They then repeat the prefent grievances, complain that they are grofsly misrepresented in Great Britain, and prefs the governor in the most earnest manner to call an affembly, as the only means to guard against thofe alarming dangers that threatened the total diftruction of the colony. The governor admonished them, as a friend to the province, and a well-wisher to the individuals of it, to break up their affembly inftantly, and to feparate before they did any bufinefs: that he was willing to believe that the gentlemen who if court of Great Britain to prefent it, we presume you very well know, if it be an impolitic and imprudent ommiffion, where to lay the blame, and we apprehend that nothing that can or will be done by your propofed convention can or will aid the petition. And here we beg leave to fay, that we judge that it would be much for the intereft of this province to have an agent at this critical day: a perfon that would have ferved us faithfully, we make no doubt, might have been found; but the reafons given, and the methods we hear have been taking, to prevent it, are difatisfactory, and give us much uncafinefs. We are further informed, that all matters of a public and private nature lying before the last general court were fully confidered and acted upon, and all then propofed to bedone, and finished before the adjournment, except the impeachment of his Majefty's reprefentative, which perhaps might not have been agreed to, had they fat longer, or not been afterwards diffolved. We are forry for that circumftance that occafioned fo early a diffolution of the general court; though we must own that the governor, by charter, is vefied with that power; yet we with, if he had judged it confiftent with his duty to the King, it had been fued as ufual; however, we hope another will be foon called, or at fartheft, on the laft Wednesday in May next,-and that in the mean time, the public affairs of the province will not greatly fuffer. And here we propofe to your confideration, whether the circular letter, which gave such umbrage, containing thefe expreons, or others of the like impest, that the King and parliament, by the late revenue act, had infringed the rights of the colonies, impofed an inequitable tax, and things yet worse might be expected from the independence and unlimited appointments of crown officers therein, mentioned, was fo perfectly inno cent, and entirely confiftent with that duty and loyalty profeffed by the houfe of reprefentatives the lat year, in their petition to his Majefty; and whether the last houfe might not have complied with his Majefty's requifition, with a full faving of all their rights and priveleges, and thereby prevented our being deftitute of a general court at this day. We cannot comprehend what pretence there can be of a propofed convention, unless the probability for a confiderable number of regular troops being fent into this province, and an apprehenfion of their being quartered, part in your town, and part at the caftle. -And f fued the fummons for this meeting, were not aware of the nature of the high offence they were committing; and that thofe who had obeyed them, had not confidered the penalties they should incur, if they perfifted to continue their feffion. At prefent, ignorance of law, fays he, may excufe what is past; a step farther will take away that plea. That a meeting of the deputies of the towns, is an affembly of the reprefentatives of the people to all intents and purposes; and that calling it a committee of convention, will not al And here we would observe, that it was a matter of doubt and uncertainty, whether any were coming or not; if other wife, for what purpose the King was fending them, whether for your defence, in cafe of a French war (as you tell us there is in the minds of many a prevailing apprehenfion of one ap proaching) and, if we don't mifunderstand your letter, induced them to pass the votes tranfmitted to us), or whether they are deftined for the protection of the newacquired territories, is altogether uncertain that they are to be a flanding army in time of peace, you give us no evidence; and if your apprehenfions are well grounded, it is not even fuppofeable they are intended as fuch, and if your town meant fincerely, we can't fee the need they had of interpofing in military matters, in an unprecedented way, requesting their inhabitants to be provided with arms, &c. (a matter till now always fuppofed to belong to another department), efpecially as they must know fuch a number of troops would be a much better defence, in cafe of war, than they had heretofore been favoured with To fuppofe what you furmize they may beintended for, is to miftruft the King's paternal care and goodness;-if, by any fudden excurfions or infurrections of fome : inconfiderate people, the King has been induced to think them a neceffary check upon you, we hope you will, by your loyalty and quiet behaviour, foon convince his Majefty, and the world, they are not longer neceffary for that purpose, that thereupon they will be withdrawn, and your town and the province faved any farther trouble and expence from that quarter. We are fenfible the colonies labour under many difficulties, and we greatly fear what the confequence of the difputes with our mother country will prove, however, we are far from thinking the measures you are pursuing have any tendency to deliver the good people of this pro vince, but on the contrary, im merge them in greater;-after all, we should hope, (were it not for your present attempt, attended with a bad complexion), we might foon have deliverance from our present troubles, and things reftored as at the firft. The governments have, in our opinion, confulted, and are pursuing, the propereft methods to obtain redress of their grievances; our duty is to wait with patience the event, unlefs we are,determined to take the alternative. How far paffion and difappointment and private resentment may influence any to hurry their neighbours into fuch mad and ter the nature