The Connecticut courant, and the weekly intelligencer — Hartford [Conn.], 1780-05-30 00:00:00, page 1

LONDON, January 8.
YESTERDAY, in eonfequence of
a public notice given by the fheriffs,
a numerous and refpedable meeting
of the freeholders cf Middlesex was held
at the Mermaid, at Hackney. About
one o'clock Mr. Sheriff Wright took the
chair (Sheriff Pugh being confined with
the gout, did not attend) and read a re
quisition made to him, signed by several
freeholders of the county, requiring the
meeting, the purport cf which was, ''to
eonfider the propriety of entering into
resolutions, and co-operating with the no
ble Lords who formed the minority on
the 7th and 15th of December, on the
motions for the retrenchment of the civil
lift, and for contruhng the public expen
diture, &c.”
The following is a copy cf the petition
agreed to at this meeting:
Tq the Honorable the Commons of Great-
Britain, in Parliament assembled:
The Petition cfthe Gentlemen, Clergy, and
Freeholders of the county of Middlesex
Sheweth,
THAT this nation hath been engaged
for several years in a molt expensive and
unfortunate war ; that many cf our valu
able colonies, having a&ually declared
tbemfelves independent, having formed a
Aria confederacy with France and Spain,
the inveterate enemies of Great -Britain ;
that the consequence of thole combined
misfortunes hath been a large addition to
the national debt,a heavy accumulation of
taxes, a rapid dedineof the trade, manu
factures, and land rents ofthe kingdom.
Alarmed ajthe diminished resources
and growing burthens of this country,
and convinced that rigid frugality is now
indispensably necessary, in every depart
ment cf the fiate § your petitioners ob
serve with grief, that notwithflanding the
calamitous and impoverished condition of
the nation, much public money has been
improvidently Squandered, and that ma
ny individuals enjoy sinecure peaces, ci
fieient places with exhorbitant emolu
ments, and penfuns unmerited by public
service, to a large and fWI increafmg a
mount; whence,the crown has acquired
a great and unconstitutional influence,
which, if not choked, must Don prove
&U 1 to the liberty of this country.
Your petitioner, conceiving that the
true end of every legitimate government
is not the emolument of any individual,
but the welfare of the community, beg
Lave further to represent, tunt until cf
fe&ual mcafures be taken to redrew the
rpprefdve grievances herein dated, tuc
grant cf an. additional sum of public mo
ney, beyond the produce cf the piefent
faxes, v^ll be injurious to the rights and
pr. petty of the people, and derogatory
TUESDA Y, MAY go, ifo C hib. NUMBERS
CONNECTICUT COURANT,
' A NDtH^
HARTFO R D : Printed by HUDSON amd GOODWI N, near the Great-Bridge.
Olio KLY to TELLIG E N C E R.
from the honor and dignity of Parliament.
Your petitioners therefore do mod ear
nestly request, that before any new bur
thens are laid upon this country, effedu
kl measures may be taken to enquire into
and corred the grofi abuses in the expen
diture of public money , to reduce all ex
orbitant emoluments ; to rescind and a
bolifh all sinecure places and unmerited
pensions ; and to appropriate the pro
dace to the neceffites cf the fiate 111 luch
manner as to the wifchm of Parliament
shall seem meet. And your petitioners
shall ever pray, &c.
Jan. 18. A plm has been laid before
the Lords of the Treasury for laying a
tax on all places of public deverfion
throughout the kingdoms to answer in
part the emergencies of government.
A letter from Paris fays, " Orders
have ' been feut to Toulon to flop the de
parture of a squadron at that port, and
now ready and under failing orders, till
the return of a courier from the port of
Madrid, who is going thither with some
very singular and interefling dispatches."
Yesterday the Dutch Aimbahador bad
a long conference with the Secretary .cf
State, on the fubje& of tome difpatcries
received byhis Excellency from the States
General, relative to the motions of the
Emperor of Germany.
the High Sheriff of the county of
Gloucester having refufed to call a meet
ing of that county, several noblemen and
gentlemen have advertized a meeting ;
among many other tefpe&able.names, are
those of Lords Befkely, Craven, Cnei.i
worth, Hon. George Berkely, Sir vV illi
am Guise, Sir William Codrington, Mr.
Hayward, &c, &c.
The gentlemen of the county of Dbrfct
have applied to the Sheriff of that coun
ty, to call a meeting of the county ; which
request he complied with, and fixed the
21st inh. at Dirchefter, for that purpose.
The fame request has been made to
the Sheriff of Somerset, and he has com
plied with it, and fixed the 25th inst. at
Wells for that purpose.
The fame request has been made to the
Sheriff of Brecknock, who has fixed the
oth of February at Brecknock, for that
bofinefs.
If credit may be given to some pri
vate letters received from /imflerdam,
the French have now orders lying in
Holland fur naval stores to the amount cf
120,0001.
The following article is copied from a
letter received from a house of trie foft
credit of Hamburgh, '' Should a w^r
break out in Germany, it is # confidently
said, a certain Prince would bring in the
field 240,000 men, divided into three ar
mies of §O,OOO men each.
At a numerous meeting of the Nobili
ty, Gentlemen, Clergy, and Freeholders
of the county of Wilts, on Tuesday ia&
at the Devizes, a petition (the fame as
that from the county of York) was ap
proved cf, and agreed t ; after which a
committee cf correfpor dence appointed,
and the meeting adjourned, to 1 uefday
in Easter week next ensuing, at Devizes.
Jan. 17. A correspondent observes,
that this country seems approaching with
rapid progfefs to that period, beyond
which, if even , success attends the war,
taxation cannot much longer be carried
with effeft. New taxes, even in popular
Adminiflrations, are received by the com
mucity with'ill will and difguh, but when
repeatedly aggravated, upon a nation
wh de comruerce, colonization, ard de
pendencies are upon the decline it can
not be I ng fuppofted by the most able
financier. N< twithftanding the conti
nuai rtpr rts of an accommodation with
America, whe r e are the terms, or propo
rtions for that pufp fc? Neither the So
vereign nor the fubje&, it is now believ
ed, know any thing of them ; and we
are still purfoing a phantom, at the ex
penceoftwelve millions per anritim,which,
it is coufidertly affirmed and believed by
many moderate men, might be fared to
this kingdom by a liberal offer to Ameri
ca, equal, or similar, to the favours and
f, iendfh p lately bestowed on Ireland.
Jan. 28 Several Government ma
n&utvres have been employed in Ireland,
to coax the arms cut cf the hands of the
associated troops ; but their uniform an
fv, er has been, '' That they will continue
to defend their rights as freemen and Irfn
men, against all the enemies cf their king
dom whatever.'' Ihe hd is, they think
their Parliament, like the good will cf
our Minister towards sem, is belt kept
afloat by the bayonet at their back, and
they are not likely to disembody, till eve
ry idea of what they define to be their
ccnhitutional rights, are restored to them.
A war with Holland begins to be seri
ously apprehended
Directions are sent over to Lord Buck
ingham to talee every means poffibie for
carrying a bill for permitting the Papjfts
the use of arms, through the kifh Parlia
ment.
it is confidently said that a commission
has paired the Great Seal, and is gone to
Sir Joseph Y( rke, to enable him to open
a treaty with any Agents, Commiffion^s,
or Ambassadors from the American Con-
Feb. I On Saturday General Prefect
arrived at Lord George Germaine's office
with dfpatches for government from
New York. He brings a certain ac
c^nt, that Sir Henry Clinton, and Lord