Qass t^ld Book J^S>^3 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC OP THE UNITED STATES. BT RICHARD FROTHINGHAM. SE€OKD EDITION. BOSTON: LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY. 1873 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by EICHAKD FROTHINGHAM, In tlie Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. WOV 1 8 1939 CAMBRIDGE: PRESS OF JOHN WILSON AND SOX. TO MY WIFE, I DEDICATE THIS WORK. .v^^n > PREFACE. Thirty-five years ago I prepared, con amore, a series of papers on "The History of Charlestown," my native place, designed for the local newspaper ; but they were published in pamphlet form. The first number appeared in 1845, and six additional numbers brought the history down to the period of the battle of Bunker Hill. In the same spirit I then made collections relative to the opening scenes of the war of the Revolution ; and, as there was no complete narrative of these events, I published in 1849 the "History of the Siege of Boston, and of the Battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill." In these researches I became familiar with the po- litical career of Joseph AVarren, and began to frame a narrative of the transactions in which he figured as a political leader ; and this was the occasion of the preparation of " The Life and Times of Joseph War- ren,'' published in 1865. I also furnished articles more or less elaborate to a Boston daily newspaper, on points of American his- tory, as an occasional contributor from 1838 to 1852, C]^ C?l VI PREFACE. and for the succeeding thirteen years as one of the proprietors and editors. An article on the Declara- tion of Independence, dealing with principles, printed on the Fourth of July, 1842, — another, on the suc- ceeding anniversary relating facts, — and a third on the 2d of March, 1854, on the first covenant of the country, — fill several columns, and would make a considerable pamphlet. These papers, to say nothing of others, relate to the formative process of the na- tion.^ These circumstances, with others not necessary to be stated, led me to historical research having in view the one clear and distinct object of tracing the de- velopment of the national life; a theme separate from the ordinary course of civil and military transactions, and requiring events to be selected from their rela- tion to principles, and to be traced to their causes. The theme, as I went on, seemed to grow beyond my reach. I well knew that it was only b}'* patient labor, that 1 could hope to justify the attempt to deal with it. I tried to form in my mind a picture of the many streams that met and united in the current which ter- 1 It is said that there has not been a single writer " who has attempted to distinguish between the History of the United States and the Political Literature of the country; that is, in giving an account of tlie facts, of a public or private nature, that controlled the events of any era or epoch, almost all have altogether failed to look to the inner influence, so to speak, of the writings, the proceedings of public bodies, the state papers, that ia each case preceded and moulded and accompanied every important occurrence of the different phases of our national existence. They have contined their attention too much to the efftct of the development of both the political and social progress of our earlier existence, and have paid too little heed to the causes of the gradual expansion of political opinions and the origin of our steady and successful advance to independence and constitutional government." — The Ptnn 3Ionthly,far August, 1871, vol. ii. 379. PREFACE. Vll minated in the broad expanse of a nation. I also endeavored to form an idea of the spirit of the men of the past, from their own words uttered in the midst of their labors, and wet as it were with the sweat of their brows, — rof the conservatives who tried to stay the current, as well as of the men of progress who recognized it and were borne onward by it. Yet the attainment of the ideal is but the commencement of the work. The difficulty is to make the page alive with the moving waters. I feel conscious that this is but imperfectly done. I am indebted to Hev. Edwin H. Chapin, D.D., for files of Philadelphia newspapers during the Revolu- tionary period; and to Hon. Charles H. Warren, for the original letter of John Adams, printed in the Ap- pendix. For valuable aid in preparing the work for the press, I express grateful acknowledgments to Wil- liam F. Poole, Esq., Rev. Chandler Robbins, D.D., and Rev. Andrew P. Peabody. D.D. RICHARD FROTHINGHAM. Charlestown, Mass., Sept. 12, 1872. CONTENTS. CHAPTEE I. Intboductiok. — Ideas op Local Self-govebnment and of Nationai Union. paqb Introductioa 1 Territory which became the United States 1 Designed by Providence to be the Abode of a Great Nation ... 2 Growth of the Population .... 3 Their Relation of Union . . . . ^ Character of the Aborigines ... 4 The Land awaiting a New Civiliza- tion 5 Preparation in the Old World for Colonization 5 Pagan Idea of Man 6 Christian Idea of Man 6 Transfoi'mation of Society effected by Christianity 6 Its Political Consequences .... 7 Pioneers of the RepubUcan School : — George Buchanan 7 Hubert Lanquet 8 John Milton 8 John Locke 8 Algernon Sidney 9 International Law respecting Rights to the Soil 9 Migrations, Individual 10 Ancestry of the American Race . . 10 Motives of the Colonists .... 11 Their Boldness in applying Prin- ciples 11 FAOB Polity of the United States peculiar 11_ "EPluribusUnum" 11 Circumstances that created Diver- sity 12 " Ideas that produced Union ... 12 •~' Local Self-government and Union the Elements of the Polity of the United States 13 Local Self-government 14 Among the Germans .... 14 Among the Saxons .... 14 Undermined by the Crown . . 15 Applied by the Colonists . . 15 In Municipal Government . . 16 In Representation 17 The Formation of Assemblies . . 18 The Formation of Municipalities . 19 The Elective Franchise .... 25 The Public Meeting 27 Product of Local Self-government . 28 Idea of National Union .... 28 — Early Conception of Union . . . 28— ~ Embodiments of Union during the Colonial Period 29 Urged in a Spirit of Allegiance to the Crown 30 Union at the Revolution urged in the view of forming an Independ- ent Nation 30 ^ Foundations of the Republic ... 31 . CONTENTS. CHAPTER n. The Combination of Local Self-government and Union in thb New England Confedeeact. 1643 to 1684. PAGE Society in the Colonies, developed first under the Law of Diversity . 33 Settlements in North America in 1643 33 Maps of the Country 34 Progress of Colonization .... 34 How directed by England .... 35 General Assault by the Indians . . 36 New England in 1643 36 Charged with aiming at Sover- eignty 37 Protestations of Loyalty .... 38 Appeal of Edward Winslow for Aid 38 The Colonies cast on themselves . 38 They aim at Union 39 Confederation of 1643 39 Congratulation of Thomas Hooker . 40 Articles of the Confederation ... 40 Character of the Confederation . . 42 Qualification of Chiirch Member- ship 43 Benefits of the Confederation . . 44 Long Parliament and New England 44 Jealousy of New England ... 45 Lords of Trade and Plantations . . 45 Appeals to this Board 45 Answer of Massachusetts .... 46 Magna Charta cited 46 Charge of aiming at' Sovereignty . 46 Answer of Edward Winslow ... 47 Appeals disallowed 47 The Colonies and the Long Parlia- ment 47 The Colonies and Cromwell ... 48 New England Confederation pros- perous 48 Eliot's Christian Commonwealth . 49 Restoration of Charles II 49 Clarendon and Republicanism . . 49 Council for Foreign Plantations . . 50 PAGE Complaints against New England . 51 The Colonies and the Sovereignty . 51 Charge of aiming at Independence . 51 Charters of Charles II 52 Subordination to the Sovereignty . 53 Grant to the Duke of York ... 53 Creation of a Special Commission . 54 Empowered to regulate the Inter- nal Affairs of New England . . 54 Commissioners' Arrival in Boston . 54 Reduction of New Netherland . . 55 Geographical Unity 55 Massachusetts and the Commission 55 The Commissioners and Three Colo- nies 55 In Massachusetts 56 Aid the General Election . . 57 Confer with the General Court 57 The Commission asserts its Author- ity The General Court nullifies its Acts The Commissioners charge the Gen- eral Court with denying the Sov- ereignty Answer of the General Court . • . Illegality of the Commission . . • Decline of the Confederacy . . . Meetings of the Commissioners . . Public Mind not ripe for Union . . Lo}'alty of New England .... Views of the Confederacy . . . Absurdity of the Charge of Inde- pendence 66 Affection for England 67 Prophecies concerning America . . 68 Seneca's Venient Annis .... 68 Lines on America by Pulci ... 70 Herbert 70 Cowley ........ 71 58 59 CONTENTS. Zl CHAPTER III. How Aggression on t< e Principle of Local Self-government led TO Revolution and Intercolonial Correspondence, and how a Common Peril occasioned a Congress. 1684 TO 1690. PAGE Preparation for a Congress ... 72 North America in 1688 ...... 72 Maps of the Country 73 Nuniliersof the French and English 73 The Twelve English Colonies . . 73 Their General Characteristics . . 75 Spirit of the Local Governments . 76 Privy Council order American Af- fairs 77 Debates in this Board 78 Consolidation of the Colonial Gov- ernments resolved on .... 78 Accession of James II 79 Question of American Taxation . . 79 Edward Randolph 79 Reign of Despotic Power . . . . 80 Opposition roused in the Colonies . 81 Overthrow of Andros 81 Results of Popular Action .... 82 Accession of William and Mary . . 83 Rise of Jacob Liesler 83 Opposition to his Authority . . . 8i Intercolonial Correspondence . . . Designs of France in America . . The Five Nations desire Peace . . Conference of Four Colonies at Al- bany Increasing Danger from France . . Call for the New England Confeder- acy Factions in New York Burning of Schenectady . . . . Massachusetts invites a Congress . Replies of the Colonies Meeting of Commissioners . . . . Agreement to raise a Military Force Result of Military Operations . . Execution of Jacob Liesler . . . Career of Simon Bradstreet . . . Enthusiasm for William and Mary . Charge of Independence . . . . Absurdity of this Charge . . . . Prosperity of the English Colonies . Prophecy of Thomas Browne . . PAGE . 84 . 85 86 87 87 90 91 92 93 93 95 96 97 98 99 99 CHAPTER IV. The Ideas of Local Self-government and of Union for Seventv Years, and their Combination in the Plan adopted bt the Albany Convention. 1690 TO 1760. The Law of Diversity paramount for Seventy Years 101 North America in 1760 .... 101 General Maps 102 Races of the Colonists .... 103 Governments of Thirteen Colonies 104 Their Population and Political Weight 104 Characteristics of the New-Eng- landers 105 The Colonies a Great American Asylum 106 Traits of an American .... 107 Spirit of British Administrations . 107 The Lords of Trade and Planta- tions 108 French and Indian W %rs . . . . 108 Common Danger suggested Union 109 Need of an American Constitution 110 Plan of LTnion, b}' William Penn . 110 By Charles Davenant . . . Ill Contemporary Criticism on these Plans 112 Plan of L^nion by Daniel Coxe . . 113 The Popular Party and Union . . 114 The Prerogative Party and Union 114 Xil CONTENTS. PAGE Scheme of Robert Livingston . . 115 Of Archibald Kennedy . . . 116 Proposal of Governor Dinwiddie . 116 Objects of the Two Parties com- pared 117 Congresses and Conventions . . 118 Congresses from 1684 to 1751 . . 118 Speech of (iovernor Clinton . . . 120 Intercolonial Correspondence . . 121 Jealousy b}' the Crown of American Action 121 Development of Self-government . 121 Fidelity to its Principles .... 123 The Crown regarded as a Protector 123 Royal Governors and Self-govern- ment 124 The Privy Council and Local Gov- ernment 125 The Lords of Trade and the Pre- rogative 125 Illegal Exercise of the Prerogative 125 Resisted by the Assemblies . . . 125 Claims of the Prerogative . . . 127 State Papers circulated by the Press 128 The Newspaper in America . . . 129 Encroachments of the French . . 130 Inefficiency of the Lords of Trade . 131 Views of Halifax and Townshend . 131 The Crown decide to resist France 131 Call of a Convention at Albany . 132- The Colonists and the French . • 133 PAOB 133 the Speech of Washington . . Royal Governors, commend Convention 134 Condition of the Colonies .... 136 Meeting of the Convention . . . 137 Character of its Members . . . 138 Nature of the Commissions . . . 139 Conferences with the Indians . . 139 Resolve that Union is a Necessity . 140 The Committee to report a Plan . 140 Franklin's Plan 141 Report of the Committee .... 142 Albany Plan of Union 142 Referred to the Assemblies . . . 144 Commended in the Press .... 145 Recommended by Royal Governors 146 Rejected bj' the Assemblies . . . 146 Neglected by Lords of Trade . . 148 Character of the Albany Plan . . 148 Franklin's Conception of a Self-sus- taining Government .... 14f Fatal Objection to the Plan . . . 15C Discussion of Plans of Union . . 151 Predictions that Union was Im- possible 151 Conquest of Canada 152 General Rejoicing 153 Charge of aiming at Independence 153 Prophecies of the Future .... 155 Description of America .... 156 Love of Liberty 157 CHAPTEE V. How THE Assertion by Paeliament of a Eight to tax the Colonies BY THE Stamp Act evoked a Sentiment of Union, and occa- sioned A General Congress. 1760 TO 1766. An Epoch in History . . The American Revolution The Thirteen Colonies . . George III. and Lord Bute Policy respecting America Embodied in Instructions i Acts of Trade .... In the Declaratory Resolves Formation of Parties . . the 158 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 Whigs based on the Christian Idea of Man 165 Tories based on the Supremacy of Law . . 165 EtFect of the Declaratory Resolves 166 Boston and Samuel Adams . . . 167 Instructions enjoining United Ef- fort 168 The General Court and James Otis 168 CONTENTS. Xlll PAGE His Rights of the British Colonies 169 Committees of Correspondence . . 171 Petitions of the Assemblies . . . 172 Tone of the Press 174 Passage of the Stamp Act . . . 175 Speech of Isaac Barr^ 176 Resistance of the Sons of Liberty . 177 James Otis on Union 177 Call by Massachusetts of a Con- gress ... 178 Response of the Colonies .... 178 Virginia and Pati ick Henry . . 179 Resolves on the Stamp Act . . . 180 Fame of the Resolves 181 Response of Providence to Massa- chusetts and Virginia .... 181 South Carolina and Christopher Gadsden 182 Thirteen Colonies express Sym- pathy with a Congress .... 182 Associations to resist the Stamp Act 183 PAGB Popular Uprisings and Outrages . 183 Political Excitement in New York 184 The Stamp-act Congress .... 185 Declaration of Rights 186 Resolves and Petition .... 187 Sentiments of its Members . . . 188 Speech of Christopher Gadsden . 188 Signing of the Petition .... 188 Reception of the Proceedings . . 189 Sentiment of Union 189 Embodied by the Assemblies . . 190 The Prerogative Party and Union 191 The Popular Party and Union . . 192 Terms America and Country . . 192 Assertion of the Rights of Labor . 193 Growth of Union 195" Joy on the Repeal of the Stamp Act 196 Tory Charge of Independence . . 197 Whig Resolve to defend American Liberty 198 Prophecies concerning America . 199 CHAPTER VI. How THE Assertion by Parliament, in the Townshend Revenue Acts, of Absolute Power over the Colonies, was met bt a Constitutional Opposition, and how an Arbitrary Royal Order elicited Action in a Similar Spirit by Thirteen Assemblies, in Defence of their Local Self-government. 1766 TO 1770. A Constitutional Opposition and Public Opinion 201 Repeal of the Stamp Act — In America ........ 201 In England 202 Charles Townshend on America . 203 The Townshend Revenue Acts . . 204 Their Object political 204 Their Aggression on the Right to make the Local Law .... 205 Death of Townshend 206 Lord North and Lord Hillsborough 206 A New Political Movement on the Basis of Social Order .... 206 James Otis on Mobs 206 Jonathan Mayhew on Union . . 207 The Farmers' Letters 208 208 The Non-importation Agreement Meeting of the Assembly of Massa- chusetts 209 Their Letter to their Agent in Lon- don 210 Their Petition to the King ... 211 Their Circular Letter suggesting Concurrent Action 212 Reply of the Assembly of New Hampshire 213 Of Virginia 213 Of New Jersey 214 Of Connecticut 214 Royal Order to rescind the Circu- lar Letter 214 Communicated by Governor Ber- nard 216 XIV CONTENTS. PAGE Denunciation by James Otis . . 217 The Assemblj' refuses to rescind the Letter 218 The Vote of Ninety-two .... 219 Bernard dissolves the Assembly . 220 Profound Sensation in the Colonies 221 Eoyal Order to treatihe Circular Letter with Contempt .... 221 The Press on this Order .... 222 Question of the Circular Letter and Eoyal Order in Maryland . . . 223 In South Carolina .... 223 In Georgia 224 In Rhode Island 225 In Pennsylvania 225 In Delaware 226 In New York 228 In North Carolina .... 227 Popular Approval of the Assem- blies 227 The Action new in the Political World 228 ' ' Ninety-two " and " Forty-five " 229 The Prayer of the Colonies to the Sovereignty 230 Fate of the Petitions 231 The Arraignment of Massachu- setts 231 The Colonists charged with Trea- son 232 Decision to transport the Popular Leaders to England 232 Attitude of Virginia 233 Lord Botetourt 233 Meeting of the Burgesses . . . 234 PAGE Thomas Jefferson 234 Resolves of the Burgesses . . . 235 Their Reception in the Colonies . 237 Their Endorsement by the Assem- blies 238 Virginia gives an Impulse to the Non-importation Agreement . . 238 Rise of an American Spirit . . . 240 Partial Repeal of the Townshend Acts 240 Effect of the Attempt to check Re- publicanism 241 Progress in Political Science . . 241 Disclaimer of the Aim of Independ- ence 242 Propositions for a Union .... 242 Union Movement of the Presby- terians 243 Prophec}' of Thomas Hutchinson . 244 Of William Livingston of an American Constitution . . 244 Prophecies of Independence : — Of Samuel Adams .... 245 Of the French Agents . . . 245 Of Chatelet 245 Of Turgot 245 Of Choiseul 245 The Embodiment of Public Opin- ion elicited by the Townshend Acts 246 European Sympathy with the Am- erican Cause 246 The Cause of Humanity .... 247 The Rising Glory of America . . 248 CHAPTER VII. How THE Patriots advanced from an Embodiment of Public Opin- ion TO A Party Organization, bt forming Committees of Cor- respondence. March, 1770, to August, 1773. Bj- the Method of Royal Instruc- tions 251 Law accepted by the Whigs . . . 251 Instructions under the King's Sign- manual claimed to have the Force of Law . . . * 252 Effectual!}- resisted by the Whigs . 253 Abihty of their Argument . . . 254 From an Embodiment of Public Opinion to Organization . . . The Tory Party attain Power . . Its aim to cheek Republicanism . Its Ideas embodied in the Declara- tory Act Its Design to undermine the Local Governments 251 249 249 250 250 CONTENTS. XV Reliance on the Non-importation Agreement 256 Failure of this Agreement . . . 257 Dissension and War between the Colonies 258 Political Agitation subsides . . . 259 Fidelity of Samuel Adams . . . 261 Proposes Union and Organization 262 By the Method of Municipal Com- mittees of Correspondence . . 263 Lord Dartmouth the Head of the American Department . . . . 264 Issues fresh Roj'al Instructions . . 265 The Occasion selected by Adams to effect Organization .... 265 Boston chooses a Committee of Cor- respondence 266 Character of the Committee . . . 267 Their Report on the American Cause 268 Faith of its Authors 270 The Response of the Towns . . . 271 Passionate Appeal for Union . . 272 -^ Condemnation of the Movement by Governor Hutchinson .... 274 General Apathy outside of Massa- chusetts 275 A bold Royal Instruction . . . 276 Spontaneous Burst of Indignation 277 The Commission relative to the Destroyers of the Gaspee . . . 278 PAGE Tameness of the Rhode Island As- sembly 279 Resolution of the Virginia House of Burgesses 279 They choose a Committee of Cor- respondence 280 Dabney Carr and Thomas Jeffer- son 281 Response to the Virginia Action . 281 Five Assemblies adopt the Vir- ginia Plan 283 Call for Union and a Congress . . 284 Failure of the Rhode Island Com- mission 286 Design of transporting the Popular Leaders abandoned 286 Political Agitation subsides . . . 287 Massachusetts and Virginia . . . 288 Inactivity of the Six Legislative Committees 288 Activity of the Municipal Com- mittees 289 ^speculation on the Future of Am- erica 290 Dawning of a Sentiment of Na- tionality 291- Detei-mined Spirit of the Ameri- cans 292 Urged to prepare for a Grand Am- erican Commonwealth .... 292 CHAPTER VIII. How Events developed the American Union, and how the De- mand FOR A General Congress was accompanied by Pledges to abide by its decisions. August, 1773, to August, 1774. 294 294 From Organization to Union . . Public Sentiment in Favor of a Con- nection with Great Britain . . The Popular Leaders and Sover- eignty 296 George III. and his Advisers . . 295 They devise the Tea Act .... 296 Character of this Act 296 Designed to establish the Principle of the Declarator}' Act .... 297 Teas consigned to Four Ports . . 298 Reception of the News in the Colo- nies 298 Nature of the Resistance contem- plated by the Patriots .... 299 Their General Organization defec- tive 300 Their Organization in Massachu- setts Efficient 300 The Act met by an Intelligent Pub- lic Opinion 301 XVI CONTENTS. PAGE Action of the Patriots of Philadel- phia 302 Its Endorsement in Boston, New York, and Charleston .... 302 Refusal of the Consignees in Boston to resign 303 Circulars of Legislative Committees 303 Public Meetings in Boston . . . 304 Arrival of Three Ships with Teas . 304 Spirit of the People 305 Meeting of the Sixteenth of De- cember 306 Speech of Josiah Quincy . . . 306 The Boston Tea Party .... 307 Destruction of the Tea .... 308 The General Joy and Exultation . 309 Judgment of Gordon and Ramsay 310 The Nature of Popular Movements 311 Six Assemblies choose Committees of Correspondence 311 Inaction of the Twelve Legislative Committees 312 Extension of Municipal Committees 313 The Nullification of the Tea Act thorough .314 Revival of a Spirit of Union . . 314 Hopes indulged of a Congress . . 314 Suggestion of an American Com- monwealth 314 Political Agitation not general . . 315 Four Months of Suspense . . . 315 Insight and Faith of Samuel Ad- ams 316 Feeling roused in England by the Destruction of the Tea .... 317 Ministers judge Real Union of the Colonies impossible 318 PAGE The King's Speech foreshadowing Penal Measures 319 The Boston Port Act 319 Its Reception in the Colonies . . 320 Circulars of the Massachusetts Com- mittees of Correspondence . . 321 Response to these Circulars . . . 322 Spectacle on the First of June . . 324 Boston in its Hour of Trial . . . 325 Contributions for its Poor . . . 325 Letters embodying the Fraternal Spirit . .' 326 The Whigs complete their Organ- ization 327 Tory View of this Organization . 328 The Demand for a Congress . . . 329 Arrival of General Gage from Eng- land 329 His Dealing with the Massachusetts Assembly 330 The Call for the Congress of 1774 331 Town Meeting in Boston .... 332 John Adams enters Political Life . 334 Acquiescence in the Call for a Con- 335 336 336 Pledges to abide by its Decisions . The Solemn League and Covenant The Determination that the Recom- mendations of Congress should have the Force of Laws . . . 337 The Tories denounce this Action . 339 Nllnion and Liberty 340 History presented in this Develop- ment • 342 NJgnthusiasm created by Union . . 342 Ezra Stiles predicts a Runnymede in America 343 CHAPTER IX. How A General Congress formed the Association of the United Colonies, and how Support was pledged to the Inhabitants of Massachusetts in resisting the Alteration of their Charter. August, 1774, to 1775. Union from Sentiment to Associa- tion 344 The King proposes to alter the Massachusetts Charter .... 344 Speeches of Lords North and Ger- main 344 Passage of the Regulating Acts . 346 Their Character and Reach . . . 347 CONTENTS. XYll PAGB Known first through the Bills . . 348 Samuel Adams disclaims a Spirit of Rebellion 349 Condemnation of the Acts . . . 349 Massachusetts enjoined to refuse Obedience to them 350 The Crisis of August, 1774 ... 353 Hutchinson's Conversation with the King 353 Lord Dartmouth's Instructions to execute the Acts 354 General Gage proceeds to carry them into Effect 355 The Uprising against them . . . 356 Their Nullification thorough . . 357 Words of Joseph Warren .... 357 Presentiment that Arms must de- cide the Question 358 The Congress of 1774 359 Character of the Members . . . 360 The Communities represented . . 361 Organization of the Congress . . 364 Reception of the Suff'olk Resolves . 366 Approval of the Attitude of the People of Massachusetts . . . 366 Opposition of Joseph Galloway . 367 His Scheme of Union 367 Application for Advice from Mas- sachusetts 368 Congress state to Gage that the Approbation of the People of Massachusetts was universal . . 368 And pledge them the Support of all America. • . ; 369 Washington disclaims Independ- ence 369 Advice to Massachusetts on Gov- ernment 370 Declaration of Rights 371 Association of the United Colonies 372 Address to the People of Great Britain 374 Address to the People of the Colo- nies 375 Addresses to the Unrepresented Colonies 375 PAGE Petition to the King; 376 Eulogy on Congress by the Whigs 377 Denunciation of Congress by the Tories 378 Judgment on it of History . . . 379 Praise awarded to its Papers . . 380 Its Pledge to Massachusetts re- flected Public Opinion .... 381 As embodied in Letters accompany- ing Donations for the Poor of Boston 381 Extracts from Letters from — New Hampshire 382 Connecticut 383 Rhode Island 385 New York 386 New Jersey 386 Pennsylvania 387 Delaware 387 Maryland 387 Virginia 388 North Carolina 389 South CaroUna 390 Georgia 390 Characteristics of this Record . . 391 Massachusetts conforms to the Ad- vice of Congress 391 Military Preparation in Massachu- setts 392 Appeal of its Provincial Congress in behalf of Order 393 Military Preparation in other Colo- nies 393 Letter of Charles Lee 394 Ratification and Execution of the Association 395 Unity of Sentiment 395 LTnion attains the Strength of Law 397 -^ Importance of this Result . . . 398 View of Union by Galloway and Henry 399 Just Estimate of Union by the Popular Leaders 400 Prophecies concerning America . 401 An American urges Independence 401 XVlll CONTENTS _ CHAPTER X. When the Popular Leaders recognized the Fact of Revolution, and began to aim at independence, and how thet met the Question of Sovereignty. 1775. — January to November. From Association to Eevolutioa . 403 Population of the United Colonies 403 The Legal Relations of the People 404 Development in Thirteen Commu- nities 405 •■^n the Relation of Union .... 405 t ^And growing into Independent States in Union 406 Their Plea to the Sovereign . . . 406 George III. and America . . . 407 His Speech to Parliament . . . 408 His Reception of the Petition of Congress 408 The Privy Council decide to issue a Proclamation declaring a Re- bellion 409 The Petition in Parliament . . . 409 Declaration of both Houses . . . 410 The Coercive Measures popular . 410 Lord North proposes a Plan of Con- ciliation 411 His Ultimatum addressed to Frank- lin 412 Remarkable Words sent by Frank- lin to Lord North 413 The Popular Party on receiving the "Warlike News 413 Hostilities at Lexington and Con- cord 414 Their Effect in the Colonies ... 415 Reception of Lord North's Plan . 417 Answer of the Assembly of Penn- sylvania 417 Of New Jersey 418 Of Virginia 418 All the Assemblies defer to Con- gress Questions of War and Peace 419 The Congress of 1775 .... 419 Applications from Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire, and Mecklenburg County, N. C. . 422 The alleged Mecklenburg Declara- tion of Independence .... 422 PAGE The Applications force on Congress the Issue of Sovereignty . . . 424 American Solution of the Question of Sovereignty 424 Public Mind not ripe for Inde- pendence 427 Congress decline to deal with the Point of Sovereignty .... 428 Assume the Army before Bos- ton 429 Washington chosen Commander- in-chief 429 Thomas Jefferson enters Congress . 431 Congress aim at a Redress of Griev- ances 432 Its Papers 432 Franklin submits a Plan of Con- federation 433 Congress answer Lord North's Plan 434 Second Petition to the King . . 435 Work of Congress to the Adjourn- ment in August 437 Examination of the Charge of Hj'pocrisy 437 Situation of the Colonies . . . 439 Submission of Massachusetts to the Advice of Congress 440 Congress re-assemble 441 Thirteen Colonies represented . . 441 State of Public Opinion .... 442 Congress hesitate to advise the Formation of Local Governments 443 The Second Petition in England . 444 The King's Proclamation declaring a Rebellion in the Colonies . . 445 No Answer given to the Second Petition 446 Effect of the Intelligence in Congress 447 It advises New Hampshire and South Carolina to form Govern- ments ; 448 Samuel Adams on this Action . . 449 CONTENTS. XIX PAGE I'opular Leaders of Insight accept the Work of Revolution . . . 450 Altered Tone of Congress . . . 450 Effect of the Proclamation on the People 451 PAGE Independence urged . . • . . . 452 The Sentiment of Nationality . . 452 Idea of founding a Republic . . 453 Magnitude of the Work .... 454 CHAPTEE XI. How THE People of the United Colonies by the Declakation of Independence decreed their Existence as a Nation composed OF Free and Independent States. November and December, 1775, and to July, 1776. The United Colonics from Revolu- tion to National Power . . . 456 Firmness of the King and the Par- liament 456 Appointment of Lord George Ger- main 457 Resolution of the Colonies in de- manding a Redress of Grievances 457 The Popular Party a Unit in Armed Resistance 459 And in regarding Congress as the Head of the Union 459 The Scene of War from November to July 460 Popular Leaders of Clear Vision urge the Step of Independence . 460 And that the United Colonies should become a Nation and a Republic 461 Until the Sentiment of Nationality became the Passion of the Party 461 Growth of Public Opinion ... 463 The Popular Party divided on the Question of Independence . . • 463 Also on the Question of forming Governments 464 Samuel Adams and Independence 464 John Dickinson and Independence 465 He arrays the Middle Colonies by Instructions against Independ- ence 465 Declarations of New York, North Carolina, and Portsmouth against Independence 466 Idea general that the Party were only opposing an Administration 467 Growth of Opinion for Independ- ence steady 467 The Question on the Opening of 1776 468 Labors of Samuel Adams for Inde- pendence 469 Popular Leaders earliest identified with the Movement Benjamin Rush and Thomas Paine Publication of "Common Sense" Account of this Pamphlet . . . Its Popularity 476 General Agitation of the Question 477 Formation of Parties on it . . . The Whigs aim to form One Nation Nationality and Republicanism cor- relative in Development . . . Parties in Congress on Independ- ence . 483 Action tending to Independence — In widening the Union . . . In disarming the Tories . . In the Equipment of Privateers In opening the Ports . . . In dealing with Foreign Pow- ers In the Proclamation for a Fast Franklin and Samuel Adams . . The Recommendation to form Local Governments on the Power of the People 491 Advice of Congress followed by Massachiisetts .... By New Hampshire . By South Carolina . Character of this Action . Welcomed by the Patriots Motion by John Adams to advise all the Colonies to form Govern- ments . . ' 496 469 471 472 472 478 479 483' 485 485 486 487 489 489 491 492 493 495 495 XX CONTENTS. PAGE Debates on this Motion .... 496 Resolution of May Fifteenth . . 498 Becomes the Platf jrm of the Popu- lar Party 498 Popular Movement to promote In- dependence 499 Proposal to collect the Sense of the People on Independence . . 499 Commended by Members of Con- gress 500 Independence in North Carolina: — Efiect of the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge 502 Meeting of the Provincial Con- gress 503 Power given to Vote for Inde- pendence 503 Independence in Rhode Island: — Request of Hopkins .... 504 Power given to Vote for Inde- pendence 505 Act relating to Civil Processes 505 Independence in Massachusetts : — Feeling represented by Haw- ley 505 Act relatmg to Civil Processes 506 Resolution on Independence . 506 Votes of the Towns .... 507 Independence in Virginia: — State of Public Opinion . . 509 Character of the Convention . 510 Instructions to propose Inde- pendence in Congress . . 511 Received with Enthusiasm . 511 Four Colonies on the Fifteenth of May on Independence .... 512 " The whole United Colonies upon the Verge of Revolution " . . 513 Motion submitted on the Seventh of June in Congress on Inde- pendence 513 Debate on this Motion .... 515 Postponed for Three Weeks . . . 516 Committee to prepare a Declara- tion 517 Spectacle of Imminent Peril and High-toned Politics 517 Independence in Pennsylvania: — Strength of the Opposition . 519 Activity of the Popular Party 519 Resolution of May Fifteenth . 520 Great Public Meetin r . . . 521 PAGB Declare the Union paramount 521 Conference of Committees . 521 Authorize Independence . . 522 Independence in Delaware : — Assembly adverse to Revolu- tion 523 Resolution of May Fifteenth . 523 Independence Authorized . . 523 Independence in New Jersey: — The General Assembly . . . 524 The Provincial Congress . . 524 The Governor violates the Resolution of May Fifteenth 525 His imprisonment .... 525 Independence authorized . . 525 Independence in Maryland : — Instructions against a Separa- tion reiterated 526 Popular Party adopt the Reso- lution of May Fifteenth . . 526 County Instructions .... 526 Independence authorized . . 527 Independence in Georgia : — Opposition Powerful .... 528 Action of the Provincial Con- gress 528 Independence in South Carolina : — Opposed by Large Numbers . 528 Authorized by the Govern- ment 528 Independence in New York: — Strength of the Opposition . 529 The Provincial Congress . . 529 Its Action on the Resolution of May Fifteenth 529 Its Declination to authorize In- dependence ...... 529 Independence in Connecticut: — Act passed on Civil Processes 529 Reply to Virginia 530 Independence authorized . . 530 Independence authorized in New Hampshire 530 Twelve Colonies designated Con- gress to declare Independence . 530 Union and Local Self-government recognized in this Political action 531 Embodiment of Public Opinion . 531 The Committee report the Draft of a Declaration 532 Congress on the First of July . . 532 Debate on Independence .... 533 CONTENTS. XXI PAGK Speech of Joha Adams .... 534 Of John Dickinson .... 535 Vote in Committee of the Whole on the Resolution for Independence 537 Congress on the Second of July . 538 Eesolution on Independence ad- opted 538 Debate on the Draft of the Decla- ration 539 Declaration of Independence . . 539 Authenticated and circulated . . 544 Adopted by New York .... 544 Signature of the Declaration . . 544 Service of the Members .... 546 John Adams 547 Thomas Jefferson 547 Welcome by the People of the Dec- laration 548 PAGE Pledges of the Asssemblies to main- tain it 551 Received with Enthusiasm by the Army 552 Independence a Joint Act . . . 553 Contemporary Estimate of the Greatness of the Step .... 554 The Declaration of Independence the Organic Law of Union . . 555 And the Embodiment of the Senti- ment of Nationality .... 556 ' It announced the Fact of the Exist- ence of the United States as a Nation 557 And the Theory of its Government 558 Its Beneficial Effect on the Amer- ican Cause 558 CHAPTER XII. How THE People by ordaining the Constitution of the United States instituted Republican Government. 1776 to 1790. From Nationality to Republican Government 561 Sovereignty passed from the Crown to the People as formed into States 562 Conviction of the Necessity of Am- erican Law 562 The Governments of Six States . 563 Formation of Government in New Jersey 564 Delaware 564 Maryland 564 Pennsylvania 565 North Carolina 566 Georgia 566 New York 566 The Constitutions provide only for Domestic Affairs 567 £clat of the New Governments . 568 John Adams on their Effect abroad 568 Formation of a Government for the United States 569 Preparation of Articles of Confed- eration 569 Discussion on them in Congress ._^569 Their Adoption and Transmission to the Legislatures 570 Letter of Congress 571 Ratification by Nine Legislatures . 571 Appeal of Congress to complete the Confederation 572 Period of Political Languor . . . 572 The Failure to ratify the Articles injurious to the Cause .... 573 Question of Western Lands . . . 574 Action of Virginia 575 Final Ratification of the Articles . 575 Their Recognition of Union and Local Self-government . . . 576 Official Announcement that the Confederation was the Law . . 577 Flag of the United States ... 578 Defects of the Confederation . . 578 Salutary Effects of the Establish- ment of (jovernment .... 578 Robert R. Livingston on settling Disputes between States . . . 578 The Confederation regarded a Step towards a Better System . . . 579 Proclamation of Foace .... 580 xxu CONTENTS. PAGE Resignation by Washington of his Commission 581 Public Sentiment on the Peace . 582 Inadequac}' of the Confederation to protect American Eights . . . 584 The Fact lamented by Patriotic Americans 584 Alexander Hamilton 584 James Madison 585 Washington's Statement of the National Want 586 Method of a Convention to mature a System Historical .... 586 Proposed by Virginia imder the lead of Madison 587 The Annapolis Convention . . . 587 Its recommendation of a Conven- tion to meet in Philadelphia . . 587 Usurpation by Local Officials of Na tional Functions 587 This Lawless Spirit breaks out in Shays's Rebellion 588 The Virginia Legislature adopts the Recommendation of a Con- vention 589 Congress recommend the Legis- latures to appoint Delegates . . 589 Delegates meet in Independence Hall 589 Character of the Convention . . 590 Records of its Four Months of Lubor 590 Plans submitted for a National Government 591 The Determination to frame a New System 592 PAGB Franklin's Speech on Compromise 592 Question of the Spheres of Power of the Local and the General . 593 The Convention agree on the Basis of a Constitution 593 Franklin on the Constitution . . 594 Washington on Representation . 595 The Signing of the Constitution . 595 Letter of the Convention . . . 597 The Constitution referred to the People 597 The General Welcome .... 598 Formation of Parties on the Ques- tion of its Adoption .... 599 The Constitution ordained and established 599 This an Act of the Sovereign Power 600 Recognition and Guarantee — Of the State 601 Of the Union 601 Establishment of the Government 603 Inaugural Address of Washington 603 Welcome by the Liberal World of a Republican Government . . 605 Foundations of its Success . . . 606 Spectacle of Stability and Progress 607 Tribute to its Operation for Seventy Years 607 The Ordeal of the CivU War . . 608 Verdict of the Struggle .... 608 Process of the Multiplication of States 608 Prophecy of Nathaniel Ames . . 609 Injunction of the Founders of the Republic to cherish the Union • 610 THE RISE REPUBLIC OF THE UNITED STATES. THE RISE REPUBLIC OF THE UMTED STATES. CHAPTER I. Introduction. — Ideas of Local Self-government and of Na- tional Union. I PURPOSE in these pages to sketch the political history of the Rise of the Republic of the United States. I shall endeavor to frame a narrative of events, with their causes and relations, which derive interest and importance from their connection with the formation and direction of public opinion, the development of fundamental principles, and the embodiment of these principles into institutions and laws. I shall aim to show how the European emigrant, imbued with the spirit of a new civilization, organized self-governing communities, and to follow the stages of their growth into a Union. I shall then trace the origin and rise of a senti- ment of nationality, and the effort by which it became em- bodied in the Declaration of Independence, which was the first covenant of our country ; and in the Federal Constitu- tion, which is tlie supreme law of the land. The thirteen colonies, destined to become the United States, were planted on that portion of the territory of North America which lies between the Alleghany Mountains and the Atlantic coast. This region, of a mean breadth of 1 2 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. about one hundred miles, and nine hundred miles in length, is characterized as a long ridge of rock and sand, presenting obstacles, rather than offering temptations, to the husband- man. It had, howeier, no wastes like tho deserts of Africa, and no impassable barriers between the north and the south, while parts of it were enriched by nature with the almost luxurious fruitfulness of tlie torrid zone. Its coasts were admirably adapted to foster the growth of a commer- cial marine ; and its long, wide, and deep rivers invited intercommunication. To the rear of this region was tlie valley of the Mississippi, " the most magnificent dwelling- place prepared by God for man's abode." ^ The whole con- tinent seemed to be fashioned by Providence for the uses of a great nation.^ At the period of the formation of the Republic, pioneers had penetrated the forests beyond the Atlantic slope, and had commenced settlements on tho banks of the Ohio and the Mississippi Rivers; but the growth of population and wealth in the vast valley between the Alleghanies and the Rocky Mountains, and the extension of the national domain on- ward to the Pacific Ocean, have taken place mainly in the nineteenth century.^ Tlie original limits of the United States embraced an area of about eight hundred thousand square miles. Additions of territory extended the bounda- ^ De Tocqueville, Democracy in America, i. 22. Bowen's edition. 2 De Tocqueville, in chap i. of his " Democracj' in America," in dwelling on the physical characteristics of the continent, says, p. 24, that North America seemed created to be the domain of intelligence. It is urged in No 2 of the " Federalist" (1787), that the one, connected, fertile, wide-spreading countrj'- indicated the design of Providence that it should be under one political sovereignty. The thought was common in the newspapers from 1765 to 1775. Franklin (Sparks's Works of Franklin, vii. 334) wrote, in 1766, to Lord Kames, " America, an immense territory, favored bj' nature with all advantages of climate, soils, great navigable rivers and lakes, &c , must become a great couijtrv-, populous and miglity." 3 Gallagher (Address before the Ohio Hist Soc, cited by Webster, Works, ii. 607) states, that, prior to the year 1800, eight or ten keel-boats, of about twenty-five tons each, performed all the carrying trade between Cincinnati and Pittsburg. The first Government vessel appeared on Lake Erie in 1802; the first steamboat was launched at Pittsburg in 1811 ; the first on Lake Michigan in 1820 ; and the first appeared at Chicago in 1832. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 3 rics, until, on the east with an Atlantic front looking on Europe, and on the west with a Pacific coast stretching towards Asia, they have become as broad as the continent, and hence have reached the ideal of the men of the Revolu- tionary age. But they are yet bounded on the north by the British Possessions, and on the south by Mexico and the Gulf which bears its name. They now embrace an area of three million four hundred and sixty-six thousand square miles.i The population has increased from about two mil- lions and a half, at the period of the Revolution, to thirty- nine millions.* And, although society everywhere presented on its surface the aspect of development into the form of dis- tinct communities or colonies, and independent States, in which the people of each were units, yet beneath this diver- sity are ever found affinities of race, language, religion, and, more than all, of political ideas and institutions, and common memories, which form the groundwork of a power- ful nationality .2 This element of Union has met trium- phantly every trial. Its greatest crisis by far was the late appeal in the only tribunal having full jurisdiction between 1 The nrea of the United States was estimated in 1783 at 820,680 square miles; in 1854, at 2,936,166; in 1868, at about 3,466,000. The following are the statistics of the area : — Square Milefl Original limits of the Thirteen States 820,680 Louisiana, purchased of France, in 1803, for $15,000,000 899.579 Florida, purchased of Spain, in 1809, for $3,000,000 66,900 Territory confirmed by the Oregon Treaty in 1842 and 1846 308,052 Texas, annexed in 1846 (Texas debt), $7,500,000 318.000 New Mexico and California in 1847 (cost of the war), $15,000,000 522,955 Arizona, purchased of Mexico, in 1854, for $10.000,000 30,000 Alaska, purchased of Russia, in 1867, for $7,200,000 500,000 . 3,466.166 The statistics of the area, with the exception of those of Arizona and Alaska, are taken from the Compendium of the Census of 1850. Gibbon, distrusting the author- ity he cites (vol. i. 164), gives the area of the Roman Empire at 1,600,000 square miles. 2 Mill (Considerations on Representative Government, p. 308), in remarking on the causes of a feeling of nationality, says, " The strongest of all is identity of political antecedents, the possession of a national history, and consequent community of recollections. 4 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. nations and fragments of nations, the ultima ratio regum, — the tribunal of force. The judgment then rendered,^ after a field of war unparalleled in the annals of domestic strife, is, that these States and communities are associated in a bond of union that is indissoluble ; that the supreme law of the land ordained in the Constitution is paramount ; that the Government, acting under this law, has the right and power to vindicate its authority by force ; and that itself is the judge of the nature and extent of its own powers. This nation has in its keeping " the last word in human political institutions," — the Republican form of Govern- ment.2 The vast region which the flag of the United States pro- tects was, two centuries and a half ago, the roaming ground of tribes of Indians. They presented everywhere the copper- colored complexion and common traits of character. They were cold, stoical, and melancholy; mild and hospitable when at peace, ferocious and treacherous when at war ; chil- dren of the forest, living in the hunter stage of civilization. They transmit no story of the play of their feelings in the quiet of domestic life, or in the passion and the storm of war. They were peoples without annals. They had man- ners rather than laws.^ They exhibited, from one extremity to the other of the territory now the United States, the same melancholy spectacle of the absence of culture, prog- ress, and aspiration. Neither the minute nor the grand in nature incited them to study her laws or to employ her 1 Letter of Hon. Isaac F. Redfield, Sept 30, 1865. 2 Draper, in remarking on the late civil war (Civil Policy in America, p. 85), says, " The history of the world cannot furnish a more splendid example of un- wavering fortitude, unshrinking self-sacrifice, in vindication of mitional life; " and (p. 239) American histoiy illustrates the political force of the idea, " that there shall exist on this continent one Republic, great and indivisible." In the volume of Essays, entitled " International Policy" {London, 1866), it is said, p. 41, "Republi- can government, with all its noble associations and inherent advantages, is, as we believe, the last word in human political institutions. Without any need for impa- tience, Europe is moving towards it." 8 Montesquieu, book xviii. chap. 13. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 5 forces. The implements they used were made of bones and stone mstead of iron and steel. Neither the exuberance of the soil, nor the magnificence of the rivers, nor the influ- ence of climate, nor the geographical conditions that stimu- late commerce, roused in them the capacity to develop the resources of this splendid country; and it is a just inference, that their successive generations passed away with hardly more heed to any divine command to subdue and replenish the earth than is evinced in the falling of the autumnal leaves. The wonderful riches of the laud which they pom- pously called their own were an untouched treasury. It was virtually a waste, awaiting, in the order of Providence, the magic influence of an incoming race, imbued with the spirit of a new civilization.^ The period referred to was an epoch in which there had been a providential preparation for great events in the Old World. It was an era of wonderful discovery in the heavens and the earth .^ It was also the period of the Reformation. This, in its essence, was the assertion of the principle of individuality, or of true spiritual freedom ; ^ and in the beginning, not by Protestants alone, of whom Luther was the great exponent, but by Catholics also, represented in the polished and profound Reuchlin.* Tiiough first occupied with subjects not connected with political speculation, yet it was natural and inevitable, that inquiry should widen out from the realm of the CImrch into that of the State. Then 1 Guj'ot (Earth and Man, p. 217) saj's of the Indian, that the exuberance of the soil has never been of value to him, and that he never ascended to the rank of the pastoral man. De Tocqueville (Democracy in America, i. 29) states of the coun- try, " It maybe justly said, at the time of its discovery by Europeans, to have formed one great desert. The Indians occupied without possessing it." 2 Humboldt (Cosmos, vol. ii. 681) says, "The period of the greatest discov- eries in space over the surface of our planet was immediately succeeded b}' the revelations of the telescope, through which man may be said to have taken posses- sion of a considerable portion of the heavens." 3 Bryce, Holy Roman Empire, 359. * Frederick Schlegel (Lectures on Modern History, 162) considers Reuchlin as the profoundest philosopher of his age, and one of the originators of the Refonna- tion. 6 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. a Iresh impetus was given to that transformation of society, which began when Christianity — the basis of the good, per- manent, and progressive in modern civilization — first ap- peared in the world. At that time, social order rested on the assumed natural inequality of men. The individual was regarded as of value only as he formed a part of the political fabric, and was able to contribute to its uses, as though it were the end of his being to aggrandize the State.^ This was the pagan idea of man. The wisest philosophers of antiquity could not rise above it. Its influence imbued the pagan world. The State regarded as of paramount im- portance, not the man, but the citizen whose physical and intellectual forces it absorbed. If this tended to foster lofty civic virtues and splendid individual culture in the classes whom the State selected as the recipients of its favors, it bore hard on those whom the State virtually ignored, — on laboring men, mechanics, the poor, captives in war, slaves, and woman. This low view of man was exerting its full influence when Rome was at the height of its power and glory. Christianity then appeared with its central doctrine, that man was created in the Divine image, and destined for immortality ; pronouncing, that, in the eye of God, all men are equal. This asserted for the indi- vidual an independent value. It occasioned the great in- ference, that man is superior to the State, which ought to be fashioned for his use. This was the advent of a new spirit and a new power in the world. The struggle between the pagan and Christian elements was severe. In four cen- turies, civil society was transformed from the pagan basis to that of Christianity .2 But, long after Rome had crumbled, 1 Draper (Intellectual Development in Europe, 198) remarks, that " Rome never considered man as an individual, but onlj' as a thing." He says (117), •' Plato insists, that men are to be considered, not as men, but as elements of the State, — a perfect subject, differing from a slave only in this, that he has the State for his master." 2 Essai Historique sur la Soci^t^ Civile dans le Monde Romain et sur sa Transformation par le Christianisme, par C. Schmidt. Strasbourg, 1853. The LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 7 the influeiico of Paganism, under various forms, continued to operate ; and especially the idea, that man was made for the State, the office of which, or of a divine right vested in one, or in a privileged few, was to fashion the thought and control the action of the many. Its embodiment in arbitrary power, both in ecclesiastical and political affairs, continued to oppress and benumb the human intellect, until the Reformation roused a spirit of activity in the bosom of the Church. The new life thus started in the domain of religion soon communicated itself to other provinces. The new powers then called into exercise reached forth to other and wider fields. The horizon was expanded in every direction ; and, as inquiry extended, whatever bore on civil society, its constitution and improvement, became the subject of universal attention.^ There then rose, above the low level of a corrupt political world, a class of thinkers who grasped the idea that the State ought to exist for man ; that justice, protection, and the common good, ought to be the aim of government. George Buchanan, of Scotland, of noble personal character, renowned for profound learning, and of large capacity for affairs of state, in his " De Jure Regni," held that kings derived their power from the people, who had an inherent right to reclaim the power which they dele- statements in this paragraph relating to Paganism and Christianity are made on this authority. This work is divided into three parts or books. Book i. is entitled " La Socicte Civile Paienne." Its presents an elaborate view of the nwrale of ancient society, in which social order rested on the assumed natural inequalit}' of man. and his subserviency to the State; and the effects of this pagan idea of man are traced on the family, the laboring classes, the poor, the unfortunate, presenting a picture of the terrible social condition of the pagan world. Book ii. is entitled " La Society Religieuse Chrc'tienne," which states the fundamental doctrine of Chri.stianity, and the effect of the application of the Christian spirit of love on the various relations of life, or on the classes described under the influence of the pagan spirit. Book iii. is entitled " Transformation de la Societe Civile par I'lnfluence de I'Esprit Chretien." It describes the nature of the struggles, during the first four centuries of the Christian era, between the Christian and the pagan ideas; showing how the ancient maxims and Roman laws were transformed, and society imbued with the spirit of the new religion. The work is entirely historical. 1 Ileeren's Political Consequences of the Reformation, 283. 8 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. gated ; and lie enforced the principles of liberty and the maxims of a free government with an energy and fidelity which had been equalled in no former age.^ In France, Hubert Lanquet, of kindred spirit and public virtue, touched by the injustice of arbitrary power, put forth a noble vindi- cation of the right of the people to be free from the practices of tyranny. Others in France issued, at this period, pro- ductions in a similar spirit.^ But the time had not ripened for a reception of their doctrines. Half a century had hardly passed, before cliampions of this school illumine the political horizon of England. Among them were John Mil- ton, imbued with the very spirit of the Reformation, who de- fended the noble thesis, that freedom is the native right of man, and gave the world a migh'ty and still unsurpassed plea for liberty of utterance ; John Locke, who urged that this idea ought to be embodied into the framework of society for 1 The " De Jure Regni " was first printed in 1579, when, Bayle says (Article Bu- chanan), it made a great noise. The article contains curious matter about it. In Hollis's "Memoirs" (549) nre ennmenited the editions. They were many. In 1584, the Scotch Parliament condemned and prohibited it. Clarendon, on the Restoration of Charles II., ordered all copies to be seized as pernicious to monarchy (Camp- bell's Lord Chancellors, iv. 13.3). Sir James Mackintosh (Work'^, 609) warmly eulogizes the " De Jure Regni " in the words cited in the text. The Earl of Chat- ham (Correspondence, iv. 286) regarded it as a volume small in bulk, but big in matter, containing " even all the length and breadth and depth and height of that great argument, which the first, geniuses and master-spirits of the human race have asserted so nobly. From him, ceu Jonte perenni, they have all drunk, and happiest who has drunk the deepest." 2 Bayle has an elaborate dissertation on the authorship of that work, which he states was printed in Latin in 1579, and ascribed to " Stephanus Junius Brutus." In Hollis's " Memoirs " (129) there is additional matter about it. The author seems not to have seen the edition translated into French. This is in the Boston Public Library. Its title is as follows : " De la Pvissance Legitime dv Prince svr le Pevple, et du peuple sur le Prince. Traits tres-vtile & digne de lecture en ce temps, escrit en Latin par Estiene lunius Brutus, & nouuellemeut traduit en Francois. M.D LXXXI." It was, in the next century, translated into English from "the Latin and French." HoUis had a head of Lanquet engraved, which is one of the plates in his Memoirs. The other works referred to in the text were the " Franco-Gallia ; or an account of the ancient free state of France and most other parts of Europe, before the Loss of their Liberties," as the title reads in an English edition. It was originally written in Latin, and printed in 1574 ; and " Le Contr'un, ou Discours de la Servitude Voluntaire," by Stephen de la Boetie, printed in 1578. It is pervaded by a noble patriotism; and Hallam (Literature, i. 307) says, "La Boetie, in fact, is almost a single instance of a thoroughly republican character till nearly the revolution." LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 9 the common good ; and Algernon Sidney, the honest repub- lican, who foreshadowed the institutional form in which this idea was destined to develop. Locke was so successful in catching and expressing the liberal spirit of his age, in his work on Civil Government, that it became the platform of a great political party, and gradually widened out into an influence that operated far beyond the thought or the theory of its adherents ; so that, Hallam says, " while silently spreading its fibres from its roots over Europe and America, it prepared the way for theories of society hardly bolder in their announcement, but expressed with more passionate ardor, from which the last and present age have sprung." i This historical judgment is applicable to a line of illustrious characters, who grasped the Christian idea of man ; and, because of the brilliancy of their service in behalf of human rights, they deserve a place among the morning stars of the American constellation. This was the nature of the providential preparation that was made in the Old World for the great work of occupying North America. When new political ideas were stirring the public mind, and a band of popular leaders, consciously or unconsciously, were developing, in perilous political action in England, the republican element, several powers made grants of territory to companies and individuals wlio had in view the object of planting colonies. After the New World had been made known by Columbus and his suc- cessors, it was agreed by the principal nations, that prior discovery by any of them should constitute valid claim to territory in it ; and that grants from them should con- stitute absolute title to the soil, subject, however, to the Indian right of occupancy. It became also a rule of law, that the crown only had the right to extinguish this claim. Hence the validity of laud-titles, traced back to grants by the 1 Hallam's Literature, ii. 362. The work of Locke was several times reprinted in the Colonies; and the citations from it in political utterances show that it was carefully studied by Americans. 10 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. crown, has never been denied in the courts. Under these grants, the soil began to be occupied by the settlers.^ The migrations that heretofore had changed the face of society had been tribal in their character: but the migra- tion to the New World was individual ; and, with the single exception of the case of Georgia, was effected without any expense to the government, and sometimes even in defiance of its wishes and decrees. In this way, a few Lowland Scotch settled in several places ; the persecuted Hugue- nots of France became, in small numbers, exiles in Massa- chusetts, and in greater numbers in South Caroluia ; the Swedes occupied the banks of the Delaware, and the Dutch founded New Netherland. A great majority of the emi- grants were of the Teutonic stock, — famed for valor, personal independence, and a love of free institutions, and who welcomed the principle of individuality, roused mto activity by the Reformation. They are characterized as the Germanic race ; a term sufficiently comprehensive to embrace the settlers of Saxon, English, and Norman blood, and to denote the ancestry of that cosmopolitan result, the American race, who are making a broad and deep mark on the face of the civilized world.^ The colonists, as they bravely encountered the hardships of subduing a wilderness, were impelled by various motives, 1 Chalmers (Political Annals, 677) says, that "the laws of nations sternly dis- regarded the possession of the aborigines, because they had not been admitted to the societj' of nations." At the Declnnition of Independence (2 Dallas's Reports, 470), every acre of land in this counby was held, mediately or immediately, by grants from the crown. All our institutions (Wheaton, viii. 588) recognize the abso- lute title of the crown, subject only to the Indian right of occupancy, and recog- nize the absolute title of the crown to extinguish that right. An Indian conveyance alone could give no title to an individual. ■■2 " The elements of the population of the original thirteen States were almost exclusively of English, Lowland Scotch, Dutch, and Swedish blood ; that is to say, decidedly Germanic. Ireland was, as yet, slightly represented. France had made but inconsiderable contributions to the population." — Hotz's Gobineau, 24L Lap- penberg (England under the Anglo-Saxon Kings, ii. 305), says, that in England, before the Conquest, all the then existing nationalities of Europe, the Slavonic excepted, met together. The Germanic alone was not remodelled by Roman influ- ences, and nowhere has so nobly maintained itself. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 11 — the craigTaiits to New England, under the main impulse of a spirit of religion, by a desire to enjoy in peace their mode of worship, and to spread the gospel ; the emigrants to Virginia and New York, chiefly under the influence of a spirit of commerce, by a love of adventure, or the hope of opening new paths of trade ; and the founders of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Georgia, by the ambition to form new States ; while all the colonists desired to benefit their condi- tion. The majority were zealous sectarians in theology ; and, in the spirit of their age, were often narrow in their views, and often intolerant in their action : but, whether Puritans, as in New England, or Episcopalians, as in Vir- ginia, or Catholics, as in Maryland, or Quakers, as in Penn- sylvania, they, in political things, manifested a common love of liberty. And they spontaneously obeyed the same historic traditions and instinctive tendencies, as they organ- ized into bodies politic. They ignored the old political forms of the places in which they were born, and applied free principles in a way and to an extent unlike any thing- seen in the ancient time or in their own age. Each com- munity adopted the rule that the majority should govern, representation, the elective franchise, the municipality, the public meeting, the general assembly, trial by jury and the habeas corpus, — in a word, self-government in the local spheres. Thus, in about a century and a quarter (1607 to 1732), there were planted on this soil the language, man- ners, ideas, and religion, the institutions and their tenden- cies, that characterize the nation. The polity of the United States is original and peculiar. It is obviously made up of two great elements or divisions of power, — that of the States and of the nation ; and the beginnings of these are as obviously found in the colonies and their union. The motto on the seal of the United States gives the genealogy, — E Pluribus Unum.^ The cir- 1 The motto " E Pluribus Unum " was on the titlepage of the first volume of " The Gentleman's Magazine," 1731, and was continued until 1834. 12 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. cumstances connected with the origin of each one of the many satisfactorily explain why there were colonies and now are States, unequal in size, population, wealth, and political weight. Thus a company of Englishmen obtained of the sovereignty a grant of the small tract of land which is now Rliode Island, and hence the colony and State ; a company of Hollanders founded New Netherland, and hence there is now a State of the distinctness of character, the commercial greatness and imperial power of New York ; while, in relation to certain vital things, both States are recognized as co-equals in the national polity. But, in the general progress and development of civilization, there is ever a providential ordering of events, superior to and the master of circumstances. This moves on through the work- ing of great ideas, or the hidden forces, which, joined with climate and soil, mould society and direct its tendencies. These ideas were fulfilling their mission when theories of vital consequence to the human race, pronounced in the Old World Utopian, were carried out in the New World, and their influence fixed society on a new basis.^ Indications of their presence are seen at every step of progress. The preamble to an early American Bill of Rights runs, " The free fruition of such liberties, immunities, and privileges as humanity, civility, and Christianity call for, as due to every man, in his place and proportion, without impeachment or infringement, hath ever been, and ever will be, the tran- quillity and stability of churches and commonwealths ; and the denial or deprival thereof, the disturbance, if not the ruin of both." ^ Here is seen, in the early American law- makers, the influence of the Christian element. The legis- lation of sevei'al of the colonies, establishing a system of 1 " In that land the great experiment was to be made by civilized man of the attempt to construct society on a new basis; and it was there, for the first time, that theories hitherto unknown, or deemed impracticable, were to exhibit a spectacle for which the world had not been prepared by the historj' of the past.' — De Tocque- VII.LE: Democracy in America, i. 30. 2 Preamble to Massachusetts Liberties, 1641. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 13 public instruction for youth, shows the high aim of basing commonwealths on intelligence, or on the general education of the people. On viewing this class of facts, in connection with the results that have been attained, a philosophic in- quirer, penetrating beneath the incidental and transient elements of error and of wrong, which, in American history, as in other histories, are mingled with the progress of Truth and the Right, declares that the grand maxim on which civil and political society in the United States rests is, " that Providence has given to every human being the degree of reason necessary to direct himself in the affairs which in- terest him exclusively." ^ After the people had been trained for a century and a half in the exercise of these powers in purely local spheres, there rose at length, as the product of rare public virtue, and to supply the needs of the nation, the polity of a republican government based on the prin- ciple of the sovereignty of the people. To account for the general progress of civilization and development, or for the action of great ideas on society, in- volves a consideration of profound questions. I do not pur- pose to study the Why of the E Plurihus Unum ; but an order of facts that seem to show the How it came to pass, — a class of events that mark the continuous blending of Diversity and Unity in the formation of the public opinion, that evolved The One from the many ; or, how the United States came to be the United States, free from the benumb- ing influences of centralization on the one hand, and from the fatal dangers of disintegration on the other. At every stage in the progress towards this resnlt, the two main elements of the national life are found acting in harmony. It may be useful to preface the narrative by a glance at the origin and progress ^ the Idea of Local Self- Government, which developed into the State, and at the Idea of Union, which developed into the nation. 1 De Tocqueville : Democracy in America, i. 538. 14 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. 1. Local Self-government. — The self-government which developed and is recognized in the Republic is not simply a custom, in the units termed municipalities or States, of managing their local affairs ; but a degree of freedom in the individual to engage in the various pursuits of life, unrec- ognized elsewhere at the period when the Republic was formed, and yet unknown where centralization prevails,^ whether he chooses to act by himself or in association for civil or religious purposes ; and this self-government exists in union with the fulfilment of every obligation demanded by the nation. The theme in hand, however, requires references to institutions of a purely political nature. The idea of Local Self-government was historical at the time of the colonizatimi of North America. Among the Germanic ancestors of the emigrants, the custom was so general for the inhabitants of a district to control their local affairs, that it has been said, " One leading principle pervaded the primeval polity of the Goths : where tlie law was adminis- tered, the law was made;"^ and they filled all Europe for five hundred years with the fame of their exploits, and were the first nation beyond the Danube to receive Chris- tianity .^ In ancient England, local self-government is found in connection with the political and territorial divisions of tythings, hundreds, burghs, counties, and shires, in which the body of the inhabitants had a voice in managing their own affairs. Hence it was the germinal idea of the Anglo- Saxon polity. In the course of events, the crown deprived the body of the people of this power of local rule, and vested 1 l\I. de Champagny (Dublin Review, April, 1866) says of France, "We were and are unable to go from Paris to Neuilly; or dine more than twenty together; or have in our portmanteau three copies of the same tract ; or lend a book to a friend ; or put a patch of mortar on our own house, if it stands in the street ; or kill a par- tridge; or plant a tree near the road-side; or take coal out of our own land; or teach three or four children to read, . . . without permission from the civil govern- ment." 2 Edinburgh Review, February, 1822. This article has much curious matter about municipalities. 8 Encyclopaedia Americana, Article Goths. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 15 it ill a small number of persons in each locality, who were called municipal councils, were clothed witli the power of filling vacancies in their number, and were thus self-per- petuating bodies. In this way, the ancient freedom of the municipalities was undermined, and the power of the ruling classes was installed in its place. ^ Such was the nature of the local self-government in England, not merely during the period of the planting of her American colonies (1607 to 1732), but for a century later; and it was the same in other countries. It was a noble form robbed of its life- giving spirit. It has been said by Guizot, that, " when tliere scarcely remained traces of popular assemblies, the remembrance of them, of the right of freemen to deliberate and transact their business together, resided in the minds of men as a primitive tradition, and a thing which might come about again." ^ These assemblies re-appeared, and old rights were again enjoyed, when the emigrants to the soil now the United States began to frame the laws under which they were to live. An instance of this occurred (1620) on board the " Mayflower," as she was bearing the Pilgrims from Southampton to Plymouth. Some of the passengers, termed strangers, said, that, as their patent did not apply to New 1 An article in the "Edinburgh Review," September, 1818, on the Burghs of Scotland, cites a statute of 1469, which stripped the burgesses everj'where of a fran- chise they had till then exercised, and formed the basis of the practice there by which the town-council and magistracy choose their own successors. J. Toum- lin Smith (Local Self-government, 107) says, "Henry VIII. began a systematic attack on the independence of borough institutions of local self-government, which his successors carefully followed up. This was done, by trying to get the controlling authority into the hands of small and select bodies in each borough." In Switzer- land (De Tocqueville, Democracy, ii. 448), "all powers of government were in the hands of small, close aristocracies perpetuating themselves." The ancient free municipal life of Fnince had been extinguished. — M. de Malesherbes, cited bj De Tocqueville, ii. 428. Gervinus (Introduction to a History of the Nineteenth Century, 40) says of the Republic of the Netherlands, " that power fell into the hands of a narrow aristocracy, and that there was no thought of a representation of the citizens, of democratic institutions, or of the elective franchise for the commu- nity." 2 History of Civilization, iii. 199. 1(5 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. England, there would be no authority to exercise powers of government ; and, when they got on shore, they would use their own liberty. To curb th;s riotous spirit, forty-one of the band, when at Cape Cod, signed the well-known cove- nant, by which they mutually and solemnly combined them- selves into a " civil body politic," for the better ordering and preservation of their object, and by virtue thereof to frame, enact, and obey such just and equal laws as from time to time should be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of, the colony: in the expectation that this form of government might be as firm as any patent, and in some respects more sure. They declared that their en- terprise was undertaken for the glory of God, for tbe advance of the Christian faith, and for the honor of their king and country.^ This was a covenant to provide a code of laws and a public authority, or a local government, not in the spirit of sovereignty, but of subordhiation to it, or as loyal subjects of the king.^ An old custom also re-appeared in all the colonies, in the provisions for a discharge of municipal duties. The begin- nings of the Massachusetts colony afford pertinent illustra- tions of the formative process. The company, as proprietors of the soil, granted to the several bands of settlers tracts of land to build towns upon, but at first made no special provi- sion for municipal governments. These persons met in one body, or in town-meeting, or in folk-mote, to lay out high- ways, to parcel out house-lots, and to order the petty details of local life. But, as their mimbers increased and duties multiplied, these frequent gatherings of the whole body became an onerous tax on their time, as " by reason of many men meeting, things were not easily brought unto a joint issue." ^ To remedy a growing evil, the inhabitants 1 Bradford's History, edited by Deane, 89, 90. 2 A different view of this proceeding has been given. Thus Benedict (Histori- cal Discourse, 10) says, "The Pil/^rims took the form of a nation, and assumed and exercised its various functions," &c. 8 History of Charlestown, 61. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 17 of Dorchester (1633) designated twelve of their number to meet once a week, to consider local matters, but they were to have no greater voice in determining a case tlian any inhabitants who might choose to meet with them. The plan, however, did not work well.^ The inhabitants of Charlestown, in inaugurating another plan, selected the mode adopted in the " Mayflower." Tliey signed' an instrument, still ex- tant, which is entitled on their records, " An order for the government of the town by selectmen," by which eleven persons, " with the advice of pastor and teacher, in any case of conscience," were empowered to manage their local affairs for a year, the choice of officers excepted. ^ This plan proved successful. It was an application of the prin- ciple, that the body of the residents of a district should control its local affairs. Another instance of the re-appearance of an ancient right is afforded in the spontaneous application, by the emigrants, of the principle of representation, which was quite unknown in the Grecian and Roman world, was in England rather used by the ruling classes to wield power than enjoyed by the body of the people, and had well nigh disappeared on the European continent. This principle was first applied by the settlers of Virginia, who for several years had no voice in makiiig the laws under which they lived, but were ruled under authority derived from the crown. Arbitrary power produced confusion and discon tent. In 1619, the governor, to the great joy of the people, was empowered to summon representatives. And each of the eleven incorporations and plantations chose two of their number to act as burgesses, and take part in making the laws. They convened in the cliurch at James City, on the 30th of Jxiij. The officers of the colony met with them, 1 Vote of 1633 in Dorchester Records. 2 History of Charlestown, 61. Professor Joel Parker, in a paper on New-Eng- land towns, in "Mass. Hist. Soc. Proceedings," 1866-7, regards the proceeding as showing the beginning of this form of municipal government. 2 18 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the governor sitting in his accustomed place, his council on each side, and in front of him the speaker and clerk, while the sergeant stood at the bar. The burgesses took their places '" in the choir of the church." The minister then prayed that it might please God to guide and sanctify their proceedings to his own glory and the good of the plantation. The burgesses then retired to the body of the church ; when, " to the intent," the speaker says, " as we had begun with God Almighty, we might proceed with awful and due respect to his lieutenant, our most gracious and dread sovereign," all were called by name and in order, took the oath of supremacy, and then entered the assembly. Among its proceedings were measures towards the educa- tion of Indian children, and the erection of " a university or college." Thus solemn was the inauguration of the repre- sentative principle on this continent.^ This was the origin _ofjtheJSouse of Burgesses of Virginia, — an example. Story says, of a domestic parliament to'^regulate all the internal concerns of tlie colony that " was never lost sight of, but was ever afterwards cherished throughout America as the dearest birthright of freemen." ^ All the colonies, sooner or later after their foundation, had their legislative assem- blies, which came to be called the commons of America. These assemblies were the judges of the elections and returns of tlieir own members, regulated the manner of transacting their own business, and claimed to be free ■deliberative bodies. In union with the co-ordinate branches of a council and a governor,- they were the law-making power.^ 1 Proceeding'' of the First Assembly of Virginia. 2 Story's Commentaries, i. 26. 8 Bancroft (i. 250) remarks, that "popular assemblies burst everywhere into life •with a consciousness of their importance and an immediate capacity for efficient legislation." These assemblies, in some cases, at first were composed of the whole body of freemen. The dates of the formation of representative assemblies to make ■laws in the colonies are as follows: — Virginia, July 30, 1619. — The governor summoned two burgesses from three cities, three hundreds, three plantations, Argals gift, and Kiccowtan. — Proceedings LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 19 The representatives, with the governor and council, con- stituted the government for the colony, or of the people as a unit. Tliis was held to be the only power that could levy in New-York Hist. Soc, Coll. 2d ser. Ill, communicated by Bancroft in 1S56. Tlie governor, council, and burgesses continued to meet together, Beverly says (Hist. Va. b. iv. 31), till 1680, when " Lord Colepepper, taking advantage of some disputes among them, procured the council to sit apart fi-om the assembly; and so they be- came two distinct houses, in imitation of tlie two Houses of Parliament in England, — the Lords and Commons, — and so is the Constitution at this (1705) day." Massachusetts, May 14, 1634 — To the surprise of the magistrates, twenty-five delegates, chosen bj' the freemen of the towns, of their own motion, appeared and claimed a share in making the laws. The claim was allowed, and their names appear on the records of the (Jay, with the m:igistrates, as part of the Genenil Court. They sat together for ten years. In 1644, the " Massachusetts Records " say (i. 58), on account "of divers inconveniences" of the magistrates and deputies sit- ting together, and " accounting it wisdom to follow the laudable practice of other States, who have laid groundworks for government," it was ordered — both sitting together — that each should sit ap;irt; and they became co-ordinate and co-equal branches, the assent of botli being necessary to make a law. Plj'mouth had a repre- sentative assembly in 1639. The charter of 1G92 named twent3'-eight persons as counsellors: afterwards they were chosen annually by a joint vote of a new House of Representatives and the old counsellors. Connecticut, Jan. 14, 1639. — An agreement among the towns to be as " one public State or commonwealth," provided for a representative assembly, consisting of depu- ties chosen by the freemen, who, with a governor and council, composed the legisla- tive power. They sat together. The charter of 1662 provided, that the governor, deputy-governor, and twelve magistrates should be chosen at a general election, and deputies should be chosen by the towns. All these officers sat together. In 1G98, it was ordered that the governor or deputy-governor and magistrates should be called the upper house, and the deputies the lower house, that they should sit apart, and that no bill become a law without the consent of both. — Trumbull's Connecti- cut, i. 102, 399. Maryland, February, 1639. — An assembly of the body of freemen made provision for a representative assembly (Chalmers's Annals, 213). The composition of this body M^as peculiar. Griffith (Maryland, 7) says, that, "upon writs being issued by the governor, delegates elected by the freemen were to sit as burgesses, one or two for each hundred, with the persons especially called by the governor, and such freemen as had not consented to the election of others, or anj- twelve or more of them, including always the governor and secretary." The burgesses (Chalmers, 219) desired, in 1642, to sit by themselves; and, in 1650 (Griffith, 13), the assembly passed/an act dividing themselves into two houses; the governor and secretary and council to be the upper house, and the burgesses the lower house; and all bills assented to by the major part of either to be the laws. .Rhode Island, May, 1647. — Provision was made under the patent or charter, granted in 1644 by the Parliamentary Commission, for a representation from the towns, which discussed proposed laws before they were presented to a general assem- bly. — Arnold's Rhode Island, i. 203. By the charter of 1663, a governor, deputy- governor, and assistants were to be chosen annually at Newport; and deputies were to be chosen bj' each town. At first, all sat in one room. In 1666, there was aa 20 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. taxes. It was early urged, that the inhabitants of a colony ■were the best informed of its circumstances, and therefore were the most qualified to make its laws : in the words of effort to have the deputies sit as a separate house; but the measure was not adopted till 1696. — Arnold, 327, 533. The governor and assistants, or magistrates, were the upper house; the deputies, the lower house. North Carolina, 1667. — Settlers were invited into this colony by the promise of legislative freedom. — Williamson, i. 94. Hawks (i. 144) thinks there was an assem- bly in 1G66; but the general assembly, under the charter, consisted of the governor, twelve councillors, and twelve delegates, chosen by the freeholders. — Chalmers, 524. At a later period, while under proprietary rule (Hawks, ii. 147), the general assembly was divided into two houses. New Jersey, 1668. — This proprietarj' colony was divided at first into East Jersey and West Jersey, which had separate assemblies: the first held in East Jersey was on May 26, 1668, and in West Jersey, Nov. 25, 1681. — Gordon's New Jersey, 44-48. In 1702, the two parts were united, a royal government formed, and a general assembly provided for, consisting of the governor, a council of twelve nominated by the king, and a house of representatives chosen by the freemen of the counties and cities. They sat together. In 1738, the council was made a separate branch ; the governor withdrew from it, and no longer was the presiding officer. — Mulford's New Jersej', 335. South Carolina, 1674. — Settlers were promised a share in making the laws. — Bamsay's South Carolina, i. 30. In 1674, the freemen elected representatives, when, Ramsay says, there were (ib. i. 35) "the governor, and upper and lower houses of assembly; and these three branches took the name of parliament." The colonj' became, in 1720, a roj^al government; it was settled that the governor and council be appointed by the king, and the representatives be chosen by the people. The whole house was chosen at Charleston, where "there had been often great tumults.", — Carroll, ii. 149. About 1716, the colony was divided into parishes; and it was provided that each parish should elect its representatives, "to be balloted for at the several parish churches, or some other convenient place mentioned in the writs, which were to be directed to the church-wardens, and they to make returns of the elected members; and of this act the people were very fond, finding it gave them a greater freedom of election." — Ib. ii. 149. In 1720, when the colony became a roA'al government, it was provided that the governor and council should be ap- pointed by the king, and the representatives chosen by the people. — Ramsay, i. 95. New Hampshire, March 16, 1680. — By the decision of the crown. New Hamp- shire was separated from Massachusetts, and a commission constituted a president and council "to govern the province;" and this commission authorized the quali- fied voters of the four towns to choose an assembly. It consisted of eleven depu- ties, and sat as a distinct bod}'; the council having a negative on its acts. The king engaged to " continue the privilege of an assembly in the same manner and form, unless he should see cause to alter the same." A Royal Commission, in 1692, pro- vided for a governor and council, and a house of representatives, to be elected by the towns; both meeting separately, and acting as co-ordinate branches. — Belknap, 1. 