The
discontents of the people were increased by some procured copies of
letters from his lordship to the minister of the American department,
and which were severely censured as containing not only unfavorable, but
unfair and unjust representations, as well of facts, as of the temper
and disposition of the colony.

In this state of disorder, on the arrival of dispatches from
Great-Britain, the house of burgesses was suddenly and unexpectedly
convened by the governor, [June 1.] The grand motive for it was to
procure their approbation of lord North’s concilitary plan; accordingly
in his speech he used the utmost address to carry this point.

The first act however of the house, was the appointment of a committee
to inquire into the causes of the late disturbances, and particularly to
examine the state of the magazine, that measures might be taken for its
replenishment. Means having been contrived by his lordship’s order for
securing the magazine, and notice having been given of spring guns being
prepared, some inconsiderate young men attempted to furnish themselves
with arms out of it, and one of them was wounded. The mode of defending
the magazine by spring guns, and the unfortunate accident, irritated the
minds of many, who were joined by others. A great concourse of people,
from different parts, assembled, and though the house was sitting, broke
open the magazine, and took away many of the arms. Some of the members,
hearing what was going forward, repaired to the magazine, and though not
in time to prevent its being forced open, by remonstrating with all the
people they met against such proceedings, prevailed with them to return
the arms. The keys of the magazine were afterwards delivered to the
committee of the house, by his lordship’s order; who, upon examination,
found most of the remaining powder buried in the magazine yard, where it
suffered considerable damage by the rain; the muskets were deprived of
their locks; and the magazine was naked and insufficient in all
respects.

[June 7.] An account was brought into Williamsburgh, that captain
Collins of the Magdalen, had slipped his cables, and was come up the
river with a number of boats, containing a hundred men at least,
intended to be marched into the city. Upon this report a number of
people assembled under arms, that they might defend the city and its
inhabitants, in case any thing hostile should be attempted. Upon hearing
what his lordship had said to the council, they retired peaceably and
quietly, without any disturbance. However, their readiness to assemble
under arms upon reports, without waiting to know whether they were true
or false, made such an impression upon the governor’s mind that he with
his lady and family quitted the place, early in the morning of July 8,
proceeded to York-town, and went on board the Fowey man of war. He had
the honor of being the first governor,[129] who thinks it necessary to
quit his government, and take refuge on board his majesty’s fleet:
though in his letter of May the first, he held out to ministry his hope,
that with a supply of arms and ammunition, he should be able to collect
from among Indians, negroes, and other persons, a sufficient force to
defend government. He left a message for the house of burgesses,
acquainting them, that both himself and family were in constant danger
through the fury of the people; that he hoped they would proceed in the
business before them; and that he should attend as usual to the duties
of his office, and was disposed to restore the harmony, which had been
so unhappily interrupted.

[June 9.] The message produced a joint address from the council and
house, declaring that they would cheerfully concur in any measure he
should propose for the security of himself and family; observing how
impracticable it would be to carry on business at such a distance, and
intreating his return with his lady and family to the palace, as what
would also afford great public satisfaction, and be the likeliest means
of quieting the minds of the people.

[June 10.] His lordship returned a written answer, in which he justified
his apprehensions of danger, and specified several charges against the
house of burgesses. It contained many other matters tending to irritate;
but concluded with mollifying terms, by no means equal, however, to the
removal of the acrimony excited by the preceding severe charges and
implications. It soon produced a reply, of an uncommon length, under the
form of an address. The address comprehended the substance of the report
of the committee, appointed by the house of burgesses when they first
met; and was fraught with all the bitterness of recrimination, as well
as with defensive arguments, and an examination of facts. And yet the
terms in which it was expressed, were as respectful as possible, and of
a nature suited to the representative of their sovereign, and to their
own dignity. When upon his lordship’s letter to the earl of Dartmouth,
they replied to his assertion, “_not a few did join_ (in what he was
pleased to call an _opprobrious measure_) _to avoid paying their debts,
in which many of the principal people here are much involved_.” “We can
only answer for ourselves in the negative; and must consider so
indiscriminate a charge as extremely injurious.” It is well known, that
many not only in Virginia, but in every other colony, were deeply
indebted to British creditors; and it many be admitted, that several of
the number became professedly zealous patriots for American liberty,
with a view either of escaping or of delaying the payment of their just
debts. However to infer from thence that the great body of popular
leaders in the present dispute, were or are actuated by such a motive,
would be highly culpable. All the supporters of a good cause should be
influenced by principles that are unexceptionable; but the state of
mankind forbids the expectation of so desirable an event.

The report of the committee asserted, that a general tranquility
prevailed previous to the affair of the powder, and the governor’s
declaration about freeing the slaves; that the people had no design or
wish after an independency of Great-Britain; that they had a most eager
desire for such a connection as existed before the late acts of
parliament; and that a redress of grievances would immediately establish
tranquility, and be productive of a reconciliation with the parent
state.

[July 14.] The house of burgesses presented their address in answer to
the governor’s speech; in which they said of lord North’s conciliatory
motion, “We examined it minutely; we viewed it in every point of light
in which we were able to place it, and, with pain and disappointment, we
must ultimately declare, it only changes the form of oppression, without
lightening its burden.” They close with these expressive words—“We have
decently remonstrated with parliament; they have added new injuries to
the old. We have wearied our king with supplications; he has not deigned
to answer us. We have appealed to the native honor and justice of the
British nation: their efforts in our favor have beer hitherto
ineffectual. What then remains to be done? That we commit our injuries
to the even-handed justice of that Being who doth no wrong; earnestly
beseeching him to illuminate the councils, and prosper the endeavors of
those to whom America hath confided her hopes, that, through their wise
direction, we may again see re-united, the blessings of liberty and
property, and the most permanent harmony with Great-Britain.” The body
of the address contains this remark, “Lord Chatham’s bill on the one
hand, and the terms of the congress on the other, would have formed a
basis for negociation, which a spirit of accommodation, on both sides,
might herhaps have reconciled.”

Every day afforded new ground for bickering, and every incident fresh
room for altercation between the governor and the house of burgesses. At
length the necessary bills having passed the house, and the advanced
season requiring the attendance of the members in their several
counties, the council and burgesses jointly intreated the governor’s
presence to give his assent to them and finish the session. After
messages to and fro, his lordship declined meeting them at the capital,
though they pledged their honor and every thing sacred for his security;
but he informed them, that he would be ready to receive them at his
present residence. This answer put an end to all public correspondence
between the governor and the colony. The burgesses passed resolutions,
declaring, that the message requiring them to attend him on board a ship
of war, was a high breach of their rights and privileges; that they had
reason to fear a dangerous attack might be meditated against the unhappy
people of the colony; and that it was therefore their opinion, that they
should prepare for the preservation of their property, and their
inestimable rights and privileges. They then made strong professions of
loyalty to the king, and amity to the mother country, and adjourned
themselves to October.

[July 18.] A convention of delegates was appointed to supply the place
of the house of burgesses, who, having an unlimited confidence reposed
in them by the people, became accordingly possessed of an unlimited
power in all public affairs. They also formed themselves into a
committee to take into consideration the state of the colony; and the
next day resolved [July 19.] that a sufficient armed force be
immediately raised and embodied for its defence and protection.

Nothing more need be said of the Delaware counties, than that they
remain firm to the cause they have espoused.

[July 26.] The Maryland convention met at Annapolis, and unanimously
resolved upon an association, to be signed by the members, and by all
other the freemen of the province. They said, “We do unite as one band,
and solemnly pledge ourselves to each other, and to America, that we
will, to the utmost of our power, support the present opposition
carrying on, as well by arms as by the continental association,
restraining our commerce.” They also resolved, “That there be forty
companies of minute-men enrolled as soon as may be; and that every able
bodied effective freeman within the province, between sixteen and fifty
(clergymen of all denominations, practising physicians, the household of
the governor, minute and artillery men, and persons who from their
religious principles cannot bear arms in any case, excepted) as soon as
may be, and at furthest before the fifteenth of September, shall enroll
himself in some company of militia.” They established a council of
safety, consisting of sixteen persons, who are to regulate the
operations of the minute-men and militia, and are also, during the
recess, to do all other matters for securing the province, and for
providing for its defence.

They ordered committees of observation and of correspondence to be
chosen; and bills of credit, to the amount of 266,666 dollars, to be
struck with all convenient speed, for the service of the province.

The Pennsylvania assembly have established a military association
through the colony, and ordered several battalions to be raised, clothed
and armed. The whole colony is preparing for a vigorous defence. The
change in the assembly from a most pacific to a martial complexion, is
owing to the times. The number of Quakers returned to serve in it, was
not so large as formerly; and some of them, being upon principle opposed
to present measures, have resigned their seats, (which they have the
privilege of doing) and left them to be filled by persons of a different
judgment.

The Philadelphians, with a view to the safety of the city, are also
engaged in making huge machines to sink in the narrow part of the
Delaware, and in completing a number of large galliots, carrying at
their bows guns from 32 to 48 pounders, swivels, &c. The machines are
formed of large heavy square pieces of timber. Two long ones, at a
proper parallel distance from each other, form the horizontal base, that
is to rest on the bed of the river. Right over these are placed two
others of similar size, rising from toward the ends of the horizontal
base, in such an angular direction, as with their elevated ends,
fortified with strong iron points, to pierce any vessel which may sail
against them. The degree of elevation is such as to give the greatest
resistance with the least danger to the timbers. The four main pieces
are joined to each other by many shorter ones. The whole machine is so
contrived, that, with its own weight, and what may be added to it when
sunk, it can neither be broken, nor forced backward, nor turned over.
They have given the name of chevaux-de-frise to these machines.

There is nothing in New-Jersey which requires particular notice.

The New-Yorkers were freed from the apprehensions they were under,
through the expectation of troops from Europe, soon after their arrival.
The second embarkation from Cork, consisting of four regiments, got safe
to Sandy-Hook, where they received orders from general Gage to sail for
Boston. They were wanted to strengthen the army, after the loss it had
sustained by Breed’s Hill battle. The few troops that were stationed at
the barracks, about fifty, went on board the Asia man of war some time
before, on the sixth of June, so that the city of New-York was wholly
without regulars.

[June 24.] Governor Tryon arrived at New-York from London. He is in much
esteem with a large number of the citizens and others; and if any one
can succeed in drawing off that colony from the union, he will probably
be the person. It is not to be thought that he is limited by ministry
either as to expences or promises; but may suit himself to persons and
emergencies. There is apparently good policy in employing him to effect
the recovery of New-York, on the side of administration. He was in hope
of finding the province disunited from the others.

[July 3.] The mayor, aldermen, and commonalty of the city, presented him
with a congratulatory address; complimented him upon the rectitude of
his former administration, and expressed their trust in the aid of his
intercession with his majesty, for a speedy termination of the hostile
animosities of his contending subjects.

The governor in his answer confessed his disappointment at the change of
circumstances in the province. To palliate the treatment which the
memorial and representation of the New-York general assembly met with,
and to conciliate the minds of as many as could confide in his
expressions, he closed with saying, “I am acquainted with a dispatch
from the earl of Dartmouth, that the memorial and representation of the
general assembly of this province, were unfortunately blended with
expressions containing claims which made it impossible for parliament,
consistent with its justice and dignity to receive them; yet the
petition to the king has been presented to his majesty, who was pleased
to receive it with the most gracious expressions of regard and attention
to the humble requests of his faithful subjects in New-York; and I am
authorized to say, that nothing can give greater satisfaction to the
royal breast, than to see us again a happy and united people.”

The same day the address was presented, all the king’s stores of various
kinds, were taken from Turtle Bay, and carried clear off by the friends
of congress.

Connecticut and Rhode-Island, having had no occasion to change their
forms of government, proceed in their usual modes of business, to fulfil
the engagements that they are under to the united colonies in general,
and the Massachusetts in particular, and flag not in their ardor to
support the cause of America.

[June 28.] Let us return to the Massachusetts. Political necessity
obliged the provincial congress to resolve, “That the notes and bills of
the colony of Rhode-Island, of this and all the other colonies (except
Nova-Scotia and Canada) shall be taken and received, and accounted a
good and sufficient tender for the payment of all debts and damages
arising upon the non-performance of any promises; and the committees of
correspondence, inspection, and safety, in the respective towns, are to
return the names of all persons who shall contravene this resolve.”

[July 9.] To procure a supply of articles for the troops of the colony,
a resolve passed for the inhabitants of the several towns to furnish
shirts, breeches, stockings and shoes, for the soldiers.——In a few days
after a recommendation passed, not to kill any sheep or lambs, excepting
in cases of absolute necesssity.

In consequence of the letters sent to the several towns and districts
within the colony, for the choice of representatives, in order to take
up a form of government, more than two hundred members met at Watertown
[July 19.] and constituted the house of assembly. The general fast
interposing, the counsellors were not chosen till Friday morning the
twenty-first.

[Aug. 8.] The house agreed to raise £.30,000 sterling. The raising of
money will probably produce much dissatisfaction. Great numbers, who are
warm for the liberties of America, and violently opposed to being taxed
by Great-Britain, are so inconsiderate as to imagine, they are to be
exempted from almost every tax upon their succeeding in the present
contest. They are for enjoying all the advantage of civilized society,
without paying their proportion toward the expence of supporting it.

[Aug. 9.] Captain Linzee, of the Falcon sloop of war chaced two
schooners from the West-Indies, one of which he soon brought to; the
other, having the advantage of a fair wind, put into Gloucester harbour,
at Cape-Ann, and the captain pursued into the harbour, bringing the one
with him. He anchored, and sent two barges with fifteen men each, armed
with swivels and muskets, attended with a whale boat, in which was the
lieutenant and six privates, meaning to seize the loaded schooner. The
militia and inhabitants took the alarm, collected, fired from the shore,
and killed three men, beside wounding the lieutenant. On this the
captain sent the other schooner and a small cutter well armed, with
orders to fire on the damn’d rebels wherever they could see them, while
he engaged in cannonading the town. Not a ball struck or wounded a
single person, though they passed through the houses filled with women
and children, in almost every direction. The party at the water side
soon made themselves masters of both the schooners, the cutter, the two
barges, the boat, and every man in them. The action lasted several
hours. The provincials lost but one man, and had two others wounded; one
of whom is since dead. They captured thirty-five men belonging to the
Falcon, several of whom are wounded, and one of them since dead. Captain
Linzee after this warped off, having lost half his men.

[Aug. 12.] The scarcity of ammunition is so alarming, that the house
agreed upon recommending it to the inhabitants, not to fire a gun at
beast, bird, or mark, without real necessity, to prevent a waste of
powder.

About five weeks since general Gage sent two officers to New-York, to
procure all the men they could, out of ships expected from Scotland or
elsewhere, to join him as volunteers; and with orders to return to
Boston with all expedition. This bespeaks a want of men. The want of
fresh provision will be supplied for a short space, by the return of a
fleet of transports this day [Aug. 15.] from the Sound, bringing with
them about 2000 sheep and 110 oxen, beside eggs, butter, &c. which they
have taken off from Gardner’s and other islands.

Governor Wentworth still continues in New-Hampshire; but the influence
of the popular leaders is increasing, while his diminishes daily. He can
no longer confide, as formerly, in the attachment of the people for
safety; and has for these two months taken up his residence at Fort
William and Mary.

