176)

August 15.

CHAP. on it. In anfwer to this, another letter from his lordfnip IV. was read in a court, 'held Auguft fifteenth, in which he acquainted the proprietors, that " by the answer given to his laft, he was of opinion, that he had been in fome degree misunderstood; his idea never was to invest any naval officer with plenipotentiary powers; and that to prevent any future misunderstanding, he would only recommend the dicuffion of two points: 1ft, The reconsideration of the commiffion; and, 2dly, The degree of power proper to be vested in the naval officer.-With regard to the former, he would not pretend to speak on it; but with regard to the fecond, as government had, by the eleventh article of the definitive treaty, in one thoufand feven hundred and fixty-three, made conditions, at the request of the company, with several Indian princes, it highly respected their honour, that an officer of the crown fhould be at the head of all matters offenfive and defenfive."

It now became evident, that the intention of ministry was to deprive the company of all power over their terri, torial acquifitions in the eaft; and as the matter was cer tainly of the greatest importance, the court was adjourned to the 30th of the fame month, in order to give fufficient time to the members to form their opinions; and, when the time came, violent debates, as usual, took place. On the part of the company, it was urged, that if the king's officers were once allowed to interfere with the af fairs of Indian government, the power of the company was, from that moment, at an end. An application toʻgovernment for affiftance, at the fame time that the fervants of the crown were invefted with independent powers, was at once to give up the territorial acquifitions in the caft ; as the confequences might easily be foreseen, whenever any difpute fhould arife betwixt the company's fervants and thofe of the crown: and if the company was unable, by itself, to defend its territorial acquifitions, it would be much better to furrender them at once, than to be conftantly at the mercy of a minifter. The interference of government in commercial affairs, it was contended, had uniformly proved detrimental, and even ruinous, as might eafily be demonftrated by a comparison of the French and Duteh East-India companies. It was evident also, that the demands of the British miniftry had rifen in proportion to the ill-judged conceffions which the company had already been prevailed on to make. They had granted government an annual fum, much larger than what they proposed to divide among themselves, without any renewal of their charter, or ftipulation in their favour; and this ought to have

been a fufficient gratification to miniftry, without imme- CHAP. diately making a new requifition which ftruck at the company's very existence.

To all this, the ministerial party replied, That the king's commiffion would add dignity to the negociations carried on with the Indian princes, who, being fovereigns themselves, would much more readily treat with the officers of a fovereign prince, than the fervants of a company of merchants, whofe rapacity they had already experienced, and whose misconduct, unless speedily counteracted by a vigorous interpofition of government, would not fail to occafion the total extermination of the Britifh in that part of the world. It was likewife evident, that nothing could, for the future, fo effectually prevent thefe enormities, as an appointment by his majefty of fome perfon of rank, honour, and integrity, who might be a fufficient check on the rapacity of their fervants, at the fame time that he would not only be anfwerable for his own conduct to his majefty, but also to the nation in general.

IV.

1769.

Thefe arguments being urged at great length by their refpective partifans, the question was at laft put, “That this court will give the officer of the crown, commanding fhips of the line, a fhare in the deliberations and refolutions of the company, merely with regard to the two objects of making peace and declaring war, when his majefty's forces are employed." Every thing, however, was thrown into confufion by the rejection of this queftion, as miniftry had already taken care that the commiflion for Difference

the naval commander fhould be made out. It became ne- between ceffary, therefore, that a compromise fhould be made; and the compafor this, the fituation of affairs, on the Gulph of Perfia, ny and miniftry acoffered a fair opportunity. The chiefs on that coaft, taking commodaadvantage of the troubles in which the Perfian empire was ted. involved, had declared themselves independent, and throwing off all regard to order, had embroiled the affairs of the company. With regard to the Gulph of Perfia, therefore, the naval commander was allowed to have power to make peace, or war, but beyond this his jurifdiction was not to extend. The demand for fhips of the line for the bay of Bengal, was now withdrawn, though two frigates were appointed for that service, and to carry the fupervifors, whofe powers were at laft fully adjuffed, and a final top put to this formidable conteft.

CHAPTER V.

V.

1766.

taxes

Extreme jealoufy and disobedience of the American coloniesNew difturbances on account of the impofition of certain -Violent difputes betwixt the governors and their affemblies-New office of fecretary of State for the colanies- People of Bofton assemble under the name of a convention-Progress of the difcontents in Maffachufetts Bay.

