fecurity of himself and family; obferving how impracticable it would be to carry on the bufinefs of the feflions with any degree of propriety or dispatch, while he was at fuch a distance, and fo inconveniently fituated. They concluded by intreating him to return with his Lady and family to the palace, which would afford great public fatisfaction, and be the likely method of quieting the minds of the people. Upon the tenth of June, Lord Dunmore returned a written answer, in which he justified his apprehenfions of danger from the public notoriety of the com. motions and tumults among the people, as well as from the menaces and threatenings with which they were attended; befides he complained of the general conduct and behaviour of the Houfe of Burgeffes, and fpecified feveral charges against that body. That they had countenanced the violent and disorderly proceedings of the people, particularly with regard to the magazine, which was forced open and plundered in prefence of fome of the members; that inftead of committing thofe perfons who had been guilty of fo daring and heinous an offence, they only endeavoured to procure a reftitution of the arms.That the House or its Committee had proceeded to a ftep fraught with the moft alarming confequences, in appointing guards without his approbation or con--/ fent, under pretence of protecting the magazine, thereby fhewing a defign of ufurping the executive power, and of fubverting the conftitution. He took notice that no means could be effectual for affording the fecurity they propofed to concur in, but by reinftating him in the full powers of his office, by opening the courts of justice, and restoring the energy of the laws, by difarming all independent companies, or other other bodies of men raised and acting in defiance of legal authority; by obliging the immediate return of the King's arms and ftores, and by what was no lefs effential than any other matter, their own example, and their endeavours to remove that general delufion which kept the minds of the people in a continual ferment, and thereby to abolish that malice and fpirit of perfecution, which now operated fo dangerously against those who from duty and affection to their King and Country oppofed the prefent measures, and who from principle and conviction differed with the multitude in political principles. That these were the means to afford fecurity requifite for all parties; and that for the accomplishment of those ends, together with the great object and neceffary bufinefs of the feffion, he should have no objection of their adjournment to the town of York, where he would meet them, and remain till the bufinefs was finifhed. He concluded by representing, that unless they had a fincere and active regard of feizing the opportunity which was now offered by parliament, of eftablishing the freedom of their country upon a fixed and known foundation, and of uniting themfelves with their fellow fubjects of Great Britain in one common bond of intereft and mutual affiftance, his return to Williamf burgh would be aš fruitless to the people as it might poffibly be dangerous to him; but that if their proceedings manifefted that happy difpofition, he would return with the greatest joy, and confider it as the moft fortunate event of his life, if they gave him an opportunity to be an inftrument of promoting their happiness, and of being a fuccefsful mediator between them and the fupreme authority, The The foftening terms in the conclufion of this long and tedious meffage, were by no means equal to remove the acrimony excited by those severe charges and implications in the former part of it. They confidered the fmooth words as nothing more than political court fineffe, to which all courtiers are accuftomed, without ever intending to perform what they fay. The charges which his Lordship brought against the Houfe of Burgeffes produced a reply of an uncommon length, under the form of an address, which was full of the bitternefs of recrimination, as well as of defenfive arguments, and an examination of facts. This was a method of addrefs no ways pleafing to the pride and ambition of the Governor, who wanted to conceal fome facts by which his honour and character were tarnifhed. .. The Houfe had now received the report of its com mittee concerning the caufe of the late difturbance, backed with the difpofition of a number of British merchants, who were refident in different and remote parts of the colony, all whofe teftimonies tended to fhew the general tranquility which prevailed previous to the affair of the powder, and the Governor's declaration with regard to the emancipating of the flaves; the latter of which, fo far as it was believed, had particularly irritated the people, yet notwithstanding quiet and order were every where restored, and still continued; that there was a general acquiefcence every where in the determinations of the general and provincial congrefs; but they all concurred in believing that the people had no defign or wifh of an independency on Great Britain; on the contrary that they had an eager defire for fuch a connection, as it stood before the late acts of parliament. They They were unanimous in their opinion, that a redress of grievances complained of, would establish a perfect tranquility, and produce a reconciliation with the parent ftate. To refute the charges of difaffection and disloyalty, the House of Burgeffes took a retrospective view of the behaviour of the people, and of feveral tranfactions in the colony for fome years back; they stated the happiness which they derived from the conduct of former Governors, as a ftriking contraft to their prefent fituation. They attributed that happinefs particularly in a very late inftance to the discountenancing of tale-bearers and malicious informers, to the proper examination of every fubject, and the taking of nothing upon truft; and finally, to the tranfmitting home a faithful reprefentation of things in the colony. They state their former conduct with refpe&t to his Lordship, and obferved that changes feldom happen without fome fufficient caufe; that refpect, was not to be obtained by force from a free people: that nothing was more likely to infure it as dignity of character, a candid and exemplary conduct. That they did not mean to infinuate that his Lordship had defignedly mifreprefented facts; but it was feared he too easily gave credit to defigning perfons, who, to the great injury of the community, poffeffed much too large a fhare of his confidence. They denied the facts, and examined with great feverity the reprefentations contained in two letters which were fent to Lord Dartmouth, which have already been hinted. These they reprefented as exceedingly imperious and unjut, being founded on mifconception, mifinforma. tion, the height of colouring, the miftaking of the af fumption of facts without proof or evidence to fupport them. They then proceeded to justify the steps that had been taken with regard to their fuppofed countenance to the acts done concerning the magazine, and the other matters which excited, and afterwards inflamed the controverfy. Upon the fourteenth of June the Houfe of Burgeffes prefented their addrefs in anfwer to the Governor's fpeech, in which they entered into a long difcuffion of the propofition contained in the parliamentary refolution, founded upon Lord North's conciliatory motion, This they combated upon the fame principles and grounds, with a variety of arguments, of the fame nature with thofe that have been already flated; and they ultimately declared, that as it only changed the form of expreffion, without leffening its burthen, they could not clofe with the terms. They obferved that these were only offered as the fentiments of an individual part of the whole empire; and for a final determination they referred the affair to the General Congrefs, before whom they would lay the paper. To them alfo they referred the difcovery of the proper mode of reprefenting their well-founded grievances, which his Lordship affured them would meet with the attention and regard fo juftly due to them. In behalf of themfelyes, they made the following declaration: We have exhaufted every mode of application which our invention could fuggeft, as proper and promifing. We have decently remonftrated with parliament; they have added new injuries to the old; we have wearied our King with fupplications, and he has not deigned to answer us. We have appealed to the native honour and juftice of the British nation; their efforts in our favour have been hitherto ineffectual. When the reafonings on both |