The bulk of the colonists have certainly been much encouraged in their
struggles against the claims of parliament and administration, from the
multiplied assurances they have received that the body of the people in
England wish them success; and from their knowing that many of the most
virtuous and independent of the nobility and gentry are for them; and
among this order, in their estimation, the best bishop that adorns the
bench,[130] as great a judge as the nation can boast,[131] and the
greatest statesman it ever saw.[132]




                               LETTER XV.


                                           _Roxbury, December 30, 1775._

The accession of _Georgia_ to the colonies, will occasion their being
called henceforward THE THIRTEEN UNITED COLONIES. To aid in the defence
of that colony, congress resolved early in November, to keep up a
battalion there at the continental expence. Toward the close of the
year, Dr. Zubly, perceiving that there was an apparent propensity to
independency in several of the delegates, withdrew and returned to
Georgia. His opposition to it being well known, and his influence upon
the Georgia inhabitants being feared, it was contrived that one of his
brother delegates, Mr. John Houston, should likewise return, with a
design of counteracting him, in case he soould set himself to oppose
independency.

The first hostilities which happened in this colony between the opposite
parties, commenced about the middle of November, when a number of
royalists attacked the American whigs, and by their superiority obliged
the latter, after three days, to surrender the fort, in which they
expected to make an effectual resistance.

The governor of South-Carolina, lord William Campbell, after the
provincial congress had raised troops, gave commissions to the officers
of the volunteer companies of militia, that were formed and trained on
the recommendation of the popular leaders. His lordship also convened an
assembly, of which several officers in the provincial regiments were
members; but finding them and their colleagues inflexibly set against
his schemes, he dissolved them [Sept. 15.] and never afterward issued
writs for a new election. He was indefatigable in secretly promoting
opposition to the popular measures, and kept up a constant
correspondence with the back country royalists. These people were told,
that it would be impossible to resist the power of Britain; that the
whole dispute was about a trifling tax on tea; and that the expences of
the new raised provincial regiments would be infinitely more than the
insignificant taxes imposed by the British parliament. They were
therefore much disaffected with the proceedings of the provincial
congress. It being suspected in Charleston that their disaffection was
greatly owing to the governor, in order to ascertain, if possible, the
connection between them, captain Adam M‘Donald, of a new raised
provincial regiment, introduced himself to his lordship about the middle
of September, under the feigned name of Dick Williams, a supposed
confidential messenger from these royalists. In this assumed character
he had a long conversation with his lordship, and was informed, that a
letter received the day before, set forth, “That his majesty was
determined speedily to send out troops to execute his schemes from one
end of the continent to the other.” The conversation being reported to
the general committee, they sent a deputation, of which captain M‘Donald
was one, to demand a communication of his lordship’s late dispatches
from England, and a perusal of his correspondence with the back country.
These requisitions being refused, it was moved to take the governor into
custody, but the motion was rejected by a great majority. His lordship,
mortified at the deception which had been passed upon him, and
distrustful of his personal safety in Charleston, took the provincial
seal with him, and retired on board the Tamar sloop of war.

[Nov. 1.] When the new provincial congress met, it was thought by the
royalists, that the determinations of the former would have been
reversed; but they were disappointed.

In order to obstruct the passage of the king’s ships to Charleston
through Hog-Island channel, a number of hulks were ordered to be sunk,
and captain Tufts had the charge of covering the workmen, on board a
schooner, armed for the security of the town, and called the Defence.
[Nov. 12.] The Tamar and Cherokee warped in the night, within gun-shot
of him, and began a heavy cannonade; but at sun-rise dropped down to
their moorings, without having done any material injury. This was the
commencement of open hostilities in South-Carolina.

[Nov. 13.] The provincial congress impressed the ship Prosper, and
ordered her to be fitted as a frigate of war. They voted to raise a
regiment of artillery, [Nov. 14.] to consist of three companies of a
hundred men each; and that bills of credit, amounting to £.17,000
sterling should be struck for their support. About the same time a new
council of safety was appointed, and authorised “to do all such matters
and things relative to the strengthening and defending the colony, as
should by them be judged expedient and necessary.”

That you may comprehend the nature of the opposition to popular measures
in this colony, you must be informed of various events relative to the
back country. About 1770, the extreme difficulty of bringing criminals
from remote settlements to a legal condemnation, induced numbers, stiled
regulators, to take the law into their own hands. They inflicted
corporal punishment on persons without a regular condemnation. Lord
Charles Greville Montague, the governor, to correct these abuses,
advanced one Scovil, a man of low character, to the rank of colonel, and
employed him to enforce settled law among these regulators. He adopted
severe measures, which involved multitudes in great distress, who having
suffered so for opposing regular government, could not be persuaded to
co-operate with their countrymen in the support of congresses and
committees, whom they conceived to be similar to their own regulating
assemblies.

A number of Dutch inhabitants had settled in the same part of the
country, on lands granted by the government. They brought from Europe
the monarchical ideas of the holding their possessions at the king’s
pleasure. They were therefore easily made to believe, that the loss of
their freeholds would be the consequence of their acceding to American
measures. After the peace of Paris, lands were offered upon easy terms,
to induce foreign Protestants to exchange their native country for a
settlement in South-Carolina. The Irish, who accepted these offers, owed
all their indulgences to the bounty of the king, and so took part with
his friends. Their countrymen, who had emigrated from the northern
provinces, commonly entered with zeal into the new measures.

The violence of some over-zealous friends, who insisted upon their
neighbors signing the association, produced in several a determined
spirit of opposition.

At an election for representatives in the first popular assemblies,
Moses Kirkland was an unsuccessful candidate. In wrath he exclaimed, “If
this dispute becomes serious, the people of South-Carolina shall feel
the weight of my influence.” The provincial congress, to gain him, gave
him the rank of captain in one of the provincial regiments; but he was
disgusted that his rival was promoted to the higher rank of major. He
accepted his commission, and inlisted men; but soon resigned, and to the
utmost encouraged opposition to the measures of congress.

The people in general felt themselves secure in their persons and
property. It was therefore easy to offer arguments against renouncing
present comforts, to ward off future evils. It was insinuated to them,
that the gentlemen on the sea-cost, in order to obtain their tea free
from tax, were adopting measures which would involve the back country in
the want of salt, osnaburgs, and imported necessaries. The popular
leaders could not urge the inhabitants to the dangers and expences of
war, otherwise than on speculation, to prevent the more alarming
consequences which would probably take place in future, if the
proceedings of the British parliament, against Boston and the
Massachusetts, were suffered to pass into precedent.

Though there were many royalists in most parts of the colony, the
principal settlement, in which they out-numbered the friends of
congress, was in the country between the Broad and Saluda rivers. When
it was determined to raise troops, the inhabitants of that part could
not be persuaded that the measure was necessary. They were happy, and
free from present oppression, and averse to believing that any designs,
inimical to American liberty, had been adopted by the British
government. The council of safety sent the honorable William Henry
Drayton, and the reverend William Tennent, to explain to them the nature
of the dispute. They had several meetings, and much eloquence was
exerted to induce them to sign the association. Some subscribed; but the
greater part could not be persuaded that there was any necessity for
congresses, committees, or military establishments. Suspicions
prevailed. The friends of the royal government doubted the authenticity
of all pamphlets and news-papers, which ascribed to the British troops
in Boston, or to the British government, any designs injurious to the
rights of the colonists. They viewed the whole as an imposition by
artful men. The friends of congress suspected the leading men of the
loyalists to be in the pay of lord William Campbell. Reports were
circulated by one party, that a plan was laid to seize the commissioners
sent by the council of safety: by the other, that the third provincial
regiment was brought up to compel the inhabitants to sign the
association. Motives and designs were reciprocally attributed to each
other of the most mischievous tendency. The royalists imbodied for
reasons similar to those which had induced the other inhabitants to arm
themselves against Britain. They suspected their adversaries of an
intention to dragoon them into a compliance with the measures of
congress; and they in their turn, were suspected of a design to commence
hostilities against the associators, for disturbing the established
royal government. Camps were formed in opposition to each other, and
great pains taken to increase their respective numbers. Moderate men
employed their good offices; and after some days, the leaders on both
sides met in conference. Several explications having taken place, a
treaty was reciprocally agreed to, [Sept. 16.] by which it was
stipulated, that the royalists should remain in a state of neutrality.
Both parties retired to their homes, and a temporary calm succeeded.

But Mr. Robert Cunningham, a principal leader among the royalists,
continued to encourage opposition to popular measures, and declared that
he did not consider himself as bound by the treaty. This declaration was
construed as an evidence of a fixed intention again to disturb the
peace. To prevent his attempting it, he was apprehended, brought to
Charleston, and committed to jail. His brother Mr. Patrick Cunningham,
instantly armed a party of friends and pursued, in expectation of
rescuing him. The party collected on this occasion seized a thousand
pounds of power, and a quantity of lead, which was passing through their
settlement, as a present to the Cherokee Indians; and was intended to
confirm them in their pacific disposition. Some persons among the
royalists propagated a report, that it was accompanied with instructions
to them, to kill every man who should refuse to sign the association.
This answered the purpose of inflaming the minds of several. It was also
confidently asserted that private marks had been agreed on by the
popular leaders and Indian chiefs, to distinguish the associators from
the non-associators; the former of whom were to be spared, and the
latter sacrificed. Great pains were moreover taken, to exasperate the
inhabitants against the council of safety, for furnishing the Indians
with powder, at a time when the white people could not be supplied with
that article.

Lord William Campbell had uniformly recommended to the royalists to
remain quiet till the arrival of a British force. This advice had been
providentially frustrated. Similar reasons of policy to those which
induced the royal governor to recommend inaction to the royalists,
operated with the council of safety to crush their intestine foes before
that force should arrive. The rising occasioned by the seizing of Mr.
Cunningham, was construed into a violation of the treaty, and gave
ground to doubt the sincerity of their engagements to continue in a
state of neutrality. It was feared, that as soon as a proper opportunity
offered, they would throw their weight into the royal scale. It was
therefore judged necessary, to march an army into their settlements
before that event should exist. But to remove prejudices, the provincial
congress, first of all circulated through their settlements, [Nov. 19.]
a declaration assigning the reasons for the present to the Cherokees,
and detesting the invidious misrepresentations that had been put upon
the measure. They solemnly declared before Almighty God, that they did
not believe any order was ever issued, or any idea ever entertained by
the late council of safety, or any member of it, or by any person under
authority of congress, to cause the Indians to commence hostilities upon
the frontiers or any part thereof. They then sent forward a large body
of militia and new raised regulars who were joined by seven hundred
militia from North-Carolina, and two hundred and twenty regulars. They
soon had an army of seven thousand men under their direction, with
instructions “to apprehend the leaders of the party which had seized the
powder, and to do all other things necessary to suppress the present and
prevent future insurrections.” Assurances were publicly given, that no
injury should be done to inoffensive persons, remaining quietly on their
plantations. The leaders of the royalists found great difficulty in
persuading their followers to imbody; and they themselves were destitute
of political knowledge and military experience. The unanimity of the
whigs and the numbers, which from all sides invaded the settlements of
the royalists, disheartened them from facing their adversaries in the
field. The whigs acted by system, and in concert with their brethren of
neighbouring colonies, and were directed by a council of safety,
composed of the greatest and wisest men in the province. They easily
carried every point, seized the leaders of the royalists, and dispersed
their followers, without the loss of a single man; most of the royalists
returned to their plantations, while several retired over the mountains.

In _North-Carolina_, the committees of the district of Wilmington
alledged a number of charges against governor Martin, particularly those
of fomenting a civil war, and of exciting an insurrection among the
negroes; upon which they declared him an enemy to America in general,
and to that province in particular, and forbad all persons holding any
communication with him.

[Aug. 8.] When their proceedings appeared in print, the governor
published his remarks upon them, in a proclamation of uncommon length;
which the provincial congress, in their subsequent meeting at
Hillsborough, [Aug. 25.] resolved unanimously, to be a false,
scandalous, scurrilous, malicious and seditious libel, and ordered it to
be burnt by the hands of the common hangman. Four days before, a plan of
confederation was laid before them. Upon mature deliberation they
resolved, that “They are of opinion, that the plan of general
confederation between the united colonies is not at present eligible;
and that the present association ought to be further relied on for
bringing about a reconciliation with the parent state, and a further
confederacy ought only to be adopted in case of the last extremity.”
Afterward [Sept. 8.] Mr. Hooper submitted to them an address to the
inhabitants of the British empire, which was unanimously received. In
answer to the suggestion, that independence was their object, they say,
“We again declare, that we invoke that Almighty Being who searches the
recesses of the human heart, and knows our most secret intentions, that
it is our most earnest wish and prayer to be restored, with the other
united colonies, to the state in which we and they were placed before
the year 1763, disposed to glance over any regulations which Britain had
made previous to this, and which seems to be injurious and oppressive to
these colonies, hoping that, at some future day, she will benignly
interpose, and remove from us every cause of complaint.”

They broke up two days after, having sat three weeks. During the
session, they agreed upon raising a 1000 men; upon striking a quantity
of paper money, for the subsistence of the troops; upon inlisting a
considerable body of minute-men; in a word, upon putting the colony
immediately into a state of defence.

Within a fortnight after the session closed, the grand repository of the
governor’s magazine was discovered. In the palace garden, under a bed of
cabbages, was found a barrel, containing about three bushels of
gun-powder. In the palace cellar were dug up two quarter casks of the
same commodity; and in the garden about 1000lb. of musket-balls, about
500 weight of iron, swivel balls, a large quantity of small shot, lead,
iron, worms for the cannon, and the whole apparatus for his park of
artillery.

The Virginia convention continued to establish rules for the defence and
regulation of the colony; and passed an ordinance for imbodying a
sufficient force for its protection. It appearing to them, that only 15
half barrels of powder had been taken out of the magazine by lord
Dunmore’s order, they valued it fairly, and then directed the surplus
money received by Patrick Henry, esq. to be returned to the receiver
general. [August 22.]

Upon a petition of sundry merchants and others, natives of
Great-Britain, mostly from Scotland, praying to be exempted from bearing
arms against the people among whom they were born, and promising to
observe a strict neutrality in case the colony was attacked by the
British troops, the convention unanimously recommended to the
committees, [Aug. 25.] and others the good people of the colony, to
treat all such resident natives as did not show themselves enemies to
the common cause of America, with lenity and friendship; to protect all
persons whatsoever in the just enjoyment of their civil rights and
liberty; to discountenance all national reflections; and to promote
union, harmony, and mutual good will, among all ranks of people.

Before the session ended, the delegates in a declaration set forth the
cause of their meeting, and the necessity of immediately putting the
country into a posture of defence, for the better protection of their
lives, liberties and properties. In it they solemnly declare, “before
God and the world, we do bear faith and true allegiance to his majesty;
and will, so long as it may be in our power, defend him and his
government, as founded on the laws and well-known principles of the
constitution: we will, to the utmost of our power, endeavor by every
honorable mean, to promote a restoration of that friendship and amity,
which so long and happily subsisted between our fellow subjects in
Great-Britain, and the inhabitants of America: and as, on the one hand,
we are determined to defend our lives and properties, and maintain our
just rights and privileges, at even the extremest hazard, so, on the
other hand, it is our fixed and unalterable resolution to disband such
forces as may be raised in this colony, whenever our dangers are
removed, and America is restored to its former state of tranquility and
happiness.”