139, 145. Pennsylvania, 1682. — In this colon)', provision was made for a representative assembly under the Frame of Government of 1682; and also under forms tried in 1683 and 1696. In 1701, the charter agreed upon provided for an annual assembly LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 21 an early assembly, " that there was more likelihood that such as were acquainted with the clime and the accidents thereof might on better grounds prescribe their advan- tages " than " such as should sit at the helm" in England. ' This theory was applied to the smaller spheres of political power. It was considered, that the inhabitants of a district or town could act more intelligently in reference to its affairs than any others.^ It also became a leading aim to carry justice to their doors.^ On thesa grounds, the legis- latures provided for the exercise by localities of certain to consist of four delegates from each county, or a greater number, if the governor and assembly should agree to it. This assembly was to choose a speaker and other officers, "to be judges of the qualifications and elections of their own members, sit upon their own adjournments, appoint committees, prepare bills, impeach criminals, and redress grievances, with all other powers and privileges of assembly, according to the rights of the free-born subjects of England, and the customs in any of the Queen's plantations in America." — Franklin's Works, iii. 155. In this colony (Douglass's Summary, ii. 317), the council had no concern in the legislation other- wise than advising the governor. The legislature had but one branch. Delaware, 1682. — This colony became a dependency on New York, but was pur- chased by William Penn. The three lower counties of the Delaware, New Castle, Kent, and Sussex, claimed, under the charter of 1681, a separate assembly, which they obtained, but had the same executive as Pennsj'lvania. New York, Oct. 17, 1683. — The governor called an assembly, composed of seven- teen delegates, who adopted a charter of liberties, apportioned the representatives to the counties, and claimed to be a free assembly. — Dunlap's New York, i. 134. In 1691, the first assembly convened after the Revolution, and consisted of seventeen delegates. The acts of this assembly are the first that were considered valid by the courts of law. — Smith's New York, 87. The assembly, down to the Revolution, did not exceed twenty-seven members. — Dunlap's New York, i. 212. The coun- cil consisted of twelve, nominated by the crown, as was the governor, and sat by themselves. Georgia, 1754. — The first representative assembly was called by the governor, under a form of government matured by the Board of Trade, and authorized by the king. It was composed of nineteen delegates from three districts, and (McCall's Georgia, i. 248) had power similar to other colonial assemblies. 1 The General Assembly of Virginia, in February, 1632, passed the following order: " That the governor and council shall not lay any taxes or impositions upon the colony, their land, or commodities, otherwise than by the authority of the Grand Assembly, to be levied and employed as by the assembly shall be appointed." — Hening's Statutes, i. 171. At the first meeting (Maj^ 14, 1631) of the representa- tives in Massachusetts, it was voted, the governor and assistants, as m Virginisi, sitting with them, " That none but the General Court hath power to make and estab- lishe lawes," or " to raise moneyes and taxes." — Mass. Records, i. 117. Declaration of tlie General Assembly of Virginia, 1642, in Hening, i. 233. ^ Hening's Preface, xvii. 22 THE KISE OP THE REPUBLIC. functions, involving the taxing power, vital to the peace and welfare of society. The forms adopted were necessarily dif- ferent. The influences growing out of climate and soil, in union with ideas, created conditions of society, and their tendencies, which, subsequent to the Revolution, grew into momentous results. The legislation of all the colonies rec- ognized human bondage, and its subjects were the Afi-ican race. In the territory of Pennsylvania, and north of it, this race did not multiply largely. Industrial pursuits were carried on mainly by free labor, and the emigrants built their houses near each other, and organized towns. In the region south of Pennsylvania, the emigrants settled far apart from each other, on large tracts of land or planta- tions. The climate suited the African race, and they greatly increased. The cultivation of the great staples of indigo, rice, and tobacco was carried on mainly by slave labor. It has been said, that " this single circumstance had such an influence that it divided the thirteen colonies into two dis- tinct communities, which widely differed in manners, habits of life, and general character." ^ The municipal forms that were adapted to one condition of society were impracticable in the other. But whether the municipality was called parish, borough, town, city, district, or county, the principle was alike recognized, that the body of its residents, accord- ing to prescribed rules, should manage their own local affairs.2 In each the voters chose their own officers ; each 1 Tucker's Hist. United States, i. 97. 2 " IMunicipal, as used by the Romans, originally designated that which jiertains to a mimicipimn, or free city or town." — Webster's Dictionary. This term will denote all the forms by which the supreme power in a communit}', as a colony or State, empowers the residents of a district to perform certain duties. In Virginia, the divisions named in 1619, in the election of the first representative body, were, cities, hundreds, and plantations; but the prevailing form came to be counties and parishes. Thus, in 1656, all the counties, "not yet laid out into jfar- ishes," were ordered to be so laid out. Maryland, in 1702, had about forty parishes; the settlements in South Carolina were so scattered, that, for ninety-nine years, Charleston was the centre and source of judicial power {Ram saj''s South Carolina, ii. 125, 129); and about 1716 (Carroll, ii. 149) the colony was divided into par- ishes. North Carolina, in 1739, had a population of only ten thousand, and was LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 23 had its courts of justice ; each, in relation to its peculiar local interests, had a jurisdiction as wide as its territorial limits. In this way, each locality provided for the concerns of social comfort and of police, of education and of religion. This work was never done for the people, but always by them : they tested their own decisions, and could correct divided into three counties, and these again into " precincts." Georgia, in 1758, was divided into eiglit parishes. — White's Statistics, 55. The powers conferred on coun- ties and parishes were essentially the same in all the Southern colonies. In Vir- ginia, in 1632, the General Assembly ordered that " highways should be laid out in such places as were requisite, accordinsc as the governor and council, or the commis- sioners for the monthly courts, should appoint, or according as the commissioners of every parish should agree." Various acts imposed duties on counties, such as building prisons, maintaining bridges and high ways, erecting workhouses, and placing poor children there to be instructed in spinning, Szc, and paying the burgesses. In 1662, the following act was passed: " Whereas oftentimes some small inconve- niences happen in the respective counties and parishes, which cannot well be con- cluded in a general law: Be it therefore enacted, that the respective counties, and the several parishes in those counties, shall have liberty to make laws for them- selves; and those that are so constituted, by the major part of the said counties or parishes, to be binding upon them as fully as any otlier act." — Hening, ii. 171, In 1642, an act provided for the formation annually of a vestry in each parish to maintain church government; and, in 1645, it was enacted, "That the election of every vestry be in the power of the mijor part of the parishioners." According to these citations, the residents of a district controlled the affairs of a district ; the Virginia law of 1662 being as complete an embodiment of this principle, where there was not a single town, as any law in New England. In Pennsylvania, with the "Three Lower Counties," or Delaware, and New .Jer- sey, the laws passed in relation to municipal affairs designate counties and towns. William Penn granted, as proprietary, the charter of Philadelphia, and this city had a self-perpetuating council; but as a county it was subject in the general laws to the elective principle, and named as such. In 1709, assessors were ordered to be chosen by the freeholders. In an act providing for county rates and levies (1724), the freeholders, &c., were empowered to choose, annually, commissioners for three years, having three for each county (one going out of office each year), and six assess- ors, whose duties relative to taxes are minutely laid down. The OMth administered to these officers was, " Thou shalt well and trulv cause the county debts to be speedily adjusted, and the rates and sums of money b}" virtue of this act imposed to be duly and equally assessed and laid according to the best of thv skill and knowledge; and herein thou shalt spare no person for favor or affection, nor grieve any for hatred or ill-will." — Penn. Laws, 1742. In 1729, the inhabitnnts of town- ships, owners or Jccupiers of lands, were empowered to choose fit persons for pound- keepers. The townships were empowered to make rates for the support of the poor. Thus the elective principle was gradually extended in this colony in municipal affairs. In New .Jersey, the " Concessions" (1664) of the proprietors to all who should settle in it, provide that, " so soon as parishes, divisions, tribes, and other distinctions are made," the freeholders should elect representatives; and they should " divide the 24 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. their own judgments. The municipality was the unit in the system of local self-government. In it the citizen began to take a part in public affairs, and was trained for the "wider field of the representative assembly. And tluis it fostered a public spirit and a public life. What has been called a " bureaucracy," which has had so repressive an influ- province into hundreds, parishes, or tribes," or other divisions. — Smith's New Jer- sej', 514, 515. The divisions named in the laws subsequently passed are counties, cities, towns-corporate, townships, and precincts, which were empowered to exercise certain rights, immunities, and privileges, in which the freeholders and freemen, having certain qualifications, voted for their officers at " town-meetings; " some acts providing that " only freeholders, tenants for years, or householders " should vote in township or precinct meetings. An act of 1710 names nine counties which were empowered to exercise certain rights and privileges. — New Jersey Laws. In New Netherland, the company that effected settlements introduced the self- perpetuating councils of the Fatherland. — Brodhead's New York, 475. Such was the government of Manhattan in 1647. The popular demands, however, show the same Germanic thirst for local self-government in this colony that is seen in Massachusetts and Virginia and other colonies. After it became an F.nglish colony, the municipal forms named are county, city, town, parish, manor, and precinct; and though the governor appointed the mayors and some other officers of the cities, yet even in these the fi'eeholders chose the aldermen; and in the towns and precincts the inhabitants chose their officers. ,Thus the precinct of Goshen, " at their annual town-meetings for electing town officers," were empowered to elect three ''free- holders" to lay out roads in it. — New-York Laws, 212, printed 1772. Towns were authorized by town-grants or patents conferring municipal powers. An act (1762) creating two precincts authoi'izes the choice of " one precinct clerk, one supervisor, two assessors, one collector, three overseers of the poor, three fence-viewers, one pound-master," and also, in certain contingencies, " four constables and six overseers of the highways." — Laws, 257. These were to be chosen annually " by the ma- jority of the voices of the inhabitants " assembled in town-meeting. In Massachusetts, during the first six years of the colony (16-30 to 1636), the Gen- eral Court occupied itself with many things of a strictly local character, as the support of the ministers, appointment of constables, building of bridges, and matters of police ; and it appointed ( 16.32 ) two persons in each town to confer with itself about raising a public stock. Then it ordered each town should supply its inhabitants with arms, provide weights and measures, and keep a pound. In the first year there were representatives (1634), the General Assembly ordered "that none but freemeB should have any vote in any town in any action of authority or necessity, or that which belongs to them by virtue of their freedom as receiving inhabitants, laying out lots," &c. Meantime several towns were exercising certain local offices, af establishing schools, supporting the ministers, making rates, building fences, and even choosing " selectmen" without any special authority from the colony to do it, such as the proceedings in Dorchester and Charlestown related in the text (see page 17). The General Court, on the 3d of March, 1636, passed an important mu- nicipal act. The following is a portion of it: "Whereas particular towns have many things which concern only themselves, and the ordering of their own affiiirs, and disposing of business in their own town, it is therefore ordered, that the free- LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 25 eiice ill France, is not seen in a single colony, I do not know, of the creation, by an American legislature, of such an anomaly as a self-perpetuating municipal council. The representatives were chosen by the qualilied voters. The elective franchise, with the object of securing intelli- gence and integrity for the public service, was severely restricted. The freehold qualilication was general, and was men of every town, or the major part of them, shall only have power to dispose of their own lauds and woods, with all the privileges and appurtenances of the said towns to grant lots, and make such orders as may concern the well ordering of their own towns, not repugnant to the laws and orders here established by the Gen- eral Court, as also to lay mulcts and penalties for the breach of these orders, and to levy and distrain the same not exceeding the sum of 20s ; also to choose their own particular officers, as constables, surveyors for the highways and the lilve;" and the order permits two constables for each town, but it does not name the selectmen. Some of the towns were now choosing these annually, and they at least were recog- nized in legislation. Thus, in 1642 {Kecords, ii. 4), the court declared "that the selected townsmen have power to lay out particular and private ways concerning their own town only" (6); that " in every town the chosen men, appointed for mnnaging the prudential afl'airs of the town," should have certain powers over the training of children; and, in 1G46, that the live or seven or more men, "which are selected for prudential affairs, in certain towns, should have power to end causes under 20s. ; " and, in 1647, the term " selectmen " is used in the laws. New powers from time to time were conferred on the towns. Thus, Sept. 6, 1638, the General Court ordered that every inhabitant " who shall not voluntarily contribute propor- tionate to his ability with other freemen of the same town to all assessed charges, as ■well for the upholding of the ordinances of the churches as otherwise" (Kecords, i. 20), should be compelled to do it by taxes, to be levied as in other cases. This vital power, wisely or unwisely, idenlitied the parish with the town. In 1639, riymouth passed a law which enacted that, "AH the townships within this government, allowed or to be allowed, shall have liberty to meet together and to make such town-orders," with power to impose tines under twenty shillings. — Plymouth Col. Records, xi. 32. The Connecticut Assembly of 1639 empowered the towns of Hartford, Windsor, and Wetherslield, or any others within their juris- diction, each to have powers to dispose of their own lands, to choose their own othcers, and make such orders as may be for the well ordering of their own towns, being not repugnant to any law established by the assembly ; also to impose penal- ties for a breach of the same. — Conn. Col. Kecords, 36-39. The four or seven men chosen bj' the towns to conduct their affairs were termed " townsmen." In Rhode Island, the inhabitants of Providence agreed to be " incorporated into a town fel- lowship; " and they managed their own affairs. The General Assemblj^ under the charter, granted, from time to time, acts of incorporation, in which were defined the local officers and their duties, such as two wardens and the town council. — Arnold's Rhode Island. In New Hampshire, there are seen similar proceedings. The inhabi- tants of Exeter, in 1639, signed an agreement " to combine themselves together to erect and set up among us such government as should be to their best discerning " (Farmer's Belknap, 432); and the inhabitants of Dover (1640) " voluntarily agreed u 26 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. further limited, in some of the colonies, by a pecuniary qualification ; and, in three of the New-England colonies, church membership was required for the franchise, which proved to be so restrictive in Massachusetts as to exclude, for thirty years, three-fourths of the male inhabitants from the ballot-box.^ There were, in some of the colonies, laws imposing penalties on absentees from town-meetings or from elections, — an embodiment of a conviction, that it was the duty of all citizens to take a part in the management of public affairs. , The law, in some cases, was arbitrary ; but the sentiment upon which it was based is sound : for whoever declines to take his share of the administration of municipal or other public duties, shows that he regards his personal ease or the gratification of his tastes as of more to combine themselves into a body politic, that they might the more comforta- blj' enjoy the benefit of his majestj''s laws, together with such laws as should be con- cluded by a major part of the freemen." — lb. 433. John Adams (Works, v. 495) points to the towns of New England as one of the institutions that supply a key to American history, naming, as the chief func- tions which these quasi corporations perfonned, the making of roads, the support of the poor, choosing their officers, and, "above all, choosing their representatives in the legislature, and assembling, as of right, to discuss public affairs." The same functions outside of New England, were provided for in the divisions of parish, county, and other forms; and, in the period of the Revolution, the counties of the Southern colonies acted in political affairs with a similar efficiency to the towns of New England. I have, in this note, made only such citations as seemed to justify the statements made in the text. In all the colonies there is seen the same spirit of local self-gov- ernment. I have not met with a volume, or even an essay, on the growth of the munici- pal system in the United States. Professor Joel Parker contributed to the " Pro- ceedings of the Mass. Hist. Soc." of 1866-7, a valuable paper entitled " The Origin, Organization, and Influence of the Towns of New England." 1 Church membership was a qualification for voters in Massachusetts, New Haven, and Connecticut. It was ordered. May 18, 1631, before there was a representative body in Massachusetts, " that no man should be admitted to this body politic but such as are members of some of the churches within the limits of the same " This was not repealed until Aug. 3, 1664. — Mass. Records. An act of 1656 (Hening, i 403) of the Virginia assembly reads, " Whereas we conceive it something hard and un- agreeable to reason, that anj' person shall pay equal taxes, and yet have no votes in elections;" therefore it orders that the acts excluding freemen from voting for burgesses should be repealed: but this colony enacted, in 1670, that none but free- holders and householders should vote. In Pennsylvania, the qualifications were a freehold of fifty acres, ten cleared, and other estate of £50. LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 27 account than the preservation of liis rights or the welfare of his family, his neighbors, or his country.) It is only by an active participation in political concerns, that Americans can discliarge their obligations as members of society. The ])ublic meeting is seen from the first in the colonies. As a means of expressing public opinion, it must be regarded as a vital part of self-government. I have met with but few allusions to this custom in the statutes. It seems to have been assumed as a right, and with it the right of a free examination of political questions. An early Massachusetts law bears on this custom. It provided, that every man, whether inliabitant or foreigner, free or not free, should have liberty to go to any public court, council, and town- meeting ; and, either in speech or writing, prefer any com- plaint or present any petition, in reference to subjects of which tlie meeting had cognizance, if it "vyere done in convenient time, due order, and respectful manner.^ In the public meeting, whether summoned by the authorities or called by private citizens, whether composed of the body of the peo- ple, or of delegates as in conventions, men met on tlie foot- ing of equality, and exercised, as of right, free discussion ; and at a time when, in most other countries, the same classes were precluded from taking part in public affairs. It was a remark, in an early petition of the freemen of Charlestown, that the enjoyment of these immunities "ren- dered them tlie most happy people they know of in the world ; " 2 and, at the Revolution, this self-government was regarded as an invaluable right, purchased by toil, treasure, and blood.^ Though old principles were at the base of the munici- 1 Massachusetts Code of 1641. 2 A Petition of the Freemen of Chaj-lestown, 1668 (Hist, of Cliarlestown, 159), names '' the free choice of our heads, or rulers," as essential to their freedom, among the privileges and immunities they enjoyed. The Virginia Declaration of 1642 (Hening, i. 2.31) says, that " the present happiness is exemplified to us by the freedom of yearly assemblies," and the " legal trial by jury in all criminal and civil causes when it should be demanded." 3 Letter of Joseph Warren, March 19, 1766: Life and Times, 21. 28 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. pality and the legislature, yet the prominent forms in which they were embodied, suggested by the circumstances of the condition of the people, were original, and may be termed American. The object sought was to supply the wants of the people, and promote the common good. The natural product of this self-government was a cluster of thirteen distinct and essentially free communities, composed of a population who appreciated the value of their rights, and felt a personal concern in 'their preservation. They had prejudices against each other, rivalries, and sharply defined provincialisms. But, however antagonistical might have been special circles of impulses and objects, however dif- ferent the tendencies of their social systems, and however strongly the law of diversity might have ruled in their development for a century and a half, yet, in due time, all the colonies fell under the influence of a spirit of union, and each contributed to promote the design of Providence in the formation of a great Republic in America. II. The Idea of National Union. — An early American writer and pioneer states, that the people saw, by daily expe- rience in the beginnings of their work, that they could not succeed in their undertaking without an agreement with one another for mutual assistance ; and that they thought the colonies would one day be "joined together in one common bond of unity and peace." ^ The appreciation of a great and vital want will account for the origin of the idea of a common union. A study of its embodiment reveals the feature of growth. It is so original and peculiar, that it may be termed American. As the main object of these pages is to trace this de- velopment, it would anticipate the narrative to enlarge, in this place, on details. The first conception of an American Union entertained by the founders of New England was to join in political bonds only those colonies in which the people were of a 1 Hubbard's History of New England, 465. He wrote before 1682. LOCAL SELF-GOVEENMENT AND NATIONAL UNION, 29 similar Avay of tliinking in theology, when, in the spirit of a theocracy, they aimed to form a Christian State in the bosom of the Cinirch. This was embodied in the New- England Confederacy (1643 to 1684). Its basis was not broad enough to embrace the whole of this territory, or sufficiently just to include all its population. The next tendencies to a union are seen after New Neth- erland was added to the dominions of the British crown, and was called New York. In the inter-colonial correspond^ ence that took place, growing out of the Revolution of 1689 in the colonies, and in tlie call of a congress, in 1690, for the safety of the whole land, there appears the conception of union as comprehensive as the colonies. Union was continuously siiggested during the succeeding seventy years (1690 to 1760). The class who urged it from an American point of view, and for objects in harmony with the free institutions that had taken root, aimed mainly at removing the obstructions that rival communities threw in the way of progress, and at providing for the common de- fence. It was urged, that the people who were occupying this portion of North America were naturally linked to- gether by material interests ; sympathized instinctively with free institutions ; and had before them a common destiny, and hence ought to be united in a common polity. But circumstances prevented the formation of a public opinion in favor of the adoption 'of any of the schemes that were pre- sented. The Plan of Union, recommended by a convention held at Albany in 1754, was rejected by all the colonies. The idea of union received a great impetus when the policy was adopted by the cabhiet of George III. to govern and tax America. This policy involved aggression on the old right of self-government. Union was then enjoined upon tlie colonies by the popular leaders, as the sum of American politics ; the demand of the hour, to promote social, political, and national well-being ; the path of duty and of honor ; the way pointed out by Providence to sue- ' 30 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. "^ cessfiilly resist aggression, and to obtain a redress of griev- ances. The sentiment deepened into conviction, and this ripened into faitli in its practicability. It was the religion of politics. Union became a fact, and had the moral force of unwritten law. Under its rule and inspiration, a rare and rich public life rose into great political action, through an efficient party organization. At length Thirteen United Colonies stood (1774) in the attitude of armed resistance to the measures of the ministry ; and, in the spirit in which the Great Charter was wrung from King John, they de- manded their liberties under the British Constitution. In this situation, American society, imbued with the germinal spirit and influence of the doctrine of freedom and equality, claimed the right to hold on to what it had gained and the right of progress for the Future. Union had been urged, up to this time, by the colonies, not merely in the spirit of allegiance to the crown, but with feelings of pride in being parts of a great empire ; but their attitude was pronounced from the throne to be rebellion, and the force of the nation was summoned to suppress it. This was an assertion, based upon the Past of Absolutism and Privilege, of a right to give the local law to America. This forced the popular party to accept the situation of revolu- tion, and to aim at the object of separation. There was then grafted on and blended with the conception of union, the sentiment of nationality. This found proud embodi- ment in the Declaration of Independence. When the people passed from the status of subjects, exer- cising powers of government under the crown as depend- ent colonies, to that of sovereigns in a nation composed of _ independent States, they had a deeply rooted conviction, that one general government, or one American constitution, was a necessity. They kept in view, in their utterances, distinctly and steadily, the aim of framing a system that should protect individuals, municipalities, and States, in their several spheres of action, while it should provide for LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL UNION. 31 an efficient discharge of national offices. The first result reached in " The Articles of Confederation " recognized the historic local self-government, but failed to adequately embody the idea of national union, and this form proved incompetent to secure the blessings that ha'd been attained by the Revolution ; but both ideas, as they had been applied in institutions, were recognized in the next great result of " The More Perfect Union " of the Constitution of the United States, which was ordained as the supreme law of the land. The Republic thus established rose, as the fulfilment of a logical sequence, from a state of society in wliich rank and privilege did not exist. The principles on which it was founded were brought over by the emigrants ; so that the last finish in the Constitution, after the achievement of inde- pendence, was but the fulfilment of the first thought.^ The form of government was designed for the welfare of a free people and a great nation, by providing for them just and equal laws. The ancient republics, based on the inequality of men, were, in reality, oppressive aristocracies : ^ the repub- lics of the Middle Ages had free institutions within their walls; but outside of them the divine right of kings or nobles remained unshaken : ^ the Republic of the United States was founded on the American theory announced in the Declaration of Independence, and this was embodied in the rules of law for the conduct of its citizens in the Con- stitution. This republic presents the rare and difficult system of one general government, the action of which extends over the wliole nation, but which possesses certain enumerated powers, and of numerous State governments, which retain and exercise all powers not delegated to 1 Gcrvinus: Introduction to the Nineteenth Century, 66. 2 Schmidt (La Soci(f't^ Civile, 25) says, " The most oppressive aristocracies." Bridges (France under Richelieu and Colbert, 124) says, that, even in the most democratic Greek and Roman States, " the free citizens constituted a pure aristocracy, the vast mass of the working population being slaves." 8 Bridges, 124. 32 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the Union .^ Under this protection and organization, the two elements of the national life, embodied into institntions adapted to their respective spheres, unfolded their blessings '^ in harmony, and, through the great modern instrumentality \f of representation, are extending over the continent. A narrative of the rise of this system will show how in- stinctively the people appreciated and valued the grandest traditionary influence in a.11 history, Local Self-government,^ and that providential pixjduct, American Union. 1 Opinion : 9 Wheaton, 205. 2 " The form of government which alone renders popular institutions compatible with extent of territory, is that form which has its origin in this ancient element of Saxon local self-government. Who can question that it is such a political system that has expanded this Republic from its primitive circumspection to its present extent; so that, that which at first reached not far beyond the sound of the Atlantic, became enlarged beyond the mountains; then beyond the Mississippi; and now, having crossed the second great mountain range of the continent, has on its other border the sound of the earth's other great ocean. I know of no grander traditional influence to be observed in history than this simple Saxon charactei-istic element, and the mighty issues of it now manifest around us, — the connection between this principle of local self-government obscurely recognized in the ancient fatherland of the Saxon, carried thence to England to be combined with the central power of a constitu- tional monarchy, and now a living principle here, helping, by the harmony of State rights and federal energy, to extend and perpetuate the Republic." — Professor Meed's Lectures on the Union. CHAPTER 11. The Combination of Local Self-government and Union in the New-England Confederacy. 1643 TO 1684. The analysis, in the preceding chapter, of the manner in which the Thirteen Colonies were founded, shows that the immigrants, in framing their separate governments, obeyed a primitive tradition of their Germanic ancestors. And as society was thus divided into distinct communities, each unfolding a local life peculiar to itself, civilization obeyed in its development a law of diversity : but the idea of joining these communities into a union for their common defence and general welfare was suggested so early by the circum- stances of their condition, and expanded so naturally into the conception of a republic and a nation, that it may be termed American. The two elements of local government and union were first combined in a common polity in the New-England Confederacy. This confederacy was formed in 1643. Most of the maps of North America at that period are either French or Dutch, and they assign to the English colonies but a small por- tion of the soil. The most comprehensive and minute is that of Sanson, the creator of French geography. He gave narrow boundaries to represent tlie vast i-egion which the patent of Virginia covered, and the territory which the emigrants to New England were occupying ; and he allotted still smaller limits to tlie splendid land which tlie Holland- ers claimed as New Netherland. The Spanish possession of Florida is delineated as beginning at Mexico and extending on the Atlantic coast as far as Virginia, with a wide sweep '64: THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. into the interior. Tlie remainder of the northern part of the continent is assigned to France. The French mission- aries were then penetrating the Valley of the Ohio, and giving names to tlie stations which they established ; and these names, covering a large portion of the map, show the vastness of the region claimed as New France.^ Colonization, up to that period, had made slow progress in North America. The Colony of Virginia, after thirty- six years, of difficulty and struggle, had, together with Mary- land, founded under the most happy auspices, a population of less than twenty thousand. Tlie Swedes planted a small colony on the Delaware. And the Hollanders established posts or forts at Nassau, near the present site of Phila- delphia, at Albany, and at Manhattan, with bouweries or plantations near the Hudson : but the province was in a low condition. The New-England colonies had a population of about twenty-five thousand. Perhaps five thousand would be a large estimate for the numbers of Frenchmen, Span- iards, Swedes, and Hollanders who had settled on the soil claimed by their respective countries. A century and a half 1 There are good maps of sections of North America at this period, as of New England, New Netherland, and Virginia; but the general maps are crude. The first edition of Hondius's Mercator — the "Atlas Minor" — was printed in 1606. I found the second edition, printed at Amsterdam in 1607, in the " Prince Collection " in Boston Public Library. This contains a map of North and South America, entitled " Amekic.e Desckip " It has on it " Machauche," "Virginia," and " Florida; " but, of course, it is very crude. Yet the plate from which this map was printed was used by Purchas (1625) with the title of "Hondivs his map of America;" by Saltoiistal, in his translation of Hondius, in 1635; by Gage, in his "New Survey of the West Indies," in 1655; and in the "Gorges Tracts," one of which is entitled " America Painted to the Life," in 1659, in which the map is termed "a complete and exquisite map," having the head-line left off. There is in Purchas's " Pil- grimes," part iii., a beautiful map of America of 1625 ; but it is too early for my purpose. Sanson was born at Amiens, in 1600, and at sixteen drew a better map of Ancient Gaul than that of Ortelius or of Mercator. He died in 1667. — Ency. Britannica. His map, printed in Paris in 1657, is entitled " Ameiucqve Septentkionale," and has many more names than Blenu's map, Amsterdam, 1635, De Luet's French, 1640, or Visscher's of 1652, and others I have examined. Sanson's map was printed in a •volume describing America. His son, G. Sanson, printed this map, with additions, iin 1669; and, in 1693, another son, N. Sanson, printed an edition of his father's general geography. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 35 after the discoveries of CoUimbiis in America, there were probably not fifty thousand European emigrants within the original limits of the United States.^ England long manifested great indifference to the coloni- zation of North America, — the bold spirit of her early navigators being in marked contrast to the stolidity of her statesmen. In the period which has been termed " the first age of the colonies," the whole superintendence of the king, both as to executive and legislative powers, was. exercised by the Privy Council.^ The work of colonization and gov- ernment was committed to the two great companies, the London and the Plymouth, whose spirit of monopoly and arbitrary power had a chilling effect on British enterprise.^ The latter company — the Council for New England — obtained, in 1620, the grant of a great tract of territory in America. At length, Charles I. created, in 1634, by a com- mission, a board called the " Lords Commissioners of For- eign Plantations," consisting of certain high officers of state, any five of whom were empowered to make laws, constitu- tions, or ordinances affecting either the public condition or the private property of the colonists. Archbishop Laud was the ruling spirit of this board. At that period, the king was striving to absorb all the functions of government, and was attempting to rule without a parliament. This occa- sioned that great and noble uprising, the Revolution of 1640, which for a period frustrated the designs upon the liberties of New England. A civil war then broke out ; and 1 In " A Perfect Description of Virginia," printed in London in 1649, it is stated, that there are in Virginia " about fifteen thousand English " and tliree hundred negroes; that one hundred Swedes had come and crept into a river called Del;iwar, and were driving a great trade in furs with the natives; and that this plantation and the Hollanders parted Virginia and New England, which " was in a good condition for a livelihood," and contained about twenty thousand. The Indian war of five years had nearly depopulated Manhattan and the greater part of western Long Island; and, in 1647, such was the low condition of New Netherland, that, excepting the Long-Island settlements, scarcely fifty bouweries could be counted. — Brodhead, 410, 465. 2 Chalmers's Opinions, 6. * Chalmers's Annals, 92. 36 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the fall of Hampden, in 1643, in so just a cause, gave an inspiring watchword to the future American patriots. The Indians were told of the struggle that was going on in England. And it became a saying among them, that now or never was the time to root out the English, as they could not be assisted by tlieir nation ; and all who encroached on their hunting grounds were alike to the savages. They assaulted Virginia with terrible severity ; ^ the whole of the territory siibsequently called New Jersey was conquered ; ^ they swept over New Netlierland with such desolation as nearly to depopulate Manhattan, and to make 1643 a year of blood.^ They had resolved to attack New England. Though the colonies of Virginia and Maryland furnish but a few facts illustrative of the progress of Union, yet this simultaneous assault on the colonies showed the necessity of uniting their strength for the common defence. The New-England colonies were increasing in importance. Plymouth obtained a patent from the Council for New Eng- land ; but it only conferred a title to the soil. Witliout other authority than that assumed in the covenant which its founders entered into on board the " Mayflower," they estab- lished all the branches of a government. In twenty-three years, however, they attained to a population of only three thousand. William Bradford was their governor. Massa- chusetts, first under a patent from the Council for New England, confirming a right of the soil, and then under a charter from the crown conveying powers of government, had grown into a commonwealth, had just taken (1641) the settlements commenced in New Hampshire under its juris- diction, and had reached a population of fifteen thousand. John Winthrop was the governor. The emigrants who went out from Massachusetts and founded Connecticut, witliout a charter, agreed, in 1639, upon articles of association that joined them in a body politic. They had increased to 1 Howison's Virginia, i. 287. 2 Brodhead's New York, 369. 8 Brodhead's New York, 347, 369. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDEEACY. 37 three thousand in numbers. John Haynes was the gov- ernor. A company dh'ect from London, without a charter, founded the Colony of New Haven, and voted tliat the Holy Scriptures should be the perfect rule of then- commonwealth. They numbered twenty-five hundred, but had not elected a governor.^ The banishment of Roger Williams from Massa- chusetts resulted in the foundation of Providence, and of Rhode Island, on tlie great principles of liberty of con- science in religion, and the will of the majority — the demo- cratic principle in civil affairs. The colony was small. Their leader, in 1643, went to England, to solicit a charter. A settlement had been commenced, under the proprietorship of Sir Ferdinando Gorges, in the province of Maine, with the Church of England as the established religion, and with municipal forms, ranks, and titles like those in Eng- land ; but it did not flourish. Such is a glance at the political New England of that day. It was described at that period as containing fifty towns and villages, thirty or forty churches, a castle, a college, prisons, forts, comfortable houses, gardens, and orchards, — all the work of the set- tlers, and at their own charge, " no public hand reaching out any help." ^ The builders of this prosperity were doing in their local government the things which in England were done for the body of the people by the few. A correspondent of Arch- bishop Laud, who kept a jealous eye on the colonies, repre- sented to him in a letter, that " it was not new discipline that was aimed at, but sovereignty ; " ^ and men of this class peti- tioned, that the several jurisdictions might be consolidated, and a general governor be appointed. At that period, a writ of quo warraido was issued against the Massachusetts charter, and the Commissioners of Foreign Plantations de- signed to remodel the internal regulations of the colonies. 1 I take the careful estimates of Palfrey's "Hist. New England," ii. 6. 2 New England's First Fruits, printed in London, in 1643. * Hutchinson's Mass., i. 86. 38 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. In this time of gloom, when the colonists were obliged to encounter the savages at their doors, and the arbitrary proceedings of Charles in England, the General Court of Massachusetts, in an address to the Lords Commissioners, in defence of their local liberties under the charter, made this earnest protestation on the vital point of sovereignty : " We do hereby humbly and sincerely profess, that we are ready to yield all due obedience to our sovereign Lord, the king's majesty, and to your Lordships under him ; and in this mind we left our native country." ^ However ready the commissioners were to interfere with the internal affairs of the colonies, they were not disposed to use the force of the nation to protect the lives or the interests of the emi- grants. One of the foremost men of Plymouth, Edward Winslow, being in London, petitioned this board, in behalf of the plantations, either to defend them from the encroach- ments of the French on the east, or from the Hollanders on the west, or " give special warrant to the plantations to act ; " and lie urged this petition before the commissioners. He found friends among them. But, at the instance of Laud, the charge was brought against the petitioner, that, without being a minister, he had exhorted in the congre- gation ; and tliat, in his capacity as a magistrate, he had joined parties in marriage. He admitted the facts. For these acts, this excellent man — a pillar of old Plymouth — was ordered by the board to be committed to the Fleet, and was imprisoned for seventeen weeks. The colonists, in this rough way, were told to practise the duty and the virtue of self-reliance. They profited by the lesson.^ The emigrants, thrown on their own resources, looked for security in joint effort. It was their thought in the begin- ning that one day the colonies would be "joined together 1 The whole address is in Hutchinson, i. 507. 2 The petition and details are in Deane's " Bradford," 328, 330. Winthrop (i. 172) says this petition was offered " by ill advice, for it was a precedent that the colonies should do nothing hereafter without a commission from England." THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 39 in one common bond."^ A proposition for a Union was suggested at a meeting of Connecticut magistrates and min- isters in Boston, in 1637.''^ The next year, articles embody- ing the idea were elaborately discussed.^ In 1639, Haynes and Hooker were nearly a month in Boston, urging the project.^ In 1640, an assault by the Indians appeared to be so imminent that the magistrates of Aquidnet (Rhode Island), Connecticut, and New Haven, in a joint letter to the Massachusetts authorities, again proposed it ; and, in reply, the General Court accepted the suggestions of the letter, but uncivilly and narrowly refused to have their reply transmitted to the Rhode-Island magistrates, saying that they were men " not to be capitulated with," either " for themselves or the people of the island where they inhabit."^ Again, in 1642, the civil war in England prompted a re- newal of the measure.^ The details of this long action are quite circumstantial. — -. In the following year, the attitude of the powerful tribe ' of Narragansetts was so threatening as to cause commis- sioners from four of the colonies to meet in Boston and agree upon the terms of confederation.'^ Those from Massa- chusetts, Connecticut, and New Haven signed articles of association on the 19th of May, 1643. The delegates from Plymouth, not being authorized to sign, reported the articles to their General Court, which submitted them to the towns to be acted on ; and in this way they were ratified by the people and form an interesting precedent in our political history. Then the General Court empowered its delegates to affix the seal of that colony to the articles. Thus was formed the Confederation of " The United Colonies of New England." ^ The four jurisdictions had a popidation of twenty-four thousand, living in thirty-nine towns. 1 Hubbard; 366. 2 Winthrop, i. 237. 8 ibid., i. 284. •* ibid., 299. 6 Mass. Records, i. 305. 6 Winthrop, ii. 85. T Bradford, 416. 8 Winthrop, ii. 99. The commissioners from Plymouth were Edward Winslow and William (Jollier; from Connecticut, John Haynes and Edward Hopkins; from New Haven, Theophilus Eaton and Thomas Greyson; from Saybrook, George Feu- 40 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. When the Connecticut magistrates returned to their homes, hearing the welcome news that the bond of union had been agreed upon, an eminent divine of this colony, Thomas Hooker, addressed to John Winthrop, the Father of Massachusetts, a strain of acknowledgment and con- gratulation that reveals the elevated thought and noble aims of the founders of New England : " Much Honored in our Blessed Savior : At the return of our majistrates, when I understood the gracious and desired success of their en- deavor, and by the joint relation of them all, not only your christian readiness, but enlarged faithfulness in an especial manner to promote so good a work . . . my heart would not suffer me but as unfeignedly to acknowledge the Lord's good- ness, so affectionately to remember your candid and cordial carriage in a matter of so great consequence ; laboring by your special prudence to settle a foundation of safety and prosperity in succeeding ages : a work which will be found not only for your comfort, but for your crown at the great day of your account. Its the greatest good that can befall a man in this world, to be an instrument under God to do a great deal of good. To be the repairer of the breach, was of old counted matter of the highest praise and acceptance with God and man : much more to be a means, not only to maintain peace and truth in your days, but to leave both, as a legacy to those that come after until the coming of the Son of Man in the clouds." ^ The terms of the agreement between the four colonies are contained in a preamble and eleven articles. It is related in the preamble, that they all came into these parts of America with one and the same end in view, namely, to advance the cause and enjoy the liberties of the gospel in purity and with peace. Being dispersed to such an extent wick; and from Massachusetts, John Winthrop, Thomas Dudley, and Simon Brad- street, of tlie magistrates; Edward Gibbons and William Tyng, of the deputies; and William Hathorne, the treasurer. 1 This letter was first printed in the 4th series " Mass. Hist. Coll.," vi. 390. The manuscript has on it Winthrop's indorsement, "Eec. (5) 24, 1643." THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 41 that they could not be in one government ; living en- compassed with people of several nations, and with nations who had combined against them ; and seeing tliat the sad distractions of England prevented them from receiving that protection which at other times they might expefit, — they conceived it to be their bounden duty to enter into a " con- sociation " for mutual help and strength in all their future concernments, that, as in nation and religion, so in other respects they might continue one according to the tenor of the articles, and to be called by the name of the United Colonies of New England. By the second and third articles, — the first being the preamble, — the colonies agreed to form a firm and per- petual league of friendship for offence and defence ; but provided, " that the plantations settled within the limits of the Massachusetts should be for ever under the government of Massachusetts, and should have peculiar jurisdiction among themselves, in all cases, as an entire body ; " the same terms being used in reserving similar rights to the other colonies. It was also agreed, that, without the con- sent of the rest, no other plantation should be admitted into the league, nor that any not in the league should be re- ceived by either of them, nor that any two should join in one jurisdiction. By the fourth article, the charges of wars were to be apportioned in each jurisdiction, according to the number of males in each from sixteen to sixty years of age. Each jurisdiction was left " to its own just course and custom of rating themselves and people according to their different estates, with due respect to their qualities and exemptions among themselves, though the confederates take no notice of any such privilege." The fifth article provided for the methods of siimmoning the forces of the colonies into the field in case of an invasion of any juris- diction by an enemy. In a time of danger, two magistrates might summon a meeting of the commissioners of the con- federation. . 42 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. The three succeeding articles provided for the choice, by each of the four jurisdictions, of two commissioners, who were to meet once every year, to consider all aifairs belonging to the confederation. Tliey were required to be in the fellow- ship of the churches. Any six were empowered to deter- mine any question. But, if these did not agree on a proposition, it was to be sent to the four general courts, and, if they agreed, it was to be carried into effect by all the confederates : but they were restricted from " intermeddling with the government of any of the jurisdictions, which, by the third article, was preserved entirely to themselves." They might choose out of themselves a president, who, how- ever, was to have no more power than any other member. It was provided, that this board should " frame and estab- lish agreements and orders in general cases of a civil na- ture," as for preserving peace and preventing war ; for securing the free and speedy passage of justice in each jurisdiction to all the confederates equally ; for receiving those who removed from one plantation to another ; for regulating their intercourse with the Indians ; and for the return of runaway servants and fugitives from justice. The ninth and tenth articles contained a pledge by each not to engage in war without the sanction of the commis- sioners, and that in exigencies four commissioners might consent to a war. The eleventh provided for the cases arising under a breach of the articles ; and the twelfth, for ratify- ing the confederation. The four colonies in this compact, as belonging to " one nation," formed a league for self-defence and the common welfare. Its basis was that of the equality of the parties to it, or of each colony as an entire body ; and it was its object to secure equality of rights to the inhabitants of all. It was specified, that the vital subject of taxation should be left to the several local jurisdictions, and that the com- missioners should not intermeddle with their administra- tive functions ; thereby recognizing the inviolability of the THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY, 43 local government. The Union element, represented in the Board of Commissioners, was but feebly provided for ; the board being little more than a consulting body, which could devise what ouglit to be done, but could not execute it. The theocracy of the time is seen in requiring for the commissioners cliurch membership, — a qualification re- quired in tliree of the colonies to constitute a voter. This rule excluded other colonies. Thus the colony in Maine was excluded because " it ran a different course " in re- ligion and civil affairs from the other colonies ; ^ and the colony of Rhode Island, for various reasons, was never able to get admission to the confederacy. A great principle was at the bottom of the confederation ; but, noble as were the aims of those who handled it, they had not yet attained to sufficient breadth of view to apply it even to the whole of New England.^ 1 Winthrop, ii. 100. 2 The qualification that the commissioners should be in church membership would of course exclude both these colonies. In " A Discourse about civil government in a new Plantation whose design is Religion," published in 1G63, but written many years before, according to Professor Kingsley (Hist. Discourse), by John Daven- port, accoriing to others, by John Cotton, the principle of the chiuth member- ship qualification is defended on the ground of usage by an appeal to facts. At the close of very hard reading is the following: " But I must break off lest I grow too tedious. How easily might I adde the Consent of all Nations to this Truth, in some proportion, who generally practise accordingly? In our Native Countrey, none are intrusted with managing of Public Affairs but Members of the Church of England (as they call them). In Holland, where the Arminian Party had many Burgomasters on their side. Grave Maurice came into divers of their Cities with Troops of Souldiers, by Order from the States General!, and put those Arminian magistrates out of Olfice, and caused them to chuse onely such as were of the Dutch Churches. And in Rot- terdam (and I think it is so in other Towns) the Vrentscap (who are all of them of the Dutch Church, and fi-ee Burgers) do out of their own company chuse the Bur- gomaster, and other Magistrates and Officers. In all Popish Countrej-s and Planta- tions, they observe it strictly, to intrust none with the managing of Public Civil Affairs but such as are Catholicks, (as they speak) and of the Roman Church. Yea, in Turky itself, they are careful that none but a man devoted to Mahomet bear public office. Yea, these very Indians that worship the Devil will not be under the Government of any Sngamores but such as joyn with them in Observance of their Pawawes and Idolitries: That it seems to be a Principle imprinted in the mindes and hearts of all men in the equit}' of it: That such a Form of Government as best serveth to Establish their Religion, should by the consent of all be Established in the Civil State " — p. 24. i 44 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. This league, in many important respects, met the expecta- tions of its founders. It combined the strength of the colonies. It regulated their relations with each other. It was used as a high court to determine questions of jurisdic- tion. It managed the relations with the Indians, and some- times negotiated with 'the French and the Dutch. The spirit of subordination to the supreme power in which it dealt with matters having a national bearing was illustrated in the adjustment (1650) of a threatening boundary dispute between the people of New Haven and New Netherland, which stipulated that it should be binding " until a full de- termination be agreed upon in Europe, by mutual consent of the two States of England and Holland." It labored to promote the growth of Harvard College and to propagate the gospel. It increased largely the importance of New England ; and though it became weak and inefficient by the total absence of a self-sustaining power, yet in crises when great public wants supply defects in forms, it was used with great effect to provide for the common safety. While the colonists were forming this confederation, the spectacle of progress which New England presented was so gratifying to the Long Parliament, that, in 1642, it freed certain merchandise entering its ports from duties, declarhig " that the plantations in New England, by the blessing of the Almighty, had good and prosperous success without any charge to this State, and are now likely to prove very happy for the propagation of the gospel in those parts, and very beneficial and commodious to this kingdom and nation." ^ The benefit thus recognized was the foundation for an in- crease of commercial advantages, and for a numerous peo- ple of English sentiments and ideas. But the assumption of self-government — the re-appearance of Saxon freedom — was looked upon, throughout the colonial age, with jealousy 1 The Massachusetts General Court, in gratitude for this act, ordered it to be entered on their records, where it stands under the date of May 13, 1643. — Records, i. 84. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 45 by the ruling classes of England, who never lost sight of the object of moulding and controlling American affairs. It is doubtful whether many members of the Long Parliament got politically beyond the idea, that the body of the people, whether living in England or America, had a right to the benefit of good government, which it was the duty of the higher orders or of the few, to provide for them. This, at least, is the spirit of an ordinance passed in April, 1643, creating a commission to superintend the colonies, called the " Lords of Trade and Plantations," composed of the Earl of Warwick as Governor-in-chief and Lord High Ad- miral, and a council, consisting of five peers and twelve of the Commons, who were clothed with plenary powers.^ The commission did not differ essentially from the Board for a similar object, created by Charles L, though a different spirit governed the action of its members. At this period, the local governments were dealing with certain opinions that were pronounced to be heresy by the Church, and to be faction by the State ; and in doing this, in the dawning of a recognition of an inherent right of the people to criticise public measures and to enjoy freedom in religion, there were seen in America specimens of the errors and the intolerance which were characteristic of the age. Aggrieved parties appealed for redress from local decisions to the Lords of Ti-ade ; charged tliat the colonies were aiming at sovereignty ; and some petitioned for the appointment of a general governor. However just their cause might have been in the abstract, these parties, in taking this course, put themselves in the wrong ; for this was an attempt to iindermine the common liberty, and was a grave offence against posterity. The Governor and Company of Massachusetts, in an official communication from the Lords Commissioners of the 15th of May, 1616, were summoned 1 This ordinance was printed in a tract by William Castell in 1644. Henry Vane, John Pym, and Oliver Cromwell were members of this board. ( 46 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to answer complaints of this nature.^ In their reply, they aver, that, though removed out of their native country, they still had dependence on it, and owed allegiance and subjec- tion to it according to their charter ;' but said that they had not admitted appeals' to the Lords of Trade because they believed the practice could not stand with the liberty and power that had been granted to them, and that they believed it would not be allowed by the commissioners because it would be destructive to all government.^ The court also prepared an elaborate Declaration,^ and appointed Edward Winslow of Plymouth, who had been imprisoned by. the former com- mission, to take care of it. This vigilant and capable public servant, on arriving in England, found that the faction, in the usual manner of unscrupulous partisans, had used false- hoods and manufactured pretexts to gain their ends. They had cited in print, as fresh proof that the colonists aimed at sovereignty, the fact of the New-England Confederacy ; and they unblushingly said, that " the Massachusetts united with the other colonies to the end tlicy might bathe them- selves in blood and feed themselves fiit with the lives of their brethren." To this Winslow said, in print, " This is a notorious slander." * And, in relation to the allegation that 1 Hubbard, 503. 2 ibid., 506. 3 In the Declaration of the General Court, 4th 9, 1646, in reply to Child's re- monstrance (Hutchinson's Coll., 199), it is said: ''For our government itself, it is framed according to our charter, and the fundamental and common laws of Eng- land, and carried on according to the same (taking the words of eternal truth and righteousness along with them, as that rule by which all kingdoms and jurisdictions must render account of every act and administration in the last day), with as bare allowance for the disproportion between such an ancient, populous, wealthy kingdom, and so poor an infant thin colon}', as common reason can afford." Cita- tions to sustain this statement are arranged in two columns. For illustration, a pas- sage of Magna Charta is thus set against a " Fundamental of Mass.," as follows: — MAGNA CHARTA. FUNDAMENTALS OF THE MASS. All cities and towns shall have their liber- The freemen of every town may dispose ties and customs. of their town lands. &c., and may make such orders as may be for the well ordering of their towns, and may choose their constables and other officers. — (1) m., 163.5. * ' Hypocrisie Vnmasked," by Edward Winslow, printed in London in 1646. I am indebted to Mr. Charles Deane for the use of a copy of this rare work. It was THE NEW-EXGLAND CONFEDERACY. 47 tliis Union was entered into without any permission from England, lie answered, " If we in America should forbear to unite for offence and defence against a common enemy (keeping our governments still distinct as we do) till we Iiave leave from England, our tlu-oats might be all cut before the messenger would be half seas through." ^ The manly Declaration, together with the sterling principles and the personal influence of Winslow, resulted in a substantial triumph for the colonies. The position taken by them was accepted in a liberal letter by the Commission, and the appeals to it taken by the faction were disallowed.^ Still there was a lurking jealousy of popular power in the minds of the Lords of Trade. Winslow advised the colo- nies, that there were designs maturing against their liber- ties ; and an act of parliament, a little later, manifested this fact. The Massachusetts General Court, in 1651, address- ing this body as " the supreme authority," thanked it for stopping appeals to the Commission, and plead earnestly that the frame of their government might not be changed, but that they might continue to live under magistrates of their own choosing, and laws of their own making, not repugnant to the laws of England, as they had " governed themselves above this twenty-three years." ^ This plea proved effectual, and the colonies were allowed, by the celebrated Long Par- liament, the boon of neglect from the mother country, or, rather, the favor of an acquiescence in their claim to the enjoyment of local self-government. Nor was the political relation of the colonies changed during the rule of Oliver Cromwell, a great hero of the Teuton race, who rose to be a connecting link between Luther and Washington, all of like stock and intuitions.* writteu in reply to a tract entitled " Simplicities Defence against Seven headed policy." by Samuel Gorton, printed in London. 1 Winslow's New-England's Salamander Discovered. London, 1647. 2 Mass. Coll , ii. 141. The letter was sent to each of the colonies, and was dated May 25, 1647. — Hubbard, 509. 8 Hutchinson's Mass., i. 516. •* Kapp's Life of Steuben, 111. 48 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Though Cromwell, with wonderful sagacity, dealt roughly with the factions which threatened to rend the land, yet he inaugurated a reign of personal liberty and national glory such as England never saw before. He was tlie first of her statesmen who had a true sense of the value of the colo- nies to the mother country.^ It did not disturb him that the colonists held the Navigation Act to be contrary to their charters, as it was contrary to their natural rights ; for he saw that with a claim of local government that was some- times untenable, yet there existed a devotion to the country or the sovereignty that was genuine and serviceable ; and where there was this allegiance, he forbore to intermeddle with the internal affairs of the colonies. Under his admin- istration. New England and Virginia enjoyed free commerce and self-government.^ Among the noblest spirits of that time were Robert Sedgwick, Edward Winslow, and Roger Williams,^ types of the men of America, wlio counselled with Vane and Milton and Cromwell, characters that made an indelible mark on their age. They felt and acted as countrymen.* There was no interference by the Protector with the Con- federation. It was maintained in full vigor. The meetings of the commissioners were regularly held. The colonies found safety in Union. Their prosperity was increasing. Relations, far too flattering, were circulated of the spread of the gospel among the Indians. "It cannot be hid," Roger Williams wrote in 1654, " how all England and other nations ring with the glorious conversion of the Indians 1 Hutchinson's Mass.. i. 194. 2 Bancroft, i. 230, 446. 8 Roger Williams, in a letter in 1654, says, in the many discourses he had with Cromwell, he " ever expressed a high spirit of Christian love and gentleness." — Plymouth Records, x. 439. 4 It was not unusual to designate the colonists and Englishmen as '' country- men." In "a manifesto of the Lord Protector," printed in 1655, panned by John Milton, occurs the phrase " Our countrymen in America; " and in " Wonder Work- ing Providence " (73, 217), written by Edward Johnson, of Massachusetts, the phrase several times occurs of "our countrymen," applied to Englishmen. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 49 of New England." ^ And it was said, in an English docu- ment of 1656, of the northern parts of America, that they gave evidence of great improvements " almost to the world's wonder, especially in those parts called New England." ^ One of its venerated cluiracters, John Eliot, embodied the hope, enthusiasm, and political ideal of the time in a tract entitled " The Christian Commonwealth," — a very crude essay, but American in this, that it was imbued with the spirit of a neiw civilization, and was a protest against monar- chical power. It welcomed the triumphs of Cromwell, and advocated a sort of commonwealth or republic, in which the choice of " superior rulers," as well " as municipal," should be "by all the people over whom they were to rule."^ The restoration of the monarchy dissipated these visions of a commonwealth. On the 25th of May, 1680, Charles II, landed at Dover to ascend the throne of his ancestors. This young, rollicking, wanton king made pleasure his main pursuit ; but his brotlier, the Duke of York, subsequently James II., — a man of a positive character, — took pleasure in business ; and he pursued his ends with so much ambi- tion, boldness, and energy, that soon it was said he was the State. Sir Edward Hyde, who had just been created Earl of Clarendon, and subsequently was the father-in-law of the Duke, Avas the Lord Chancellor and the chief minister. This bland and wily courtier, high church and high tory in his principles and of smooth speech, aimed to re-invest roy- alty with all its functions. His policy in relation to the colonies was definite and steadily pursued though in a fox- like manner, during the seven years in which he held power. He strove to bring them into a close dependence on the pre- rogative. This was an epoch in the history of the colonies. In that day of dishonor and shame to the people of England, when individual and municipal liberties were grossly violated, 1 Plj-mouth's Records, x. 439. 2 Thurloe's State Papers, v. 82. 8 This tract is reprinted in Mass. Hist. Coll., iii. 9. 4 « 50 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. when profligacy, public and private, held carnival, it is not strange that a colonial polity, which, in its political organi- zations and in its educational aims, embodied an aspiration of human advancement, was scorned by the reckless rulers who wielded the sovereignty. Tins polity was pronounced to be republican. It was held, that, unless the govern- ment of the colonies were changed, " they would harden in their constitution and grow on nearer to a commonwealth, towards which they were already well nigh ripened." ^ It was determined to check this tendency, by centralizing in the crown several functions that were exercised by tlie peo- ple ; and to the end, that England, as the mother country, miglit have the full commercial benefit of her colonial pos- sessions, it was determined to enforce the mercantile system, with its absurd restrictions on individual pursuits, — its monstrous monopolies and downright robberies.^ This was an attempt to install a rule based on privilege, on the ruins of a polity in which were working the elements of equality and freedom that are the germinal forces of Ameri- can institutions. On the 4th of July, 1660, at a court at Whitehall, at which were present the King, the Duke of York, and the Lord Chancellor, an order was passed constituting ten Lords of the Council, or any three or more of them, a board to meet twice a week, and receive petitions and papers relating to the plantations in America ; and, on the 7th of Novem- ber, the king, by a commission, created " A Council for Foreign Plantations." This council were reqiiired by their instructions to correspond with the governors of the colonies, and to devise means to bring them into a more certain civil and uniform government.^ The confusions of the time afforded abundant material upon whicli to found complaints against the colonies, and 1 In Palfrey's " New England " (i. 579) are citations from a paper supposed to have been prepared by Clarendon. 2 Bancroft's History, ii. 43, 44. 3 N.Y. Col. Documents, iii. 30, 32, 36. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 51 especially against New England. To former grievances growing out of the dealing of the authorities with heretics, there were added the sad transactions relating to the Quakers, and their earnest appeals. Besides, the London merchants were disturbed by the enterprise of New England. Its prosperity excited envy in the other colonies ; and its " com- monwealth notions " supplied a field in which zealous place- men might show their zeal for the crown. In addition, these colonies harbored the regicides, and were tardy in making their acknowledgment of allegiance to Charles II. The complaints to the king were numerous. The agent of Massachusetts, John Leverett, then in Lon- don, advised the General Court of these complaints, and of the feeling there in relation to the colonies.^ Their neglect to address the king did not proceed from any design to op- pose his authority. Their sound principle of action, during the confusions and changes of twenty years, had been to follow the sovereignty in every change in the form of its government. They acknowledged allegiance to Charles I., to the Long Parliament, and to the Protector ; but, having nothing official from tlie authorities, they waited until they saw a prospect of stability .^ Stimulated by the represen- tations of their agents, all the colonies sent addresses to the king; and even the courtiers could not- object to the language in which they expressed their allegiance. The king, in February, 1661, returned to the address of Massa- chusetts an answer full of fair words. Measures, however, of an ominous character were soon adopted. The king was told that the New-England Con- federacy " was a war combinatioh, made by the four colonies when they had a design to throw off their dependence on England and for that purpose."^ Individuals appeared before the Council for Foreign Plantations to testify against the colonies. Thomas Breeden, of Dublin, whom traffic 1 Hutchinson Coll., 322. 2 Hutchinson's Hist., i. 209. 8 Coll. Mnss. Hist. Soc, v. 192. i 52 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. had carried to Boston, holding (March, 1661) a printed copy of the laws of Massachusetts in his hands, urged that the people looked on themselves as an independent State, and that there was a necessity of settling the country in a due obedience. 1 Samuel Maverick, an old resident of Boston, averred that the people of New England were all rebels, and he could prove it.^ One of the counsel asked Leverett whether, if the colonies durst, they would not cast off their allegiance and subjection to his majesty ; and he replied, " They were honest men, who had declared in their appli- cation to his majesty the contrary, and therefore he could not have such thoughts of them witliout a breach of char- ity." ^ There is no authority to add, that this remark was met by the cold jeer with which the unscrupulous are apt to greet earnest avowals by those who mean what they say ; but there is in history the invention, that the colonists had a design of independence which it was not policy then to avow.* When the local government and the confederacy were thus misrepresented to the Council for Foreign Plantations, action was pending that involved vital issues. I need state only results. At that time, the jurisdictions of all the colo- nies were far from being settled. Connecticut had no char- ter ; New Haven had neither patent nor charter ; Plymouth had only obtained a patent giving it a title to the soil, and Rhode Island had only a patent from parliament. Each colony desired to obtain powers of government from the crown or the sovereignty. The two colonies of Connecticut and Rhode Island were successful in procuring charters, which were so liberal that they recognized, substantially, the rights and liberties which the people of each enjoyed under their voluntary agreements. However gratifying these charters were to those colonies, the grant of them 1 Deposition of Breedon, N.Y. Coll., Doc. 39. 2 Coll. Maine Hist. Soc, i. 301. « Hutchinson Coll., 339. 4 Chalmers's Annals, 178. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 53 was not merely a vigorous assertion of sovereignty, but was a blow levelled at the confederacy. By an article of the league, no two colonies could be united without the con- sent of the others ; but no regard was paid by the crown to this provision. The colony of Rhode Island had been not only repeatedly denied admission to the confederacy, but it was looked upon and treated as a pariah colony ; yet it was raised to the position of equality with the other colonies. No resistance was offered to this exercise of sovereignty ; but there was acquiescence in it. The condemnation of Eliot's tract entitled "The Christian Commonwealth," by the General Court of Massachusetts, on account of its re- publican sentiments ; ^ the humble language of the petitions of the colonies to the king; their endeavors, in various ways, to obtain royal favor, — New Haven going so far as to order the Navigation Act to be rigidly executed, ^ — were not certainly manifestations of a spirit of separation, but of subordination to the sovereignty. The petition of Con- necticut to the king implored him " to be pleased to accept that colony, — his own colony, — a little branch of his mighty empire." A short time after the grant of the charters of Connecti- cut and Rhode Island, the prodigal Charles II. bestowed (March 12, 1664) on his brother, the Duke of York, a prin- cipality, consisting of a portion of the territory of New England and the whole of New Netherland, — a territory extending from the banks of the Delaware to the St. Croix.^ The duke was then Lord High Admiral, and at the head of a board created to enforce the Navigation Act. The Coun- cil for Foreign Plantations, to put him in possession of his American dominions, created a special commission. Eng- land and the United Netherlands were at peace, and this measure demanded an act of war. It was determined to devolve on the same commission the duty of regulating 1 Mass. Records, iv. ii. 5. This condemnation was IMay 22, 1661. 2 Palfrey's New England, ii. 554. 3 Trumbull's Connecticut, i. 260. 54 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the ijiternal affairs of New England, a design which for years had been in contemplation. The Duke of York was requested to name fit men for this important commission. The men selected, were Colonel Richard Nichols, a cavalier of ability and honor ; Sir Robert Carr and George Cart- wright, two arrogant and conceited partisans, who had the spirit of Persian satraps ; and Samuel Maverick, an original settler, who had quarrelled with the local authorities and had complained of their acts. The commissioners were empowered to reduce New Neth- erland. A letter of the king required them to observe the condition of his subjects in New England, and make report of it to him, that he might decide " either for the better repairing of any thing that was amiss, or for the better improving and encouraging of what was good;" and espe- cially that he might " discourage, and as much as in him lay, suppress and utterly extinguish those unreasonable jealousies and malicious calumnies which wicked and un- just spirits perpetually labor to infuse into the minds of men, that his subjects in those parts do not submit to his government, but look upon themselves as independent of him and his laws." They were also empowered to hear and determine complaints in all civil, criminal, and military cases, " according to their good and sound discretion." On the 23d of July, 1664, a portion of the fleet de- signed to reduce New Netherland arrived at Boston, — the first time ships of the royal navy had been seen in that harbor. The commissioners were on board. The local authorities proffered them respect, and tendered to them the hospitality of a residence. They preferred to stop at the house of Thomas Breeden who was again in Boston. They exhibited to the Governor and Council their commis- sion ; applied for a small force of militia to serve in their expedition against the Dutch ; and then, receiving the assurance that the request should be attended to, proceeded with the fleet on their mission. In September, Manhat- THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 55 tan capitulated, and thenceforth New Netherland was called New York. In October, the Swedes on the Delaware sur- rendered ; and then the flag of England floated along the whole line of the Atlantic coast from New France to Florida, and the original colonies attained a geographical unity. Meanwhile the General Court of Massachusetts delib- erated on the v€ry grave matter of the commission. The debates as to the course that ought to be pursued were uncommonly earnest. The reverend elders who were in town were called in to give their advice ; a day of fasting and prayer was appointed, and a petition to the king was adopted. On the receipt of the intelligence of the appoint- ment of the commission, the General Court (May 18) had put the charter in the hands of a committee to keep it " secret and safe ; " ^ and it resolved (Aug. 3), God assist- ing, to bear faith and true allegiance to his majesty, and to adhere to the privileges of the patent, " so dearly obtained and so long enjoyed by undoubted right in the sight of God and man." ^ To do this, they would be obliged to confront at their own doors a commission clothed with the functions of determining appeals which they had successfully contested with the Long Parliament. If this commission was valid, its discretion would be installed above the local law, and thus would supersede the charter. In fact, its creation was an unwarrantable exercise of the prerogative, and, as a precedent, dangerous to English liberties, and a violation of colonial rights. In February, 1665, three of the commissioners returned to Boston, — Colonel Nichols remaining with the fleet, — when they proceeded to assert their authority. Their func- tions were recognized at Plymouth, and appeals were made to them ; also at Rhode Island, which, grateful for a char- ter, gave them in addition large tokens of respect. At Connecticut, where there was like joy for a similar favor, they met with a hearty welcome and recognition of their 1 Mass. Records, iv. 102. 2 ibid., 118. 56 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. authority. Gratified with their reception, they returned to Boston, prepared to deal with the most influential colony in America, hoping, they said, " that the submission and condescension of tlie other colonies to his majesty's designs would have abated the refractoriness of this colony which they much feared." ^ The magistrates at Plymouth, how- ever, repelled in a spirited manner certain allegations brought against the Confederacy. In their answer to the commissioners, they said, '' The league between the four colo- nies was not with any intent (that we ever heard of) to cast off our dependence upon England, — a thing which we utterly abhor, entreating your honors to believe us, for we speak as in the presence of God." ^ A full board — ^Nichols having rejoined his associates — assembled in Boston on the 2d of May. It was the eve of the general election. The event was rendered uncommonly exciting by the novel course of the commissioners, who, in the previous February, sent letters to gentlemen in the country, inviting them and their neighbors — non-freemen as well as others — to be present at this election, and thus be " both ear and eye witnesses " of his majesty's favor, saying that this was the best way to prevent misapprehen- sions.