The New-York gazette, and the weekly Mercury — New-York [N.Y.], 1777-03-24 00:00:00, page 1

By his EXCELLENCY
Sir WILLIAM HOWE,
Knight of the Moss Honorable Order of the
Bath, one of His Majesty's Commissio
ners for restoring Peace to the Colonics,
General and Commander in Chief of
all his Majesty's Forces within the Colo
nies lying on the Atlantic Ocean, from
Nova Scotia to West Florida, inclusive,
&-c. &c. &c.
PROCLAMATION.
XIT WHEREAS it has been represented to
roe that many of His Majesty's
/ V European and American Subjects
are compelled by Force, or otherwise
induced, to bear Arms in Opposition to the
Re-establishment of the constitutional Autho
rity of Government in America, and are
difeouraged from returning to their Allegiance
by ill-founded Doubts of the Reception such
Tender cf their Duty may meet with : I
the r efo r e Declare, and do hereby
premise and engage, That all Persons bearing
Arms as aforefaid, who shall surrender them
fclves to any Officer commanding any Part of
His Majesty's Forces, on, or before the
first Day of May next, shall be entitled to
Pardon for all Offences heretofore committed
against His Crtwn and Dignity, and their
Estates and Effects be secured from Seizure,
Forfeiture, or Confifcation.—That every
non-commissioned Officer and private Man
'who shall come in with his Arms, shall also re
ceive the full Value for them.—That theAME
rican born Subjects shall be permitted to enter
into any of the Provincial Corps in His Ma
jesty's Service, or to return Home, as they
think fit, —And that the British and Irish
born Subjects shall either be taken into His
Majesty's Service, or conveyed to the Place
of their Nativity, at their own Option.
GIVEN under my Hand, at Head
Quarters in New-York, the 15th Day
of March, 1777.
W. HOWE.
By His Excellency's Command,
Robert Mackenzie, Sec'ry.
By His Excellency n
Sir WILLIAM HOWE,
Knight of the mod Honorable Order cf the
Bath, one of His Majeffy's Commissioners
for restoring Peace to the Colonies, General
and Commander in Chief of all His Maje
fly's Forces within the Colonies lying on
the Atlantic Ocean, from Nova-Scotia to
Weft-Florida, inclusive, &c. &c. &c.
PROCLAMATION.
WHEREAS a plentiful Supply of
Vegetables, and of frefih Provifi-'
ons of all Kinds, will greatly tend
to the Preservation of the Health
es His Majesty's Troops and others; and the
railing large Quantities of Hay, and other
Forage, will very much conduce to His Ma
jesty's Service, as well as be of general Use :
hi Order therefore to give all due Encourage
ment to all His Majesty's liege Subjects, -so
that they may cheerfully exert themselves in
railing such Supplies, under a full Assurance
of enjoying all polfible Protection in so doing,
I have thought fit to issue this Proclamation,
ftriClly charging and commanding, that no
Person or Persons whomfoeyer, under any
Colour or Pretence whatsoever, presume to
trespass upon any Inclofure belonging to any
other Person or Persons, or to take or carry
away any Produce from the Owner or Owners
thereof, or to break down, destroy, or in any
Manner injure any Inclofure or Fences what
soever, nowfianding, or hereafter to be ere&ed,
as they will anfiver for the fame at their Peril.
And to the End that this Proclamation may be
more ftridly observed, I do hereby further
charge, require, and command all Officers,
Soldiers, and others, to seize and deliver over
to any Officer commanding any Part of His
Majesty's Forces, or to the Provost Marshal,
allfuch Persons as they shall find adding in Dis
obedience hereto, in order that such Offenders
may be brought to condign Punishment for the
fame ; hereby declaring that any Neglect
herein shall be considered and punched as a
Breach of Orders. And I do further charge
and require the commanding Officers of any
of His Majesty's Forces, and Proved Marshal,
ASSIZE of BREAD. Flour at 30s. per Cent.
A White Loaf of the fineft FLOUR, to weigh
3 lb. 40Z. for 14 Coppers, and in the fame
Proportion for Loaves of a lesser Weights
Monday, March 24, 1777.
NE W-Y 0R K
AND
WEEKLY
Published "January io, 1777.
Containing t^ catHeO ^DWces
^ Printed by HUGH GAINE, at the BIBLE and CROWN, in HANOVER-SQUARE.
from Time to Time to receive into Cuflody all
such Offenders as shall be brought to them as
aforefaid, and duly to make Report thereof.