Lord Dunmore, however, being joined by a number who had rendered
themselves obnoxious to the country, as well as by a parcel of run-away
negroes, and supported by the naval force upon the station, endeavored
to establish such a marine, as might enable him, by means of the noble
rivers with which the colony abounds, to be always at hand, and ready to
profit by every favorable occasion which should offer. He by degrees
fitted and armed several vessels, in one of which he constantly resided,
never setting his foot on shore, but in an hostile manner. The force was
calculated only for depredations; and while these were confined to the
procuring of provisions or other necessaries, respect was shown to the
rank and office of the governor: but being at length changed into open
and avowed hostility, his lordship met with resistance. The Virginians
could not brook his seizing persons, and conveying them on board the
ships; destroying plantations, and carrying off the negroes, and burning
houses. They therefore sent detachments of the new-raised forces to
protect the coasts; and from thence ensued a small mischievous war,
incapable of affording honor or benefit.

During this state of hostility, his lordship procured a few soldiers,
with whose assistance an attempt was made to burn the port-town of
Hampton. The inhabitants having a previous suspicion of the design, sunk
a number of boats across the channel to prevent a landing. The ships,
having surmounted all obstacles in the night, drew up close to the town,
[October 27.] and began a furious cannonade in the morning. At this
critical period, a detachment of riflemen from Williamsburgh, that had
marched all night, arrived, and being joined by the minute-men and
others, who had assembled the day before, took such a position as
enabled them, with their small arms, to compel the enemy precipitately
to quit their station, with the loss of some men and of a tender.

[Nov. 7.] In consequence of this repulse, the governor issued a
proclamation, declaring that martial law should take place, and be
executed through the colony; requiring all persons capable of bearing
arms, to resort to his majesty’s standard, or to be looked upon as
traitors; and further declaring all indented servants, negroes or others
(appertaining to rebels) free, who were able and willing to bear arms,
upon joining his majesty’s troops. The Virginians highly resented his
lordship’s declaring martial law; and by his single fiat attempting to
strip them of their property, and to arm their negroes and servants
against them to effect their destruction. This measure occasioned to
government the loss of many friends.

The proclamation, with his lordship’s presence and his marine, produced
some effect in the town of Norfolk and the adjoining country, where many
were well effected to the old government. He was accordingly joined by
some hundreds of blacks and whites; but the pleasure it afforded, was
soon interrupted by intelligence that a party of Virginians were
marching toward them with great expedition. To obstruct their designs,
and protect the well effected, he took possesion of the Great Bridge,
near Norfolk, a pass of much consequence, being the only way by which
the town could be approached He constructed a fort on the Norfolk side,
and rendered it as defencible as time would admit. His force consisted
of about 200 regulars, including the grenadiers of the 14th regiment,
and a body of Norfolk volunteers; the rest was a motley mixture of
blacks and whites. The Virginians, under colonel Woodford, fortified
themselves within less than cannon shot of the royalists, having a
narrow causeway in front, which was to be passed to come at their works.

In this state they continued quiet on both sides for some days. At
length a servant belonging to major Marshall, being properly tutored,
deserted to the royalists, and told them that colonel Woodford had not
more than 300 shirtmen (as they called the riflemen, on account of their
being dressed in their hunting shirts) badly provided with ammunition.
The bait took, and a design was formed for surprising the Virginians in
their entrenchments. Captain Leslie, with the regulars, arrived at the
bridge about three in the morning; and being joined by about 300 white
and black slaves, laid planks upon the bridge, and crossed just after
the Virginians had beaten the reveille, a lucky time for the last, as
their men were of course all under arms. Captain Fordyce, at the head of
his grenadiers, amounting to about sixty, led the van, while lientenant
Batut commanded the advanced party. They passed the causeway, which
admitted only of a few men’s marching abreast, and approached the
intrenchments with fixed bayonets, and a coolness and intrepidity which
excited astonishment. They were not only exposed naked to the fire in
front, but infiladed by another part of the provincial lines. The
captain fell with several of his men, within a few yards of the breast
work. The lieutenant with others were taken, and all the survivors of
the grenadier company, whether prisoners or not, were wounded. The
royalists were soon obliged to sound a retreat, having sixty-two men
killed and wounded. The provincials, during the whole action, did not
lose a single man, and had only one slightly wounded. The fire of the
artillery from the fort covered the retreat of the royalists. None of
the blacks, &c. in the rear, with captain Leslie, advanced further than
the bridge. Captain Fordyce was buried with every military honor by the
victors, who showed a due respect to his former merit, as well as to the
gallantry which signalized his last moments. The British prisoners were
treated with great kindness: the American royalists, who joined the
king’s standard, with rigor. The king’s forces retired the ensuing
night, without other loss than a few pieces of cannon. Captain Leslie,
it is said, has absolutely refused to act any more on shore, till he can
be better supported; on the other hand, the Norfolk volunteers, and the
black battalions, have declined acting without the regulars; this has
induced his lordship to abandon the entrenchments at Norfolk, and to go
on board the ships. Most of the wretched negroes who had joined him,
were now left to shift for themselves.

[Dec. 14.] Colonel Woodford, with the provincials, entered Norfolk; but
almost all the inhabitants had fled on board the ships. At night he
resigned the command to colonel Howe, designing to return to his family,
and attend on his private affairs.

Many of the Scotch petitioners having, contrary to their faith, solemnly
plighted, become strict adherents to lord Dunmore, and active promoters
of his measures; and having excited their slaves to act against the
colony, the convention has totally rescinded the former recommendation
in their favor. But persons of ability, declining to act with the
Virginians, and who have not taken up arms nor showed themselves against
them, may be permitted to leave the country.

A scheme for raising a considerable force for the service of lord
Dunmore, has been lately discovered in Maryland.

One John Connelly, a native of Pennsylvania, waited on his lordship with
certain proposals, toward the latter end of July, which being approved
of, he dispatched intelligence to the officers of the militia on the
frontiers of Augusta county, with assurances from his lordship, that
such of them as would hereafter evince their loyalty to his majesty, by
putting themselves under his command, should be amply rewarded. He had
before, by direction, prepared the Indians on the Ohio, to act in
concert with him against his majesty’s enemies in that quarter. His
lordship sent him to general Gage, at Boston, about the 15th of
September; and about the middle of October he returned with instructions
from the general to his lordship. A commission of lieutenant-colonel
commandant of a regiment, to be raised in the back parts and in Canada,
was to be granted to this adventurer; who was to be assisted by the
garrisons at Detroit and Fort Gage, at the Illinois, with artillery and
ammunition. He was to use means to urge the Indian chiefs to act with
vigor in the execution of his orders; and to have the supreme direction
of the new forces. When they were in sufficient condition, he was to
penetrate through Virginia, so as to meet lord Dunmore at a set time in
next April, at Alexandria, on the Potomak; his lordship was to bring
such a naval strength and other assistance, as might be deemed necessary
for the purpose. He had so far succeeded, that he was on his way, with
two associates, to Detroit; where he was to meet his commission and
instructions; but when they had reached about five miles beyond
Hager’s-town, they were taken into custody and brought before the county
committee, at Frederick-town, in Maryland [Nov. 23.] for examination,
about ten days after parting with lord Dunmore. Their papers have
betrayed every thing. Among them were the geneneral plan of the whole
business, and a letter from lord Dunmore to one of the Indian chiefs,
and other authentic vouchers, which leave nothing to be doubted. His
lordship’s letter was accommodated, as is usual in all such cases, to
the Indian taste, and addressed to _Brother Captain White Eyes_, who was
to acquaint the _Corn-Stalk_, as well as the chiefs of the Mingoes, and
the other six nations, with the sentiments contained in it.

The capture of Connelly and his associates, is ascribed to the seizure
of an express passing between an Indian commissary and the governor;
from whose papers such intelligence was gained as to put the provincial
committee upon keeping a good look-out for the parties. The Indian
commissary was known to be disaffected to the American cause, by a
gentleman whose suspicions made him a principal in effecting the
discovery.

The Pennsylvania general assembly, in their November session, instructed
their delegates to exert their endeavors at the continental congress,
for the adoption of such measures as might afford the best prospect of
obtaining a redress of American grievances, and of restoring the union
and harmony between Great-Britain and the colonies. They said, “Though
the oppressive measures of the British parliament and administration
have compelled us to resist their violence by force of arms, yet we
strictly enjoin you, that you, in behalf of this colony, dissent from,
and utterly reject any propositions, should such be made, that may cause
or lead to a separation from the mother country, or a change in the form
of this government.” The reason for mentioning _a change in the form of
this government_, was, congress’s recommendation of a measure of that
kind to the provincial convention of New-Hampshire, which will be
properly noticed in its place.

[Nov. 16.] Governor Franklin met the general assembly of New-Jersey. In
his speech he acquainted them, “That the commanders of his majesty’s
squadrons in America, have orders to proceed as in the case of a town in
actual rebellion, against such of the sea-port towns and places, being
accessible to the king’s ships, as shall offer any violence to the
king’s officers, or in which any troops shall be raised, or military
works erected, or other than by his majesty’s authority, or any attempts
made to seize or plunder any public magazine of arms or ammunition.” He
said “Sentiments of independency, are by some men of present
consequence, openly avowed, and essays are already appearing in the
public papers, to redicule the people’s fears of that horrid measure.”
The house of assembly in their answer declared, [Nov. 29.] “There is
nothing we desire with greater anxiety, than a reconciliation with our
parent state, on constitutional principles. We know of no sentiments of
independency that are by men of any consequence openly avowed; nor do we
approve of any essays tending to encourage such a measure. We have
already expressed our detestation of such opinions; and we have so
frequently and fully declared our sentiments on this subject, that we
should have thought ourselves, as at present we really deserve to be,
exempt from all suspicion of this nature.” The governor in his reply
mentioned, that he had not the most distant thought while speaking of
the sentiments of independency openly avowed by some that they would
consider the remark as at all meant for, or applicable to their house.
He concluded with pointedly saying, “I sincerely wish that both you and
I may ere long have the happiness to see those who either openly or
privately avow sentiments of independency, _men of no consequence_.”

The New-York convention having resolved upon the removal of the cannon
from the battery in the city, captain Sears was appointed to the
business. Captain Vandeput, of the Asia man of war, was privately
informed of the design, and prepared to oppose its execution. Learning
when it was to be attempted, he appointed a boat to watch the motion of
the people assembled for that purpose about the dead of night. The
sailors in the boat giving the signal, with a flach of powder, of what
was going forward, the persons on shore mistook it for an attempt to
fire a musket at them, and immediately aimed a volley of shot at the
boat, by which a man was killed. Captain Vandeput soon after commenced a
firing from the Asia with grape shot, swivel shot, 18 and 24 pounders,
without killing a single person, and wounded only three, two slightly,
the other lost the calf of his leg. He then ceased for a considerable
time, supposing that the people had desisted from their purpose, while
they were only changing their mode of operation. Captain Sears provided
a deceiving party, intended to draw the Asia’s fire from the line of the
working party. He sent the former behind a breast-work, by which they
were secured on dodging down upon observing the flash of the Asia’s
guns. When all was in readiness, they huzzaed, and sung out their notes,
as though tugging in unison, and fired from the walls: while the working
party silently got off twenty-one eighteen pounders, with carriages,
empty cartridges, rammers, &c. Upon hearing the noise, and seeing the
fire of the musketry, the captain ordered the Asia to fire a whole
broad-side toward that part of the fort, where the deceiving party had
secured themselves, without intending a particular injury to the city;
however, some of the shot could not but fly into it and do damage. This
affair happened at a very late hour, between twelve and two, [August
22.] and threw the citizens into the utmost consternation. Such was the
stillness of the night, that the report of the cannon was heard at
Philadelphia, ninety miles off. The distress of the Yorkers was much
increased, by a painful apprehension, that captain Vandeput would renew
the firing upon the city. A removal of men women, children and goods
commenced and continued till Saturday. Matters were afterward so
adjusted, as to quiet the apprehensions of the people, in reference to
their suffering further from the Asia. To prevent it, the convention
permitted Abraham Lott, esq. to supply all his majesty’s ships stationed
at New-York, with all necessaries, as well fresh as salted, for the sole
use of said ships.

The art and influence of governor Tryon alarmed the continental
congress, some of the members especially, so that it was moved, that he
should be seized. But Mr. Duane, one of the New-York delegates, speaking
in behalf of, and answering for him, no resolution to that purpose was
taken. Mr. Duane saying, in his eagerness to defend the governor, that
he was as good a friend to the American cause as any one present, called
up captain John Langdon from New-Hampshire, who resenting the assertion
as an aspersion on the several members, answered with much acrimony, and
was permitted to go on as long as he pleased, Mr. Duane’s conduct not
having answered, in several instances, the warm wishes of the zealous
delegates. Though nothing was resolved upon against governor Tryon, the
matter only subsided for the present, under an apprehension that if the
motion was made, it would not be carried, or when carried, would be
conveyed to the governor time enough for him to secure himself. The
affair was brought on again after a while in another form; and congress
resolved, [October 6.] “That it be recommended to the several provincial
assemblies or conventions, and councils or committees of safety, to
arrest and secure every person in their respective colonies, whose going
at large may in their opinion endanger the safety of the colony, or the
liberties of America.”

An authentic copy of the resolve was to be transmitted by the delegates,
to proper persons in the different colonies. The fathers of it aimed at
governor Tryon; they had little or no expectation that the New-York
convention would secure him; but they hoped that the sons liberty at
large would effect the business. It has been asserted, that Mr. Duane
was uneasy at the resolution, and withdrew from congress for near an
hour before he returned to his seat. Be that as it may, it is certain
that Mr. Duane’s footman went off to governor Tryon in season to give
him information of what was resolved; which occasioned his writing to
the mayor of New-York [Oct. 13.] acquainting him that he knew from
_undoubted authority_, what was recommended to the provincial congress,
and desiring to be informed whether he should be secure in the
protection of the corporation and citizens. The provincial congress had
not then received the recommendation. Several letters passed upon the
occasion, but the governor not obtaining satisfaction as to his being
secure, went on board the Halifax packet [Oct. 19.] of which he informed
the mayor by letter; and in that expressed his readiness to do such
business of the country, as the situation of the times would permit.

A correspondent residing at New-York complains, that the leaders of the
people in that colony, are inconsistent and perfidious, and that their
councils are stampt with folly, timidity, and treachery. Some days
before the governor went on board, members of the provincial convention
declared, even in the convention, that they would not receive the bills
of credit to be emitted by themselves; that they would join the king’s
standard if troops came, in order to save their estates, &c. These
speeches were uttered without meeting with any censure.

The day the governor sent his letter from on board, Messrs. Low, De
Lancey, Walton, Kissam, Verplank, &c. &c. labored hard in the provincial
congress, to preclude the freemen of the city from voting for new
members, and the mode of voting by ballot. They were for polling, as
formerly, and expected, that if the freemen were excluded, the
freeholders would return none but such as would be for preserving the
city, though at the expence of the liberties of America.

The New-York troops are not to be depended upon in general. Persons who
have been pretty hearty, are now afraid of falling a sacrifice. The
defection becomes greater every day in both city and country. This may
be owing to the arts of governor Tryon, whose exertions may be as
strenuous and successful in the ship as in the city. He is not at a loss
how to intrigue with the people of his government.