^ On that day, they attended an informal meeting of several magistrates and deputies, and submitted to them four papers containing extracts from their instructions, and a fifth paper, written by them, on matters connected with the commission. They first protested against certain rumors and sayings of the time, and they proved by undeniable ar- gument, they said, that the commission, instead of having " been made under an old hedge," was issued by the king, was commended in letters by the king and the lord chan- cellor, and was brought over by three of the king's frigates ; and, in the conclusion, they enlarged on the reasons that 1 Report of the Commissioners is in Hutchinson Coll., 412. 2 Answer of the General Court of Plymouth, May 4, 1665, Hutchinson's Hist. Mass., i. 235. 8 Mass. Records, iv. part ii. 174. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 57 occasioned the commission, and the wisdom of the mea- sure.^ On the 3d of May, Richard Bellingham was elected gov- ernor, and Francis Willoughby deputy governor, and they were sworn into office ; and among the assistants who took the oath on that day were Simon Bradstreet, Daniel Gookins, Richard Russell, Thomas Danforth, and John Leverett, — all honored names in the history of the colony.^ The Gen- eral Court met and recognized the reception of the five papers presented by the commissioners. On the 4th, a conference was held between the court and the commissioners, in which the court desired to know all liis majesty had commanded to be declared to them, that they might have their whole work before them ; to which the commissioners replied, that, when they received an answer to their letter, they would then pre- sent the Court with more work. On the next day (May 5), the Court answered the five papers. They met the subject of the malicious reports, by saying, that it was extremely difficult, if not impossible, to trace those wild and absurd rumors to their first fountain, every reporter commonly con- tributing some addition to the stream ; but said that any who scandalized the commissioners deserved a severe pun- ishment. They treated of other things, but were silent on the vital point of the validity of the commission.^ In the subsequent correspondence, continuing more than two weeks, the arrogance of power and the scorn of popular rights, on the part of the royal commissioners, were met by the General Court in a spirit of extreme jealousy of im- perilled liberty. As this was going on, the commissioners prepared to hear an appeal in tlie case of a notorious char- acter who liad been justly banished from the colony. They had commanded all officers, civil and military, to refrain from molesting him, and thus interfered with the course of justice. The warrant issued by the commissioners in this case was declared by the court to be an infringement of 1 Mass. Records, iv. part ii. 186. 2 ibid., 142. 8 ibid., 188. 9 58 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. their patent. A conference was held (May 11) between a committee of the court and the commissioners. The latter were asked whether a jury would pass on the cases which they intended to hear, and their reply was in the negative ; that they sat as a court of oyer and terminer. The com- mittee urged, that, by the charter, the colonists were entitled to trial by jury ; and that it would be a great addition to their former sorrows if they were obliged " to submit them- selves, their lives and estates, and their liberties, far dearer than them both, to another authority wliose rule was their own discretion." ^ At length the four commissioners came into the General Court, when Nichols, as their spokesman, said, " We are a court by his majesty's authority : tell us plainly and truly whether you will submit to the com- mission without any shuffling." The court calmly re- joined, that it could not see the grounds why it should be called to resolve sucli a question. The commissioners then imperiously demanded a positive answer to their question ; when tlie court replied (May 22), "We liumbly conceive it is beyond our line to declare our sense of the power, intent, or purpose of your commission. It is enough to acquaint you what we conceive is granted to us by his majesty's royal charter." 2 On the next day (May 23), the commissioners advised the assembly, that on the morrow, at nine o'clock in the morning, at the hoiise of Captain Thomas Breeden, they would sit as a board to hear the case of Thomas Deane and others, plaintiffs, against the governor and company and Joshua Scottow, defendants.^ The court immediately framed a declaration, and sent a copy of it to the commissioners.* As they did not recede, a herald, an hour before the time set for the hearing, appeared before Breeden's house, in Hano- ver Street : also a hundred or more of the inhabitants. A trumpet was sounded ; and, by order of the General Court, declaration was made to all the people of the colony in his majesty's name, and by the authority committed to them by 1 Mass. Records, iv. part ii. 197. 2 ibij., 207. » Ibid., 208. 4 Ibid., 209. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 59 the royal charter, that, in observance of their duty to God and to his majesty, and the trust committed to them, they could not consent unto., nor give their aj)probation of, the proceedings of the commissioners; neither could they coun- tenance any who should be their abettors.^ Tliis declara- tion was repeated in a similar form in two other places in the town. The trumpet gave no uncertain sound. This action was in the spirit of the liistoric influence of local self-government, in union with allegiance to the sover- eignty. It was Liberty claiming its rights under the Law. The commissioners, thus effectually thwarted, sent (May 24) two papers to the court. In one, they characterized the action of the court as opposition to the sovereignty, and referred the whole case to his majesty's wisdom. The other was a commentary, under twent3'-six heads, on the book of gen- eral laws and liberties of the colony. I select only their dealing with self-government and union. They criticised the use in these laws of the terms " state," " council of state," and " commonwealth," and desired that these " indecent " expressions might be changed. They arraigned 'the con- federation as illegal, averring that there was no right conferred by the charter " to incorporate with the other colonies, nor to exercise any power by that association : both belonged to the king's prerogative." ^ On leaving what to them was an inglorious field, the commissioners dis- charged a Parthian arrow, in the threat, that those who had contested their power would meet " the punishment which so many concerned in the late rebellion had met with in England." ^ In their report to the king, they arraigned in severe terms the colony as being commonwealth-like ; and, after stating that it had a college, they remarked, that it was to be feared " that this college might afford as many schismat- ics in the church, and the corporation as many rebels to the king, as formerly they have done, if not timely prevented." * 1 Mass. Records, iv. part ii. 210. 2 ibid., 213. 8 Chalmers, 3&7. ■* New- York Coll.. Doc. iv. 112. 60 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The committee,^ who had guided the action of the General Court, prepared a narrative of their proceedings, which occupies over a hundred pages of the Colonial Records. This embodied the documents connected with the case, among which are tlie addresses which the Court sent to the King. In one of them, the General Court stated in a few words, their view of their Charter, of the limitations of their rights under it, and of the required test of loyalty as "subjects." They claimed "full and absolute power of governing all the people of this place," according to such 'laws as they should make, " being not repugnant to the laws of England." They averred that they had " above thirty years enjoyed the aforesaid power and privilege of govern- ment within themselves, as their undoubted right in the sight of God and man." They said, " We keep ourselves within our line, and meddle not with matters abroad. A just dependence upon and subjection to your majesty, according to our Charter, it is far from our hearts to disacknowledge. We so highly prize your favorable aspect, though at this great distance, as we would gladly do any thing that is in ouv power to purchase a continuance of it. . . . It is a great unhappiness to be reduced to so hard a case as to have no other testimony of our subjection and loyalty offered us but this ; viz., to destroy our own being, which nature teaches us to preserve ; or to yield up our liberties, which are far dearer to us than our lives, and which, had we any fear of being deprived of, we had never wandered from our fathers' house into these ends of the earth." ^ The report justifies 1 Ou the 3d of May, 1665, the General Court ordered that Captain Gookin, Mr. Thomas Danforth, Mr. Edward Collins, Mr. William Parks, and Lieutenant Hope.still Foster, be a committee to consider of the matters presented by the Commissioners to the Court, and to consider what action was necessary. On the same da}', Mr. Simon Bradstieet, Captain Daniel Gookin, Mr. Thomas Danforth, Captain Edward Johnson, Mr. Edward Jackson, Captain Richard Waldren, and Lieutenant Hopestill Foster, were appointed " to consider of all the papers delivered into this court by Colonel Richard Nichols, and the rest of his majesty's commissioners, and to pre- sent a full and meet answer unto the whole to this whole court." — Mass. Records, iv. (2), 146. 2 Mass. Records, iv. (2), 169-172. THE NEW-ENGLAND CONFEDERACY. 61 the formation of the Confederacy in the following strain : " Considering that they were several colonies under one king, and came from their native country for one and the same end, and were here scattered at a great distance amongst the wild savages in a vast wilderness, had no walled towns or garrisons of soldiers for their defence, they appre- hended that the least they could do was to enter into a league of amity and union one witli another, engaging, in case of any unjust and fresh assault made upon any part by the natives, jointly to assist each other as the matter should require : this being the end of their confederating, as the articles signed by the general courts of all the colo- nies, in May, 1643, will plainly demonstrate, to the end, that, as our distance of place one from another rendered us weak, and laid us open to their rage and violence, so our union might be as well to them a terror as to us strength : and, through the goodness of God, we have hitherto had large experience of the great good that by this confederation hath redounded, not only to all his majesty's subjects here planted, but even to the natives themselves, it having been a means to prevent much trouble and bloods! led among themselves ; so that, although since that war some of them have sundry times made their attempts and put us to a con- siderable charge and trouble several ways, yet no massacre hath been among us from that day to this, blessed be God for it." ^ After this statement of the great fact of general security as a justification of the union, the report indignantly repelled the charge of having invaded the prerogative, aver- ring that to call the union usurping authority " was con- trary to the light of reason, tliat allows all whose journey's end is the same, and whose way lies togetlier, to combine for their mutual help in all things common and just, with- out the least suspicion of taking upon them any usurped authority, whether it be by land or sea, which, therefore, 1 Mass. Records, iv. (2), 231. 62 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. made it seem to be their special design to disunite the colo- nies, and so to bring us unto ruin," ^ This remarkable -state-paper exhibits the ability and the statesmanship of the colony in a favorable light. These brief citations show the clearness of its thought, the purity of its style, and the strength of its argument. It constitutes a clean political record. The action it narrates was not aimed against the sovereignty, but against an undeniable stretch of power by the administration which superseded, in many respects, the authority and powers granted by the charter ; and that action was prosecuted by the General Court, not in an obstinate or a perverse spirit, but in a modest and steady adherence to what they believed, and what really were, their just rights and privileges.^ Tliere appears in this action an appreciation of the value of the right to make the lex loci, and of its proper sphere as subordinate to the supreme authority, while there is an earnest intention to fulfil every just obligation to the sovereignty. The position undoubt- edly is sound, that parts of a nation ought not to be suffered to form alliances with each other for rebellious or even for ambitious purposes ; but the vindication of such a step is complete when the facts show that it is taken in the spirit of the primal duty of self-preservation. This was the case of the New-England Confederacy. The simple statement of the powers granted to the Com- mission is enough to condemn it. A writer, bitter against the republicanism of Massachusetts, though quick to see what touched England, remarks, that the Commission was liable to great objection, " because it might have been extended to affect English liberties, which no prerogative of the crown can abridge." ^ Another, Ox tlie same political school, writing m a historic spirit, judged that the local government " would not be thought culpable for refusing entirely to submit to the absolute authority of the commissions, which must have 1 Mass. Records, iv. (2), 234. 2 Hutchinson's Hist., ii. 256. 8 Chalmers's Annals, 388. THE NEW-EXGLAND CONFEDERACY. 63 superseded their charter; and, if this authority had been once admitted, they would have found it very difficult ever after to have ejected it." ^ This condemnation of the Com- mission is just ; and it is no less just to say, that the cour- age, dignity, and intelligence of the prominent actors in these scenes entitle them to be enrolled among the pioneer defenders of American liberty. The Confederacy, before the crown granted the charter to Connecticut, had passed through periods of serious dissen- sion. The commissioners of one or more of the colonies had threatened to dissolve the union ; and some of the provisions proved so unsatisfactory that amendments were proposed. No year, however, passed without a meeting of the commis- sioners. But the Confederacy lingered, rather than lived, after the blow it received by the incorporation of New Haven with Connecticut. Attempts were made to infuse into it new vigor by a renewal of the articles, and in the crisis of King Philip's "War it proved to be of great usefulness ; but the meetings of the commissioners became more irregu- lar, and it disappeared when the charters of the colonies were declared to be vacated. Thus the Confederacy fell with the fall of local self-government.^ 1 Hutchinson's Hist., i. 251. 2 The following is a list of the meetings of the commissioners: — Boston, Sept. 7, 1643. Hartford, Sept. 5, 1644. Boston, July 28, 1645. Boston, Sept. 11, 1645. New Haven, Sept. 9, 1646. Boston, July 26, 1647. Plymouth, Sept. 7, 1648. Boston, July 23, 1649. Hartford, Sept. 5, 1660. New Haven, Sept. 4, 1651. Plymouth, Sept. 2, 1652. Boston, April 19, 1653. Boston, May 31, 1653. Boston, Sept. 1, 1653. Charlestown, June 17, 1654. Hartford, Sept. 7, 1654. New Haven, Sept. 5, 1655. Plymouth, Sept. 4, 1656. I have placed in this list an informal meeting, held on the 17th of June, 1654, at Bo.iiL££ax^ CHAPTER ly. The Ideas of Local Self-government and of Union for Sev- enty Years, and their Combination in the Plan adopted by THE Albany Convention. 1690 TO 1760. The New-England Confederacy, inter-colonial correspond- ence, and a congress, are memorials of the working of union --elements, during seventy years of the colonization of North ^America. As population and wealth increased, and the ^ scheme of Prance to obtain dominion unfolded, the greater l^ became the want of a way to regulate the growing com- 'T^i mercial intercourse, and to provide for the general security. i The method naturally suggested to attain tliese ends was ^v^o unite the colonies into a common polity. Accordingly, C>4)ii^e class urged the formation of a union based on principles <^"^-^in harmony with the genius of American institutions ; but ~^ union was also pressed by royal officials and others as an instrumentality to check popular powei', to consolidate func- tions in the prerogative, to secure the advantages of a mer- cantile monopoly, and to inaugurate a system of taxation ; and, when a convention at Albany, called by the crown, recommended a plan of union to be authorized by an act of Parliament, it was unanimously rejected by the colonial assemblies. Thus the law of diversity continued to be para- mount for another period of seventy years, with tlie result, at its close, of thirteen colonies, independent of each other in respect to their local affairs, but united by the tie of loyalty to the crown in the bonds of a common country. When the plan of union referred to was rejected, a new claimant had appeared for a portion of the soil of North 102 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. America. The European discoverers followed the course of the sun from tlie east to tlie land of the west over the Atlan- tic ; but the Russians, passing over their territories from the west to the east, made discoveries and settlements on the northwest coast, which entitled them to possessions com- prising an area of about half a million of square miles.^ England, France, and Spain, beside being claimants of the soil, were rivals for a monopoly of its commerce. At that period, maps were printed in England delineating the vast- ness of the region which the French were attempting to hold. It was represented to be a broad belt of territory, beginning at the Gulf of St. Lawrence and extending along the basins of the great lakes, the Ohio and the Mississippi Rivers, to the Gulf of Mexico, on which were shown the forts and missionary posts which had been established.^ 1 Kohl (Discovery of America, ii. 146) sa3'9 tlie Russians opened the overland route to America- The chase of the sable carried the Cossaclvs from the Ural to the Amoor, and the chase of the sea-otter carried them to the new ontinent. — Ibid., ii. 178. Kamtchatka had been known by report in Yakutsk since 1690. Behring's first expedition was in 1725, and was liuished in three years; his second and great expe- dition, which lasted sixteen years, sailed July 4, 1741. From 1743, expeditions penetrated further east from promontory to promontory. In 1760 (ibid., ii. 179), the traders touched at Alaska. 2 The maps of North America are too numerous to specify. It is stated, that the French and English commissioners, at and after the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, in 1748, collected, consulted, and criticised as many as fifty American maps. — Kohl's Lectures on the Charts and Maps of America. The Ebeliug Collection, in the Library of Harvard College, is rich in American maps. Douglass, the author of "A Summary, Historical and Political," of the British settlements in North America, ill a letter to Cadwallader Colden, dated Sept. 14, 1729, says there was not a map of the provinces of New Enghmd but was " intolerably and grossly erroneous." The best map of America at this time was De Lisle's of 1722. In this map, Louisiana is delineated as a great region. The maps of Henry Popple of 1733 are very elaborate. The most accurate map, however, was that of the celebrated D'Anville. This was adopted by Douglass in his history. — the edition of 175-5. The map is entitled " North America, from the French of Mr. D'Anville, improved with the back settle- ments of Virginia, and course of the Ohio illustrated, with Geographical and Historical remarks." The date on this map is May, 1755. The " Gentleman's Magazine " for July, 1755, contains " A Map of the British and French Settlements in North Ameri- ca," in which the region claimed by France appears in a darker shade than the rest of the map. In 1755, Huske published " A New and Accurate Map of North Amer- ica, wherein the errors of all preceding British, French, and Dutch maps, respect- ing the rights of Great Britain, France, and Spain, and the limits of each of his majesty's provinces, are corrected." LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. lOS The splendid territory, called Florida by the Spaniards and Louisiana by the French, extended on the Atlantic coast to Carolina. Treaty stipulations between the European powers left boundary questions in such an indefinite state, the rivalry for the colonial trade was so great, and national in- terests had become so complicated, that Voltaire wrote, " A shot fired in America may be the signal of the conflagration of Europe." ^ The population of the colonies, in seventy years, increased from two hundred thousand to a million and a half. It was described as " a mixture of English, Scotch, Irish, French, Dutch, Germans, and Swedes." ^ Only small groups of Irish and Scotch were seen in the colonies in the seventeenth century; but, in the reigns of Anne and George I., oppres- sion and scarcity of food drove large numbers of them to America. They were termed Scotch-Irish. They were gen- erally Presbyterians; and wherever they settled, they adopted the usages of the Church of Scotland.^ Germans also emi- grated in large numl)ers, and chiefly into Maryland and Pennsylvania.* The African race rapidly multiplied, by fresh importations as well as by natural increase. Their numbers were estimated to be in New England eleven thousand ; in New York and in Pennsylvania, including Delaware, each eleven thousand ; in New Jersey, fifty-five hundred ; and in the other colonies two hundred and twenty- two thousand.^ The great body of them were slaves. At that period, the slave-trade was a part of the British Consti- tution,^ and a share of its gains went into the national trea- sury. All the efforts of the colonists to clieck the horrid 1 Essay on Universal History, iv. 186. 2 " Letters from an American F;irmer," and by J. Hector St. John, 4S. These letters are dated from "Carlisle in Pennsylvania" In the first letter, it is stnted, that, when it and some of the succeeding letters were written, the troubles that convulsed the colonies had not broken out. I quote from a new edition printed in 1783. Tiiey were written by a Frenchman (Crevecceur), who came over in 1754. 8 Scotch-Irish Immigrations to America by William Willis. 4 Gordon's Pennsylvania, 208. 5 Bancroft, iv. 130. 8 Henry Thomas Buckle. 104 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. . traffic were futile. English cupidity and the avarice of unnatural Americans continued to transport Africans from their native country to the colonies, and thus a terrible legacy was inflicted on posterity. All the colonies exercised powers of government under authority derived from the crown. In seven of them, the forms remained the same as they were at the close of the former period. Virginia and New York continued royal gov- ernments ; and Maryland and Pennsylvania retained their proprietary character, the three lower counties of the lat- ter becoming the independent province of Delaware. Con- necticut and Rhode Island were permitted to resume their charters. The crown decreed important territorial and political changes in the five other colonies. It granted to Massachusetts a charter which included the Plymouth juris- diction, and embraced the " Province of Maine ; " but took from the people the election of the governor. It constituted the towns of New Hampshire a separate province ; united into one colony East and West New Jersey ; divided Caro- lina into the two colonies of North Carolina and Soutli Caro- lina ; and it founded Georgia, — giving to these five colonies royal governments. The rights conveyed by charters and royal instructions were necessarily vague and indefinite; but under each form the people shared in the control of local affairs through representative assemblies. When the question of forming a union occupied the public mind, the jurisdiction of the thirteen colonies was determined, their constitutions were organized, the groundwork of their juris- prudence was laid, and the character of their inhabitants was established. A glance at tlie statistics of the population of the several sections of the country will indicate their political weight. New England had increased from 75,000, in 1688, to 436,000 in 1754 ; New York, from 20,000 to 96,000 ; Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, and Maryland, from 47,000 to 432,000 ; Virginia, from 50,000 to 284,000 ; and the Caro- LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 105 linas and Georgia, from 8,000 to 177,000.i " Some few towns excepted," a colonist wrote, " we are all tillers of the earth, from Nova Scotia to West Florida. We are a people of cultivators, scattered over an immense territory, communicating with each other by means of good roads and navigable rivers, united by the silken bands of mild gov- ernment, all respecting the laws, without dreading their power, because they are equitable."^ The homogeneity of race and the similarity of develop- ment of the New England colonies elicited remarks on them of the kind which has been quoted.^ It was said, that, as a people, the New Englanders were renowned for their love of letters and their wisdom, for their industry and their enter- prising genius, and for universal loyalty ; tliat there uever was a people, wlio, with an ungrateful soil, had done more in so short a time ; and that in their governments lay the main strength of the British interest on the continent.* 1 Bancroft (iv. 130) estimates the population of each colony, whites and blacks, in 1754, as follows: — White. Black. New England . . . Massachusetts 207,000 j New Hampshire 50,000 J ^'^^ Connecticut 133,000 3,500 Rhode Island 35,000 4,500 The Middle Colonies . New York 85,000 11,000 New Jersey 73,000 5,500 Pennsylvania ) Delaware j ^95,000 11,000 Maryland 104,000 44,000 Southern Colonies . . Virannia 168.000 116,000 North Carolina 90,000 20,000 South Carolina 40,000 40,000 Georgia 5,000 2,000 2 Letters from an American Farmer, 147. 8 See pages 44, 75. 99. 4 Letter, dated " New York, Sept. 20, 1756," attributed to Governor Livingston and two lawyers of New York. — 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 139. In the " Boston Gazette," Aug. 23, 1754, it is said, "His majesty had not a more universally loyal people in all hi.s dominions." —Letters from an American Farmer, 49. This writer says, "I know it, is fashionable to reflect on them (the New-England provinces), " but I respect them for what they have done, for the accuracy and wisdom with which they have settled their territory," &c. See also page 08 The speech of the Bishop of St. Asaph (Rev. Dr. Jonathan Shipley), intended to have been spoken in the House of Lords, and which was circulated in the American newspapers of the fall 106 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. It was remarked -that the New Euglanders " were the iTiimixed descendants of Englishmen ; " ^ and the numbers of other lineage were so few as not to affect society. This homogeneity is not seen in any other group of colo- nies. The Dutch, French, Grermans, Irish, and Scotch were so numerous in other sections as to constitute a feature of the population. This fact suggested a broad and inspiring generalization. The colonies were termed " a great Ameri- can asylum."^ In it the poor from the various nations of Europe, by some means, met together. To what pur- pose, it was said, should they ask one another what coun- trymen they were? Alas! two-thirds of them had had no country. They had been numbered in no civil list but that of the poor. They had not owned a single foot of land. Tliey had no harvests from the fields which they had tilled. Their lives had been scenes of sore affliction or of pinching penury. They had been assailed by hunger, want, and war. And they were " only as so many useless plants, wanting the vegetable mould and the refreshing showers." But in this asylum they rank as citizens. They are stamped by the laws with the symbol of adoption. They acquire lands as the reward of their industry : this gives them the title of freemen ; and to this title is affixed every benefit man can acquire. These laws proceed from the government ; and the government is derived from the original genius and strong desire of the people. This is the picture every prov- ince exhibits. This is the great chain that links us all. The country for the emigrant is that which gives him land, bread, protection, and consequence. " He is an American, of 1774, has the following allusion to the service New England rendered in the colo- nial wars: "Let us not forget that the people of New England we. e themselves, during the last war, the most forwird of all in the nationnl cause; that every year we voted them a considerable sum in acknowledgment of their zeal and their ser- vices; that in the preceding war they alone enabled us to make the Treaty of Aix- la-Chapelle, by furnishing us with the only equivalent for the towns that were taken from our allies in Flanders; and that in times of peace they alone have taken from us six times as much of our woollen manufactures as the whole kingdom of Ireland." 1 Letters from an American Farmer, 48. ^ ibid., 49. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 107 who, leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and man- ners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds. He becomes an American by being deceived in the broad lap of our great Alma Mater. Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, wliose labors and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world. Americans are the western pilgrims, who are carry- ing along with them that great mass of arts, sciences, vigor, and industry which began long since in the East. They will finish the great circle." ^ The colonies, moulded and directed by a race of freemen, continued to be treated by the mother country in the auto- cratic spirit which has been described. The revolution, pro- nounced the most beneficent of all revolutions for England,^ proved little more than a succession of an unnatural policy for America. The colonial administration of William and Mary embodied a zealous attachment to the prerogative and a stern exercise of arbitrary power .^ Royal officials, who had been imprisoned by the colonists for their oppressions, were installed governors and judges. The same spirit controlled the colonial action during most of the reigns of Queen Anne and George I. and George H. At times, decisions were wisely taken, as was the case when Sir Robert Walpole de- clined to tax America. But, in the main. Great Britain, like an unnatural parent, treated her colonies, during sev- enty years, as aliens and rivals. The superintendence of colonial affairs continued, for a few years after the accession of William, in the hands of the ^ Letters from an American Fanner, 49, 50, 51, 53. 2 Macaulay's Hii^t England, ii. 661. 8 "In the colonial administration of William III., we see the nttachment to pre- rogative of James I. and his son, the bustle of the protector, the contrariety of Charles II., and the arbitrariness of the banished king. By denying to the colonists the liberty of the press, after it had thrown off its shackles in England, he even deprived them of freedom of mind. Bj' refusing them the writ of habeas corpus, he withheld the strongest fence of personal freedom." — Chalmers's Revolt of the American Colonies, i. 307. 108 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. Privy Council. In 1696, at the instance of Lord Soraers, a board was created, entitled " The Lords of Trade and Plan- tations." At first, it consisted of a president and seven members, 'but was subsequently enlarged, and was continued through the colonial age. Several of the English statesmen, whose names are familiar to Americans, from their connec- tion with colonial politics, were members of this board. To it was assigned the duty of a general oversight of American affairs, and of recommending measures relative to the colo- nies, and it was the channel of official intercourse with them. In a circular (Sept. 26, 1696) to the governors, it required frequent and full information of the condition of their gov- ernments respecting commercial and political affairs ; and particularly accounts of the proceedings of the assemblies, of the sums assessed for the public service, and how they were expended. The royal agents in the colonies and others addressed their letters to this board. It was the lion's mouth into which the accusations and complaints against the colonies were indiscriminately cast. While the spirit and proceedings of this Board evinced a purpose to interfere in the internal affairs of the colonies, the scheme of France to extend her dominion in America was a continual menace. There were intervals of peace during the period of seventy years ; but even in these times the establisluiient of a new military station was the occasion of fresh alarm to the colonists. In the long wars that were waged, the French and their Indian allies hurled the arrows of death and desolation on the back settlements of Carolina, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, and even into the heart of New England. The English colonists felt equal to the work of defending themselves from the attacks of the French colo- nists ; but they asked that English troops might be sent over by tlie Government to meet French troops. The colonies, however, for many years were left to their own resources for their defence. Tliis external danger made that whole period one of anxiety, struggle, and sorrow ; of taxation that LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 109 pressed heavily on industry ; and of a flow of precious blood that transformed the home into the house of mourning. It can now be seen, however, that, in this providential school of adversity and of difficulty, statesmen and soldiers, imbued with the spirit of a new and rich political life, were trained in civil and in military affairs for the work of founding the republic. This common danger naturally suggested to the thought- ful the value of union to provide for the general defence. " Without a general constitution for warlike operations," it was said, " we can neither plan nor execute. We have a common interest, and must have a common council, — one head and one purse." ^ Then, as population and wealth in- creased, and commercial exchanges miiltiplied, the want was the more sensibly felt of regulations applicable to all, rela- tive to the collection of debts, the currency, weights and measures, and " to establish an equal liberty of trade in all the plantations on the continent of America." ^ It was urged, that an umpire was needed to settle the fierce dis- putes between the colonies about their boundaries. It was said, that no one could tell what was law and what was not law in the plantations, and that hence there was doubt and un- certainty in matters of the greatest moment;^ and that the 1 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 1G2. 2 Essay upon the Government of the English Plantations, &c. By an Ameri- can. London: 1701, p. 55. The writer was a Virginian. 8 The following extract from the "Essay upon the Government," &c. (1701), p. 18, describes the condition of the law in the colonial age: " It is a great unhappiness, that no one can tell what is law and what is not in the plantations. Some hold that the law of England is chiefly to be respected, and, where that is deficient, the laws of the several colonies are to take place; others are of opinion, that the laws of the colonies are to take tlie first place, and that the law of England is of force only where they are silent; others there are who contend for the laws of the colonies, in conjunction with those that were in force in England at the first settlement of the colony, and lay down that as the measure of our obedience, alleging that we are not bound to observe uny late acts of parliament in England, except such only where the reason of the law is the same here that it is in England. But, this leaving too great a latitude to the judge, some others hold that no late act of the parliament of England do bind the plantations, but those only wherein the plantations are par- ticularly named. Thus are we left in the dark in one of the most considerable points of our rights; and, the case being so doubtful, we are too often obliged to de- 110 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. chief thing wanting *to render the inhabitants of the planta- tions happy was " a free constitution." Those who advocated this averred that they desired " a just and equal govern- ment, that they might enjoy their obscurity and the poor way of living wliich nature was pleased to afford them out of the earth in peace, and be protected in the possession thereof by their lawful mother England." ^ The mode that naturally suggested itself to obtain such a constitution was through the representative principle and by a congress, or by forming a union. One of the earliest of the plans was that of the noble founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn, proposed in 1698. It is entitled " A brief and plain scheme whereby the Eng- lish colonies may be made more useful to the crown and one another's peace and safety with an universal concur- rence." It provided that each province should appoint two persons well qualified for sense, sobriety, and substance to form a congress, and to meet once a year, and oftener in time of war, and at least once in two years in times of peace ; and that this congress should mature measures for the better understanding of the colonies with each other, and promote the public tranquillity ; namely, the settlement of disputes between province and province, the prevention of injuries to commerce, and provisions for the general safety. It provided that the presiding officer of this body should be a high commissioner, appointed by the crown, who, in time of war, should command the colo- nial forces. The provision relating to supplying quotas of men and money, gives as a reason for an adjustment by congress rather than by " an establishment" in England, that the provinces knew their own condition the best, and pend upon the crooked cord of a judge's discretion in matters of the greatest moment and value." 1 " Essay upon the Government," 1701. In this early argument urging a union, the word "constitution" is repeatedly used. One constitution was advocated by one class of Americans. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. Ill could better adjust and balance their affairs for the com- mon safety. This plan recognized colonial customs, and is marked by the spirit of fraternity and patriotism, and by that aim at the common good which characterized the career of William Penn.^ In 1G98, Charles Davenant, an English writer of note, discussed elaborately the question of colonial policy in a " Discourse on the Plantation Trade." Though he advo- cated an exercise of the full power of the mother country over the colonies, yet he urged also a principle constantly put forth by them ; namely, that, in any government that might be established over them, care should be taken to 1 I copy this plan from the "New-York Colonial Documents," iv. 297. It is placed in the table of contents under the date of Feb. 8, 1698: — MR. PENN'S plan for A UNION OF THE COLONIES IN AMERICA. A brief and plain scheme how the English colonies in the North parts of America, — viz., Boston, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jerseys, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Vir- ginia, and Carolina, — may be made more useful to the crowu and one another's peace and safety with an universal concurrence. 1. That the several colonics before mentioned do meet once a year, and oftener if need be during the war, and at least once in two years in times of peace, by their stated and appointed deputies, to debate and resolve of such measures as are most advisable for their better under- standing and the public tranquillity and safety. 2. That, in order to it, two persons, well qualified for sense, sobriety, and substance, be appointed by each province as their representatives or deputies, which in the whole make the congress to consist of twenty persons. 3. That the king's commissioner, for that purpose specially appointed, shall have the chair and preside in the said congress. 4. That they shall meet as near as conveniently may be to the most central colony for ease of the deputies. 5. Since that may in all probability be New York, both because it is near the centre of the colonies and for that it is a frontier and in the king's nomination, the governor of that colony may therefore also be the king's high commissioner during the session, after the manner of Scotland. 6. That their business shall be to hear and adjust all matters of complaint or difference be- tween province and province. As, 1st, where per.sons quit their own province and go to another, that they may avoid their just debts, though they be able to pay them : 2d, where offenders fly justice, or justice cannot well be had upon such offenders in the provinces that entertain them; 3d, to prevent or cure injuries in point of commerce ; 4th, to consider the ways and means to support the union and safety of these provinces against the public enemies. In which congress the quot;is of men and charges will be much easier and more equally set than it is possible for any establishment made here to do; for the provinces, knowing their own condition and one another's, can debate that matter with more freedom and satisfaction, and better adjust and balance their affairs in all respects for their common safety. 7. That, in times of war, the king's high commissioner shall be general or chief commander of the several quotas upon service against the common enemy, as he shall be advised, for the good and benefit of the whole. 112 THE RISE OP THE EEPUBLIC. observe sacredly the charters and terms under which the emigrants, at the hazard of their lives, had effected' dis- coveries and settlements. After giving an abstract of Penn's plan of union, he commended it as a " constitution'" contrived with good jndgment, and likened it to the Grecian court of the Amphictyons. Among his suggestions is that of the formation of a " national assembly " for the consid- eration of all matters relative to the general welfare ; and one of his liberal remarks is, that the stronger and greater the colonies grow, " the more they would benefit the crown and the kingdom ; and nothing but such an arbitrary power as shall make them desperate can bring them to rebel." i In 1701, a Virginian printed in London " An Essay upon the Government of the English Plantations on the Conti- nent," in which the schemes of Penn and Davenant are sharply criticised. He held it to be a defect in the plan for the proposed general assembly, that it should consist of an equal number of deputies from each province, when the colonies were so vastly different in numbers, extent of ter- ritory, and the value of their trade ; and he suggested what he regarded as a more equal apportionment.^ He held that it would be unreasonable that the province of New York and its governor should be advanced in dignity above the rest of the colonies and their governors, as would be the case if the general council always met in New York, and its 1 " Davenant's Works," ii. 11. He thought that the danger that New England or other parts would set up manufactures was very remote, as this was the last work of a people settled three or four hundred j'ears. 2 The writer of the essay (p. 69) proposed the deputies should be as follows: Virginia, four; Maryland, three; New York, two; Boston, three; Connecticut, two; Rhode Island, two; Pennsylvania, one; the two Carolinas, one ; and each of the two Jerseys, one. The title of this essay is as follows : " An Essay upon the Govern- ment of the English Plantations on the Continent of America. Together with some remarks upon the Discourse on the Plantation Trade, written by the author of the Essay on Ways and Means, and published in the second part of his Discourses on the Public Revenues, and on the Trade of England. By an American. London: 1701." LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 113 governor was the high commissioner. He proposed to obvi- ate this objection by forming five circuits, in each of which, in its turn, the deputies should hold their meetings. This would enable them to become informed as to the condition of the whole continent, and it would tend to make the most considerable persons of each province personally acquainted. It would be looked upon as a part of a genteel education for the sons of the deputies to go in their company to these conventions. This essay urged the general considera- tions which have been already stated in favor of such a union. In 1722, Daniel Coxe, who held several high offices in New Jersey, printed a volume at London, intended to call public attention to the designs of France. He proposed that all the British colonies on the continent should be " united under a legal, regular, and firm establisliment, over which a lieutenant or supreme governor should be constituted and appointed to preside on the spot, to whom the governors of each colony should be subordinate ; " that " two deputies should be annually elected by the council and assembly of each province, who are to be in the nature of a great coun- cil or general convention of the states of the colonies," to ;Consult for the good of the whole, and fix on the quotas of men or money that each government was to raise for the mutual defence, in which the governor-general was to have a negative ; and that the quota of each colony " should be levied and raised by its own assembly in such manner as they should judge most easy and convenient." Other pro- visions were left for future consideration. Coxe enforced this proposal in a spirited strain of remark. He portrayed the folly of the past disunion of the colonies, and urged that " a coalition or union would lay a sure and lasting foundation of dominion, strength, and trade." — "Let us consider," he said, " the fall of our ancestors, and grow wise by their misfortunes. If the ancient Britons had been united amongst themselves, the Romans, in all probability, 8 114 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. had never become tlieir masters : " they fought in separate bodies, and the whole ishind was subdued.^ Tliese citations serve to sliow tlie germs of the union that grew into favor. It was to be formed on the basis of repre- sentation ; to be as extensive as the continent ; to be under one constitution ; and, while protecting the rights and in- terests of the colonists, was to be consistent with loyalty to the crown. But no great event had occurred to create a fraternal feeling between the colonies. Their rivalries were sharp, and their interests were distinct. Nor was there the common bond of joint memories. Though they were by no means political orphans, yet their sentiment of nationality was rooted in the glories of the mother country. Then whatever growing disposition to favor union there might have been was checked by the fact, that royal officials and others zealously urged this great step as a means to pro- mote the objects which they had in view. The party of the prerogative recommended union, or rather unity, during the whole period of seventy years. They regarded with alarm the growth of popular power in the colonies, and as a means to check it, they continually petitioucd,^ that- the various local governments might be con- 1 Daniel Coxe was a son of a large land proprietor, had resided fourteen years in America, been speaker of the New Jersey Assembly, and had visited the most con- siderable colonies. His book is entitled " A Description of the English Province of Caro'ana, by the Spaniards called Florida, and by the French La Louisiane," &c. London, 1722. He was a judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, and died in otlice at Trenton, in May, 1739 — Smith's New Jersey, 427. '^ Petitions of this character were sent over even bef ire the formation of the Lords of Trade Thus the Governor and Council of New York, after elaborate argument, Fii}-, in a petition (Aug. 6, 1691) to the king, ''There can be nothing in America more conducive to your majesty's dignitj' and advantage, and for the safety of your majesty's subjects upon this continent, than that Connecticut, East and West New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the three lower cimnties (Delaware), be re-annexed to your majesty's province (New York), which will then be a government of sufficient ex- tent.^' The main grievance alleged is a violation of the laws of trade. Nelson, of New York, in a memorial (Sept. 2-i, 1691), says, " I am now to make another remark on the principal and greatest defect and mistake in which we have been and are yet under. I mean the number and independency of so man}' small governments, whereby our strength is not only divided and weakened, but, b}' reason of their several interests, are become and do esteem each as foreigners, the one unto the other. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 115 solidatcd into one government over all the colonies, or at least into two or more largo and powerfnl governments. Some recommended the establislunent of a nobility. With this was connected the suggestion of taxation by parlia- ment. This line of recommendation had so much weight with the Lords of Trade, and harmonized so completely with their views and designs, that a remodelling of tlie internal affairs of the colonies and unity became at length the corner-stones of their policy. The petitions for the appointment of a general governor, and for a consolidation of the colonies, elicited, in 1697, an elaborate report in the Board on this subject. After stating the arguments of those who opposed this measure, the Report says that it required the exercise of a higher power, and was at that time impracticable. It, however, recom- mended to the crown the appointment of a military head of the several colonies. Accordingly, Lord Bellamont was soon commissioned as captain-general over the provinces of New Jersey, New York, New Hampshire, and Massachu- setts. In 1701, Robert Livingston, of New York, in a letter to the Lords of Trade, recommended that " one form of gov- ernment be established in all the neighboTing colonies on this continent," and that they be grouped into three divi- sions or unions. He proposed to divide Connecticut be- tween two of these governments, thus ignoring its charter- so that whatever mischiefs doth happen in one part, the rest, by the reason of this disunion, remain unconcerned and our strength thereby weakened ; wliereas, were the colonies of New England, Hampshire, Rhode Is^land, Connecticut, New York joined in one," &c. — New-York Col. Doc , iv. 209. Colonel Robert Quarry, in a me- morial addressed (June 16, 1703) to the Lords of Trade, gave an elaborate description of the internal concerns of the colonies, and especially as to the political opinions prevalent in them. He was high in the confidence of the Government, and wjs judge of admiralty in New York and Pennsylvania. He writes, "I may now say, that now or never is the time to support the queen's prerogative, and put a stop to those wrong, pernicious notions, which are improving daily, not only in Virginia, but in iill her majesty's governments. ... I cannot recommend a more effectual means than what I formerly mentioned, — the reducing all her majesty's govern- ments on the main under one constitution and government as near as possible." 116 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. privileges. He presented the solid argument in favor of his scheme, that, as the work of defence was a general concern, so it ought to be a general charge.^ In 1752, Archibald Kennedy, the receiver-general of New York, recommended a scheme of union in a pamphlet printed in London. He proposed that commissioners from all the colonies should meet annually in New York or Albany, to determine on the quotas each should contribute for the general defence, and that the exaction of these quotas should be enforced by act of parliament. He said, " From upwards of forty years' observations upon the con- duct of our colonial assemblies, and the little regard paid by them to instructions, if it is left altogether with them, the whole will end in altercation and words." He proposed to confer power on the commissioners to lay out and allot the lands on the frontiers of the colonics in townships, after the New-England manner, each to have sufficient territory for sixty families, an.d to be clear of all taxes and quit-rents for ten years, and also power to erect forts and block- houses and to regulate the trade with the Indians. He proposed that the colonies should jointly pay the expense of transporting emigrants to these townships. He referred to the provinces that formed the republic of Holland as a model for such a union, remarking that the very name of such a confederacy would strike terror into the French, and in twenty years put the whole fur-trade into British hands.^ In 1752, Governor Dinwiddle, of Virginia, recommended to the Board of Trade the formation of two great political 1 This scheme of Livingston, dated Maj' 13, 1701, recommended to the Lords of Trade, " That one form of goverment be established in all the neighboring colonies on this continent. That they be divided into three distinct governments, to wit: — "That Virginia and Mar}'land be annexed to South and North Carolina. " That some part of Connecticut, New York, East and West New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, and New Castle be added together. " And that to the Massachusetts be added New Hampshire and Rhode Island and the rest of Connecticut." — New-York Col. Doc, iv. 874. 2 Importance of Gaining and Preserving the Friendship of the Indians, &c. London, 1752. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 117 divisions, — the northern and the southern ; and, connected with it, a scheme for an alliance between tlie Indians and all the British Indians on the continent. He urged this plan with great zeal. The above review of the propositions for the formation of an American constitution shows the conception of union entertained by the popular party and by the prerogative men. They harmonized to a certain extent in their objects and views. They agreed in deploring the increasing evils of distinct and rival communities,^ in looking forward with confidence to benefits that would flow from a common polity, and in aiming at the statesman-like object of uni- formity in the laws. Both parties looked with pride on their connection with the mother-country, and desired such a constitution as would be consistent with their obligation to the crown. But the differences between the two par- ties in objects and views in other things were important and vital. One party desired such a union as would rec- ognize and protect the customs and privileges, the capaci- ties and powers, the native traits of the American, — his spirit of freedom and equality, — the new society which had grown up naturally as the new race hewed their way into tlie wilderness and built up communities : the other party regarded this spectacle of a social system without an estab- lished aristocracy, or religion, or a nobility,^ or hereditary 1 Governor Hunter wrote to the Lords of Trade in 1715, " It is matter of wonder, that hitherto no effectual method has been thought of for uniting the div'ided strength of these provinces on the continent for the defence of the whole" — New-York Col. Doc, V. 417. 2 Francis Bernard, in his " Priaciples of Law and Polity," &c., written in 1764, after he had been governor of New Jersey and while governor of JNIassachusetts, printed in London, says (83), "To settle the American governments to the greatest possible advantage, it will be necessary to reduce the number of them ; in some places to unite and consolidate; in others to separate and transfer; and in general to divide by natural boundaries instead of imaginarj' lines. If there should be but one form of government established for the North-American provinces,- it would greatly facilitate the reformation of them. ... A nobility, appointed by the king for life and made independent, would probablj'- give strength and stability to th" Ameri- can governments as effectuallj' as hereditary nobility does to that of Great Britain." He thought America would not be ripe for an hereditary nobility for many 3'ears to rome. 118 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. rulers, as dangerous.; and looked at the instrumentality of union, not merely to provide for the common defence, but to curb tho rising popular power. One party sought union to establish equality of trade : the other party sought union to enforce the mercantile system. One party aimed to pre- serve the principle of local self-government in full vigor: the other party aimed to abridge its powers by the process of absorption, centralization, and consolidation. One party, in the conviction that reason would in time bring the colo- nies together, were in favor of a voluntary union : the other party, who regarded force to be all in all of government, advocated a compulsory union, with the design of having it enforced by an act of parliament. I have not l)een unmindful of the fact, that congresses ^ 1 It may be useful to state a few facts relating to these congresses. It would extend the note too ftr to name all the interviews of governors with the Indians, and I select the most important. 1684. — A convention was held at Albany, consisting of officials representing Virginia, New York, Massachusetts, and Marj'land, and the sfichems of the Five Nations. See page 86. 1693. — Governor Fletcher, of New York, pursuant to a circular from the king, proposed a meeting of commissioners from the New England governments, Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, to be held at New York, to agree upon the quota of men and money each should contribute for the common defence. He says (New-York Col. Doc, iv. 74) that "some sent commissioners, others none. Those that came pretended they could not proceed to act without a full meeting; so that design was frustrated." 1694, Aug. 15. — Governor Fletcher, of New York; Governor Hamilton, of New Jersey; John Pynchon, Samuel Sewall, and Penn Townsend, of Massachusetts; and John Allen and Caleb Stanley, of Connecticut, as commissioners, met at Albany- to hold a treat}' with the Five Nations. Twenty-five sachems were present, who were accompanied by other Indians. — Holmes's Annals, i. 451. The object of the treaty was to prevent the Five Nations from making a peace with the French. Rev. Benja- min Wadsworth went with the Massachusetts commissioners. His journal is in 4 Mass. Coll., i. 102. 1709, Oct. 14. — At the request of Colonel Vetch, a congress of several governors was held at New London, to consult on an intended expedition against Canada. The British fleet not arriving as was expected, nothing was done. — Hutchinson's Mass., ii. 161; Gordon, i. 104. 1711, June 21. — In June, General Nicholsm aiTived at Boston with the news that a fleet might be expected soon, and with her majesty's orders to attack Canada: bearing orders that the governments of New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania should have their quotas in readiness. A congress of governors was held at New London, on the 21st, who agreed upon the quotas for the several colo- LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 119 and conventions were held at intervals during the period I have reviewed. They were convened under the authority nies. The offieiuls mentioned as present are Hunter, Dudley, Saltonstall, Cranston, and Schuyler. The expedition under Nicholson and Walker met with disaster. — New-York Col. Doc, v. 257. Another congress was called this j'ear at the suggestion of General Nicholson and Colonel Vetch. The circular is dated Boston, Nov. 13, 1711, and commences, " The underwritten governors and persons deputed from her ma- jesty's government of the Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Khode Island, having used all means to obtain service of the Five Nations, dependent upon his majesty's government of New York, in the cummon service against the French and Indians of Canada, that have these nine years last past annoyed those her majesty's provinces, and at last moved a congress of the governors and deputy of the aforesaid governments to obtain the services of the Six Nations which we can come at." This circular was signed b}' Penn Townsend and Andrew Belcher of the Council of the Massachusetts Bay, and Addington Davenport and Thomas Hutchin- son of the assembly; Samuel Penhallow of the council and Thomas Atkinson of the assembly of New Hampshire; also by Ff. Nicholson and Samuel Fetch. — Mass. Ar- chives, ii. 454. Governor Hunter, in a reply dated Nov. 26, 1711, said he would lay the scheme before the assembly, and they (Smith's New York, 148) declared against it. 1722, Sept. 10. — A congress was held at Albany, at which were present Gov- ernor Keith and four members of the Council of Pennsylvania, the governor and seven "commissioners for Indian atFairs"from New York, and the chiefs of the Five Nations. Tanachaha was the Ind'an speaker. His words were translated into Dutch, and then by llobert Livingston into English. The former league was re- newed. The "Historical Register" for 1723 has the proceedings. Another con- gress was held at the same place on the 14th of September, which was attended by Burnett of New York, Spottswood of Virginia, and Keith of Pennsylvania. — New- York Col. Doc, V. 567. 1744, June. — A congress was held at Lancaster, Penn. It consisted of commis- sioners from Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. They held a treaty with, the deputies of Six Nations, who, with their followers and attendants, were two hun- dred and tifty-two. The journal of the secretary of the Maryland commissioners is in 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 172-201 ; Bancroft, iii. 455. 1748, July 23. — A congress was held at Albany to cultivate friendship with the Six Nations and their ailies, and keep them in dependence on England. It con- sisted of the governor of New York, George Clinton, and Cadwallader Colden, Philip Livingston, James Delancy, and Archibald Kennedy of the New-York Council; the governor of Massachusetts, William Shirley, Thomas Hutchinson, Andrew Oliver, and John Choate as commissioners. There were present officers of " The Independ- ent Company" and several gentlemen of New York and Massachusetts, and a greater number of Indians than any person living had seen before there. The Indians promised to send no delegation to Canada, and to keep their warriors in readiness whenever the English should call for them. — New- York Col. Doc , vi. 437. Clinton and Shirley, in a joint letter to the Lords of Trade, Aug. 18, 1748, advised that the quotas each colony was to raise should be fixed by royal instruction: and that it was requisite "to think of some measure to enforce them." Oliver. Hutchinson, and Choate of Massachusetts united in a similar memorial. — Bun- croft, iv. 29. 120 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of the crown. They were called to fix on the quotas of men and money which each colony was expected to raise for the common defence, and to hold treaties with the Indians. They were composed of governors, or prominent characters, called usually commissioners. The details rela- ting to these congresses are voluminous, and the proceedings not without interest and importance. The treaty concluded in 1744, at Lancaster, with the Indians, was appealed to by the English in the beginning of the great struggle for do- minion in America, to fortify their title to the soil as against France. The prominent members of the congress of 1748 petitioned the king that measures might be taken to compel the colonies to contribute their quotas for the common de- fence ; it being considered a vital object to preserve peace with the Six Nations. In the congress of 1751, Governor Clinton of New York, as he handed a belt to their chiefs, told them that one of the commissioners was from South Carolina, which, being a great way off, had never sent one before. He said, " I now, by this belt, in your father the king of Great Britain's name, and in behalf of all his ma- jesty's subjects in North America, renew and confirm the covenant chain. ... If all the Indian nations united in friendship with Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, 1751, July 6. — Governor George Clinton invited all the goveraors from New Hampshire to South Carolina to join with him in an interview with the Six Nations, and the other nations depending on them, to defeat the intrigues of the French, and to prevent their encroachments on the Indian territory which Great Britain claimed under the treaty of Utrecht. He also invited the colonies to send proper presents to make to the Indians; but the assemblies, including that of New York, generally de- clined, excepting Massachusetts, Connecticut, and South Carolina. The latter sent a commissioner and six Indian delegates, together with a present, much too small, however, to answer a good purpose. — Clinton's Letter, Jan. 13, 175 1. This was the first time South Carolina sent commissioners to a Congress. 'Ihe six Indians were from the Catawbas, who had been the hereditary enemies of the Six Nations. Tho commissioners were from New York, Governor Clinton, and of the council Cadwalla- der Colden, James Alexander, James Delancy, and Edward Holland; from Massa- chusetts, Jacob Wendell, Joseph Dvviglit, and Oliver Partridge; from Connecticut Willinm Pitkin and John Chester; and from South Carolina William Bull, Jr. '"A Journal of the Commissioners" of Massachusetts is in "Mass. Archives," xxxviii. 160. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 121 this government (New York), Connecticut, Massachusetts Bay, New Hampshire, were truly and firmly united in the same council with love and friendship, how great would that power he ! What dread it would strike all their ene- mies ! And who would dare attempt to hurt them ! " The proceedings of these congresses show a habit of joint action in colonial affairs, and embrace much Indian talk. They were not, however, connected with popular movements ; but they belong to the order of events that occur and leave no marked impress on the times. The crown was exceedingly jealous of any movement of the colonies in behalf of concert of action, without its sanc- tion. It was not unusual for the general assemblies to cor- respond with each other, without the intervention of the executive, in relation to the common defence. In 1697, the Massachusetts Assembly addressed a circular letter to the assemblies as far south as Maryfand, describing the state of the colonial forces at Newfoundland, and asking aid for them ; ^ and, in 1723, it sent a similar letter to the neighboring governments, inviting their co-operation in the war against the Indians. About this time the same assembly suggested that a convention of the colonies should be held, which was pronounced at the Board of Trade a mutinous proposal.2 A convention of the ministers was held in Bos- ton in 1725. In view of a great and visible decay of piety, " the growth of many miscarriages," and the fact that forty years had passed since the churches had held a synod, the convention agreed on an address to the general court, ask- ing it to appoint the time to hold one. The two branches disagreed, and the matter was postponed.^ On hearing of this proposition, the Lord's Justices, in a letter, repri- manded those officials who had assented to it, terming the proposition an invasion of his majesty's supremacy.* The above narrative of events having a bearing on the 1 Mass. Archives, iii. 58. 2 Hutchinson's Mass., iii. 119. 8 Ibid , ii. 293. ■* Mass. Archives, Hi. 301. 122 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. idea of union embraoes many facts which show the condi- tion of self-government. The development of this prin- ciple was seen in social life, as the American, imbued with a spirit of individual freedom, went on quietly creating his own proper sphere of action as the unit of a free State. He was met by laws enacted by parliament forbidding him to manufacture certain articles and restricting him in the petty detail of trade. This incited him to reason on the natural right of labor to choose its fields, and to enjoy its earnings.^ His conclusions, after a manner, justified the practice which ignored such laws as violated the most sa- cred rights of mankind.^ It is easy now to see that this was a part of the process in America of solving the prob- lem, how a large measure of individual liberty may be combined with obedience to every requirement of just law, how a high degree of self-government may exist and be con- sistent with the performance of every patriotic duty to the nation. Again, it is easy to see that this development of individual freedom was quietly undermining the old pater- nal theory of government. This was based on the idea that the body of the people do not possess the capacity to take care of their own personal concerns, but require to be con- trolled in their dress, diet, business, and opinions. I can, however, only thus casually refer to the social side of this subject, — the theme in hand requiring an adherence to facts more strictly political. 1 The succession of acts discouraging the Americans from manufacturing — too often related to need more than a reference — provoked sharp queries. In the " Boston Gazette" of April 29, 1765, is the following: " Whose natural right is in- fringed by the erection of an American windmill, or the occupation of a watermill on a man's own land, provided he does not flood his neighbors ? . . . A colonist cannot make a button, a horseshoe, nor a nob-nail, but some sooty ironmonger or respectable button-maker of Britain shall bawl and squall that his honor's worship is most egregiously maltreated, injured, cheated, and robbed by the rascally American re- publicans." 2 McCulloch's Smith, 261. Smith remarks (262), that, though the policy of Great Britain was dictated by the same mercantile spirit as that of other nations, it had, upon the whole, been less illiberal and oppressive than that of any of them. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 123 The fidelity of the colonists to the principle of local self- government was constant throngh the whole of this period (1090 to 17*30). It is an interesting fact, that Europeans, by advertisements in tracts and newspapers, were promised, on their arrival and settlement in America, a share in making the laws under whicli they were to live. This formed, to many, one of the inducements to leave their na- tive land, and meet the hardships in the life of a pioneer. The promise was vague in its terms ; but there were no such exceptions in the charters or the advertisements as that immigrants, in their new liomes, should not be allowed to make their own clothes, should not work up their rags into paper, should not carry the wool which they might grow over a river to a market, should not sell a hat to each other. And even after the acts severely restrictive on labor were passed, it might have been said, to do away with the unfavorable impression, that tliey were in a great measure inoperative' in the colonies.^ It was held out as an induce- ment to emigrate, that the lands were so productive as to render it certain that industry would enable the emigrant to better his condition, and that he would enjoy large civil liberties. The colonies held these liberties under general powers derived from the crown. As time rolled on, they were more and more prized, as they were embodied in their free institu- tions. Ardent as was the attachment of the people of each colony to its local polity, still they went beyond it to meet and satisfy the great sentiment of country. They claimed to be in partnership with a noble empire. They regarded their connection with the mother country to be a fountain of good. They looked upon the English Constitution as their own. It was said in the press, " Our Constitution is English, wliich is another name for free and hyppy ; and 1 Governor Bernard, in a letter dated Jan. 7, 1764, says, " The publication of orders for the strict execution of the Molasses Act has caused a greater alarm in this country than tlie talving of Fort William Henry did in 1757." 124 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. is without doubt the perfectest model of civil government tliat has ever been in the world." ^ The colonists claimed the advantage of the great moral discoveries of Habeas Corpus and Trial by Jury, of a Popular Representation and a Free Press.^ It was tbrough the provisions of law that had grown up under their local governments that these dis- coveries, fraught with perennial blessings, were brought to their doors. In a word, they aimed to preserve their liber- ties and also to preserve their union with Great Britain. The banner of St. George was to the subject in the colonial age what tlie flag of the Stars and Stripes is to the citizen of the United States. The royal governors, in dealing with the representative branches of their several governments, came directly in con- tact with this development of self-government. They re- garded some of the pretensions set up by the general assemblies as invasions of the royal prerogative. They characterized the colonies as imbued with pernicious politi- cal principles, as animated by a spirit of disobedience to law, and as aiming at throwing off their dependence on the crown.^ They were continually invoking a vigorous asser- tion of the prerogative, or of the power of parliament, by remodelling the local governments, and with a view of checking the growth of popular power. These representations were sent to successive British 1 Independent Advertiser, May 29, 1749. 2 Sir James Mackintosh (Edinburgh Review. Oct. 1821) says, " The glory of England is the establishment of liberty in a great empire. To her belong the great moral discoveries of Habeas Corpus and Trial by Jury, of a Popular Representation and a Free Press. These institutions she sent forth with her colonies into the wilder- ness. . By these institutions they have grown into a great nation." 3 In 1701. when a court in New Hampshire refused to allow an appeal to the king, the Lords of Trade wrote to Lord Bellamonr, •' This declining to admit appeals to his majestj' in council is a matter that you ought very carefully to watch against in fill your governments. It is a humor that prevails so much in proprietary and charter colonies, and the independency thej' thirst after is now so notorious, that it has been thought fit these considerations, together with otlier objections against these colonies should be laid before parliament; and a bill has thereupon been brought into the House of Lords for re-uniting the right of government in thir colonies tased to order a sum of money to be issued for presents to the Six Nations of Indians, and to direct, his governor of New York to hold an interview 132 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. p+riicted them first to protest against any encroachments on his majesty's dominions ; and, if this should prove unavail- ing, then to use their best endeavors to muster tlie militia of the colonies, and repel force by force. The Lords of Trade, in a letter of the 18th of September, 1753, sent to several of the governors, required them to recommend to their respective assemblies to appoint commissioners to meet in convention, and hold a treaty with the Six Nations ; and, by making presents and in other ways, prevent them from aiding the French, or uniting with the Indians under French influence. The objects of the proposed convention, more precisely specified, were to determine whether the colonies would " confirm and establish the ancient friendship of the Five Nations," and would " enter into articles of union and confederation with each other for the mutual defence of his majesty's subjects and interests in North America, as well in time of peace as war." The governor of New York, in a separate letter, was directed to fix on the time and place for holding the convention, and "to take care that all the provinces be comprised, if practicable, in one general trea- ty." This was the second call for an American congress based on the principle of representation, or for a body to be composed of delegates chosen by the several assemblies. with them for delivering those presents, for burying the hatchet, and for renewing the cove- nant chain with them, we think it our duty to acquaint you therewith. And as we find it has been usual, upon former occasions, when an interview has been held with those Indians, for all his majesty's colonies whose interest and security is connected with and depends upon them, to join in such interview ; and as the present disposition of those Indians, and the attempts which have been made to withdraw them from the British interest, appears to us to make such a general interview more particularly necessary at this time, — we desire you will lay this matter before the council and general assembly of the province under your government, and recommend to them forthwith to make a proper provision for appointing commissioners, to be joined with those of the other governments, for renewing the covenant chain with the Six Nations, and for making such presents to them as has been usual on the like occa,sions. And we desire, that, in the choice and nomination of commissioners, you will take care that they are men of character, ability, and integrity, and well acquainted with Indian nff;iirs. As to the time and place of meeting, it is left to the governor of New York to fix it ; and he has orders to give you early notice of it. — We are, sir, Your very loving friends and humble servants. Dunk Halifax. Jam : Grenville. Whitehall, Sept. 18, 1753. Dupplin. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 133 This proposition of the crown connected two objects, which require to be kept distinct from each other in a nar- rative, as they were in the public mind. Over half a century before, the colonists had earnestly called the attention of the ministry to the claims and en- croachments of the Frencli. One of their early petitions to the king termed Canada " the nnhappy fountain whence had issued all their miseries ; " ^ and since the sack of Schenec- tady, its roductiun had been a passion with them. Tbe blood they had shed in the battle-fields of three colonial wars attested their heroism and patriotism. They welcomed the decision of the crown as implying an assurance that a great burden was about to be removed, and some of the colonies enthusiastically prepared to second the efforts of the gov- ernment. It is only necessary to refer to the interesting train of events that opened the great field of war ; the pro- ceedings of the Ohio Company in occupying a large tract of western territory ; the expulsion by the French of Ameri- can traders from the banks of the Ohio ; the mission of George Washington, and his early campaigns in the wilds of America. A speech he delivered to his command, on formally proclaiming war, is characteristic of the patriotism that was personified in his long career, and of the loyalty that animated the Americans. " Let us," Washington said, " show our willing obedience to the best of kings, and, by a strict attachment to his royal commands, demonstrate the love and loyalty we bear to his sacred person ; let us, by rules of unerring bravery, strive to merit his royal favor, and a better establishment as a reward for our services." ^ 1- Representation of Lieutenant-governor and Council of Massachusetts to the king, Sept. 24, 1756. This prays his majesty " to take under his royal consideration the reducing of Canada." 2 War was not formally declared between France and England, until May 19, 1756. Washington, then a colonel, was at Winchester. The address contained in tiie following letter is not referred to by Marshall, Sparks, Irving, or other biographers whose works I have seen. I copy from the " Pennsylvania Gazette " of Sept. 16, 1756: "Winchester, Aug. 17, 1756. On Sunday, Colonel Washington liaving re- ceived his majesty's declaration of war against the French king, with the governor's 134 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. There was not merely a public opinion in favor of the expul- sion of the French, but a conviction that it was essential to the security of the colonies. The proposition of the crown for a convention to form a union was differently received. It was submitted and ear- nestly urged by governors who had been zealous for the royal prerogative. Indeed, the executive whom the crown had instructed to rule New York in the spirit of James II., was selected to take the lead in this vital measure.^ The Ian- command to proclaim it in the most solemn manner, he ordered the three companies of the Virginia regiment at this place to appear under arms on the grand parade, at three o'clock on the evening of the next day; when, attended by the principal gentle- men of this town, they marched in regular order to Fort London, where, the soldiery being properly drawn up, the declaration was read aloud, his majesty's and many other loyal healths were drank, success to his ninjesty's arms, and a total extirpa- tion of the French out of America, under a triple discharge of the artillery and three rounds of musketry, with loud acclamations of the people. After this, they marched in regular order round the town, proclaimed it at the cross streets, and, being returned to the grand parade, it was again read, and the men dismissed by Colonel Washington with the following exhortation : ' You see, gentlemen soldiers, that it has pleased our most gracious sovereign to declare war in form against the French king, and (for divers good causes, but more particularly for their ambitious usurpa- tions and encroachments on his American dominions) to pronounce all the said French king's subjects and vassals to be enemies to his crown and dignity, and hath willed and required all his subjects and people, and in a more especial manner com- manded his captain-general of his forces, his governors, and all other his command- ers and officers, to do and execute all acts of hostility in the prosecution of this just and hnnorable war; and though our utmost endeavors can contribute but little to the advancement of his majesty's honor and the interest of his governments, yet let us show our willing obedience to the best of kings, and, by a strict attachment to his royal commands, demonstrate the love and loj'alty we bear to his sacred person ; let us, by rules of unerring bravery, strive to merit his royal favor, and a better estab- lishment as a reward for our services.' " 1 The spirit of the government is embodied in the instructions of the Lords of Trade to the governor of New York, dated Aug. 13, 1753; and it is worthy of remark that they were printed in the American papers and in the " Gentleman's Maga- zine " of February, 1754. In the preamble, his majesty avers that the assembly had "trampled upon" the royal prerogative and authority-; had assumed to them- selves the disposal of the public money; and that some of the council had "joined and concurred with the assembly "in these unwarrantable measures. The gover- nor was directed to recommend a permanent revenue for defraying the necessary charges of the government, and to take care that "such law shall be indefinite and without limitation." All monej^s raised for the supply of the government were to be applied by a warrant from the governor and council, though the assembly were to be permitted, from time to time, "to view and examine the accounts of money disposed of." Horace Walpole said that " these instructions seemed better calculated for the latitude of Mexico, and for a Spanish tribunal, than for a free, rich, British settlement" LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 135 guage of the governors, in submitting the proposition to tlie assemblies, was earnest, higli-toned, and patriotic, and con- tained no allusions to alterations in the local constitutions or to taxation. Their spirit is seen in the messages of Governors Shirley of Massachusetts, and Belcher of New Jersey. They portrayed in glowing terms the progress of the French, as marked by their line of forts from Canada to the mouth of the Mississippi ; their denial of the right of the. English to trade with the Indians ; the danger the colo- nies would be in, should the sixteen thousand warriors of the Six Nations go over to the French ; the wisdom of estab- lishing " one general league of friendship comprising all his majesty's colonies," and the proof of paternal care his majesty had given in directing the governors to promote this union. " In forming this union," Shirley said, " there is no time to be lost. The French seem to have advanced themselves further towards making themselves masters of the continent within the last five or six years than they have done since the first beginning of their settlements upon it." These messages announced that the convention would be held at Albany on the 14th of June.