Given under my Hand at Head Quarters,
in New-York, the Twentietli Day of
March, 1777.
W. HOWE.
By His Excellency's Command,
Robert Mackenzie, Sec'ry.
^'^co cowco ^t^roio ^\^to^cq ^cffy^ro^rg
To THE PRINTER.
SIR,
The following Declaration has been signed by
the Inhabitants cf the City and County f New-
York :— As it is expreffhue of that Loyalty,
and Abhorrence of the prefont Rebellion, you
are requeued to give it a Place in your Pager,
that the Rebels may no longer be deluded into a
- Relief, that they have any Advocates in this
loyal City, for their Tyranny and Opprefion.
I am, your bumble Servant,
D. MATHEW S.
*%°I7HEREAS certain Persons, now Mem-
V, bers of what is styled, The Provincial
Congress of New-York, do claim, and actu
ally exercise Power of representing this City
and County, and are with such Congress, pur
fuling Measures, totally subversive as well of
His Majesty's Government, as of our Liberty
and Happiness ; We, therefore, the Freehol
ders and Inhabitants of the City and County
of New-York, whose Names are hereunto
subscribed, DO hereby, in the mod explicit
Manner, disavow, renounce and disclaim such
their Assumption of Power, and all Submis
sion or Obedience to any Orders or Resolutions
of the said Provincial Congress, and of any
Continental Congress, Committees or Con
ventions whatsoever, claiming to exercise any
such unlawful Power over us, —hereby recog
nizing and acknowledging our Submission to
His Majesty's Government, under which alone
we wish and expert to derive those solid and
permanent Blessings which are peculiar to the
British Confiitution, and the Inheritance of a
British Subject.
r*n*1c#l&lQtXl^t*r^te!&<^ ^r*'&! Xi&l!@l2
^ the P R I'NT E R.
S I R,
I FINISHED my last Letter with a Com
ment upon Qe fublimaPanegyric, which
our Convention have given us, upon
their own Guilt and Enormity. This,
although it be Matter of Fad, is no Matter
of Faith; because Faith deals in Things un
seen, and these Vices, our good Men have
been treating of, are evident enough. How
ever, we must take Things in this crooked
World, as we find them; and so I take up
again the good Book cf our Convention.
For the Comfort of my Reader, much of
the excellent Text from the Fish-Kill may be
omitted; because it only refpefts the fame
Things in different Words. Their golden
Thoughts are ductile as Gold itfelf, and can
be spun out to the fame Degree of Tenuity.
I have heard, that a Piece of that precious
Metal, about the Size of a Johannes, might
be extended to cover a Common: I am lure
every single Conception of cur Worthies is
abundantly more capable of Extension, for it
can spread over a Continent. But, as to the
Falue of our Thoughts, Leaf Gold, or burnt
Silk itfelf, must certainly yield in the Com
parison. And, with refpefl to their Luftre and
Brightness, I can boldly fay, they shine like
the' Moon in the Meridian. If I had any
Faith in judicial Astrology, or in tlie Deter
minations cf planetary Influence,! should aver,
that many of our Ideas were so lofty and so
fupramundane, that they mud have been under
the immediate Direction of that wonderful
Orb, and would consequently prove, that Bp.
hFilkins's Notion of communicating with it by
Means of a flying Machine, was not quite so
visionary, as some grovelling Dolts, some mere
Terr^-flii, would represent it to be.
“ If a reasonable Peace was intended, Why
“ did not the King impower His Commission
“ ers to treat with the Congress, or with De
" puties from all the Assemblies? Or why
“ was not some other Mode devised, in which
" America might be heard ?"—lhis is really
charming. We all knew what was in the
King's Commission, and underhand it as per
fcflly as the Commissioners themselves ; or at
lead they should have given us an exa& Copy
of that and other Papers about them, if we
do not underhand it, as all Ambafiadors and
Treaty-mongers do upon like Occaficns. Who
Monday, 32 Min. after 9
Tuesday, 16 Min. after 10
Wednesday, 41 Min. after 10
Thursday, 37 Min. after 11
HIGH-WATER at NEW-YORK, this Week.
THE
&TO^^@
Friday, 19 Min. after 12
Saturday, 4 Min. after 1
Sunday, 54 Min. after 1
Last Quarter next Sunday.
ever heard of a Minister Plenipotentiary, that
did not publish his Commission and ultimate
Indru&ions to all the World ? And are we to
have People come over, on purpose to talk
and to treat with us; and yet not tell us be
forehand, all that they mean to talk about ?