Such is the importance of securing the North River, that the continental
congress have given direction for rendering it defensible, by erecting a
fortification in the High-lands, and garrisoning the same. They have
also directed Mr. Alexander, titular lord Sterling, to collect the
troops in and for the defence of New-Jersey [Nov. 27.] (except six
companies ordered to the forts on the North River) and to place them in
barracks in the eastern division of the colony, as contiguous to
New-York as can be, there to remain till further orders. The city
abounds with persons opposed to congressional measures. This opposition
was much strengthened by Mr. Rivington’s press, which was carried off
four days before the above order. Captain Sears observing the
mischievous effects of this press, determined upon a violent and
effectual mode of silencing it. He procured seventy-five Connecticut
horsemen, well armed, with muskets, &c. unexpectedly entered the city at
the head of them; repaired immediately to Mr. Rivington’s, and seized
all his types and printing materials, many of which were destroyed.
While he was thus employed, people collected, and the street was
thronged. To prevent interruption, he called out and told them, that if
they attempted to oppose him, he would order his men to fire upon them;
and preparation was made for doing it, in case it should be needful.
This appearance instantly cleared the street, when captain Sears and his
party rode off in triumph, with the booty they were pleased to take
away.

[Sept. 30.] Captain Wallace, in the Rose man of war, and two tenders,
began in the morning to fire upon Stonington, in Connecticut, close in
with the Sound; and continued it the whole day, with very little
intermission. They killed two men, much shattered the houses, stores,
&c. and carried off a schooner loaded with molasses, and two small
sloops. The firing was brought on by a vessel (which he was in chace of)
escaping and securing itself in the harbour of the town. The men of war
and transports at Newport, exciting a suspicion by their movements, that
there was an intention of taking off live stock from the farms in the
south part of Rhode-Island, a number of persons went down in the evening
[Oct. 2.] and brought off about 1000 sheep and 50 head of cattle. The
next day and the following one, the ships took off a quantity from the
two farms, where it was thought they were collected for the purpose of
supplying the British troops at Boston. Soon after 300 minute-men
arrived, who marched to the spot [Oct 5.] and brought off the remaining
cattle, sheep, hogs and poultry, though fired upon by the ships which
lay within gun shot. The interposition of the minute-men subjected the
town to threats of being cannonaded by the men of war; so that many of
the inhabitants moved their effects, while others left the place. On
Saturday afternoon [October 7.] the ships weighed anchor, went up the
river to Bristol, and demanded 300 sheep, which not being complied with,
between eight and nine o’clock, they began a heavy fire on the town, and
continued it upward of an hour. The women and children, in great anxiety
(dark and rainy as it was) were obliged to leave their habitations, and
seek shelter in the adjacent country. Between nine and ten a committee
went on board, and purchased peace and the safety of the town at the
expence of forty sheep. The firing thus upon a defenceless town, greatly
irritated the minds of the Americans in distant colonies, and they have
censured it in their public transactions.

[Nov. 11.] The general assembly of _Rhode-Island_ passed an act for the
capital punishment of persons who should be found guilty of holding a
traitorous correspondence with the ministry of Great-Britain, or any of
their officers or agents, or of supplying the ministerial army or navy
employed against the united colonies, with provisions, arms, &c. or of
acting as pilots on board any vessels. They however excepted the
negociation and treaty of the town council with captain Wallace,
respecting the supplying the ships of war stationed in the harbour of
Newport, and regulation thereof by the commanding officer, which they
had before permitted. They also passed an act for sequestring the
estates of several persons, whom they considered as avowed enemies to
the liberties of America.

[Nov. 30.] Captain Wallace, about one in the morning, left the harbour
of Newport, went to Conanicut with several vessels, and landed about 200
marines, sailors, and negroes, who were employed in burning the houses
and barns upon the island. The men, while upon the service, were ordered
to fire on one Mr. Martin, who gave no provocation, and was standing
unarmed at his own door. He was shot in the belly, and died. He was an
inoffensive person, and had treated captain Wallace with great civility
and friendship.

General Lee was at length detached with a small corps, from the army in
the Massachusetts, to the assistance of the Rhode-Islanders; on whom,
upon his arrival, he imposed a most tremendous oath. This act of the
general’s does not meet with the approbation of the congress.

The _Massachusetts_ military and naval transactions will be related
separate from the civil, as far as convenient.

The American prisoners taken on the 17th of June, were thrown
indiscriminately into the jail at Boston, without any consideration
being paid to those of rank, though languishing with wounds and
sickness. The sick and wounded were put under the hands of a man who had
never before been employed but in the diseases of horses.[133] The
inhabitants of the town who befriended the American cause, were not
allowed to afford the prisoners all that relief they were entitled to
upon the principles of humanity. The sufferers had even some of their
books of devotion taken from them, and were reproached for their much
reading, as leading them into rebellion. Being accounted rebels, no
cruelty was thought more than they deserved, while their existence was
not terminated by a halter.

The education and reading of the colonists have undoubtedly contributed
to encourage and support their opposition to measures deemed destructive
to the liberties of their country. Every town in the Massachusetts and
Connecticut, has a public English school for the education of youth,
supported by an annual tax upon the inhabitants; to which any one may
send his children, while the expence of their education is nothing more
than his proportion of the tax. The masters are often young men who have
finished their college education; and who spend a year or more in this
employ, till they take to a different one, which often leads to their
becoming some of the first persons in the colony. The universal
education promoted by these schools, spreads a general knowledge among
the lowest orders of people; and gives them a taste for reading the
interresting publications of the day; while able writers have been and
are employing their pens in nourishing the spirit of resistance, by
arguments, historical narrations, and all the various arts of animated
persuasion.

[Aug, 11.] General Washington wrote to general Gage upon the subject of
the ill treatment of the prisoners, and apprized him, that he should
regulate his conduct toward those gentlemen who are or may be in his
possession, exactly by the rule that the other should observe toward the
Americans who may be in his custody. [Aug. 13.] General Gage in his
answer asserted, that the prisoners had hitherto been treated with care
and kindness, though indiscriminately, as he acknowledged no rank that
was not derived from the king. He mentioned, “I understand there are of
the king’s faithful subjects, taken by the rebels, laboring like negro
slaves to gain their daily subsistence, or reduced to the wretched
alternative to perish by famine, or take arms against their king and
country.” He remarked upon the passage relating to retaliation, with an
appeal to God; and closed with this charge, “unfortunately for both
countries, those who long since projected the present crisis, and
influence the councils of America, have views very distant from
accommodation.” General Gage was mistaken, in charging the party alluded
to, with _projecting_ the present crisis, which is the casual and
unexpected consequence of pernicious ministerial councils. He was no
less far from the truth, while he intimated that the American leaders
“have views very distant from accommodation.” Some few have such views,
but the great body of them at present long for an accommodation.

[Aug. 19.] General Washington replied to general Gage, in a pointed
manner, and told him, “I have taken time, Sir, to make a strict enquiry,
and find the intelligence you have received, has not the least
foundation in truth. Not only your officers and soldiers have been
treated with a tenderness due to fellow citizens and brethren, but even
those execrable parricides, whose councils and aid have deluged the
country with blood, have been protected from the fury of a justly
enraged people. You affect, Sir, to despise all rank, not derived from
the same source with your own. I cannot conceive one more honorable than
that which flows from the uncorrupted choice of a brave and free people,
the purest source and original fountain of all power. May that God to
whom you appeal, judge between America and you! Under his providence,
those who influence the councils of America, and all the other
inhabitants of the united colonies, at the hazard of their lives, are
determined to hand down to posterity those just and invaluable
privileges which they received from their ancestors.”

[Aug. 26.] At night about two thousand of the American troops intrenched
on Plow’d Hill, within point blank shot of the British on Bunker’s Hill:
notwithstanding a continual fire almost all the day following, they had
only two killed and two wounded. While the intrenchments were carrying
on, parties of riflemen were employed in firing upon the advanced guards
on Charlestown Neck. One of the British officers and several men were
seen to fall. Two of the British floating batteries attempting to annoy
the Americans at work upon the hill, were silenced in Mystick river, and
one partly sunk. More than 300 shells were thrown at the fortress on
Plow’d Hill, without a single person’s being thereby hurt; and the
consequent contempt they entertained of shells, induced them to omit
providing a bomb-proof cover for the garrison. Bunker’s Hill, Plow’d
Hill and Winter Hill, which last the Americans have possessed and
fortified for some time, are situated in a range from east to west, each
of them on or near Mystick river. Plow’d Hill is in the middle, and the
lowest of the three, the summit is about half a mile from the works on
Bunker’s Hill. The British finding that their firing did not answer,
relaxed, and after a while desisted entirely, and the Americans remained
quiet in their new post. General Washington received, in the beginning
of September, a very acceptable remittance of ammunition from
Rhode-Island, even 7000lb. of powder—a great quantity, compared with the
late amazing scarcity. It is probably a part of what has been brought
from Africa. The Americans practised a manœuvre, which credits their
understanding. They sent out a quantity of New-England rum, which was
exchanged for a fiery commodity of a different quality, so successfully
as not to leave an ounce for sale in any of the British forts on the
African coast.

The general having obtained pleasing accounts from Canada, being assured
that neither Indians nor Canadians could be prevailed upon to act
against the Americans, and knowing there was a design of penetrating
into that province by Lake Champlain, concerted the plan of detaching a
body of troops from head-quarters, through the province of Mein, across
the country to Quebec. He communicated the same to general Schuyler, who
approving it, all things were got in readiness. The corps was to be
commanded by colonel Arnold, aided by colonels Christopher Green and
Roger Enos, and majors Meigs and Bigelow; and was to consist of ten
companies of musket men, and three companies of riflemen, amounting to
eleven hundred.

[Sept. 13.] In the evening the detachment marched from Cambridge for
Newbury-port, where, six days after, they embarked on board ten
transports bound to Kennebec, fifty leagues distant. [Sept. 20.] They
entered the mouth of the Kennebec in the morning, and favored with the
wind and tide proceeded up to Gardner’s town. It was only fourteen days
from first giving orders for building 200 batteaux, for collecting
provisions, and for draughting the 1100 men, to their reaching this
place. Such was the dispatch!

[Sept. 22.] The troops embarked on board the batteaux, and proceeded to
Fort Western on the east side of the river. From thence, captain Morgan,
with three companies of riflemen, was sent forward by water, [Sept. 25.]
with orders to get on to the great carrying place in the most
expeditious manner, and to clear the road, while the other divisions
came up. The second division embarked the next day, and the third the
day after. As they advanced up the river, the stream grew very rapid,
and the bottom and shores were rocky. [Sept. 29.] By eleven in the
morning, major Meigs with the third division, arrived at Fort Halifax,
standing on a point of land between the rivers Kennebec and Sebasticook.
In their progress up the river, they met with two carrying-places, over
which they were obliged to carry their batteaux, baggage, and every
other article, till they came again a part of the river which was
navigable, and no longer obstructed by water-falls, rapids, rocks or
other encumbrances, as was that which they avoided. [October 3.] They
got to Norridgewalk, where the major’s curiosity was entertained by the
sight of a child 14 months old, the first white one born in the place.
After crossing over more carrying places, he and his men encamped at the
great carrying place, [Oct. 10.] which was twelve miles and a half
across, including three ponds that they were obliged to pass. These
ponds had plenty of trout. Two days after colonel Enos arrived at the
same place with the 4th division of the army consisting of three
companies of musket men. [Oct. 13.] Colonel Arnold meeting with an
Indian, wrote to general Schuyler, and inclosed his letter to a friend
in Quebec. Though he had no knowledge of the Indian, he venturously
intrusted the packet with him, to be carried and delivered according to
order. This strange confidence may ruin his expedition, beside involving
his friend in great trouble. [Oct. 15.] The provision was so reduced,
that the men were put to allowance, 3–4lb. of pork and 3–4lb. of flour a
day for each. The next day they reached Dead river. Colonel Enos having
got up with his division in about three days, was ordered to send back
the sick, and those that could not be furnished with provision; but,
contrary to colonel Arnold’s expectation, returned to Cambridge with his
whole division a few days after. Major Meigs received orders to push on
with his division, [Oct. 19.] for Chaudiere head, with the greatest
expedition. But they proceeded very slowly by reason of falls, carrying
places and bad weather. Their course was only three miles. [Oct. 22.]
The rains made the river raise the preceding night in some parts eight
feet perpendicular: and in many places it overflowed its banks, and
rendered it very difficult for the men on shore to march. The next day
the stream was so rapid, that, in passing it, five or six batteaux
filled and overset, by which they lost several barrels of provision, a
number of guns, clothes, and other articles. Such was the rapidity of
the stream, and interruptions by carrying places, that it was with much
fatigue they got on one-and-twenty miles within the three following
days. To their great satisfaction they reached the carrying place, [Oct.
27.] which lies across the height of land that runs through the colonies
to Georgia, and on the further side of which the stream run the reverse
of the river they had ascended. They crossed the heights to Chaudiere
river, and continued their march by land to Quebec. [Nov. 1.] The
marching through the woods was extremely bad. Major Meigs passed a
number of soldiers who had no provisions, and some of whom were sick. It
was not in his power to help or relieve them. But one or two dogs were
killed, which the distressed soldiers eat with a relishing appetite,
without sparing either feet or skin. A few eat their cartouch-boxes,
breeches and shoes, being several days without provision. The major and
his men marched on upon the banks of the Chaudiere, [Nov. 3.] and at
twelve o’clock met with supplies, to the inexpressible joy of the
soldiers, who were near starving. Colonel Arnold, with a small party,
made a forced march, and returned with provisions purchased of the
inhabitants; on which the hunger-bitten adventurers made a voracious
meal. [Nov. 4.] The next day at eleven, major Meigs and his men arrived
at a French house, and were hospitably treated. It was the first house
he had seen for 31 days, having been all that time in a rough, barren,
and uninhabited wilderness, where he never saw a human being except
those belonging to the detachment. He and his party were immediately
supplied with fresh beef, fowls, butter, pheasants and vegetables, at
this settlement called Sertigan 25 leagues from Quebec. They were kindly
entertained while marching down the country. When colonel Arnold got
within two leagues and a half of Point Levi, [Nov. 8.] he wrote to
general Montgomery, that as he had received no answer either from
general Schuyler or his friend, he made no doubt but that the Indian had
betrayed his trust: and that he was confirmed in it, upon finding that
the inhabitants of Quebec had been some time apprised of his coming, and
had destroyed all the canoes at Point Levi to prevent the detachments
from passing over. The fact was, the Indian, instead of delivering the
packet as directed, carried it to the lieutenant-governor, who on
reading the letters, secured Mr. Mercier the merchant, and began
immediately to put the city in the best state of defence he could;
whereas before it was wholly defenceless, and might easily have been
carried by surprise. [Nov. 9.] Colonel Arnold arrived at Point Levi,
where we leave him to remove, if possble the embarrasments into which
his own imprudence has brought him, by needlessly trusting an unknown
Indian with dispatches of the utmost consequence. The detachment
suffered hardships, beyond what can well be conceived of, in the course
of the expedition. The men had to haul their batteaux up over falls, up
rapid streams, over carrying places; and to march through morasses,
thick woods and over mountains, for about 320 miles. In many places they
had to pass over the ground and the mountains several times, as without
it they must have left much of their baggage behind, and have failed in
the enterprise. They lost all their powder, except what was in
cartridges and horns, while penetrating through the woods. But what
proved the greatest trial to them, was the starving condition to which
they were reduced, when approaching the end of their tedious and
distressing march. The pork being gone, they had for four days only half
a pound of flour a day for each man. Their whole store was then divided,
which yielded about four pints of flour per man—a small allowance for
men near a hundred miles from any habitation or prospect of supply. It
was used sparingly; but several when they had baked and eaten their last
morsel, discovered, to their great confusion, that they had thirty miles
to travel before they could expect the least mouthful more. But their
dread of consequences was soon removed, by the unexpected return of
colonel Arnold with cattle. The soldiers exercised the greatest
fortitude and patience under the difficulties and sufferings that
occurred; and when again in the midst of plenty and an easy situation,
soon lost all painful remembrance of what had happened, and gloried in
having accomplished, by their indefatigable zeal and industry, an
undertaking above the common race of men in this debauched age. Let us
attend to colonel Enos. His return to camp excited both astonishment and
indignation. [Dec. 1.] A court martial was ordered to sit upon him; when
it appeared, that he had but three days provisions, and was about one
hundred miles from the English settlements; that a council of war was
called, which agreed upon the return of the colonel’s whole division,
and that he was for going on without, but that it was opposed. It was
the unanimous opinion of the court, that colonel Enos was under a
necessity of returning, and he has been acquitted with honor. A number
of officers of the best character are fully satisfied, and persuaded
that his conduct deserves applause rather than sensure. Had he not
returned, his whole division must have been starved.

