ment.

of them actually purchased, great part sent | times passed through several hands before away, and all will probably be at the place ap- payment was demanded. At the last settlepointed before they are wanted. We gave ment of the public accounts, it appeared, that not a pound of provision less than was asked of a considerable sum of this interest and exciseus, and all the carriages required of us have money, over which the assembly alone had a been furnished. This has been done with the legal power, ought to be in the hands of the greatest readiness and alacrity, and done, we treasurer and trustees. The governor himconceive, without the least encroachment on self was pleased to point this money out to us, the rights of the crown, unless borrowing to compute the sum, and urge the house to money on our own credit' (which we thought make use of it, when in January last he reeven every private man had a right to do, if fused their bill for giving twenty-five thouhe had any credit) be indeed such an encroach- sand pounds to the king's use. The house alleged, and truly, that the money was outstanding in many hands, and could not suddenly be collected, without distressing and ruining the people. However, on the credit of this fund, we voted the first five thousand pounds for provisions, and ordered the money to be borrowed on interest. And at the last sitting, when the governor refused to pass our bill for giving twenty-five thousand pounds to the king's use, he may be pleased to remember, that he sent us down a message in which, after the reason given for not passing the bill, there are these words: As this is a time of imminent danger, and the forces raised and destined for the service of the colonies, must wait the supplies from this province, I again entreat you to fall upon some other method of raising money, that we may not lose this happy opportunity of recovering his majesty's

"Indeed the next paragraph begins with charging this upon us as a crime, you have, the governor is pleased to say, by a vote of your own house, without the consent of the government, impowered a committee of your members to borrow money upon the credit of the assembly, and to dispose of the same to certain uses in that vote mentioned.' By this caution in expressing the uses, a stranger might imagine, that they were wicked, if not treasonable uses, and that the governor, out of mere tenderness for his people, forbore to explain them; but the uses mentioned in the votes, are, to purchase fresh victuals, and other necessaries, for the use of the king's troops at their arrival; and to purchase and transport provisions requested by the government of the Massachusetts-bay, to victual the forces about to march for securing his majes-dominions now invaded by the French king.' ty's territories. These are the uses, in the votes mentioned, and the only uses; and we can conceive no reason for touching them so gently by the name of certain uses, unless the governor thought, that being more explicit on the uses, might seem to lessen, in some degree, the heinous crime of borrowing money on our own credit.

"The governor is pleased to add, 'you have also, by votes and resolves, of your own house, created bills, or notes of credit, made payable to the bearers thereof, to the amount of fifteen thousand pounds, which you have issued in lieu of money, and they are now circulating in this province, without the approbation of the government.' This charge, we presume, will, like the rest, vanish on a little explanation. By the laws of this province now in force, and which have received the royal assent, the disposition of the interestmoney, and excise, is vested in the assembly for the time being: out of this revenue the assemblies have, from time to time, defrayed the charges of government. The constant method of payment was always this; when an account against the public was allowed, or any expense for public service agreed to, an order issued, drawn on the treasurer, or trustees of the loan-office, and signed by the speaker, or the clerk, by order of the house. As these orders were generally paid on sight, they naturally obtained some credit, and some

The house accordingly fell on this other method: they gave ten thousand pounds of the money in their power to the king's use; they appointed a committee to purchase the provisions required, and impowered them to draw for the sum on the treasurer or trustees of the loan-office, as had been usual; with this only difference, that as former draughts were payable on sight, and therefore bore no interest, these being payable in a year, were to bear interest; and in the mean time the outstanding money was ordered to be got in, that the draughts might be punctually discharged. Monied men, knowing the goodness of the fund, and confiding in the justice and punctuality of the assembly, which has always honourably discharged the public debts, have voluntarily furnished the committee with cash for these draughts, which they have laid by in their chests to receive in time the interest. Thus the kng's forces have been expeditiously supplied, the people have time to pay off their debts to the public, and no one is oppressed, distressed, or injured; nor is any encroachment made on the powers of government, or any thing done that has not been usual, or which the assembly are not by law impowered to do. Yet this is what the governor represents as creating bills of credit, and issuing them in lieu of money, without the approbation of the government;' by which, persons unacquainted with the fact, might understand