of the thing. He added, that if they did not regard his admonition, he muft, as governor, affert the prerogatives of the crown in a more public manner that they may affure themfelves, he spoke from inftruction, the King was determined to maintain his entire fovereignty over that province, and whofoever should perfift in ufurping any of the rights of it, would repent of his rafhnefs. This anfwer produced another meffage, wherein they justified this meeting, as being only an affemblage of private perfons, and defired explanations as to the criminality with which their proceedings were charged. The governor refufed to receive that or any other meffage from them, as it would be admitting them to be a legal affembly, which he would not by any means allow. The convention then appointed a committee, who drew up a report, in terms of great moderation, which was approved by the affembly. In this they affign the causes of their meeting, and difclaim all pretence to any authority whatfoever, and advife and recommend it to the people, to pay the greatest deference to government, and to wait with patience the refult of his Majefty's wisdom and clemency for a redrefs of their grievances. They at the fame time declare for them and defperate measures, we don't know, but pray God prevent. Suffer us to obferve, that in our opinion, the meatures the town of Bofton are purfing, and propofing to us and the people of this province to unite in, are unconftitutional, illegal, and wholly unjufifiable, and what will give the enemies of our conftitution the great eft joy, fubverfive of government, deftructive of that peace and good order which is the cement of fociety, and have a direct tendency to rivet our chains, and deprive us of our rights and privileges, which we, the inhabitants of this town defire may be fecured to us, and perpe felves tuated to our lateft pofterity. Thus we have freely expreffed our fentiments, having an equal right with others, though a leffer part of the community, and take this first opportunity to proteft against the propofed convention, and here by declare our loyalty to his prefent Majefty, and fidelity to our country; and that it is our firm refolution, to the utmost of our power, to maintain and defend our rights in every prudent and reafonable way, as far as is confiftent with our duty to God and the king. Oliver Partridge, Town Clerk. felves, that they will, in their several stations, yield every poffible affistance to the civil magiftrate, for the preservation of peace and order, and the fuppreffion of riots and tumults. After they had prepared a reprefentation of their conduct, and a detail of the late tranfactions to be tranfmitted to their agent at London, they broke up. It appears plain from the whole of these proceedings, that Governor Bernard was at more pains to provoke the people, than to quiet their discontents; for had he behaved with more mildness, and fhewed lefs authority, he would have had more reverence paid him. His opinion concerning the legality of their meeting seems frivolous and unfatisfactory; for though the convention was chofen by the people, yet as they attempted to perform no public: act, but met for advice, they could be confidered in no other light, the reprefentatives of the people, than as their commiffioners, to meet with their friends, to confult what was for their common good. They determined nothing, nor proceeded to any acts of authority, and could be confidered as no more than a club met to advise with one another. The governor's threatenings were therefore puerile and whimsical, rather fhewing what he was disposed to do, than what he could lawfully do. If the one half of the members of the House of Commons were to meet in an affembly, to advise with one another, without proceeding to any acts of power, they certainly could not come under any legal cenfure. Till once there be a statute against all clubs and meetings of gentlemen, it is impoffible that the governor's opinion can be well founded. But the truth of the matter feems to have been, the governor and the affembly were at variance, and they had no confidence in one another. It is highly probable, had there been a popular governor in Maf fachusetts fachusetts Bay, and in fome other colonies, the ruinous war that has exhaufted the empire had been yet to begin. When jealoufies are once raised, it is impoffible to know where they may end. On September 29th, the very day that the convention broke up, the fleet from Halifax with two regiments, and a detachment of artillery, arrived in the harbour. There were fome difputes at first concerning quartering the foldiers; the council refufed to quarter them in the town, as the barracks of Castle William were fufficient to receive them; this was at laft got over. by providing quarters, which were then to be confidered as barracks, and the council upon that footing, allowed them barrack provifion. Soon after General Gage arrived, as did the two regiments from Ireland. A tolerable harmony fubfifted for fome time between the people and the troops, and both the town and province continued for a feafon very quiet. There was at this time two things which greatly alarmed the friends of liberty and of the conftitution: the reftraining bill, which confined the Eaft India Company in making dividends to a certain fum; and a revival of the nullum tempus law, in the cafe of the Duke of Portland. Both these proceedings had fuch an arbitrary appearance in the view of the people at home, that many concluded that the maxims of oppreffion, practifed in the reign of the Stewarts, were going to be revived, Thefe, together with the proceedings concerning the colonies, created a jealoufy in the nation, that their reprefentatives, who were trufted with their principal concerns, were going to betray their interefts into the hands of the ministry. The zealous debates upon the East India restraining bill had warmed the parties in parliament to an unnfual degree; and the controverfy in the nation con cerning |