The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1782-03-19 00:00:00, page 3

Yeflerday his majesty's sloop of war Drake, arrived
at English harbour from the fleet now riding at anchor
off Basseterre road ; the intelligence by laid vessel is to,
the following purport : viz. That the British fleet,
having, by a maflerly manoeuvre, maneuvered the
compt,de Graffe out of Basseterre road, came abruptly
to anchor, and kept their advantageous flation be
t^een the French fleet and their troops on shore. That
the French squadron, by a late reinforment, amount
now to 29 fail of the line ; that they have attacked the
British fleet at anchor, three several times, and have as
often been beat off with considerable loss.
We hear that the Prudente, captain Barkley of 64
guns beat a French 80 gun ship out of the. line That
the captain es the Solebay frigate, appointed to repeat
signals, finding himfelf cut off from our fleet, by the
van of the enemy, bore away for Nevis, landed his
crew, run the vessel aground, and set her on fire.
Feb. 6. Accounts from St. Chriftophers fioce our last,
contain very little of novelty. Our troops to the a
mount (at most) of no more than 640 men, effected a
landing at Frigate Bay ; attacked a detachment of the
enemy, superior in number to themselves, altho' very
strongly posted, which they entirely routed, but find
ing an army of 7 or 8000 men pouring, in from all sides
to surround them, our troops secured a maflerly retreat,
and embarked in fight of the enemy, without their
daring to pursue or annoy them.
Many of the French troops were left dead on the
field, agd this noble attempt has cost us about 60 rank
and file killed, and from 30 to 40 wounded. Captains
Ross of the 69th and Elliott of the 28th are killed.
Captains Smith of the 28th and Cunningham of the
69th are wounded.
Brimstone Hill garrison are flill in health and high
spirits, ;and the fleet under admiral Hood in perfect
fafety.
Feb. 12. Reports have been circulated, ever since
Sunday morning, of another assault upon Brimstone
Hill, in which the garrison loft several men, but the
enemy were repulsed with great daughter. We have
not, however, been able to celled any authentic in
formation upon this fubjeft.
Feb.l6. It is with infinite concern that'we findpurfelves
too well warranted in taking notice of the lately arrived
unfortunate intelligence relative to the fall of Saint C'hri
flopher's. We are not, indeed, authorized to fay po
sitively that it is so; but we fear it will scarcely admit
of a doubt that the garrison of Brimstone-hill were
.compelled to surrender on the 13th instant: whether
apon terms, or at discretion, does not yet appear;
but if it be true, as is said, that the fortrefs was,
" knocked to pieces about their ears," we apprehend
a capitulation (at least a very favourable one) could
not be expected. Before our next publication day,
however, it is probable that some particulars of this
melancholy business may be received.
The French fleet, confining of 32 fail (in addition
to which one was seen going down) are said to be at an
chor under Nevis. Sir Samuel Hood may, we are
told, be fhortlv expelled here.
In aggravation of our political misfortunes in this
quarter of the globe, it is reported, and we fear with
It isfaid that admiral Hood in his way to Antigua,
fell in with four Spanish line of battle Blips, and has
•captured^them.
An English fleet of ten fail of the line, 5 frigates,
the trade, and some transports have certainly arrived
at Barbadoes: The Victory of 110 guns, and Queen
of 9g, are two of the above squadron.
Six fail of the line and a number of transports, have
arrived at Martinique, and two fail of the line which
were separated from them have joined the count de
Graffe.
The unremitted attention, the mildness and human
ity with which we are treated by the marquis de Bou
ille, count Dillon, count Flechin, captain Nolan, and
by the French officers in general, deserve our warm
est acknowledgments.
Count Dillon is appointed governor of this island,
and monffeur Fraine, lieutenant governor, the former
is to embark on a grand expedition ; the latter is a
gentleman of an amiable character, and it to conti
nue with us; captain Nolan is to remain in Basseter
re.
It is moreover covenanted that the inhabitants of
these islands, with the permission of, the governor, may
export their merchandise in neutral vessels for all the
ports of Europe and America,
' LeM.de BOUILLE,
IHOMAS SHIRLEY,
THOMAS FRASER,
BASSETERRE (St. Chriftopbers) February 19.
The marquis Bouille has been pleased to order the
editor to carry on the printing business as usual, and
to insert what he may deem proper, except ^gainft the
king of France: The public are therefore informed
that this Gazette will continue to be published, under
the present form, every Tuesday and Friday.
An account es the invasion of this island and of
the different engagements will be published as soon as
the particulars can be carefully coUeded.
in no^effion of al! the artillery, all the effeSs de
pending on the said colonies belonging to his Britan
nic majesty ; all powder, arms, ammunition and king's
vessels, fhall' be given to the commander of the French
troops, and an inventory of them presented to the go
vernor.
Art. 17. Out of reaped to the courage and deter
mined condud of generals Shirley and Fraser, we
content, that they shall not be considered as prisoners
of war : but the former may return to his government
of Antigua and the latter continue in the service of his
country ; being happy to teftify this mark of our par
ticular efleem for these brave officers.
At St. Chrifiopher, the 12th of Feb. 1782.
