servants that before his face attempt to kill his plough-horses? DLXIV A LONDONER. FROM SAMUEL YOUNG AND OTHERS, COMMITTEE OF THE LOWER HOUSE OF THE PROVINCE OF GEORGIA SAVANNAH, 14 March, 1774. SIR:-Truly sensible of your well experienced fidelity and merit, immediately on the meeting of the General Assembly, the Commons House passed an ordinance reappointing you as Agent, which was rejected by the Upper House for reasons best known to themselves. It was necessary, however, that something should appear to account for their mysterious conduct, and the enclosed is a copy of the minutes extracted from their journals by a committee of the Lower House appointed for that purpose. Your conduct has been so generally approved that the representatives of the people could not suffer those measures to pass over unnoticed, and they therefore directly entered into such resolutions as they thought sufficient to do justice to a reputation which is of itself so sacred and well known as to require no foreign support, a copy of which you have also enclosed. It sometimes happens in societies as in private life that small injuries are suffered and winked at until they increase and become too intolerable to be any longer borne; the Commons of Georgia, upon a presumption that any gentleman nominated by them would receive no opposition from either of the other legislative branches, from time to time have made it their practice to prepare an ordinance and send it to the Upper House for their concurrence. This has at length been misconstrued into a right, and they now suppose no agent for the people can be properly appointed unless they join in the nomination. Perfectly convinced of their exclusive right, the Commons House have entered into a resolution (a copy of which you will also herewith receive) reappointing you their Agent, and we are directed to entreat that you will do just honor to their choice by your acceptance of the office, and upon such presumption we are instructed to acquaint you that the province has lately been much alarmed and terrified by the incursions of some discontented Creek Indians, who have perpetrated many murders, and otherwise committed great depredations on the persons and property of many settlers lately residing on our frontier, formed by the lands lately ceded to his Majesty. Although the party of Indians which committed these outrages consists of about fifty of the lower Creeks only, and their treacherous and cruel behavior is disapproved of and condemned by their countrymen in the Upper Creek nation, yet, when satisfaction comes to be demanded, it is much to be feared that their incapacity to give such [sic] as should (and probably will) be insisted upon, may be the unavoidable means of bringing on a general war with that powerful nation, whose number of fighting men, we have every reason to believe, from the best authority, amounts to full four thousand. As this province is very far from being able to carry on of itself so expensive and dangerous a war, the two branches of the legislative body have separately furnished his Excellency the Governor, with addresses to the king, which he has promised to cause to be presented by the earliest opportunity. The Commons House, for reasons which you will undoubtedly see through, thought administration the properest channel for their address to pass to his Majesty. They, however, directed us to furnish you with the enclosed copy, and desire that you will add another proof of your attachment to this province by exerting your utmost influence in support of our application to the crown for troops to reduce the savages to a proper sense of their conduct, and bring them to terms of peace and justice. We have nothing further to add but that we are with great esteem and respect, Sir, your most obedient servants, WILLM. YOUNG, SAML. FARLEY, T. NETHERCLIFT, D. ZUBLEY, Junr. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, Esquire, Agent for the Province of Georgia. DLXV QUERIES Indorsed "Queries relating to the colonies to be discussed with Lord C-m." Q. What were the original ideas upon which the colonies were settled? What was the state of their government during the first reign? Were they established at the expense of government here? Did the Parliament make any grants to defray or aid the first charge, or for protecting the settlers? Was the Parliament advised with by the crown concerning the terms of settlement? Did it form any regulations thereupon? Did it understand itself to have any power over them? Did not the colonists go over free from the laws of this country, with a right to adopt such of them as they should judge convenient to their circumstances and reject others? And did they not, in fact, do so? Were they not first reduced to any submission to Parliament in the time of the great rebellion? Has it not been by degrees since the Restoration that the Parliament has assumed a power of legislation for America? What is the present state of power assumed by Parliament over the colonies? Lord Chatham. What changes may be advantageously for both countries made therein? What would be the best constitution for the colonies as connected with this country? And how is it to be obtained? DLXVI TO THE MARQUIS DE CONDORCET LONDON, 20 March, 1774. SIR:-I am ashamed that my late continued embarras in public affairs should have so long prevented my answering the letter you honored me with, of the 2d of December last. I transmitted your queries to our society at Philadelphia, where they will be well considered, and full answers will be sent to you. On my return thither, which I am now preparing for, I shall take care, if not done, to urge the doing it as soon as possible. In the meantime, I can inform you, as to question first, that, though there is in Pennsylvania abundance of limestone and marble, no flint has been found there by the English; yet it is supposed that flint is to be met with in some part of the country, since heads of arrows made of it by the ancient inhabitants are sometimes found in ploughing the fields. Thus, small sea-shells are found intermixed with the substance of rock-stone in some of our highest mountains, and such I think as are not now to be met with on our coasts. Several skeletons, supposed by their tusks to be of elephants, have been found near the |