^ The enthusiasm in behalf of this measure was confined to the circle of royal officials. The newspapers contain but few references to it. I have not met with an account of a single public meeting in favor of it. The " Philadelphia Gazette," conducted by Franklin, had the union device with the motto " Join or Die;"^ and the measure was urged in pamphlets. Only seven of the assemblies appointed commissioners. 1 The speech of Governor Shirley is dated April 2, 1754, and occupies one half of the "Boston Gazette" of April 30. The speech of Governor Belcher of New Jersey is dated April 25,1754; and it gave rise to an acrimonious ditipute between the executive and the assembly. The messages that passed between them were copied into the Boston papers. 2 This device is appended to a spirited piece, dated Philadelphia, May 9, describ- ing the ten'or occasioned by the assaults of the French, copied into the " Boston Gazette" pf May 21, 1754. The following is an extract: "The confidence in the French in this undertaking seems well grounded on the present disunited state of the British colonies, and the extreme difficulty of bringing so many different govern 136 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The Congress met on the 19th of June,^ 1751, at Albany, an old, compact Dutch city of about three hundred houses and twenty-sis hundred inhabitants.^ It was enclosed by pickets on the side of tlie forest, was protected on the other side by the Hudson River, and had a fort built of stone. Here the whites for a long time had held treaties with the Indians. It was soon to be the base of important military operations. There was then a condition of actual war. France was moving troops into the Valley of the Missis- sippi ; and all the colonies were in the utmost confusion and hurry from the approaching danger.^ Some were sending out their youth to the frontier ; but others, under various pre- texts, were shamefully neglectful of their duty."* In Maine, Governor Shirley, at the head of a thousand militia, was preparing to meet attacks in that quarter. In the basin of the Ohio, Washington, in the skirmish with the Frencli merits and assemblies to agree in any speedy and effectual measures for our common defence and security, while our enemies have the very great advantage of being under one direction, with one council and one purse." The press of this period contain spirited appeals. The "Pennsylvania Gazette " of Sept. 5, 1774, says that its "object is to present such considerations as tend to rouse you up from that lethargy which seems everywhere to prevail amongst us." " The sword is coming, the alarm is sounded, and, if you will not hear, you must answer for the blood of all those who shall hereafter be slain through j^our neglect: you will have to answer both for the temporal and spiritual ruin of your posterity." The " New- York Weekly Gazette " (September 23) had a " summary view " of the state of the Continent, with reference to the French. It says: " 'Within the legal and rightful dominions of our king are the forts and settlements which this perlid- ious and restless nation have erected, and are now strengthening themselves in the possession of, at Ohio, as it is commonly called. This is the finishing stroke of their ambitious and highly to be dreaded encroachments. This calls aloud upon the whole British continent of America, to rise as one man, to enter into a well-concerted, an united, an active, a vigorous and resolute plan, against these, our faithless, usurp ing, insolent enemies." 1 Though the convention was called for the 14th, the members did not meet until the 19th. 2 New-York Doc. Hist., i. 696. 8 London Magazine for August, 1754, 361. Letter, dated Wi.lliamsburgh, June 4. 4 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 72. " They contemned the power of Canada; confided in the number of their inhabitants; inattentive were they to the inconveniences of an endless frontier; and, in short, entirely' unacquainted with the situation of the in- land country. The waters of the Ohio, before this period, were scarcely known, save to a few Indian traders; and the generality deemed those French settlements too remote to be the object of dread, and a matter of insignificant moment." LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 137 under Jumouville, had fired the shot which proved the sig- nal of the first war of revolution.^ The Congress, convened at tlie City Hall, consisted of five connnissioners from Massacluisctts, four from New Hamp- shire, three from Connecticut, two from Rhode Island, four from Pennsylvania, two from Maryland, and tlie lieutenant- governor, witli four of the council, of New York, — twenty- five in all. Among them were some of the most considerable men, both for abilities and fortunes, of North America. ^ Thomas Hutchinson of Massachusetts had been in public life for eighteen years, had rendered valuable service, and had evinced such varied ability, that he was spoken of as the greatest and best man in America.-^ Tlieodore Atkinson, the chief-justice of New Hampshire, was eminent as a jurist; and Meshecli Weare, speaker of the assembly of this colony, was subsequently one of the substantial patriots of the Revo- lution, as was Stephen Hopkins of Rliode Island, who signed the Declaratioii of Independence. Roger Wolcott, jr., was a judge of the Connecticut superior court. James Delancy, of great fortune and large ambition, the lieutenant-gover- nor of New York, was figuring conspicuously as a political leader. He was a champion of the prerogative. William Smitli of the council, famed for classic lore and eminent as a lawyer, had been one of the counsel for Zeiiger, in the great trial involving the liberty of the press. William John- son, soon to be made a baronet, was born in Ireland. He had lived many years in the Valley of the Mohawk like a 1 Bancroft, iv. 118. The " London Magazine " for August, 1754, has Washing- ton's letter to his brother of May 31, in which he says, " I heard the bullets whistle; and, believe me, there is something charming in the sound." 2 1 Jlass. Hist. Coll., vii. 77. The commissioners were, — from Massachusetts, Samuel Welles, John Chandler, Thomas Hutchinson, Oliver Partridge, and John Worthington; from New Hampshire, Theodore Atkinson, Richard Wibird, Meshech Weare, Henry Siierburn, jr. ; from Connecticut, William Pitkin, Roger Wolcott, jr., Elisha Williams; Kliiide Lsland, Stephen Hopkins, Martin Howard, jr. ; Pennsyl- vania, John Penn, Kichard Peters, Isaac Norris, Benjamin Franklin; Maryland, Benjamin Tasker, Albert Barnes; New York, James Delancy, Joseph Murray, Wil- liam Johnson, John Chambers, William Smith. 3 John Adams's Works, ii. 189. 138 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. chief, talking eloquently to the Indians in their own lan- guage, a decided Mormon in his domestic relations, and wielding so great an influence, that it was said his words made the villages tremble. Benjamin Tasker of Maryland had a higli legal reputation. The member who most nearly personified the American was Benjamin Franklin, like Hop- kins, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. His discoveries in science had won for him a wide and noble fame; and the press in Europe and America were circulating tributes to his genius.^ He was one of the two postmaster- generals of the colonies. His unrivalled sagacity, practical good sense, large experience, generous aims, and steady purpose to promote the good of mankind, shed lustre on the congress. This body was the most deserving of respect of any that had convened in America, whether considered in reference to the colonies represented, the character of the members, or the purposes for which it was called.^ It was compared to one of the ancient Greek conventions, held to support their expiring liberty against the power of the Persian Empire. The speakers were not many ; but in the debates some spoke with singular energy and eloquence, and all were imbued with a patriotic spirit.^ The representatives of six of the colonies brought with them commissions signed by their respective governors. Massachusetts authorized action to be taken in concert with all or with any of the British colonies, but required ad- herence to such instructions as the assembly from time to time should give. New Hampshire conferred power to act on all matters relating to the objects of the convention. Connecticut gave authority to take proper measures in pur- suance of instructions from the assembly. Rhode Island 1 The prefiice to the " Gentleman's Magazine" for 1753 contains verses in which there is a reference to Franklin; and the February number of 1754, of the same magazine, has a tribute addressed to him, signed C. W., Cooper River, South Caro- lina, Sept. 20, 1753. 2 Hutchinson's Mass., iii. 21. 8 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 77. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 139 authorized action with the other colonies necessary to carry out the designs of the crown as expressed in the circular of the Earl of Holdernesse. Pennsylvania conferred full power to treat with the Indians ; but its commission did not refer to the question of union ; and that of Maryland required its delegates to observe the propositions that might be submitted for a general scheme for concert of action, and to report on their character. The members do not appear to have chosen a presiding officer. The official journal says, that a congress was held by the Honorable James Delancy, lieutenant-governor of New York. When he met with the members, he presided. On the third day of tlie meeting, Peter Wraxall, clerk of the city of Albany, was chosen secretary ; and the governor proposed, that, to avoid disputes about the precedency of the colonies, the commissioners should be named in the order of their situation from north to sovith. At the first meeting, the governor produced a letter from the Lords of Trade, defining the objects of the convention ; and the two sessions of that day were occupied mainly in consider- ing Indian affairs. The details relative to the treaty with the chiefs are quite voluminous. Messengers had been sent to their castles or villages, asking their attendance ; but they did not arrive until the last of the month. The delay was attributed by some to fear and by others to art. At length they came, though in fewer numbers than was expected, when Hen- dricks, a great Mohawk sachem, apologized for the delay. On the morning of the 29th of June, twenty-four of the commissioners, among them Franklin, met about a hundred and fifty of the chiefs. The governor presided, having two of his council on each side near him, and the members ranged next to these councillors.^ The proceedings were i 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 76. This " Review of the Military Operations," (Src, was written by an eye-witness, and probably by William Smith, and printed in a pam- phlet in London, in 1757. — Coll New-York Hist. Soc, iii. 361. 140 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. conducted with great solemnity. The governor read a long speecli, and delivered presents, which were of vast value compared with former gifts, and which pleased the Indians. But they taunted tlie English for their defenceless condition. " Look at the French," Hendricks said. " They are men ; tliey are fortifying everywhere. But — we are ashamed to say it — you are all like women." The conference was con- tinued several days, and with a satisfactory result. At its close, Hendricks, in expressing the wish that the tree of friendship they had planted might grow to a great height, said, " I will just tell you what a people we were formerly. If any of our enemies arose against us, we had no occasion to lift up our whole hand against them ; for our little finger was sufficient. And as we have now made so strong a con- federacy, if we are truly earnest therein, we may retrieve the ancient glory of the Five Nations." While the proceedings relative to the Indians were going on, the congress considered the other great object for which it was called. It first unanimously resolved, that a union of all the colonies was absolutely necessary for their general defence and security. It then appointed a committee to receive all the schemes that had been offered, digest them into one general plan, and report it to the Board. The delegates from each colony selected from their number a member of the committee. It consisted of Hutchinson, Atkinson, Pitkin, Hopkins, Franklin, Tasker, and Smith, — a rare combination of character, intellect, learning, and experience in public affairs. The two political schools were about equally represented in the committee. Hutchinson, soon to be a champion of an arbitrary ministry, and Frank- lin, soon to be a tribune of the people, were two of the strongest men of their respective parties. They brought to their work eminent ability. Both had large influence in their local assemblies. They recognized the value of union. They saw that a thirst for liberty was the ruling passion of the age, and that a mighty empire was rising in America. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 141 111 Hutchinson it was the vision of a clear intellect dis- trusting the capacity and intelligence of the people. In Franklin it was the insight of a philosoplier having faith in human progress, and determined to labor for the liberties of his country. In the deliberations of the committee, it appeared that the plan which received the most favor was one prepared by Franklin, who gives this account of it : " In our way thither, I projected and drew a plan for the union of all the colo- nies under one government, so far as might be necessary for defence, and other important general purposes. As we passed through New York, I had there shown my project to Mr. James Alexander and Mr. Kennedy, two gentlemen of great knowledge in public affairs ; and, being fortified by their approbation, I ventured to lay it before the congress." ^ Franklin liad long been identified with the local government of Pennsylvania. He had, however, given more attention to natural science than to general politics. His idea of having a legislature of only one branch, and his views as to the practicability of an American representation in parlia- ment, were not in accordance with those of his countrymen generally. His plan, and his argument for it,^ however, show that he grasped the idea of forming a self-sustaining general government, which, while recognizing the inviola- bility of the local governments, should act on the individual citizen. The committee, four days after its appointment, reported to the congress " short hints of a scheme " for a union, of which copies were taken by the members. There was a question whether an act of parliament was not necessary to establish such a union. It was held, that charters and commissions of the crown, under which the colonies exercised powers of 1 Autobiography, Bigelnw's edition, 294. Franklin says that the committee n- ported his phm with a few amendments. I have not met with this report, unless it be the paper entitled " Short Hints," in Sparks's " Works of Franklin," iii. 27. 2 Sparks's Works of Franklin, iii. 5L 142 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. government, gave no authority to form one constitution for the whole ; and thougli it might be said, that, if the king could grant powers of government to each colony separately, he could do the same to them collectively, yet it would be altering powers given by charter to create a new gov- ernment over the people for any purposes covered by the charter. It was said, that the power of parliament had not been called in question ; ^ and on the second of July the con- gress voted, that the Board proceed to form a union of the colonies, to be established by an act of parliament. Long debates followed on .the hints tbat had been submitted. On the fourth of July, when all the members but the lieutenant- governor were present, the question was discussed in two sessions held in the morning and afternoon. Tbe debate was continued from time to time until the nintli of July, when a plan was agreed upon. Franklin was then de- sired to make a draught of it. He did not attend the ses- sion the next day, — the journal of the Congress says, — being absent by appointment. He reported, on the tenth, a Plan of a Union in a new form. Tliis was undoubtedly the form that was adopted. It was considered, paragraph by paragraph, during the morning session, when all the mem- bers were present, and the debate was resumed in the after- noon. The preamble of this plan states the purpose of making application for an act of parliament, by virtue of which one general government might be formed in America, including all the colonies, within and under which each colony might retain its constitution. The local constitutions were recognized in several of the provisions. The representatives of the people of eacli colony, in their own assembly, were to choose, every three years, members to form a Grand Council ; the general govern- ment was prohibited from impressing men without the con- sent of the local legislature ; any colony, on an emergency, 1 Hutchinson's Mass., iii. 22. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 143 miglit defend itself; and the particular military as well as civil establishments in each colony were to remain in their present state, " the general constitution notwithstanding ; " with this proviso, however : " except in the particulars wherein a change might be directed " by the contemplated act of parliament. The union element was embodied in a Grand Council, to meet once a year. It was to have the power to choose a speaker, and was not to be dissolved, prorogued, or con- tinued in session longer than six weeks, without its own con- sent, or the special command of the crown. It was to be empowered to make treaties with the Indians, regulate trade with them, buy lands of them for the crown, and author- ize new settlements ; and for these purposes to make laws ; to levy duties, imposts, or taxes ; to nominate all civil offi- cers who were to act under the constitution, and to approve of all military officers ; to appoint a general treasurer, and a special treasurer in each government ; and to have a joint voice in the expenditure of the moneys raised ; to enlist and pay soldiers and build forts. The laws were not to be repugnant to those of England, but as near as possible to be agreeable to them ; and tliey were to be submitted to the king, and, if not disapproved within three years, to remain in force. 1 The executive power was to be vested in a president- general, appointed and supported by the crown. He was to nominate military officers ; commission all officers ; man- age, with the advice of the Grand Council, Indian affairs ; have a negative on all the acts of the Grand Council ; and to carry their acts into execution. This plan was strenuously opposed by the Connecticut 1 Franklin (Sparks's Works, iii. 51), in his interesting commentary on his plan, says, that, in empowering "the president-general and grand council" to make laws for laying and collecting general duties and taxes, " it was not intended to interfere with the constitution and government of the particular colonies," which were to be " left to their own laws, and to lay, levy, and apply their own taxes as before." 144 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. ^ delegates,^ who urged, at length, that it would be impractica- ble for the president and council to defend and provide for a union so large as to extend from Nova Scotia to Georgia ; that it would be detrimental for this power to appoint and commission all the military officers of so large a gov- ernment ; that the population of the country was very numerous, and was doubling every twenty-five years, and to unite this growing power under one head might in time be dangerous ; that the negative of tlie president might be ruinous ; and that the power of levying taxes was a " very extraordinary thing," and against the rights of Englishmen, which were highly prized by the people, who had a due sense of their dependence on the mother-country, and de- lighted in obedience to, and admired the protection and privileges of, the laws of England. ^ The plan was also op- posed by Lieutenant-governor Delancy, who would have reserved to the colonial governors a negative on the election of representatives to the Grand Council.^ On the afternoon of the tenth of July, the congress voted that the commissioners should lay copies of tliis plan before their respective constituents for their consideration, and that the secretary should transmit a copy of it to each of the colonies which had not sent commissioners, with the view of obtaining such alterations as might be thouglit necessary ; * after which it was intended to transmit the plan to Eng- land to be perfected. On the eleventh of July the congress 1 It is remarkable, that Franklin (Sparks's Works, i. 177), Hutchinson (Hist. Mass. iii. 23), members of the convention, and Thomas Pownall (Administration of the Colonies, ed. 1774), who was present, say that the plan was unanimously adopted. Smitli, also a member (Hist. New York, ii. 182) says, that every member except Delancy consented to the plan. But the report of the Connecticut members of the House (1 Mass. Soc. Coll., vii. 207-213), expressly says, that the delegates of that colony insisted " at the congress " on their objections, which they thought were never answered or obviated, and that they never gave any consent. 2 1 Mass. Hist. Coll., vii. 207^213. 3 Smith (New York, ii. 183) says Delancy made no great opposition. — Bancroft, iv. 124. * Journal of Proceedings. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 145 adjourned.^ Only its general results were announced in the journals.^ The plan was then earnestly recommended to the people. A citation will give the spirit of the patriotic appeals. One writer in the press said, " I hope and pray the Almighty, that the British colonies on this continent may cease im- politically and ungenerously to consider themselves as dis- tinct States, with narrow, separate, and independent views ; . . . that they will unite like brother protestants and brother subjects, at least in this critical and important crisis, rouse up the English lion in each other's breasts, . . . and thereby 1 Sparks's Franklin, iii. 24. 2 I have confined the narrative in the text mainly to matters connected with my theme. Elaborate and interesting p ipers on the rights of England to the soil, the claims of France, and methods for the general defence, were submitted to the con- vention, which appear in the ''Journal of the Proceedings." This journal has been printed from copies taken to the several governments: in the " Pennsylvania Ar- chives; " in the " New-York Documents," edited bj' Callaghan and Broadhead; and, excepting the last day's proceedings, in the " Massachusetts Historical Society's Col- lections," 3d series, vol. v. The Plan of Union is in Pownall's " Administration of the Colonies," ed. 1768, App. iv. In the " American Museum " for February, 1789, the writer of a communication dated " New York, Oct. 28, 1788," says that he was surprised that the Albany Plan "had lain dormant and unnoticed among all the publications on the subject of the new govenxnent." This number contains a part of the plan, with accompanying papers, among which is a reprint of Franklin's " Commentarj-." The April number contains the conclusion, with a note, dated Philadelphia, April 9, 1789, evidently written or dictated by Franklin, containing speculations on what might have taken place if this plan, or something like it, had not been rejected. Compare this with Sparks's VVorks of Franklin, i. 177, 178. Thomas Pownall, subsequently governor of Massachusetts, was present at this congress. He submitted to it a paper on American affairs, which w.as criticised (1 Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll., vii. 87, 88) as loose and undigested, and containing sentiments unintelligible to a North-American understanding. It was printed in New York in February, 1756, and in the " Gentleman's Magazine " for May, 1756. The "Boston Gazette" of the 23d of July, 1754, has the following: "This d.iy sev'nnight came to town the Hon. Thomas Hutchinson, Esq., judge of probate for this county, and one of the commissioners at the late convention at Albanj*. We are informed: That the Indians had all left that city in a good temper; but that a much smaller number attended the Interview than heretofore has been usual : That the commissioners from the several governments were unanimously of opinion that a union of the colonies was absolutely necessary in order to defeat the schemes of the French: That a representation of the state of the British interest on this con- tinent as it stands related to the French and Indians has been drawn up and ap- proved of: and that a plan of union has likewise been projected, and will, by the said commissioners, be laid before their respective constituents All the commis- sioners left Albany on the 12th instant." 10 146 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. secure to themselves and their posterity to the end of time the inestimable blessings of civil and religious liberty, and the uninterrupted possession and settlement of a great coun- try, rich in all the fountains of human felicity. To obtain this happy establishment, without which, I fear, it never will be obtained, may the God of heaven grant success to the plan for a union of the British colonies on the con- tinent of America! "^ The policy of union was earnestly recommended to the assemblies by the governors. Dobbs of North Carolina, for instance, portrayed with spirit the progress of the French ; urged that that power would never have adopted its grand and romantic scheme for dominion if it had not been pre- possessed with the idea that the British colonies were guided by selfish and partial views, were unwilling or incapable of uniting their force, and were like a rope of sand ; and he said, " Let us show that we are true sons of Britons, whose ancestors have been famed for defending their valuable religion and liberties." ^ The Albany Plan was reported to the Massachusetts assembly by their delegation to tlie con- gress ; yet Shirley, impatient of delay, in a message urged action on it, and in private letters strongly advocated the promotion of a union to be established by an act of parlia- ment.^ These appeals failed to create a public opinion in favor of the plan. The Connecticut assembly resolved that it tended to subvert their liberties, took measures to watch the action 1 Boston Gazette, Oct. 1, 1754. 2 Dobbs's address of Dec. 12, 1754, was printed in the " Gentleman's Magazine " for Juh', 1755, in which he urged that colony to enter "into a plan of union with all the British colonies for their mutual future defence." 3 Shirley saj's, in a letter dated Oct. 21, 1754, to Governor Morris, the newly ap- pointed governor of Pennsylvania, " The best advice I can give you is to lose no time for promoting the plan of a union of the colonies for their mutual defence, to be concerted at home, and established by act of parliament as soon as possible. ... I am labormg this point totis virihus." Shirley said of the Albany Plan, Dec. 24, 1754, " It doth not appear well calculated to strengthen the dependency of the colo- nies upon the crown." LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS, 147 of the other governments, and strongly opposed its adop- tion.^ The New Jersey assembly declared, tliat it contained things which would affect its constitution in its very vitals, and believed and hoped it would never bo countenanced by a British legislature.^ The Pennsylvania assembly negatived it without a discussion. The Massachusetts assembly gave t<^ it the consideration which the important subject required, but, after long debates, rejected it, and also rejected another plan, submitted by a committee.^ In brief, the plan was negatived by every assembly before which it was brought, and was denounced in the forum of the people.* The plan was transmitted, by Lieut.-Gov. Delancy, to the Lords of Trade, who laid it before the king with the simple 1 Trumbull's Hist. Conn., ii. 357. The assembly were desirous " that the govern- ment should be lessened, and divided into two districts." 2 The Address of the House, in Boston Gazette, Nov. 5, 1754. The House says, " We can truly sa3', we want not arguments to convince us of the absolute necessity of the strictest union among all his majesty's provinces and colonies for the preservation of the whole, and on our part have endeavored to cultivate such a union, by contributing our endeavors in the best manner the circumstances of this colonj' will admit." 8 The proceedings of the Massachusetts assembly on the question of a union of the colonies are interesting. It would, however, require too much space to relate them in full. The subject was referred, on the 22d of October, 1754, to a large com- mittee, who reported a new plan for a union, embracing onlj' a part of the colonies. On the 13th of December, the question was assigned for nine o'clock on the following morning, and the members were enjoined to give their attendance. On that day (Dec. 14), "after a large debate, the question was put, Vi^hether the House accept of the General Plan of Union as reported by the commissioners convened at Albany in June last? It was passed in the negative. Sent up for concurrence. The question was then put, Whether the House accept of the Partial Plan of Union reported by the last committee of both Houses appointed on the union ? It passed in the negative. Sent up for concurrence." After this rejection of the Partial Plan and the .\Jbany Plan, the House, by a vote of forty-one to thirty-seven, resolved that there ought to be a "general union of his majesty's colonies, except those of Nova Scotia and Georgia." A plan for such a union was reported by a committee. It is in Hutchin- son's handwriting. He does not allude to it in his historj'; nor have I met with any reference to it. It differs materially in some of its provisions from the .Vlbany Plan. It provided, that the Grand Council, in the choice of their speaker, should not be subject to the negative of the president. After debating this plan, the House voted, forty-eight against tliirty-one, that the further consideration of it should be suspended until the members could have an opportunity to consult their constituents. This plan will be found in the Appendix. 4 Hutchinson, iii. 23. It was denounced at a large town-meeting in BostoD (1 Mass. Coll., iv. 85) as detrimental to the liberties »f the people. 148 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. remark, that the scheme was complete in itself.^ No action was taken on it by the Privy Council. The Lords of Trade were in favor of a plan of union more consonant with Eng- lish ideas ; ^ they were also occupied with the questions of altering the local governments, carrying into effect the acts relating to trade, and a scheme for internal taxation ; and they gave little attention to the Albany Plan. This plan, rejected in America because it had too much of the prerogative and in England because it was too demo- cratic, elicited discussion in the assemblies on the great question of union, and shows the progress of the American mind in political science. It had to solve the difficult problem of framing a general government adequate to pro- vide for the common welfare, and yet keeping inviolate the principle of local self-government. The New-England con- federacy secured effectually to each colony its rights ; but its board of commissioners to act for the whole was a crude embodiment of the union element. The schemes subse- quently proposed in books and letters, contemplated a grand council, or a congress, to devise measures for the general welfare ; but left their execution either to the local govern- ments, or, as was the ideal of the party of the prerogative, contemplated a consolidation of the popular functions into a central power, foreign to the genius of the people. The Al- bany Plan was designed to establish for all America one gov- ernment, based on the consent of the governed, and limited to general purposes, while it left to the local governments their separate functions. It designed to confer on the representa- tives of the people the power of making laws acting directly 1 The letter of the Lords of Trade, dated Oct. 29, 1754, says, " The commis- Bioners having agreed upon a Plan of Union, which, as far as their sense and opinion of it goes, is complete in itself, we shall not presume to make any observa- tions upon it, but transmit it simply for your majesty's consideration." — New- York Col, vi. 920. 2 The Lords were directed (June 14, 1754) bj' the king to prepare a plan for general concert by the colonies. On the 5th of July, the Lords wrote to Delancy, that it was the opinion and language of almost every colony that a general union of strength and interest had become absolutely necessary. — New-York Col., vi. 848. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 149 on individuals, and appointing officers to execute them, and yet not to interfere with the execution of the laws operating on the same individuals by the local officers. The authors of this plan intended to erect a public authority as obliga- tory in its sphere as the local governments were in their splieres. This would have been not a mere league, but a self-sustaining government. The credit of this conception is due to the illustrious Franklin. It was original and American. It was comprehensive and grand. It is not strange that the form devised to carry it out should have been imperfect. Tlie time had not ripened, the way liad not been opened, for such a stride in political science as a worthy embodiment of this ideal would have been. It re- quired the discipline and the experience of the succeeding thirty years, the growth of a public opinion for a union, the rise of a sentiment of nationality, the possession of sovereignty, long training of the general mind in politics, and the wisdom of a cluster of the peers of Franklin in in- tellect, before the conception could be embodied in a worthy form. Divine Providence permitted Franklin to share in this experience, to aid in forming the more perfect Union of the Constitution, and to see his countrymen establish it as the law of the land.^ 1 The paper entitled " Reasons and Motives on which the Plan of Union was formed," in Sparks's edition of Franklin's Works (iii. 32), was printed in 1789, in the "American Museum," vol. v., and at its close the following note, evidently by Franklin. It was not copied by Sparks: — On reflection, it now seems probable, that, if the foregoing plan, or something like it, haj been adopted and carried into execution, the subsequent separation of the colonies from the mother-country might not so soon have happened, nor the mischiefs suffered on both sides have occurred, perhaps, during another century. For the colonies, if so united, would have really been, as they then thought themselves, sufficient to their own defence ; and^ boing trusted with it. as by the plan, an army from Britain, for that purpose, would have been un- necessary. The pretences for framing the Stamp Act would then not have existed, nor the other projects for drawing a revenue from America to Britain by acts of parliament, which ■were the cause of the breach, and attended with such terrible expense of blood and treasure ; so that the different parts of the empire might still have remained in peace and union. Hut the fate of this plan was singular. After many days' thorouglr discussion of all its parts in congress, it was unanimously agreed to, and copies ordered to be sent to the assembly of e-.icU province for concurrence, and one to the ministry in England for the approbation of the crown. The crown disapproved it, as having too much weight in the democratic part of the constitution, and every assembly as having allowed too much to prerogative ; so it was totally rejected. PuiLADELPHiA, April 9th, 1789. 150 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The plan contained things which were hateful to the colo- nists. The reasoning against it, however, of the Connecti- cut legislators shows the strength of their prejudices and the narrowness of their views rather than defects in the plan. The action of the assemblies ought to be regarded in con- nection with the prior aggressions on their rights, and with the claims set up for prerogative or for parliament as to their internal affairs, which kept them in a state of torment. The plan reserved to the colonies their local constitu- lions, except in the particulars in wliich a change miglit be made in an act of parliament authorizing the formation of the union. This important exception was not in Franklin's original plan ; he does not comment on it in his interesting paper on the reasons and motives for each article ; and no one, at a subsequent period, more strenuously opposed sub- mitting the local constitutions to the decisions of parliament than he. The assemblies obeyed a truly American instinct, in declining to subject their free municipal life — their re- publican customs — to the determination of a body in which their constituents were not represented. Indeed, the people in the late civil war were not truer to an imperative public duty in clinging to the national life, after the battle of Bull Run, than tlie colonies were in rejecting the manner of obtaining union recommended by tlie Albany Congress.^ Other plans of union at that time were brouglit forward, and congresses of governors to consult on the general de- fence continued to be held. In the October following the Albany Congress, Shirley communicated to FrankHn, at Boston, the designs of the ministry in relation to union and taxation, which were so totally opposed to his own views as to elicit in reply the well-known remarkable letters, which were so sagacious that they embodied the gist of the Ameri- 1 The tenacity with which the colonies held on to what they conceived to be their rights and liberties, ought to be viewed in connection with English politics. Smith, in his "Local Self-government" (192 to 210), shows how, from the Revolution of 1688, there was constant violation of this principle. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 151 can argument against the arbitrary policy that was in contem- plation by the Lords of Trade. Tiie scheme of union urged by Halifax — despotic, complicated, and impracticable — embraced a permanent revenue ; ^ one by Golden contained provisions for an hereditary council of landholders, in imi- tation of the House of Lords ;^ one by Johnson, a church- man, contemplated a change in the charter governments, uniformity in all the colonies, and this as near as possible like the government of England, though he conceded that the Episcopal Church ought to have no superiority over other denominations.^ The union question was discussed in pamphlets. One writer proposed to form three unions, — a northern, a middle, and a southern, — on the ground that really there were three distinct countries.* These plans, if of little political significance, show that attention continued to be given to the subject. It was a general feeling that the colonies ought to be united ; but there was no public opinion in favor of any of the schemes that had been proposed. Nor was there among them a fraternal sentiment, on which to base a union. It had long been thought that it would be impracticable to unite the colonies into one political power. Their rival- ries in trade and disputes about boundaries were severe. There was then war going on between Carolina and Georgia concerning the navigation of the Savannah.^ These an- tagonisms were early seen. Sir William Keith held it to be morally impossible that any dangerous union could be formed among them.^ Jeremiah Dumraer said that they were so distinct from one another in their forms of govern- ment, their religion, emulations of trade, and affections, that 1 Bancroft, iv. 166. 2 ibid., iv. 272. 8 In a paper dated King's College, New York, Jan. 30, 1760, and sent to Pitt, Halifax, atid the Archbishop of Canterbury. — New-York Col., vii. 438. 4 Contest in America, 1757, 40. 6 Gentleman's Magazine, 1756, 20. The people of Georgia had seized several vessels belonging to Carolina, and the people of the latter had armed their vessels. • Memorial, 1720: "Every advantage that is lost or neglected by one colony is immediately picked up by another." Keith, in this paper, suggested a stamp tax. 152 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. they never could be supposed to unite.^ Franklin ascribed the disunion feeling to their jealousy of each other, which, he said, was so great as to prevent union when the enemy was burning their villages and murdering their people. Burnaby wrote that fire and water wei-e not more hetero- geneous than the different colonies, and that union seemed almost impossible.^ The " London Chronicle," in reply to the remark that the colonies could not be prevented from rising to independence and empire, urged that they had little intercourse with and less friendship for one another ; that their hereditary rivalries and dislikes would prevent a general combination for revolt, while any partial endeavor would be sure to prove unsuccessful ; and that while there were British governors, civil officers, a naval and military force among them, there could be no reasonable apprehen- sion of a revolt, were the colonies better peopled than they could- possibly be for five hundred years.^ This line of cita- tion might easily be extended. It would only be cumu- lative testimony, showing that the diversity which was paramount was looked upon as permanent. Such was the question of union when the in|;elligence went through the colonies of the surrender of Canada to the British arms. It was heralded as one of the grandest events known in English annals, and its magnitude was not overrated. The colonists, however, were naturally occuj)ied with its bearing on themselves. A burden was lifted from their hearts. A fountain of misery was sealed up for ever. Henceforth but trembling hands could wield against them the tomahawk. Henceforth their race was to control 1 A Defence of the New-Englnnd Charters, 1721, 73. 2 Travels in 1759-60, 159. " Nothing can exceed the jealousy and emulation which they possess in regard to each other. Tlie inhabitants of Pennsylvania and New York have an inexhaustible source of animosity in their jealousy for the trade of the Jerseys. Massachusetts Bay and Rhode Island are not less interested in tliat of Connecticut. . . . Were they left to themselves, there would soon be a civil war from one end of the continent to the other." — 160. 8 London Chronicle, May 30, 1760. This piece, signed " Simplicius," was copied into the American newspapers. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS, 153 America. They then had visions of future prosperity, peace, and security, — a higher sense of the grandeur of the colonies. The towns were brilliant with illuminations. The press was laden with exultation. The pulpit was fer- vent with gratitude. The assemblies were extravagant with expressions of loyalty.^ The general joy was irrepressible. The liberty men vied with the party of the prerogative in paeans to the British Constitution and flag. This enthu- siasm sustains a remark of "Franklin, that the colonists loved the nation more than they loved each other. The royal officials, however, represented that the profession of devotion to the crown was sheer hypocrisy ; that the colonies intended to cast off their dependence on the mother-country. This was said throughout the whole period reviewed in this chapter. The charge was repelled by the colonists as an im- putation on their honor. Dummer, hearing it in the mouths of people of all conditions and qualities in London, con- fronted it by saying, " It would not be more absurd to place two of his majesty's beef-eaters to watch an infant in the cradle, that it do not rise to cut its father's throat, than to guard these weak infant colonies to prevent their shaking off the British yoke."^ Franklin assured Pratt that no such idea as casting off their dependence was entertained by th^ 1 The Massachusetts Assembly, August, 1760, in dwelling on the " inexpressible joy of the present times," said of the British Constitution, •' Now this glorious con- stitution exceeds itself; it raises new ideas for which no language has provided words, because never known before. Contradictions are become almost consistent, clamorous faction is silent, morose envy good-natured, by the divine blessing on the councils and arms of our dread sovereign in every quarter of the world. He is become the scourge of tyrants, the hopes of the oppressed; yet in the midst of vic- tories prophesying peace." 2 Defence of the New-England Charters, 72. Hutchinson (Hist. Mass., 3d ed., ii. 319) savs this remark was in a brief used before the council. The idea that the colonies aimed at independence was alluded to in parliament, in the debates on the Sugar Bill. A petition from Rhode Inland alleged that duties would be against their charter. Sir William Yonge, in 1733, said, " This, I must say, is something ver}' extraordinary, and, in my opinion, looks mighty like aiming at an independ- ency, and disclaiming the authority and jurisdiction of this House." — Cobbet's Par- liamentarj' History, viii. 1261, where it is printed "very unlike; " but the speech is in "Massachusetts Gazette," Feb. 14, 1765. 154 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Americans.^ Still the allegation was deliberately made by Chalmers, that, from the epoch of the Revolution and throughout every reign, it was the settled policy of the colonies to acquire independence ; and this has been repeated by a recent British writer. Neither supports the statement by proofs. It may be confidently affirmed, that no citations from private letters, no consultations for such an object by any political leaders, no resolves of any public body, no act of any colonial assembly, can be adduced to sustain such a charge. The only evidence of any such design is an im- pression made on the minds of royal officials by the zealous assertion on the part of the colonists of what they regarded as their rights ; and this is too vague for history .^ While there was neither an aim nor even a desire for 1 Gordon (i. 136) says this assurance was made before 1760. Franklin arrived in London, July 27, 1757. 2 The statement of Chalmers (Opinions of Eminent Lawyers, Preface) is, "that there lay among documents in the Board of Trade and Paper Office the most satis- factory proofs from the epoch of the Revolution of 1688, throughout every reign and during every administration, of the settled purpose of the colonies to acquire direct independence." This subject was examined by Sparks, in No. X. of the Appen- dix of Vol. IL of the '-Writings of Washington" (1834). It is referred to in the preface to the American edition of Chalmers's " Revolt of the Colonies," printed in 1845, where it is said that the proofs consisted of the complaints of the royal gov- ernors. The charge is repeated by Viscount Bury in 1865. He saj's, " A careful examination of the historj' of the colonies will show, that they, with few exceptions, formed, soon after this time (accession of William III.), the resolution of becoming independent of the mother-country." — Exodus of the Western Nations, vol. i. 395. And he states (p. 412), " The desire of the colonies for independence existed from their very foundation." He adduces no proofs to sustain this statement. Against the opinion of Chalmers and Bury may be set the remark of Hutchinson (Hist. Mass., iii. 69), " An empire, separate or distinct from Britain, no man then (1758) alive ex- pected or desired to see." The idea that the colonies would rise into independence and empire was common at the period of 1760. It was met in a candid manner by the British press. A com- munication is copied into the "■ Boston News Letter" of Sept. 17, 1761, from a Lon- don journal. The writer says, " I know it has long been a boggle to some, that our colonies, finding no enemies on their backs, would set up for tiiemselves . . . how weakly founded I appeal to common sense. If we have a mind to yoke them, make slaves of them, I grant it such aids are necessary for the purpose ; but use them as fellow Britons, and they cannot, will not, refuse to acquiesce in what is just and right. I def}- the most cunning among us to prove that they have ever offered to resist where they have not had just cause, and which on the same occasion would not have had the same effect on the people of England." LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 155 independence on the part of the colonists, yet the increase of popukition and wealth, the working of ideas, the quiet unfolding of Providence, elicited much reasoning and specu- lation on the tendency of events. This unwonted spectacle of the progress of a free people attracted more and more the attention of men of thought, and elicited a line of specu- lation respecting the future of America. Berkeley, in a pro- phetic strain, sung of another golden age which should produce subjects wortliy of fame : — '' Westward the course of empire takes its way, The four first acts already p ist, A fifth shall close the drama with the day; Time's noblest offspring is the last." i Dummer heard great men say that the colonists, in the course of some years, if not curbed in time, would declare themselves a free State.^ Kalm was told by Americans and by Englishmen, that in thirty or fifty years the colonies would be able to form a State by themselves entirely independent.^ Turgot said, in a public discourse, that, when America was able to take care of itself, it would do what Carthage did."* John Adams mused on what would follow the expulsion of the turbulent Gallics, and saw a great seat of empire here that would become more populous than England.^ Weare judged that the colonies, ripened by a very few more years must, agreeably to Nature's ordinary laws, drop off from that stock whence they originally sprung.^ Franklin pre- dicted that, in less than a century, the Mississippi Valley would become a populous and powerful dominion." Liide- man averred that the planets were the silent patrons of lovely America, and that her independence would be a steady counterbalance to the fierce commotions of the old 1 Bishop Berkeley's well-known verses were written about 1726. 2 Defence of New-England Charters, 72. 8 Kalm's Travels in North America, i. 264, printed in 1748. 4 1750. Bancroft, iv. 66. 5 1755. Works, i. 23. 6 Before 1759. Mass. Hist. Coll., i. 76. 7 1756. Sparks's Works of Franklin, iii. 70. 156 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. world.^ It was a tradition that the Pilgrims who founded Plymouth inscribed on a rock the couplet, — " The eastern nations sink, their glory ends, And empire rises where the sun descends." 2 An Italian poet, inspired by the presence of Benjamin West, sung that the spirit of venerable Rome, immortal and unde- cayed, was spreading towards the new world.^ Burnaby relates that an idea had entered into the minds of the gen- erality of mankind, that empire was travelling westward.^ The language of the press was often elevating and prophetic as it portrayed what a great country, rich in all the foun- tains of human felicity, would be with union and a free constitution.^ America, before which a grand future was opening, was delineated as a tract having sixteen hundred miles of sea-coast, producing all the conveniences and necessaries of life, and surpassed in population in Europe by only three powers, — the German Empire, France, and England. America, it was said, because of her trade and the great quantity of manufactures consumed in it, had become the fountain of the riches of the mother -country. It was pictured as having hundreds of thriving towns, of which Boston was as large and better built than Bristol, or, in- deed, any city in England except London ; New York had abundant markets, good wharves, a large and growing commerce ; five thousand houses of brick and stone, and a town house very little inferior to Guild-Hall ; Philadelphia was as fine a city of its size as any on the globe, had a market-place equal to any in Europe, and an Academy in which the youth had made surprising progress ; Charles- ton, with a genteel and a refined society, was as large as Gloucester.^ The population of a million and a half was 1 1757. Farmer and Moore's Collections, i. 127. 2 John Adams's Works, ix. 599. 3 Gait's Life of West, i. 117. 4 Travels, 155. 5 See above, p. 14G. 6 Tliese statements may be seen in an elaborate paper describing the colonies iu the " Gentleman's Magazine" of 1755. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND UNION FOR SEVENTY YEARS. 157 doubling in twenty-five, some said, twenty years. In verses referring to the contributions of the learned from all climes to the cause of science, it was written, — mild America prevails; The maid new paths in science tries, New gifts her daring toil supplies; She gordian knots of art unbinds; The Tliunder's secret source she finds; With rival power her lightnings fly, Her skill disarms the frowning sky; For this the minted gold she claims, Ordained the meed of generous aims." ^ "Wliile America had thus won laurels in the field of science, it was said of her, that she had created an asylum for liberty. This was a passion with the race who liad sub- dued the wilderness. It was the spring of their fidelity, intelligence, and zeal. A love of it was continually ex- pressed in their utterances. " Liberty," are Franklin's words,^ " thrives best in the woods. America best culti- vates what Germany brought forth." A paper,^ analyzing free principles and enjoining fidelity to them, circulated in the journals, closing with Milton's words : — " This is true liberty, when free-born men, Having to advise the public, may speak free, Which he who can and will, deserves high praise; Who neither can nor will maj' hold his peace: What can be juster in a State than this? " 1 Gentleman's Magazine, Preface, 1753. It has this note: "Benjamin Franklin, Esq., of Philadelphia, obtained the Royal Society's medal for his amazing discov- eries in electricity." 2 In 1759. Sparks's Works, ill. 114. 8 Independent Advertiser, 1749. CHAPTER Y. How THE ASSERTION BY PARLIAMENT OF A RIGHT TO TAX THE COLO- NIES BY THE Stamp Act evoked a Sentiment of Union and OCCASIONED a GeNERAL CONGRESS. 1760 TO 1766. The rejection of the Albany Plan proposing a general gov- ernment for all America was not caused by a low estimate of the value of union ; but was occasioned by a state of things which precluded its adoption, or even the formation of a public opinion in its favor. The subject was soon over- laid by events of such magnitude as to create an epoch in history. At that period, the ministry of George III. decided on a policy with regard to America more in harmony with English ideas and objects than with wisdom and justice. This policy, so far as it was developed in the Stamp Act, was an assertion by parliament of the right to tax the colo- nies by a body in which they were not represented ; and the attempt to execute this act evoked out of the prevalent •diversity a sentiment of union, and called forth a congress for a redress of grievances. The congress was held during the period of tlie Ameri- can Revolution. This was a grand historic drama, in which George III. spoke the prologue, when he announced the purpose of taxing America ; and Washington gave the epilogue, when he took the oath as the chiof-magistfate of a free people. The movement, viewed in its completeness, may be said to have been a single step forward, which it required thirty years to take, and in which the British sub- jects of thirteen colonies, formed into communities under authority derived from the crown, advanced to the position THE STAMP ACT AND A SENTIMENT OF UNION. 159 of citizens of tliirteeii iiidepeiidcut States, organized on the basis of the sovereignty of the people, and united into a nation under a republican form of government. The unin- terrupted display of political wisdom in the progress of this work, its achievement under the banner of law and justice,^ the crowning triumph of the Federal Constitution with the power of self-preservation, elicited from Lord^ Brougham the judgment that this revolution is the most important political event in the history of our species.* It was a growth. It shows the process of evolution. Washington,' a type of the wonderful public virtue of his time, recog- nized the nature of this growth, as is evident from these memorable words in his inaugural address : " No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency." The thirteen colonies, at the commencement of the Revo- lution, according to the rate of their increase, contained a population of about two millions. They were distinct com- munities. It is no more than simple justice to the founders of the republic to keep in mind, that these communities, each having a local life peculiar in some respects to itself, presented, not merely the aspect of diversity and a want of fraternity, but often that of antagonism to each other.^ 1 Guizot. The Causes of the Success of the English Revolution, 1640-1688, 130. 2 Lord Brougham, in his " Political Philosophy " (vol. iii 329), says of the colo- nies, "After a series of extraordinary successes, . . . and an uninterrupted display of political wisdom as well as firmness and moderation, they finally threw oflT the yoke of the mother-country, . . . winning for themselves a new constitution upon the Federal plan, and of the republican form. This is perhaps the most important event in the history of our species." 8 Lord Mahon (Hist. England, v. 77) has a candid strain of remark on this point of diversity, as he mentions the rivalries and the difficulty of concert and union. He says, "It is a difficulty which should ever be borne in mind by every candid his- torian of the revolutionary war, as tending to enhance the success of the Americans when they succeeded, and to excuse in some degree their failure when they failed." 160 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. Whatever Americanism there was did not appear in the form of unionism, so long as the sentiment of country or of nationality centred in the British Empire. The tradition- ary affection for England found expression when the Peace of Paris was announced. By that peace, England retained half a continent as the moimment of her victories.^ She was exalted high among the nations. Her power and em- pire seemed above all ancient and above all modern fame.^ " We in America," James Otis exclaimed, " have abundant reason to rejoice. The heathen are driven out, and the Canadians conquered. The British dominion now extends from sea to sea, and from the great rivers to the end of the earth. Liberty and knowledge, civil and religious, will be co-extended, improved, and i^reserved to the latest posterity." He reiterated the eulogy of the colonial age on the British Constitution ; he claimed that every British subject in America was entitled to the essential privileges of Britons ; he extolled the union between Great Britain and her plantations ; and he said, " What God in his provi- dence has united, let no man dare attempt to pull asunder."^ This undoubtedly expressed the feeling of Americans. The idea that the people of England and the colonies were fellow-subjects, co-equals in political rights imder the Brit- ish Constitution, was common in America. It pervades the utterances of the patriots. Jefferson embodied the senti- ment as he wrote the declaration that announced the sepa- ration of the people of the colonies from the people of England : " We might have been a free and a great people together." ^ Such is a glance at America when George IH. began his memorable reign. It is common for British writers to lay at the door of the king and his advisers the responsibility 1 Bancroft, iv. 78. 2 Smyth's Lectures on Modern History, ii. 348. 8 "Post Boy," March 21, 1763. — Otis delivered this speech on being chosen moderator of the first town-meeting held in Boston after the intelligence of the Treaty of 1763 was received. * Original Draft of the Ueclaration'of Independence. THE STAMP ACT AND A SENTIMENT OF UNION. 161 for what occurred. He is characterized as having been amiable in private life, but with a narrow understanding which culture had not enlarged, and an obstinate disposi- tion which no education could have humanized ; and it is said, that the instant his prerogative was concerned, or his will was thwarted, the most unbending pride and calculating coldness took possession of his breast, and swayed it by turns.^ Lord Bute, also, his early adviser, is described as of a cold heart, and haughty ways, and thoroughly" tory in his affinities. But however just may be the delineations of these actors and of others, the springs of the great events that soon occurred lay deeper than personal character. They grew out of the ideas of the age. Their roots were in the condition of society. The king was'an exponent of the feudalism that still lingered, and which was absolutely .irreconcilable with institutions in America that tended more and more to a realization of freedom and equality. The acquisition of Canada, of the valley of the Mississippi, and of Florida, vastly increased the consequence of America: it became the great subject for consideration, and seemed to require a new policy. The men in power regarded Eng- land as the head and heart of the whole empire, as omnipo- tent in the matter of government; and they aimed to make every other part of the empire " the mere instrument or conduit of conveying nourishment and vigor " to the head.^ A policy based substantially on this idea had long been urged by the Lords of Trade. It amounted to the construc- tion of a new colonial map. It embraced an alteration of territorial boundaries, a remodelling of the local constitu- tions, an abridgment of popular power, and an introduction of the aristocratic or hereditary element. It contemplated, in fact, the moulding of America into uniformity with Eng- land. It included an execution of the Navigation Act, which had never been enforced, of laws of trade which had 1 Brougham's Statesmen of the Times of George II., 1, 2. 2 Extra-official State Papers, 32, written bj' William Knox. 11 162 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. remained dead letters on the statute-book, the collection of a revenue, and the establishment of a standing army. The ministry of the Earl of Bute, based on prerogative and power, decided in favor of this policy, and successive ad- ministrations endeavored to carry it out in part or in the whole. ^ The measures embodying this scheme were not adopted at once. Its earliest manifestation was in the shape of in- structions to the several officers, directing them to execute the acts of trade ; and the application of one of them to the superior court of Massachusetts for " a writ of assist- ance," or an authority to searcli any house for merchandise liable to duty, occasioned the famous argument of James Otis against granting the writ. The orders issued after the Peace of Paris, directing an execution of the Sugar Act, the Navigation Act, and the arbitrary laws of trade created great alarm in the colonies.^ This was protested against by the community generally. It was suggested that the merchants in the colonies should hold meetings, choose committees to memorialize the general assemblies to act on the subject of the Sugar Act, and that these committees should open a correspondence with each other, and thus endeavor " to promote a union or a coalition of all their 1 Bancroft has traced the origin of this policy with great thoroughness, espe- cially in chapters v., vii., and ix. of vol. v. See the valuable note, p. 83, on the alterations proposed in the local jjovernments. 2 This subject has been so often presen'ed, that it would be following a beaten track to relate the details of its adoption. I subjoin a few dates and facts. The card - form ; and this enabled him to wield an influence over his countrymen larger and longer than fell to the lot of any other American. He began his remarkable career by intro- ducing into the House of Burgesses a bill to give the owners of slaves the right to manumit them, and by throwing him- self with ardor into the American cause, which from this time had the benefit of his felicitous pen. It was the report among the Burgesses that the Governor would be gratified if they would maintain silence on political questions. The popular leaders, however, had revolved the grave issue that had sprung up, and came prepared to play a great part. They adopted a series of resolves declaring that the sole right of imposing taxes on the inhabitants of the colony was constitutionally vested in the House of Burgesses, with the consent of the Council and His Majesty, or his Governor for the time being ; that it was an undoubted privilege to petition the Sovereign, and procure the concur- rence of the other colonies ; that all trials for treason ought to be conducted in the courts of the colony, and that the seizing of any persons suspected of crime, and transporting them to places beyond seas, would deprive them of the ines- timable privilege of being tried by a jury from the vicinage ; and that a dutiful and loyal address be presented to His Majesty to beseech him to quiet the minds of the inhabitants 236 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of that colony, by averting the dangers and miseries that might ensue from the seizing and carrying beyond sea any person residing in America, to be tried in any other manner than by the ancient mode of proceeding.^ These resolves were calm in manner, concise, simple, and effective, and so perfect in form and substance that time finds no omission to regret and no improvement to suggest.^ They were viewed by one of the Burgesses as nothing more than a necessary and manly assertion of social privileges founded in reason, guaranteed by the English Constitution, and rendered sacred 1 The Resolves were passed May 16, 1769. They are in the "Pennsylvania Chronicle " of June 5, and in the Boston papers of June 8. They are as follows, copied from the ' ' Chronicle : " — Resolves of the House of Burgesses, passed tlie 16th of May, 1769. Resolved, Nemine i That the sole right of imposing taxes on the inhabitants of this Contradlcente, ) His Majesty's Colony and Dominion of Virginia is now, and ever hath been, legally and constitutionally vested in the House of Burgesses, lawfully con- vened, according to the ancient and established practice, with the consent of the Coun- cil, and of His Majesty, the King of Great Britain, or his Governor for the time being. Resolved, nemine cmitradiceiite, That it is the undoubted privilege of the inhabitants of this colony to petition their Sovereign for redress of grievances ; and that it is law- ful and expedient to procure the concurrence of His Majesty's other colonies, in dutiful addresses, praying the royal interposition in favor of the violated rights of America. Resolved, nemine contradicente, That all trials for treason, misprision of treason, or for any felony or crime whatsoever, committed and done in this His Majesty's said colony and dominion, by any person or persons residing therein, ought of right to be had, and conducted in and before His Majesty's courts, held within his said colony, according to the fixed and known course of proceeding ; and that the seizing any per- son or persons residing in the colony, suspected of any crime whatsoever, committed therein, and sending such person or persons to places beyond the sea to be ti-ied, is highly derogatory of the rights of British subjects, as thereby the inestimable privilege of being tried by a jury from the vicinage, as well as the liberty of summoning and producing witnesses on such trial, will be taken away from the party accused. Resolved, nemine contradicente, That an humble, dutiful and loyal address be pre- sented to His Majesty, to assure him of our inviolable attachment to his sacred person and government; and to beseech his royal interposition, as the father of all his people, however remote from the seat of his empire, to quiet the minds of his loyal subjects of this colony, and to avert from them those dangers and miseries which will ensue, from the seizing and carrying beyond sea any person residing in America, suspected of any crime whatsoever, to be tried in any other manner than by the ancient and long estab- lished course of proceeding. The following order is likewise in their journal of that date : — Ordered, That the speaker of this House do transmit, without delay, to the speakers of the several houses of assembly on this continent, a copy of the resolutions now agreed to by this House, requesting their concurrence therein. 2 Bancroft, vi. 280. THE TOWNSHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 237 by the possession of two hundred years.^ But Lord Bote- tourt looked on them as abominable, and dissolved the House. The speaker, Peyton Randolph, sent the resolves to the other assemblies, accompanied by a brief Circular Letter expressing a belief that the importance of the subject would be sufficient to engage immediate attention, and that the cir- cumstances of America would evince the propriety of the action of the Burgesses.^ This generous action, spread through the colonies in the newspapers, elicited expressions of admiration and gratitude. A North-Carolina patriot wrote : " Don't you think the Virginians behaved like men ? " -^ A Philadelphia patriot exclaimed : " Noble con- duct! I hope every assembly on the continent will con- cur." ^ A New-York judgment ran : " The resolves breathe that noble spirit of freedom and inflexible firmness for which Virginia has been justly celebrated ever since the beginning of our troubles with Great Britain." ^ And it was said in Boston, " Joy and gladness are printed on the countenances of all the friends of liberty. ' The brave Virginians ' is a toast throughout New England, where the people bear them the most affectionate regard."^ Well might there have 1 Letter of Richard Henry Lee, May 31, 1769. 2 Randolph's Circular was in the Boston papers of June 8, 1769. 3 Letter in newspapers dated Edenton, N.C., June 22, 1769. * John Dickinson's Letter, June 22. 6 Massachusetts Gazette, June 15. 6 Letter printed in Philadelphia, dated June 26. " The Journal of the Times " was the title of a series of papers prepared in Boston, but printed originally by John Holt, in New York, and extensively copied into the newspapers. They extend over many months. Under the date of June 16, 1769, it had the follow- ing:— "The late resolves of the Virginia assembly are regarded with veneration. They do great honor to themselves and give spirit to the other colonies. We see in these the same sense of justice, value for the constitutional rights of America, the same vigor and bolJjiess, that breathed through the first resolves of that truly honorable house, and greatly contributed to form the free and generous spirit in which the colonies are now one. There is a peculiar generosity in the resolve, relating to the revival of the severe and obsolete statute of Henry VIII., by the late extraordinary resolutions of parliament, — as this was pointed not directly against themselves, but another colony. Massachusetts ought long to remember this obligation, and as common sense dictates 238 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. been this gratitude ; foi' Virginia invited all the colonies to make common cause with Massachusetts when king and parliament had laid a heavy hand upon her, and the pres- ence of an army and a fleet attested that complete submis- sion was decreed as her lot. The assemblies, as they convened, responded heartily to the Virginia resolves. The assembly of Delaware, the ear- liest to act, did it by reiterating their sentiment.^ Some of the assemblies, as those of North Carolina, Rhode Island, and New York, adopted the Virginia resolves entire ; others, as in the case of Massachusetts, added resolves dictated by their local condition ; others, as in Maryland, altered the phraseology. The assemblies agreed in essentials. The harmony was so inspiring that it was said, " The whole con- tinent from New England to Georgia seems firmly fixed : like a strong, well-constructed arch, the more weight there is laid upon it the firmer it stands ; and thus with Americans, the more we are loaded the more we are united." ^ Thus grandly was the asgis of the inchoate union cast over the personal liberty of Americans. Thus fixed was the deter- mination to claim as a birthright trial by jury. When Lord Botetourt dissolved the House of Burgesses, the members immediately went to Anthony Hay's residence, chose Peyton Randolph moderator, discussed the situation, and decided to unite into an association to carry out the non-importation agreement. On the next day articles sub- that each colony should feel for its neighbors under those severities to which all are exposed, there will, there must be, a reciprocation of such kind of obligations and grate- ful sentiments through all the colonies, to the disappointment and confusion of those who wish to divide and enslave us." 1 A letter dated Newcastle, Pa., May 19, will show the spirit of the time. "In con- sequence of a letter from the speaker of the late House of Burgesses of Virginia, en- closing their resolves, the House of assembly here took into consideration the advice given to His Majesty by the Houses of Parliament for the seizing and carrying over any person from America to England that may be obnoxious to the king's ministei"s, and the House thought fit to adopt the Virginia Resolves in spirit as well as senti- ment, which, if done in other governments on the continent, will be the best evidence of unanimity that can be given." — Pennsylvduia Chronicle, June 26, 1769. 2 Massachusetts Gazette, Nov. 13, 1769. THE TOWNSHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 239 mitted by Washington were adopted and signed, — his name being near the head of the list. The journals circulated these proceedings ; ^ and thus this patriotic movement re- ceived a powerful impulse. It had been ridiculed and opposed by the Tories when proposed in the time of the stamp act ; and, on its revival to meet the new revenue acts, it had not been generally adopted, even by the Whigs. Neither persuasion, threats, nor personal violence could bring the Tories to accede to it. They alleged that to stimu- late domestic manufactures would draw off labor from hus- bandry and the fisheries ; that the combination was illegal, a defiance of Great Britain, and tended to produce a breach between her and the colonies.^ The Whigs in some quar- ters were backward in entering into it. Thus, because in Rhode Island they hesitated, this colony was held up in the press as a plague spot ; and patriots refused to deal with its inhabitants.^ After the decisive action of the Burgesses, the Whigs pressed the movement vigorously ; assemblies thanked the merchants for their patriotism in adopting it ; ^ colony after colony, including Rhode Island, entered into it ; and when it was adopted by North Carolina, it was said : " This completes the chain of union throughout the continent for the measure of non-importation and economy."^ It was 1 The articles of association and signatures Trere printed in the "Philadelphia Chronicle" of June 5th, 1769, and are quite elaborate. One was, not to "import any slaves or purchase anj' imported after the fifth daj' of November next, until the said acts of Parliament are repealed." They were drawn up by George Mason, and sent by him in a noble letter to Washington. — Sparks's Writings of Washington, ii. 356. 2 Timothy Ruggles, Feb. 29, 1768, "Reasons for not voting for Resolves in Massachusetts Assembly." 8 Tiie "Boston Gazette," Oct. 9, 1769, had an extract from a letter written in New York, which says : " It is cun-ently reported here that all intercourse with Rhode Island is nearly shut up, as if the plague was there, as we v/ill neither sell to them or ship them any goods, nor receive any from thence, nor suffer them to sell any in this province." It was stated in the newspapers in Februarj', 1770, that the merchants at Piiiladelphia and New York had agreed to renew their trade with Rhode Island. 4 The assemblies of Connecticut and New Jersey passed resolutions in October, 1769, which are in the "Massachusetts Gazette," Nov. 2 and 9. 6 Letter dated Dec. 15, 1769, in "Massachusetts Gazette," Feb. 1, 1770. " Thus are the colonies at last all happily united. It now remains for the patriots to improve this union to the best advantage," &c. 240 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. patriotism not to use certain European articles of luxury, not to import slaves or to buy them of importers. It was patriotism to grow flax and wool, to spin and weave, to make clothes and wear them. Ingenuous youth received the honors of their Alma Mater, and legislators appeared in their halls, clothed in American apparel. The Daughters of Liberty vied with each other in their spinning-matches and homespun gowns.^ Such attire was of more lustre than all the gems that sparkle in the mine, for it spoke fidelity to a just cause. The American saw in this harmony a proof that " all the colonies had the same ideas of liberty." The saying was current in London that industry and economy were universal in America, where the farmer strutted in home- spun and cast an indignant look at the meanness of soul that hoped for superior distinction by indulging in the manu- factures of a country that exulted in enslaving the colonies.^ The ministers postponed the design of altering the Amer- ican constitutions. Lord North, in April, 1770, based a motion for a partial repeal of the Townshend Revenue Act on the petition of the merchants of London. He urged the abolition of the duties on glass, paper, and painter's colors, on the ground that they were uncommercial, while he justi- fied the retention of the duty on tea as necessary to assert the supremacy of parliament. Such was the judgment of the king who held that " there must always be one tax to 1 "Williamsburg, Va., January 3, 1770. On Wednesday evening the honorable speaker and gentlemen of the House of Burgesses gave a ball at the capitol, for the entertainment of His Excellency, Lord Botetourt; and it is with the greatest pleas- ure we inform our readers that the same patriotic spirit which gave rise to the asso- ciation of gentlemen on a late event was most agreeably manifested in the dress of the ladies on that occasion, who, to the number of near one hundred, appeared in homespun gowns; a livel}' and striking instance of their acquiescence and concur- rence in whatever may be the true and essential interest of their country. It were to be wished that all assemblies of American ladies would exhibit a like example of public virtue and private economy, so amiably united. " Not all the gems that sparkle in the mine Can make the fair with so much lustre shine." Massachusetts Gazette, Feb. 12, 1770. 2 Piece in newspapers, under the head of "London, Aug. 16, 1769." THE TOWNSHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 241 keep up the right." ^ Hence the Act was repealed (April 12, 1770) only in part. The Declaratory Act, asserting the right to legislate for the colonies in all cases whatsoever, and the tax on tea, remained on the statute book. The popular leaders regarded this partial repeal as insid- ious and unsatisfactory, — settling nothing and boding evil. They urged a rigid adherence to the non-importation agree- ment as the most effectual method to obtain a redress of grievances. Above all, they commended union as absolutely essential to the salvation of America. The attempt of the ministry to check the republican ele- ment, to abridge English liberties in America, had the effect to throw the colonists back on themselves ; to move them to reflect on the scope and tendency of the ideas they had applied, on the institutions they had reared and the posi- tion they had attained ; and to reveal the fact that there were marked differences on fundamentals between the views held by the statesmen in England and in America. A striking illustration of this fact is seen in the view taken of ordinary legislation. The ministry were united on the point that when an act was passed in parliament and approved, it became a part of the Constitution ; ^ while in America it was reasoned that unless some power existed in a free State superior to the House of Commons, and which no power could destroy, the idea of a constitution was a nullity;^ and the power specified was the law embodied in'*Magna Charta, the Bill of Rights, and the Act of Settlement. This reason- ing familiarized the American mind with the thought that public liberty required the establishment of a body of organic law, which should be the rule of action of the agents chosen periodically to administer the affairs of government ; and it shews the progress that was going on in political science. 1 King to Lord North, in Bancroft, vi. 277. 2 De Berdt, Aug. 29, 1768 (Bradford's State Papers, 162), says the whole min- ifitiy were united on this point. 8 Piece in the newspapers, 1769. 16 f 242 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. This veneration for the free principles of the British Con- stitution was accompanied with the warmest expressions of loyalty to the crown. The popular leaders, so far from desir- ing to divide the empire, averred that they could not justly be suspected of the most distant thought of independency, would refuse it if it were offered to them, and would deem it the greatest misfortune to be obliged to accept it.^ There is no valid ground on which to question their sincerity in these declarations. They knew that they did not deal with the question of sovereignty, and did not mean that their oppo- nents should force them to do it. Their loyalty, however, did not imply passive submission to the arbitrary commands of the king, nor did their respect for the Constitution imply acquiescence in the decisions of administrative majorities when they violated fundamental rights. The treatment of the free assemblies, the proposed transportation of Ameri- cans, in direct violation of trial by jury, were viewed as the illegal acts and purposes of the party in power ; and were resisted with the spirit of freemen. Propositions continued to appear for a union of the colo- nies. Pownal reasoned that the train of events must estab- lish either a British or an American union ; and he argued that it was not more necessary to preserve the several gov- ernments subordinate in their several spheres than it was essential to the preservation of the whole empire to keep them disconnected and independent of each other .^ A plan termed " a new model" found favor with the New- York politicians ; 1 Letter of Massachusetts assembly, Jan. 12,1768, in "Bradford's State Papers," 124, 143. The "Boston Post Boy" of May 1, 1769, has the Petition of the New York General Assembly to the Lords spiritual and temporal in Parliament assem- bled, signed Phillip Livingston, speaker, which has the following: "If disloyalty to the crown, want of affection to Great Britain, or a desire of independency, had the least influence upon our minds, no words could sufficiently express our ingrati- tude and our folly. But, my Lords, we are neither so foolish nor ungrateful. We can appeal to the omniscient Searcher of hearts, for the most inviolable fidelity to His Majesty, an utter abhorrence of a disunion with Great Britain, and a cheerful sub- mission to her supremacy, in every instance of authority essential to the common safety of the empire." 2 Pownal's Administration of the Colonies, 4th ed., 1768. THE TOWT^SHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 243 and tlie assembly of that province invited each colony to elect representatives clothed with power to meet and legis- late for the whole. The House of Burgesses responded to this suggestion by choosing delegates to such a body.^ It did not, however, meet with general favor. Secretary Oliver broached the plan in Massachusetts ; but Dr. Cooper wrote that the body of the people were for the old establishments, under which they had grown and flourished, and viewed the project as calculated to create a condition like Ireland.^ A union movement by the Presbyterians was regarded by the Tories as of great importance. It was held by the crown lawyers that the supremacy of the crown in ecclesiastical affairs extended to the colonies, and that it was not lawful for the clergy to assemble, as in a synod, without a royal license.^ Since the movement of 1725 there had been none called.* On the breaking out of the present troubles, several Presbyterians of Philadelphia, in a circular, stated that, though numerous, yet they were considered as nobody, or of very little weight or consequence ; and submitted a plan whereby they might act as one body whenever they might be called upon to defend the civil and religious liberties and privileges they enjoyed, or to obtain any of which they might be abridged. The immediate result of this movement was a union between the congregations of Pennsylvania and Delaware, which extended through the southern provinces ; so that in Philadelphia, in 1765, an annual synod began its session without a royal license. " Men of sense and foresight," alarmed at so formidable a confederacy, brought about by letters "buried in studied secrecy," obtained possession of these letters ; and in 1769 they were printed in New York, when they elicited sharp dis- cussion. A Tory review of the rise of the Revolution gives 1 Bancroft, vi. 316. 2 Samuel Cooper to Governor Pownal, Jan. 1, 1770. 8 Chalmers's Opinions of Eminent Lawyers, 50. * See above, p. 121. 244 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. this movement tlie honor of being the mainspring of the opposition to the government.