Le Marquis de BOUILLE,
THOMAS SHIRLEY,
Governor and major-general
of his majesty's army,
THOMAS Fraser,
Brigadier-general.
Et. J O H N's (Antigua) January 30, 1782.
Moved, that the board doth now proceed to consi
der fep&rately, such of the fpecific charges as have been
deemed to be supported by evidence, in order to de
termine how far each of them doth, or ought not to
invalidate the election of councillor, for the county
of Philadelphia; and the motion being seconded, the
quellion was put and carried in the affirmative.
To which the following is the dissent of the min-
It is painful beyond description to us to be obliged
thus to cloath our domeffic page in fables ; but the
fault is in the times, and not in us. We shall readily
be believed, we hope, when we declare that it would
afford as infinite pleafgre to be the Herald of good tid
ings; and we will still hope that an opportunity tor it
may' speedily present. " When things are at the
worst," the proverb fays, " they will mend."
too much colour of certainty, that the lately acquired
colonies of Demarara, Berbice, &c. have been wrested
from us by the arms of our very aftiveand too fuccefs
ful enemies the French; and that some British sloops
of war have fallen facrifices upon this occaflon. The
ships and troops which atchieved this conquest, are by
some said to have come from Cayenne, by others, from
Old France. Particulars, however, have not yet trans
pired.
The politicians of this country seem divided in opi
nion as to the authenticity of the advices received
through different channels, refpefting the arrival of
M. Vandreuil's squadron (or a part of it at least) in
these seas. We confefs we are amongst those who en
taintain no doubt of it.
It appears by the London prints that the 25th of
Nov. an account of lord Cornwallis's imminent distress
reached his mafler, from admiral Graves and general
Clinton. The fame day, one Feder, formerly contrac
tor for the packets between Dover and Calais, delivered
to the English ministry the Gazette of Paris of the 20th
November, which contained a detail of his lordship's
surrender. This came oyer in an interloper from the
Coast of France. Whispers only of the difafler in Vir
ginia, were yet abroad in the city. It was the royal
Speech that firft authentically announced it to the nati
on.
ority members, viz.
WE DISSENT,
ift. ft ECAUSE the fpecific charges deemed by
council to be supported by evidence, doth
not exhibit a true and full state of the testi
mony. Many of the most important facts that were
admitted or inconteftibly proved, do not appear in
the fpecific charges as they are found. No notice is
taken of the general orders given by the commander
of the militia.
It is in clear proof that the tickets were formed by
the officers without the consent of the privates ; that
they were distributed by the officers to the privates,
only on the morningof the election, or even after
that time. That the militia in general had no oppor
tunity of consulting such friends as they might have
chose to consult, with regard to the propriety or im
propriety of the tickets put into their hands, that the
greatest part of the militia that voted, voted under
the orders given by general Lacy. None of these facts
trough inconteftible, and most material, are to be
found in the fpecific charges that are voted to be sup
ported. Are such fa&s to be disregarded and passed
over in contemptuous silence, are they to have no in
fluence on the deliberations and decision of council
upon this eleftion ? Are we to view the WHOLE
truth, or are we to shut our eyes against theclearerf
and most essential parts of the testimony? The validi
ty or invalidity of the ele&ion must depend on the fads
compared with the law, and not on a fpecification of
them in a set of articles. Council ought to determine
on the merits of the,election. The election may be
void, though not a single charge were supported.
2d. Because to confider the fpecific charges separ
ately, in order to determine how far each of them
doth or ought to invalidate the election, is to divide,
and by dividing to weaken the force of the charges,
and (which is of much more consequence) of the evi
dence. This matter comes before council, on a peti
tion to set the election aside, and to order a new one
to be made. The final result of the proceedings of
council must be either to set it aside or to e/lablifh it,
such previous steps ought to be taken as will lead na
turally and direAly to this final result. It ought to
be the joint result of all the material fads, which
may be very different from the separate effeds of de @
tached parts of them. The ele&ion cannot be pro
perly considered without a collected and compre
hensive view of ail the circumflances, which could
have any operation on its necessary and essenti
al properties ; the necessary and essential properties
of an election in this commonwealth are, " that it be
free," " that it be voluntary," " that it be by bal
lot." If any of these qualities, much more if all of
them be wanting ; the election has not the charac
ter, and therefore is not entitled to the name of a
constitution al election. No eledion is known to the
constitution that is not possessed of the aforegoing es
sential properties. Before council ought to establish
this election they ought to find it to be such an one as'
is known to the constitution. In other words they
ought to find, " that it has been free, and voluntary,
and by ballot." This therefore we conceive would be
the natural, and proper question to lead council to the
final result of their proceedings : For a determination
of this question, must naturally, and necessarily de
termine the only remaining one, whether the election
ought to be set aside or established.
3d. Because as we conceive the method adopted by
this resolution precludes council from giving a clear,
and unambiguous vote on the merits of the election.
We are fully fatisfied in our judgements, that the fade
On the 13th of March, 1782, the following resolu
tion was entered into by the honourable the supreme
executive council of this state, on the late contest
ed election for councillor, for the county of Phila
delphia, viz.