we had been making paper-money, and issuing | vernment, but only acquainted us, that, it it on loan, or in some other manner, to produce being a bill of a very extraordinary nature, he an advantage to ourselves, and attempted to would send it home to the ministry,' which make it a legal tender without the governor's we hope he has accordingly done, as we beassent, &c. all which is mere misrepresenta-lieve it will be found, however the governor tion or misapprehension, as will appear by the may have misapprehended it, to have nothing resolves themselves, to which we beg leave to extraordinary in its nature, or inconsistent refer. After this explanation of our conduct, with our duty to the crown, or assuming more we believe it will clearly appear, that the than our just rights and privileges. governor's insinuation, as if we had used powers dangerous to the government, is as groundless as it is unkind.

"The other charges, of denying the governor access to our journals, and printing the secretary of state's letters,' having been made and answered in former messages between the governor and the house, we think it unnecessary to take any further notice of them here. But we are surprised to find, that after having effectually given fifteen thousand pounds, in provisions and other necessaries for the king's forces, maintained at so great an expense our Indian allies, established a constant regular post through two hundred miles of country, merely for the service of the army, and advanced a considerable sum to make a long and chargeable road through the wilderness and mountains to the Ohio, for the use of the king's forces, the whole expense of which we have engaged to defray, we should still be flatly told by the governor, That he is convinced from the whole tenor of our behaviour, that we have no design to contribute any thing towards the defence of this country."

"On the whole, while we find the governor transforming our best actions into crimes, and endeavouring to render the inhabitants of Pennsylvania odious to our gracious sovereign and his ministers, to the British nation, to all the neighbouring colonies, and to the army that is come to protect us; we cannot look upon him as a friend to this country. We are plain people, unpractised in the sleights and artifices of controversy, and have no joy in disputation. We wish the governor of the same disposition: and when he shall, as we hope he will, on better consideration, alter his conduct towards us, and thereby convince us that he means well to the province, we may then be able to transact the public business together with comfort both to him and ourselves; of which till then we have small expectation."

Such was the language of liberty, truth, and candour-we feel the force of it-we cannot resist its authority! and if the governor had the mortification to find they had ordered both his message and their answer to be printed in their gazettes, he had also the pleasure to find himself excused for the present by their adjournment, from the impossible task, of constructing such a reply as the pressure of this case required.

"The governor is pleased further to censure us, for not desiring a conference on the bill to prevent the importation of Germans, or other passengers, in too great numbers in one ship Perhaps they thought the absurdity he had or vessel, and to prevent the spreading of con- fallen into, by charging them with a resolutagious distempers, &c. We own that it is tion to take advantage of their country's dansometimes practised, when the governor and ger, to aggrandize and render permanent their assembly differ in judgment concerning a bill, own power and authority, too glaring to need to request a conference, if there be any hope any comment. Perhaps they did not think it by such a conference to obtain an agreement; proper to retort, that the inhabitants of a colobut we being, from many circumstances at- ny, so remote from the principal seat of emtending the bill, without such hope at pre-pire, had abundantly more to apprehend from sent, contented ourselves with laying before the governor, in a message, our reasons for not agreeing to his proposed amendments, and submitted those reasons to his consideration; the bill may still be resumed, and a conference entered into at a future session, if there should be any prospect of success. If our proceeding was irregular, which we think it was not, the governor may be pleased to remember, he himself set us a more irregular example at our last sitting, when we presented him the bill for granting twenty-five thousand pounds to the king's use; for he neither "That all aids and supplies granted to his proposed any amendment, nor desired any majesty in parliament, are the sole gift of the conference, nor would return us our bill (when commons; that all bills for the granting any we expressly sent for it to be reconsidered) such aids and supplies ought to begin with the according to the constant custom in this go-commons; and that it is the undoubted and

an excess of power in their governor, than the governor could possibly have from a like excess in their representatives; the executive, as before observed, being a single principle always in force, and the legislative composed of two co-equal principles, which must always tally, or can no otherwise operate, than by restraining and controlling the operations of each other, as in the case before us; and, perhaps, they had not the resolution of the house of commons of July 2, 1678, in sight at that time, which was as follows, viz.