^ At this period, the prophecies concerning the future of America multiplied. Thomas Hutchinson wrote that the natural increase of population was so great, it was probable in a few generations a mighty empire would be formed on this continent.^ The consequences that might grow out of such an empire, with continued union with Great Britain, were glow- ingly dwelt upon. " Never," William Livingston wrote, " was there such a Phcenix state. Liberty, religion, and science were on their wing to these shores. The finger of God pointed to a mighty empire. The mother and her sons would again be collected in one house, and in proportion to the abatement of national glory in Europe would be the brightness of its resurrection in America. The day dawns in which the foundation of this mighty empire is to be laid by the establishment of a regular American Constitution. All that hitherto has been done seems to be little beside the collection of materials for the construction of this glorious fabric. 'Tis time to put them together. The transfer of the European part of the great family is so swift, and our growth so fast, that before seven years roll over our heads the first stone must be laid." ^ Here a union and constitution 1 The "Pennsylvania Chronicle" of Sept. 25, 1769, has the Circular Letter, dated Philadelphia, March 24, 1764, and the "Plan or Articles," copied from the "New-York Journal," Sept. 14, 1769. Both were printed by Galloway in his "His- torical and Political Reflections," London, 1780. He says that the Presbyterians throughout the colonies, after 1725, aimed to unite their churches: "To form these into one religious as well as one political body, was, therefore, the first measure pur- sued by this congregated faction, after they found themselves freed from the embar- rassments and dangers of Indian and French incursions," p. 48. 2 Preface to the Collections, 1768. 8 "The American Whig, No V.," in "New-York Gazette," April 11, 1768, a series of papers attributed to William Livingston. They, with the replies they elicited, were published in a volume. The words in the text are from pp. 57, 58. The volume is entitled "A Collection of Tracts from the late Newspapers," &c., con- taining "The American Whig," "A Whip for the American Whig," with some other pieces on the subject of the residence of Protestant Bishops in the American colonies, and in answer to the ^\Titers who opposed it, &c. New York: 1768. In one of the Tracts, a Son of Liberty remarks that the public mind was concerned to THE TOWNSHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 245 were foreshadowed that were to be in harmony with alle- giance to the crown. The progress of events, however, suggested more accurate prophecy. Samuel Adams said that he desired the union with Great Britain to continue. But he judged that in the natural course of things the policy of the ministry must alienate the affections of the colonies from the mother-country, and he speculated on the consequences that might ensue from American independence. French agents — one was Baron De Kalb — sent over to watch the progress of events observed the cold indifference with which Canada and its dependencies viewed the efforts of the patriots, and reported that they were the only parts of English America that were perfectly quiet.-^ They were so impressed with the aspect of other parts, they wrote home that, unless the mother- country desisted from her course, the independence of the colonies was certain to take place.^ The French ambassador in London held frequent interviews with Franklin. Illus- trious Frenchmen now uttered remarkable prophecies. Du- rand, the minister at London, felt assured that the colonies would soon form a separate State.^ Chatelet, his successor, witnessing the determined stand of the king and the ministry, predicted that the day of separation was not far off, and that it must necessarily have the greatest influence on the whole political system of Europe.* Turgot saw with joy tlie pros- pect of an event which, more than all the books of philoso- phers, would dissipate the sanguinary phantom of commer- cial monopoly, separate all America from Europe, and make its discovery truly useful to mankind.^ Choiseul, the pre- know " whether we are a nation of generous freemen or of despicable slaves." — p. 48. Another gives the following statistics : "In all New England there are but eleven Presbyterian congregations; whilst there are thirty Quaker churches, thirty -nine Anabaptists, about fifty Separatist churches, about eighty congregations of the Church of England, and five hundred and eighty-six Congregational meetings." — p. 430. 1 De Witt's Jefferson and the American Democracy, 379. 2 Ibid., 382. De Kalb, in a letter dated Jan. 15, 1768. * Cited in Bancroft, vi. 169. 4 Ibid., 245. 5 Ibid., 370. 246 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. mier, sagaciously interpreting the signs of the times, planned a treaty of commerce to offer America, with the view of hastening this result.^ The movement elicited by the Townshend Revenue Acts resulted in a settled public opinion and conviction by a free people, as to the nature and value of their rights. This was embodied in the utterances of public bodies and the press. Many were circulated in the journals and in pamphlets in England, and the ability they evinced elicited high praise. It was said to be a common remark in London that " they were written in a style not to be equalled in any part of the British dominions." ^ Many were translated and circulated on the continent. " All Europe," Franklin wrote, " is attentive to the dispute between Britain and the colonies : our part is taken everywhere." ^ Generous tributes from abroad flowed in upon the patriots. A London letter reads: "Your late conduct is noble indeed : every ray is splendid with asserted right and vindicated freedom." * Another wrote : " The whole Christian world owe you much thanks. The star ris- ing out of your wilderness will become a great luminary and enlighten the whole earth." ^ A Paris letter, urging a con- tinuance of the "noble struggle for liberty," runs: "I imagine I see illustrious statesmen, eloquent orators, wise historians, and learned philosophers rising up among you, 1 Bancroft, vi. 169. 2 London letter, Jan. 19, 1769, in the newspapers. s Franklin's Works, vii. 470. Letter, April 14, 1770. * Massachusetts Gazette, Oct. 19, 1769. Letter from London, Aug. 3. 6 A letter dated London, July 23, 1770, printed in the " Boston Evening Post" of Sept. 17, 1770, says: — " The voluntary recess of your virtuous and brave ancestors from the scenes of tyr- anny and corruption which the reign of the Stuarts had spread over this kingdom, and the colonies and churches which they estabUshed on your continent upon the more glorious principles of catholic Christianity, I cannot but consider as a most important event, by which very happy fruits, which are now (though amidst heavy storms) ripen- ing for the signal benefit of the whole Christian Church. For that noble stand you have made in the cause both of civil and religious liberty, the whole Christian world owe you much thanks. The star rising out of your wilderness will, I trust and pray, become a great luminary and enlighten the whole earth. May your patience and fidel- ity continue steadfast to the end." THE TOWNSHEND ACTS AND PUBLIC OPINION. 247 whose generous souls have espoused the interests of human- ity, and are spreading the blessings of liberty throughout the world around them."^ These praises, circulated by the press, might be read in every home in America. They could hardly fail to strengthen the conviction of the patriots that their stand for liberty and law was appreciated, — that it would be approved by the wise and good, and that they would be justified in maintaining it at every cost. In the tribute just cited, it is said that the patriots had em- braced the cause of humanity. It is averred that the word mankind, to signify brotherhood, never passed the lips of Socrates, Plato, or Aristotle;^ and that the idea of human equality was thoroughly ignored by society in the pagan world.^ But the word and the idea were in common use in speaking of the movement germinating in America. The earliest utterances of the patriots are inspired by the thought that Providence had set them to defend the rights and liber- ties of mankind;* and in their proud day of triumph they said, Let it be remembered that it has ever been the pride and boast of America that the rights for which she contended were the rights of human nature.^ Their noble array of utterances warrant the remark that they viewed " mankind toiling and suffering, separated by oceans, divided by lan- gTiage, and severed by national enmity, yet evermore tending under a divine control towards the fulfilment of that inscru- table purpose for which the world was created, and man placed in it, bearing the image of God." ^ Native gifts de- veloped in labors in behalf of such a cause. Men thus grew in stature ; each colony had its roll of honor, and said and did things that made a mark on the age. One great name, 1 Letter from Paris, in "Massachusetts Gazette," Aug. 27, 1770. 2 Max Miiller's Chips from a German Workshop, ii. 5. 8 Above, p. 6. * This was the language of the Boston press before the Stamp Act. Life and Times of Warren, 35. fi Address of Congress, April 26, 1783, drawn by Madison. 6 Max Miiller, Chips, &c., ii. 5. 248 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. in particular, was gathering lustre. Washington was active on the political stage, destined soon to be " Among the sons Of fame well known, bright as the morning star Among the lesser lights ; a patriot skilled In all the glorious arts of peace and war." 1 1 "Rising Gloiy of America," spoken at the commencement of the college in New Jersey, Sept. 25, 1771. In the " General Advertiser," London, Feb. 14, 1778. The following is an extract from this poem : — " The mind prophetic grows, and pierces far Through ages yet unborn. We saw the states And mighty empires of the East arise. In swift succession from the Assyrian To Macedon and Rome ; to Britain thence Dominion drove her car. She stretched her reign O'er many isles, wide seas, and peopled lands. Now, in the West, a continent appears ; A newer world now opens to her view ; Slie hastens onward to the Americ shores, And bids a scene of recent wonders rise : New states, new empires, and a race of men High- raised in glory ; cities and people Numerous as sand upon the ocean shore. Th' Ohio then shall glide by many a town Of note ; and where the Mississippi stream. By forests shaded, now runs weeping on, Nations shall grow, and states not less in fame Than Greece and Rome of old: we too shall boast Our Alexanders, Pompeys, heroes That in the womb of time yet dormant lie. Waiting the joyful hour for life and light." In the copy in the "Advertiser" of 1778, Washington's name occurs in the cita- tion in the text, but does not occur in the original printed in Philadelphia in 1772. It was written by Phillip Freneau, and the title-page of the pamphlet of 1772 has Seneca's "wrat'emi annis." CHAPTER VII. How THE Patriots advanced from an Embodiment of Public Opinion to a Party Organization, by forming Committees of Correspondence. March, 1770, to August, 1773. The patriots, in dealing with the Stamp Act and the Townshend Revenue Acts, developed elements of union, which had gathered strength beneath the diversity that characterized the colonial age ; and thirteen communities embodied in their varied action common convictions on polit- ical ideas, and so were prepared for a general organization. When the ministry attempted to carry out their policy by arbitrary Royal Instructions, the patriots formed commit- tees of correspondence, and thus organized the party which achieved the American Revolution. The successive British administrations, since the beginning of the controversy of the colonies with the mother-country, had been composed of members of several parties ; but at length the Tory party attained power, as it ruled England, with brief intervals, for half a century.^ It was imbued with low views of human nature, high-toned principles of government, unsound doctrines of political economy, and a disposition to stretch the prerogative and to gratify the pride of dominion. Out of its ranks George III. formed a cabinet " to deal with Wilkes and America." The premier, Lord North, alout forty years of age, was a scholar of elegant taste, of eminent ability as a debater, and had administra- tive talents which qualified him for his place. He voted for the Stamp Act and against its repeal, and was the 1 Earl Russell's Essay on the English Government. Introduction, Ed. 18G5. 250 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. first to move tlie expulsion of Wilkes. One of his sayings then circulated in the press was, that he never could ac- quiesce in the absurd opinion that all men were equal ; another, that the question between England and her colonies was no less than sovereignty on the one side and independ- ence on the other,^ when simple justice by England might have adjourned, at least for years, all thought of inde- pendence. The Tory party, in partially repealmg the Townshend Revenue Acts, only paused in the execution of the Bute policy. It was fully embodied in the Declaratory Act of 1766, that the king's majesty, with the advice of parlia- ment, had, and of right ought to have, full power to make laws of sufficient validity to bind the people of America in all cases whatever, — "a resolution," Lord Chatham said, " for England's right to do what the Treasury pleased with three millions of freemen." ^ It was also embodied in the tax on tea retained to keep up the right. The party, and indeed Englishmen generally, looked upon Americans as inferiors, whom England had the right to rule, and use for her benefit ; and to question this was to insult the sovereignty .^ The Secretary for the colonies was the Earl of Hillsborough. He said in debate, as to the past, that " it had been the object of every administration since the reign of Charles II. to endeavor to establish a civil list in America independent of the assemblies ; " and he frankly declared, as to the future, that " a republican spirit prevailed through the colonies, which every administration must discourage."* It might 1 Lord North's speech, in "Massachusetts Gazette," Oct. 22, 1770. "^ Chatham's Correspondence, ii. 365. 3 "Every Englishman considers himself as king of America, and peculiarly interested in our subjection." — Boston Gazette, Sept. 17, 1770. Lord Chatham said that Americans must be made to obey the laws of England. "If you do not make laws for them, let me tell you, my Lords, they do, they will, they must make laws for you." — Sparks's Franklin, vii. 468. Franklin said: "Every man in Eng- land . . . seems to jostle himself into the throne with the king, and talks of our subjects in America." * The "Massachusetts Gazette" of Sept. 3, 1776, has a report of Hillsborough's speech in parliament, delivered May, 1770. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 251 have been wise to have simply aimed to render the imperial authority independent in its proper sphere, while leaving the local authorities free to act in their spheres, just as the officers of the United States are independent of the State and municipal authorities ; but the object of putting the civil list on a new basis, — arrogantly avowed from ministerial benches, and steadily pursued by the men in power, — was to repress the republican spirit, by shaping the local govern- ments according to English ideas. Thus the minister aimed^o impose a polity on a people, instead of recognizing and protecting the polity developed by them, and which was a natural outgrowth. Such a purpose was war on their dearly prized local self-government ; and it was prosecuted in the same spirit of persecution of the liberal element in America which characterized the course of the party in England. It was as suicidal a policy as it would be for an American ad- ministration to aim at impairing the municipal liberties, which are perennial fountains of a noble public life. On this object the vigilant eye of patriotism kept steadily fixed. The ministers, in carrying out this policy, now resorted to an extraordinary use of Royal Instructions, which, for three years, played an important part in American -politics. A rule of action, to meet a current question in England, was concisely stated in the following terms : " The law is above the king ; and the crown, as well as the subject, is bound by it -as much during the recess as in the session of parliament ; because no point of time nor emergent circum- stance can alter the Constitution, or create a right not ante- cedently inherent. Tliese only draw forth into action the power that before existed, but was quiescent. There is no such prerogative in any hour or moment of time as vests the semblance of legislative power in the crown." ^ This 1 See the remarkable speech in "Parliamentary History," vol. xvi. p. 259. Franklin, Jan. 1-3, 1772, relates a conversation he had several years before with Lord Granville, who said tiiat the king's instructions, when received by the governors, were the laws of the land ; "for the king is the legislator of the colonies." — Sparks' s Works of Franklin, vii. 550. 252 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. doctrine seems to have been accepted by the American Whigs ; for their utterances are imbued with the sentiment inculcated by the school of Locke, that the freedom of a people under government is to have standing rules to live by, so that the government may be one of laws, and not of men. "Without much regard to this rule, or indeed to any law, the ministers, after the repeal of the Townshend Acts, issued to the governors a series of extraordinary instruc- tions. They came under the king's sign manual, with the privy seal annexed. It was said that officials could not refuse to execute them without giving up the rights of the crown.i A set was not framed to apply to all the colonies alike, but special instructions were sent to each colony as local circumstances dictated. Hence the patriots could not create a general issue on them. They have been termed a new set of measures determined on to prevent American Independence. The first instruction was adopted in the Privy Council on the 6th of July, 1770.^ This may be fixed on as the time when Royal Instructions began their mission. In framing these instructions, little, if any, regard was paid to customs, forms, aild prejudices in the colonies as' old as their existence, which had become unwritten law, and were therefore, at least, worthy of consideration. The first instruction sent to Massachusetts ordered Castle William to be garrisoned by the king's troops, when the charter ol the colony expressly provided that it should be garrisoned 1 The Censor, Dec. 22, 1771, p. 18. This was a periodical to which Lieutenant Governor Oliver, Thomas Greenleaf, and otlier loyalists, contributed; published by E. Russell, Boston. The first number is dated Nov. 2-3, 1771, and the last May 2, 1772. It defended the policy of the ministers. 2 Bancroft (vi. 369) states that this order to garrison Castle William was the beginning of "the system of measures to prevent American Independence." The same order directed that His ^Majesty's ships should rendezvous in the harbor of Boston. It was said by this act "ministers had declared war against Boston." Lord Chatham termed the intelligence sent to him "a most melancholy piece of information." — Chatham's Correspondence, iii. 468. The execution of the order caused great excitement. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 253 by the provincial militia. The instructions required the dis- solution of assemblies ; their removal to unusual places of meeting, as in South Carolina to Beaufort,^ and in Massa- chusetts to Cambridge ; negatived arbitrarily the choice of speakers ; provided for the maintenance of local officers : and thus entirely ignored the local legislation for the sup- port of government, and even directed the executive to refuse his assent to tax-bills because they taxed the officers of government. 2 Similar in effect was an extraordinary use of the prerogative ; as in Maryland, where the governor assumed by proclamation to revive a law regulating fees of officers which had expired by limitation, in this way asserting the right to levy taxes ; as in North Carolina, where royal officials assessed enormous fees, and imprisoned the citizens on slight evidence or none at all. In Rhode Island, the commander of the British schooner " Gaspee " made a gen- eral seizure of the vessels engaged in trade in Newport Harbor, and committed other outrages. Royal Instructions required the colonies to desist from their opposition to the slave-trade. The ministry seemed bent on giving full force to the Declaratory Act, and governing the colonies in all cases whatever ; and their arbitrary practices grated harshly on a people habituated to the ways of freedom. These practices were manfully, and in general successfully, met. In some cases they provoked deeds of violence. The rapine and extortion practised in North Carolina drove an oppressed people to insurrection, and hence the war of the Regulators.^ The insolence of the commander of the 1 A writer in the "South Carolina Gazette" of Sept. 15, 1772, says: "There has been no assembly to do business for a long time. The last was called, and after sitting three or four days was abruptly dissolved. Now another is called at Beaufort, upwards of seventy miles frora the capital, at a place where no assembly ever sat before." 2 The "Boston Gazette" of July 8, 1771, has this instniction, called the 27th: "It is our will and pleasure that you do not for the future, upon any pretext, give your consent to any law or laws " by which these officers were taxed. 3 The " Boston Evening Post" of Nov. 12, 1770, has an account of the Regu- lators. 254 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. " Gaspee," in Rhode Island, led to an enterprise that effected her destruction. The Executive Proclamation, in Maryland, divided the colony into two parties, which con- tinued their struggle down to the Revolution ; and in opposi- tion to it were Charles Carroll, Thomas Johnson, William Paca, and Samuel Chase. ^ In Georgia the rejection of the speaker was regarded by the assembly a breach of the privileges of the House, and as tending to subvert the most valuable rights and liberties of the people.^ The infamous instruction on the slave-trade elicited a remarkable petition from the Virginia Burgesses to the king, in which that com- merce was represented as inhuman ; and it was urged that unless it were checked it would endanger the very existence of His Majesty's American dominions.^ In brief, the claim that the king's instructions had the force of law, or that the people were under a personal government, was every- , where contested. Its nature and tendency were exposed in papers issued by public meetings, by general assemblies,^ and the press, often marked by keen analysis and strong reason- ing. Indeed, the vein of Americanism was so wide and deep, that, outside of official circles, these instructions had scarcely more than quasi-defenders. For even the Tories would con- 1 McMahon's Maryland, 380. The Proclamation was issued May 26, 1770. From this date to the Revolution, other subjects gave way to this engrossing topic. 2 The commons elected Noble Wimberly Jones three times their speaker unani- mously, and the choice was three times negatived, when he declined. Archibald Bullock was then chosen, and the record made that he was elected only because Jones declined. The Governor said: "If this record is to stand on your journals, I have no choice but to dissolve the assembly." The House replied: "Our third choice of Noble Wimberly Jones, Esq., as our speaker, was not in the least meant as disrespectful to His Majesty, or you as his representative, nor thereby did we mean to infringe on the just prerogative of the crown." "Massachusetts Gazette," June 11, 1772, lias the documents at length. 3 The "Massachusetts Gazette," Oct. 8, 1772, has the address of the House of Burgesses to the king on the slave-trade. They pray for the removal of those restraints on His Majesty's governors which inhibit their assenting to such laws as might check so pernicious a commerce. 4 The Massachusetts House of Representatives, June 19, 1771, protested "against all such doctrines, principles, and practices as tend to establish either ministerial or even Roj'al Instructions as laws within the province." — Massachusetts Gazette, June 20, 1771. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 255 cede that the colonists might justly claim and expect as great a degree of legislation among themselves as would consist with the maintenance of the supremacy of parliament, and the general good of the whole ; ^ while the Whigs, conced- ing the supremacy of parliament in its sphere, held that the proper degree of legislation embraced all matters of a domestic nature, and especially taxation ; indeed, that the privileges of the commons or the assemblies, in their sphere, were, " to all intents and purposes, as full, express, and uncontrollable within the colony as those usually exer- cised by the commons of Great Britain within the realm," ^ the legislation of the assemblies and the parliament being alike subject to the revision of the king. In these assem- blies the people, composing the political unit called the province and the commonwealth,^ made the laws and moulded their polity; and when instructions, set forth as rights of the crown, were used to levy moneys, support gov- ernment, and administer justice, it was natural that they should have been looked upon as war on the old self-govern- ment. It was said in Virginia that " the ministry had substituted discretion for law, and set the principles of the Constitution, which should be fixed and free, afloat upon the merciless and fluctuating sea of arbitrary will." * It was said in Massachusetts " that the king, by his mere will, had created a clandestine, capricious, and destructive mode, couched under the specious umbrage of Royal Instructions." It was said in Pennsylvania that the practice tended to set aside the assemblies.^ " Not to oppose," Arthur Lee wrote, 1 "Chronns," a Tory writer, in "Massachusetts Gazette," Jan. 9, 1772. 2 Boston Instructions, in "Boston Gazette," May 6, 1773. 3 Tlie use of the term " Commonwealth " (see p. 59) was early censured. 'Franklin writes, June 8, 1770 (Works, vii. 476): "The colonies originally were constituted distinct States." The places where the assemblies met were sometimes tenned "State House." 4 Life of Arthur Lee, i. 248. 6 Among the able papers of this period is a letter sent by the committee of mer- chants of Philadelphia to the committee of London merchants. It averred : — " That all Americans concurred iu the sentiment that the prosperity of the colonics depended on their connection with Great Britain, and that there could not.be a greater 256 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. " this most pernicious system, would be crime ; to oppose it unsuccessfully, would be misfortune only." The colonial judgment on this insidious phase of centralization was as intelligent as it was just. Meantime word had gone through the colonies to adhere to the non-importation agreement, as the best means to pro- cure a repeal of the tax on tea, and a redress of grievances ; on the ground that this would distress the commerce of Eng- land and aid the opponents of the administration. Fidelity to this agreement came to be looked upon as vital to the salvation of the cause, — in fact, as a test of patriotism. "Let us be united," a Philadelphia broadside runs: "the eyes of all Europe, nay, of the whole world, are fixed upon us." ^ In general, the patriots carried out the agreement in good faith ; but the Tories, and selfish men among the Whigs, would not respect it, when personal violence was used to compel its observance. Its enemies charged upon the patriots as a body the delinquencies really belonging to the few. It was alleged that Virginia and Massachusetts were growing rich at the expense of their neighbors. In this period of mistrust the merchants of the city of New York sent out a Circular to the principal commercial places, pro- posing to confine the agreement of non-importation to the single article of tea, and that trade should be free in aU other articles. The proposition fell upon the patriots like the news of some public calamity. It created a panic .^ deviation from truth than to represent the colonies as concerting a plan of resistance to the government. But they also averred that Americans had ' anxious fears for the existence of their assemblies, which they considered their last and only bulwark against arbitrary power. For if, say they, laws can be made, money levied, government sup- ported, and justice administered, without the intervention of assemblies, of what use can they, be ? And being useless and unessential, is there not reason to fear they will quickly become disagreeable and then be wholly laid aside? And when that happens, what security have we for freedom, or what remains for the colonists but the most abject slavery? These are not the reasonings of politicians, but the sentiments and language of the people in general.' " See more of this admirable letter in Gordon, 1. 268. 1 Broadside issued in Philadelphia July 14, 1771. 2 A letter from Connecticut says that the universal consternation which the late letter from New York gave the people of all ranks, was easier to be conceived than ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 257 The excitement was general and intense. The proposal was met by indignant remonstrances. In Boston, at a meeting in Faneuil Hall, the New-York Circular was ordered to be torn in pieces and scattered to the winds, in token of abhor- rence. The students of Princeton College, — James Madison being one, — clothed in American cloth and arrayed in black gowns, gathered in the college yard; and, while the bell tolled, the New- York letter was committed to the flames.^ The New-Yorkers, however, carried their point, and were called " Revolters." The merchants of Charleston, in a noble letter, urged that unanimity was absolutely necessary, and that the people of that province had bound themselves to the cause of American liberty,^ and nowhere was the course of the Revolters more indignantly denounced. The merchants of Philadelphia, in a sorrowful and strong letter, averred that the New- York merchants had certainly weakened that union of the colonies on which their salvation depended, and, in a day of trial, had deserted the cause of their country. There was sterner action in other colonies. The patriots of Charleston, S.O., voted, at a great meeting, that, because the inhabitants of Georgia did not come into the agreement, they " ought to be amputated from the rest of the brethren as a rotten part that might spread a dangerous infection ; " ^ and, for the same offence, the patriots of Boston voted that they would not hold inter- expressed, nor to be conceived but by those who have been present at news of some public misfortune first spreading. — Massachusetts Gazette, June 28, 1770. 1 Rives's Life of Madison, i. 4. A broadside dated "Philadelphia State House, July 14, 1770," and signed "Pennsylvania," says: "The New-Yorkers have betrayed a meanness and cowardice in deserting us in the present important junc- ture, which wants a name. May infamy be their portion ! And may the names of a Bute, Grenville, a Bernard and a Yorker, hereafter be synonymous words." Arthur Lee, writing to Dr. T. Bland, London, Aug. 21, 1770, says: "I have hardly spirit to write, so severely do I feel the fatal news which has just reached us of the treach- ery of New York in basely deserting the common cause of liberty. Much am I afraid the e\'il will spread." — Bland Papers, i. 28. 2 This letter is in the "Massachusetts Gazette," May 24, 1770. 8 Charles Pinckney was chairman of the meeting, which was described as numer- ous and respectable as ever gathered under Liberty Tree. — Boston Evening Post, July 23, 1770. 17 258 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. course with the merchants of New Hampshire, or with any who held intercourse with them.^ The matter on this sub- ject is voluminous. The newspapers abound with relations of the proceedings of 'towns and counties, denouncing the violators of the agreement ; and of the merchants of Phila- delphia, Boston, and Charleston, and of other places, decree- ing non-intercourse with New York. Words were followed by blows ; and the vessels from New York, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island, were driven from the ports of Boston, Charleston, Philadelphia, and other places.^ Besides this wholesale anathema and crimination, there were bitter feuds between several colonies about local jurisdiction. New Hampshire and New York were contending for the territory now Vermont ; and Connecticut and Pennsylvania were fighting at Wyoming.^ Thus the American cause was in the 1 Massachusetts Gazette, June 28, 1770. The committees on imports and. ex- ports were directed to keep the strictest look-out that no sort of goods came in from or went out to any part of New Ifeiiipshire. In the "Massachusetts Gazette," June 4, 1770, is the following: ''The merchants, &c., of Pliiladelphia, have come into Resolutions not to have any dealings with the colony of Rhode Island for breaking through their non-importation agreement. Captain Whitman, lately arrived at Philadelphia from Newport, was not suffered to land his cargo, but was obliged to turn back again." 2 The newspapers of July, 1770, contain many items showing the bitterness that prevailed between the colonies. The following are from the "Massachusetts Gazette" of July 5: — " Captain Smith has returned to Providence with his cargo from Philadelphia. He was obliged to leave Pliiladelphia." " The freeholders, merchants, and traders of Kew Brunswick, in New Jersey, have come into resolves to operate with the other colonies with respect to non-importation, and to have no commerce with Rhode Island." " An account is given of the proceedings of ' persons ' residing in the principal trad- ing towns on Connecticut River, who decreed non-intercourse with Portsmouth, N. H." " A long relation of the doings of the Committee of Inspection of Windham, Conn., and the sending goods back to Providence, the merchants of which, it is said, had 'basely betrayed their trust, and sold their birthright privileges for a mess of pottage.' " 3 " Wyoming, Aug. 1, 1771. Last Tuesday, about break of day, I arrived at this place with thirty-one men and provisions, and was attacked by the Connecticut party. . . . We were surrounded by their tire. . . . Got in with twenty-two of our men. Nine are missing. They have kept up an almost continuous fire on our block-house ever since, from four intrenchments ; but we are determined to hold out to the last extremity." — Massachusetts Gazette. Aug. 19, 1771. "We hear from Albany that another expedition, like that formerly carried on ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 259 presence of varied internal strife. It was feared by the patriots that two evils would be likely to grow out of this confusion and bloodshed, that might prove irremediable, — loss of character in England, and the destruction of that confidence at home that was essential to success.^ It was exultingly said by the Tories, who rejoiced at the dissension and weakness, that the union was well broken,^ and that it would require a miracle to restore it. It is wonderful that men now living saw this spectacle, were born when the thirteen colonies seemed destined to reproduce only the petty autonomy of ancient Greece, and to suffer as the penalty border wars, chronic impotence, or subjection to foreign sway. The non-importation agreement was broken, to the infinite joy of the Tories in America and in England.^ Then no gen- eral issue remained to stir the colonies. The blood shed in Boston by British soldiers on the memorable Fifth of March, 1770, produced a thrill of horror ; but there succeeded im- mediately the forced removal from the town of the obnox- ious troops, and the general exultations at the triumph of the patriots. In some of the colonies exciting local issues were created by the execution of arbitrary Royal Instructions ; but the desire was general to drop the controversy with the mother-country.* Even in Massachusetts, though there against Noble-Town, is proceeding against Bennington. More of the salubrious eftects of the extensive wisdom and goodness of a righteous administration, who first intrusted Governor Wentworth to grant those lands for speedy settlement; then turned right about, and countenanced the monopolizing grandees of New York." — Boston Gazette, July 29, 1771. The " Massachusetts Gazette " of May 7, 1772, has a relation of a raid of New-Yorkers on sundry towns granted by New Hampshire, to turn them out of their possessions, in which blood was shed. 1 Letter of Arthur Lee. 2 Hutchinson wrote June, 22, 1772: "Tlie union of the colonies is pretty well broke. I hope I never shall see it renewed." 8 John Adams -vvrites (Works, ii. 364): "Mr. Reed told us, at dinner,- that he never saw greater joy than he saw at London when the news arrived tliat the non- importation agreement was broke. They were universally shaking hands and con- gratulating each other." 4 Ramsay (Hist. Am. Revolution, 70), says that " m.any hoped tliat the contention between the two countries was finally closed. In all the provinces, except Massa- 260 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. were sharp contests between the assembly and the executive, and passionate appeals in the press, the people were averse, to political agitation. This calmness was the basis of the opinion expressed in London, that the disputes with the government had subsided ; of the congratulations on the tranquillity of public affairs ; and of the boast of Lord Hillsborough, that America had returned to a due sense of her error in opposing his administration .^ The popular leaders, however, kept on exposing the chusetts, appearances seemed to favor that opinion." " Verus," a Tory, addressing " The Free Electors of Massachusetts," in the "Massachusetts Gazette," May 15, 1771, says of the popular leaders of Massachusetts: " They cannot bear the tranquil state of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, and the other governments, except North Carolina, whose Regulators also, it is to be hoped, will soon be suppressed." A piece in the "Massachusetts Gazette " (Tory), Feb. 6, 1772, begins: — " They that are in will grin, They that are out will pout." Inserti Auctoris. "The dispute between the kingdom and the colonies ceases everywhere except in this province. . . . Every other colony has made its peace. Some are seeking one favor, some another." Another piece in the same paper terms the patriots " Sons of Discontent and Rapine." The "Censor," No. 5, Dec. 21, 1771, republishes by request "An Eastern History," in two chapters; one containing fortj'-six verses, and the other thirty- four. It touches on things in Itlassachusetts from the beginning of the reign of George III. to the time of Hutchinson's appointment as governor. The twenty- sixth verse of chapter i. relates that certain sons of Belial, who had nor gold nor silver, asked themselves, "What can we lose? perad venture by our craft we may gain something." The twenty-eighth verse runs: "So Samuel the Publican (Adams), and William the Scribe (Cooper), and Will the Weaver (Molineaux), with others of the sons of Belial, set themselves to oppose Francis, the Governor, and Thomas, the Chief Judge, and drew much people after them ; and the land was dis- quieted." The thirty-first verse of chapter ii. says, after the repeal of the revenue acts, " the land had rest, save only in the province of Massachusetts; for there the sons of Belial yet continued to deceive the multitude." Samuel Adams, March 25, 1771, wrote to Arthur Lee, now in London: "If the people are at present hushed into silence, is it not a sort of sullen silence which is far from indicating your conclusion that the glorious spirit of liberty is vanquished, and left without hope but in miracles ? It is the effect of a mistaken prudence which springs from indolence," &c. 1 Massachusetts Gazette, Feb. 10, 1772. Arthur Lee says, in a letter to Samuel Adams, April 7, 1772: " My Lord Hillsborough does not deserve from us a confirma- tion of his insolent boast, that America is quiet and returned to a due sense of her error in opposing his righteous and able government. And, upon the whole, why should we be less persevering in opposition than they are in oppression? " ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 261 danger of admitting Royal Instructions to have the force of law, and earnestly urged renewed effort in behalf of American liberty. They never yielded to the fatal heresy of a personal government, or to the sweep of power covered by the Declaratory Act. They saw in the halcyon sky the cloud no bigger than a man's hand, which contained the thundei'bolt of civil war ; and, in the storm which they pre- dicted, they could see shelter only in the fold of union. It is not easy to imagine how political insight could have been more penetrating as to causes, or foresight more accurate as to results. Among these leaders Samuel Adams was pre-eminent. He had been steadily rising in reputation in Massachusetts and abroad. There had been no decline in his zeal, no pause in his labor. He gave to the cause the whole of his time. A wide correspondence, voluminous writing in the press,^ and masterly state papers attest his intelligence, industry, and influence. He was now directing public attention, through the press, to the theory and practice of the ministry. While he restated the old argument against the right of parlia- ment to tax, he closely examined the foundations of the claim of the ministers to govern by Royal Instructions. He had grasped the idea that the king, lords, and commons, as well as the colonies, were subject to the authority and bound by the limitations of constitutional law. In applying this idea, he did not appeal to what might quite as likely be human fancy or passion, or the political capital of arrant demagogues, as the State's collected will ; but he appealed to a supreme law which the nation had made, and which it was expected the temporary agents would ever respect and preserve : as the trial by jury, the liabeas corpus. Magna Charta, — expressions of the general reason, organic, and therefore inviolable. For illustration : when his opponents, 1 " The General Court not being in session, the press sounded a loud alarm in the ears of the people. At no period of the world was its freedom of greater service tj mankind." — Wells, MSS. Life of Samuel Adams, i. 326. 262 THE EISE OP THE REPUBLIC. ill controverting his position, urged tliat Magna Charta was but an act of parliament, which kings, lords, and commons, as the sovereignty, might amend as they could any ordinary act, he would make the grand answer : ^ This view made Magna Charta of no greater consequence than a corporation of button-makers ; whereas Lord Coke held that it was declaratory of the principal grounds of the fundamental laws and liberties of England.^ His appeal could hardly have been more forcible had there been established the American custom of a written constitution, which, to all, was a supreme law : even this, however, is of little value in the presence of a dead constitutional morality. The appeal of Samuel Adams was to such constitutional law as was grounded in the hearts of the nation, and which Americans loved and respected. While he emphatically denied that the just supremacy of parliament was questioned, specifying as an illustration the general concession of the right to regu- late the trade of the empire, — and as earnestly disclaimed the intention of calling in question the sovereignty, specifying the facts attesting the loyalty to the crown, — he contended for the preservation to each colony of its old right to make its laws of a domestic nature, and held that the people, as Americans, were members of one body, or of the nation ; and while they were bound to fight for the king, they were entitled to be recognized as co-equal sharers with the English people in English liberties. The aggressions on popular rights in Massachusetts re- quired continued service at his hands, in private consulta- tions, in public meetings, in the general assembly, and in preparing matter for the press ; and it is doing no injustice to others to say that he was the centre around which all the movements of the patriots turned.^ Still his eye was ever 1 "Chronus," a Tory writer, in "Massachusetts Gazette," Jan. 9, 1772. 2 " Candidas " (S. Adams), in reply to "Chronus," in "Boston Gazette," Jan. 27, 1772. 3 Life of John Adams (by C. F. Adams), 124. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 263 Upon the whole American field. He urged that the cause 'of one colony was the cause of all the colonies, and that it was only through united councils that the continent could expect to maintain its rights. His great theme from the beginning of the controversy had been a union of the colonies.^ In handling it, he was comprehensive in principle, method, and object, looking ever for the better time in the future. " Let us forget," he now wrote to the South-Caro- lina patriots, of the non-importation agreement, " there ever was so futile a combination, and awaken an attention to our first grand object, and shew that we are united in consti- tutional principles." 2 Union was his paramount thought. The need of it never seemed so great. The method he sug- gested was for the patriots in each town or county in every colony to hold legal meetings, and choose substantial citizens to act as committees of correspondence, with a view to secure concert of action ; and for the Massachusetts towns to adopt the measure, and then, through the assembly, to propose it to the other colonics in the hope that they would adopt it.^ 1 Life of Samuel Adams (by W. V. Wells), ii. 9, who says: "There is scarcely any time, from 1764 to 1774 inclusive, in which we do not find him directing his countrymen to a unity of purpose and concert of action among the several prov- inces." Wells states (ii. 85) that the motions for committees of correspondence by the assembly of 1770 and 1771 were made by Adams. 2 Adams wrote to Gadsden, Dec. 11, 1766: "I wish there were a union and a correspondence kept up among the merchants throughout the continent." — Wells, i. 133. He wrote in the "Boston Gazette," Sept. 16, 1771, over the signature of "Candidus: " "I have often thought that, in this time of common distress, it would be the wisdom of the colonists more frequently to correspond with and to be more attentive to the particular circumstances of each other. . . . The colonies form one political body of which each is a member. . . . The liberties of the whole are in- vaded : it is therefore the interest of the whole to support each individual with all their weight and influence." 3 Adams wrote to Arthur Lee, Nov. 30, 1772: "If our design succeeds, there will be an apparent union of sentiments among the people of this province, which may spread through the continent." Hutchinson had accurate information of every step of the union action of the patriots, though he misrepresented in stating that their aim was independence. In letters dated .Ian. 7 and Feb. 18, 1773, he says that he had authentic information that it was part of the plan to invite every assem- bly on the continent to concur. He makes the same statement in " Historj' of Massachusetts," iii. 368. 264 ' THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The engine of committees was used in the contests of the parliamentarians with the Stuarts.^ It was suggested very early in the controversy as a mode to promote union. ^ Public meetings, towns and assemblies, had chosen them at various times, and some were in existence.^ A line of remark on their value may be seen for years in private letters and the press ; but, owing perhaps to the vacillation of the ministry, and their adroitness in avoiding a general issue, nothing efficient had been done in the way of a gen- eral organization. Hence, while the Tory party, through the royal officials, could act as a unit, the Whigs were simply opposers of obnoxious measures, acting as local aggressions dictated ; and, though imbued with a common sentiment, were without the inspiration and power which belong to organic life. It was to remedy this defect that Samuel Adams now urged the formation of committees of correspondence to bring about a union, and thus won the fame of a statesman by embodying a great thought at the right time into a wise measure. At this period Lord Hillsborough was succeeded at the head of the American department by Lord Dartmouth, who had the reputation of being an amiable and good man, and well disposed towards the colonies. Hopes were indulged that he might reverse the policy of his predecessor. But this policy had deeper roots than personal preferences : it grew out of feudal ideas ; and the new secretary was a disciple of the school which had these ideas for its platform. He looked with unfeigned distrust on the measure of popular power exercised by the colonists. He meant that they should be governed, though he meant to govern them well. 1 Adolplius's History of England, ii. 24. Rush worth's Collections, Part IV., vol. i. 652. 2 See above, p. 162. 8 Samuel Adams, Nov. 21, 1770, acknowledges the receipt from a committee in Charleston, S C, of letters "for the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Connecticut, and New Hampshire," which he forwarded "as soon as possible to such gentlemen in the respective places worthy so excellent a character," which indicates that he did not know of any committees to send them to. KOYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 265 He had a paternal desire to do for them, joined to a repug- nance to recognizing a polity which fostered the capacity to do for themselves. If he did not originate, he certainly did not hesitate to send out the worst Royal Instruction that was issued in the king's name. A great controversy was going on in Massachusetts, grow- ing out of the refusal of Governor Hutchinson to accept a com- pensation for his service from the legislature, and his accept- ing it from the imperial treasury, when Lord Hillsborough directed that the salaries of the judges and the subordinate officers of the courts should be provided for in a suuilar way ; and all doubts were removed as to the position of Lord Dartmouth, by his advising (Aug-ust, 17T2) the local officials that the king had the right to make such provision for the salaries of these officials. " Tlie judges and sub- alterns," Josiah Quincy, Jr., now said in the press, "have got salaries from Great Britain. Is it possible the last movement should not move us and drive us, not to despera- tion, but to our duty ? The blind may see, the callous must feel, the spirited will act." ^ The towns, in line upon line, were urged to express their sentiments on this new violation of old customs in instructions to their representatives. " Let us," an appeal runs, " now unite like one band of brothers in the noblest cause, look to Heaven for assistance, and He who made us free will crown our labors with suc- cess "2 Samuel Adams selected this instruction as the occasion for rousing the patriots, for healing divisions, and for organiza- tion, by forming committees of correspondence, saying: "This country must shake off its intolerable burdens at all events : every day strengthens our oppressors, and weakens us. If each town would declare its sense of these matters, I am persuaded our enemies would not have it in their power 1 In Boston Gazette, Sept. 28, 1772. " The last vessels from England tell us that the Judges," &c. 2 An American in "Boston Gazette," Nov. 2, 1772. 266 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to divide US. . . . I wish we could rouse the continent." ^ Such appeals, however, failed to renew the agitation. Town meetings were called in Boston to consider public affairs, but they were neither so large nor so enthusiastic as the meetings of previous years. Nor were the patriots agreed as to what the next step ought to be. This apathy and dis- l/\}~-^yy^JU union in the town w-a* typical of the political situation in the colonies. A town meeting was called in Faueuil Hall, to consider the question of the salaries of the judges. It is not necessary here to give the voluminous details of the discussions and proceedings. On the second day of Novem- ber, 1772, it reassembled by adjournment in Faneuil Hall. On that day the " Boston Gazette," with its seven columns of politics, was in the glory of a free press, kindling a flame for a just cause ; yet the meeting was not large. It was, however, respectable in number and in character, and continued through the day. In the afternoon, Samuel Adams moved " that a committee of correspondence be appointed, to consist of twenty-one persons, to state the rights of the colonies, and of this province in particular, as men, as Christians, and as subjects ; to communicate and publish the same to the several towns in this province and to the world, as the sense of this town, with the infringements and violations thereof that have been, or from time to time may be, made; also requesting of each town a free com- munication of their sentiments on this subject." Though this motion was opposed by some of the patriots, including three of the representatives to the General Court, on the ground that its failure might hurt the cause, yet it was adopted. This inaugurated the system of local committees of correspondence. They multiplied and widened under successive imjwlses, until they constituted the accredited organs of the party that founded the Republic of the United States. " They may be called," a contemporary wrote ,^ 1 Letter to Elbridge Gerry, Oct. 27 and 29, 1772. Life of Gerry, i. 12. 2 Fraucis Dana to Elbridge Gerry, February, 1780. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 267 " the corner-stone of our revolution, or new empire." Hence the action of Boston proved the beginning of the first national party of the country.^ The committee was composed of citizens who had ren- dered service to the cause, and who coveted no other reward than to see their work prosper.^ A few were of so much prominence as to entitle them to the position of leaders. Thomas Young, a physician, was zealous, wrote with force, spoke bold words in the public meeting ; but was so much of an extremist as to be a type of the Jacobins of that day, and subsequently, when living in Philadelphia, proved a rash counsellor. William Molineaux was foremost in popular outbreaks and patriotic processions ; a firm, relia- ble, efficient politician. Benjamin Church, a physician, had respectable talents, but was of uncertain politics, and prob- ably thus early was unfaithful to the cause. James Otis could still stir the public mind by his voice and pen ; but at times his noble intellect was shattered, and his day for sub- stantial service had passed. The records of the committee present Joseph Warren and Samuel Adams as the most relied on for maturing measures. Warren, now about thirty-three, had, for eight years, served the cause with great zeal and faithfulness. His standing among the Whigs is indicated by his selection as the orator on the celebration of the massacre in March, and the prominent part he bore in the local action of previous years. He grasped, as by intuition, fundamental ideas, and commended them with marked ability in the press and public meeting. He had genius, courage, and rare social gifts. His generous nature, unselfish service, genuine patriotism, and large love for his fellow-men, endowed him with the magic spell of influence 1 Life and Times of Warren, 190. See above, p. 165. 2 The Committee were: James Otis, Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, Benjamin Church, William Dennie, William Greeuleaf, Joseph Greenleaf, Thomas Young, William Powell, Nathaniel Appleton, Oliver Wendell, John Sweetser, Josiah Quincy, John Bradford, Richard Boynton, William Mackay, Nathaniel Barber, Caleb Davis, Alexander Hill, William Molineaux, Robert Pierpont. 268 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. and the power there ever is in a noble character. He valued the American cause above his life, and was ready to peril his all in its behalf. He was the bosom friend of Samuel Adams. They thought alike on the political issues, worked in harmony in the spirit of self-sacrifice, and in friendship and patriotism were not unlike Hampden and Pym. After Warren fell at the Battle of Bunker Hill, no one rose to fill the place he occupied in the affection of Samuel Adams.^ The committee, at their first meeting, took an oath not to divulge their proceedings. They chose James Otis chairman ; and for secretary, William Cooper, the town clerk, eminent for his public and private virtues and long service. They were soon ready to present, in a town meeting (November 20) called by the selectmen, an elaborate Report on the matters submitted to them. It consisted, first, of a state- ment of the rights of the colonists, prepared by Adams; second, of an enumeration of the violations of rights, drawn up by Warren ; third, of a brief letter of correspondence with the other towns, written by Church. The first part treats of " rights as men, as Christians, and as subjects." It specifies the right of man to life, liberty, and property ; to choose his country ; to worship God accord- ing to the dictates of his conscience ; to be taxed only by his representatives; to have justice administered under standing laws and by judges, independent, as far as possible, of prince or people ; to enjoy freedom as the gift of God Almighty. It also sets forth the rights of subjects born in the realm of England. It announces the equality of all men before the law, and it develops at length the idea that con- sent is the just basis of law. The second part enumerates the violations of these rights by Royal lAstructions and acts of parliament, under ten heads. Among the specifications are the assumption of the 1 Wells's Life of Adams, iii. 122. Jefferson, in a letter dated July 4, 1775, names, of the killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill, "Dr. Warren, who seems to have been immensely valued at the North." EOYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 269 right to tax the colonies without the consent of the people, and to legislate for them in all cases whatever; the inva- sion of trial by jury, by establishing courts of admiralty ; and acts prohibiting the manufacture of certain articles. These violations are presented with the remark that they could not fail " to attract the attention of all who consider themselves interested in the happiness a-nd freedom of man- kind in general, and of this continent and province in particular." The third part — a brief letter addressed to the towns — commends the matters presented in the Report as of such great and lasting moment as to involve the fate of all their posterity, and solicits a free communication of sentiment from each town. It closes with the suggestion that, if the towns concurred in the opinion that the rights of the colonists and the measures pointed out as subverting them were prop- erly stated, it would be doubtless thought of the utmost im- portance that all should stand as one man to recover and support them. This Report, after long deliberation, was adopted. Six hundred copies were ordered to be printed in a pamphlet, and a copy was directed to be sent to every town in the province. A copy was also sent to prominent Whigs in other colonies. This paper was the most radical exposition of rights and grievances — the most systematic presentation of the Amer- ican cause — that had been adopted by a public meeting. It covered well-nigh the whole ground of natural and con- stitutional rights. It gave to principles, which had been held as abstractions, a practical significance. It considered the relations of man not only as a citizen, but as a Christian, and claimed for him that equality which is the cardinal principle of Christianity. It claimed for him, under law, the position to which he is entitled, — the right to make the laws under which he lives, to select his field of lal)or and enjoy its fruits, and thus claimed fair play for the industrial 270 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. energy which has contributed so much to the growth and glory of the country. Its bold theory, incisive criticism, and solid reasoning were admirably calculated to strengthen and direct public opinion.^ The committee, as they sent out this Report, were not dis- heartened by the doubts of the Whigs nor the jeers of the Tories, by the spectacle presented in the colonies of ill- nature and disunion in some quarters, nor by the general apathy on the question with the mother-country. The great popular leader at their council board in Faneuil Hall, Samuel Adams, held the faith that the cause would make friends, and rise ; and he infused his spirit into those near him. His steps can be traced day by day, A warm patriot in Plymouth, James Warren, on getting the Report, wrote to Adams: " I shall not fail to exert myself to have as many towns as possible meet, but fear the bigger part of them will not. They are dead ; and the dead can't be raised without a miracle." ^ Adams was prompt to reply: " I am very sorry to find any thing in your letter that discovers the least approach towards despair. Nil desperandnm. That is a motto for you and for me. All are not dead ; and where there is a spark of patriotic fire, we will rekindle it."^ To another he wrote : "If our enemies should see the flame bursting in different parts of the country, and distant from each other, it might discourage their attempts to damp and 1 Sparks (Works of Franklin, iv. 381) remarks that the Report was drawn up with as much ability as freedom. Hutchinson (Historj^ of Massachusetts, iii. 368) says that the whole frame of it was calculated to strike the colonists with a sense of their just claim to independence, and to stimulate them to assert it. The Proceed- ings were printed at Boston in a pamphlet of forty-three pages, by Edes & Gill in Queen Street, and P. & J. Fleet in Cornhill, and was copied into the "Pennsylvania Journal." It was reprinted in London, with a Preface by Franklin, which may be found in the fourth volume of his AVorks, edited b}- Sparks, p. 381. This Preface is in the "Massachusetts Gazette," May 6, 1773. Franklin commended the Report as "not the production of a private writer, but the unanimous act of a large American city," and remarked: "This nation, and the other nations of Europe, may thereby learn, with more certaint}', the grounds of a dissension that possibly may, sooner of later, have consequences interesting to them all." 2 James Warren to Samuel Adams, Dec. 8, 1772. 3 Samuel Adams to James WaiTen, December, 1772. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 271 quench it." ^ The originators of this measure did not, as is the modem practice, attend the meetings in the country and speak in favor of the Report. It was its own orator. The patriots of Plymouth were the earliest to follow Boston in choosing a committee of correspondence. In a -few weeks tlie committees so multiplied, and the expression of senti- ment was so inspiring, as to exceed the expectation of the friends of the measure. The Boston committee began to print in the newspapers the letters and proceedings elicited by the Boston Report, which, being often elaborate, proved too strong a draft on the space at the command of the con- ductors. When eighty replies had been received from the towns, it was said that to print the proceedings of all towns would be impossible, and to make selections would shew partiality, and hence their publication was mostly suspended. A card, as by authority, appeared in the news- papers, in which it was proposed to print the whole in a volume ; and each town, however small, was urged to trans- mit its sentiments, in order that its name might be in- scribed in the catalogue of fame, and handed down to future ages. 2 A few sentences from these patriotic responses will shew the spirit of the whole. One says : " May every town in this province and every colony on the continent be awakened to a sense of danger, and unite in the glorious cause of liberty." Another urges that all "should stand firm as one man to support and maintain their just rights and liberties." Another prophesied that, " if arbitrary measures were to be enforced by fleets and armies, there would be a dissolution 1 Samuel Adams to Elbridge Gerry, Nov. 14, 1772. 2 "To the Public. It is proposed that all the proceedings of the towns in the Massachusetts Province, for the preservation of the rights of America, be collected and published in a volume, that posterity may know what their ancestors may have done in the cause of freedom. It is expected that the inhabitants of every town, however small, will at this time publish their sentiments to the world, that their names, with those who have already published, may be recorded in this catalogue of fame, and handed down to future ages." — Boston Gazette, Jan. 18, 1773. 272 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of the union between the mother-country and the colonies, to the infinite loss of the former and the regret of the lat- ter ; " and another responds : " It becomes us to rely no longer on an arm of flesh, but on the arm of that all-powerful God who is able to unite the numerous inhabitants of this exten- sive country as a band of brothers in one common cause." Another counselled the formation of an American union. One meeting after another echoed the advice for a congress.^ One answer runs : " We cannot be supposed to be acquainted with the mystery of court policy, but we look upon our- selves able to judge so far concerning our rights as men, as Christians, and as subjects of British government, as to declare that we apprehend those rights, as settled by the good people of Boston, do belong to us, and that we look with horror and indignation on the violation of them ; " and it expressed a readiness to defend them, if need be, with the sword. The people of Boston were warmly and gratefully thanked for their efforts. One town says : " It is our earnest prayer to Almighty God that they may be animated still to proceed, and that they may prosper according to the desire of their hearts, and receive the most ample and durable rewards." The record of this communing of the towns, consisting of addresses, letters, and resolutions, con- tains the names of the prominent citizens of localities chosen on the committees, an approval of the Report, and solemn pledges to support the cause it set forth. Thus the patriots of this province very generally attained an efficient organ- ization. This movement was commended in the press as the most likely of any plan ever devised to establish the rights of all the colonies, and thus secure peace and harmony ; for it was reasoned, if the ministers see America united and deter- mined, they will give up their vain pretensions. Hence union was enjoined in passionate terms. It was repre- 1 Bancroft, vi. 456. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 273 fronted to be the voice of Freedom ; ^ that she was saying to ^^mericans : — " If you're united in one faithful band, Like everlasting mountains you shall stand, Whose bases rest on God's almighty hand." The result of the movement, so far as relates to Massachu- setts, was all that could have been expected, and nearly all that could have been desired. The Boston committee, cheered by the uprising from the pines of Maine and the sands of Ply- mouth to the hills of Berkshire, directed the expression of faith to be entered on their records, " that Providence would crown the efforts of the colonies with success, and thus their gen- eration would furnish an example of public virtue worthy of the imitation of posterity." This faith, however, was not based on what might be attempted or might be done ou the few thousand square miles of territory that was known as Massachusetts, but on the hope that the patriots of the other colonies would adopt the organization, and " that it 1 The following lines appeared in the " Boston Gazette " of Jan. 18, 1773: — THE VOICE OF FREEDOM. By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall. The Immortal Farmer. Americans, attend to Freedom's cry ! Who scorns her voice deserves in chains to die. The sordid imps of tyranny conspire To set America's fair realms on fire, That I in flames of discord may expire. But, O my sons! should HeU itself combine With plundering villains in their fell design. If you're united in one faithful band. Like everlasting mountains you shall stand, Whose bases rest on God's almiglity hand! Strong union's blow shall drive them down to the deep, As from the wall your broom the cobwebs sweep. But, disunited, you will shortly mourn Fair Liberty from your embraces torn ; And curse the fatal day that you were born. In galling chains for scoundrels you must toil : For all your pain no approbating smile! In vain you'll then to Heaven for succor cry : When Freedom's day of grace is once past by, Vile slaves you'll live; like malefactors die. 18 274 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. "would extend to every town of any consequence throughout America ; " in the language of the time, that a continent would adopt the organization. The spread of the movement, the expression of public sentiment, and the indications of a renewal of union, were observed with deep interest by Governor Hutchinson of Mas- sachusetts, who was the strongest man on the Tory side here ; indeed so varied were his talents, and so high was his personal character, that he was ranked among the greatest and best men in America. The movement seemed to him of so formidable a character, that, unless it were checked, it must work a total separation of the colonies from Great Britain ; and were he to sit still in the place of its origin, and do nothing, he might become liable to the charge of con- niving at a procedure which he ought to have opposed with all the means at his command, and especially as he had authentic information that its projectors determined to recommend it to the other colonies. On these grounds he treated public affairs elaborately in speeches to the General Court. He condemned the committees of correspondence as not warranted by the Constitution ; declared the doctrines set forth by the towns dangerous ; and presented the whole question between Great Britain and her colonies in a manner uncommonly satisfactory to his political friends. These speeches drew from the popular leaders of both branches of the legislature searching and triumphant answers, which were prepared mainly by James Bowdoin, of the council, and Samuel Adams, of the House. The momentous issue, close at hand, was foreshadowed in this keen encounter. The governor remarked that he knew of no line that could be drawn between the supreme authority of parliament and the total independence of the colonies, and asked whether there was any thing they had to dread more than independence. The popular leaders made the grand answer that, if supreme authority meant unlimited authority, the subjects of it were empliatically slaves, whether residing in the colonies or ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 275 Great Britain ; that the powers of the local legislatures and of parliament were so far limited that they could not make orders and laws violative of such fundamentals as Magna Charta and the Bill of Rights ; that drawing the line between the supreme authority of parliament and total independence was a profound question, of very great consequence to the other colonies, and not to be proposed without their consent in a general Congress ; and that there was more reason to dread the consequence of absolute power, whether exercised by a nation or by a monarch, than total independence. This uncommonly able presentation of both sides of the question between England and the colonies was circulated in the newspapers and in pamphlets,^ and gave additional signifi- cance to the organization of committees of correspondence. The course of Hutchinson was not approved by the minis- ters ; while the dignity and conclusiveness of the answers of the legislature were warmly commended by the patriots throughout the colonies, and are enduring monuments of American statesmanship. Meantime the movement of the towns in Massachusetts attracted more and more attention in the other colonies.^ The 1 Hutchinson's first speech bears date Jan. 6, 1773, — the first day of the session. He thus (Letter, March 10, 1773) describes the situation at that time: "The con- tagion that had begun in Boston had spread through one-third of the towns in the province;" and in a letter, June 14, 1773, he says: "I had the fullest evidence of a plitn to engage the colonies in a confederacy against the authority of parliament. The towns of this province were to begin; the assembly to confirm their doings and to invite ths other colonies to join." His speech appeared in the "Massachusetts Gazette " of .January 7. The reply of the House to this speech is dated January 27, and is in the "Massachusetts Gazette " of February 4. The second speech of the Governor is dated February 16, and is in the " Massachusetts Gazette " of February 22. The reply of the House is dated March 2, and is in the journals of the 4th. The papers were very able. On the authorship of them, see the elaborate note in Wells's " Life of Adams," ii. 31. ' 2 A letter in the "Boston Gazette," Jan. 2.5,1773, from Philadelphia, says: "Your town meeting's resolves begin to excite the attention of the people of these parts." The issue of March 18 says that the "Pennsylvania Journal" contained "the votes and proceedings of the town, with marginal notes supposed to be the Farmer." The "News Letter" (Tory) of April 1 says: "These votes were never published in any paper of this town, nor the names of the committee of corres* pondence." 276 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Boston Report was printed in full in Southern newspapers. " It breathes the true spirit of liberty," wrote Richard Henry Lee ; ^ and it was said, " Wheixa general state of quiescence seemed to prevail over the whole empire, when patriotism seemed expiring, the noble efforts of the towns, and the per- severance with which they pursued the object of having their violated rights redressed, gave sensible pleasure to the friends of freedom." ^ But the patriots did not choose com- mittees of correspondence. It was said in Boston, " They are still and quiet at the South, and at New York they laugh atus."^ The Governor thought that his condemnation of the committees had checked their progress in the province, and hoped it would prevent the spread of the organization to the other colonies.^ In fact the issue on Royal Instruc- tions, as applied to the salaries of officials in Massachusetts, was too near an abstraction to stir elsewhere the popular feeling. Passionate words were not enough. The general apathy continued. A case of violated right bearing on the people of all the colonies was needed. Lord Dartmouth supplied the want in a fresh Royal In- struction, dated the 4th of September, 1772, but not made public until four months later. It was directed to the Governor of Rhode Island. It created, under the sign manual of the king, a commission to hold its sessions in that colony, and to inquire into the circumstances of the burning of His Majesty's schooner " Gaspee." This commission was 1 Richard Henry Lee, Feb. 13, 1773, in a letter to Thomas Gushing, says that he had received the pamphlet, and that he should have it printed in the "Virginia Gazette." 2 Letter of S. H. Parsons, of Rhode Island, March 3, 1773. He dwelt on the New-England confederacy of 1643, and suggested an annual meeting of commis- sioners of the colonies. Arthur Lee, Letter to Joseph Reed, Feb. 18, 1773 (Life of Reed, vol. i. 47). 3 John Adams's Works, ii. 305. * Hutchinson, Feb. 23, 1773, wrote: "I have stopped the progress of the towns for the present ; and I think I have stopped the prosecution of another part of the scheme, which was for the assembly to invite every other assembly upon the continent to assent to the same principles. This part has been acknowledged to me by the Speaker (Thomas Gushing), who is in all these measures." — Letter Books. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 277 composed of the chief justices of New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, the judge of admiralty of Massachusetts, and the Governor of Rhode Island. It was instructed that the offence was high treason, or levying war against the king ; and was directed to order the arrest of the parties charged with this crime, together with the witnesses ; and to call upon Lieutenant-General Gage, the commander of the British army in America, for assistance, if needed, who was instructed to despatch a military force into this colony wlicnever the commission should apply for it, in order to carry out the object of their appointment. The commis- sion was also instructed to deliver the parties thus arrested to Admiral Montagu, commander of the naval force, who was ordered to send them to England. This was a bold Royal Instruction. It violated the funda- mental of trial by jury, which, it was now said in the press, distinguished the English from all the nations of the earth. ^ It affected the personal lib'erty of the individual, and bore alike on all the colonies. The army and the navy were placed at the disposition of an imposing tribunal, to insure its execution. The contemplated action lacked no element of completeness to render it a general issue. It was the culmination of this grievance of Royal Instructions. It stands out among the events of the time in the importance of a proximate cause. Several patriots of Rhode Island sent extracts from this instruction to Samuel Adams, and asked his advice ; who, after consultation with a few friends, sent a reply recom- mending the Rhode-Island patriots to send a circular to the other colonies calling for assistance ; remarking that the en- forcement by British troops of this enormous claim of power might cause a most violent political earthquake, and that the commission ought to awaken the colonies which had been too long dozing on the brink of ruin. He repeated himself as he wrote : "It should again unite them in one bond. 1 This was said of the trial by jury in the "Boston Gazette." 278 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Had that union which once happily subsisted been pre- served, the conspirators against our common rights would never have ventured upon such bold attempts. It has ever been my opinion that an attack upon the liberties of one colony is an attack on the liberties of all; and therefore, in this instance, all should be ready to yield assistance to Rhode Island." He communicated the Instruction to the " Boston Gazette," ^ when the patriots in different quarters denounced the commission, compared it to the star-chamber courts of the old country, and pronounced the trial by jury the great barrier of their lives and liberties. They averred that trial by one's peers was guaranteed by the Constitution ; and that whoever attempted to alter or invade this funda- mental principle, by which the liberties of the people have been secured from time immemorial, is a declared enemy to the welfare and happiness of the king and the state. Arthur Lee, then in London, who could not have seen this blaze of the American press, pronounced the commission " the most dreadful violation of their liberties that could be offered ; big with every evil that could be dreaded." This spontane- ous burst of indignation by a free people was the effect " of a sight of chains, and rattling them before putting them on." The commission ^ held its first session in Newport, in 1 Boston Gazette of Jan. 4, 1773. Lord Dartmouth saj-s that the destruction of the "Gaspee" is "considered in no other light than as an act of high treason, or levying war against the king. And in order that you may have all proper advice and assistance in a matter of so great importance, His Majesty has thought tit, with the advice of his privy council, to issue his royal commission, under the great seal of Great Britain, nominating yourself, and the chief justices of New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts Bay, together with the judge of the Vice Admiralty Court established at Boston, to be His Ma,)esty's commissioners for inquiry into and making report to His Majesty of all the circumstances relating to the attacking, plundering, and burning the " Gaspee " schooner. The king trusts that all persons in the colony will pay a due respect to the royal commission." 2 The commission was composed of Joseph Wanton, the Governor of Rhode Island; Chief Justices Daniel Horsemandeu of New York, Frederick Smythe of New Jersey, Peter Oliver of Massachusetts; and Robert Auchmuty, judge of the Vice- Admiralty Court at Boston. They met at the State House in Newport, Jan. 5, 1773. The commission requested the presence of Admiral Montagu, who, on the 14th of January, advised the commission that he was at Newport, and had hoisted his flag 1 1 EOYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 279 January, 1773, and drew all eyes on Rhode Island, which, for a time, seemed destined to be the theatre of great events. The Royal Instructions were laid before its assembly by Governor Wanton, but that body did not issue a circular calling for aid ; and when the chief justice of the court, Stephen Hopkins, a member also of the asseml^ly, rose in his place and asked for directions how to act, this body advised him, when a case arose, to use his discretion. He declared that he would not give an order to apprehend any person to be transported for trial. This tameness provoked Na- thaniel Greene, the future general, to say that the assembly appeared to have lost its ancient public virtue, and to have sunk into an acquiescence in ministerial mandates.^ The Virginia House of Burgesses now (March 4, 1773) convened. As nothing particularly exciting had occurred in that colony for a considerable time, the people seemed to fall into a state of insensibility to their political situa- tion ; but the Rhode-Island court of inquiry demanded attention. A few of the younger members, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Francis L. Lee, Dabney Carr, and others, met at the Raleigh Tavern to con-, suit on the state of things. "All," Jefferson says, "were sensible that the most urgent of all measures was that of coming to an understanding with all the other colonies to consider the British claims as a common cause to all, and to produce a unity of action ; and for thig purpose that a com- mittee of correspondence in each colony would be the best instrument for intercommunication." ^ This is exact. The method is named as though it were an old idea. One of this band had urged such a plan, and they had before them the fa- mous Boston Report. They agreed upon a set of resolves, and Jefferson was requested to present them to the assembly. on board the "Lizzard." The movements of the commissioners were related in the newspapers. The documents were faithfully gathered by Hon. William R. Staples, in the " History of the Destruction of the 'Gaspee,' " printed in 18i5. 1 Greene's Life of Nathaniel Greene, i. 43. 2 Jefferson's Memoir, p. 4, Ed. of 1830. 280 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. But he desired that Dabney Carr, a new member, should do this, in order that his great worth and talents might be made known to the House. Accordingly Carr, a brilliant young lawyer, on the 12th of March moved the resolves, in a speech imbued with feeling, imagination, and patriotism, which was listened to with delight. He was followed by Rich- ard Henry Lee and Patrick Henry, in impressive speeches. The resolutions were unanimously adopted. Eleven mem- bers were designated a committee of correspondence to com- municate with the other colonies, to obtain authentic infor- mation of the doings of the administration, and especially respecting the Rhode-Island court of inquiry, and to report the result to the Burgesses.