The Connecticut courant — Hartford, Conn., 1774-01-25 00:00:00, page 2

[CondufLn of a Letter from London
^tb of OHober. 1 773) to a Friend in hew-
York, begun in tbit Paper of tie of Ja
nuary. 3
HOW mach the People are taxed, in Eng
land yon will ju Jge, when I affine you,
that according to ths b^t information 1 bare
been able to o&uio, Elhtcs in general, pay
neatly a Third of their yearly Value io faxes ;
nor arc there any Limit* to their Extension but
the Miniflry’* Appreherfion, that the People ci
tber could not, er would not, lunmit to pay
any more.
By this, you mayjjdge what will be the
Condition of the Colonies (wh’ch you may af
fore youffelres, will cot be favoured) if they,
once admit the Right of the Briufh Parliament
to tax them, or evea if they submit to such
Taxation ; Fur, if the MinsHry can but prevail
with you, either by Force., or Cunning to pay
their Ex dions they will cot be mu.h concern
ed, whether you admit their right or not ; every
Day will Hrcogthen their PrcteoGons to it, and
their Power and proportiorab’y werken yours ;
and if you cannot r ow, while the Note ty, as
well as Injufticc of the Demand forces your
general Attention, be unanimous ard rcfo’ute
enough to defend your Rights and property ;
it will be in vain for you io depend upon re
covering them afterwards ; if they are once gi
ven u£ they are loft forever The plauGbde P;c
tence for the Taxation of the British Co’onics,
is, that as they recti e Benefit and Protc&ion
from the British Government, they ought to con
tribute to the Expence of it, efpecialiy a* the
People in Great-Bri'aio, are already burden’d
xs heavily as they are able to besr. This Pre
tence gives the Meafurc, wish ignorsnt People,
feme degree of Popularity ; but the Nation in
general (I doa’t mean those concerned io the
executive Powers of Government) fee through
the Fahey and deuft it. They look upon
the prifsnt Struggle, between the Colonics, ia
Defence of their P. ghts and Freedom, and the
arbitrary Powers which would eoflive th m. in
a very intereftiog Pent of View. They coufi
der American freedom as the Palladium of
tfteir own : They, ihrefore with and pray for
your Firmpefs, Perseverance, and Succeft ; tho’
from their prefect C rcumfhnccs, and Situation
they cannot yet tffidluilly iffid you. The En»
glifh Confthution, a mod dtflroycd io England,
from yoor Virtue and Refomtion, they hope
may revive again, and recover its fora er Life
and Vigour ; at teafl, ihat if reoied out of
GiCit Britain it miy live and fljurifh in Ame
rica which now Begins to be cer.fi tered as an
Afy’um from OpprefEon not only in England,
but in all the Nations of Europe. And if you
do but prtf.nc your coofiitu? - al Rights and
Liberties, yeti may depend opoo it that People,
and Arts, and Mahufadodes, will fbek to you
from all Quarters of the Globe ; and Riches
end Power, will follow of Coorfe. But take
Circ you do not fall into the Vices, Luxury,
and OpprefEm, that have brought Ruin and
Deftruilion to all ihe greated States and King
doms that ever appeared in the World, and
which now threaten the like Fate tn the Land
of our Nativity. Coolider the Importance of
the Parts ycu are now to a£f the Freedom, the
Happiness of yourfclvcs, and your Posterity, of
the whole British Nation ; and of the Opprcffed
of all Nrtioos, teem now to depend upon you.