Maryland, and Pennsylvania; and, that he might not be delayed in his operations, those things might be immediately forwarded to him under proper convoys; adding, that the said general had lately received intelligence, which he had communicated to him, that the French, together with their Indians, intended, as soon as the army was far advanced, to fall upon the back country; and that, though the general thought it a bravado, he also thought it adviseable to take all possible precautions against it; that he had called them together upon this application and intelligence; that he had re

sole right of the commons to direct, limit, and appoint in such bills, the ends, purposes, considerations, conditions, limitations, and qualifications, of such grants, which ought not to be changed by the house of lords." To say nothing of certain remarkable provisions of theirs in the year 1678 (which, in a course of conferences with the lords, they adhered to) to appoint a receiver of their own for the administration of the money then granted for the payment and disbanding of the army, and the payment of the same into the chamber of London, instead of the exchequer. Their adjournment was to the first of Sep-commended it to them to enable him to furnish tember; but they were assembled by special summons on the 13th of June; and the first minute on their books of public note is, one, to specify the approbation given by the lords justices to governor Thomas's act for granting five thousand pounds out of bills of credit for the king's use. The date of this approbation is October 9, 1748, so that it was subsequent to the king's instruction so pertinaciously insisted upon; and having, either by some accident or neglect been overlooked thus long, the governor, as we have seen, had in the December before taken the advantage to express himself thus hardily to the assembly: "Colonel Thomas's conduct is no rule to me, nor will mine be for any one that may succeed me; and if we may judge from his not transmitting that act to England, we may presume, that he did not look upon that particular as the most recommendatory part of his administration. It is true, he was never censured for it; and, indeed, how could he, as the transaction was never made known to his majesty or his ministers."

And the next minute that follows this, concerning the said approbation, notifies,

That sundry letters from sir Peter Halket and colonel Dunbar were then read, acknowledging the receipt of certain presents from the house to the officers of their respective regiments, of the most considerate and acceptable kind, and returning thanks for the same. The reason of this summons assigned by the governor in his message was to this effect, "That general Braddock having begun his march towards 'fort Du Quesne, had represented to him, 'That in case he should reduce that fort, his intentions were to leave a garrison, with all the guns, stores, &c. he should find in it; that in case the French should abandon and destroy the fortifications, &c. as he had reason to apprehend they would, he should then repair it, or construct some place of defence; but that in either case, as the artillery, stores, &c. he had with him would be absolutely necessary for the prosecution of his plan, he was determined to leave none of them behind him, and expected to have all his wants of that kind, as well as provisions for his garrison, supplied by the governments of Virginia, нуж

such of the things demanded as were proper for the province, and to conduct them to the places where they would be wanted, which could not be well done without a strong guard; as also by a militia or otherwise, to protect the said back country against the incursions of the enemy; that, upon the receipt of the general's letter, he had written to the governors of Virginia and Maryland, to know what shares of these supplies their governments would respectively furnish; that he needed not inforce the point by any other arguments, than that fort Du Quesne was within their province, and that the great expense the nation was at on this occasion would be thrown away, his majesty's intentions rendered abortive, and his arms dishonoured, if the countries the said general should recover were left in such a naked condition, that the French might take possession of them again, as soon as the army should be withdrawn, &c.

A very little skill in political matters would have shown those concerned, that there was rather more management concealed under this speech than was strictly necessary, and put them on their guard accordingly.

The assembly of Pennsylvania had some wisdom as well as much plainness; and therefore, by way of preliminary, desired to have the letter in their custody, which was to be the ground of their proceedings. The governor hesitated: said it contained many matters not proper to be made public; that it would not be safe, therefore, unless the house would previously promise him it should not be printed; but however, he would show it to a committee, if the house would appoint one for that purpose. The house on the other hand, renewed their request in writing, alleged that it had always been the custom, when assemblies were called together on occasion of letters received, to communicate those letters; that giving a committee a sight of letters, on which any important step was to be taken, did not seem sufficient; but that the letters should lie before the house to be read as often as necessary to the right understanding of the matters they contained or required; that the governor might safely put his trust in the prudence of the house; in fine, they would hear of no a

