The Connecticut courant and Hartford weekly intelligencer — Hartford, Conn., 1774-08-16 00:00:00, page 1

z. And Frederick th« treasurer declared unto the
ancients of the people, that the king’s wrath was
kindled against the men as Boston, and against all
the men of North America, which is on tha other
fide of the vast waters, called' the Atlantic Ocean,'
as thou goeft unto the uttermost parts of the earth.
3. Because they had refuted to fofter his messen
gers and tax-gatherers to take from them their gold,
and their silver, their car-rings, and their note
jewels, their flocks and their herds.
4. And, behold ! Frederick the treasurer is near
sighted, and not able to tee the things which are afar
off; wherefore it had happened; that divers of the
king’s tervants, who were men of Belial, and evilly
inclined towards our lord the king, and towards’ his
houfhold, took advantage of this infirmity/
5. And they laid: unto Frederick the treasurer,
how go thou down to the House of the ancients, even
in the gate of the antienf House of our lords the
kings, who how sleep with their fathers, and fay
thou, let the men of Boston be firft punilhed, and
Set their firft punishment be, that the king’s tervants
and tax-gatherers be removed from among them.
6. And now, so the matter was, that by the efta
hlifhed laws of the country, no man could buy or
fell the timber for building of Ihips, the oil, and the
pitch, and the tar, and other the produce of that
land, witnout the taxation of the tax-gatherers and
Servants of the king,
7’ And it so happened, that all thofewho carried
®n traffic with the men of Boston, and that tent them
their fine linncns, their purple, their leaflet, their
velvets and the works ©f the cunning workmen, who
know to work cunningly, in wood, and in' stone, in
carvings, and in beaten gold, in fine silver; and in
precious stones; to buy therewith, for themselves,
jhe merchandizes of the countries of America, when
they heard thete things/complained loudly to the
elders of the people r
S. Saying alas ! alas ! brethren, what are ye about
rtdo ? Behold ! thete men are altogether guiltless,
since they are not unwilling to raise amono- them
telves,- for the use of our lord the king,- such taxes as
may bereafonable and just, according to the decrees
and customs of our forefathers, which alter not; and
lo 1 are we not one people ?
g. Howbeit, the tervants of our lord the king
cannot raise taxes according to thote decrees and
customs, without the content of the ancients of the
men of America ;■ and the ancients' of the people
there utterly refute to give up such their customs
and usages, which had been purchased for them by
the blood of their forefathers.
to. Why therefore will ye pUnifti them, being in
nocent ? and lo ! in so doing, ye will punifli us also,
teeing they arc indebted unto us ; and we are fore
afraid/
11. And behold ! the king ofFranOe, and’ the king
cf Spain, who also have lauds in that part of the
earth, lift up their voices, and cried aloud, fayimr,
1 1. Oye men of Boston, and all that inhabit the
continent, aiid also the tiles of North-America, come
now over unto us,‘ and behold, we will preterve to
you all the rights obtained,for you, and handed
dawn to you, by the blood of your ancestors, valiaat
men, and men of renown.
13. Let your wives, your concubines, yonr flocks,-
your herds, and your little ones, and all that is
yours, red ia fofo-ty ; for bahold l you Qi^ll trade with
CONNECTICUT COURANT,
A N ® I VaS^^ HARTFORD
week l y Intelligencer:
Coining the Fre/W ADVICES, ^FOREIGN and DOMESTIC.
Turning over a Book of Chronicles,! met with
the following Chapter ; if you think it may be
of use, pleale to give it to the public.
A Friend To the King.’
>• A 1° ' Came t 0 P a ^’ ^ at cn ^°ur
teen th day of the third month, Frederick,
the king s friend and treasurer, supported by Jere
miah, the cofferer of the king’s houfhold, and by
tlivers other Scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees, came
down t® the general afl©mbly of the ancients of the
people.
Tromtht LONDON MAGAZINE.
Open to all PARTIES—-not under the. influence of ANY.
, 16. Furthermore, wot we not, that our lord the
king hath evil counfellors, men ®f Belial about him ?
17. And behold, it is the earnest prayer of the
men of America, the faithful fubjeefts of our lord the
king, that the king’s enemies, the men of Belial,
maybe removed far from the pretence of our lord,
the king, and that he may teethe things that belong
to his peace, before they are hid from his eys.
18. And behold ! the kings 'of France and of*
Spain lift up their voices, ajid called upon the men
of America, yet more and more vehemently.
19. But they answered age r. and said, Nay, say,
but we will fee how our lord the king will deal with
us; peradventure the angel of the Lord may appear
unto him,' and may open his eyes and also the eves
of k rederick his friendwho teeth dimly, and may
fliew our lord the king; that his evil counfellors ara
those men of Belial, who heretofore served the ene
mies of his House, who fat on the throne of our lord
the king, whom tne Lord God of Israel turned out
in his wrath, and the God of Jacob rejected in his
fore difpleafurc.
20. Nevertheiefs; one of these, are the men of
Belial seeking to eftablifti on the throne of our lord
the king, who will fay unto us, My Qrandftither chaf
tifedyau’vJith duhipty but I will cbaftije yate withfetr
pions.
21. And behold ! the men of America waited the
event. ..
The Sentiments of MefTrs. Demfl er, SAwbridge, Barre,
and Fuller, on the Last of the American Bills.’