T he Eyes, the anxious Hopes cf all, ste upon
you. Think, ch thick ! whet eught to te
your con^uft, when a charge of such conftqncc.ee
devolves upon you : Providence has placed you
in a mod important Station ; fee that ycu dis
charge the Duties of it with Faithfulnefs and
Dignity. Great will be your Praifc, if you do,
ioever, to disturb the inhabitants of
this province in their peaceable pos
sessions. And therefore
Ordered, That a Committee be ap
pointed to piepare and bring in a bill
for preventing tumults and riotous
afTembhes, and for the more speedy
and effe&ual pumflirnent of the riot
ers. Ex rad't ftom the Journals,
CHARUS MOORE,
Clerk of Aflembly.
vourite Paint of fubj.dfing ibe Colonies to the
Payment of Taxes imposed by the Brit sh Par-
Himent, the Scheme w<s devifeJ, of the Com
pany’s feeding their Tea to America, ful jeilto
no Tax but that imputed by the Parliament on
its arrival there. Tais was tbcught a maftcrly
Stroke of the .Mioiflry, whereby they might ac
complifh their Defigo on America, and at the
Erne Time tell the Eall India Company’s Tea,
and enable ihrm to repay the / 1400 000
which the Bank then lent them to save them
from the Batkiuptcy that threatened them.
But I hope my C utwrymeo ia America, will
have Wisdom and Virtue <0 avoid the Scare
hid for them, the Soccefs of which, tha’great.y
desired by the Miniflry. is at the fame Time
doubted as well as by the mod refpedhbfc Peo
ple who hive heard of the Scheme, and would
heartily rejoice to find you have Virtne to ren
der it abortive.
and yym Dlfhonour, if ycu do not. If ,hee
normous Taxes, thit are Lid upon the People
in England ; and even thuk that arc demanded
of her C 'oDies were really ceceffary, for the
Support of her constitutional Government ; it
might be an Excute for p> opojing them ; but in
that Case, both the Expediency, and More of
levying them in America, if rhe Colcnifis are
really Freemen ought undoubtedly to depend
upon their Judgment.&Deterfnia«tion. Rm when
we fitrd by woful Experience, the principal De
sign and Application of the Money, extorted
from the Feop c is to violate their moll sacred
R'ghts, to subvert the English ConflitmioD, and
efhblifh a Syflem of Oppreflion, ard Tyranny in
i f s Head ; the Dconcd itfelf, is, both an open
Attack upon our Rights, and an Insult to our
Ucderftanding ; and a taase Subtmflion. or an
irrefo ute Refafal, will juflly be imputed to
Pufi lanimity Meant cfs and Cowardice.
Indeed if the Miniflry could effeft their
Scheme of Taxing the Colonics, tho’it might
afford them a .temporary Relief from their pre
knt Embarrjflmcnt, it wou'd only for • fbort
Time suspend <he inevitable Ruin that awaits
their Mcafurcs, which co national Funds can
pol&bly long fuppert. A System of Bribery
r.nd Corruption mail neceffirily produce its own
speedy Dcitrudion. So : hat if you fhou d fab
mit to be taxed ard erflived. your Freedom
would be facrificed for Nothing,— uni. fs to mske
the Ruin of Great Britain more certain, and
ha»c the Honour, or rather Difli incur offal ing
with it. Ifyou maintain your Rights and Free
dom. Great Brita n nuy pcfSbly recover its
Cooflitmren, through the mere Failure of Means
to accomp’ifh its Defliudtoa; Already the
Syflcm of Car.uptioo is in the trmoS Disorder,
the Streams of Wealth ntc ff«ry to upport it
begin to fail, and many of t' e r Suurfcs arc qu’tc
exhausted,—-the oppr ffsd Peop e arc already
taxed as mneh or more than ihty can beat • —
Trade and Manufadorie* decay dai y, O;prcds
on begins to be generally felt, ano all are alarm
ed at the Cooßquences.
The Miuiflry, who have the E .fl India Com
pany st Command, and do what they pleafc with
them, after having enab ed them to draw to
themfehes a great P<rt of the oauonal Wealth,
have by squeezing it from them again, and lay
ing a Duty on their tea, which prevented the
Sale of it iff America, almost reduced them, as a
Company, (0 a State of Ba; kruptcy. To pre
vent thL, and at the fame I irs?e to gain the fa-
Thetc are indeed here some sordid Spirits,
who think the C lon’cs fl uiifli too fad, acd
envy their growing Greatness. But these Mi
fantropifts, are net co: filterable either in Num
ber or Abilities.