^ The genial Botetourt was dead. 1 An account of the action of Virginia was sent by Benjamin Harrison of that colony to Wiiliana Palfrey of Boston (Life, p. 378), with a letter dated March 14. An extract from this letter and the resolves were printed in the " Boston Gazette " of April 12, under the heading of " Boston, April 8," probably the day they were received. The editor says the papers alluded to in the letter were the votes and proceedings of Boston, and newspapers containing the Governor's speeches and the answers of the two Houses. The following was the whole communication : — I received tlie papers you sent me, and am much obliged to you for them. Our assembly sitting a few days after, they were of use to us. You will see by the enclosed ■ resolutions the true sentiments of this colony, and that we are endeavoring to bring our si.ster colonies into the strictest union with us, that we may resent in one body any steps that may be taken by the administration to deprive any one of us of the least particle of our rights and liberties. We should have done more, but we could procure nothing but newspaper accounts of the proceedings in Rhode Island. I hope we shall not be kept thus in the dark for the future, and that we shall have from the ditfereut committees the earliest intelligence of any motion that may be made by the tyrants in England to carry their infernal purpose of enslaving us into execution. I dare venture to assure you the strictest attention wiU be given on our part to these grand points. In tlve House of Burgesses in Vvrgmia, March, 1773. Whereas the minds of His Majesty's faithful subjects in this colony have been much disturbed by various rumors and reports of jjroceedings tending to deprive them of their ancient legal and constitutional rights ; And whereas the affairs of the colony are frequently connected with those of Great Britain, as well as of the neighboring colonies, which renders a communication of senti- ments necessary : in order therefore to remove the uneasiness and to quiet the minds of the people, as well as for the other good purposes above mentioned, — Be it Resolved, That a standing committee of correspondence and inquiry be ap- pointed, to consist of eleven persons, — viz., the Honorable Peyton Randolph, Esquire, Robert Carter Nicliolas, Richard Bland, Richard Henry Lee, Benjamin Harrison, Ed- mund Pendleton, Patrick Henry, Dudley Digges, Dabney Carr, Archibald Carey, and Thomas Jefferson, Esquires, — any six of whom to be a committee, whose business it shall be to obtain the most early and authentic intelligence of all such acts and reso- lutions of the British parliament, or proceedings of administration, as may relate to or ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 281 His successor, Earl Dimmore, was a ready instrument of arbitrary power. On hearing of these resolves, he dissolved the House. The members repaired to the Apollo, and agreed upon a circular letter which the speaker, Peyton Randolph, was directed to send to the colonies. The foremost in striking this key-note of union were Jefferson, who probably penned the resolves, and Carr, who moved them in the House. They were scholars, brothers-in-law, and bosom friends ; and were accustomed to pursue their studies under the shade O'f a favorite oak at Monticello, the beautiful residence of Jeiferson. Dabney Carr, a few weeks after he rendered this noble service, was called to his rest. His friend did not follow until after the fulness of honors and of years. The mortal remains of both lie side by side under the branches where they had pored over Bacon and Coke, and indulged in visions of the future glory of their country.^ The action of Virginia was an inspiration to the cause, and especially to the Massachusetts patriots. Their appeal for organization had been doing its work four months ; and, however gratifying the results might have been within the province, their plan had not been adopted in any other, — not one town outside of Massachusetts, I think, choosing a committee of correspondence.^ The Boston committee, on receiving the Virginia resolves, had them printed on a affect the British colonies in America, and to keep up and maintain a correspondence and communication with her sister colonies respecting these important considerations, and the result of their proceedings from time to time to lay before this House. Resolved, That it he an instruction to the said committee that they do without delay inform themselves particularly of the principles and authority on which was consti- tuted a court of inquiry, said to have been lately held in Rhode Island, with powers to transport persons accused of offences committed in America to places beyond the seas to be tried. Resolved, That the speaker of this House do transmit to the speakers of the dif- ferent assemblies of the British colonies on this continent copies of the said resolutions, and desire that tliey will lay them before their respective assemblies, and request them to appoint some person or persons of their respective bodies to communicate from time to time with the said committee. 1 Randall's Life of Jefferson, i. 83. 2 Hutchinson's "History of Massachusetts," vol. iii. p. .392, saj's that the first notice which appears of the Boston resolves was by the assembly of Virginia. 282 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. broadside, and sent (April 8) to all the towns, " to gladden the hearts of all who are friends of liberty." The towns, in their enthusiasm, were prompt to pronounce the resolves " worthy the imitation of every house of general assembly on the continent." ^ The Boston committee, by the hands of Samuel Adams, in a letter to the Virginia committee, expressed their gratitude for this action, their veneration for that most ancient colony, and their unfeigned esteem for its committee. " This," Adams said, " is indeed a poor return. I hope you will have the hearty concurrence of every assem- bly on the continent. It is a measure which will be attended with great and good consequences ; " and he asked the significant question, " Whether the establishment of com- mittees among the several towns of every colony would tend to promote that general union upon which the security of the whole depended ? " ^ or whether the plan inaugurated by the towns of Massachusetts might not be more effectual ? Both plans were designed to be carried out through legal channels, and both were designed to be inter-colonial in their range. They differed widely in their practical working. In the Vir- ginia plan, the immediate constituents of the committee were the assembly ; in the Massachusetts plan, they were the legal voters : in one plan the unit was the colony ; in the other the unit was the individual. The circular of Peyton Randolph was brief, expressing the hope that the measure of corresponding committees would prove of general utility if the other colonies should see fit to adopt it. Benjamin Harrison wrote that the object to bring the colonies into the strictest union was, that they might resent an infringement on their rights in one body. Richard Henry Lee wrote : " Full scope is given to a large and thorough union of the colonies, though lour language is so contrived as to prevent the enemies of 1 Resolves of the town of Woburn, April 24, 1773. 2 Samuel Adams to R. H. Lee. — Life of R. H. Lee, i. 87. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 283 America from hurrying this transaction into a vortex of treason." The journals soon announced the assemblies, which adopted the " plan of union proposed by the patriotic House of Burgesses," by choosing committees. The Rhode-Island assembly assured the Burgesses they were convinced that a firm union of the colonies was absolutely necessary for the preservation of their ancient constitutional rights. The Connecticut assembly were of opinion that the reasons given by the Burgesses were weighty and important in matter and design, and calculated to produce the happy effect of securing their ancient legal and constitutional rights ; and a select com- mittee (Aug. 10, 1773) hoped " to cultivate and strengthen that harmony and union among all the English colonies on the continent of America, which daily appeared to them more and more necessary to preserve and. secure the safety, peace, prosperity, and happiness of the whole." Tlie New- Hampshire assembly pledged that colony to " co-operate with her sister colonies to recover and perpetuate the liber- ties of America," and gratefully acknowledged the prudence and vigilance of Massachusetts and Virginia, in so early taking and sounding the American alarm. The Massachu- setts assembly poured forth gratitude to the Burgesses for vigilance, wisdom, and firmness in support of American rights and liberties. The South-Carolina assembly thanked the Burgesses for their steady attention to American inter- ests, and expressed a readiness to co-operate in a measure dictated by such wise counsels, and directed to such laudable ends. In this spirit five assemblies promptly responded to the action of Virginia. Their resolutions, in stating the object of the committees, were generally a transcript of those of Virginia ; and were sent to the assemblies in circular letters, usually signed by the speakers. Tlips six colonies, under the general issue created by the last Royal Instruction, exchanged assurances of co-operation, and, as 284 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. Jefferson characterizes their action, appointed " committees of national correspondence." ^ The hearty welcome of this action, and the earnest lan- guage of the popular leaders, shew how much it was desired that the remaining seven colonies should join in the plan of deliverance, which, it was said, " Heaven itself seemed to have dictated to the noble Virginians." ^ No recommenda- 1 The dates of the action of the assemblies named in the text are as follows : — Rhode Island, May 7, 1773. The resolves are in the "Massachusetts Gazette" of May 20. The committee were Stephen Hopkins, Moses Brown, John Cole, William Bradford, Henry Marchant, and Henry Ward. The speaker, Metcalf Bowler, transmitted, May 15, the resolves to the assemblies. His letter is in the "Massachusetts Letter Book." He read to the assembly in August letters from the speakers of the assemblies of the other colonies, in reply, "concurring with the resolves lately entered into by the glorious House of Burgesses of Virginia." — Massachusetts Gazette, Aug. 30, 1773. Connecticut, May 21. The committee were Ebenezer Silliman, William Wil- liams, Benjamin Payne, Samuel Holden Parsons, Nathaniel Wales, Silas Deane, Samuel Bishop Joseph Trumbull, Erastus Woolcott. The resolves are in the "Massachusetts Gazette," June 17. Ebenezer Silliman, May 29, transmitted the resolves to the other colonies. — Massachusetts Letter Book. A select committee to correspond were William Williams, Silas Deane, Benjamin Payne, and Joseph Trumbull, who signed the letter of August 10, 1773, cited in the text. New Hampshire chose May 27. Its committee were John Wentworth, John Sherburne, William Parker, John Giddinge, Jacob Sheafe, Christopher Tappan, and John Pickering. The notice of the action is in the "Massachusetts Gazette," May 31. Massachusetts, May 28. The committee were Thomas Gushing, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, William Phillips, William Heath, Joseph Hawley, James Warren, Eichard Derby, Jr., Elbridge Gerry, Jerathmeil Bowers, Jedediah Foster, Daniel Leonard, Thomas Gardner, Jonathan Greenleaf, and James Prescott. The resolves are in the Boston journals of May 31. South Carolina, July 8. The resolve reads "that Mr. Speaker and any eight of the other members of the standing committee of correspondence be a committee ... to correspond" with the committees appointed by the House of Burgesses or to be appointed by other " sister colonies." The reply to the Burgesses is signed by Eaw. Lowndes, Speaker. The resolves are in the "Boston Gazette," Aug. 9, 1773. 2 Solon, in "New Hampshire Gazette," June 18, 1773. He adds: "0 Ameri- cans! embrace this plan of union as your life. It will work out your political salva- tion." The same paper, July 2, has the following, "inserted by desire," from the " Providence Gazette: " — TO THE AMERICANS. Tlie Union of the Colonies, which is now taking Place, is big with the most impor- tant Advantages to this Continent. From this Union will result our Security from all foreign enemies; for none will dare to invade us against tlie combined Force of these I ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 285 lion of it was more generous than that of the patriots of Massachusetts ; nor was any action more prompt and efficient in following this lead than that of the Boston committee. They sent, in June, another circular to the towns, in which they urged that by unity they would be able to defeat the violators of their rights, that all private views ought to be renounced, and the good of the whole become the single object of pursuit ; for the period called for the strictest con- currence of sentiment and action by every individual of the province and continent.^ The call for a congress came up from several quarters. It was said in the Fifth of March oration, in Boston, that a future congress would be the future salvation of America.^ A Philadelphian proposed that annually, or as often as occasion might require, the colonies should send deputies to form a court like that of the Amphictyons, which managed the general affairs of the Athenians.^ Samuel Adams thought that a congress, and then an assembly of the States, was no longer a mere fiction in the minds of a political enthusiast.^ Ezra Stiles judged that the extensive alarm which the Royal Instruction creat- ing the commission gave the colonies on the continent occasioned the Virginia resolutions, and predicted that the conmaittees chosen by the assemblies would terminate in a Colonies, nor will a British Parliament dare to attack our Liberties, when we are united to defend them. The United Americans may bid Defiance to all their open as well as secret foes ; therefore let it be the Study of all to make the Union of the Colonies lirra and perpetual, as it will be the great Basis for Liberty and every public Blessing in America. In this Union every Colony will feel the Strength of the Whole; for if one is invaded, All will unite their Wisdom and Power in her Defence. In this Way the weakest will become strong, and America will soon be the Glory of the World, and the Terror of the wicked Oppressors among the Nations. We cannot forbear triumphing in the idea of the great Things that will soon be accomi)lished in this Country, and the rapid spread of American Glory. But it is highly probable that our most exalted ideas fall far short of what will one day be seen in America. SlBNEY. 1 Journals of the Boston Committee, June 23, 1773. 2 Oration of Benjamin Church, March 5, 1773. 8 This, perhaps the most definite of the propositions, is found in the "Boston Gazette " of March 15, 1773, in a piece of about five columns, entitled "Proposals for the Good of the Colonies, by a Philadelphian." * Letter to Arthur Lee, April 9, 1773. 286 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. general congress.^ The enthusiasm of the hour may be said to have cuhninated in the thought that, by union, America would soon be the glory of the world, and the terror of wicked oppressors among the nations. The " new union " and its embodiment in corresponding .-f/y.4- committees was closely Avatched by royal officers, and largely dwelt upon in their letters. It was plain that the strict execution of the instruction creating the court of inquiry would bring on a crisis. There was the vacillation of doubt among them rather than the decision and energy of con- fidence. The Governor, though of proclivities that carried him ultimately to the side of government, hesitated in executing the Royal Instruction ; the chief justice declined to order arrests on the presentations made to him ; the commission did not call for a military force. The Vir- ginia resolves " struck a greater panic into the minis- ters " than any thing that had occurred since the Stamp Act.2 It is enough here to state results. The commission held a final session in June, when they agreed upon an elaborate report, in which they conceded that the com- mander of the " Gaspee," in detaining vessels indiscrimi- nately, exceeded the bounds of his duty, and did this out of a reprehensible zeal. The commission then adjourned.^ The design of transporting Americans to England was given up. This was the close of the issue of Royal Instruc- tions. It was their mission to rouse a spirit which inaugu- rated the organization of the popular party. The patriots had cast the aegis of their inchoate union over the personal liberty of Americans, by securmg trial by jury. They triumphed when less than half the assem- blies had chosen committees of correspondence. The 1 Letter (1773) in Life of Stiles, p. 108. 2 Letter of William Lee, of London, in Campbell's "History of Virginia," 570. 3' The commission adjourned June 23. The Report is dated the 22d. A letter dated Oct. 8, 1773, in the "Massachusetts Gazette," Oct. 28, says: "The Rhode- Island commission was a measure resolved on before Lord Dartmouth was m office ; and, I am well infonned, the issue of it has been very acceptable to him." ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 287 other assemblies^ — some because they did not happen to meet — did not choose until another issue arose. In fact political agitation subsided, in the spring, when it was seen that the arbitrary commission did not act ; and the public mind became calm when it was abandoned. The publication of a collection of letters, sent by American loyalists to their friends in England, revealing their agency in promoting an obnoxious policy, and returned by Franklin, produced a spasm of indignation ; but this soon passed off. The tax on tea was a dead letter. Ordinary Royal Instruc- tions proved an insufficient basis upon which to carry on agita- tion. The more ardent among the popular leaders, who felt that acquiescence in these instructions as law was criminal, commented severely, in the spring and summer of 1773, on the silence observed in some quarters, and the timidity in others.^ The Tories exulted in the general apathy. They saw in the non-action a natural relapse, and rejoiced that things were returning to their old channel.^ As Samuel Adams reviewed the events of this period about three years later, he remarked that, notwithstanding all that had been said and done, real union had not been reached. It is easy now to see that this was the fact. The cause needed an impulse other than form or personal leader- ship could give. It needed another aggression, something startling, that should stir feeling, quicken the public pulse, and create a popular tide, which in the nature of a providen- tial current should bear the popular party onward beyond the possibility of a reaction. It was soon supplied by George III. in the Tea Act. It was the case over again of Joseph and his brethren : their design was evil, but it was overruled for good. 1 Samuel Adams, April 9, 1773, wrote to R. H. Lee \hat the timidity of some colonies and the silence of others were discouraging. 2 Massachusetts Gazette (Tory), April 16, 1773. The writer says: " It is curious to recollect how we met together in various towns, how we made speeches, how we threatened, how we drew up resolutions, how we printed them, and wrote essays on liberty and railed against impostors, and burnt effigies, and drank toasts. After this, tilings returned to the old channel, and we heard uo more about Liberty. Some sup- pose she died about that time." 288 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. The popular party were prepared to take advantage of such an impulse. In meeting the Stamp Act, they evoked a sentiment of union ; in meeting the Townshend Acts, they created and embodied an intelligent public opinion ; and Royal Instructions had produced the fruit of an organiza- tion in the committees of correspondence, municipal and legislative, ready to widen out to the breadth of a common union. In this action Massachusetts and Virginia, like two sagacious leaders, went hand in hand. The venerated characters whose names are connected with this step had nothing narrow or selfish in their plans or objects. They embraced common principles. They were impelled onward by great ideas. They aimed to unite all of similar political faith, wherever they were, in the bonds of a common brother- hood. So much has been written about these famous committees, and especially on the credit due to Massachusetts and Vir- ginia in forming them, that nothing need be added.^ The narrative now brought down to the month of August, 1773, shews the results effected under the issue of Royal Instruc- tions. The action of the House of Burgesses followed a season of mutual crimination and disunion ; and the prompt accep- tance of its invitation by five assemblies was an earnest of harmony and future concert. This, contrasted with the recent division and strife, was like the passage from death to life. Its salutary effect on the cause is attested by abundant contemporary evidence ; and it ever afterwards occupied a high place in the minds of the actors as a spring 1 The statements by Wirt (1817) in his "Life of Patrick Henry," as to the origin of committees of correspondence, were criticised in the " North-American Review" of March, 1818; and interesting details on the subject may be found in Tucker's "Life of Jefferson," i. 52-55, printed in 1837, in Kennedy's "Memoirs of Wirt," 1849, and Randall's "Life of Jefferson," 1858, vol. i. pp. 78 to 81. Randall remarks: " We will not aver that all the colonies acted exactly alike in the opening of that [Revolutionarj'] struggle. But it is safe to say that the Whigs in all the colonies /«/( substantially alike." I have endeavored, in this chapter and the next, to relate how they acted in the emergencies that arose. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 289 of events. Its opponents ascribed to these committees the effect " in some measure to defeat and counteract the power reserved to the Governor of proroguing and dissolving the assemblies," ^ by acting in the recess. These committees, however, did not hold conferences with each other, or even correspond with each other, during the issue of Royal Instructions, with a view to maturing a congress, or indeed to any joint action. The design of transporting Americans to England for trial being defeated, there was no emergency calling for extraordinary effort. They restricted themselves to a cordial interchange of circulars and copies of the pro- ceedings of their assemblies. Here they stopped. The value of the movement, up to this time, was in the moral effect of the pledge of union. The Boston committee held stated meetings. It kept up a correspondence with the committees chosen by other towns. It prepared and circulated political matter. It matured political measures. It thus performed the service which is expected of the committees representing modern parties, by aiming to create and guide public sentiment. The precise character of the work of the committee is seen in its records,^ which are in fine preservation. Much of this correspondence — which bears an indelible impress of the spirit of the time — has never been printed. The organiza- tion extended itself very generally throughout the province. Thus the popular party here were ready for the varied work required by the progress of events, as the Revolution as it 1 Governor Hutchinson wrote to Lord Dartmouth, July 10, 1773: "Upon the same erroneous principles the assemblies of Virginia, of this province, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, have appointed their respective committees of correspondence, who act in the recess of the courts; and the like committees are expected from the other assemblies when they shall be convened. This in some measure defeats and counter- acts the powers reserved to the governors, in what are called the loyal governments, of proroguing or dissolving the assembly at pleasure." 2 The jounials and papers of this committee, forming a portion of the rich collec- tion of Samuel Adams, are in possession of Mr. Bancroft ; and I am indebted to his courtesy for a free examination of them. An account of them may be found in the preface to volume six of his great history. 19 290 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. went on, in the way of all revolutions, ordained its own rules of action. The vast territory possessed by Great Britain in America, reaching from Canada to Florida, and the prosperity of its people, continued to suggest animating speculation. Dr. William Smith said it was impossible for an attentive ob- server not to behold an empire already planted, which, with careful culture, promised to enlarge itself to vast dimensions, and to give law as well as happiness to every other part of America.^ President Stiles said that it was most firmly believed that Providence intended a glorious empire in America, which, composed of a people growing up with a fervid love of liberty, would become a phenomenon in the political world worthy of a very seri£>us attention .^ This speculation was indulged in by Whig and by Tory. It was sent out from the halls of learning ; it was inscribed on the page of history ; and it was spread as on the wings of the morning in the press. It was the desire and the hope that this empire might be one with Great Britain, in the ideal of Americans, — on the principles of universal liberty, and as the protector of their individual rights and local self-govern- ment. As they dwelt on the prospect of such an empire, they exclaimed : " What human imagination can form an idea of the dominion and glory to which our nation might arrive ! As the rising sun hides the stars, so would the British empire eclipse all other nations under heaven." This sentiment was so common as to elicit the remark that love of the mother-country was the reigning principle that animated Americans.^ 1 Address of William Smith, D.D., Provost of the College and Academy of Philadelphia, in behalf of that Seminary, in "Massachusetts Gazette," March 23, 1772. 2 President Stiles (Life, 163) to Mrs. Macaulay. 8 Boston Gazette, Dec. 23, 1771. "To break off our connection with the parent country, before the law of self-preservation absolutely obliges us, is a thought we never harbor in our breasts. The reigning principle which animates Americans is love to Great Britain." ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 291 But love of liberty under law was the reigning principle. The high-toned theories of government, the course of the ministry, the arrogance of its champions, its practices with the assemblies, its scorn of popular rights, its treatment of petitions, tended to weaken the attachment to the mother- country. Salient aggressions roused ardent natures to utter thoughts that were the dawnings of a sentiment of nation- ality.^ They nurtured the idea that devotion to the cause 1 The following citations -will shew how continuously the idea of an independent nation was presented in the newspapers : — Boston Gazette, Jan. 6, 1772. An American writes: " The more eligible course for the Americans, and that which they will probably take, is to form a government of their ovni, similar to that of the United Provinces ui Holland, and oflfer a free trade to all the nations of Europe. ... If she (Great Britain) still pursues false maxims and arbitrary measures, the Americans will soon dissolve their union with Great Britain. They have all the advantages for independence, and every- temptation to im- prove them that ever a people had." A piece dated New Hampshire, June, 1772, says: " If no regard is paid to our united complaints, we should be justified in the sight of the world if we sought a remedy in another way. I mean set up a government of our own, independent of Great Britain." An American in "Boston Gazette," Nov. 2, 1772, says: "The only method that promised any prospect of the preservation of freedom was for the people to unite in remonstrance to the king, and to say that, unless their liberties were restored whole and entire, they would form an independent commonwealth after the example of the Dutch Provinces, secure their ports, and offer a free trade to all nations." The town of Pembroke (Dec. 28, 1772) said: " If the measures so justly complained of . . . were persisted in and enforced by fleets and armies, they must (we think of it with pain), they will, in a little time issue in the total dissolution of the union between the mother-country and the colonies, to the infinite loss of the former and regret of the latter." A piece in the " Boston Gazette," Jan. 11, 1773, says: " If the Britons continue their endeavors much longer to subject us to their government and taxation, we shall be- come a separate State. . . . This is as certain as any event that has not already come to pass." A Pliiladelphian, in a paper copied into the "Boston Gazette, March 15, 1773, pro- posed " that all the colonies should unite in a public manifesto, signifying that the crown and mother-country have broke their faith with us, and therefore we shall break off our connection with them." The Cambridge Committee of Correspondence, April, 1773, say: "We trust the day is not far distant when our rights and liberties shall be restored to us, or the colonies, united as one man, will make their most solemn appeal to Heaven, and drive tyranny from these northern climes." Cited in Bancroft, v. 456. " In " The American Alarm, or the Boetonian Plea," a pamphlet, May, 1773, is the following in an address to the king: "The union of the towns in the Province of Massachusetts Government shew that they strongly declare their heart and life en- gaged for their rights and liberties; that deputies and congresses of the united prov- inces will soon follow unless, &c. ... If the parliament continue these destructive plans, . . . the fatal period which we all deprecate cannot be very far distant, when the political union between Great Britain and these colonies wiU be dissolved." 292 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of justice was a higher obligation than fidelity to the old flag when it was used to cover despotic power. They re- volved the saying of a great patriot, that freedom and security, under Providence, depended on themselves.^ They reasoned that continued regard of the just complaints of the people might have " the valuable tendency to make the next effort for freedom savor more of that virtue and valor for which Englishmen in former ages had been justly re- nowned, and might turn the Great People to call on the name of the Lord, and to seek a redress of their grievances with the spear and lance at that glorious seat of justice where Moses brought the Egyptians and Samson the Philis- tines." ^ They averred that if the ministry persisted in its policy, the Americans would be justified in the eyes of the world in forming an independent nation ; that it was morally certain this would eventually take place ; that the only question was, how long it would be before that event should transpire : but by all the signs of the times and appearances of things it was very near. " 'Tis not probable that it is at the distance of fifteen years." ^ The specific demand, however, was for union and a con- gress, — the specific object aimed at was a redress of griev- ances; for the springs of action were not love for the bloody work of revolution or hatred of the mother-country. It was reasoned : " Have not the Americans as good a right to form a union now as they had during the Stamp Act, and as the New-England colonies had during the infancy of the country ? And is it not a legal, peaceable, and the most likely method of obtaining a full redress of our grievances ? " 1 The "New-Hampshire Gazette," June 18, 1773, said: "It is in vain for us to expect that our liberties in America will be supported by men in Great Britain ; and it was long since truly said by a great patriot (Hon. Mr. Adams, representative of Boston) ' that our freedom and security, under Providence, depended on our- selves.' " 2 Boston Gazette, Oct. 12, 1772. 8 Boston Gazette, March 2, 1772. ROYAL INSTRUCTIONS AND PARTY ORGANIZATION. 293 And it was urged that such a union, firm and perpetual, would be a sure foundation for freedom, and the great basis for every public blessing. All were enjoined " to prepare to act as joint members of the grand American Common- wealth." CHAPTER YIII. How Events developed the American Union, and How the Demand for a General Congress was accompanied by Pledges to abide by its Decisions. August, 1773, to August, 1774. The popular party so effectually resisted arbitrary power as embodied in Royal Instructions, that the ministry abandoned their design of transporting Americans to England for trial through the Rhode-Island commission, and before half the assemblies had chosen committees of correspondence ; when political agitation subsided. It was soon renewed by the Tea Act, and intensified by the Boston Port Act, when there was a general development of union. This was em- bodied in committees of correspondence, a movement for a congress, and pledges to make its decisions a rule of action. The people were generally prosperous in business affairs, and desired peace. A town under the lead of zealous Whigs voted that the union between the colonies and Great Britain was not worth a rush ; occasionally a writer urged in an essay in the newspapers that the only way to place ximerican liberty on a firm foundation was to form an independent nation : but these were the views of extremists, and were generally disavowed. The great body of the Whigs united with the Tories in prizing this union as of incalculable value. They regarded themselves as fellow-subjects with Britons. They looked on the people of both countries as being one in the essential elements of nationality, political ideas, language, and the Christian relio;ion : and one in the love of a noble lit- THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 295 erature and precious historic memories. They kindled at the sight of the old flag and at thoughts of the mother-land, — "A land of just and old renown, Where freedom broadens slowly down From precedent to precedent; " and it was the prevailing sentiment that a recognition of co- equal rights would enable the people of both countries to' live long under the same flag. The popular leaders averred that they did not deny the sovereignty, but opposed the adminis- tration. They did not ascribe the obnoxious measures to the king whom they revered, or to the Constitution which they venerated, or to the nation which they loved, but to despotic ministers and corrupt majorities. They had thwarted arbi- trary power, whether attempted by the crown or by the legis- lature, and this was enough ; and when the people saw that the'' Rhode -Island commission, formed to deal with the destroyers of the " Gaspee," did not act, political agitation subsided. The colonists were in the habit of expressing loyalty to George III. in letters written in the confidence of friendship as well as in their state papers. The king knew this ; ^ but he continued to deal with what he termed "the internal police, the trade and the improvement of America," ^ in the spirit that dictated the Bute policy. He had been trained up in the idea that it was his duty to be every inch a king in his native realm, and much more over his dependencies.^ He was the real head of the responsible government, and the sole dictator of its policy ; * and when measures which he so largely inspired were opposed by his American subjects as im warranted by the Constitution, he became bitter in his 1 Letter of Franklin to Samuel Cooper, April 27, 1769. He says: " I hope noth- ing . . . will diminish our loyalty to our sovereign or affection for this nation. I can scarcely conceive a king of better dispositions," &c. This letter, with others, was intercepted, and sent to the king. — Sparks's Franklin, vol. vii. 440. 2 Donne's Correspondence of George III., i. p. 107. 3 Ibid., ii. p. 4. * Massey, History of England, ii. 178. 296 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. feelings towards them, and was fixed in his determination by any means to produce submission. He was unfortunate in having for his chief adviser Lord North, who lacked firmness, and hence consented to measures from which his good sense often recoiled. He was more unfortunate in Lord North's colleagues, Lords Mansfield, Sandwich, George Germain, in his Attorney-General, Thurloe, and Solicitor-General, Wed- derburne, — violent men whose sentence was for war, or cor- rupt men who thought only of what was pleasant to the king ; and he was most unfortunate of all in reigning over a people a majority of whom shared fully his sentiments. When Lord Dartmouth took charge of the American department, the king sent to Lord North a sketch of such alterations in the administration of its affairs ^ as he thought essential to give efficacy to the government. The first-fruit of this advice was probably the Rhode-Island commission. The king's next measure related to the duty on tea. This was inoperative. The Americans would not buy teas shipped from England : they would not live without tea ; and hence illicit importations came in freely from Holland. The affairs of the East-India Company were in great confusion, and a portion of its financial troubles was alleged to be owing to the loss of the American trade in tea. The king now sug- gested a plan to relieve the corporation, and at the same time try the question with America. Lord North in the House of Commons proposed (April 27, 1773) " to allow the company to export such portion of the tea then in their warehouses, to British America, as they should think proper, duty free." He moved two resolutions, providing that on all teas imported to any British Plantations in America after the 10th of May, 1773, "a drawback be allowed of all the duties of customs paid u^n the importation of such teas," which left the company to pay the three- pence tax on the teas imported into America ; and the reso- lutions provided that this importation should be made under 1 Donne's Correspondence of George III., i. p. 107. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 297 licenses from the commissioners of the Treasmy .^ The meas- ure roused no opposition, occasioned little, if any, debate, and was adopted. It was carried to the House of Lords on the 6th of May, adopted there also, and on the 10th received the royal assent. The ministry thought it a wise scheme to take off so much duty on tea as was paid in England, as this would allow the company to sell tea cheaper in America than foreigners could supply it ; and to confine the duty here, to keep up the exercise of the right of taxation. " They," Franklin wrote, " have no idea that any people can act from any other principle but that of interest ; and they believe that three pence on a pound of tea, of which one does not perhaps drink ten pounds in a year, is sufficient to overcome all the patriotism of an American." ^ in arranging the details of the execution of the scheme, difficulties arose which required the directors to confer with the ministry. In one of the interviews Lord North remarked that " it was to no purpose making objections, for the king would have it so. The king meant to try the question with Amer- ica." ^ Thus " taxation, " Lord Chatham said, " was dressed in the robes of an East-India director." Soon after, the king, as an answer to late petitions from the colonies, reaffirmed the claim of power of the De- claratory Act, and said that he was determined " to resist with firmness every attempt to derogate from the authority of the supreme legislature." A semi-official announcement appeared in the newspapers to the effect that His Majesty had declared his intention of supporting the supreme authority of parliament to make laws binding on the colonies.* Thus the monarch reopened the war on a fundamental principle in the institutions of a free people. The opposition to arbitrary power was never founded so much on knowledge and principle, was never so firm and 1 Parliamentary History, xvii. 841. 2 Sparkfi's Works of Franklin, viii. p. 49. 8 Almon's Anecdotes of Chatham, u. 242. * Boston Post Boy, Nov. 5, 1773. 298 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. systematic, as it was at the time of the passage of this Act. Little was said of it for several mouths, for little was known of the intentions of the company. Some of the members remonstrated against accepting the boon, which they re- garded as rather designed to establish a revenue law than to help them out of their difficulties.^ The directors, how- ever, in August obtained licenses from the Lords of the Treas- ury, and soon despatched ships loaded with teas to the four ports of Boston, Charleston, New York, and Philadelphia. It is worthy of remark that Franklin does not appear to have mentioned in his letters the application for licenses until September,^ nor Arthur Lee until October.^ Before these letters were written, the Tea Act had begun its mission. In August * the report was current in America that importations under it were to be carried into effect. The scheme was pronounced an attempt to establish the right of parliament to tax the colonies and to give the East-India Company the monopoly of the colonial market. As it bore on all the colonies, it diverted attention from the local issues, raised the past three years by Royal Instructions, to the orig- inal, general, and profound question of taxation. This had been argued in the court of public opinion : the verdict on it had been made up, and judgment had been rendered. The 1 " The Annual Register " (vol. xvii. 47, 1774) says that several of the active mem- bers remonstrated that the Act was rather calculated for the establishment of the revenue law in America than as a favor to the company. 2 Franklin, Sept. 12, 1773, wi'ote to Thomas Gushing: "A project is executing to send it (tea) from hence, on account of the East-India Company, to be sold in Amer- ica, agreeable to a late Act." — Sparks' s Franklin, viii. 86. 8 Arthur Lee, Oct. 13, 1773, wrote a letter to Samuel Adams. In a postscript he says : "I had forgot to mention a scheme, which is carrying into execution, of insidi- ously obtaining from us the duty on tea." — Life of Arthur Lee, i. 2-36. 4 The ".New-Hampshire Gazette," Aug. 27, 1773, has an extract from a letter from London, dated May 26 : "I take the first opportunity of acquainting you that the East-India Company have obtained leave, by act of parliament, to export their teas from England duty-fi-ee ; and in a short time, perhaps a month, a cargo will be sent to Boston (subject to the duty paj-able in America), to be sold in that place on their [feccount ; and they mean to keep America so well supplied that the trade to Holland for that article must be greatly affected." A London letter dated August 4, printed in a Philadelphia newspaper of September 29, annoimced that the company were about to send teas to several ports. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. !299 determination of the Americans not to pay a tax levied by a body in which they were not represented was as fixed as the purpose of the king to collect the duty on tea. A recent British writer and legislator has lately said thftt this deter- mination showed great cleverness, as the abstract proposition which the patriots held was undeniable, because no nation ought to be taxed against their own consent, and " England passed through many a civil war in defence of the proposi- tion." 1 The Americans of to-day will say that their ances- tors showed great intelligence in being alive to these weighty considerations founded on right and justice, when the domi- nant party in England was dead to them, and a heroic spirit in acting up to their convictions. The scheme suddenly roused more indignation than had been created by the Stamp Act. " All America was in a flame." The mighty surge of passion plainly meant resistance.^ The resistance contemplated was in general such action as might be necessary to thwart by lawful methods this minis- terial measure. The idea had been grasped in America that there was a Constitution which limited the power of kings, lords, and commons. James Otis had urged that, " if the reasons that could be given against an Act are such as plainly demonstrated that it is against natural equity, the executive courts would adjudge such Acts void." ^ The conviction was deep and general that the claim of parliament to tax was against natural equity and against the Constitution. But political science had not devised the peaceable mode of obtaining redress in such cases in the manner suggested by 1 Viscount Bury, M.P., " Exodus of the Western Nations," 1865 (vol. i. 368), says : "The choice of a pretext (for their resistance) showed great cleverness on the part of the American patriots. It put them in the right. The abstract proposition for which they fought was undeniable. No nation ought -to be taxed against its own consent. England has passed through many a year of civil war in defence of the proposition." 2 The transition from apathy to agitation was sudden. A Philadelphia letter, dated October 25, says: "Our people are alarmed at the scheme of shipping teas. ... I have not known so sudden and so imiversal an appearance of discontent." — Edinburgh Advertiser, Jan. 4, 1774. 3 Otis's Rights of the Colonies, 1764. 300 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. Otis, — an idea embodied subsequently in the powers vested in the Supreme Court of the United States, and familiar to the American mind. This tribunal declares such legislation void. The only way then to defeat an odious scheme to collect an illegal tax was to follow the methods, as circumstances might dictate, of popular demonstration, which had long been customary in England, and thus render the law inap- plicable. At that time the six legislative committees chosen under the impulse created by arbitrary royal instructions had not exchanged views, much less held a conference, in relation to a general plan for a redress of grievances : the committees chosen by towns or public bodies outside of Massachusetts were inactive ; and hence the organization of the popular party was too incomplete to arrive, through this channel, at the concert of action which the crisis required. There could only have been such understanding as might have been reached through limited personal intercourse, pri- vate letters, and the expression of sentiment through the press, which was valuable as far as it went ; ^ and it was to the effect that nothing important be transacted without con- sulting the whole. The efficiency that could not come from general organization was supplied by the ripeness and fixed- ness of public opinion on the assumption involved in the claim of taxation and the Declaratory Act, and the stern determination of the people not to submit to it. They did not rise up against the paltry duty because they were poor and could not pay, but because they were free and would not submit to wrong. Still there was the efficiency of organic life in Massachu- setts, where it was needed the most, where the brunt of the attack happened to fall, and where failure or even falter- ing would have been disaster. The record of its committees of correspondence shows them continually at work, and that 1 Boston Gazette, Sept. 27, 1773. '• We have now reduced American policy to a system." THE*TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 301 through them the communion of the popular party had become intimate. They urgently desired the patriots of the other colonies to adopt their plan. The Boston committee directed (Sept. 21, 1773) a spirited Circular, drawn up by Joseph "Warren, to be sent out to all the towns of the province ; but each member was charged with the duty of sending a copy " to his friends in the other governments." In this they said that their enemies were alarmed at the union already established in Massachusetts, and at the prospect of the con- federacy into which the whole continent would soon be drawn for the recovery of violated rights : they urged that watchfulness, unity, and harmony were necessary for the salvation of themselves and their posterity from bondage ; and they concluded with the remark : " We have an animating confidence in the supreme Disposer of events, that he never will suffer a brave and virtuous people to be enslaved."^ Though the six legislative committees were inactive, yet the opposition to the scheme to import teas was pronounced more general — it could not have been more determined — than it was to the Stamp Act.^ The popular movement since that time had been more regular and progressive. There was now the power of an intelligent public opinion behind the determination to baffle the attempt to establish the tea duty. The manifestations in each of the four ports to which the teas were consigned, printed in the newspapers, consti- tuted strong assurances that the patriots in each felt, talked, and acted in a similar spirit, and that the teas would not be allowed to be sold, even if they were permitted to be landed. The decisive tone in each warrants the remark that the question as to which should be the first to thwart the minis- 1 A copy of the Broadside containing this letter is in the archives of the Massa- chusetts Historical Society. 2 Joseph Reed (Life, i. 52) informed Lord Dartmouth that the opposition to the Stamp Act was not so general. It was more regular. George Chalmers remarks in his letter to Lord Mansfield that, " though the opposition to the Stamp Act was out- rageous, it contained more bluster than spirit." — Sparks's MSS. in Harvard College Library. 302 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. terial scheme depended on the port selected for the earliest consignment. Before this was certainly known, there were great popular demonstrations. The patriots of Philadelphia, early in October, circulated an " Address to the Tea Commissioners," in which it was said that the eyes of all were fixed on them as on men who had it in their power to ward off the most dangerous stroke that had ever been meditated against the liberties of America, and it appealed to them in passionate terms to decline to act. It pointed to the unhappy stamp-masters as examples of the danger of forcing " the loathsome pills of slavery down the throats of a free, independent, and determined people." ^ Soon after (October 18) a great public meeting at the State House resolved that the duty on tea was a tax imposed on the colonists without their consent, and tended to render assem- blies useless ; that the importation of the East-India Company was an attempt to enforce this tax ; and that whoever coun- tenanced the unloading, vending, or receiving the tea, was an enemy to his country. The consignees, on being requested, resigned their commissions. These proceedings of the patriots, full of spirit, dignity, and patriotism, were circu- lated through the colonies. Similar resolution was manifested in each of the four ports. The Boston patriots held great and exciting public meetings in Faneuil Hall, adopted the Philadelphia resolves, and requested tlie consignees to resign ; but met with a peremp- tory refusal. The New- York patriots held a meeting in City Hall, highly approved of the action of their brethren of Philadelphia and Boston " in support of the common liberties of America," and voted that the tea under any circumstances should not be landed there. The Charleston patriots, at a meeting in their Great Hall, received the resignation of the 1 This was issued on a Broadside, and was copied into the newspapers of Phila- delphia and New York. It was signed Scevola, and had the head-line, " By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall." It is addressed, "To the commissioners appohited by the East-India Company for the sale of tea in America." It is in the "Boston Post Boy " and "Boston Gazette " of October 25. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 303 consignees with rounds of applause, and returned them many thanks. The voluminous details of the proceedings in these commercial marts, and in other places, on this issue, evinced everywhere indomitable energy and resolution. They exhibited communities, recently hurling anathemas against each other, now feeling and acting alike, — one in the deter- mination to thwart " the new ministerial measure." In Boston, the course of the consignees, in refusing to resign, fixed all eyes upon the town. The aspect became so threatening that the legislative committee of correspondence were summoned to meet. They sent a Circular (October 21) to the other committees, reviewing in a calm tone, but in strong terms, the question between the colonies and Great Britain. They stated that even the least relaxation of American grievances had not been advised or thought of, and asked : " Is it not of the utmost importance that our vigilance should increase ; that the colonies should be united in their sentiments of the measures of opposition necessary to be taken by them ; and that in whichsoever of the colonies any infringements are or shall be made on the common rights of all, that colony should have the united efforts of all •for its support? This, we take it, to be the true design of the establishment of our committees of correspondence ; " and, averring that they were far from desiring that the connection between Great Britain and America should be broken, they conclude by urging the necessity that each colony should take effectual methods to prevent the execution of the design of the British ministry as to the teas.^ A few days later, the Connecticut committee in a Circular (Nov. 4, 1773) said that the design of sending teas to the several ports gave them the most uneasy apprehensions of the consequences, though they had "the utmost confidence in the firmness and virtue of the 1 This letter contained the following postscript: "It is desired you would not make the, contents of this letter public, as it will give our enemies opportunity to counteract the design of it." A portion of this letter is printed, though very incor- rectly, in Bradford's Historj' of Massachusetts, i. 277-280. 304 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. inhabitants of those capital towns on this occasion." I have not met with any replies to these circulars. The language of the Massachusetts letter implies that no communications on the subject had passed between the committees. The patriots of Boston were unwearied in their efforts to produce the resignation of the consignees, and in this they were aided by some of their political opponents. The num- bers who attended the great public meetings were swelled by men who came in from the country. The executive action, by the vote of a legal town meeting, was put into the hands of the committee of correspondence, which from time to time called in for consultation the committees of the neighboring towns, — proceeding, Hutchinson said, " like a little senate." They kept up a communication with the towns of the province ; they explained their course in letters sent to Rhode Island, New Hampshire, New York, and Philadelphia ; they sent expresses to the South to confer with the patriots there ; and they were inspired by the idea that " harmony and concur- rence in action, uniformly and firmly maintained, must finally conduct them to the end of their wishes, — namely, a full enjoyment of constitutional liberty." In a long, anxious, and irritating contest with the officers of the crown, the Bos- tonians stood forth, " like their native rocks, angular, sharp, and defiant." Their proceedings gave great joy to the patriots in the other colonies. On the reception in Philadel- phia of the news of the first meeting, the bells were rung, and the merchants greeted the resolves with hearty cheers. Still there were doubts expressed whether the love of money would not prove stronger than love of the cause. A Phila- delphia letter printed in Boston runs : " All we fear is that you will shrink at Boston. May God give you virtue enough to save the liberties of your country." In this way the progress of events served to fix attention more and more on Boston ; and its patriots could see in expressions from the other colonies that they were relied on to act with firmness and efficiency. When the struggle to THE TEA ACT AND A3IERICAN UNION. 305 compel the consignees to resign had gone on nearly a month, a vessel containing the tea arrived (November 28th) in the harbor, and in a few days two others, which the patriots di- rected to be moored near the first, that one guard might serve for all, their object being to prevent the cargoes from being landed. They now concentrated their efforts to have the teas sent back in the ships that brought them. The excitement increased. " The town," Governor Hutchinson wrote, " is as furious as it was in the time of the Stamp Act." The patriots apprehended that the consignees and the officers of the revenue might attempt to unload the ships, and that the naval force might be summoned to protect them ; and such was the spirit that prevailed that they talked of resisting by arms. An American matron, the wife of one President and the mother of another, who adorned a home in which such leaders as Quincy and Warren were wont to meet, now wrote : " The flame is kindled, and like lightning it catches from soul to soul. . . . Many, very many of our heroes will spend their lives with the speech of Cato in their mouths. . . . My heart beats at every whistle I hear, and I dare not express half my fears." ^ The public meetings became greater than ever. John Hancock, Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, Thomas Young, and William Molineaux were the most prom- inent in conducting them. The selectmen of the town now took part in the proceedings. The ships with the tea in them could not pass the castle without a permit from the Governor. He would not grant one before they were- regularly cleared at the custom house, and the collector declined to give a clearance until the vessels were discharged of articles subject to duty. All the efforts of the patriots in their long struggle had produced from the consignees only a repetition of the 1 Letter of Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams, dated Boston, Dec. 5, 1773 (Letters, p. 9). John Andrews, Dec. 1, ■WTote: "It would puzzle any one to purchase a pair of pistols in town, as they are all bought up with a full detennination to repel force by force." He says the arrival of the tea "had caused the most spirited and firm conduct to be observed that ever was known." — Mass. Hist. Soc. Proceedings, 1864-G5, 324. 20 306 THE KISE OP THE REPUBLIC. original peremptory answer, " No resignation," and a refusal to return the teas. A vessel twenty days after her arrival in port was liable to seizure for the non-payment of the duties ; and this would be the case of the " Dartmouth " on the six- teenth day of December. It was a rainy day. No hand-bills are named as having been posted ; no stirring appeals to do an uncommon work are to be seen in the newspapers ; but the feeling was general that something unusual was to occur. The patriots had a committee charged with the duty of summoning people from the country when it should be necessary, and they probably had been active. A great meeting, held two days before, stood adjourned to this day (December 16th), which was Thursday. Business in to^\n was generally suspended. The inhabitants in the morning flocked to " The Old South Meeting House," still standing. They were joined by people from the country for twenty miles around. The gathering consisted of nearly seven thousand, — "merchants, yeomen, gentlemen, — respectable for their rank, and venerable for their age and character. " The forenoon was occupied mostly with dealing with Francis Rotch, the owner of the " Dart- mouth," who was informed that he was expected to procure a pass from the Governor and proceed on this day with his vessel on his voyage for London. The meeting adjourned to three o'clock in the afternoon. A motion was then submitted whether it was the sense of the body to abide by their former resolutions not to suffer the tea to be landed ; and on this question Josiah Quincy, Jr., spoke as follows : — " It is not, Mr. Moderator, the spirit that vapors within these walls that must stand us in stead. The exertions of this day will call forth events which will make a very different spirit necessary for our salvation. Whoever supposes that shouts and hosannas will terminate the trials of the day entertains a childish fancy. We must be grossly ignorant of the importance and value of the prize for which we contend ; we must be equally ignorant of the power of those who have ( THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 307 combined against us ; we must he blind to that malice, in- veteracy, and insatiable revenge, which actuate our enemies, public and private, abroad and in our bosom, to hope that we shall end this controversy without the sharpest, the sharpest conflicts, — to flatter ourselves that popular resolves, popular harangues, popular acclamations, and popular vapor will vanquish our foes. Let us consider the issue. Let us look to the end. Let us weigh and consider before we advance to those measures which must bring on the most trying and terrific struggle this country ever saw." ^ Thomas Young and Samuel Adams also spoke to this motion, but their words are lost. It was said, " Now that the hand is at the plough, there must be no looking back." At half-past four the motion passed that the tea should not be landed. The meeting was patient, orderly, and surprised strangers who viewed the scene. It refused to dissolve on the earnest request of many who desired that it should be continued until six o'clock. Meantime a band of forty or fifty met in a room in the rear of the printing-office of the " Boston Gazette," at the cor- ner of what are now Court and Brattle Streets. No authen- tic list of their names has appeared. Nothing is known of their organization. They were said that evening to have been Indians from Narragansett. " Whether," an observer wrote, " they were or not, they appeared as such, being clothed with blankets, witli the heads muffled, and with copper -colored countenances, being each armed with a hatchet or axe, and a pair of pistols ; nor was their dialect different from what 1 conceive those geniuses to speak, as their jargqn was unintelligible to all but themselves." ^ This indicates the nature of their preparation. Undoubtedly they acted with the knowledge of the committee of correspond- ence, and were awaiting the result of the meeting. The 1 These remarks are copied from Gordon, i. 340, printed in London, 1788. 2 John Andrews's letter, Dec. 19, 1773, in Mass. Hist. Soc. Proceedings, 1864-65, p. 26. 308 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. preparation was sufficient to secure prompt and thorough work. In the afternoon Rotch was at Milton, the country seat of Governor Hutchinson. He went there to ask once more for a pass to enable his ship with the tea in her to get by the castle. The Governor inquired as to the intention of the people respecting the teas, and was informed that they meant to force them back to England. After a little time Hutchin- son sternly repeated his refusal to grant the pass, saying that he could not do it consistently with the rules of government and his duty to the king, unless the vessel was properly cleared. This answer closed the last opportunity for con- cession, which he unwisely declined. About six o'clock Rotch returned to the Old South, which was dimly lighted with candles and filled with people, many also standing in the streets. He stated the result of his application to the Governor for a pass. On slight manifes- tations of disorder, Thomas Young rose and said that Rotch was a good man who had done all that was in his power to gratify the people ; and they were enjoined to do no harm to his person or his property. He was then asked " whether he would send his vessel back with the tea in her, under the circumstances." He replied, " he could not possibly com- ply, as he apprehended compliance would prove his ruin ; " and confessed that, "if called upon by the proper officers, he should attempt, for his own security, to land the tea." Samuel Adams then said : " This meeting can do nothing more to save the country." A war-whoop was now sounded at the door, which was answered from the galleries. The shouting became tremendous. Silence was enjoined. The meeting was declared by the moderator dissolved, when there was another general shout out of doors and in, and three cheers. A citizen, who on endeavoring to enter could get no further than the porch, says: "What with that, and the subsequent noise of breaking up the meeting, you would have thought that ( THE TEA ACT AND AMEEICAN UNION. 309 the inhabitants of the infernal regions had broke loose." ^ As the party from whom rose the war-whoop passed the chmxh, niunbers naturally followed on ; and the throng went directly to Griffin's Wharf, now Liverpool, at the foot of Purchase Street, off which were moored the three vessels which con- tained the tea. A resolute band had guarded them day and night. John Hancock was one of the guard this evening. The party in disguise, — probably his friend Joseph Warren was among them, — whooping like Indians, went on board the vessels, and, warning their officers and those of the custom- house to keep out of the way, unlaid the hatches, hoisted the chests of tea on deck, cut them open, and hove the tea over- board. They proved quiet and systematic workers. No one interfered with them. No other property was injured ; no person was harmed ; no tea was allowed to be carried away ; and the silence of the crowd on shore was such that the noise of breaking the chests was distinctly heard by them. "The whole," Hutchinson wrote, "was done with very little tumult." The town was never more still of a Saturday night than it was at ten o'clock that evening. The men from the country carried great news to their villages.^ Joy, as for deliverance from calamity, now burst in full chorus from the American heart. The local exultation was extreme. " You cannot imag- ine," Samuel Adams wrote, "the height of joy that sparkles in the eyes and animates the countenances as well as the hearts of all we meet on this occasion." ^ " This," John Adams said, " is the most maffnificent movement of all. 1 John Andrews. Dec. 19, 1773. He was summoned, by "prodigious" shouting, from his tea-table; could get no further than the porch; heard the moderator declare the meeting dissolved, and then returned home and finished his supper. On being informed of what was going on, he went again. He saw the disguise of the party, and was told they numbered two hundred, — a larger number than any other authority gives. The usual statement is forty or fifty. - Joseph Warren bore a part in the series of meetings, public and private, held in Boston in relation to the importation of the tea; and the narrative of their events ia the " Life and Times of Warren" occupies fifty pages. 8 Letter, Dec. -31. 310 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. There is a dignity, a majesty, a sublimity, in this last effort of the patriots, that I greatly admire." ^ " We," John Scol- lay, one of the selectmen and an actor, wrote, " do console ourselves that we have acted constitutionally," ^ — namely, did no more than was necessary, under the circumstances, to defeat the design of landing the teas. The exultation was scarcely less outside of Massachusetts. In New York " vast numbers of the people collected, and highly extolled the Bostonians." ^ In Philadelphia the bells were rung, a large public meeting voted " the most perfect approbation, with universal huzzas ; " and subsequently, when five thousand people met, they " returned their hearty thanks to the people of Boston for their resolution in destroying the tea, rather than suffering it to be landed." * A letter from North Carolina contained the assurance " that the deed was the only remedy left to save the colonies from destined slavery, and that the actors, beside the satisfaction arising from a conscientious discharge of duty due to posterity, had the approlmtion of the whole continent." ° It was the boldest stroke that had been struck in the controversy between the colonies and the mother-country ; and bold measures in the right direction are sure to be popular. As events developed, some of the Whigs hesitated to approve this deed, and some counselled the payment of the value of the property de- stroyed ; while the Tories condemned it in unmeasured terms. In a deliberate review of the train of events leading to it, Gordon says that the deed was necessary .'to save 1 Diary, Dec. 17, 1773. Works, ii. 323. 2 John ScoUay to Arthur Lee, Dec. 23, 1773. 3 " Boston Gazette," Jan. 3, 1774, which says the bells of the town were rung on receiving the intelligence from New York. * "Boston Gazette," Jan. 10, 1774, after William Palfrey had returned. 5 The "Boston Gazette," of March 28, 1774, has an extract from a letter of a gentleman of distinction in North Carolina, dated Pitt, Feb. 18, 1774: "I read with much satisfaction the account of the destruction of the tea, as it was, I think, the only remedy left to rescue the colonies from their destined slavery. You labor under some ditficulties more than your neighbors ; but the satisfaction of a conscientious discharge of the duty you owe to posteritj', together with the approbation of the whole continent of your conduct, is a sufficient reward." THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 311 the union ; and Dr. Ramsay, going deeper, gives the judg- ment that, if the American position was right in relation to taxation, the destruction of the tea was warranted by the great law of self-preservation : " for it was not possible for them by any other means; within the compass of probability, to discharge the duty they owed to their country." ^ The important " if" of Ramsay is disposed of by the judgment of the liberal world. Even British writers concede that the claim of Americans was right beyond question. The Tea Act had the effect to make this question of taxa- tion a living issue. The opposition to the British assumption in relation to it, as before remarked, was spontaneous, gen- eral, irresistible. " Popular movements have commonly been ascribed to the principal actors in them as to their authors ; but the utmost that can be accomplished by individuals, in such cases, is merely to avail themselves of a happy predis- position in the public mind, to give form and consistency to loose opinions, and to bring to the aid of an infant sect or party the weight of talent, learning, and character, or station. They may thus strengthen and direct the current." ^ The popular leaders now sought to give direction to a great movement ; or to take advantage of a happy disposition in the public mind and extend the organization of committees of correspondence. The assemblies in doing this acted on the original invita- tion of the House of Burgesses, and generally used the words of their resolves in specifying the object sought. The Georgia assembly chose in September, when the people were engaged in carrying on a war against the savages ; the 1 "Had the tea been landed, the iniion of the colonies in opposing the ministerial schemes would have been dissolved ; and it would have been extremely diificult ever after to have restored it." — Gordon, i. 342. "Admitting the rectitude of the American claims of exemption from parliamentary- taxation, the destruction of the tea by Bostonians was warranted by the great law of self-preservation; for it was not possible for them by any other means, within the compass of probability, to discharge the duty they owed to their country." — Ramsay's History of American Revolution, i. 121. 2 Brodie's History of the British Empire, i. 48. 312 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Maryland assembly chose in October, when the internal dissension occasioned by the Proclamation controversy had hardly subsided, saying in their Circular that they were sensible of the great utility of a union of the colonies ; the Delaware assembly also chose this month ; the North- Carolina assembly chose in December ; and the New- York and New-Jersey assemblies chose in February. The assem- blies returned warm thanks to the House of Burgesses " for their early attention to the liberties of America." Their committees did not hold a conference during the winter of 1773-74, or mature a plan for joint action, or do more than exchange a few letters ; and the only references I have met, in this limited correspondence, to the issue raised by the Tea Act, are those contained in the letters of the com- mittees of Massachusetts and Connecticut, already cited in the narrative.^ 1 The dates of the choice of committees of correspondence by six assemblies have been given. See note, p. 28-t. The Georgia "commons" chose Sept. 10, 1773, and were "the speaker and any tive of the committee of correspondence." The letter to the House of Burgesses, dated Nov. 20. was signed by William Young, Noble Wimberlj' Jones, Joseph Clay, 1). Zubley. Jr., William Coutts. A public meetmg, July 27, 1774, chose a commit- tee which McCall (History of Georgia, 2) terms the formation of the Republican party. This meeting was denounced by a Proclamation of Governor Wright. The Maryland assembly chose a committee October 15, 1773 ; viz., Matthew Tilghman, John Hall, Thomas Johnson, William Paca, Samuel Chase, Edward Lloyd, Matthias Hammond, Josiah Beale, James Lloyd Chamberlaine, Brice Thomas, Beale Worthington, Joseph Sim, or any six. The letter to the Burgesses communi- cating the choice is dated Dec. 6, 1773. It is stated in the "Essex Gazette " of Feb. 11, 1774, that this assembly had come into resolves similar to those of the other colonies. The Delaware assembly chose a committee Oct. 23, 1773. The members who signed the reply to the Burgesses were the speaker, C«sar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean, John McKinley, and Thomas Robeson. The announcement of the choice of a committee is in the "Massachusetts Gazette" of Nov. 8. North-Carolina assembly chose Dec. 8, 1773. The committee were "John Harvey, Mr. Howe, Mr. Harnett, Mr. Hooper, Mr. Caswell, Mr. Vail, Mr. Ash, Mr. Hewes, and Samuel Johnston. The answer to the Burgesses is dated Dec. 26, and is sig-ned by John Harvey. The fact of the choice of the committee is stated in the "Massachusetts Gazette," Feb. 21, 1774. The New- York assembly chose a committee Jan. 20, 1774. It is stated in the "Essex Gazette," Feb. 17, that this committee consisted of the speaker and tAvelve other members. The reply to the Burgesses is dated March 1. The names given are John Cruger, James De Lancy, James Januey, Jacob Walton, Benjamin Sea- THE TEA ACT AND AMEEICAN UNION. 313 The popular party, in their several municipalities, pro- ceeded independently in forming committees. The earliest towns named in the newspapers as choosing were Dovei-, Exeter, and Newcastle, in New Hampshire. They reiteralcd in spirited resolves the sentiment that taxation without representation was slavery, and approved of " the noble struggles of the opulent colonies " to avert so great " a catastrophe." So general was this movement that it was said in the press that the manly and patriotic proceedings of the people of the province would convince all that " they were American freemen, and were fired with the glorious spirit of freedom which lightens this Western World." ^ Several towns in Rhode Island, among which were Provi- dence and Newport, chose committees, as did also a meeting in New York, at which John Lamb presided. These com- mittees and others entered into correspondence relative to the tea importation. The resistance to the ministerial scheme in this way was general, systematic, and thorough. The newspapers contain much matter relative to the reception of the cargoes at the ports to which the tea was consigned. In Philadelphia, at an hour's notice, five thousand met, and resolved that a cargo should not be landed, but should go back in the same bottom. The captain and the consignees bowed to the poj> ular will, and a vast concourse escorted them to the tea ship and saw her sail. In New York it was announced in the Tory organ that arrangements were made to have the tea sent back in the same ship, and thus New York be secured " a succession of that blessed tranquillity which they enjoyed under the present wise and serene administration." ^ In man, Isaac Wilkins, Frederick Phillips, Daniel Kissam, Zebulon Seaman, John Kapalse, Simon Boerum, Joiin De Noyelles, and George Clinton, or any seven. The New-Jersey assembly chose a committee Feb. 8, 1774; namely, James Kinsey, Stephen Crane, Hendrick Fisher, Samuel Tucker, John Wetherell, Robert Friend Price, John Hinchman, John Mehelm, and Edward Taylor. — Gordon's New Jersey, 154. The Pennsylvania assembly did not choose a committee. 1 Essex Gazette, Jan. 18, 1774. 2 Rivmgston Gazette, copied into "Massachusetts Gazette," Jan. 3, 1772. 314 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Charleston a great meeting on the arrival of the cargo ap- pointed a committee, — on which were Christopher Gadsden, Charles Pinckney, and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, — to inform the captain that the teas must go back ; but the ship was delayed beyond the twenty days, when the collector seized the vessel and stored the tea in a damp cellar, where it was destroyed. There were similar dealings with the teas in other places. The sclieme was thoroughly defeated. The unity of spirit and harmony of action of the popular party once more excited the liveliest hopes. Samuel Adams, reflecting on the increasing intercourse between the colonies, remarked that old jealousies had been removed, and harmony subsisted between them, and said that the institution of committees of correspondence would be attended with great and good consequences.^ The friend always by his side, Joseph Warren, enthusiastic over the prospect of union, wrote : " We can never enough adore that Almighty Disposer who has, as it were, by general inspiration awakened a whole continent to a sense of their danger." ^ The ardent hoped to see a congress grow out of the movetnent. This measure was earnestly advocated in the press. " It is now time," a writer says, "for the colonies to have a grand congress to complete the system for the American independent commonwealth, as it is so evident that no other plan will secure the rights of this people ; for this would unite all Americans by an indis- soluble bond of union, and thereby make them formidable and superior to any kingdom upon earth." ^ 1 Letter to James Warren, Dec. 28, 1773. The "Boston Gazette" of Jan. 10, 1774, saj's: "The united spirit of the people of South Carolina, Philadelphia, New York, this Province, &c., in opposing the subtle design of the British administration, to make the East-India Company the instruments in establishing the revenue and thus enslaving the continent, forebodes a happy union of counsels among the several colonies by means of their committees of correspondence." 2 Letter, Jan. 24, 1774, in "Life and Times of Warren," 290. 3 This citation is from a piece in the "Boston Evening Post" of March 14, 1774. It recommends that in future the colonies should " proffer petitions to none but the King of Heaven." It concludes as follows: — " It is now time for the colonies to have a Grand Congress to complete the system for the American Independent Commonwealth, as it is so evident that no other plan will THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 815 This line of remark suggesting an American common- wealth, indulged in by a few, constituted the material used by the enemies of the American cause to prove that the popular leaders really aimed at independence and were hypocrites in denying it. They, however, in defeating the execution of the Tea Act had accomplished their object. If the protestations of the most prominent among them, includ- ing Samuel Adams and Washington, — if the resolves of public meetings and of general assemblies , — be accepted as authentic revelations of what may be properly termed public opinion, then it may be inferred that the great body of the people would have welcomed the repeal of the duty on tea and the Declaratory Act with bursts of joy like those which greeted the repeal of the Stamp Act. Indeed the hope was general that the desire of the two countries to keep together, the inherent justice of the claim of the Americans to equal rights, their triumphant reasoning in behalf of their cause, and more than all their union, resolution, and increasing power, would affect public opinion in England to such a degree as to bring about a change of administration and a reversal of the Bute policy, and thus restore harmony.^ The expression in favor of a congress produced no regular call for the election of delegates during the spring of 1774. The journals for months after the complete defeat of the execution of the Tea Act show little political agitation out- side of Massachusetts. Here the issue respecting the secure the rights of this people from rapacious and plotting tyrants. I have been assured, from good authority, that many patriots, for several years past, have turned their attention to this grand affair of an American commonwealth, and that a system is nearly complete, which will unite all Americans by an indissoluble bond of union, and thereby make them formidable and superior to any kingdom upon earth. Let the Americans feel their importance, act like freemen, trust in Heaven, and fear none of the sons of Adam." ^ John ScoUay, one of the Boston selectmen, May 31, 1774, wrote to Arthur Lee: " We have too great a regard for our parent state (although cruelly treated by some of her illegitimate sons) to withdraw our connection. Of her we have no idea of an independency." . . . And he hoped the wisdom of both countries would "fix on some principles for each party to resort to as the great charter of agreement between the king and his colonies." 816 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. salaries of local officers occasioned a sharp struggle, and an impeachment of the chief justice because he accepted his salary from the crown. Whatever local importance however this question assumed, it did not move the people of the other colonies. Even here the agitation was limited. " I am of the same opinion," John Adams wrote, " that I have been for years, that there is not spirit enough on either side to bring the question to a complete decision. . . . Our chil- dren may see revolutions, and be concerned and active in effecting them, of which we can form no conception."^ Jefferson says that the Virginians relapsed into lethargy .^ Joseph Reed in Philadelphia reviewed elaborately the whole field in remarkable letters addressed to Lord Dartmouth, and he now wrote : " I know of no cloud arising in our political hemisphere unless our conduct respecting the tea should produce one." ^ Samuel Adams apprehended the situation. His utterances show that he hoped rather than expected that the ministers would alter their policy ; and in the case of their persistence in it, he saw as a consequence no other result than separation and independence. Still his record as clearly shows that, so far from welcoming the bloody work of revolution, he involuntarily shrunk from it. He continued for a year to express warm affection for the mother-country. He stood, however, firm in his conviction of what public duty demanded. It was in vain to expect that the people would be contented with partial or temporary relief, or be amused with court promises. Their opposition to unconstitutional measures had grown into system ; colony communed freely with col- ony ; there was among the colonies a common affection, — the communis sensus ; the whole continent had become united in sentiment and in opposition to tyranny. However, the old good- will and affection for the parent country was '^y~^Ji^ 1 Letter, April 9, 1776, in Works, ii. 337. 2 Memoirs of Jefferson, i. 5. Ed. 1830. 8 Letter, April 4, 1774. Reed's Reed, i. 58. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION, 317 not lost: if she returned to her former moderation, the former love would return ; for the people wanted nothing more than permanent union with her on the condition of equal liberty. This is all they had for ten years been con- tending for, and nothing short of this would or ought to satisfy them.^ This was his position stated in his own words. It was a defensive one. He had faith in the repub- lican idea ; appreciated the value of its embodiment in American institutions ; sought their preservation ; and for their protection would have been satisfied with the national power which grandly met the natural sentiment of country. As the reports came that the government was maturing severe penal measures, and that fleets and armies were to be sent over to enforce them, his faith in God and his countrymen rose. " It is our duty," he wrote, " at all hazards to pre- serve the public liberty. Righteous Heaven will graciously smile on every manly and rational attempt to secure that best of all gifts to man from the ravishing hand of lawless and brutal power." ^ This was not a type of the sentimen- talism which has its origin in dreams, and naturally lands in Utopia, but was a type of the integrity of character and pur- pose, which were the springs of the wise counsels and the great action that led to the formation of the republic. The period of suspense terminated during the first week in May, when the newspapers became burdened with details shewing the feeling roused in England by the destruction of the tea. It was pronounced by the king a subversion of the Constitution ; by Lord North, the culmination of years of riot and confusion ; by parliament, actual rebellion flowing from 1 Letter, March 31, 1774, drawn up by Samuel Adams for the legislative commit- tee of correspondence, and signed by himself, John Hancock, William Phillips, and William Heath, and addressed to Franklin. S. A. Wells's MS. Life of Adams, ii. 485, has this letter. It is, with a few sentences wanting, in the Massachusetts papers of the Seventy-Six Society. 2 Samuel Adams to James Warren, March 31, 1774, MSS. The "Massachu- setts Gazette," April 25, 1774, has the following letter from London, dated Feb. 15: " Six ships of war and seven regiments are ordered to America with all expedition; for what purpose time must discover." 318 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. ideas of independence. The opposition bowed to the storm. Lord Chatham uttered rebuke, and Colonel Barr^ conceded the necessity of punishment. Lord Dartmouth was the most moderate in his speech, terming the proceeding a commotion, but was anxious that the offenders should be punished. The bold stroke of the Boston patriots stirred an intense nationality into an energy, that, like a hurricane, swept before it men and parties. The words, often cited, of the arrogant, insolent, and galling Yenn, were then uttered and circulated through the colonies : " The offence of the Americans is flagitious : the town of Boston ought to be knocked about their ears and destroyed. Delenda est Carthag-o. You will never meet with proper obedience to the laws of this country until you have destroyed that nest of locusts." These words embodied the feeling of England in an hour of her insolence.