The Truth is, we wanted " no Mode of Re
conciliation," which would not stipulate as a
Preliminary, that we are independent States,
which is the great Drift of our Contention.
We knew, that no Mode cf Reconciliation,
that the Commissioners could bring, or Great-
Britain adopt, could possibly square with that
Resolution. We never had the Matter really
in View, because in such an Event, we mull
have funk the Consequence of our Congress
into the legal Government of a free Consti
tution, which they would not have endured.
We pretended other Things indeed; but in
deed because it was not quite fafe to let the
Public at once into our real Design. And,
therefore, if it had not been thro' Fear of an
Infurredion at Philadelphia, our divine Con
gress would have taken no Notice of the Com
missioners at all; but when they were in a
Manner compelled to do it, they very pro
perly sent three Men, who they knew would
treat about nothing to the Purpose with th^m.
" We kneav the Men, whom we trusted."
This was wife, and shewed how much we really
cared for Peace. If Peace had been our Willi,
we ourfelres " should have devised some Mode"
of treating with Men, who came so far for
that very Purpose. But the Characters of
these Commissioners were not the Characters
we wanted. They would have read us Lec
tures on Moderation, Reconciliation, and
Unity, and if their Ideas had succeeded, the
Country would have returned to its former
Situation, and of Course many of our Leaders
would have had nothing to do. Our favorite
Notion of Republicanism, which turns Cob
blers into Kings, and Gentlemen into Pedlars,
must in that Case have been thrown aside:
And we should now have wanted the Bene
fit of our Armies, and been plagued with an
open Trade. We should have loft the won
derful and certain Advantage that " the
" United States of America are to found as
" feompoufy in the World or in History, as the
" Kingdom of Great-Britain ;'' and that '' the
“ Character of General Wellington will fill a
“ Page with as much Luftre, as that of Lord
" Howe." These are Points, we ought every
one of us to die rather than not obtain. Mil
lions of Sums, and Millions ofLives, are but
an ihconfiderable Sacrifice for these important
Furpoles. Here is a Glory, which counter
balances all the Worth cf Commerce, the
Peace of an Empire, or the Happiness of a
World. Here is a Profped, which must kindle
an Ardor of Emulation in the most languid
Bread, and for the Attainment of which Fa
mine, Defblation and the Sword, the Battle
of Brother with Brother, and all the fayage
Scenes cf Horror and Death, are “ nothing,
less than Nothing, and Vanity."
“ What Faith, what Trust, what Confix
'' dence, can you repose in those Men, who
“ arc deaf to the Calls of Humanity, dead
" to every Sentiment of Religion, and void
“ of all Regard for the Temples of the Lord
“ of Hosts?" 'Tis not easy rightly to ex
pound this Climax of our moll religious Con
vention. Not that the Difficulty liesQn the
Words, for they are tolerably plain, but in
the Sense and the Matter. If there are Men
in the World deaf to Humanity and dead to
Religion, I can presently allure my Reader,
that I should net readily trust them. £ut that
there are none such (at ieaft among curlelves)is
very plain from the Cessation of our Troubles,
We have never seen Hufbaads torn from their
Wives, Children from their Parents, and Pa
rents from their Children, without consulting
either their Interest or Inclinations, for the
express Purpose of fighting against the King.
And as to the King's Commissioners, who
came out with the . avowed Design, and in
Consequence of our own Desire, to reconcile
ail Disputes; they have been so “ deaf to the
Calls of Humanity," that they have never
made us one Overture of Peace, never issued
any humane Declaration or Proclamation, ne
ver courted us to return and enjoy Liberty and
Property upon the Principles of that Consti
tution we once called happy ; but are in them
selves so irreligious, as never to pray in the
Corners of the Streets as we do, on purpose
to ihew the World, that they do pray. Be-
Wheat per Buffiel, 9s. od.
Flour, 30s. od.
Brown Bread, 255. od.
Weft,-India Rum, Bs. od.
New-England do. ss. od.
[No. 1326.)
f^ A 7 P T T F°
T H E
MERCUR Y.
PRICE CURRENT, in NEW-YORK.
Mufeovado Sugar; 51. 10s.
Single refin'd ditto, 2s. gd.
Molasses, 3s. 6d.
Beef per Barrel, 90s. od.