We must now resume the account of the military transactions in the
Massachusetts, from the period of colonel Arnold’s leaving the camp.

The Americans, that they might equal in some measure the British, have
built some floating batteries with a deck, to secure the people on board
from suffering by musketry. General Washington perceiving that the
expence of supporting the army will by far exceed any idea formed of it
in congress, is alarmed at the apprehension of consequences, and most
earnestly wishes for such a termination of the campaign, as may make the
army no longer necessary. The want of powder has subsided in part.
Salt-peter is made in every colony. Powder-mills have been erected at
Philadelphia and New-York. Non only so, but upward of a hundred barrels
of powder have been taken out of the magazine at Bermuda, as supposed by
a sloop from Philadelphia, and a schooner from Carolina. It was easily
accomplished from the magazine’s being situated far distant from the
town, without any dwelling-house in the vicinity. Some of the
inhabitants were probably concerned in the transaction. It might be
connected with the address to the deputies from the different parishes
of Bermuda presented to congress in July, and might influence the
subsequent resolve of congress in November, “That the inhabitants of
Bermuda appear friendly to the cause of America, and ought to be
supplied with such a quantity of the produce of these colonies, as may
be necessary for their subsistence and home consumption.”

[Oct.] The perfidy of Dr. Church has been at length detected, by the
discovery of a traiterous correspondence with a British officer in
Boston. He had intrusted a letter in cypher with his kept mistress to be
forwarded, which being found upon her, she was taking and carried to
head quarters. The Doctor not being suspected, had an opportunity of
speaking to her, so that she would not discover the writer, till
terrified into it by the severest threats. The general was shocked at
the discovery, and talked with the doctor upon the baseness of his
conduct. The marks of guilt were apparent. The doctor was confounded,
and never attempted to vindicate himself. He was immediately secured.
Since the letter has been decyphered, and the doctor has had opportunity
of recollecting himself, he has pleaded that his intentions were not
criminal; admitting his plea, so gross a piece of stupidity in so
sensible a man is quite a prodigy. But this plea was invalidated, though
not by the contents of the letter, which served mainly to point out the
necessity of a speedy accommodation; yet by the marks of guilt he
discovered in the presence of the general, and in his attempt to conceal
the writer, instead of declaring at once who he was, what was his
design, and what he had written. The doctor being a representative, was,
on the 27th of October, examined at the bar of the house. He endeavored
to evade the censure of the house, by insisting, that as the affair
would be before another court where the matter must have a final issue,
should the house proceed to expel him it would have a fatal effect
whenever a final judgment was to be given on his conduct. He made the
most solemn appeal to heaven, that the letter was written with the
design of procuring some important intelligence. He observed, that there
was not a single paragraph in it which contained information that could
hurt the Americans; and that the exaggerated accounts of their force,
strength and unanimity, tended to dishearten the enemy, and keep them
quiet, at a time when the Americans were poorly able to have withstood a
vigorous attack. It is impossible to write all he said; but if the force
of rhetoric and the powers of language, if the most pathetic arts of
persuasion, enforced by all the ingenuity, sense, and spirit of the
doctor, could have made him innocent, he would have appeared spotless as
an angel of light.—The house however expelled him as guilty; and
congress afterward resolved, “That he be close confined in some secure
jail in Connecticut, without the use of pen, ink and paper, and that no
person be allowed to converse with him, except in the presence and
hearing of a magistrate or the sheriff of the county.”

The time for which the continental soldiers were engaged to serve, was
hastening to a close; the evil of a very short inlistment was felt; it
was therefore unanimously agreed at a council of war, [Oct. 8.] that the
men to be raised for the future army, should be engaged to the first of
December 1776, but be discharged sooner if necessary. Hopes still
remain, that an accommodation may possibly take place.

[October 10.] General Gage sailed for Great-Britain, leaving several
thousand of the inhabitants of the town in want of bread and every
necessary of life. Before his departure, he was addressed by his
majesty’s mandamus council; by a number of gentlemen and principal
inhabitants of the town; and by such as were driven from their
habitations in the country to Boston, amounting to no more than
seventy-six, a small number considering the extent and populousness of
the colony, and that many of them would not pass for gentlemen in
Great-Britain. The command of the army devolved of course upon general
Howe, who issued one proclamation, condemning to military execution,
such inhabitants as attempt to quit the town without a written licence,
if detected and taken; if they escape, they are to be proceeded against
as traitors, and their effects are to be forfeited: and another,
declaring that if such as are permitted to depart, attempt carrying away
more than five pounds in specie, to which sum they have been restrained
for some time past, they shall forfeit the whole sum discovered, beside
suffering fine and imprisonment.

Congress having intimated to general Washington, that an attack upon
Boston was much desired, a council of war was called, [October 18.] but
unanimously agreed that it was not expedient, at least, for the present.
On the same day captain Mowat destroyed 139 houses, and 278 stores and
other buildings, the far greatest and best part of the town of Falmouth
in the northern part of the Massachusetts. The inhabitants, in
compliance with a resolve of the provincial congress to prevent tories
carrying out their effects, gave some violent obstruction to the loading
of a mast ship, which drew upon them the indignation of the admiral.
Captain Mowat was dispatched in the Canceaux, of sixteen guns, with an
armed large ship, schooner and sloop. After anchoring toward the evening
of the seventeenth, within gun-shot, he sent a letter on shore giving
them two hours for the removal of their families, as he had orders to
fire the town, they having been guilty of the most unpardonable
rebellion. A committee of three gentlemen went on board, to learn the
particular reasons for such orders. He answered, that his orders were to
set on fire all the sea-ports between Boston and Halifax; but agreed to
spare the town till nine o’clock the next morning, would they consent to
send him off eight small arms, which was immediately done. The next
morning the committee applied afresh; he concluded to spare the town
till he could hear from the admiral, in case they would send him off
four carriage guns, deliver up all their arms, ammunition, &c. and four
gentlemen of the town as hostages. That not being complied with, about
half past nine he began to fire from the four armed vessels, and
continued it till after dark. With shells and carcases, and about thirty
marines whom he landed, he set the town on fire in several places. About
a hundred of the worst houses escaped destruction, but suffered damage.
The inhabitants got out a very considerable part of their furniture, and
had not a person killed or wounded, though the vessels fired into the
town about three thousand shot, beside bombs and carcases. General Lee
reprobates their cowardice, in admitting such a paltry party to land
with impunity, an set their town in flames, when they had at least two
hundred fighting men, and powder enough for a battle. In the private
letter wherein he expressed these sentiments, he made no mention of the
sailors being repulsed, with the loss of a few men; though this might
happen in the close of the day, and give occasion for its being related
by others. The burning of Falmouth spread an alarm upon the sea-coast,
but produced no disposition to submit to the power and mercy of the
armed British agents. The people in common, chose rather to abandon the
sea-ports that could not be defended, than quit their country’s cause;
and therefore removed back with their effects to a safe distance.

The congress, the latter end of September, concluded upon sending a
committee of three members, to confer with general Washington and the
governor of Connecticut, the lieutenant-governor of Rhode-Island, the
council of Massachusetts, and the president of the convention of
New-Hampshire, and others, touching the most effectual method of
continuing, supporting, and regulating a continental army. They met and
agreed on the measures to be pursued. Dr. Franklin being one of the
committed, the Massachusetts general court embraced that opportunity
[Oct. 23.] of ordering the treasurer to pay him £.1854 sterling, in full
for his late services as agent, from October 31, 1770, to March 1, 1775.
You may recollect that governor Hutchinson always refused signing the
grants made him by the house of assembly. The doctor might lave liked
specie at the time such grants were made, better than the present paper
money; but his foresight will undoubtedly transform the latter into some
solid substance. He had to pay £.100 of it back into the hands of a
committee, appointed to wait upon him within a day or two, being the
amount of a sum sent by several persons from England, for the relief of
those Americans who were wounded in the battle of Lexington, and of the
widows and children of those who were then slain.

[October 27.] The old south meeting-house, a large, handsome brick
building, well fitted up without and within, was taken possession of,
and destined for a horse riding-school and the service of the light
dragoons. It is said and believed, that an offer was made of building a
complete riding-school for less money than it would cost to remove the
pews and the side galleries (the front remains for the accommodation of
tea-company and others) and to make a proper flooring for the horse. In
clearing every thing away, a beautiful carved pew, with silk furniture,
formerly belonging to a deceased gentleman in high estimation, was taken
down and carried to Mr. John Amory’s house, by the order of an officer,
who applied the carved work to the erecting of a hogsty. Had the
meeting-house and its contents been honored with episcopal consecration,
these proceedings would be deemed by multitudes, profane and
sacriligious. But they, who in the present day hold not with the
holiness of any buildings, will censure the insults offered professors
of whatever denomination, by needlessly demolishing their places of
worship, or consigning them to despicable and filthy uses. When Roman
virtue and patriotism were at their height, the Roman officers would not
allow the religion or temples of the persons with whom they fought, to
be insulted and profaned. They were more politic than to exasperate men
into a ferocious courage for the defence of their altars. But too many
of the present British officers act as though they owed a spite to all
the meeting-houses of the presbyterians, by which common name they
stigmatize those who dissent from the church of England, without
reflecting that it is no stigma in Scotland, but the reverse.

The southern colonies, in consequence of accounts transmitted to them
from the camp, begin to entertain prejudices with respect to the troops
raised in the Massachusetts. They ought to allow for the precipitation
with which the army was necessarily collected. General Thomas declared
[Oct. 24.] that the regiments at Roxbury were equal, as to the privates,
to any with whom he served the last war, and many of them have proved
themselves brave. The greatest part of the officers are unexperienced,
and in general unqualified, being strangers to subordination, which was
not unexpected to the general, as they were chosen by their privates. He
complained of many of the southern riflemen, that they often deserted to
the enemy, were mutinous, repugnant to all kind of duty, and so
exceedingly vicious that the army would be as well without them; but
spake with satisfaction of their officers. It is a mortifying truth,
that some of the Massachusetts officers disgrace the colony, by
practising the meanest arts of peculation. Every subtilty that avarice
can invent, or rascality carry on, are used to cheat the public, by men
who procured commissions, not to fight for the liberty of their country,
but to prey upon its distresses. The army about to be enlisted, will
undoubtedly be better officered.

Gentlemen, ladies, and others, from neighboring and distant colonies,
attracted by curiosity, have visited the American troops, and animated
them by their presence. A number of Indian chiefs have also been down,
that they might see and judge for themselves, how far the reports
propagated among them, were true or false. They were treated at
head-quarters, and by different officers, with much respect. One evening
they entertained the general and others with a war dance, if that may be
called an entertainment, wherein the motions and actions of the dancers
were calculated to alarm and terrify those who were not acquainted with
such sights. They were pleasant and agreeable company. Two of them had
their squaws or wives with them; who were well looking women, allowing
for their dark complexion; one of them was much dejected, having lately
lost her papoos or child. When the Indians danced in company with the
American gentlemen and ladies, both men and women kept time with far
greater exactness than the others. They went off upon their return,
fully satisfied with the treatment they had received; and it is hoped
will carry back those accounts which will keep their tribes peaceable.

Many of the Americans have sickened and died of the dysentery, brought
upon them, in a great measure, through an inattention to cleanliness.
When at home, their female relations put them upon washing their hands
and faces, and keeping themselves neat and clean; but being absent from
such monitors, through an indolent heedless turn of mind, they have
neglected the means of health, have grown filthy, and poisoned their
constitutions by nastiness.

[Nov. 2.] The weather set in very cold, and the soldiers were distressed
for want of wood. The building of barracks had been delayed too long:
and they were not in sufficient forwardness to admit and accommodate all
the troops. Several regiments were obliged to keep the field; and some
in a bleak position on the brow of hills, where it was difficult to drag
up the wood with which they could be supplied. It is mortifying to
reflect how these supplies have been reduced by short measure. But many
persons think it no harm in this way to cheat the united colonies, and
to deliver a less quantity than they are paid for.

[Nov. 9.] Several companies of the British regulars passed over from
Charlestown to Phipp’s farm, and kept possession of the ground for near
an hour before they could be obstructed, owing to a high tide that
prevented the Americans crossing the causeway, which was overflowed.
During this period they were employed in shooting cattle with a design
of carrying them off. At length a battalion of riflemen, under colonel
Thomson, took to the water, when up to their middles, and a quarter of a
mile across; at their approach the British hastened to their boats.—The
Charlestown forts, one in Boston and a frigate, kept up a warm fire upon
the Americans the whole time, killed them one man and wounded three. The
British have provided for the security of Charlestown, by the erection
of a strong citadel on Bunker’s Hill, with convenient barracks for the
garrison. [Nov. 16.] Such was the distress of the inhabitants in Boston,
that fences, trees, houses, &c. were taken down and carried off for
fuel: beef, mutton and pork, were 1s. 1½d. sterling per lb. geese, half
a guinea a piece, and fowls five shillings. At the scarcest season half
a guinea was given for a dozen of common eggs.

General Washington, desirous of improving the troops to the utmost ere
the army was weakened by the return of the Connecticut ones to their own
colony, resolved upon securing Cobble, or Miller’s Hill, about half a
mile in a direct line from the enemy’s works on Bunker’s Hill, and at a
like distance from the shipping at West Boston. About 1000 men broke
ground on the hill, [Nov. 22.] without having a single cannon fired at
them. They went on intrenching and planting several 9, 18, and 24
pounders, till they made themselves secure. General Howe does not seem
so fond of cannonading as was general Gage. [Oct. 24.] To lessen the
demand for provision, he ordered a transport ship to carry about 400 of
the inhabitants out of the town to Point Shirley, to be taken care of by
the country. Ten days after he sent out 300 more. The persons thus sent
out were not thought to be wholly free from the small-pox; and it was
suspected that there might be a design of spreading that disorder among
the American troops, which induced the Massachusetts assembly to resolve
upon measures for preventing such an event.

The Massachusetts assembly resolved, October the ninth, to fit out armed
vessels; which proving a sufficient encouragement for individuals to
apply themselves to that business, and some being in proper forwardness,
an act was passed in November for granting letters of marque and
reprisal, and the establishment of courts of admiralty. The declared
intention of the act was for the defence of the American coast, and the
condemnation of those vessels only which should be proved to be the
property of, or in any wise employed by the enemies of the united
colonies, or for supplying said enemies. The Lee privateer, captain
Manly, belonging to Marblehead, was soon at sea, and took the brig
Nancy, [Nov. 29.] an ordinance ship from Woolwich, containing, beside a
large brass morter upon a new construction, several pieces of fine brass
cannon, a large quantity of small arms and ammunition, with all manner
of tools, utensils and machines, necessary for camps and artillery, in
the greatest abundance. General Washington, but thirteen days before
wrote, “I am in very great want of powder, lead, morters, indeed of most
sorts of military stores.” Had congress sent an order for articles most
wanted, they could not have made a more satisfactory invoice. The morter
is now at Cambridge, in the park of artillery, is named _the Congress_,
and is much admired for its size by every spectator, whether acquainted
or nor with the uses for which it is designed. About two months before
this capture, a ship from Bristol with flour for Boston, having parted
with her convoy, was decoyed into Portsmouth in New-Hampshire, and
secured for the benefit of the Americans.