^ The ministers blundered, as usual, in meeting this issue. They proceeded as though they had to deal only with Boston and Massachusetts. It had long been a theory tliat the law of diversity was so deeply rooted and so paramount in its influence, that any thing like real political unity among the colonies would be impossible. Hutchinson accepted this theory. General Gage, the commander of the British army in America, having his eye over the whole field, judged that the chance was small of the Bostonians getting more than fair words from the other colonies ; and, fresh from America, assured the king, in a personal interview, that four regiments stationed in Boston would prevent any dis- turbance. The king reports him even as saying, " They will be lions while we are lambs ; but if we take the resolute part, they will prove very meek," — a saying which the king thought worth sending to Lord North. ^ It was reasoned : 1 Venn's words are in the " Massachusetts Gazette " of May 19, 1774. Governor Johnstone, one of the Peace Commission of 1778, in a private letter dated June 10, to Henry Laurens, the President of Congress, said: "If you should follow the ex- ample of England in the hour of her insolence," &c — Annual Register, xxi. 338. 2 Donne's Correspondence of George HI., i. 164. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 319 The otlier colonies will not take fire at the proper punish- ment of those who have disobeyed the laws. They will leave them to suffer for their own offences ; ^ the shutting up of the port will be naturally a gratification to the neigh- boring towns ; the other colonies will accept with pleasure any benefits they can derive from the misfortunes of Massa- chusetts ; the policy of singling out this colony will event- ually prove a means of dissolving tlie bond of union.^ The king on the 7th of March, 1774, in messages to both Houses, recommended to their serious consideration the proceedings in America elicited by the Tea Act, and partic- ularly the destruction of the tea in Boston. The messages were accompanied with a mass of papers relating to this matter.^ It was left to parliament to say what measures were necessary to secure the execution of the laws and the just dependence of the colonies ; but Lord North sub- mitted no plan. Lord Thurloe, impatient for coercion, said loud enough to reach 'the ears of the minister, " I never heard any thing so impudent: he has no plan yet ready." An address to the king, however, was promptly agreed upon, expressing thanks for the gracious commu- nication that day made to parliament ; and in the evening the king wrote to Lord North : " It is carrying a very material point, — the ordering an address without a divis- ion, — and gives a degree of weight to the subsequent steps that will be taken on this business in the House of Com- mons."* The steps alluded to were the famous series of penal measures. The first of this series, the Boston Port Bill, was moved by Lord North on' the 14th of March. It passed in about 1 Annual Register, vol. xvii. 64. 2 Ibid., vol. xviii. 2. 3 The particulars of the destruction of the tea were received in London by the New-York mail on Wednesday, Jan. 19, 1774, and were printed in the London papers of Jan. 21, and in the " Edinburgh Advertiser" of Jan. 2.5. There were no comments. The ministers waited for the arrival of official despatches. * Donne's Letters of George III., i. 173. 820 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. two weeks through the various stages, with very little debate. On its second reading without division, the king wrote that the fact " was so favorable to the measure that he could not refrain from expressing the pleasure it gave him ; " and thought that " the feebleness and fatuity of the opposition shewed the rectitude of the measure." ^ Words of soberness and truth, even of prophecy, were spoken in the debate against the bill, in both Houses, but there were no divisions. The anxious eyes of a patriot and a great statesman followed the " mad and cruel measure." " Rep- aration," Lord Chatham wrote, " ought first to be demanded in a solemn manner, and refused by the town and magistracy of Boston, before such a bill of pains and penalties can be called just ; " but, he remarked, perhaps a fatal desire had taken possession of the heart of the government to take advantage of a tumult in order to crush the spirit of liberty among the Americans.^ It is recorded on the journals of both Houses that the bill passed unanimously. It received the royal assent on the 31st of March, and then became a law. It presided for a discontinuance of the landing of all merchandise whatever in, or the shipping from the town or harbor of Boston on and after the first day of June ; consti- tuted Marblehead a port of entry, and Salem the seat of government. This state of things was to continue until certain conditions should be complied with, — one being that the owners of the property that was destroyed should be indemnified. It was officially announced that an army and a fleet would be employed to enforce the Act. This Act was received by separate arrivals at New York and Boston,^ and was circulated with wonderful rapidity 1 Donne's Letters of George III., i. 17G. 2 Correspondence of the Earl of Chatham, iv. 336. 3 The Boston Port Act was received here on the 10th of May, and the "Massa- chusetts Gazette" of May 12 has it in ftill, with the following heading: "Tuesday arrived here Captain Shaj'ler, in a brig from London, who brought the most interest- ing and important advices tliat ever was received at the port of Boston." The Act was received in New York, Ma}-- 12, by Captain Couper, twenty-seven days from London. "We want language to express our abhorrence," a New-York letter of the 14th says, printed in the "Boston Gazette." THE TEA ACT AND AMEKICAN UNION. 321 from these centres through the colonies. It spoke for itself. It doomed a town to suffer for a deed which had been wel- comed in every quarter with manifestations of joy. Pathetic appeal, or party manipulation, or personal influence, was not required to rouse a general indignation. This welled up instinctively from the American heart, and was expressed in every form. The Act was printed on paper with mourn- ing lines; it was cried through the streets as barbarous murder ; it was burnt by the common hangman on scaffolds forty-five feet high. The feeling that it was unjust and in- human was expressed in passionate words. "Join or die," a terse Rhode-Island utterance reads: " the insult to our vir- tuous brethren ought to be viewed in the same odious light as a direct hostile invasion of every province on the continent." Thus the patriots gave themselves up to impulses that honor human nature. The Act was a failure from the moment of its promulgation. The Boston committee of correspondence invited the committees of eight neighboring towns to meet for deliber- ation in Faneuil Hall. Men in that conference (May 12) took part in the counsels or the battles of the whole subsequent struggle. Samuel Adams presided, and Joseph Warren drew up its papers. The conference addressed a circular to the committees in all the colonies, recommending a suspension of trade with Great Britain, suggesting that the single question was whether the other colonies would con- sider Boston as suffering for the common cause, and resent the injury inflicted on her, and promising fidelity to the rights of America. On the next day a town meeting was held in Faneuil Hall, with Samuel Adams for the moderator. The inhabitants addressed (May 13) a circular " to all the sister colonies, promising to suffer for America with fortitude, but confessing that singly they must find their trial too severe : " they entreated not to be left alone when the being of every colony as a free people depended on the event ; and they also proposed, as the means to obtain redress, commercial 21 322 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. non-intercourse. The hall could not contain the numbers who attended, and many stood outside until its close. Ex- presses were sent to Salem and Marblehead, to New York and to Philadelphia, with letters to the patriots. The legislative committee were directed by the House to send the Port Act to the other colonies, and to call immediate attention to it as " an act designed to suppress the spirit of liberty in America." The committee in performing this duty (May 28) said : " We think the archives of Constanti- nople might be in vain searched for a parallel. To reason upon such an act would be idleness. You will doubtless judge every British American colony deeply concerned in it, and contemplate and determine upon it accordingly." Thus the patriots acted through their varied organizations in a spirit of order, and with promptness, dignity, and efficiency. The reception of these circulars was the occasion for memorable proceedings, which have often been related, but which ought not to be omitted in any narrative of these times. The inhabitants of Marblehead tendered the use of their wharves to the Bostonians, one of their number, Elbridge Gerry, the future Vice-President, saying that the resentment of an arbitrary ministry would prove a diadem of honor to the oppressed town. The merchants of Newbury- port voted to break off trade with Great Britain, and lay up their ships until the port should be opened. Salem, in an address to Governor Gage, drawn up by Timothy Pickering, the future Secretary of State, averred that they must be lost to all feelings of humanity to raise their fortunes on the ruins of their neighbor. The same spirit was manifested in the other New-England colonies. The Connecticut assem- bly appointed a day for humiliation and prayer, and ordered an inventory to be taken of cannon and military stores. Providence, in Rhode Island, resolved that all the colonies were concerned in the Port Act, and recommended a con- gress. Portsmouth, in New Hampshire, declared that the administration were taking every method to disunite the col THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 323 onies, but hoped their firm union would continue. The sentiment and determination of the patriots south of New England were represented in the proceedings of the Virginia House of Burgesses. On the reception of the news of the Port Act, all business gave way to the generous purpose to stand by Massachusetts. In resolves penned by Jefferson, they set apart the first day of June as a day of fasting and prayer, to invoke the divine interposition to give to the American people one heart and one mind to oppose by all just means every injury to American rights, and to inspire the minds of His Majesty and his parliament with wisdom, moderation, and justice. These resolves brought down a dissolution ; and before others, proposing a congress, could be passed.^ The members then repaired to the Raleigh Tavern, where they declared that an attack made on one of the sister colonies was an attack on all British America, and threat- ened ruin to the rights of all, unless the united wisdom of the whole were applied ; and they recommended the com- mittee of correspondence to communicate with the other committees on the expediency of holding an annual congress. Two days later the circulars from the north were received, when the Burgesses who remained in Williamsburg — Washington was one — appointed a convention, consisting of representatives of all the counties, to meet on the first day of August.^ 1 The House of Burgesses had before them on the 24th of May a resolve provid- ing for the call of a congress, and were dissolved the next morning. The resolve is in the " Boston Gazette " of June 20. The Massachusetts assembly convened on the 25th of May. Samuel Adams was about to introduce resolves for a congress when the assembly (26th) was adjourned by the Governor to meet in Salem on the 7th of June. 2 The "Essex Gazette " of Jime 28 has the following, showing the feeling sonth of Virginia: "' Charleston, South Carolma, June 6. Last Tuesday morning a packet was received here from a very respectab'e committee at Philadelphia, enclosing letters from other committees, and contained the first intelligence of the passing of an act of par- liament for blocking up the harbor of Boston, which, if we may judge from the indig- nation with which it is everj'where received, will prove the ci-uellest policy that ever disgraced the British senate, and be the very means to perfect that union in America which it was intended to destroy." 324 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. This noble action, embodying the passion and humanity of a rich historic hour, was a fitting prelude to the spectacle which the colonies presented on the day (June 1) the Port Act went into effect. A cordon of British men-of-war was moored around the town of Boston. Not a keel nor a raft was permitted to approach the wharves. The wheels of commerce were stopped. The poor were deprived of employ- ment. The rich were cut off from their usual resources. The town entered upon its period of suffering. The day was widely observed as a day of fasting and prayer. The mani- festations of sympathy were general. Business was sus- pended. Bells were muffled, and toiled from morning till night ; flags were kept at half-mast ; streets were dressed in mourning ; public buildings and shops were draped in black ; large congregations filled the churches. In Virginia the members of the House of Burgesses assembled at their place of meeting ; went in procession, with the Speaker at their head, to the church and listened to a discourse. " Never," a lady wrote, " since my residence in Virginia have I seen so large a congregation as was this day assembled to hear divine service."^ The preacher selected for his text the words : "Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them ; for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee. He will not fail thee nor forsake thee." " The people," Jefferson says, " met generally, with anxiety and alarm in their countenances ; and the effect of the day, through the whole colony, was like a shock of electricity, arousing every man and placing him erect and solidly on his centre." ^ These words describe the effect of the Port Act throughout the thirteen colonies. This train of events served to fix again all eyes on Boston. It was now required to be patient under suffering, to show 1 Letters dated Williamsburg, June 1, 1774, in "Edinburgh Advertiser," July 26. An excellent letter from one of the Burgesses, dated June 4, is printed in this paper of Aug. 2, and the whole proceedings in the issue of Aug. 5. 2 Jefferson Memoir, p. 6. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 325 forbearance under insult, and to be faithful to the cause in the face of danger. The feeling among its citizens was bitter, intense, and up to the verge of civil war. The Tories taunted the Whigs with following a set of reckless dema- gogues, who professed loyalty, but aimed at independence. They had brought down upon the town its calamity, and would be sent to England and expiate tlieir crimes at Tyburn. The Whigs, as they directed public odium in every way on the Tories, averred that nothing was further from their hearts than a spirit of rebellion, and continued their confi- dence in a noble band of leaders. They were guiding a great movement with uncommon wisdom. The militia were not called out to resist the landing of the troops daily ex- pected ; the British fleet were not cannonaded from guns planted on the surrounding hills ; the idea was not acted on, if it was suggested by the rash, of declaring independence, unfurling the Pine Tree flag, and entering upon a Quixotic crusade against England. The town bore its burden with dignity, and based its hope of deliverance on union. In a short time regiments from famous battle-fields landed unmo- lested on its soil ; hostile cannon were planted on its emi- nences and at the single outlet into the country ; troops daily paraded its streets, and the place wore the aspect of a garrison. Details of the petty annoyance to which its citizens were sub- jected were printed from time to time in the journals. The strange spectacle touclied the feelings of the patriots. Their admiration was raised by the genuine pluck evinced by the Bostonians in going on with their political action under the mouths of hostile cannon, and when this was in derogation of an act of parliament. The action had not been bolder when the town was free from troops. Thus the brave municipality stood manfully for the cause, exciting warm sympathy, in- tense interest, and the gravest apprehension. The suggestion appeared in several quarters simultaneously that contributions should be tendered for the relief of such of the indigent as might be sufferers by the operation of the 826 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Port Act ; it was approved and urged in the press, the pul- pit, public meetings, and general assemblies ; and was so promptly carried out that soon there was a flow from every quarter of cereals, live stock, provisions, wood, and money into Boston. Tlie fi-aternal movement bore directly on the individual. The ardent and zealous workers in the cause in hundreds of localities, forming a circle more or less wide, went from door to door, from street to street, as they gath- ered the patriotic offerings ; and the talk in the shop, on the farm, in the commercial mart, in the home, would naturally be of acts of power full of injustice, of violated liberty, of patriots suffering for the cause. The names of contributors in some places are still to be seen. The list in Fairfax County, Virginia, has at its head the name of George Wash- ington for fifty pounds. The committees accompanied the gifts with letters laden with the deepest sympathy, and, as sterner events unfolded, — as will be seen in the next chap- ter, — with the most solemn pledges of support. A few sen- tences, selected from the earliest, will suffice here to show this fraternal spirit : " We feel the heavy hand of power, and claim a share of your sufferings." — '* Depend upon it we will further assist you with provisions and men if you need it." — " Our people are open and generous, firm and resolute in the cause of liberty ; hope the people of Boston remain firm and steady." — " Hold on and hold out to the last. As you are placed in the front rank, if you fail all will be over." — " Give us leave to entreat, to beg, to conjure you, by every thing that is dear, by every thing that is sacred, by the ven- erable names of our pious forefathers, who suffered, who bled in the defence of liberty, not to desert the cause in this trying crisis." — " Stand firm, and let your intrepid courage show to the world that you are Christians." These words were born of generous impulses and a noble enthusiasm. They revealed the fact that, beneath the diversity that char- acterized the colonies, there was American unity. The deeds they heralded were the blossoming of a rare public THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 327 life, but the spirit was greater than the deeds. The blow dealt on Boston, like a wound on a single nerve, convulsed the whole body.^ The popular party were now enabled to prepare for the work in store for them by extending their organization and interchanging sentiments. They in every quarter chose committees of correspondence, sometimes in public meetings, as in New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, but very gen- erally in meetings regularly called of the freeholders and other inhabitants of the parishes, towns, and counties, after the way of the town of Boston. It was remarked by John Adams, that " every city, county, hundred, and town on the continent" adopted the measure — he almost said, as if it had been "a revelation from above — as the happiest means of cementing the union : " he added that the organization was actuated " by one great, wise, and noble spirit, — one masterly soul animating one vigorous body." ^ This was more enthusiastic than exact. The Canadas continued meanly to hold back ; some of the towns in the original thirteen colonies did not choose committees ; and here and there a town, after the choice, faltered and dismissed its committee.^ The opposition to the organization attempted 1 The "Boston Gazette" of July 11, 1774, has the following, which illustrates the spirit of the times : — Messieurs Edes and Gill. 'Tis an old and just observation that professions cost nothing; 'tis equally true that when a man parts with his money in supisort of any cause, he evidences himself to he in earnest. I cannot but reverence my fellow-countrymen, dispersed through this and the other governments, for their liberal and unsolicited contributions to support the poor and sutfering people of Boston during tlie present conflict. What amiable charity! What glorious magnanimity is here displayed! Shall such a race of patriots, shall such a band of friends, be ever subdued? No, my persecuted brethren of this metropolis, you may rest assured that the guardian God of New England, who holds the hearts of his people in his hands, has influenced your distant brethren to this benevolence. 'Tis a glorious pledge of that harmony, that unison of sentiment and action, which shall connect such a band of heroes, as to make a world combined against them to tremble. Cultivate this rich, this fruitful blessing, — an extensive union: when once 'tis eftected, it will intimiiiate your enemies, will animate your friends, will convince them both that you must be invincible, and thus you will obtain a bloodless victory. G. 2 Novan^lus. John Adams, in the "Boston Gazette," dated Feb. 6, 1775. 8 I have a list of the dates of the formation of municipal committees in several of 328 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to do this in Boston in a town meeting ; but, after a debate of two days, they were signally defeated. This proceeding elicited a generous recognition of the labors of the Boston committee in an address from Rhode Island. " Your faith- ful services," it said*, " have endeared you to the wise and good of every colony. Continue your indefatigable labors in the common cause, and you will soon see the happy success of them in the salvation of your country." ^ It is doing no injustice to other members of the committee to say that its records show Joseph Warren and Samuel Adams indefati- gable in its labors. The Tories wrote much about this organization in the press. They said, in describing the formation of the committees, that at first resolutions, drawn up by zealous partisans, were offered in public meetings ; then, the orator mounted the rostrum, and exerted his powers of eloquence to heat his audience with the blaze of patriotism with which he conceived himself in- spired ; and that from this fountain originated their authority. "It is a fountain," the writer said, "from which no legal authority can be derived : we know not where such prece- dents may terminate. Setting up such a power to control you is setting up anarchy above order : it is the beginning of republicanism. Nip this pernicious weed in the bud before the colonies, but its insertion would require large space. The action of the New- Hampshire and Rhode-Island towns has been noticed. (See p. 313.) The movement did not become general in the Southern colonies until after the passage of the Boston Port Act. Then the journals abound with accounts of local meetings. The counties in Maryland chose committees in the last of Maj- and in June ; the counties of Virginia in June. It was said in the " Massachusetts Gazette " ( To r^') of July 7, 1774: "The newspapers from all quarters, in every British American colony, so far as we have yet received intelligence, are chiefly filled with accounts of meetings and resolutions of towns and counties; all to the same purpose, complaining of oppression, proposing a congress, a cessation of intercourse with Great Britain, and a contribution for the relief of the Boston poor." The "Boston Gazette" of July 4 contains in full the proceeding of a meeting of '• The Freeholders and other inhabitants of Frederick County," Va., held on the 8th of June, appointing a committee of correspondence; and of a meeting of " The Freeholders and Freemen of the City and County of Philadelphia" held on the 18th of June, appointing a committee, with John Dicken- son at its head. 1 This address occupies nearly the first side of the "Boston Gazette" of Aug. 8, 1774. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 329 it has taken too deep root." This record of the Tories is the shading of the picture of these times, which serves to bring out in bright colors the action of the patriots. The expressions in favor of a congress became frequent in various quarters after the passage of the Tea Act. On the passage of the Port Act the demand for a congress was gen- erah The timid regarded this measure as most hkely to procure a redress of grievances and restore harmony : the boki urged it as the first step in the direction of forming an independent American commonwealth. It was assented to by politicians — of whom Joseph Galloway, of Philadelphia, was the type — who were halting by the way, and ultimately took the royal side ; by Whigs, represented by Jolm Dicken- son, who never seemed ready to give up the hope of reconcilia- tion ; and it was desired above all other measures by the class represented by Christopher Gadsden, Richard Henry Lee, and Samuel Adams, to give to union the power of organiza- tion and law. About a month after the reception of the Port Act, the press stated that a congress " was the general desire of the continent, in order to agree on effectual measures for defeating the despotic designs of those who were endeavor- ing to effect the ruin of the colonies." ^ During the month of May propositions for a congress were adopted by several public meetings ; and when the condition of intercommunication is considered they may be regarded as independent of each other. They shew the ripeness of public opinion for this measure. The committee in New York requested the patriots of Massachusetts to designate the time and place ; and they decided to do this through the general assembly. Meantime General Gage arrived from England fresh from a personal interview with the king. He was the commander of the British army in America ; and, as the successor of Hutchinson, he bore a commission as the Governor of Mas- sachusetts. A report was current to the effect that, when 1 Boston Evening Post, June 20, 1774. 330 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. lie landed in Boston, he would be treated with indignity ; but he was received (May 17) with every mark of respect by the civil authorities and the military, and a vast concourse of the inhabitants. When his commission was read in the council chamber, salutes were fired and the people cheered. In the afternoon an elegant dinner was served in Faneuil Hall, which was attended by the principal characters of the town.i A few days after he went to Salem, escorted by a party in carriages. They were met, about noon, by the civil authorities and the military, and formed a grand procession. There he received the compliments of a great number on his accession to his new office, and his safe arrival at the i^lace of his residence. It was hoped that this gracious reception would remove any unfavorable impression which report might have created as to the character and disposition of the inhabitants.^ The assembly met on the 25th of May, as usual, in Boston. The members took the oaths of abjuration, sub- scribed the Declaration, chose Thomas Gushing speaker, Samuel Adams clerk, and elected twenty-eight councillors. On the next day Governor Gage negatived thirteen of the twenty-eight, among whom were James Bowdoin, John Win- throp, and John Adams. He summoned the members to the council chamber, informed them that he had the king's particular commands for holding the General Court at Salem after the 1st of June, until His Majesty should signify his royal will and pleasure for holding it again in Boston. The House asked the Governor to appoint a day of fasting and prayer, to petition the Almighty that the people of this province might stand favorably in the eyes of the king, and be directed in wise and proper measures to establish their just rights, liberties, and privileges, and that harmony migiit 1 Boston Gazette, May 30, 1774. This issue contains the noble resolves of the town of Providence, of May 17, recommending the call of a congress and the abolition of negro slavery. They will compare favorably in manner and matter with any adopted up to this time in the colonies. 2 Essex Gazette, June 7, 1774. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 331 be restored between Great Britain and the colonies. The Governor (May 28) adjourned the court, to meet on the seventh day of June. Hence the assembly was in session on the seventeenth day of June in the old and quiet town of Salem. It contained members who voted for the resolve of 1764, inviting all the assemblies to concert of action ; for the call of the congress of 1765 ; for the Circular Letter of 1768 ; and who were of the "glorious Ninety-Two" who refused to obey the king's order to rescind this Letter. Tlie doors of the chamljer in which they met were locked, as was usual when important business was to be transacted. Samuel Adams submitted resolves designating the first day of September as the time, and Philadelphia as the place, for holding the congress ; providing- for the appointment of five delegates, and for a tax on the towns of five hundred pounds to detVay their expenses. While these resolves were under consideration, the secretary of the colony, Tliomas Flucker, bearing a message from the Governor, applied for admission. On being denied, he stood on the stairway leading to the hall, and read to the crowd a procla- mation dissolving the assembly.^ The House, however, went on with its business. The resolves were adopted, and the speaker was ordered to transmit them to the speakers of the assemblies of the continent.^ 1 It is stated in Rushworth's Collections, i. 558, that just before Sir Edward Coke was about to utter, iu committee of the whole, the speech in which he said, "Let us put up a Petition of Right," the key was brought up, and none were to go out with- out leave first asked. 2 The following is a selection of the matter relating to a congress, after the passage of the Tea Act: — The "Boston Gazette" of Aug. 2, 1773, in a spirited appeal urging a congress, says: " Many and great are the advantages that may result from such a congress or meeting of American States, and it should be forwarded as fast as possible." Samuel Adams, in the "Boston Gazette," Sept 13, over the signature of "A.," suggests that the next petition should be b}' " the joint wisdom of the whole in a congress, or some other way conformable to the plan of union proposed by Virginia ; " saying, " It would certainly be inconsistent with that plan of union for this or any other colojiy to come into a new system of American policy without consulting the whole" A writer in the same paper recommends "that a congress of American States be assembled as soon as possible, draw up a Bill of Rights, aud publish it to 332 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Meantime there was an adjournment of what was called " The Port Act Meeting " held on the same day in Faneuil Hall. Great numbers attended. John Adams was the moderator. The principal object of the meeting was to hear the world; choose an ambassador to reside at the British court, to act for the United Colonies; appoint where the congress shall annually meet; and how it may be sum- moned upon an extraordinary occasion." Hutchinson wrote to John Pownal, Oct. 18, 1773, " The leaders of the party give out openly that they must have another convention of all the colonies." The "Boston Gazette" of Dec. 2, 1773. has a piece which says: "There is no time to be lost. A congress, or a meeting of the States, is indispensable." John Hancock in the annual oration on the 5tli of March, 1774, urged that the posture of affairs demanded a general congress. A piece dated New York, April 26, 1774, and copied into the " Boston Evening Post" of June 6, says: "A congress of deputies from the several colonies is thought to be absolutely necessary, to devise means of restoring harmony between Great Britain and her colonies, and prevent matters from coming to extremities." In a town meeting in Providence, K.I., called by warrant, on the 17th of May, 1774, it was voted " that the deputies of this town be requested to use their influence, at the approaching session of the general assembly of this colony, for promoting a congress, as soon as may be, of the representatives of the general assemblies of the several colonies and provinces of North America, for establishing the tirmest union, and adopting such measures as to them shall appear the most effectual to answer that important purpose, and to agree upon proper measures for executing the same." This vote was immediately printed in the newspapers, aiidis copied into the "Massa- chusetts Gazette," of May 30, 1774. It is the first recommendation of a congress in print by an organized body I have met. The committee of correspondence, in a letter (May 17) addressed to the Boston committee of correspondence, sa^'^: "We trust your town will be for a general congress of the American States being convened as soon as may be, that an opposition to the unrighteous impositions may be entered into by all the colonies, without which we all agree the cause must fail." The committee of Philadelphia, representing a respectable number of the inhabi- tants, in a calm letter dated Ma}' 21, 1774, addressed to the committee of corre- spondence of Boston, expressed the opinion that "the first step that ought to be taken" is to call a general congress, and promised to obtain the sense of the people on this question. It is stated in the New- York papers that copies of this letter were sent to New York and to the Southern colonies. It was copied in full into the "Edinburgh Advertiser" of July 22. The committee of correspondence of the city of New York, in a letter dated May 23, addressed to the committee of correspondence of Boston, say that " a congress of deputies from the colonies in general is of the utmost moment, that it ought to be assembled without delay:" we "request your speedy opinion of the proposed congress, that, if it should meet with your approbation, we may exert our utmost endeavors to carry it into execution." Under the date of "New York, May 30," copied into the " Essex Gazette" of June 2, the fact is stated that the grand com- mittee had proposed a congress. Eighty-nine members of the House of Burgesses of Virginia met on the 27th of May, at the long room called the Apollo, in the Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg, after the House had been dissolved by Earl Dunmore, and signed an association ; and THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 333 the report of a committee appointed at a previous meeting to provide employment for the poor. They, through Warren, stated that they thought best to defer reporting till they had heard from the other governments. There was much written and said at tliis period about payment for the tea that had been destroyed. The advice on this point to the patriots from eminent Whigs was contradictory. " I can- they were joined by a number of clergymen and others. In this way they "recom- mended to the committee of correspondence that they communicate with the sev- eral corresponding committees, on the expediency of appointing deputies from the several colonies of British America, to meet in a general congress, at such a place annually as shall be thought most convenient; there to deliberate on those general measures which the united interests of America may from time to time require." The whole proceedings, under the date of "Williamsburg," and occupying a column and a half, are in the "Boston Gazette " of June 13, 1774. The committee of correspondence of the Burgesses (May 28) say in their circular letter to the other committees: "The propriety of appointing deputies from the several colonies of British America, to meet annually in j;oiu'ral congress, appears to be a measure ex- tremely important and extensively useful, as it tends so eft'ectually to obtain the united wisdom of the whole in every case of general concern. We are desirous to obtain your sentiments on this subject." On the 15th of June the Rhode-Island assembly, in the opinion "that a firm and inviolate union of the colonies was absolutely necessary, appointed two delegates to attend a congress at such time and place as might be agreed upon;" who were in- structed "to procure a regular annual convention of representatives of all the colo- nies," &c. These resolves were printed in the Boston newspapers of June 20, 1774. In this varied action in behalf of a congress no time or place was named. They were designated as follows : — The Connecticut committee of correspondence, in a letter addressed on the 3d of June to the Boston committee of correspondence, made suggestions as to time and place, and the next day sent a copy of this letter to the New-York committee. The New-York committee, on the 7th of June, in a letter to the Boston com- mittee of correspondence, requested them "to appoint the time and place for holding the congress." The resolves were adopted by the Massachusetts assembly on the 17th of June, when one hundred and twenty-nine members were present. Only twelve dissented. The preamble and first resolve were as follows : " This House, having duly considered and being deeply aftected with the unhappy differences which have long subsisted and are increasing between Great Britain and the American colonies, do resolve: That a meeting of committees from the several colonies on this continent is highly expedient and necessary to consult upon the present state of the colonies, and the miseries to which they are and must be reduced by the operation of certain acts of parliament respecting America; and to deliberate and determine upon wise and proper measures to be by them recommended to all the colonies for the recovery and establishment of just rights and lil)erties, civil and religious, and the restoration of union and harmony between GrCiat Britain and the colonies, most ardently desired by all good men." The time fixed was the first daj' of September, and the place Philadelphia, or any other place that should be judged most suitable by the committee. 334 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. not," Franklin wrote from London, " but wish and hope that compensation would be made to the company ; " but Gadsden, of Charleston, wrote, " Don't pay for an ounce of the damned tea." The subject was discussed in the meet- ing. The committee of correspondence laid before the town, probably through Warren, the answers they had received from the circulars the town had sent. They were directed to write to all the other colonies and acquaint them that the town was awaiting with anxiety the result of a con- tinental congress in whose wisdom they confided, and in whose determination they should cheerfully acquiesce. The meeting, according to the journals, was never exceeded in firmness and unanimity : not one had any thing to say in favor of paying for the tea ; and all were willing to endure the worst rather than surrender the rights of America. This was a memorable day. In the evening the choice spirits of the popular party, who had figured in the meeting in Faneuil Hall and in the assembly at Salem, met at Warren's residence. Adams, Gushing, Quincy, Warren, Young, were of the number; and they formed, Young the next day wrote, " an important and agreeable company." The spirit evinced in the meeting in Faneuil Hall, the action at Salem relative to the congress, the intelligence in the journals, a spirited letter from Baltimore, cheered their hearts : a letter was read from New York, which was pronounced " as encouraging as any thing they had from any part of the continent." They could not know that a Massachusetts assembly should never again act under the authority of the crown, or that the province that day sent forth to serve them in the congress a patriot who was soon to be the chief magistrate of an independent nation. They had manfully performed duties expected from them. " Our rejoicing," one of the band wrote, " was full, from an interchange of interesting advices from all quarters." The patriot just referred to, John Adams, was in his thirty-ninth year. He was born in Braintree, graduated at THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 335 Harvard, taught a school in Worcester, studied law, and, on the recommendation of Jeremiah Gridley, eminent in the profession, was sworn as an attorney. He had a strong- desire for the approbation of the wise and good, and had formed the resolution never to commit any meanness or in- justice in the practice of the law. He had an early ambition to rise in his profession. By industry he became a learned lawyer, and by nature he was an honest one. He served his native town as a selectman ; after he removed to Boston, was a representative a single year in the legislature ; and won much reputation by acting as counsel for the British soldiers who were concerned in the " Boston massacre." His heart was with the cause of the patriots, and his erudi- tion was ever at their service. His labor with his pen was valuable. He uttered so many ringing words that he has been called the Martin Luther of the Revolution. He did not attend the public meetings ; did not always approve of the movements of the patriots ; and mingled so little in practical politics that, down to this day, he was rather the counsellor than an actor, and was only a private man honored by a few marks of the confidence of his fellow-citizens.^ If he had in large measure conceit, envy, and vanity, he had also honesty and integrity, and a noble and pure heart, the aspirations of which were ever for the advancement of his country and the welfare of his race. He was impulsive, frank, and generous. He lacked the confidence in the people that some of his co-laborers possessed, which led him to embrace strong conservative views of government, and to lean to aristocratic features. He accepted the position of a delegate to the congress, where his greatness of character and large ability gave him a commanding position as a leader ; and he soon became identified with the important measures of the Revolution. Tlie resolves calling a congress were printed in the news- papers and immediately transmitted to the other colonies, 1 Life of John Adams, by his grandson, Hon Charles Francis Adams, p. 149. 836 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. which acquiesced in the time and place designated. The whole action was most satisfactory to the patriots, who again sounded praises to a Massachusetts assembly. One now wrote : " I am extremely pleased with the spirit and glorious conduct of your General Court. They are a band of patriots, fit to be intrusted with the rights and liberties of a people, and whose resolution and good sense would do them honor in any country under heaven." ^ The popular party were now pledging themselves to abide by the decisions the congress might come to in relation to a general plan for a redress of grievances. The method generally suggested was the old one of commercial non- intercourse. There was a stern determination to have it efficient. One of the Virginia Burgesses wrote, in sending out a moderate agreement, " We have no other weapons to fight with." The Boston committee said, " It is the last and only method of preserving the land from slavery without drenching it in blood ; " and they sent out a vigorous " Solemn League and Covenant," the signers to which agreed, " in the presence of God," not to buy goods from Great Britain or consume any, to break off dealings with all who bought them, and publish their names to the world. This covenant made a great noise. It drew from the Tories a protest sub- mitted in a town meeting in Faneuil Hall, and from Governor Gage a proclamation terming it an illegal and traitorous com- bination to distress the British nation, and enjoining the oflEicers of the law to apprehend and hold for trial all who might sign or circulate it.^ This insane step gave an impetus to the 1 A New-York letter, dated June 26, 1774, in the "Boston Gazette" of July 4. 2 The solemn league and covenant was decided upon (June 2) b}' the Boston committee of correspondence. Joseph Warren reported it. The committee sent it to the towns. The " Massachusetts Gazette " (Tory) printed it on the 2-3d of June. It elicited voluminous comment. The next issue of this paper (June -30) contains the Proclamation hy the Governor " to discourage illegal combinations " and against the league and covenant. This issue also has an account of the proceedings of a town meeting held in Faneuil Hall, June 27, in which this covenant was read. Also a protest against it, dated June 29, signed bj' one hundred and twenty-eight citizens, at the head of whom was Harrison Gray. THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 337 movement. " We have not a man but will sign," the Pep- perrell committee wrote by the hand of a French war hero, William Prescott.^ In Hardwick, Brigadier Ruggles, a mag- istrate, gave out word that he " would commit to jail any man who presumed to sign the covenant ; " when " upwards of a hundred persons put their names to it."^ The Virginia patriots also were entering into a combination to distress the British nation. Their convention arraigned this proclama- tion in scathing terms, and nobly resolved to stand by Massachusetts in case an attempt was made by Gage to carry it out ; a resolve that in England was looked upon a^ an overt act of treason.^ These movements were premature. However impolitic the method of non-intercourse turned out to have been, there was great unanimity in urging it ; but not in relation to the form, or as to the articles which an agreement should include. It was unwise to enter upon a measure affecting largely material interests, and depending for its success on a gen- eral concurrence, before there could be a consultation of all the colonies. It was, besides, inconsistent with a sentiment long inculcated, that any plan affecting the common cause ought to be agreed upon by a common council. In this the popular party were so harmonious, it was now said (July 4), that the accounts from every post brought the resolutions of the cities, towns, and counties, containing " assurances of their sending deputations to assist at a grand congress of representatives of all the colonies, — to whose wisdom, firmness, and fortitude, the liberty, property, and whole interest of this free and august continent are to be dele- gated."* The resolutions here referred to embody in a striking 1 Letter to the Boston committee, July 4, 1774. 2 Boston Gazette, July 4, 1774. 8 The following is in the "Edinburgh Advertiser" of Oct. 4: "The declaration of the Virginians, that it was lawful to repel force by force in case any measures were taken to carry the Proclamation of General Gage into execution, is looked upon here as an overt act of treason, and implies a rebellious intent." * Boston Evening Post, July 4, 1774. 22 I 338 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. manner the determination of the time ; and constitute a class of facts which seem to have been overlooked, but are worthy of attention. Thus the freeholders of Baltimore County, in Maryland, pronounced in favor of forming an association in relation to imports and exports to be agreed upon in a general congress, and of cutting off all dealings with the parties who would not come into the plan. Other counties in that province voted similar propositions ; and a convention composed of delegates from all of them was held in Annapolis, in which Matthew Tilgliman presided ; which adopted the recommendation and the pledge. Both were reiterated in other colonies in the votes of towns, counties, and provincial conventions. The foremost revolutionary names are connected with these proceedings. Christopher Gadsden took part in a great meeting at Charleston, S.C., which " most solemnly agreed to abide by the decisions of the congress ; " and^in the debates at a meeting in the city of New York, which voted " to abide by and observe" these decisions, Alexander Hamilton, then an unknown youth, shone like a star. In Pennsylvania a " provincial meeting of deputies" from the counties went so far as to pledge themselves to break off all dealings with any individual in any town or colony that did not adopt the plan agreed upon ; and among the delegates were John Dickinson, James Wilson, Thomas Mifflin, Joseph Reed, and Anthony Wayne. No colony was more decided on the recommendation and the pledge than Virginia. In Fairfax County, where Washington was the chairman of the meeting, the suggestion was not only that Virginia, but that the associating colonies, ought to break off dealings with the places which should refuse to carry out the plan adopted by congress. In Albemarle County, Jeffer- son penning the resolves, the pledge was accompanied by the suggestion that dealings should be cut off " from every part of the British Empire that should not break off their com- merce with Great Britain." A convention of delegates from all the counties was held, in August, at Williamsburg ; and THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 339 this body reiterated the pledge to ahide by the decisions of the congress, and declared that those who refused ought to he regarded as inimical to the country. Thus it was well- nigh the universal voice of the people that the recommenda- tions of the congress should have the force of laws. This embodiment of the public will by the qualified electors in the municipalities, and through the instrumentality of representatives in the conventions, bore the impress of regu- larity. The pledge related only to matters in which all had a common interest. It was confined to dealing with the mother-country in procuring a redress of grievances. In relation to this, the great point reached was a solemn pledge to submit to the decision of the majority, " the vital principle of republics." The recommendations of the colo- nies in congress assembled were to be observed as a para- mount rule of action. This may be regarded as the germ of the important provision of law incorporated thirteen years later into " The more perfect Union ; " namely, " that this Constitution, and the laws of the United States made in pur- suance thereof, and all treaties, shall be the supreme law of the land, any thing in the laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding." The remarkable action did not pass unobserved. The Tories denied the lawfulness of making pledges in advance to abide by the decisions of the congress: the Whigs hailed them as an earnest that they meant to stand or fall together.^ 1 The simple resolve to abide by the decision of the congress was so common that it may be said to have been universal. The colony of Maryland was among the first to vote to cut off all trade with those who woidd not acquiesce in the decision of the congress. The vote of Baltimore County, May 31, 1774, was in the following terms: "Resolved, unanimously, that the inhab- itants of this county will, and it is the opinion of this meeting that this province ought to, break off all trade and dealings with that colony, province, or town, which shall decline or refuse to come into similar resolutions with a majority of the colonies." Anne Arundell County adopted a similar resolution .June 4; Caroline County, June 18; Frederick Count}', June 20. Charles County, .June 14, voted "to cut off dealing with the province, count}', or town, that should refuse to associate in some rational means," &c. Other couiuios made similar pledges. A convention of the committees of the several counties was held at Annapolis, June 22, 1774. It voted, 340 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The Tea Act and its sequence, — tlie Boston Port Act, — ■were fulfilling their mission. They were the proximate cause of events, — one naturally and inevitably evolving another, — which had the effect of changing the condition of the Ameri- can cause from discord to harmony, from confusion to order, unanimously, " that this province will break off all trade and dealings with that colony, province, or town, which shall decline or refuse to come into the general plan which may be adopted by the colonies." The proceedings of this convention were printed in full in the "Boston Evening Post," of July 25, 1774. The same issue has the proceedings of the inhabitants of South Carolina, at a meeting held in Charleston, on the 6th, 7th, and 8th of July, in which they "most solemnly engaged to abide by the decisions of congress." The "Massachusetts Gazette" of Aug. 8, 1774, contains the proceedings of a meeting of the deputies chosen by the several counties in Pennsylvania, held in Philadelphia, July 15, 1774; occupying the whole of the first side of the paper, and a column on the next. Some of the resolutions were recorded as having passed by a majority; but the following was unanimously sfflopted: "That the people of this province will break off all trade, commerce, and dealing, and will have no trade, commerce, and dealing of any kind, with any colony on this continent, or with any city or town in such colony, or with an}' individual in any such colony, city, or town, which shall refuse, decline, or neglect to adopt and carry into execution such general plan as shall be agreed to in congress." In New Jersey a meeting of the committees of the several counties was held on the 21st of July, at New Brunswick, and passed resolves in favor of a general con- gress, the commissioners to which should be empowered " mutually to pledge, each to the rest, the public honor and faith of their constituent colonies, firmly and inviolably to adhere to the determinations of the said congress." In Virginia the pledge was as thorough as that of the Solemn League and Covenant of Boston. The whole of one side of the "Boston Gazette" of Aug. 8, 1774, is occupied with the proceedings, "At a general meeting of the Freeholders and Inhabitants of the County of Fairfax, on Monday, the eighteenth day of July, 1774, at the court house, in the town of Alexandria, George Washington, Esq., chairman, and Robert Harrison, gentleman, clerk of said meeting." The 21st resolve is: "That, in the opinion of this meeting, this and the other associating colonies should break off all trade, intercourse, and dealings with that colony, province, and town, which shall decline or refuse to agree to the plan which shall be adopted by the General Congress." The Albemarle resolution, July 26, penned by Jefferson, is as follows: "To discontinue all commercial intercourse with every part of the British Empire which shall not in like manner break off their commerce with Great Britain." The Virginia convention of delegates from the counties of this colony at Williamsburg, Aug. 1, 1774, agreed upon a non-importation association, and voted not to deal with any merchant or trader who would not sign it, and to consider such persons as inimical to the country. The following paragraph ("Edinburgh Advertiser," Aug. 9, 1774) shows that this class of facts did not pass unobserved abroad : " The following provinces, towns, counties, &c., in America, — viz., Connecticut, towns of Preston, Farmington, Weth- ersfield, and Hartford; Williamsburg, in Virginia; Baltimore, in .Maryland; Annap- olis ; Rhode Island and Providence, — have unanimously resolved to break off all trade and dealings with Great Britain, &c., and with that colony, province, or town, THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 841 from the road to ruin to the broadway to national triumph. The Whig affirmed — the Tory conceded — that there was union. It rested on a public opinion so broad and deep — a determination so stern — that it had become a positive force. It was an invulnerable shield cast over American development; and, in relation to matters common to all and properly pertaining to its sphere, ready to dominate over merely provincial ideas and objects. As the learned in academic halls reflected on the grand unfolding, they said : "The last and recent stroke of the parliament at our liber- ties has astonished America into a real and efficacious union, which it is beyond the power of Europe to dissolve." ^ A noble actor on the stage, throbbing with genuine patriotism, now wrote : " The Americans have one common interest. Natural allies, they have published to the world professions of esteem and confidence, aid and assistance : they have pledged their faith of mutual friendship and alliance. Not only common danger, bondage, and disgrace, but national truth and honor,, conspire to make the colonists resolve to stand or fall together." ^ This salient sentence sums up American history down to this time. Under the fresh im- pulse of the next parliamentary stroke, the sentiment of American union became embodied in an association having the force of law. In truth such a union of mind and heart was the country. It was pronounced indissoluble. On the flag floating over popular gatherings was the motto '' Union and Liberty." They were facts and forces working together, and were correlative. The feeling thus early was union which shall decline or refuse to come into similar resolutions with the majority of the colonies." These votes were commented on with great severity in "The Congress Can- vassed," a pamphlet printed in New York, 1775. The writer says of the Whigs: "You had no right to make a promise implicitly to obey all their (congress) regula- tions, before you knew what they were, and whether they would interfere with the public laws of the government or not." — p. 40. 1 Ezra, Stiles, in Holmes's Life, July 30, 1774, p. 180. 2 Josiah (iuincy, Jr., Observations on the Boston Port Bill. This pamphlet was advertised in the Boston newspapers of June 16, 1774. 342 THE EISE OP THE REPUBLIC. and liberty, now and for ever : it seemed as though that gen- eration realized that there could be no union without liberty, and no genuine liberty without the power there was in union to protect it. Indeed, it was decreed in the regular channels by which the will of the people is collected and declared, — in a solemn pledge " of national truth and honor," — tha.t those who were not true to American union were false to American liberty. The history presented in the stages of the development of American union is not that of one leader, or of a few leaders, who planned a great political movement and created the spirit by which it was to be executed ; or who carried forward a people by the power of their intellect or the magnetism of their renown : it is rather the history of com- munities, who, however marked by diversity in their forms of local life, had really the foundation for a certain unity in being imbued with similar ideas, who were moved by similar impulses, and who alike aimed to guard the right to hold and improve the free institutions which they had devel- oped. A claim more just was never proffered at the foot- stool of power. Jl history more interesting and valuable cannot be presented to American youth. It shows, in these communities, a population of two and a half millions in action ; moving steadily forward — all marching together one way — towards an end which they earnestly and hon- estly disavowed and deprecated, but which, in the plan of Providence, was the goal marked out for them to reach. The result thus far was real American union. During the ten years of the past struggle the popular leaders had incul- cated the sentiment that union was salvation. The fact of its achievement inspired the ranks of the party with enthu- siasm. It purified and magnified their work. " When I review," one writes, " the annals of the world, I am con- strained to believe that great things await America. When Liberty was well-nigh banished from every quarter of the globe, she found an asylum in this savage land. Learning, THE TEA ACT AND AMERICAN UNION. 343 liberty, and every thing that ennobles the human mind, have constantly been travelling westward." These great things required a condition of freedom for their development. But the assumption of the right to tax, and the whole system of domination founded on this assumption, were repugnant to "the Saxon genius of liberty and law which English America inherited from the parent state." Ezra Stiles, who penned these words, prophesied : " If oppression proceeds, despotism may force an annual congress ; and a public spirit of enter- prise may originate an American Magna Charta and Bill of Rights, supported by such intrepid and persevering impor- tunity as even sovereignty may hereafter judge it not wise to withstand. There will be a Runnymede in America." ^ 1 July, 1774, Holmes's Life of Stiles, p. 180. CHAPTER IX. How A Geneiul Congress formed the Association of the United Colonies, and how Support was Pledged to the Inhabi- tants OF Massachusetts in Resisting the Alteration of THEIR Charter. August, 1774, to 1775. "While the popular party were choosing delegates to the con- gress and agreeing to abide by its decisions, the American cause received a fresh impulse through the passage in par- liament of two Acts altering the government of Massachu- setts. As the people were refusing obedience to these Acts, the congress met, formed " The Association of the United Colonies," and pledged support to the inhabitants of Massachusetts, in case it was attempted to carry the Acts into execution by force ; and this pledge was reit- erated in letters from towns and counties tendering life and fortune in defence of the cause. The king was unwearied in efforts to give direction to the measures relating to America. On the day the Port Bill was moved in parliament (March 14), he sent to Lord North a note, in which he urged an alteration of the charter of Massachusetts, and remarked that Lord Dartmouth was very firm as to its expediency.^ On the 28th of March, late at night, he expressed " infinite satisfaction " to the premier, because he had moved that " leave be given to bring in a bill for the better regulating the government of the province of Massachusetts Bay." In his explanatory speech on this occasion. Lord North described that government as being in "so forlorn a situation" that no governor could act. He 1 Donne, Correspondence of George III., i. 174. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 345 dwelt upon the defects in the civil magistracy, the doings of the town meetings, the mode of selecting jurymen, and the general need of strengthening the executive authority. He commended the bill which he proposed to bring in as calcu- lated " to purge that Constitution of all its crudities, and give a degree of strength and spirit to the civil magistracy and to the executive power." In the debate which followed, Lord George Germain not only approved of the objects specified by Lord North, but proposed to regulate other parts of the internal government, and particularly to alter the basis on which the council and the municipalities rested. He said : " There is a degree of absurdity, at present, in the election of the council. I can- not, sir, disagree with the noble lord ; nor can I think he will do a better thing than to put an end to their town meet- ings. I would not have men of a mercantile cast every day collecting themselves together, and debating about political matters : I would have them follow their occupations as merchants, and not consider themselves as ministers of that country. I would also wish that all corporate powers might be given to certain people of every town, in the same manner that corporations are formed here : I should then expect to see some subordination, some authority and order. . . . The juries require great regulation : they are totally different from ours. ... I would wish to bring the Consti- tution of America as similar to our own as possible. I would wish to see the council in that country similar to a House of Lords in this. . . . You have, sir, no government, no governor : the whole are the proceedings of a tumult- uous and riotous rabble, who ought, if they had the least prudence, to .follow their mercantile employment, and not trouble themselves with politics and government, which they do not understand." On the conclusion of this speech, Lord North rose and said : "I thank the noble lord for every proposition he has held out: they are worthy of a great 346 THE EISE OP THE EEPUBLIC. mind, and such as ought to be adopted." ^ The noble lords contrived to embody in their speeches " the ignorance and contempt of America pervading England, from the cedar to the hyssop on the wall." ^ There was much deliberation in the cabinet relative to the council, Lord Mansfield urging that the nomination of the members ought to be vested in the crown. The king wrote (April 14) to Lord North : "I find it so much the wish of the cabinet, that 1 cannot too strongly express my preferring your introducing the bill to-morrow that is drawn up for vesting the nomination of the councillors in the crown." Accordingly the bill moved the next day by the obedient premier contained this important addition. He stated, that, upon the hints thrown out by Lord George Germain, he had altered also the mode of choosing juries. At nine o'clock that evening the king was " infinitely pleased " at the introduction not only of this bill, but also of the "bill for the impartial administration of justice," designed to aid the enforcement of the former law.^ The second reading (April 22) gave him " infinite satisfaction ; " and he was again (May 3) " infinitely pleased " that the bill passed, and that the majority was so considerable.^ It received the 1 This debate was printed in the Boston newspapers of May 19 and 23, 1774. It is in "Parliamentary History," vol. xvii. pp. 1192-1195. It will be observed that Lord George Germain proposed to substitute for the municipalities in America, a system like the self-perpetuating councils (see above, p. 15) of England; and Lord North approved of all his propositions. 2 Donne uses these words in a note (Correspondence of George III., i. 187). 8 The king feared that the motion for leave to bring in the bill would be post- poned, and hence his unusual satisfaction. Ibid., i. 178. ■* Letters of George III., of the dates in the text in Donne's Correspondence, i. 181, 182, 183. On the 6th of May, the king, in a note to Lord North, dated Kew, fifty-one minutes past nine. P.m., writes: "The Bill for the better administration of justice in Massachusetts Bay, having been read a third time, and passed the House of Commons this day, after a short debate, with a great majority, gives me intinite satisfaction. Perseverance, and the meeting difficulties, as they arise, with firmness, seem the only means of either with credit or success terminating public affairs. Your conduct on the American disturbances is a very clear proof of the justness of that proposition. " The conduct of the Americans at this period supplied another Very clear proof of the effect of this firmness and perseverance. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 347 royal assent on the 20th of May. The Act " for the impar- tial administration of justice " passed by similar majorities, and was signed at the same time. Both were to take efifect from their passage. The Regulating Act made elections of the council under the charter void, provided that the board should consist of not less than twelve members nor more than thirty-six, and vested their appointment in the crown. The Governor was clothed with power to appoint and remove judges of the in- ferior courts, justices of the peace, and other minor officers. The Governor and council were to appoint and remove sher- iffs, who were authorized to select jurymen. Town meetings, except for the choice of officers, were forbidden, without per- mission of the Governor. The Act relating to the admin- istration of justice provided for the transportation of offenders and witnesses to other colonies or to England for trial. A Protest in the House of Lords objected that the parties had no notice of this proceeding, and had not been heard in their defence ; and that this Act invested " the Governor and coun- cil with powers with which the British Constitution had not trusted His Majesty and his privy council"; that "the lives, liberties, and properties of the subject were put into their hands without control." ^ These severe acts of naked injustice were inspired by that jealousy of the republican element which had tormented the Board of Trade ever since its formation, and which the Earl of Clarendon judged in his day had begun to ripen.^ They were designed as the beginning of the abridgment of English liberties, and of the remodelling of the Constitutions, which had long been desired by the school that distrusted the capac- ity of the people for self-government. They involved the fundamentals of personal liberty, trial by jury, discussion of political measures, and free assemblies. They struck at the 1 Parliamentary Historj', xvii. 1323. The Protest was circulated widely in the American journals. 2 See above, p. 15 ; also Lord Hillsborough's declaration in parliament, p. 250. • 348 THE EISE OP THE REPUBLIC. general right of the colonies to mould their internal polity. In these Acts parliament assumed the power to alter the American Constitutions at its will and pleasure. If it could deal in this way with Massachusetts, it could deal in a sim- ilar way with all the colonies. In fact, the laws were a complete embodiment of the principle of the obnoxious Declaratory Act.^ These measures, on which hung great issues, were first made known to America through the drafts of the bills as moved in the House of Commons. They reached Boston on the second day of June, and were printed in the news- papers on the third. The action of the Boston committee was, as usual, prompt and decisive ; and the commit- tees throughout the province did not fall behind the Bos- ton committee in boldness and zeal. "We were chosen," wrote Samuel Adams to Charles Thomson, of Philadelphia, " to be, as it were, outguards to watch the designs of our enemies ; and have a correspondence with almost every town in the colony. By this means we have been able to circulate the most early intelligence of importance to our friends in the country, and to establish a union which is formidable to our adversaries." ^ The legislative committee immediately trans- mitted these bills to the other legislative committees, with a circular in which they say: "These edicts, cruel and oppres- sive as they are, we consider but as bare specimens of what the continent are to expect from a parliament who claim a riffht to make laws bindino; us in all cases whatsoever." The 1 Earl Russell (Life of C. J. Fox, i. 63) says of the Act altering the government of Massachusetts: "A measure more subversive of freedom, more contrary to all constitutional principles, and more Likely to excite America against imperial authority, could not well be framed." Lord Mahon, in his History (vol. vi. p. 548) remarks: " How rash the precedent, at such a time, of dealing so lightly with a royal charter ! How far wiser had it been to bear any amount of inconvenience from the defects of the existing fabric, rather than attempt its reconstruction at the very moment when the storm was raging around it ! ... If one charter might be cancelled, so might all : if the rights of any one colony might hang suspended on the votes of an exasperated majority in Eng- land, could anj' other deem itself secure? " 2 Letter to Charles Thomson, May 30, 1774. THE EEGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 349 policy now marked out by the patriots of Boston is seen in the utterances of Samuel Adams, which continue to be calm and prophetic. " Boston suffers with dignity: if Britain, by her multiplied oppressions, accelerates the independency of her colonies, whom will she have to blame but herself ? It is a consolatory thought that an empire is rising in America."^ " Our people thinlv they should pursue the line of the Consti- tution as far as they can ; and if they are driven from it, they can then with propriety and justice appeal to God and the world. ... I would wish to have the humanity of the English nation engaged in our cause, and that the friends of the Constitution might see and be convinced that nothing is more foreign to our hearts than a spirit of rebellion. Would to God they all, even our enemies, knew the warm attachment we have for Great Britain, notwithstanding we have been contending these ten years with them for our rights." 2 These are not the words of one who was mixing a bitter cup, but rather of one who had schooled himself to take submissively the cup which the Providence of events might present. The popular party was then in the heat and glow of the noble enthusiasm inspired by the fact of union. It was natural that measures, which struck at the ancient right of local self-government should rouse general alarm and indig- nation. Those who had been moderate and wavering became resolute and resentful. The condemnation of these bills was Spontaneous and withering. They were doomed to annul- ment before intelligence was received of their passage into laws ; and when Governor Gage received them officially, the public conviction of their enormity had become embodied in the sternest action. A few illustrations of the temper and determination of the popular party must suffice. In Pennsylvania, a convention of all the counties characterized the proposed Acts as un- 1 Letter to William Checkley, June 1, 1774. 2 Letter to Charles Thomson, June 2, 1774. 350 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC, constitutional, oppressive, and dangerous to the American colonies.^ A convention " of the whole province of Mary- land" declared that the bills, if passed into Acts, would lay a foundation for the utter destruction of British America.^ In South Carolina, a great meeting of freeholders from all parts of the province resolved, that, if these bills were allowed to go into effect, there would not be the shadow of liberty to person, or security to property, to His Majesty's subjects residing on the American continent.^ In Virginia, the freeholders of Fairfax County, George Washington in the chair — resolved, that, unless these cruel measures were counteracted, the end would be the ruin of the colonies; and that, should the town of Boston be forced to submit, the citizens of Fairfax should not hold the same to be bind- ing upon them, but, notwithstanding, would religiously main- tain and inviolably adhere to such measures as should be concerted by the general congress for the preservation of their lives, liberties, and fortunes.* This action was crowned by the declaration of the convention of all the counties, in August, that, under the original Constitution of the American colonies, their assemblies had the sole right of directing their internal polity ; that the proclamation of General Gage was a plain declaration that this despotic viceroy would be bound by no law, and that an attempt to execute it would justify resistance and reprisal.^ The newspapers were laden with political appeals and the ^ The proceedings of the Pennsylvania convention of deputies from the several counties, July 15, were printed in the "Boston Evening Post" of August 8. 2 The proceedings in full of the meeting of committees, in session from June 22 to 25, are in the " Essex Gazette " of July 19. 3 The resolves of this meeting of the 6th, 7th, and 8th of July are in the "Massa- chusetts Gazette " of July 26. They say that the proposed Acts, though levelled at Boston, "very manifestly and glaringly show, if the inhabitants of that town are intimidated into a mean submission to these Acts, that the like are designed for all the colonies. ... It is the duty of the inhabitants of all the colonies to support the inhabitants of Boston," &c. 4 The proceedings of this meeting are in the "Boston Gazette " of August 8. 5 The instruction of the convention to the delegates is in the "Boston Evening Post " of August 29. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 351 proceedings of public bodies, enjoining unanimity and resolu- tion. They showed that the popular party were arrayed in solid phalanx against the Regulating Acts. " You," an ad- dress to G-age reads, " consider the opposition fomented by three or four factious men in Boston. You ought to know better, after reading the resolves of every province, city, town, and county on the continent. There are no such reservoirs of public virtue in America as there are of corruption iu England. We are all alike charged with the fire of patriot- ism." 1 " Our country people," a letter says, " appear to be very firm : they look to the last extremity with spirit." ^ It was said in South Carolina : " One soul animates three mil- lions of brave Americans, though extended over a long tract of three thousand miles." ^ " If they [the ministers] ever subdue the spirit of New England, — may God forbid! — that instant the evil genius of Tyranny will begin to stalk over these premises with gigantic strides." ^ The injunction to the patriots of Massachusetts to act with efficiency came to them still more directly through letters addressed to the Boston committee from every quarter. A few sentences from these letters will serve to shew their spirit. " We view the attack made by the minister upon the colony of the Massachusetts Bay to be intended to pave the way to a general subversion of the constitutional rights of North America. It becomes, therefore, the duty of every American, who is not an apostate to his country, to pursue every jus- tifiable method to avert this impending calamity."^ "A more finished picture of despotism cannot be drawn by the 1 The "Pennsylvania Journal" of August 17. This extract is from a sharp address to General Gage, copied into the " Essex Gazette " September 6. 2 Boston Evening Post, August 8. 3 Boston Gazette, August 15. ■* This extract is fron*»a spirited and generous piece copied into the "Boston Evening Post," August 1, with this introduction: " The following piece, taken from the 'South-Carolina Gazette,' is republished here both on account of the excellent sentiments it expresses, which are applicable to all the British colonies, and to shew that our brethren in South Carolina concur with the other colonies in resenting and opposing the tyrannical Acts of the British parliament." 5 Letter from Cape Fear, North Carolina, .July 29. 352 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. skill of man than is portrayed in the famous Declaratory Bill, nor could it be carried into more perfect execution than by the Boston Port Bill, and by two other Acts destroying the ancient rights of your colony. America perfectly knows that you are only designed for the first victim in the heca- tomb of sacrifice to be offered to the god of Oppression, and will not therefore willingly suffer you to bleed at the shrine of his brazen altar, until we all bleed and die together." ^ " We mean, in the first place, to attempt to appease the fire (raised by your committing the India tea to the watery ele- ment as a merited oblation to Neptune) of an ambitious and vindictive minister by the blood of rams and of lambs: " [a flock of sheep came with the letter] " if that do not answer the end, we are ready to march in the van, and to sprinkle the American altars with our hearts' blood, if occasion should be. . . . The public virtue now exhibited by Ameri- cans exceeds all of its kind that can be produced in the annals of the Greeks and Romans. Behold them from north to south, from east to west, both publishing their sentiments and supporting their poor. . . . You are held up as a spectacle to the whole world. All Christendom are longing to see the event of the American contest. And do, most noble citizens, play your part manfully, of which we make no doubt. Your names are either to be held in eter- nal veneration or execration. If you stand out, your names cannot be too much applauded by all Europe and all future generations." ^ " At this period of your suffering, and on the reception of the second and third unrighteous Acts of par- liament, usurping authority and oppressing your town and province, we are anxiously looking that some important event will take place. It becomes us to be watchful; and 1 Lebanon correspondence, August 8. William Williaras was one of the signers of this letter. 2 Parish of Brooklyn, in Pomfret, Connecticut, August 11. Col. Israel Putnam, one of the signers, came on with a donation of sheep : was the guest of Joseph Warren ; talked with old friends in the British army, whom he met subsequently in battle at Bunker Hill. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 353 there is reason to fear that nothing short of another kind of resistance will regain and secure our privileges." ^ Thus the will of the people, collected generally through the forms in which they were accustomed to proceed in political affairs, and expressed with as much regularity as circum- stances would permit, was declared with respect to the two new Acts. It was, that they should share the fate of the Stamp Act and the Tea Act, even though the shedding of blood might be the consequence. And this verdict is found of record before the general congress met, or before the Acts were attempted to be put in force. In the natural course of events, a crisis was reached, involving ideas in deadly conflict with each other : for the public opinion of twelve colonies may be said to have enjoined the inhabitants of Massachusetts, for the sake of civil liberty, to refuse obe- dience to the two Acts, as imperatively as the king's in- structions, in behalf of feudal England, enjoined General Gage to carry them into execution. While these interesting events .were occurring, the cabi- net were taking the necessary steps to execute the two Acts. Ex-Governor Hutchinson now arrived in London, and was summoned (July 1) immediately to the royal closet. For nearly two hours he was interrogated by the king in rela- tion to the affairs of Massachusetts. One of the first ques- tions naturally was : " How did you leave your government, and how did the people receive the news of the late meas- ures in parliament?" Hutchinson replied: "When I left Boston '(June 1), we had no news of any Act of parlia-^ ment, except the one for shutting up the port, which was extremely alarming to the people." The king asked:. " Pray, Mr. Hutchinson, what is your o])inion of the effect from the new regulation of the council ? Will it be agree- able to the people, and will the new appointed councillors take the trust upon them ? " Hutchinson replied : " I have not been able to inform myself who they are. I came 1 Preston, August 20. 23 354 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to town late last evening, and have seen nobody. I think much will depend upon the choice that has been made." The king rejoined: " Inquiry was made, and pains taken that the most suitable persons should be appointed." Hutchinson remarked : " The body of the people are dis- senters from the Church of England, — what are called Congregatiohalists. If the council shall generally be selected from the Episcopalians, it will make the change more dis- agreeable." This is all the conversation that was minuted by Hutchinson relative to these important Acts.^ The im- pressions which the king received from the interview were set down two minutes past nine, that evening, in a note which he addressed to Lord North. "I am now well convinced," he wrote, " they will soon submit : he (Hutchinson) owns the Boston Port Bill was the only wise and effectual method that could have been suggested for bringing them to a speedy sub- mission, and that the change in the legislature will be a means of establishing some government in that province, which, till now, has been one of anarchy." ^ Hutchinson deceived himself and the king, if he placed any reliance on the char- acter or religion of the persons selected for councillors ; and never was a ruler more wofully in error than was George III. as to the temper of the Americans. The instructions of the cabinet relative to the execution of these Acts were prepared under the influence of this fatal error. They bear date June 3d, and were transmitted through Lord Dartmouth to General Gage. They were quite elaborate, and instructed him that whatever violences were coihmitted must be resisted with firmness, that the constitutional author- ity of this kingdom over its colonies must be vindicated, and that not only its dignity and reputation, but its power, nay, its very existence, depended on that moment. "For," said Lord Dartmouth," should those ideas of independence, which 1 Extracts from the Journal of Thomas Hutchinson, dated July 1, 1774. I am indebted to Mr. Bancroft for this interesting MS. 2 George III. to Lord North, July 1, 1774, two minutes past nine, p.m. Donue, i. 194. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 355 some dangerovis and ill-designed persons here are artfully endeavoring to instil into the minds of the king's American subjects, once take root, that relation between this kingdom and its colonies which is the bond of peace and power will soon cease to exist ; and destruction must follow disunion." Here power commanded, in terms as imperative as the lan- guage afforded, the execution of the illegal Acts as com- pletely as though they were constitutional and just. Governor Gage did not officially receive the two Acts and the instructions in relation to them until the 6th of August, when he also received appointments for thirty-six council- lors.^ Twenty-four of the number accepted. An informal meeting was held on the 8th of August, and all were noti- fied to assemble on the 16th for the transaction of busi- ness.'