Philadelphia, March 19.
Just IMPORTED in the Ship St. James, Captain
Truxton, from France, .end
To be Sold cheap by the Bale,
At the S TOR E of
Charles Pettit,
In Water street, near Market street,
A Parcel of Laval and Britannia Linens,
Ell-wide Flanders SHEETING,
White SWANSKINS.
Where also may be had, Cannon SHOT of various
sizes, and a few Pair of Nine & pound CANNON.
These are our sentiments concerning this election.
But we cannot confiflently with the mode prescribed
in this resolution, comprise and express them in a
vote, for though they are founded on fads in our 0-
pinion inconteftibly proved, yet these fads are not
comprehended in any one of the fpecific charges,
which council have ordered to be considered SEPAR
ATELY, in order to determine the operation of
EACH. We therefore confider ourselves as PRE
CLUDED FROM A FULL AND FAIR VOTE ON
THE MERITS OF THIS ELECTION. For these
-reasons only, and no others, we must in justice to our
confeiences take the liberty of declining to vote on
the question as it frauds, and therefore we will retire
JAMES EWING,
DORSEY PENTECOST,
JOHN VAN CAMPEN.
*** NOTICE is hereby given, That a Public COM.
M^NCEMENT will be held at the University in this
city, on Thursday the 21st instant. The doors of
the hall will be opened at 10, and the Exercises will
begin at 11 o'clock precisely.
proved before u^ render the election UNCONSTITU
TIONAL, and VOID, they shew in our opinion that
it was neither voluntary, nor free. It was not volun
tary, because the orders were, that the officers might
grant the foldiry permilhon to return home after.
they had severally voted and not before, and
the greatest part of them voted under those orders.
They were evidently under restraint. We
think the restraint was illegal, and if it was so, it w^s
duress of imprisonment, for the confinement of
the person in anywise is an imprisonment ; and
the law so much difeourage s unlawful confinement,
that if a man is under duress of imprisonment, which
means A COMPULSION BY ANY ILLEGAL RE
STRAINT OF LIBERTY, until he seals a bond or
the like, he may allege this duress and avoid theex
torted bond.
The election was not FREE. When we speak of a
free election ; if we with to apply a constitutional and
legal sense to the epithet, we mean to comprehend
under it not only a freedom from force; but also
a freedom from any undue influence whatso
ever, even the request of a man IN POWER, though
made in the most humble manner, must always im
ply a threat if denied; a promise if complied with;
this will necessarily have a great influence upon elec
tions, let those rules be applied to the circumftanees
proved to have attended the formation, the writ
ing and the distribution of the tickets : Let them be
applied also to the manner of givinghn the tickets ;
and we apprehend that it will undeniably appear from
them that the eleaion was not frer.
Of such essential importance is the freedom or
elections in every free government, that a positive
regulation, calculated for protesting and securing it,
becomes of indispensable <bltgation. Such is
the regulation in the constitution for voting by bal
lot. The true reason of it is, as we conceive, to se
cure eledions from undue influence. It is directed
that the elector ihall vote by ballot, that he may
have the power of concealing, if he chooses to conceal
from all the world, not only the persons for whom he
votes, but those also for whom he does not vote. But
the militia as it appears from the testimony had not
this in their power, the tickets that were provided
and distributed by the officers, or by their orders
were of one kind called the camp ticket. A mi
litia man had no opportunity of altering the ticket
put into his hands, but in the presence of his fellow
soldiers, and probably of his officers too, by taking
the pen or paper in his hand, he was obliged to dis
close that he meant either to alter, or totally to reject
the ticket, silently at least recommended to
him by military superiority; consequently to
disclose either in whole or in part for whom he did not
vote. This shews that the election cannot according
to the true reason, and spirit of the regulation be
called an election, " by ballot," but it shews more.
It shews what degree of freedom was meant,
when it was said in the constitution ; that ''elections
shill be free," it was a degree of freedom which the
elector could not enjoy without having it in his
power to conceal his vote, both with refped to the
persons inserted, and those not inserted in his tic
ket. Thus we think it is proved unanfwerably that
the election was not free, jn the sense and de
gree intended by the CONSTITUTION.
Just IMPORTED and to be S O L D, By
Josiah Hewes,
NE W England Rum, Spermaceti Oil, Laval and
check Linens, linen Hmdk^rchie.'a, Do+lafs
u:?cd Mantras, Luteftrings, plain and flowered Sattin^
fine embroidered, ttriped and r ro?g.bar'd Mnfl ns Chi
na Cups, Saucers and Bowls, Back Pe,per & c .' &c
Also to be Sold, A few T>n< BAR IRON.
THE PARTNERSHIP of GEORGE MEADE
and Co. having expired the lit infant, all thole
who have any Dem nds against them are requested to
call on the fubferiber for payment; vho is duly autho
rifed to fettle the Ass its of the l?te Company; and
all those Indebted to them, are likewile requested to
difeharge the fame immediately.
GEORGE MEADE.
Philadelphia, March 19, 1782.
By order of the Trustees,
S. SI ERETT, Secretary.