[Dec. 8.] Three ships from London, Glasgow, and Liverpool, with various
stores for the army, and a brig from Antigua with rum, were taken in the
bay by captain Manly, by whale-boats, &c. A number of men in whale-boats
can overpower unarmed vessels, and carry them off into secure harbours.
These and the privateers captured several more store-ships before five
days were ended. Among the privateers were some continental ones, for
general Washington fitted out a few armed vessels, which has met with
the approbation of congress. These repeated and considerable captures
have increased the distress of the troops and people in Boston, and
furnished the continental army with many, valuable articles. But though
the success of the Americans upon the watery element has been matter of
joy and triumph, their affairs upon land do not answer the wishes of the
genuine patriots. On the first of the month the enlistment of the
Connecticut troops expired. They were urged to tarry longer by different
persons, who harrangued them upon the occasion. A few hundreds were
prevailed upon to continue; but the main body marched off, leaving the
army in too week a condition. It is true they had suffered greatly
through the intenseness of the cold, and the want of fuel, with which
they ought to have been more faithfully and punctually supplied. The
Massachusetts and New-Hampshire men complete their term the first of
January; and the enlistment of the new army goes on very heavily. There
is a general reluctance among the soldiers to inlisting afresh. The
Massachusetts people show as much backwardness as the others. In short,
they expect to be hired, and that at a very high price, to defend their
own liberties; and choose to be slaves unless they can be bribed to be
freemen. _Quid facit libertas, cum sola pecunia regnat?_ How must it
afflict general Washington to observe in the present crisis, so little
of that patriotic spirit, which he was taught to believe was the
characteristic of the Massachusetts people; and on which he relied
greatly for support. While burdened with an apprehension that he might
possibly be deserted, he could recollect the severity of the season, and
the distresses of his fellow-creatures at a distance, and wrote to the
gentleman with whom he had intrusted the management of his concerns at
Mount-Vernon, “Let the hospitality of the house be kept up with respect
to the poor. Let no one go hungry away. If any of this kind of people
should be in want of corn, supply their necessities, provided it does
not encourage them in idleness. I have no objection to your giving my
money in charity, when you think it will be well bestowed. I mean, it is
my desire that it should be done. You are to consider, that neither
myself or wife are now in the way to do these good offices.”

[Dec. 11.] About 2000 militia arrived in camp, and 3000 more were
expected every hour, making in the whole the number required by the
general to supply the deficiency of the continental regiments. The
American army being by this mean sufficiently strengthened, carried
their approaches to within half a mile of Boston, and broke ground at
Lechmere’s Point which brought on a cannonade from the batteries of
Charlestown and Barton’s Point, that continued for four days, without
obliging them to desist. Their labor was hard, owing to the ground’s
being so frozen; but they persevered till they had perfected their
design.

[Dec. 25.] Some persons have been so curious as to note the number of
men killed by the firing of the enemy on Cambridge side of the American
lines, and on the Roxbury, as also, the number and nature of their
firings. The accounts stands thus “From the burning of Charlestown down
to this day, the enemy have fired upward of 2000 shot and shells, an
equal number of 24 pounders with any other sort. They threw more than
300 bumbs at Plowed Hill, and 100 at Lechmere’s Point. By the whole
firing on Cambridge side, they killed only seven, and on Roxbury side
five, just a dozen.”

Let me now give you the following anecdote. Deacon Whitcomb of
Lancaster, (who was a member of the Massachusetts assembly till the
present contest, had served in former wars, and been in different
engagements) has served as a colonel in the American army; but on
account of his age was left out upon the late new regulation. His men
highly resented it, and declared they would not inlist again, after
their time was out. The colonel told them, he did not doubt there were
sufficient reasons for the regulation, and he was satisfied with it; he
then blamed them for their conduct, and said he would inlist as a
private. A colonel Brewer heard of it, and offered to resign in favor of
colonel Whitcomb. The whole coming to general Washington’s ears, he has
allowed of colonel Brewer’s resignation in colonel Whitcomb’s favor,
appointed the former barrack-master, till he can further promote him,
and acquainted the army with the whole affars in general orders. This
terminates the narrative of the military and naval transactions within
the Massachusetts; little remain to be mentioned of the civil. The great
call there was for salt-petre, put the house of assembly upon resolving
[Oct. 30.] to pay a bounty of three shillings sterling in paper currency
per lb. for all that shall be manufactured before the first of next
June, beside two shillings and three-pence per lb. purchase money. The
assembly was far from giving satisfaction to general Lee, who about the
middle of November, pronounced them benumbed in a fixed state of
torpitude, without the symptoms of animation, unless an apprehension of
rendering themselves unpopular among their particular constituents, by
any act of vigor for the public service, deserved the name of animation.
He charged them with inconsistent and timid conduct; and ascribed it to
their torpor, narrow politics, or call it what you will, that the army
had been reduced to very great distress. There was however, about the
beginning of December, an act passed for emitting bills of credit to the
amount of more than £.50,000 sterling, with a pretty device on the back,
viz. an American with a sword in his right hand, with the following
inscription suspended therefrom, “_Ense petit placidam sub libertate
quietem_;” and from his left hand “_Magna Charta_;” and round the figure
these words, “_Issued in defence of American liberty_.” The assembly
also gave orders relating to wood [Dec. 26.] that so the great
distresses of the army on that head might be removed.

_New-Hampshire_ colony has presented us with a novelty, which the
polititians will apply to the purpose of promoting independency. By some
dextrous, or rather sinister management, instructions were delivered to
the New-Hampshire delegates at the continental congress containing these
expressions, “we would have you immediately use your utmost endeavours
to obtain the advice and direction of the congress, with respect to a
method for our administering justice and regulating our civil police. We
press you not to delay this matter, as its being done speedily will
probably prevent the greatest confusion among us.” They were laid before
congress Oct. the eighteenth, and proved a fine opening for those
individual delegates, who were looking forward to a separation from
Great-Britain, to introduce an entering wedge wherewith to divide the
empire. Even these very instructions might be designedly obtained by
confidential letters written to trusty deputies in the New-Hampshire
convention, by certain delegates in the general congress. The first step
to be taken by such was, to procure, in some one colony, the
establishment of a new form of government, in which the people at large
should have a leading influence, that so their attachments and efforts
might be secured in support of the same. The inhabitants of adjoining
colonies would soon be eager to enjoy the like power and importance,
which would pave the way for their insisting also upon a change. These
changes being once effected, the parties will then have gone too far to
retreat, and must seek their security in independence. The scheme met
with opposition, and the New-Hampshire delegates used unwearied
importunity, both within doors and without, before they obtained the
recommendation they were after. At length the report of the committee
was taken into consideration, and it was resolved by congress, [Nov. 3.]
“That it be recommended to the provincial convention of New-Hampshire,
to call a full and free representation of the people, and that the said
representatives, if they think it necessary, establish such a form of
government, as in their judgment will best produce the happiness of the
people, and most effectually secure the peace and good order in the
province, during the continuance of the present dispute between
Great-Britain and the colonies. The vote was far from being unanimous;
and, in order to make it pass, was qualified with a seeming desire of an
accommodation with Britain, and of restoration by that mean to the old
form of government. The provincial convention, without waiting for the
arrival of the recommendation, appointed a committee to report a mode of
representation, which being laid before them, [Nov. 14.] they agreed,
that precepts be sent to elect persons to represent the towns, &c. in
congress, to meet at Exeter on the twenty-first of December, and to be
empowered to prosecute such measures as they may deem necessary for the
public good, during the term of one year, unless they see fit to disolve
themselves sooner. And in case there should be a recommendation from the
continental congress for this colony to assume a government, in a way
that will require a house of representatives, that the said congress of
this colony be empowered to resolve themselves into such a house as may
be recommended, and remain such for the aforesaid term of one year.” The
provincial congress met agreeable to the receipts, and after a while
voted, “That congress will at any time take up civil government, to
continue during the present contest with Great-Britain; and resolve
themselves into a house of representatives, and then choose a council to
continue one year from the twenty-first of December.”

The continental congress having dispatched the New-Hampshire case,
immediately took into consideration the state of _South-Carolina_ and
appointed a committee to consider a number of papers relative thereto,
and to report what in their opinion was necessary to be done. What this
opinion would be was easily foreseen, from Messrs. Chase and Samuel
Adams being of the committee. The report was brought in the next day,
[Nov. 4.] and it was resolved, “That for the defence of South-Carolina,
there be kept up in that colony, at the continental expences, three
battalions of foot: That if the convention, or council of safety shall
think it expedient, for the security of the colony, to seize or destroy
any ship or vessel of war, this congress will approve of such
proceeding:—That Charleston ought to be defended against any attempts to
take possession thereof by the enemies of America; and that the
convention or council of safety ought to proceed immediately to erect
such fortifications and batteries as will best conduce to its
security;—That if the convention of South-Carolina shall find it
necessary to establish a form of government in that colony, it be
recommended to that convention to call a full and free representation of
the people, &c. &c.” as to the convention of New-Hampshire.

The measures pursued by lord Dunmore naturally led congress to resolve,
[Nov. 10.] “That a committee be appointed to inquire into the state of
the colony of _Virginia_, to consider what provisions may be necessary
for its defence, and to report the same.” Mr. Samuel Adams was of the
number. New information being received before they reported, when they
did it, it was in such a way that congress resolved [Dec. 4.] “That
three companies of the Pennsylvania battalion immediately march into
Northampton county, in Virginia, for the protection of the
association—That it be recommended to the inhabitants to resist to the
utmost, the arbitrary government intended to be established therein.”
They then said, “Whereas lord Dunmore by his proclamation, has declared
his intention to execute martial law, thereby tearing up the foundations
of civil authority and government within the colony; resolved,
therefore, that if the convention of Virginia, &c. &c.” as to the
conventions of New-Hampshire and South-Carolina.

A growing change in the sentiments of congress, would of course follow
upon the dispatches received the day before the committee on the state
of Virginia was appointed. Their agents informed them, that the American
minister told them, some days after the delivery of the petition by the
late governor Penn, _No answer will be given to it_; and that no one
person in authority had, since the arrival of that gentleman, deigned to
propose a single question to him, or to desire the smallest information
from him. This cavalier treatment of a petition containing professions
of the greatest loyalty to the king, and attachment to the mother
country, and couched in terms the most moderate and humble; and of the
person who was intrusted with it; left no reasonable ground for hoping
that the present dispute could be amicably adjusted.

Having been led by the New-Hampshire instructions, to mention some of
the doings of congress, let me proceed to relate some others which have
been unnoticed.

Congress resolved, that the new army intended to lie before Boston [Nov.
4.] consist of 20,372 men, officers included. Beside, it has been
recommended to particular colonies to raise battalions at the expence of
the continent. Orders have also been given for fitting out four armed
vessels, for the intercepting of such transports as may be laden with
warlike stores and other supplies for the enemy; and for the protection
and defence of the united colonies. [Nov. 9.] It was agreed, “That every
member consider himself under the ties of virtue, honor, and love of his
country, not to divulge, directly or indirectly, any matter or thing
agitated or debated in congress, before the same shall have been
determined, without the leave of congress; or any other matter or thing
determined in congress, which the majority of congress shall order to be
kept secret; and that if any member shall violate this agreement, he
shall be expelled this congress, and be deemed an enemy to the liberties
of America, and liable to be treated as such; and that every member
signify his consent to this agreement by signing the same.” [Nov. 10.]
They resolved upon raising two battalions of marines, to be considered
as part of the number of which the continental army before Boston is to
consist.

[Nov. 28.] A committee appointed to take into consideration the state of
_North-Carolina_, made their report, whereupon it was resolved, among
other matters, that two ministers of the gospel be applied to, to go
immediately among the regulators and highlanders of that colony, for the
purpose of informing them of the nature of the present dispute between
Great-Britain and the colonies. Instead of a similar recommendation to
what was given to South-Carolina about establishing a form of
government, it was only recommended to the convention or committee of
safety, in case the method of defending the colony by minute-men, be
inadequate to the purpose, to substitute such other mode as to them
should appear most likely to effect the security of the colony.

[Nov. 29.] Congress resolved, that a committee of five be appointed for
the sole purpose of corresponding with their friends in Great-Britain,
Ireland, and other parts of the world. Information being given, that
there is a large quantity of powder in the island of Providence, the
secret committee were ordered to take measures for securing and bringing
away the said powder. To prevent any petition to the king from a
particular colony, they declared [Dec. 4.] that in the present situation
of affairs, it would be very dangerous to the liberties and welfare of
America, if any colony should separately petition the king, or either
house of parliament. This declaration is thought to be owing to an
apprehension that the New-Jersey assembly would be drawn in, by the art
and persuasion of governor Franklin and his adherents, to adopt such a
measure. Congress were certainly alarmed at some disagreeable
appearances, for they appointed a committee to confer with that assembly
immediately after the declaration. [Dec. 6.] They agreed to the report
of the committee on proclamations. It contained many severe remarks upon
the royal proclamation of August, for suppressing rebellion and
sedition; together with many pointed questions, designed to sink it into
equal contempt with what it experienced at the Royal Exchange, where we
have heard it was read by one of the lord mayor’s officers, accompanied
only by the common crier, without horse or mace to grace the ceremony,
and when finished, saluted with a general hiss. Toward the close, the
report holds forth the following threat; “we, in the name of the people
of these united colonies, and by authority, according to the purest
maxims of representation, derived from them, declare, that whatever
punishment shall be inflicted upon any persons in the power of our
enemies, for favoring, aiding, or abetting the cause of American
liberty, shall be retaliated in the same kind and the same degree, upon
those in our power, who have favored, aided, or abetted, or shall favor,
aid, or abet the system of ministerial oppression.”

[Dec. 13.] Congress determined upon building five ships of 32 guns, five
of 28, and three of 24, in all 13; one in New-Hampshire, two in
Massachusetts, one in Connecticut, two in Rhode-Island, two in New-York,
four in Pennsylvania, and one in Maryland. [Dec. 20.] They, having taken
into consideration the dispute between the people of Pennsylvania and
Connecticut, on the lands near Wyoming, on the Susquehannah river,
recommended, that “the contending parties immediately cease all
hostilities; that all persons seized and detained on account of said
dispute, on either side, be dismissed and permitted to go to their
respective homes; and that, things being put in the same situation they
were before the late unhappy contest, they continue to behave themselves
peaceably, until a legal decision can be had on said dispute, or
congress shall take further order thereon.” The committee appointed to
fit out armed vessels, having procured a few, laid before congress [Dec.
22.] a list of the officers by them appointed; and were directed to give
such instructions to the commander of the fleet, Ezekiel Hopkins, esq.
touching the operations of the ships under his command, as should appear
to them most conducive to the defence of the united colonies, and to the
distress of the enemy’s naval forces and vessels.