Pork, 51. 10s.
foreign end Domenici.
sides, bur holy Convention has the antient
miraculous Gift cf difeernihg the Spirits, and
therefore it is no Wonder, that they pro
nounce so roundly of every Man's spiritual
State and Condition. And as to “ Regard for
the femples of the Lord of Hofls," I have
heard of some People, who have prostituted
these very holy Places to Sedition and Schism,
and profaned their Adyta or Sandia Sanfiorum,
by using them against theLord of Hosts himfelf.
I dare fay, that our good Convention would
think them less defiled, by being turned into
Bog-Houses, than into Conventicles of Trea
son against the King and our antient Constitu
tion.—But, after all, instead of accusing other
People of being " dead to every Sentiment of
Religion," I should have thought, that such
a Character rather belonged to those, who
have confefied their “ Contamination by many
Shameful Vices," and their " Loss of a Senl^
of Duty to their Creator." I should have be
lieved, that these were the People, who fall
under our Stigma of being dead to Religion ;
unless our Convention have really difeovered
the holy Art of uniting Vice and Religion, or
with the Profeflion of Religion. 'Tis said by
some, that they have actually,made this con
venient Difcovcry: If so, Ged forbid, that I
should rob any Men of the Merit of their In
ventions. Let thera have all the Honor of it
for me : I am quite content with a little Com
mon Sense of the old Sort, and a little Com
mon Honesty to carry me on through th&
World.
" And why all this Defolaticn, Bloodshed,
“ and unparelleled Cruelty i" Ah, why in
deed ? I can fee no Reason for it but the un
parelleled Obstinacy, Ambition, and Roguery
of certain Men. 'Tis a very good Queftioft
for our Convention to ask themselves every
Morning before Breakfaft, and every Night
before they go to Bed. They should ventilate
this Matter constantly and feriouily. Ncctar
nd verfate manu, nserJate diurnd. They would
find the Answer to be (for I have well consi
dered the Weight of the Words) exa&ly what
I have just now given.
“ But you are told—that ycur Opposition
" is vain, your Resistance fruitlefs. What
“ then ? You can but be Slaves at laid, if you
“ should think Life worth holding on so bafq
“ a Tenure."---This is excellent ! 'I 0 speak
like a Commentator, this is the favorite
s ^7X°r of ° ur favorite Argument. We can
die. And what then ? Why then, we shall be
dead; and that's all. How glorious ! We
may beggar our Families, fill our Hearts with
Misery and our Country with Blood, and
whea we have done all this,and done it in vain,
we may either be Slaves, or die; just which
we please. What a Prefpea of Happiness ?---
I fuppofc, Reader, that our Convention means
by letting before us the End cf these things,
that we should begin to reclaim ourselves, and
turn from our Errors: And, indeed, it is
high Time, if we would have any thing left
upon Earth worth living for.
Our good Convention go on complaining
and exulting, cenfeffing their Sins and tri
umphing over their Enemies, and, as good
Men should, all in a Breath. This shews, they
are capable of great things, by doing so many
at once. They can talk down the Almighty
from Heaven “ to their Alliance," and by
his “ merciful" Assistance, curse their King,
and cut the Throats of their Neighbours, who
differ from them in Opinion. In snort, they
can treat their Maker in such a Style of Fa=
miliarity, as though they had never commit
ted one Sin against him, or had been as inti
mately acquainted with him, as with fobn
Trott their next Door Neighbour. All thia
shews the Courage, and Magnanimity of Re
publicanism, which, in a Manner, can bring
down God himfelf to a Level with Man, and
obliterate all the Dihinaions of Sense and
Folly, Virtue and Vice, Wealth and Poverty,
throughout the Creation. By all these Cir
cumstances, Reader, you may know how per
fedly well qualified the grand Convention cf
the Fish-Kill are to take Care of our Fortunes,
our Manners, and Lives,
They give us Line uponLine,ardPrecept no
on Precept, cut of mere Charity, I luppofi , Gr
our Welfare. It would be doing them Injustice
to omit their most pious Exhortations to their
Condiments. “ Let a general Reformation cf
" Manners takeplace. Let no mere Widows and
“ Orphans,compelled to fly from their peaceful
" Abodes, complain that you make a Market
Fine Salt, 10s. ®d
Ccarfe Salt, £e. od
Indian Corn per Bu. 6s. 6d
Coffee, 1$ . 9d
Chocolate, 265. per Dez