ternative, since the importance of the contents | in the preceding April, and paid out of the moof that letter had been urged as the reason for ney in the disposition of the house, which was calling them together at so unseasonable a almost exhausted, could not answer all the purtime of the year; and, as they could not take poses intended by the bill for granting twentythe letter into consideration without seeing it, five thousand pounds to which the governor rethey hoped he would not, by starting new fused his assent) had already prepared two methods of proceeding, and engaging them in money-bills, one for striking ten thousand trivial disputes, any longer obstruct or delay pounds for the exchange of defaced bills, and the public service. one of fifteen thousand pounds more for the king's use, the governor's answer concerning general Braddock's letter came; and therein he asserted, that the governor for the time being had a right to call the assembly together whenever he thought the public service required it; that his speeches or messages were a sufficient foundation for them to proceed upon; that they having, by the plenitude of their own power, not only given their orders to the printers to proceed with the publication of the secretary of state's letters, in contradiction to his to the contrary, but also claimed a right of doing the same by any other papers laid before them, they could not be at a loss for the reason of his caution on the present occasion; that he being answerable for every secret of state that should be communicated to him for the king's service, and by the nature of his station the sole and only judge what letters and papers were proper to be made public, did expect a promise of secresy from the house, either verbal or otherwise, or something tantamount to it; and that otherwise he should not communicate it.

This was done the sixteenth. The next day, instead of an answer, the governor sent them down a brace of new messages. One in the morning, giving them to understand, "That the roads they had ordered to be made to the Ohio would be attended with a much greater expense than was at first imagined; that the money sent to the commissaries was already spent; that more was wanting; and, that the general having discharged the soldiers' wives out of the army, with a stoppage of one shilling sterling a week out of their husband's 's pay for their subsistence, it would become the compassion of the province to supply what would be farther necessary for that purpose;" and another in the afternoon, containing more intelligence. Intelligence he himself had now received, and had forwarded to the general: namely, that several bodies of troops had passed from Canada over the lake Ontario in their way to the Ohio, to join the forces already there; that the French were doing their utmost to engage the Indians on their side; and, rather than fail, were determined to oppose general Braddock with the whole force of Canada. Containing also a repetition of what in effect he had said before concerning the back country; heightened with some new apprehensions, that when the troops were removed, the enemy might either cut off or greatly interrupt their communication with the province, which might be every way attended with fatal consequences. And all was made use of to authorize a fresh demand for a militia-law, and a new demand for a supply to enable him to build strong houses on the new road to the Ohio, and to maintain such a number of men as should be necessary to keep the communication between the province and the army open, escort provisions, stores, &c. that the general might neither be forced to weaken his army by making detach-ple, to obstruct the ends of their meeting, we ments from it, nor expose those detachments to be surprised and cut off; and that he might occasionally make use of them as auxiliaries too, in case the numbers brought against him should make such a reinforcement necessary; and (after having rung all the changes that such a medley of demands and suggestions in such hands was capable or) making the province answerable, as usual, in case of non-compliance, for all mischiefs.

On the 21st, however, when the house (having taken into consideration, that the fifteen thousand pounds given to the king's use

And, on the twenty-sixth following, the assembly returned their answer. In the opening of which, having admitted the governor's right or power to call them together, they, nevertheless, insist on the usual manner of exercising it; that is to say, with a proper regard to the convenience of the members at their harvest, and to despatch, when necessarily summoned at that or other unseasonable times, for the sake of keeping up a good understanding between the governor and them. "But," said they, "should our governors consider this power, as a power of bringing us toge ther at a great expense to the country, merely to show their abilities in contriving new modes, or making new demands upon the peo

apprehend it will answer no valuable purpose." That his speeches and messages were a sufficient foundation for them to proceed upon, they also admitted to be occasionally true; but then they were of opinion, on the contrary, that when his writs of summons were founded on letters or advices, referred to in his said speeches and messages, they had a right to have the original papers laid before them; and they averred this had ever been the practice in their province; so that a different conduct at that time could only tend to obstruct the public business before them. "If governors,”