In Canada, Sir Guy Carleton was no sooner acquainted with the Americans
having surprised Tyconderoga and Crown-Point, and obtained the command
of Lake Champlain, than he planned a scheme for their recovery. The
British troops he had with him were too few to admit of their being
drawn out of garrison. He expected a supply of Canadians sufficient for
his purpose, and to have the assistance of the Indians in his intended
operations; but both failed him. He established martial law in the
province, that he might be able in that way authoritatively to force the
people to take arms, but they refused. They had tasted the sweets of the
English mode of government since the conquest of the country; and were
disgusted (the noblesse excepted) at the re-establishment of the French.
The Quebec act was of no use in exciting them against the colonists; on
the contrary they talked much of liberty.[134] They declared themselves
ready to defend the province, but absolutely refused to march out of it,
and commence hostilities upon their neighbors. The governor applied to
the bishop of Quebec to use his spiritual influence, particularly to
issue an episcopal mandate, to be read by the parish priests in the time
of divine service, but the bishop excused himself. The ecclesiastics, in
the place of this, issued their letters, which were however greatly
disregarded. The noblesse alone, who were chiefly considered in the
Quebec act, showed a zeal against the English colonists.

Colonel Johnson, a son of the late Sir William Johnson, had repeated
conferences with the Indians; at the one in Montreal, he delivered to
each of the Canadian tribes a war-belt and the hatchet; after which he
invited them to feast on a Bostonian, and to drink his blood,
figuratively, an ox being roasted for the purpose, and a pipe of wine
given; but the entertainment could not prevail with them to take up the
hatchet. The congress, being made acquainted with the disposition of the
Canadians, and the designs of governor Carleton, and expecting a
powerful opposition from that quarter when European troops were arrived,
unless they could prevent it by securing the country, determined upon
penetrating into Canada, in hope of gaining the speedy possession of it,
and of joining it to the union. The more effectually to support the
reasonableness of the measure, and to strengthen the operation, it was
given out, that the powers with which governor Carleton was entrusted by
his commission, were special and extraordinary, _purposely_ designed to
warrant his attempting by force to suppress the opposition making in the
colonies to the British measures. Several, or even most of the members
of congress could not but know, that the words of the commission for
governing their own colonies, name and place excepted. Sir Guy’s
commission was in the usual mode, and similar to what was given to
Danvers Osborne, esq. governor of New-York.[135]

General Montgomery was sent forward to Tyconderoga with a body of
troops, New-Yorkers and New-Englanders. When he took leave of his lady,
his parting words were, “You shall never blush for your Montgomery.”
[Aug. 21.] He arrived with the continental army (if not too diminutive
to be so called) at the place of destination. General Schuyler, who was
the chief commander, remained at Albany, to attend the Indian treaty
carrying on in that city. General Montgomery made a movement down Lake
Champlain, without waiting the arrival of more troops, that so he might
hinder the enemy’s armed vessels getting into the lake. [Sept. 4. 5.]
Schuyler having pushed forward, notwithstanding great indisposition, and
joined Montgomery at Isle la Motte, they moved on, and arrived at Isle
aux Noix. Here he drew up a declaration, which he sent among the
Canadians by colonel Allen and major Brown, assuring them, that the army
was designed only against the English garrisons, and not the country,
their liberties or religion. [Sept. 6.] The army, not exceeding a
thousand men, proceeded without any obstruction toward St. John’s. When
in sight of the works, and about two miles distant, the enemy began to
fire, without doing any damage. After advancing half a mile nearer, the
troops landed without opposition, in a close deep swamp; and being
formed, marched through grounds marshy and covered with woods, in order
to reconnoitre the fortresses. The left was attacked in crossing a
creek, by a party of Indians, who killed a sergeant, corporal, and three
privates, beside wounding eight, three of whom died. Three officers also
were wounded. The Indians were soon compelled to give way, and had five
killed and four badly wounded. Gen. Schuyler receiving certain
intelligence in the evening, that the enemy’s fortifications were
complete, and plentifully furnished with cannon, it was thought
advisable the next morning, to return to Isle aux Noix, which was
accordingly done; and the troops were employed in erecting proper works
to secure the entrance into the lake; and in getting ready, on the
arrival of further reinforcements, to take advantage of any events that
might happen in Canada. Schuyler returned, leaving the command to
Montgomery; who, being strengthened by an addition of men and artillery,
and receiving orders to undertake the siege of St. John’s, [Sept. 17.]
proceeded to execute the same. The next day the enemy threw bombs, but
did no damage. The Americans returned the salute. [Sept. 21.] The lines
of circumvallation were finished; but between 20 and 30 waggons with
provisions, rum, brandy, &c. for the garrison, were taken prior to it.
Afterwards there was a continual firing for some days and nights; and
could the general have depended upon the troops, he might have ventured
to promise success, but he could say nothing pleasing on that head. The
men took good care of themselves; and one night captain Mott, of the 1st
regiment of Yorkers, basely deserted the mortar battery without ever
being attacked.

Colonel Allen being upon his return, with a guard of about eighty men,
from a tour upon which he had been sent by the general, was desired to
halt by major Brown, who proposed that colonel Allen should return to
Longuil, procure canoes and cross the river St. Lawrence a little north
of Montreal; while he crossed a little to the south of the town with
near 200 men, as he had boats sufficient. The plan was approved of, and
colonel Allen crossed in the night. Major Brown by some means failed on
his part; and colonel Allen found himself, the next morning, in a
critical situation; but concluded upon maintaining his grounds. [Sept.
25.] General Carleton learning how weak colonel Allen was, marched out
against him with about forty regulars, together with Canadians, English
and Indians, amounting to some hundreds. The colonel defended himself
with much bravery; but being deserted by several, chiefly Canadians, and
having had fifteen of his men killed, was under the necessity of
surrendering with thirty-one effectives and seven wounded. He was
directly put into irons. Had the plan been executed according to major
Brown’s proposal, Montreal would probably have been surprised and taken.
Success would have prevented the censures, which are now passed upon the
one for proposing, and the other for adopting a plan of operation to
which the general was an entire stranger. [Oct. 4.] A party of
Canadians, who had joined and greatly assisted the besiegers, intrenched
themselves on the east side of the lake, on which the enemy sent an
armed sloop with troops to drive them away; but the Canadians attacked
the sloop with vigor, killed a number of the men, and obliged her to
return to St. Johns in a shattered condition. The main body of the army
decamped from the south, [Oct. 7.] and marched to the north side of the
fort: and in the evening began to throw up a breast work, in order to
erect a battery of cannon and mortars. The continental troops brought
such a spirit of liberty into the field, and thought so freely for
themselves, that they would not bear either subordination or discipline.
The general could not in truth direct their operations, and would not
have stayed an hour at their head, had he not feared that the example
would be too generally followed and so the public service suffer. There
was a great want of powder, which with the disorderly behavior of the
troops was a damp to the hope of terminating the siege successfully.

[Oct. 18.] The prospect was much brightened. The Canadians planned an
attack upon Chamblee, and carried down in batteaux the artillery, past
the fort of St. John’s. After a short demur it surrendered to major
Brown and major Livingston.—The greatest acquisition was about six tons
of powder, which enabled the general to accomplish his wishes. The other
particulars you have below,[136] except the colours of the 7th regiment,
which were immediately transmitted to congress—the first present of the
kind they ever received. The garrison became prisoners of war, but were
allowed all their baggage, the quantity of which was astonishing. Their
women and children, whose number was equally astonishing, were permitted
to go with them and to take their effects. The besiegers having obtained
a full supply of ammunition, went to work in earnest, compleated a
battery within 250 yards of the fort, and mounted in it [Oct. 30.] four
guns and six mortars, in defiance of the continual fire of the enemy.
While the army was busily engaged in preparing for a cannonade, and an
assault if necessary, they received the agreeable news of governor
Carleton’s being repulsed. [Oct. 31.] The governor, with a view of
raising the siege, collected a body of about 800 forces, consisting of
the militia of Montreal, a number of Canadians, whom he had maintained
for some time, a few troops, not a hundred, and some Indians. They left
Montreal in high spirits, and attempted to cross the river St. Lawrence
and land at Longeuil; but colonel Warner, with 300 Green Mountain boys,
and a four pounder which kept pouring grape-shot into the boats,
prevented their making good a landing. They were suffered to come very
near the shore, and then the fire was so hot and distructive, that they
were thrown into great confusion, and retired with the utmost
precipitation. [Nov. 1.] The batteries kept an incessant fire all day on
the garrison of St. John, which returned a very brisk one.—In the
evening general Montgomery sent a flag, with a letter to major Preston,
the commander, by one of the prisoners taken by colonel Warner,
informing him of governor Carleton’s defeat, and recommending to him the
surrender of the fort, as he could now have no longer reason to expect
relief from that quarter. Major Preston in return sent an officer to the
camp, proposing to answer the letter fully in the morning, and that in
the mean time hostilities should cease on both sides. Two officers came
into the camp [Nov. 2.] with an answer from major Preston, who requested
the general to wait four days, to see whether no relief would come in
that time, if not, they would make proposals for a surrender. The
advanced season of the year did not allow of the general’s complying. He
required them immediately to surrender prisoners of war; but referred
them for the truth of the governor’s defeat to another prisoner. It was
at length agreed that the garrison should march out with the honors of
war, as what was due to their fortitude and perseverance. The
non-commissioned officers and privates were to ground their arms on the
plain; the officers were to keep their side arms, and their fire arms
were to be reserved for them. The effects of the garrison were not to be
withheld from them. The Canadian gentlemen and others, at St. John’s,
were considered as part of the garrison, which amounted to about 500
regulars, and better than 100 Canadian volunteers. The next morning they
marched out [Nov. 31.] and the continental troops took possession of the
fort, in which were 17 brass ordnance, from 2 to 24 pounders, 2 eight
inch howitzers, seven mortars, and 22 iron ordnance, from 3 to 9
pounders, a considerable quantity of shot and small shells, and about
800 stand of small arms, beside a small quantity of naval stores. The
ammunition and provision was trifling, these having been nearly
expended.

General Montgomery pressed on to Montreal. It being capable of making no
defence, governor Carleton quitted it in one day; the general entered it
the next [Nov. 12.] He treated the inhabitants with becoming liberality,
engaging upon his honor to maintain the individuals and religious
communities of the city in the peaceable enjoyment of their property of
every kind; and the inhabitants, whether English, French, or others, in
the free exercise of their religion. The general, in all his
transactions, wrote, spake, and behaved with that attention, regard, and
politeness to both privates and officers, soldiers and citizens, which
might be expected from the gentleman. He was careful to push forward in
time, a number of continental troops under colonel Easton, to the point
of Sorel River, which they guarded so with cannon, an armed gondola, and
their fire arms, that the fleet which had fallen down below Montreal,
would not venture to attempt passing it. General Prescot, who was on
board, with about 120 privates and several officers, was reduced to the
necessity of surrendering by capitulation. [Nov. 17] 11 sail of vessels,
with all their contents, consisting of, beside sailors and soldiers, 760
barrels of flour, 675 ditto of beef, 376 firkins of butter, 3 barrels of
powder, 4 nine and six pounders, cannon cartridges and ball, 2380 musket
cartridges, 8 chests of arms, 200 pair of shoes, and a quantity of
entrenching tools; all of which proved very acceptable to the
continental troops, who had no redundency of any articles whatever. In
the preceding midnight, governor Carleton was conveyed, in a boat, with
muffled paddles, by a secret way, to the Three Rivers, and arrived safe
at Quebec the Sunday following.

Notwithstanding the advanced and severe season, general Montgomery
marched on for the capital, expecting to be joined by colonel Arnold and
his detachment in its neighbourhood, and designing to complete the
reduction of Canada before the arrival of any British reinforcement. But
while he was advancing, numbers were returning. An unhappy home sickness
prevailed, and no specific was so efficacious as a discharge. No sooner
was it administered, but the cure of nine out of ten was perfected; who,
refusing to wait for boats to go by the way of Fort George, upon their
arrival at Tyconderoga, flung their heavy packs over their shoulders,
crossed the lake at that place, and undertook a march of two hundred
miles with the greatest good will and alacrity. Three hundred of the
continentals passed by Tyconderoga on their way home, by the end of the
month. The ruin of the cause was further hazarded by the turbulent and
mutinous spirit of several officers.

Colonel Arnold’s arrival with his detachment, at Point Levi, was not
known at Quebec for twenty-four hours; and was at length discovered by
his ordering out some men to secure the midshipman of the Hunter sloop
of war, who was just landed on that side the river; the boat returned,
and carried the intelligence to Quebec; on which two ships of war were
stationed, one above and the other below Wolfe’s Cove, to prevent the
Americans crossing over. A council was called, and by a majority of one
it was agreed _not_ to proceed immediately to attack the town. The
contrary resolution, backed by vigorous exertion, would probably have
put him into the possession of it. On the fifth of November it was
really in a defenceless state, without a single soldier. Had the
detachment crossed, the gates would, it is thought, have been opened by
the disaffected and faint-hearted. The colonel however declared, that he
would certainly make the attack when he had crossed, in case they were
not discovered to be over. In the mean time the troops were employed in
preparing scaling ladders. Before they were ready with these, colonel
Maclean, the deputy governor, arrived at Quebec from Sorel [Nov. 12.]
with about 170 men of his new raised regiment of emigrants; of this
colonel Arnold had advice the next day, when, in the evening at nine
o’clock, he began to embark his forces on board thirty-five canoes,
leaving the ladders behind, and by four the next morning, got over and
landed 500 men, wholly undiscovered. They landed in the small cove where
the brave and enterprising general Wolfe did, now called Wolfe’s Cove.
The Lizard’s barge rowing up the river, the colonel ordered her to be
hailed, and fired upon for refusing to come in shore; on which she
pushed off, and carried the account of the detachment’s having crossed
over. But before this discovery, the men paraded on the Heights of
Abraham. From thence they sent out a reconnoitering party toward the
city, marched across the plain, and took possession of a large house,
formerly owned by general Murray, and other adjacent houses, which
afforded fine accommodations for the troops. Guards were placed on the
different roads, to cut off the communication between the city and
country. The main body, about noon, marched fairly in view of the enemy,
and gave them three huzzas, which were returned by a few shot from the
ramparts. In the evening the colonel sent a flag of truce with a demand
of the garrison, in the name and on hehalf of the united colonies, which
was fired upon as it approached the walls. The colonel was certainly
overseen; he should have taken the scaling ladders along with him, have
concealed his being over, and attempted a coup-de-main the next night,
which might have been done with a prospect of success, as his Canadian
friends, English and French, were in the city to second his operations,
and as the sailors were then scattered on board the ships, some about
Quebec, and others up the river. [Nov 16.] A company of men were sent to
take possession of the general hospital. The Canadians were continually
coming in to express their satisfaction at the continental forces having
entered the country. The next day a certain account was received of the
capture of Montreal. Early in the morning [Nov. 19.] the troops
decamped, and marched up to Point-au-Trembles, about seven leagues from
Quebec, through a thick settled country, where you meet every few miles
with a handsome little chapel. This was the day on which governor
Carleton arrived at Quebec; and the first thing he did was to turn out
the suspected, and all who would not assist in the defence of the city.
[Nov. 23.] By express from Montreal, the forces were informed that
Montgomery was upon his march, and had sent down clothing for them. The
general finding plenty of woollens at Montreal, at a reasonable price,
gave his soldiers new clothes, after their having suffered much by the
severity of the climate, to which they submitted with patience and
resolution, particularly in marching from St. John’s to Montreal, the
road being half leg deep in mire. He was also mindful of colonel
Arnold’s detachment, which had suffered still greater hardships. General
Montgomery arrived at one o’clock [Dec. 1.] with three armed schooners,
men, ammunition, and provision, to the great joy of the colonel’s
forces, who toward evening turned out and marched to the general’s
quarters, and were there received and complimented by him upon their
appearance. The next day the batteaux were sent to Point Levi for the
scaling ladders. The general appeared before Quebec [Dec. 5.] which is
the last we have heard of his movements.