MR. Dempfter. I do not apprehend that the ;
•. bill before you is’at all ada^uate tothe pur
pote intended ; nor do I think that experience war
rants the aflertion that a fair trial cannot -be had in'
the colonies : surely, the bringing men over toEng
land to be tried, is not only such a direct breach of
their constitution, but is a deprivation of the right
of every British fubjed in America.- I fhould’
have thought that a power of reprieve lodged in the
Governor after convi&ion, would have been fully
fufficient without bringing men to England.’ When-.
fiver murder is committed,’ it must inevitably go off
with impunity; for whenever any perfon’ pretent
fliall find he is to go over theAtlantic as an evidence
tothe detriment of his family,and’his fortune,there
is no doubt but that he will evade the necessity of
hi? appearance as an evidence. This will be a means
of fubjefting the people of that country to assassi
nation, in the room - of legal trial e and rhe invari
• able confequente has always been; that when a fair
. trial cannot be procured, the revenge of the relati
ons of the deceated will exercite itfelf in this’ kind
Of cruel affaffinatibn .'I, perhaps .- may be wrong- in’
my ideas; but I have looked into the history of that
country with care and circumfipeaion, and it has
infpired»me with the highest veneration for those of
the firft Settlers ; they emigrathd' when that Star
Chamber doctrine was praftifed in .this Coun
try. _ Oppressed, as they thought themselves, byjthe
mother country, by the cruelty ,of those arbitrary
laws; fodner than fuffer themtelves to be oppressed
by tyranny, they chose rather te combat witte tygers
and Indians in America, than live in a place wiiere
oppreffi-orr 2nd tyranny ruled; It iy qg new thing
us, and we will be henceforth as one people, save
only, that we will net hoarcafter fay unto you, Go
now with us up unto the House of Rimmon, and
bow ye yeurtelves down before Rimmon, but ye
fxiali worship the Lord your God after your own
manner, and no man fliall make you afraid.
14. Nevertheless, the men of America answered
the kings of France and of Spain, faying, How shall
we set our faces against our lord the king ? How fliall
we teperate ourselves from our elder brethren ? for
lo ! are they not bone of our bone, and flefh of our
flelh ?
15. Doth not our bowels yearn over them, even
as the bowels of Joteph did yearn over his elder
brethren in the land of Egypt, when they came down
thither, because of the dearth that was in the land
ofPaleftine ?
that they have refuted t© comply with the pay
ment of taxes demanded from this country ; this
exemption is a very old demand of theirs, and sup
ported by their charter. Imprisonment of two per
sons, who held this kind of Dotirine, was mhde in
the time of Sir Edmund Andros, who was then
Governor ; and the Americans passed a law declar
ing tnat this country had no right to tax ; it is true
when that law fame over here, it was rejected. Let
gentlemen conluier, that if we tax America at this
present period, her trade and every thing else will
decline. I think that Boston has the isoft merit
with this country of any place I know ; flie is a moil
valuable ally, or a subordinate colony ; take it in’
either fente, her poffeflion is inestimable ; butl real
ly fear very much, that the Americans are t© be
thus treated, without the parties being heard. Id«
not like to tee public Liberty, and the Rights of
persons infringed. There are two articles in thia
. bill, which I cannot blame the Americans for resist
ing ; I mean that of theCouhcil and the judges being
chose by the Crown ; the antient way which theii
charter directed of chufing their Council, was sap
more eligable; they were men that were at a certain
old age, to which experince generally adds wlfdom^
that were elected council; but this is a new system,
that carries with it neither Experience norWifdem j
and I think the change unnecessary, though not op
prefSve. I think the office of Sheriff is more oppref
live.Becaufe he is an engine of power in the hands ®f
the Governor ; or do I approve of taking away ths
tows meetings; there is butone precedent of this kind
to be found in hiflory ; but I could wifli on the pre
sent occasion; that a second, had not been made.
•Ms. Sawbrii^e; The oppofitibn I haVe given to
thete measures does not proceed from a fettled dis
position against administration, nor do I do it for
the fake of popularity ; it is for the h^ve »ftkat liber- .
ty, which I have always been strengthened in, ani
bred up by education ; I had rather bare the badge
of theparilh than that of eipojiacy. It has been urg
ed debate, that this country has a right to purfuo
thote measures adobted in the bill, and that nocoffity
is the ground and argument which urges.it on: But
pray, let me afc wh© is td be the judge of that ne
cessity ? A nation furcly cannot be cgfled a free na
tion, where another has a right to Jti-aw m©ney outs
of their pockets; but I cannot uj^efftand how any
one car agree with these m’eafure^ and deny the
right of taxation. If you exercise an authority which
does not belong to you, or if you fofee an illegal au
thority theyhave a right to refift.l do not fee any neces
sity for bringing over the people to be triedby a jury
of England ; I think the Crown fliould have lodg
ed a power in' the Governor ta pardon, and I ffioulel
have thought it the brightest jewel in it bn this oc
cafion.’ You fay, that the Governor is to use his dis
cretion with regard to the having a fair trial ; but
by this Bill the Governor, I fay, is not the Judge
®f that, for if must be upon the oath of a witness ;
he must believe that witness, and no diferetion is
left in the Governor.’ No man will become a
voluntary evidence On such an occasion; he will
feoner fly from that situation, than be trarifportad
to England. By that means justice will be eva
ded, as evidence cannot be had, and the people
will soon take upen themselves to revenge their own
injuries. . «
Colonel Barre; I think it criminal so fit still up
on the final decision of this question, as I cannot so
any Ihape approve of this mcafure. I think the per
sons whom you employ to execute your laws, might
have been protected ini the execution oft their d uty,
i’n alefs exceptionable manner than the Bill pro
poses. Your army, in that country, has the casting
Voice ; and it is dangerous so put any more power
fo.to their hands. Confider how' long they will be
content with 4ft. per day; I am afraid not long.
You have had one meeting already, you may soon
have another; the people sfAmerica will receive these
regulotions as edi&s from an arijtrary govern
ment. Tii® heavfeft offence they have be«n guilty