I

CHAP. TT cannot be denied, that the attempt of the miniftry on the Eaft-India company, carried along with it the idea of defpotifm, and a wifh to veft the crown with an absolute right over the property of the fubject. From this, among many other caufes, we may partly derive the extreme jealoufy of the American colonies, their irreconcileable averfion to the British miniftry, and their perpetual and utter abhorrence of any conciliatory measures. The repeal of the ftamp-act in 1766, had not produced that complacency which might reasonably have been expected. The declaratory bill, fetting forth the fupremacy Difobedi- of Great-Britain in fuch explicit terms, had produced an affembly of inclination to refiit in every thing, whether of any confeNew-York. quence or not. An act of parliament had been paffed the

ence of the

fame feffion, with regard to the accommodation of the troops at New-York; but the affembly of that province, without the leaft regard to this act, thought proper to fettle them according to a method of their own. However, as miniftry did not incline to ufe any violent measure at prefent, no farther punithment was inflicted, than fufpending the legiflative power of the affembly of that province, until they should fully comply with the terms of the act.

V.

1767.

October,

But when fome other acts were paffed in the parliament CHAP. of 1767, impofing duties on glafs, painters' colours, and tea, imported into the colonies, their former fury revived with all its violence. On this occafion, the disturbances, as before, began at Bofton. In the month of October, feveral refolutions were paffed, at a meeting of the inhabitants, for the encouragement of American manufactures, reftraining the use of fuperfluities, and promoting œconomy. A long lift of articles, imported from this country, was produced at the meeting, which it was determined, either not to use at all, or in as little quantity as poffible. It was particularly recommended, to encourage the making of paper, glafs, and all thofe articles on which the duties had been laid. At this meeting, alfo, feveral regulations were made with regard to the article of drefs and funerals; every method, in fhort, being tried to make the American colonies as independent as poffible of the mother country.

1768.

This measure being readily adopted by all the other colonies, gave encouragement to the Boftonians to proceed ftill farther. A circular letter was fent, of date, February 11, 1768, from the fpeaker of the affembly of Feb. 11. Maffachusetts Bay, to all the other affemblies of the colonies, fetting forth the bad tendency of the late acts of parliament, representing them as unconftitutional, and an infringement of the rights of Englishmen; exhorting the other colonies, at the fame time, to enter into an union with them, that fo all their proceedings in the common cause might harmonize together.

nors and

Similar resolutions were quickly taken throughout all Diffention the rest of the colonies; and, in the mean time, the most between inveterate enmity took place between the governors of the gover the provinces and their affemblies. It was easily percei- their afved by the former, that the final purpofe propofed by the femblies. people of North America, was a total independency on the mother country; while, on the other hand, the affemblies, confcious that this was their real aim, affected to confider those steps which their governors were indifpenfibly obliged to take, in order to preserve even a shadow of the royal authority, as fo many encroachments. on their liberty. All good agreement was, therefore, entirely at an end; the correfpondence betwixt the governors and their affemblies was nothing but a continued courfe of altercation and mutual accufation, each party watching how they might find faults in the conduct of the other, fufficient to justify to the world the fyftem they had already established in their own minds. In this dif

CHAP. tracted ftate, it is not to be fuppofed, that the correfpon

V.

1768.

dence between the governors of the American colonies and the British ministry, could be calculated to impress the latter with any favourable opinion of the people there and, indeed, fome unfortunate difcoveries of this kind tended to drive matters to extremities fooner than perhaps would otherwife have been the cafe. A letter from lord Shelburne to governor Bernard of Maffachusetts Bay, was, by his order, read before the affembly of that province. It contained very fevere cenfures on the conduct of the affembly, and was heard with great indignation. The affembly inftantly charged their governor with having mifreprefented, and fet them in an unfavourable light to his lordship; and, therefore, required him to lay before them, copies of fuch letters as he had written to his lordfhip concerning them; which being refused, they wrote letters not only to lord Shelburne, but the rest of the miniftry, recriminating on their governor, and afferting that to his bad conduct and mifreprefentation it was, that fuch a bad opinion had been formed of them at home. These letters, at the fame time, contained the strongest profesfions of loyalty, but were filled with the most severe invectives against the late act of parliament, which they ftiled unconftitutional, and fubverfive of their liberties. The governor, finding himself at a lofs what to do, adMarch 4 journed the affembly, though, at their next meeting, he found them in better humour.

Secretary

of ftate ap

the colo

mics.

In the mean time, the miniftry finding the American affairs fo full of perplexity, appointed a fecretary of state. for the department of the colonies alone. Lord Hillfbopointed for rough, who was appointed to this new office, inftantly fet about writing a circular letter, dated April 22d, to the governors of the provinces, with a view to counteract that of the affemblies already mentioned. In this, he condemned the assembly's letter without referve; setting it forth as of a moft dangerous and factious nature, calcu lated to inflame the minds of the people, fubverfive of the true principles of the conftitution, and of the authority of parliament; and concluding, that his majesty expected, from the known affection of the refpective affemblies, that they would treat it with the contempt it merited, by taking no notice of it. By another letter to governor Bernard, that of the affembly was reprobated in much the fame terms, with this addition, that it had been carried through a thin houfe, and in the end of a feffion, from whence his majefty concluded, that it had been carried by furprize through the houfe of repre

fentatives.