[Dec. 14.] General Howe issued orders for taking down the old north
meeting-house, a large wooden building, containing a great deal of
timber; and a hundred old wooden dwelling-houses and other buildings, to
be used for fuel. The scarcity of this article, now that the usual
supplies from the country are cut off, will reduce the inhabitants to an
entreme difficutly.


[Dec. 30.] P. S. Admiral Shuldham is just arrived from Great-Britain in
the Chatham man of war of 50 guns, to supersede admiral Greaves.


                        END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

-----

Footnote 1:

  Townshend’s Historical Collections, p. 76.

Footnote 2:

  Prince’s New-England Chronology, part I.

Footnote 3:

  Wood’s New-England’s Prospect, ed. 1764, p. 5.

Footnote 4:

  See the Charter in Hutchinson’s Collection of papers, p 1.–23.

Footnote 5:

  Neale’s History of the Puritans. 4to. Vol. 1. p. 543.

Footnote 6:

  Hutchinson’s History of the Massachusetts Bay. Vol. II. p. 3.

Footnote 7:

  Suffolk Records.

Footnote 8:

  Suffolk Records.

Footnote 9:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. I p. 487.

Footnote 10:

  Prince’s Chronology, p. 238.

Footnote 11:

  Governor Winthrop’s MS. History.

Footnote 12:

  Hutchinson’s Letter of December 7. 1762.

Footnote 13:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. I p. 251 and 252.

Footnote 14:

  Extract from Governor Winthrop’s MS. History sent me by Gov. Trumbull
  from Connecticut.

Footnote 15:

  Massachusetts Records, Vol. I.

Footnote 16:

  Hutchinson’s History. Vol I. p. 424.

Footnote 17:

  Massachusetts Records, in many places.

Footnote 18:

  Mr. John Calender’s Century Sermon.

Footnote 19:

  Massachusetts Records for the 4th of November, 1646, Vol. I.

Footnote 20:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. II. p. 2 and 4.

Footnote 21:

  ibid. Vol. I. p. 115.

Footnote 22:

  Hutchinson’s Collection, p. 420.

Footnote 23:

  Chalmer’s Political Annals, under Connecticut and Rhode-Island.

Footnote 24:

  Neal’s History of _New-England_, Vol. I. p. 214–217.

Footnote 25:

  Hutchinson’s History. Vol. I. p. 268.

Footnote 26:

  Ibid. p. 328.

Footnote 27:

  See Hutchinson’s collection of papers, p. 477–506. The Massachusetts
  assembly in their answer to Gov. Hutchinson in 1773, quoted the above
  passages in such a manner and to such a purpose, as expresses their
  opinion of the truth of what Randolph declared.

Footnote 28:

  Chalmer’s Political Annals, p. 313.

Footnote 29:

  Smith’s History of New Jersey, p. 513.

Footnote 30:

  Smith’s History of New-Jersey, p. 517.

Footnote 31:

  ibid. p. 528–529.

Footnote 32:

  ibid. 536.

Footnote 33:

  Corrupted by time into Whore-Kill. The name of many rivers, in
  New-York particularly terminate with kill, which means both river and
  rivulet.

Footnote 34:

  The manuscript copy contains a number of authorities from Bracton,
  Fortesque, the petition of right, &c. See Smith, p. 129, the note.

Footnote 35:

  Smith, p. 117–123.

Footnote 36:

  See Chalmer’s Political Annals under the head of Virginia, for many of
  the preceding and subsequent articles respecting that colony.

Footnote 37:

  Bland’s Inquiry into the rights of the British colonies.

Footnote 38:

  Bland’s Inquiry into the rights of the British colonies.

Footnote 39:

  Chalmer’s Political Annals, under Virginia.

Footnote 40:

  Locke’s Works, Vol. IV, p. 519, &^c. 1779.

Footnote 41:

  Chalmers’s Political Annals, B. I. p. 537, 538.

Footnote 42:

  Most of what is said upon Carolina is taken from Chalmers’s Political
  Annals, under the head of that province.

Footnote 43:

  A defence of the American Constitution of Government, by John Adams,
  Esq. p. 365.

Footnote 44:

  The Modern Universal History, Vol. xl., 1763.

Footnote 45:

  Chalmers’s Political Annals, under the head of Pennsylvania.

Footnote 46:

  Chalmers’s Annals.

Footnote 47:

  Chalmers’s Annals, p. 654.

Footnote 48:

  The Modern Universal History, vol. xli. p. 19. 1764.

Footnote 49:

  Ibid. p. 20.

Footnote 50:

  Modern Universal History’ vol. xl. p. 453–463. 1763.

Footnote 51:

  William Smith’s History of New-York, p. 75.

Footnote 52:

  Chalmers’s Political Annals.

Footnote 53:

  Lord Camden’s Speech in April 1766.

Footnote 54:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. II. p. 74.

Footnote 55:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. II. p. 271, 290, 294, 321. and governor
  Burnet’s Speech to the Massachusetts general court, in the
  Massachusetts Records for 1728.

Footnote 56:

  Massachusetts Records for 1729 and 1731. Hutchinson’s History, Vol.
  II. p. 355, 360, 363.

Footnote 57:

  The present lieutenant governor. [1772.]

Footnote 58:

  The present governor. (1772.)

Footnote 59:

  Grand father of the present Sir William Pepperrell. (1787.)

Footnote 60:

  Governor Shirley’s letter of February 16, 1744.

Footnote 61:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. II. p. 407–420. The above account varies
  from Hutchinson’s, being corrected in some instances, from a
  manuscript copy of the History of the Reduction of Louisburg, sent by
  Mr. Shirley, to the duke of Newcastle; and improved in others from
  information given me,

Footnote 62:

  See the postscript of Dean Tucker’s Humble Address.

Footnote 63:

  The Dean’s Letter to Edmund Burke, esq. p. 27.

Footnote 64:

  Hutchinson’s History, Vol. II. p. 424.

Footnote 65:

  See a collection of letters and essays in favour of public liberty, in
  three Vols. printed for Wilkie. Vol. III. p. 34. 42.

Footnote 66:

  See a short account of the proceedings of the deputation. p. 9.

Footnote 67:

  Dr. Chauncey’s thanksgiving sermon for the repeal of the stamp act in
  a note.

Footnote 68:

  Dr. Langdon told it me in conversation: and afterward mentioned it in
  his sermon preached before the convention of the ministers.

Footnote 69:

  Now president of Yale College in Connecticut.

Footnote 70:

  From Brooke Woodcock, Esq. of Saffron Waldon, who served at the taking
  of Bellisle, Martinico, and the Havannah.

Footnote 71:

  Mr. Burke’s speech on American taxation, April 19, 1774.

Footnote 72:

  Otis’s Rights of the British Colonies, p. 57.

Footnote 73:

  Ibid, p. 59.

Footnote 74:

  Otis’s Vindication of the British Colonies, p. 57.

Footnote 75:

  Ibid. p. 59.

Footnote 76:

  His Rights of the British Colonies, p. 63.

Footnote 77:

  Mr. Hutchinson’s letter of March 8, 1766.

Footnote 78:

  Mr. Agent Bollan’s letters of that date to the Massachusetts general
  court.

Footnote 79:

  Mr. Sayre’s letter to Captain Sears, of New-York, dated London, 7th of
  Febuary, 1764.

Footnote 80:

  Mr. Jackson’s letter to lieutenant-governor Hutchinson, Dec. 26, 1765.

Footnote 81:

  Mr. Ingersoll’s letter of March 6, 1765.

Footnote 82:

  The present secretary of congress.

Footnote 83:

  Late governor Trumbull of Connecticut.

Footnote 84:

  Mr. Hughes’s letters of October and November, 1765.

Footnote 85:

  See the Gentleman’s Magazine, Vol. XXXV. p. 538.

Footnote 86:

  Ibid. Vol. XXXVI. p. 94.

Footnote 87:

  Ibid. Vol. XXXVI. p. 94 and 95.

Footnote 88:

  Mr. Edmund Burke’s speech; April 19, 1774.

Footnote 89:

  Political Memoirs, printed 1783.

Footnote 90:

  Mr. Burke’s speech.

Footnote 91:

  The London merchants letter to John Hancock, Esq. and others, dated
  February 28.

Footnote 92:

  The lords protest against the repeal of the stamp act.

Footnote 93:

  Mr. Hutchinson’s loss was 2396l. 3s. 1d. 1–2. Mr. Oliver’s 129l. 3s.
  Mr. Hallowell’s 289l. 0s. 1d. 1–2. Mr. Story’s 50l. 11s. 6d. 3–4, all
  sterling.

Footnote 94:

  Mr. Hartley’s letters.

Footnote 95:

  January 21, 1768.

Footnote 96:

  January 30.

Footnote 97:

  February 2.

Footnote 98:

  Mr. Bollan’s letter to Mr. Hutchinson, August 11, 1767.

Footnote 99:

  The Lanceston of 40 guns, the Mermaid of 28, Glasgow 20, Beaver 14,
  Senegal 14, Bonetta 10, and several armed schooners, besides the
  Romney of 60 guns, and other ships which had been some time in the
  harbour.

Footnote 100:

  Mr. M. H’s letter to Mr. Hutchinson.

Footnote 101:

  Mr. Otis afterward prosecuted Mr. Robinson for the assault, and the
  law gave heavy damages against him; but Mr. Otis generously forgave
  him upon an acknowledgment of the offence.

Footnote 102:

  The date of the committee’s letter to the Philadelphians after taking
  the sense of the inhabitants a second time.

Footnote 103:

  The doctor’s account to me, when discoursing upon what is called the
  massacre.

Footnote 104:

  The trial of the soldiers, p. 52.

Footnote 105:

  Samuel Gray, Samuel Maverick, James Caldwell, and Crispus Attucks.
  Samuel Gray was a journeyman, and wrought in the rope-walks belonging
  to Mr. John Gray, the rope-maker.

Footnote 106:

  Lieutenant-governor Hutchinson’s letter of December 10, 1770.

Footnote 107:

  The Rev. Mr. Whitney’s discourse on the public fast.

Footnote 108:

  M. Hartley.

Footnote 109:

  The word _caucus_, and its derivative caucusing, are often used in
  Boston. The last answers much to what we stile parliamenteering or
  electioneering. All my repeated applications to different gentlemen
  have not furnished me with a satisfactory account of the origin of
  _caucus_. It seems to mean a number of persons, whether more or less,
  met together to consult upon adopting and prosecuting some scheme of
  policy, for carrying a favorite point. The word is not of novel
  invention. More than 50 years ago, Mr. S. Adam’s father, and 20
  others, one or two from the north end of the town, where all the ship
  business is carried on, used to meet, make a caucus, and lay their
  plan for introducing certain persons into places of trust and power.
  When they had settled it, they separated, and used each their
  particular influence within his own circle. He and his friends would
  furnish themselves with ballots, including the names of the parties
  fixed upon, which they distributed on the days of election. By acting
  in concert together, with a careful and extensive distribution of
  ballots, they generally carried the elections to their own mind. In
  like manner it was, that Mr. Samuel Adams first became a
  representative for Boston.

Footnote 110:

  The Rev. Mr. Whitney’s Discourse.

Footnote 111:

  The lords protest against the act for the better regulating of the
  government.

Footnote 112:

  Parliamentary Debates relative to general Howe. Mr. Galloway’s
  answers.

Footnote 113:

  Lords who signed the protest—Richmond, Portland, Rockingham, Stamford,
  Stanhope, Torrington, Ponsonby, Wycombe, Camden.

Footnote 114:

  See the Remembrancer, Part II. p. 227, the note.

Footnote 115:

  See the Spectator, No. 509.

Footnote 116:

  See general Gage’s account of the behavior of the troops, in the
  London Gazette.

Footnote 117:

  This was practised.

Footnote 118:

  Afterward a lieutenant-colonel in Shelden’s light horse.

Footnote 119:

  So Tyconderoga is frequently called for the sake of brevity,
  especially by the people dwelling in its neighborhood.

Footnote 120:

  The territory has now the name of Vermont.

Footnote 121:

  Between 112 and 120 iron cannon from 6 to 24 pounders; 50 swivels of
  different sizes; 2 ten inch mortars; 1 howitzer; 1 cohorn; 10 tons of
  musket balls; 3 cart load of flints 30 new carriages; a considerable
  quantity of shells; a warehouse full of meterials to carry on boat
  building; 100 stand of small arms; 10 casks of very indifferent
  powder; a brass cannon; 30 barrels of flour; 18 barrels of pork, and
  some beans and pease.

  The prisoners were the captain, lieutenant, a gunner, 2 serjeants, and
  44 rank and file, beside women and children.

Footnote 122:

  Since collector of imposts and excise for the county of Suffolk in
  Massachusetts.

Footnote 123:

  General Burgoyne’s Letter.

Footnote 124:

  This resolution was assigned by a near female relation of the general,
  to a gentlewoman with whom she had been acquainted at school, as a
  reason why the other, upon obtaining a pass to quit Boston, should not
  tarry at her father’s (Mr. Cary’s) house in Charlestown.

Footnote 125:

  Mr. afterward major Winslow, of the American artillery (who was
  personally acquainted with the general, and crossed over from Boston
  to the place of action after the battle, and narrowly surveyed the
  body) related his being so shot, and the hand’s being bloody as if by
  the wound.

Footnote 126:

  Entick’s History of the War, from 1755, Vol. IV. p. 20. printed for
  Mr. Dilly.

Footnote 127:

  Dr. Price’s two tracts on civil liberty, Part II. p. 111 and 112,
  1788. The first restraining act was passed March the 30th, the second
  April the 13th. The news of them was undoubtedly carried by the
  vessels from London, which arrived at Philadelphia the evening of June
  the 7th, and had on board major Skeen.

Footnote 128:

  A shilling a day.

Footnote 129:

  Governor Martin went not on board the Cruiser sloop till the middle of
  July.

Footnote 130:

  The bishop of St. Asaph.

Footnote 131:

  Lord Camden.

Footnote 132:

  Lord Chatham.

Footnote 133:

  General Washington’s Private Letter.

Footnote 134:

  Mr. Thomas Gamble’s letter to general Gage.

Footnote 135:

  See the copy in Mr. Smith’s History of New-York.

Footnote 136:

  Eighty barrels of flour, 11 ditto rice, 7 ditto pease, 6 furkins of
  butter, 134 barrels of pork, 7 ditto damaged, 124 barrels of
  gun-powder, 300 swivel shot, 1 box of musket shot, 6564 musket
  cartridges, 150 stand of French arms, 3 royal mortars, 61 shells, 500
  hand-granades, Royal fusileers muskets 83, accoutrements 83, rigging
  for three vessels at least, 1 major, 2 captains, 3 lieutenants, the
  captain of the schooner which is sunk, a commissary and surgeon,
  soldiers 83.

------------------------------------------------------------------------




                          TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES


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     chapter.
 ● Enclosed italics font in _underscores_.
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     individual characters (like 2^d) and even entire phrases (like
     1^{st}).





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