If you acquit your telves properly ia this
Trial, 1 have lome Reason to hope, it will t®
the l«ft ^rmidab’e one, you will have io sustain.
Some of ihete Teas arc to be tent to teveral
different Colonics to try the Sp r t of the Peo
plc. and accord ng a* they behave, they will
hereafter be confiJer’d and treated,-—as Free
men or as Slaves. I have the best Authority
for whit I write, and ycu may depend upon
the Truth of it. There are now gone down
the River, for America, 2000 Chests of T ea,
three Yean old, fume of it mouldy and un
whoTume, to be fold at public Vccdue, as low
as tyd. per Pound. Gsuerel Monckton wa*
tfTcr’d a Comm ffion to go with it 10 New York,
aud had it tlalcr his Pfotc£ion, m he w«s
HARTFORD, February 1.
Last Saturday the General Af
fetubly of this Colony fimfhed their
adjourned Seflion at this Place. Hav
ing firft pafs’d the following Afls re
lative to the Lands lying Weft: of the
Duke of York’s Grant, and claimed
to be within the Limits of the Royal
Charter granted by King Charles
the Second to the Governor and Com
pany of this Colony, viz.
An AFI to impower and desire his
Honor the Governor to issue a Pro
clamation, forbidding all Persons to
fettle on said Lands without the Li
cence of the General Assembly of this
Colony.
An Adi appointing a Committee
consisting of Seven Persons, to afiift
the Governor in collecting the Evi
dence, and prepaiing the Case be
tween thi-s Colony and the Proprieta
ries of Pennfyivania, refpe^ing the
Title to some Part of said WeflertV
Lands, claimed by said Proprietaries
in Opposition to the Title of this Co
lony ; in order to lay the fanae before
His Majefly in Council,
An AA, incorporating a Town
Weft of Delaware River, by the Name
of Weftmorland, within the following
Bounds, viz. North and South with
the Line of this Colony, East on De
laware River, and to extend Weft
from said River near a Place called
Wyoming, fifteen Miles, and annex
ing said Town to the County of
Litchfield.
An Adi appointing Justices of the
Peace in fa d Town of Weftmorland*
An Adi impowring and directing
one of said Justices of the Peace to
Iflue a Warrant to call a Town Meet
ing of the Inhabitants of said Weft
morland for the purpose of choosing
Town Officers, &c.
Those who expe& to make
Payment for theConne&icut Courant
in WOOD, are desired to improve
this Opportunity to bring it. .
Ames’s Almanack
For 1774, is in the Prefs,and will be
published on Friday next.
known to be much esteemed there ; But he, who
is a true^ Friend to the Colonics, and the Rights
of a Brit sh Subject, nobly refuted, —as did also
the Captains of the American Ships, td- rake it
on Freight -And numerous are the People
sere, who join me io carnefl Hopes and Willies,
that your Condedl on this important Occilion,
will rq aJy merit xApplaufe, and precure to
your telves and Country, immortal Honour,
and permanent Happiocfs ; England will g’ory
in your Relation to her, and join yoo in Support
of that Freedom, and those Principles, that rail
ed her to Grandeur and Eminence anippg the
Nations Ec watchful, be firm, and be hap.
py, &c.
NOTICE is iertby given to the propric*
tors of the township of Middlebury on
Otier Creek, that those of them that would
have an other devifioo of one hundred acres to
each of their rights hid out the enfuieg fummcr
must pay the sum of Eighteen Shilling* to each
right by the firft monday in March text, to tie
the fubfer bets who ate appointed a committee
to lay out the fame. Dated Salilbury, Janua
ry ill, 1774 Gamaliel Painter,*)
John Chipman, S Committee
Oliver Everct. )