-^ The sheriffs summoned persons to serve as jurors. The judges prepared to hold courts, and the Governor to support their authority by military force. He had at his command troops from famous European battle-fields. One regiment was stationed at Salem, where he resided ; one at Castle William, in Boston Harbor. In Boston, one regi- ment was at Port Hill, and four regiments were on the Com- mon. Nearly thirty ships of war were in the harlior. The Governor now sent for the selectmen of Boston, and told them he should endeavor to put the Regulating Act into execution, especially the clause in relation to holding town meetings; and if any ill consequences followed, they only would be blamable. Town meetings, however, were held all over the province, and chose delegates to county conventions. The committees of correspondence were es- pecially active, and held continual conferences. The words of a noble and brave man, who fell at Bunker Hill, will serve as a type of Massachusetts in this hour of trial : " I consider the call of my country as the call of God, and 1 The names of the thirty-six councillors appointed by His Majesty were printed in the " Massachusetts Gazette" August 11. - The names of thirteen councillors, who met and took the oath of office on the 16th, were published in the newspapers of the 18th. 356 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. desire to be all obedience to such a call. The committees of correspondence for the several towns in the connty of Worcester have assembled, are in high spirits, and perfectly united. The committees of Cambridge and Charlestown are to have a conference to-morrow. I trust the whole county of Middlesex will soon be assembled by delegates. I have the greatest reason to believe will choose to fall gloriously in the cause of their country rather than meanly to submit to slavery." 1 A meeting of these committees from several counties, held in Faneuil Hall, matured measures for secur- ing a thorough resistance to the two Acts, and for convening a Provincial Congress. The community was now thoroughly roused. It was said in the public prints : " The spirit of the people was never known to be so great since the settle- ment, and they were determined to die or to be free." A great uprising began on the 16th of August at Great Barrington. When the judges attempted to hold a court, the farmers thronged to the place, filled the building, and blocked up the avenue leading to it. The sheriff commanded them to make way for the court, but the answer was : "No court will be submitted to but on the ancient laws and usages." In Boston, the chief justice and associate justices and barristers, arrayed in their robes, went unmolested in procession from the town house in King, now State Street, to the court house in Queen Street, and took their accus- tomed places ; but the jurors, both grand and petit, stood up and refused to be sworn. In Salem, the Governor issued a proclamation warning all persons against attending a town meeting, which was nullified within the sound of his drums. The mandamus councillors who accepted felt the storm of public indignation. As one, an honored citizen of Plymouth, and a Congregationalist, took his seat in the church on Sun- day, a large number of persons rose and walked out of the house ; when another in Bridgewater, a deacon, also a Con- gregationalist, read the psalm, the congregation refused to 1 Thomas Gardiner to the Boston committee of correspondence, August 12. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 357 sing ; and several councillors living in the country were compelled by gatherings of the people to resign. The county officers were similarly dealt with, and were univer- sally compelled to decline their appointments. The patriots said that " their souls were touched by a sense of the wrongs already offered them, as well as those which were threatened," and that " they would never rest, while one man who had accepted any office under the new Acts was possessed of any post of power or profit."^ They averred that herein they acted in accordance with the Christian duty of each individ- ual. They used no more force than was required to effect the object they had in view, — complete disobedience to the new Acts ; and, expressing an abhorrence of mobs, they de- clared " that, in a contest so solemn and a cause so great, their conduct should be such as to merit the approbation of the wise, and the admiration of the brave and free, of every age and country." "On experiment," Dr. Ramsay remarks, " it was found that to force on the inhabitants a form of government to which they were totally averse was not within the fancied omnipotence of parliament." ^ The resistance to the two Acts was thorough. It is no injustice to other patriots to say that in this perilous duty Joseph Warren rose to the height of a rare opportunity to serve his country. The occasion brought forth his power. He is found in the committee room, in the town meeting, in the county congress, in great popular demonstrations, and in personal consultations with the Governor. His soul was 111 arms. His unstudied words were a mirror, reflecting the passion and resolve of indignant freemen as they stood man- fully for their rights, and burn and glow with the fire of the time. " Wliere liberty " — he wrote to a Connecticut town, in the thick of action, without a thought of himself — " where 1 Essex Gazette, August 30. The " Gazette " of this date contains full details of the uprising; among them, the dealing with the councillors in Plymouth, Bridge- water, and Taunton. It contains also many resignations of otHcers appointed under the new Acts. 2 History of the American Kevolution, i. 132. 358 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. liberty is the prize, wlio would shun the warfare, who wouLl stoop to waste a coward thought on life ? We esteem no sacri- fice too great, no conflict too severe, to redeem our inestimable rights and privileges. 'Tis for you, brethren, for ourselves, for our united posterity, we hazard all ; and permit us humbly to hope that such a measure of vigilance, fortitude, and perse- verance will still be afforded us, that, by patiently suffering and nobly daring, we may eventually secure that more precious than Hesperian fruit, the golden apples of freedom. We eye the hand of Heaven in the rapid and wonderful union of the colonies ; and that generous and universal emulation to prevent the sufferings of the people of this place gives a prelibation of the cup of deliverance. May unerring Wisdom dictate the measures to be recommended by the congress! May a smiling God conduct this people through the thorny paths of difficulty, and finally gladden our hearts with success ! " ^ The congress now engrossed the public mind. It convened when the disobedience of the people of Massachusetts to the Regulating Act was representing the determined and stern feeling of the thirteen colonies, and when the conviction was growing that arms would have to decide the contest. " Let us remember," a Virginian wrote, "that with the sword our fathers obtained their constitutional rights, and by the sword it is our duty to defend them." ^ In the conviction that this duty must be performed, Washington, ready to stake his fortune and his life in the cause, said in the Virginia con- vention: "I will raise one thousand men, subsist them at my own expense, and march myself at their head for the re- lief of Boston."^ About the time these words were spoken, 1 Letter to Stonington, August 24. On the 29th, Warren says to Samuel Adams: "I am constantly busied in helping forward the political machines in all parts of the province." — Life and Times of Warren, p. 352. 2 To the Gentlemen of the General Convention of Virginia, Williamsburg, .July 28, 1774. 8 This was in August, 1774. Works of John Adams, ii. 360. Mr. Lynch, of South Carolina, said to John Adams that this was the most eloquent speech that ever was made. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 359 Joseph Hawley, of Massachusetts, embodied his views of the questions in issue, and his belief that the colonies " must fight," in a paper remarkable for its insight and comprehen- siveness.^ Samuel Adams had long been of this opinion ; and John Adams, after his appointment as a delegate, said : "We shall have to resist by force." ^ He read Havvley's paper to Patrick Henry, who responded: "I am of that man's mind," Adam Stephen, a Virginia soldier, urged in strong terms the necessity of military preparation, in a letter addressed to a member elect of the congress, and expressed the general feeling in relation to this body, as he wrote : " I expect to see the spirit of the Amphictyons shine as that illustrious council did in their purest times, before debauched with the Persian gold. The fate of America depends upon your meeting ; and the eyes of the European world hang upon you, waiting the event." ^ On the fifth day of September most of the delegates elected to the congress were in Philadelphia. They were invited by the speaker of the Pennsylvania assembly to hold 1 This paper, entitled "Broken Hints," was read to Patrick Henrj' in the autumn of 1774, and was first printed in Niles's "Acts of the Eevolution," 1822, p. 324. It was prepared before the middle of August; for, when it was written, there might have been a question whether the Regulating Act should be "immediately withstood and resisted," but at that date the question was settled: the Act was annulled. The paper begins: " We must fight, if we can't otherwise rid ourselves of British taxation, all revenues, or the constitution or form of goverment enacted for us by the British parliament. It is evil against right, — utterly intolerable to every man who has any idea or feeling of right or liberty." This noble utterance has the following on union : — "Our salvation depends upon an established, persevering union of the colonies. " Tlie tools of administration are using every device and eflfort to destroy that union, and they will certainly continue to do so. " Thereupon, all possible devices and endeavors must be used to establish, improve, brighten, and maintain such union. "Every grievance of any one colony must be held and considered by the whole as a grievance to the whole. This will bo a difficult matter, but it must be done." 2 As John Adams and Samuel Adams were conversing in John Adams's ofBce in Boston, immediately after their appointment as delegates, John Adams said, in the presence of .John Trumbull : " I suppose we must go to Philadelphia together, and enter into non-importation, non-consumption, and non-exportation agreements; but they will be of no avail: we shall have to resist by force." — Pitkin, i. 277. 8 Letter to R. H. Lee, Aug. 27, 1774. 360 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. their sessions in the State House, but decided to meet in the hall owned by the carpenters, — a fine brick building, having commodious rooms for the use of the committees, and an excellent library in the chambers. It is still in good preser- vation. At ten o'clock in the morning the delegates met at the City Tavern, walked to Carpenters' Hall,^ and began the sessions of the Continental Congress. This assembly, when all the members had taken their seats, consisted of fifty-five delegates, chosen by twelve colonies. They represented a population of two millions two hundred thousand, paying a revenue of eighty thousand pounds ster- ling.2 Georgia, which did not elect delegates, gave a promise to concur with her " sister colonies" in the effort to maintain their right to the British Constitution, — which, according to the American interpretation, was " a Constitution founded on reason and justice, and the indelible rights of mankind " : ^ words that went to the depths of the American cause. In general, the delegates elect were men of uncommon ability, who had taken a prominent part in the political action of their several localities, had won public confidence, and were fair exponents of the aims, feelings, and political ideas of the country. Some had corresponded ; one was in the Albany convention of 1754 ; eight were members of the congress of 1765 ; but nearly all met for the first time.* ' Each of the three divisions by which the colonies were usually designated — the New England, the Middle, and the Southern colonies — had on the floor of the congress men 1 The hall has chairs in which the delegates sat, — interesting Revolutionary memorials, — and the following inscription: "Within the^e walls Henry, Hancock, and Adams inspired the delegates of the colonies with nerve and sinew for the toils of war resulting in National Independence." 2 This was the calculation made by R. H. Lee, and probably did not include slaves. — John Adams's Works, ii. 362. 3 Resolutions of a general meeting of the inhabitants of Georgia, Aug. 10, 1774. ■* Stephen Hopkins was in the Albany convention. Thomas McKean and Csesar Rodney of Delaware, Philip Livingston of New York, John Dickinson of Pennsyl- vania, Thomas Lynch, John Rutledge, and Christopher Gadsden, of South Carolina, and Eliphalet Dyer of Connecticut, were in the Stamp Act Congress. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 361 of a positive character. New England presented, in John Sullivan, vigor ; in Roger Sherman, sterling sense and in- tegrity ; in Thomas Gushing, commercial knowledge ; in John Adams, large capacity for public affairs ; in Samuel Adams, a great character, with influence and power to or- ganize. The Middle colonies presented, in Philip Livingston, the merchant prince of enterprise and liberality ; in John Jay, rare public virtue, juridical learning, and classic taste ; in William Livingston, progressive ideas tempered by con- servatism ; in John Dickinson, " The Immortal Farmer," erudition and literary ability ; in Caesar Rodney and Thomas McKean, working power; in James Duane, timid Whigism, halting, but keeping true to the cause; in Joseph Galloway, downright Toryism, seeking control, and at leng-th going to the enemy. The Southern colonies presented, in Thomas Johnson, the grasp of a statesman ; in Samuel Chase, activity and boldness ; in the Rutledges, wealth and accomplishment; in Christopher Gadsden, the genuine American ; and in the Virginia delegation, an illustrious group, — in Ricliard Bland, wisdom ; in Edmund Pendleton, practical talent ; in Peyton Randolpli, experience in legislation ; in Richard Henry Lee, statesmanship in union with high culture ; in Patrick Henry, genius and eloquence ; in Washington, justice and patriotism. " If," said Patrick Henry, " you speak of solid information and sound judgment, Washington unquestionably is the greatest man of them all." Those others who might be named were chosen on account of their fitness for duties which the cause required. Many had independent fortunes. They constituted a noble representation of the ability, cul- ture, political intelligence, and wisdom of twelve of the colonies.^ The delegates represented communities, so far as their 1 " The congress is such an assenably as never before came together, on a sudden, in any part of the world. Here are fortunes, abilities, learning, eloquence, acute- ness, equal to any I ever met with in my life." — John Adams, Sept. 29, 1774 .'Works, ix. 346). 362 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. domestic relations were concerned, independent of each other. Each had its own assembly, which had framed the local laws. Indeed, there were no political relations what- ever between them, except the important one of being alike British subjects, of owing allegiance alike to the British crown, and being alike proud of the glories of the British flag. But the measures counted on to produce division in their councils tended to union. The evidences were increas- ing, that these communities, in which diversity had so long ruled paramount, were sternly resolved to embody their sentiment of union in a common bond that should operate with the force of law. Thus " colonies differing in religious opinions and in commercial interests, in everything depend- ent on climate and labor, in usages and manners, swayed by reciprocal prejudices, and frequently quarrelling with each other respecting boundaries, found themselves united in one representative body, and deriving from that union a power that was to be felt throughout the civilized world." ^ The object aimed at, as stated in the credentials of the dele- gations, ^ and especially in those of the two powerful colonies 1 Bancroft's History, vii. 127. 2 The delegates were chosen and commissioned as follows. From Rhode Island. — Stephen Hopkins, Samuel Ward. Chosen by the assembly, June 15. Credentials signed by J. Wanton, the Governor. Authorized "to consult upon proper measures to obtain a repeal of the several Acts, . . . and upon proper measures to establish the rights and liberties of the colonies upon a just and solid foundation, agreeable to the instructions given you by the general assembly." Massachusetts. — Thomas Gushing, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine. Chosen by the assembly, June 17. Credentials signed by Samuel Adams, clerk. Authorized "to consult upon the present state of the colonies, . . . and to deliberate and determine upon wise and proper measures, to be by them recommended to all the colonies, for the recovery and establishmentof their just rights and liberties, and the restoration of union and harmony between Great Britain and her colonies, most ardently desired by all good men." Maryland. — Matthew Tilghman, Thomas Johnson, Robert Goldsborough, Wil- liam Paca, Samuel Chase. Chosen, June 22, by committees of the counties assembled in convention. Their credentials were the resolve of the convention. It authorized them "to effect one general plan of conduct, operating on the commercial connection of the colonies wilh the mother country, for the relief of Boston, and preservation of American liberty." Connecticut. — Eliphalet Dyer, Roger Sherman, Silas Deane. Chosen by the committee of correspondence, July 13, who were authorized to act by the assembly. THE EEGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 363 of Massachusetts and Virginia, was to obtain a redress of grievances, and to restore harmony between Great Britain and America,whicli, it was said, was desired by all good men. Credentials signed by the committee of correspondence. Authorized to " consult and advise with the commissioners or committees of the several English colonies in America, on proper measures for advancing the best good of the colonies." New Hampshire. — John Sullivan, Nathaniel Folsom. Chosen, July 21, in a convention of deputies from the towns. Their credentials were the vote of the con- vention. Authorized "to devise, consult, and adopt such measures as may have the most likely tendency to extricate the colonies from their present difficulties; to secure and perpetuate their rights, liberties, and privileges ; and to restore that peace, har- mony, and mutual confidence which once subsisted between the parent country and her colonies." Pennsylvania. — Joseph Galloway, Samuel Rhoades, Thomas Mifflin, Charles Humphries, John Morton, George Ross, Edward Riddle. Chosen, July 22, by the assembly. Their credentials were the vote of the assembly. The delegates were authorized "to consult together on the unhappj- state of the colonies, and to form and adopt a plan for the purposes of obtaining a redress of grievances, ascertaining American rights upon the most solid and constitutional principles, and for establishing that union and harmony between Great Britain and her colonies which is indispen- sably necessary for the welfare and happiness of both." New Jersey. — James Kinsey, William Livingston, John Dehart, Stephen Crane, Richard Smith. Chosen, July 23, by committees of the counties met in convention. Credentials signed by fourteen of the members. Authorized "to represent the colony of New Jersey." Delaware. — Caesar Rodney, Thomas McKean, George Read. Chosen, August 1, by a convention of the representatives of the freemen of the government < f the three counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex. Credentials signed by Csesar Rodney, chairman. Authorized " to determine upon all such prudent and lawful measures as may be judged most expedient for the colonies immediately and unitedly to adopt, in order to obtain relief for an oppressed people, and the redress of our general grievances." South Carolina. — Henry Middleton, John Rutledge, Thomas Lynch, Christopher Gadsden, Edward Rutledge. Appointed first by a general meeting held in Charles- ton on the sixth, seventh, and eighth days of July, and ratified by the assembly on the second day of August. Credentials signed by Thomas Farr, Jr., clerk of the assembly. Authorized " to agree to and effectually prosecute such legal measures as in the opinion of said deputies, and the opinion of the deputies so to be assembled, shall be most likely to obtain a repeal of" certain Acts, and a redress of grievances. Virginia. — Peyton Randolph, Richard Henry Lee, George Washington, Patrick Henry, Richard Bland, Benjamin Harrison, Edmund Pendleton. Chosen, August 5, by meeting of delegates of the counties. Credentials were the vote of the convention. It authorized them "to represent the colony in a general congress," in a body con- vened "to procure a redress for Massachusetts, secure British America from the rav- age and ruin of arbitrary taxes, and speedily to procure the return of that harmony and imion so beneficial to the whole empire, and so ardently desired by all British America." North Carolina. — William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, Richard Caswell. Chosen, August 25, at a provincial convention. Credentials signed by John Harvey, mud- 364 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. It was the conviction that this might be done through a Bill of Rights, in which the limits of the powers of the colonies and the mother country might be defined. The congress was organized by the choice of Peyton Ran- dolph of Virginia for President, and Charles Thomson of Philadelphia, not a member, for Secretary. The President was widely known. The Secretary had identified himself with the cause in Philadelphia, and was destined to serve it long and faithfully. The credentials of the members were next read and approved. A discussion then arose on the rules to be observed in determining questions, in which Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee, and John Adams participated, and which was renewed the next day, when it was agreed that each colony should have one vote.^ Congress then decided to appoint a committee to state the rights of the colonies, the instances in which those rights had been violated, and the most proper means to obtain their restoration ; and another committee to examine and report upon the statutes affecting the trade and manufactures of the colonies. On this day Samuel Adams, in answer to the objection to opening the sessions with prayer, grounded on the diversity of religious sentiment among the members, said that he could hear a prayer from a man of piety and virtue, who was a friend to the country, and moved that Mr. Duclie, an Episcopalian, might be desired to read prayers to the congress on the following morning.2 The motion prevailed, and congress soon after adjourned. erator, and Andrew Knox, clerk. "Invested with such powers as may make any acts done by them, or consent given in behalf of this province, obligatory in honor upon every inhabitant hereof, who is not an alien to his country's good, and an apos- tate to the liberties of America." New York. — James Duane, John Jay, Philip Livingston, Isaac Low, William Flo3'd, Henry Wisner, John Alsop, John Herring, Simon Boerum. They were chosen by counties, and their credentials were "certificates of their election" by the people. The last delegate, Boerum, took his seat October 1. 1 " Resolved, That, in determining questions in this congress, each colon}' or prov- ince shall have one vote; the congress not being possessed of, or at present able to procure, proper materials for ascertaining the importance of each colony." — Jour- nals, i. 11. 2 Letters of John Adams, i. 23. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 865 That evening the report came that the British ships were bombarding Boston. The pubhc mind was deeply agitated. "War! war! war! was the cry," John Adams wrote. The members met the next morning in this agitated state. The Reverend Jacob Duch^ appeared with his clerk and in his pontificals ; read several prayers ; then the Psalm for the seventh day of the month, — the thirty-fifth, — which began: " Plead Thou my cause, Lord, with them that strive with me, and fight Thou against them that fight against me. Lay hand upon the shield and buckler, and stand up to help me:" and then, John Adams said, he "unexpectedly to any- body struck out into an extemporary prayer for America, for the congress, for Massachusetts, and especially for Boston, which was so fervent that it filled the bosom of every man present." On this day the members of the two committees already named were appointed, when the congress adjourned for several days. The congress sat with closed doors. Nothing transpired of their proceedings, except the organization and the rule of voting. The members bound themselves to keep their doings secret until a majority should direct their publication. Their decisions were awaited in the deepest anxiety. The members during two days were " made miserable " by the alarming reports from Boston.^ These reports grew out of the measures of General Gage in disarming the prov- ince. A party of soldiers, at night,, removed a quantity of powder from Charlestown to Castle William; and in the morning thousands of the people gathered in Cambridge. The alarm spread, and reached Colonel Putnam in Connec- ticut. He stated in a letter addressed to Captain Cleaveland that the British men-of-war and the troops were firing on Boston, and called on him to rally all the forces he could, 1 Silas Deane ^VTote September 6 : " An express arrived from New York confirm- ing the account of the rupture at Boston. All is in confusion. I cannot say that all faces gather paleness, but they all gather indignation, and everv- tongue pronounces revenge. The bells toll muffled, and the people run, as in the case of an extremity, they know not where nor why." — Connecticut Historical Collection, ii. 174. 366 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. and march immediately to Massachusetts. The prompt response to this call by the militia showed a general and earnest determination to defend the cause. Soon after this alarm (September 14) an admirable series of resolves, passed by the people of the county of Middlesex in Massachusetts, were laid before congress. They elicited praise, but did not occasion action. Three days later (September 17) congress received the resolves of the county of Suffolk, which included Boston. They declared that the people owed an indis- pensable duty to God and their country to preserve those liberties for which the fathers fought and bled, expressed the determined opposition of the inhabitants to the Acts altering the charter, and promised cheerful submission to such measures as the continental congress might recommend. They were aglow with the soul of Joseph Warren, who drew them up ; and they elicited a flow of generous sentiment and manly eloquence. Expressions of esteem, admiration, and affection for the people of Boston and of Massachusetts fell from the members. Congress, in resolves passed unani- mously, expressing feeling for the sufferings " of their coun- trymen in the Massachusetts Bay," most thoroughly approved the fortitude and wisdom with which the opposition to minis- terial measures had been conducted, and earnestly recom- mended a perseverance in the same firm and temperate conduct that was expressed in the resolutions of the county of Suffolk. They voted that contributions from all the colo- nies for alleviating the distress of their brethren of Boston ought to be continued " so long as their occasions might require." These resolves, together with the Suffolk resolves, were ordered to be printed.^ Nothing material of the doings of congress was published for three weeks. During this period the two committees 1 The "Boston Evening Post" of Sept. 26, 1774, says: "By Mr. Paul Revere, wlio returned express from Philadelphia last Friday evening, we have the following important intelligence." The resolves were sent to Joseph WaiTcn by the President of Congress — Peyton Randolph — and Thomas Gushing, the letters of which were printed. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 367 already named were maturing a system of measures. The deliberations showed that the Tories had a champion in Joseph Galloway. His early speeches do not indicate divergence from the Whigs. He held that he stood on the ground of English liberties, — that the colonies ought of right to mould their " internal police," and that they ought to be represented in the body that levied taxes on them ; and these were Whig fundamentals. Nor was he more ardent than the Whigs in professing allegiance to the crown, nor more earnest in desiring reconciliation and the preservation of the union between the colonies and Great Britain. But Galloway made the preservation of this union the paramount object, while the Whigs made the preservation of their rights and liberties paramount. Here was the gulf between them. Galloway distrusted republicanism, and in any event was opposed to independence: the popular leaders, imbued with the republican spirit, meant to preserve their rights, even with the sword if needful, though this might involve a separation. On the 28th of September Galloway introduced a " plan for a proposed union between Great Britain and the colo- nies," ^ prefaced with a resolve averring that the colonies " held in abhorrence the idea of being considered indepen- dent communities of the British government." This plan provided for a president-general to be appointed by the crown, and a grand council, consisting of representatives chosen every three years by the assemblies, to meet annually or oftener, its Acts to be subject to the revision of parlia- ment, while it was to have the right in turn to veto Acts of parliament relative to the colonies ; with the further pro- vision that each colony should retain its present constitution and power of regulating " its internal police in all cases whatsoever." The scheme was intended to perpetuate the 1 This plan was printed in pamphlet form in 1774, and was reprinted in his tract of 1780, entitled '■ Historical and Political Reflections on the Rise and Progress of the American Rebellion." His examination before the House of Commons in 1779 was printed in that year in London. 368 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. dependence of the colonies on England, and was proposed with the approbation of the loyalist Governors, Franklin of New Jersey, and Golden of New York. Galloway urged it in an elaborate speech, and it was supported by Duane, Jay, and Edward Rutledge. It was not only rejected, however, but the members came at last to view it with so much odium that the motions in relation to it were ordered to be expunged from the journals. This result was an end to the loyalist influence in congress. After Galloway came out openly on the British side, he wrote much about this plan, his own course, and the aims of the patriots. His shuffling and equivocation, his misrepresentations and ascription of mean motives to his political opponents, reveal a total want of that integrity of character which shines conspicuous in the men he defamed, and shows that he was unworthy of the popular confidence which he had enjoyed. Soon after the defeat of this insidious plan, Paul Revere of Boston, who had been despatched as an express, arrived (October 6) in Philadelphia, in the midst of the discussion on the reports of the committees. He bore a letter from the Boston committee of correspondence relative to the course of General Gage, who was proceeding on the assumption that the time for reUsoning had passed, and that force only could decide the controversy between the colonies and Great Britain. The letter contained details of the fortification of Boston ; stated that it was fast becoming a garrison, and that its inhabitants might be held as hostages to compel submis- sion to the law. It promised in their name, that, if congress should advise them to leave the town, they would obey. The letter also stated that the Governor, after summoning the legislature, dissolved it by proclamation before it could con- vene; and it asked the advice of congress for the future guidance of the people. In response, that body adopted a letter to be sent to Gage, reported by Lynch, Samuel Adams, and Pendleton. In this letter, congress, as " the represen- tatives of His Majesty's faithful subjects in all the colonies THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 369 from Nova Scotia to Georgia," stated to the Governor that the approbation of the conduct of the people of Massachusetts "was universal ; that it was " the determined resolution of the colonies, for the preservation of their common rights, to unite in opposition" to the late Acts of parliament; and that the congress had been appointed the guardians of their rights and liberties. Pointing to the peaceable demeanor of the inhabitants, they requested him to discontinue the forti- fications in and about Boston, and avoid the horrors of civil war. The terms and tone of this communication were as though the colonies formed one political power. Congress now adopted five resolves in relation to Massa- chusetts. The first was agreed upon on the 8th of October, and was as follows : " That this congress approve of the opposition made by the inhabitants of Massachusetts Bay to the execution of the late Acts of parliament ; and if the same shall be attempted to be carried into execution by force, in such case all America ought to support them in their oppo- sition." The report of the debate on this important resolve is meagre. It was strongly opposed, and especially by Gal- loway and Duane ; and when overruled, they asked permis- sion to enter a protest against it on the journals, which was refused. On leaving congress, they exchanged memoran- dums, to the effect that they had objected to it on the ground of its treasonableness. On the next day, Sunday, "Washington wrote a letter in which he dwelt on the affairs of Massachusetts, expressing indignation at the violation of its rights, and sympathy for the peril of its inhabitants. He had spent much time with the delegates from this colony, and he remarked that it was not the wish of that government, or of any other on the con- tinent, to set up for independence, yet that none would ever submit to the loss of rights and privileges essential to the happiness of every free state. " I am well satisfied," he wrote, " that no such thing [as independence] is desired by any thinking man in all North America ; on the contrary, 24 370 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. that it is the ardent wish of the warmest advocates for liberty that peace and tranquillity, on constitutional grounds, may be restored, and the horrors of civil discord prevented." ^ This comprehensive and decisive statement is in harmony with the whole scope of private and public utterances of the popular leaders, — those on whom rested the responsibility V of the political action. Four additional resolves were passed by congress on the Monday and .Tuesday (10th and 11th) following. They declared that all persons in Massachusetts who consented to take office under the new Acts ought to be considered wicked tools of the despotism that was preparing to destroy the rights which God, nature, and compact had given to America, and ought to be held in abhorrence by all good men. They advised the inhabitants of this colony to submit to a suspen- sion of the administration of justice, when it could not be had under laws based on the charter ; and recommended a peace- able demeanor towards the troops, and perseverance in the line of the defensive. The five resolves were ordered to be transmitted by the President to the Boston committee, as 'the advice of congress on the subject-matter of their letter.^ While these events were occurring, the two committees already named were proceeding with their deliberations. The notices of their debates indicate the patience required to surmount obstacles before a result could be reached. 1 Washington, Oct. 9, 1774, to Capt. Robert IMackenzie, of the British army, in Boston. This remarkable letter is in Sparks's Writings of Washington, ii. 399. 2 John Adams, Oct. 7, 1774, wrote as follows to William Tudor: "If it is a secret hope of many, as I suspect it is, that the congress will advise to offensive measures, they will be mistaken. I have had opportunities enough, both public and private, to learn with certainty the decisive sentiments of the delegates and others upon this point. The}'' will not, at this session, vote to raise men or money, or arms or ammunition. Their opinions are tixed against hostilities and rupture, except they should become absolutely necessary; and this necessity they do not yet see. They dread the thoughts of an action, because it would make a wound which would never be healed; it would fix and establish a rancor which would descend to the latest generations ; it would render all hopes of a reconciliation with Great Britain des- perate ; it would light up the flames of war, perhaps through the whole continent, which might rage for twenty years, and end in the subduction of America as likeh' as in her liberation." THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 371 The committee on trade and manufactures was the first to submit a report, which was (September 19) referred to the committee on the rights of the colonies, when Thomas Gushing, Patrick Henrj, and Thomas Mifflin were added to this committee. In three days it reported. The dis- cussion in the congress on this report was long. The l)usi- ness was simplified by a vote (September 21) to limit its action, "at present, to the consideration of such rights as had been infringed by Acts of parliament since 1763." On the 14th of October the members agreed upon a Declaration of Rights. This paper claimed for Americans the immunities of free subjects within the realm of England, so far as circumstances would allow. It claimed that they had a coequal right to the British Constitution, — the constitution of their country, — and that they had " a free and exclusive power of legislation in their provincial legislatures, where their rights of repre- sentation could alone be preserved in all cases of taxation and internal polity," subject to the negative of the sover- eign. It contained ten resolves, in which were enumerated the rights that could not be legally taken from them, or' altered or abridged by any power whatever; and it speci- fied eleven Acts or parts of Acts of parliament which were necessary to be repealed, in order to restore harmony between the colonies and Great Britain. A compromise resolution, framed with great care, disclaimed any purpose of refusing obedience to Acts " restrained to the regulation of the ex- ternal commerce, for the purpose of securing the commercial advantages of the whole empire to the mother country." In this paper it was stated that the good people of twelve colonies had appointed deputies to sit in a general congress to obtain such an establishment as might prevent their religion, laws, and liberties from being subverted ; and, as their J^nglish ancestors had done, they made their Declaration of Rights. After calmly averring that. Americans could not submit to the Acts which had been specified as grievous, congress 372 THE EISE OP THE EEPUBLIC. conclude by stating that " for the present they had only re- solved to pursue the following peaceable measures : " 1. To enter into a non-importation, non-consumption, and non- exportation agreement or association; 2, To prepare an address to the people of Great Britain, and a memorial to the inhabitants of British America ; 3. To prepare a loyal address to His Majesty." With the exception of two of the articles, the Declaration was adopted unanimously. The phrase in some instances is similar to that in the Bill of Rights of William and Mary. It presents the colonies as a unit in the vital matters of rep- resentation, free discussion, free assemblies, and trial by jury, — in a word, self-government. It was hoped — faintly by some, strongly by others — that the basis laid down in this interesting paper might lead to an act of settlement, fixing the terms for a permanent union between America and England.^ Congress decided (September 27) on commercial non- intercourse with Great Britain as the means of restoring American rights. It (September 30) appointed a committee to bring in a plan for carrying this measure into effect, who reported on the 12th of October. The measure deeply affected great material interests ; and the difficulties met and overcome were a foretaste of what was to be encountered in the formation of the more perfect union under the Con- stitution. At one stage of the proceedings — on the question of restricting rice — three of the South-Carolina delegation left the congress, but soon returned, their point having been conceded. 1 The committee who reported the Declaration consisted of Sullivan and Folsom, of New Hampshire; the Adamses and Gushing, of Massachusetts; Hopkins and Ward, of Rhode Island; Dyer and Sherman, of Connecticut; Duane and Jay, of New York; Livingston and De Hart, of New Jersey; Galloway, Biddle, and Mifflin, of Pennsylvania; Rodney and McKean, of Delaware; Johnson and Goldsborough, of Maryland; Lee, Pendleton, and Henry, of Virginia; Lynch and J. Rutledge, of South Carolina Several members pi'obablj' contributed to frame it. A copy exists in handwriting resembling that of Sullivan, whose name stands at the head. John Adams framed the article relative to the regulation of trade. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 373 The Association was signed on the 20th of October by fifty-two members. Their covenant was in these words: " We do for ourselves, and the inhabitants of the several colonies whom we represent, firmly agree and associate under the sacred ties of virtue, honor, and love of our country." The instrument consisted of fourteen articles, forming rules for the government of the people in relation to the non- importation, non-exportation, and non-consumption of mer- chandise from Great Britain. One article provided that the parties to the Association would neither import nor purchase any slave imported after the first day of December, and would wholly discontinue the slave-trade, and refuse to deal with those concerned in it. Another stipulated not only for non-intercourse with the inhabitants of any colony that did not accede to or that might hereafter violate this Asso- ciation, but for holding them " as unworthy the rights of freemen, and as inimical to the liberties of their country." Another article provides that "a committee be chosen in every county, city, and town, by those who are qualified to vote for the representatives in the legislature, whose business it shall be attentively to observe the conduct of all persons touching this Association ; " and these committees were instructed to publish in the " Gazette " the names of vio- lators of the Association, to the end that they might be " universally condemned as the enemies of American liberty." The committees of correspondence were charged to inspect the entries at the custom-houses. Thus the Association was virtually law, bearing on the individual ; and a penalty was affixed to all violations of it. The Association has been termed a compact formed for the preservation of American rights, — "a league of the continent, which first expressed the sovereign will of a free nation in America," — and the commencement of the Amer- ican Union.^ It was an embodiment of the sentiment of 1 " The signature of the Association by the members of congress may be considered as the commencement of the American Union." — Hildreth, iii. 46. "Among all our original associates in the memorable league of the continent in 37-4 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. union, and of the will of the people on the subject of their commercial relations, — the first enactment, substantially, of a general law by America. For nearly two years the instrument was termed " The Association of the United Colonies." ^ On the 11th of October, Richard Henry Lee, William Livingston, and John Jay were appointed a committee to prepare a memorial to the people of British America, and an address to the people of Great Britain. The address, prepared by Jay, was reported on the 18th of October, when it was debated by paragraphs, amended, and recommitted, and three days later (October 21) was approved. The British people are addressed as " Friends and Fellow-Subjects." The object of the address was to show wherein this "unhappy country was not only oppressed, but abused and misrepresented," to present the American view of the relations between the people of the colonies and of England, and to show the necessity of a strict execution of the measures recommended by the congress, in order to secure " the invaluable rights and liberties derived from the laws and constitution of their country." The address has this remark : " You have been told that we are seditious, impatient of government, and desirous of independency. Be assured that these are not facts, but calumnies. Permit us to be as free as yourselves, and we shall ever esteem a union with you to be our greatest glory and greatest happi- ness." It closed by expressing the hope that evil coun- sels might be rejected, and thereby might be restored " that 1774, which first expressed the sovereign will of a free nation in America, he [ ^^ ash- ington] was the only one remaining in the general government." — President John Adams, answer to the Senate, Dec. 22, 1799. The articles of association, with the signatures, were printed on a broadside by Edes and Gill, of Boston, who say, "We are induced to publish thus early, purely to ease the impatience if our readers." It is in the Boston papers of Nov. 7, 1774. 1 "June 7, 1775. Resolved, that Thursday, the 20th of July, be observed throughout the twelve united colonies." — Journals, i. 67. Nov. 8, 1775. Congress instructed a committee to endeavor to engage "the inhabitants of the colony of Canada to accede to the Association of the Uuited Colo- nies." —Ibid., i. 224. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 375 harmony, friendship, and fraternal affection, between all the inhabitants of His Majesty's kingdoms and territories, so ardently wished for by every true and honest American." The memorial to the people of the colonics, prepared by Richard Henry Lee, was reported on the 19th of October, and approved two days later (October 21). It was the object of this paper to show that the Declaration of Rights was based on the solid foundation of wisdom and justice ; for, it was remarked, from counsels thus tempered arose the surest hopes of Divine favor, the firmest encouragement to the parties engaged, and the strongest recommendation of their cause to mankind. Congress faithfully advised their constituents that the aspect of ministerial schemes rendered it prudent that they should extend their views to mournful events, and be in all respects prepared for every contin- gency ; and they say in closing, " Above all things we ear- nestly entreat you, with devotion of spirit, penitence of heart, and amendment of life, to humble yourselves, and implore the power of Almighty God ; and we humbly beseech his Divine Goodness to take you into his gracious protection." On the 21st of October, Thomas Gushing, Richard Henry Lee, and John Dickinson were appointed a committee to prepare an address to the people of Quebec, and a letter to the unrepresented colonies of St. John's, Nova Scotia, Geor- gia, and East and West Florida. The letter briefly com- mended to these colonies the measures agreed on, and urged their adoption " with all the earnestness that a well-directed zeal for American liberty can prompt." The address to Quebec, drawn up by Dickinson, was reported on the 24th, recommitted, and on the 26th again reported, when, after de- bate by paragraphs, it was adopted. It was quite elaborate, and handled the questions of civil and religious liberty with a masterly hand. Congress informed the people of Quebec that " the injuries of Boston had roused and associated every col- ony from Nova Scotia to Georgia," and that their " province 376 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. was the only link wanting to complete the bright and strong chain of union." In reference to the objection that might arise from joining Catholic and Protestant States, the congress remarked, " that the transcendent nature of freedom elevated those who unite in her defence above all such low-minded infirmities." Quebec was invited to send delegates to the nest congress, and thus put its fate, " not on the small influ- ence of their single province, but on the consolidated power of North America." On the first day of October, Richard Henry Lee, John Adams, Thomas Johnson, Patrick Henry, and Mr. Rutledge were appointed a committee to prepare a loyal petition to the king, and were unanimously instructed to request, duti- fully, his attention to American grievances, entreat his inter- position for their removal, and thereby restore the harmony " so necessary to the happiness of the British Empire, and so ardently desired by all America." Two days after, the coriimittee were further instructed to assure His Majesty that the colonies would make provision to carry on the government, and to grant supplies in case of war ; and a third instruction the day following directed them to add the assurance, that, " in case the colonies should be restored to the state they were in at the close of the war," the jeal- ousies created by late Acts of parliament would be removed, and commerce again restored. The committee did not report until the 21st of October. The draft, prepared by Henry, was not satisfactory ; Dickinson was added to the committee, and the subject was recommitted. A second draft, by the latter, was reported on the 24th, debated the next day by paragraphs, amended, and ordered to be engrossed. The petition purports to be in behalf of " the inhabitants of these colonies," enumerates the grievances composing a " destructive system of colony administration," attributes it to dangerous and designing men, and avers that the senti- ments expressed are " extorted from hearts that much more wilhngly would bleed in His Majesty's service." It claims THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 377 to be addressed to a sovereign who glories in the name of Briton, the loving father of a whole people, who, though dwelling in various countries, are connected by the same bonds of law, loyalty, faith, and blood. It declared that this people did not wish for a diminution of the prerogative or solicit the grant of any new right, and would always endeavor to maintain their connection with Great Britain : but they claimed the right to enjoy in peace, safety, and liberty the inheritance left by the forefathers. Two copies of this petition werp. signed by all the members, and were oraered to be sent to the colonial agents in London.^ Congress passed a warm and grateful vote of thanks to the noble advocates of civil and religious liberty, in and out of parliament, who had generously defended the cause of America ; fixed upon the 10th of May following for another congress, unless meantime there should be a redress of grievances ; and invited all the colonies in North America to send deputies to it. It dissolved on the 26th of October. Its measures were received by the two political parties into which the people were divided in a spirit corresponding to their principles and aims. The Whigs welcomed them with joy and exultation. " Last week," runs a newspaper editorial, " the grand Continental Congress ended ; they having, in a manner highly honorable to themselves and constituents, and serviceable to their coun- try, finished the important business on which they were ap- pointed, and met to deliberate and determine for a great and increasing nation. The world has hardly ever seen any assembly that had matters of greater consequence before them, that were chosen in a more honorable manner, were 1 Henn^ Stevens, in his " Bibliotheca Historica," p. 87, 1870, states that he has one of these petitions, containing the signatures of fifty of the delegates, which was carefully preserved by Franklin. One copj' was presented to the king, and is in the State Paper Office. No copy was retained by congress. In .Januarj', 1775, a pam- phlet was printed in London, it is believed by Franklin, containing the proceedings of congress, the title-page of which says: "To which is added (being now first printed by authority) an authentic copy of the Petition to the King." 378 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. better qualified for the high trust reposed in them, executed it in a more faithful, judicious, and effectual manner, or were more free and unanimous in their conclusions, than this. Their proceedings are all drawn with a masterly hand ; the expediency of every adopted measure is clearly pointed out ; and the whole plan is so well calculated, so tempered with good^iess and wisdom, with mildness and resolution, so guarded by prudence and supported by reason, that in all probability it can hardly fail of the desired effect." ^ Thanks to the congress re-echoed from the generous breasts of grateful thousands. Eighteen Hundred and Seventy-Four, it was said, would be a year of triumphant jubilee, when medals, pictures, fragments of writings, would revive the memory of these proceedings, and when, if any adventi- tious circumstances could give precedency, it would be to inherit the blood or even to possess the name of a member of the glorious assembly .^ ' niustrious Congress ! May each name Be crownfed with immortal fame ! " The Tories denounced the men and the measures of the congress in bitter and unmeasured terms. They charac- terized it as composed of the bankrupt and the rich, of churchmen and dissenters, of the knavish and the honest, chosen by the zealots of every district.^ It was a treasonable purpose, projected by Eastern republicans. It was filled with factions. . An oily demagogue, Samuel Adams, — who ate little and slept little, thought much and was indefatigable, — and the haughty sultans of the South, juggled the whole con- clave. These persons, from the time of the Stamp Act, de- signed to throw off all dependence on Great Britain, and meant, by every fiction, falsehood, and fraud, to delude the 1 This is taken from the "Boston Evening Post" of November 14, and was copied from a New- York newspaper. 2 This is from a piece originally printed in the "South-Carolina Gazette," and copied into the " Essex Gazette " of Dec. 27, 1774. 8 George Chalmers, in MS. Letter addressed to Lord Mansfield. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 379 people. Thejwere secret and hypocritical, and left no fraud unessayed to conceal their intentions.^ The measures sup- ported the allegation that the Whigs aimed at reljellion. The proof was absolutely positive in the approval of the Suf- folk resolves, and in the pledge to support by force the inhabitants of Massachusetts in refusing obedience to the Regulating Acts. In pointing to these facts, they asked, " What think ye of the congress now?" and they reasoned, "It is barely possible that the stars in their courses may fight in favor of the colonies, that an earthquake may swallow up the king's army in Boston, and that every ship of war and every transport ordered from England to America may be blasted with lightning or overwhelmed in the ocean. But if there should be no miraculous interposition of Heaven to defeat the natural power of the mother country, should we go on to enrage it, it must at last fall upon us with an irresistible impetuosity." ^ These citations will serve to show the flood of contempo- rary eulogy and denunciation poured out on this congress. Its action was remarkably faithful to the republican ideas universally accepted by the country. The concession of com- mercial monopoly to England and the non-importation policy have elicited adverse criticism. In considering these meas- ures, however, the two cardinal objects of union among the colonies and reconciliation with the mother country ought to be borne in mind. The concession of the regulation of trade, entirely indefensible on principle, evinced at least a desixe for conciliation. The same remark is applicable to the non-importation agreement. Moreover, it was a fore- gone conclusion. It was simultaneously suggested at the South and the North before the congress was called ; it was recommended in public meetings and the newspapers ; it was approved by the friends of the cause abroad as sure 1 Galloway, in his Historical Reflections, 1780. 2 " What Think Ye of the Congress NowV " A pamphlet printed in New York in 1775, by Riviugton. 380 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. to succeed ; and was the measure, of all others, for which the public mind was ready. This weapon, even weakly- handled, had caused the partial repeal of the Townshend Acts. By using it effectively the patriots hoped to obtain a change of administration and a redress of grievances. The warning by congress to prepare for mournful events shows that they considered a resort to force not impossible. Still their hope was strong that harmony might be restored ; that the non-importation of British goods would create such an interest in favor of America as to cause a change. It is otherwise impossible to account for the non-importation agreement. Had war been deemed inevitable, had the aim been independence, every principle of sound policy would have demanded that importation should be encour- aged, and the largest possible stock of supplies for an army obtained.^ In fact, this was a self-denying ordinance. Every refusal of the American to import was at the cost of his personal comfort, every refusal to export was a waste of his resources for the support of his family .^ It was a peaceable method of redress, and its adoption evinced the repugnance to war entertained by the wise and good men who gave character to this remarkable assembly. The measures, as a whole, fully met the expectations of the popular party. They comprised all that a noble patriotism could devise to persuade the men in power that war to enforce their purposes would be unjustifiable. This was all that human wisdom coidd do. Hence, when the passions of the time had passed away, the eulogy of the congress be- came so general as to warrant the remark that no public body ever gained so full and unanimous a recognition of its wisdom and integrity.^ The modern judgment coincides with the contemporary eulogy. The papers of this congress, explaining its measures and vindicating the American cause, have been uniformly praised 1 Marshall's Life of Washington, i. 184. 2 Bancroft, vii. 151. 3 ibid., vii. 190. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 381 for their soundness, dignity, strength, and purity of style. They drew from Lord Chatham the tribute delivered in the House of Lords, in which he said : " When your lordships look at the papers, when you consider their decency, firm- ness, and wisdom, you cannot but respect their cause and wish to make it your own. For myself, I must declare and avow, that, in all my reading and observation, — and it has been my favorite study : I have read Thucydides, and have studied and admired the master states of the world, — that for solidity of reasoning, force of sagacity, and wisdom of conclu- sion, under such a complication of circumstances, no nation or body of men can stand in preference to the general con- gress at Philadelphia." Daniel Webster advised young men who desired to breathe in the spirit of their Revolu- tionary ancestors, who desired that every pulsation of their hearts and every aspiration of their ambition should be American, to master the contents of these immortal papers, and become imbued with their sentiments.^ A British writer, in an elaborate survey of the nations, pronounces these papers '• as just as any that were ever written by the pen of man."^ This is their enduring quality, — their justice. They, in the spirit of American manhood, demanded the right, while calmly avowing the determination not to submit to wrong. The action of the congress in relation to Massachusetts — its approval of the Suffolk resolves, its pledge to support the inhabitants, if they were obliged to resist by force the execution of the Regulating Act, its recommendation that contributions should be continued for the relief of the suf- ferers by the Port Act — was in harmony with the sentiments of the patriots in all quarters, as conveyed in every news- paper that came by the post to Philadelphia. The noble 1 Address before the New- York Historical Society, p. 43. 2 Essay on National Character, in two volumes, by Richard Chenevix, London, 1832, i. 354. At the close of a long chapter on "The causes that develop patriotism among the nations" (vol. ii. 527), Chenevix says: "Next to the English in this noble feeling stand their descendants in the United States of America. The senti- ment which guided their Revolution was British. It was proud; it was virtuous." 382 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. flow of donations into Boston lasted ten months. They were raised in the municipalities, and forwarded by persons selected to speak in their name, generally committees chosen by the qualified voters ; and during these ten months they were accompanied by letters from these committees, ad- dressed to the patriots of Boston, more precious than the gifts themselves. These letters were answered by a com- mittee, called the Donation Committee, chosen by the quali- fied voters of Boston. This correspondence is voluminous. A very few of the letters appeared at the tinie in the news- papers, most of them remaining for nearly a century in manuscript. They were consequently independent expres- sions of sentiment, one locality not knowing what another locality had written. A few sentences will show the temper and tone of the whole. ^ The New-Hampshire patriots wrote : " We look on the cause in which you are engaged as a common cause, and that we and our posterity are equally interested with you in the event." ^ "We heartily sympathize with you, and earnestly pray that as your day is your strength may be ; that you may be undaunted, faithful, and wise, and by your steady, undis- guised conduct put to silence those who wait for your halt- ing."^ a ^i^at you herewith receive comes not from the opulent, but mostly from the industrious yeomanry. This is considered by us not as a gift or an act of charity, but of justice, — as a small part of what we are in duty bound to communicate to those truly noble and patriotic advocates 1 Among the archives of the Massachusetts Historical Society are two Letter- Boolis, one containing copies of letters addressed to the committee appointed by the town of Boston to receive and distribute the donations contributed for the sufferers by the Port Act ; and the other containing the replies to these letters. This corre- spondence was printed in the fourth volume of the Fourth Series of the Collections of this society, 1858, with notes prepared by the author of this volume. The cor- respondence occupies 278 pages. The citations in the text, with a few exceptions, are taken from this volume. A few of the letters were printed in the newspapers at the time, but nearly the whole remained in manuscript until their publication by the JIassachusetts Historical Society. ■2 Collections Massachusetts Historical Society, 4th Series, iv. 76. 3 Ibid , 200. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 383 of American freedom who are bravely standing in the gap between ns and slavery, defending the common interests of a whole continent, and gloriously struggling for the cause of liberty. Upon you the eyes of all America are fixed : we can with truth assure you we are engaged to a man in your defence. We are ready to communicate of our substance largely as your necessities may require ; and with our estates to give our lives, and mingle our blood with yours in the common sacrifice to liberty. Since we have no asylum on earth to which we may fly, before we will sul)mit to wear the chains of slavery a profligate and arbitrary ministry are pre- paring for us, we are determined upon an emigration through the gate of death, in hope of inheriting the fair land of prom- ise, and participating with our forefathers in the glorious liberty of the sons of God." ^ The donation committee re- plied: "We cannot but look on it as from Divine influence that the hearts and hands of our brethren are so opened and so itnited in assisting this distressed town ; and we hope and believe there are many thanksgivings going up to Him who is the author of all good to his creatures, and hope you will be rewarded in temporal and spiritual blessings." ^ The Connecticut patriots wrote : " Our hearts are deeply impressed with the feelings of humanity towards our near and dear brethren of Boston." ^ " A claim to divest us of prop- erty, liberty, and life, set up and asserted many years ago, and now attempted by the grossest violation of royal faith in tearing up by the roots the ancient charter of your province, by all the evils of Pandora's box let loose in the new form of government imposed upon you, have roused our zeal, and determined us to unite with our brethren through the conti- nent in a manly struggle for our liberties and rights, which must never be parted with. This [the contents of a bill of lading] we consider the first payment of a large debt we owe 1 Collections Massachusetts Historical Society, 4th Series, iv. 146. 2 Ibid., 202. Among the names of the signers of the letter for this colony were John Sullivan and Josiah Bartlett. 8 Ibid., 50. THE EISE OP THE EEPUBLIC. you, and we shall be ready to repeat it from time to time, as long as your necessity and our ability shall continue." ^ " We had a meeting of delegates from the committees of corres- pondence in the several towns in the counties of New London and Windham. The greatest harmony and unanimity of sentiment appeared in all our debates and proceedings. The cheek of every member glowed with resentment and martial fire. Most assuredly rely upon it that the people in all this part of the country are to a man resolutely deter- mined to yield you all the assistance in our power, and are willing to sacrifice all that is dear and valuable to us rather than suffer the patriotic inhabitants of the town of Boston to be overwhelmed by the adversaries of American liberty." ^ " Our town meeting instructed our representative to raise an army in this colony of five or six thousand men immediately, and to be kept as an army of observation ; and we had not one dissenting voice to the contrary." ^ " Oh ! may Almighty God still rouse, and further unite the people of America, as one man, to a sense of their liberties, and [to resolve] never [to] give them up as long as sun, moon, and stars shall en- dure ; and never submit to be slaves, but be willing to sacri- fice life and all things to the defence and preservation of them." * The donation committee replied : " Your elegant and benevolent favor yielded us that support and consolation, amid our distresses, which the generous sympathy of assured friends can never fail to inspire.^ There was a time when some good men among us were insensible of their danger, and seemed to prefer obscurity to action ; but the late ma- noeuvres of tyranny have roused them from their lethargy, and they now pant for the field in which their country is to be decided. Nothing has so dampened the spirits of those who aspire to be our masters as the accounts we are daily receiv- ing of the glorious spirit that inspires the different parts of 1 Collections Massachusetts Historical Society, 4th Series, iv. 115. 2 Ibid., 73. 3 Ibid., 252. * Ibid., 151. 6 HoUister's Historj'' of Connecticut, ii. 156. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 385 the continent. Some have believed, or pretended to believe, that, if the faction in Boston were quelled, the provinces would acquiesce in whatever changes administration were pleased to make in the charter and constitution of the Massa- chusetts Bay, But now they see that a firm bond is formed in America, which the most powerful monarch on earth will not easily break. You will be pleased to accept our most hearty wishes for a continuance of your friendship ; and gratitude and justice oblige us to tell you that the colony of Connecti- cut have behaved to us like brothers, and signalized them- selves in the cause of American liberty in such a manner as will redound to their honor so long as the sun and moon endure." ^ The Rhode-Island patriots wrote : " We sincerely condole the distresses of your town and province, and at the same time highly applaud your firmness and prudence. We look on your troubles as our own, and shall not fail to exert ourselves for your future support, in case you are not soon relieved; being fully convinced that at all events you must stand out against the present arbitrary and cruel proceed- ings, or all North America must inevitably fall a sacrifice to the rnost oppressive and brutal tyranny that ever disgraced the most savage nation upon the face of the earth." ^ "You may depend that all due care will be taken in this town to afford you that relief your circumstances may require and our abilities will afford, to enable you to hold out in so just a cause against the combination of all wicked and mischievous beings, from the highest source of evil down to Lord North." ^ The donation committee replied: " We trust our cause which indeed is a common cause and of the greatest importance to America, is a righteous cause, and that God will maintain it."* "The kindness and generosity that are raised in the breasts of our friends, not only in your town and colony, 1 Massachusetts Historical Collections, 4th Series, iv. 59. Among the names of the signers were Israel Putnam and William Williams. 2 Ibid., 158. 3 Ibid., 102. 4 Ibid., 193. 25 886 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. but in all the neighboring governments, surely can be im- puted to none but the kind hand of Providence." ^ The New-York patriots wrote : " We want language to express our abhorrence of this additional act [the Port Act] of tyranny to America: we clearly see that she is to be attacked and enslaved by distressing and subduing you."^ The donation committee replied : " Assure our benefactors, tlie citizens of New York, of the warmest gratitude for such generous donations ; while we acknowledge the superin- tendency of Divine Providence, we feel our obligations to sister colonies: by their liberality they have greatly chagrined the common enemies of America, who flattered themselves with hopes that before this day they should starve us into a compliance with the insolent demands of despotic power ; but the people, relieved by your charitable donations, bear the indignity with becoming patience and fortitude."^ The New- Jersey patriots wrote : " Suffering in a glorious and common cause, sympathy and resentment, with peculiar energy, fill the breasts of your anxious countrymen. The King of kings and Ruler of princes seems in a remarkable manner to be inspiring these colonies with a spirit of union to confound the councils of your unrighteous oppressors, and with a spirit of humanity and benevolence towards an innocent and oppressed people." ■^ " We rely under God upon the firmness and resolution of your people, and earnestly hope they will never think of receding from the glorious ground they stand upon, while the blood of freedom runs in their veins, and while a supply can be found from the other parts of America for their needy inhabitants." ^ The donation committee replied : " As we are not iasensible of the noble exertions and generous donations of our brethren of the Jerseys and throughout the colonies, we patiently bear the burdens Providence has been pleased first to lay on us, not 1 Massachusetts Historical Collections, 4th Series, iv. 159. 2 ibid., 162. 3 Ibid., 165. John Jay was connected with this action. 4 Ibid., 20. s Ibid., 110. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 387 doubting but that all America will with one heart oppose every unconstitutional Act of parliament that shall any way infringe on our charters and the rights which, as men, God and Nature have given us."^ The patriots of Pennsylvania wrote: " Tenderly feeling for the inexpressibly distressed situation of your town, we wish you a happy and speedy issue from the exertions of tyranny to the full enjoyment of peace, liberty, and security." ^ The Boston committee replied : " Through God's goodness, the hearts of our brethren have been opened for our relief. They have enaliled us to bear up under oppression, to the aston- ishment of our enemies ; and we trust we shall be enabled still to remain firm, and never desert the glorious cause of our country."^ The patriots of Delaware wrote: "You maybe assured that it is from a people who sincerely sympathize with you in 3^our distresses and are anxious for your relief" ;'^ and they resolved that it was " the indispensable duty of all the colo- nies to join for a removal of grievances, and for re-estab- lishing the rights of all America on a solid and permanent foundation."^ The donation committee replied: "It seems somewhat difficult for us to determine whether the oppres- sion and cruelty of the Boston Port Bill, or the Christian sympathy and liberality of our dear friends and countrymen (particularly in New Castle), is most affecting. You have greatly refreshed our spirits, and strengthened our hands ; and we hope we shall not do any thing that shall incur a forfeiture of the love, confidence, and affection of our brethren in New Castle and elsewhere." ^ The patriots of Maryland wrote : " Could we remain a moment indifferent to your sufferings, the result of your noble and virtuous struggles in defence of American liberties, 1 Massachusetts Historical Collections, 4th Series, iv. 111. 2 Ibid., 150. 3 Ibid., 157. 4 Ibid., 232. 6 ibid., 32. 6 Ibid., 34. Caesar Rodney, Thomas McKean, and George Read are among the signers of the letters from Delaware. 388 THE KISE OP THE REPUBLIC. we should unworthily share in those blessings which (under God) we owe in great measure to your perseverance and zeal in support of our common rights, that they have not ere now been wrested from us by the rapacious hand of power." ^ " That Heaven may grant you perseverance, and endow you with a prudent and becoming fortitude, upon this unhappy, alarming, and very interesting contest between Britain and her colonies, is the ardent hope and desire of, gentlemen, your sympathizing friends and fellow-subjects." ^ The dona- tion committee replied: "Nothing gives us a more animat- ing confidence in the happy event of our present struggle for the liberties of America, or offers us greater support under the distress we now feel, than the assurances we receive from our brethren of their readiness to join with us in every salutary measure for preserving the rights of the colonies, and of their tender sympathy for us under our sufferings." ^ The Virginia patriots wrote: " We wish you perseverance, moderation, firmness, and success in this grand contest, which we view as our own in every respect. Contributions for your relief are raising throughout this dominion, and will, we hope, be looked upon as a small proof how much the good people of this colony are attached to the cause of Boston and American liberty."* "The universal opinion entertained here of the renl wisdom and firmness with which your unjustly oppressed town has defended the common rights of British America, as well as its own, cannot fail to continue it the assistance and support of this place ; and we doubt not but the same just sense of the sufferings, wisdom, and spirit of Boston will secure it the imited friendship and support of all North America." ^ " We assure you that the Virginians are warmly disposed to assist their suffering 1 Life and Times of Warren, 318. 2 Massachusetts Historical Collections, 4th Sfees, iv. 79. 8 Life and Times of Warren, 318. Charles Carroll, William Paca, and Thomas Chase were on the committee in Maryland. 4 ]\Iassachusetts Historical Society Collections, 4th Series, iv. 160. 6 Ibid., 238. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION, 389 brethren, and hope for their steady and prudent perseverance in the common cause of our country." ^ "In that tract of Virginia called the Northern Neck, they have lately raised one thousand volunteers, as fine fellows and as good woods- men as any on our continent, who have put themselves under the command of Colonel George Washington, a brave and experienced officer, who, it is said, has undertaken the com- mand of them, and they are soon to march for your place." ^ The donation committee replied : " Accept our grateful acknowledgments for the very generous assistance for the inhabitants of Boston."^ "We have repeatedly had abun- dant evidence of the firmness of our brethren of Virginia in the American cause, and have reason to confide in them, that they will struggle hard for the prize now contending for." ^ " Encouraged by these liberal donations, the inhabitants en- dure their sufferings with patience. As men, they feel tlie indignities offered to them ; as citizens, they suppress their just resentment : but I trust in God that this much injured colony, when urged to it by extreme necessity, will exert itself at the utmost hazard in the defence of our common rights ; while they deprecate that necessity, they are active in preparing for it."^ "Virginia made an early stand, by their ever memorable resolves of 1765, against the efforts of a corrupt administration to enslave America, and has ever distinguished herself by her exertions in support of our common rights. The sister colonies struggled separately ; but the minister himself has at length united them, and they have lately uttered language that will be heard. It is the fate of this town to drink deep of the cup of ministerial vengeance ; but while America bears them witness that they suffer in her cause, they glory in their suffering." ^ The patriots of North Carolina wrote : " A patriotic spirit 1 Massachusetts Historical Collections, 4th Series, iv. 83. 2 Ibid., 187. 3 Ibid., 183. 4 Ibid., 188. 5 Ibid., 211. 6 Ibid., 185. Among the signers to the letters from Virginia were Archibald Carey and John Augustine Washington. The last reply cited was signc d b}- Samuel Adams. 390 THE EISE OP THE REPUBLIC. possesses every bosom, which all ranks of persons seem emulous to express by actions as well as by words. There is apparent in almost every individual a proper sense of the injury done to the colonies in the tendency of those oppres- sive Acts of parliament, and a determined spirit of opposi- tion and resentment worthy of a human bosom in the great cause of liberty. The enclosed resolves speak the sentiments of the inhabitants of Cape Fear, and, we are well assured, of this province in general." ^ " They have hopes, that, when the united determinations of the congress reach the royal ear, they will have redress from the cruel, unjust, and oppressive Acts of the British parliament." ^ The Boston committee replied : " We thank you for the resolves of your provincial meeting of deputies. We esteem them as manly, spirited, and noble, — worthy of our patriotic brethren of North Caro- lina. God grant that our endeavors to restore and preserve the rights of our dear America may be attended with his favor and blessing ! " ^ The patriots of South Carolina said : " Be comforted, ye oppressed Bostonians ! and exult, ye Northern votaries of liberty ! that the sacred rays of freedom, which used to beam from you on us, are now reverberated with double efhcacy Ijack upon yourselves, from your weaker sister, Carolina, who stands foremost in her resolution to sacrifice her all in your defence."* The patriots of Georgia wrote : " Many among us sincerely espouse the great cause contended for by you, and ardently wish that the noble stand you have made in defence of those rights to which as men and as British subjects we are enti- tled may be crowned with, success. The manly conduct of the brave people of Boston and of Massachusetts Bay, to preserve their liberty, deserves not only the applause and thanks of all America, but also the imitation of all man kind." 5 1 Massachusetts Historical Society Collections, 4th Series, iv. 23. 2 Ibid., 85. 3 Ibid., 88. « ibid., 179. 5 Ibid., 274. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 391 This record forms a rare chapter of genuine history. It was written when the people who were making this history were inspired by the consciousness of being engaged in defending a just cause. A liigh authority remarks, that "' never did a more sincere and perfect conviction that every principle of right was arranged with them animate the human bosom, than was now felt by the great body of Americans ; " ^ and another, that " the animation of the times raised the actors in these scenes above themselves, and excited them to deeds of self-denial which the interested prudence of calmer seasons can scarcely credit." ^ They were uniting in the bonds of law, and the record is as a window admitting a view of their inner life, — revealing their thouglit, their hope, their faith, their passion, their love; showing how they felt as countrymen, and what they regarded as their country. Nothing could be more generous than the expressions of admiration, or more tender than the offerings of sympathy, or more free from calculation than the enthusiasm for principle, or more solemn than the pledge of fortune and life, or more reverent than the trust in Providence. The noble record portrays the brotherhood that constituted the real union of the colonies. It admits posterity into the heart of the Revolution, It is a Christian prologue grandly spoken on the entrance of the United Colonies into the family of nations. The public eye was now more than ever fixed on Massa- chusetts. A community of nearly four hundred thousand persons, by the nullification of the Acts altering its govern- ment, were without courts of law, or other than municipal authority. The pressure became strong to proceed as an independent people and form a new 'government. The great majority, however, wisely determined to act in accord- ance with the advice of the general congress. This body counselled the inhabitants to keep on the defensive, to resist 1 Marshall's Life of Washington, ii. 184. 2 Kamsay's History of the American Revolution, i. 146. 392 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. with arms only when arms should be used to execute the new Acts. They stopped in civil affairs where this advice, enforced by letters in the same tone, implied that they ought to stop. Immediately on receiving the resolve of congress of the 8th of October, pledging the continent to support the people of Massachusetts in such resistance, they commenced the preparation of arming, in the conviction that resistance " was the Christian and social duty of each individual." Governor Gage issued a precept for the choice of repre- sentatives to the General Court, and the towns elected them ; but before the time for their meeting the Governor prorogued them. They met, however, at Salem, where they were sum- moned to meet, and resolved themselves into a provincial congress, chose John Hancock President, and Benjamin Lincoln Secretary, and then adjourned to Concord. The decisive business of this body may be said to have com- menced with the creation (October 27) of " The Committee of Safety." On the next day this committee were directed "to take care of and lodge in some safe place hi the country warlike stores." The congress dissolved on the 10th of December. A second congress, chosen by those who elected the representatives, met at Cambridge on the 1st of Feb- ruary ; and this body was in existence until the spring. These congresses chose a committee of supplies, provided for the organization of the militia, one quarter of whom were to meet at a moment's warning, and appointed general officers to command the militia. The committee of safety were empowered to summon this force to the field whenever General Gage should attempt to execute the Regulating Acts. This committee, on which were Hancock, Warren, and Samuel Adams, was virtually a directory appointed to see to the defence of the Commonwealth. Such was the local public authority recognized in this crisis. In obedience to its call, the towns, during the autumn and winter of 1774 and 1775, were fairly alive with military THE EEGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 303 preparations. In many of them the minute-men signed an agreement pledging themselves to take the field at a minute's warning. On the days of drill the citizen soldiers some- times went from the parade-ground to the church, where they listened to exhortation and prayer. The scene engrossed all minds, moved all hearts ; ordinary business gave way to the demands of the hour. The newspapers are laden with political articles relating to the issue. One of the ablest of the Tory party, Daniel Leonard, defended that side of the question, under the signature of " Massachusettensis," and was answered by John Adams, under the signature of " Novanglus;" and these uncommonly able productions pre- sent accurate views of the argument as the Revolution reached the stage of physical force. In some instances the cause was dishonored by personal violence, but in the main was kept remarkably true to social order. " You," say the provincial congress, " are placed by Providence in the post of honor, because it is the post of danger. And while struggling for the noblest objects, — the liberties of your country, the happiness of posterity, and the rights of human nature, — the eyes not only of North America and the whole British Empire, but of all Europe, are upon you. Let us be, therefore, altogether solicitous that no disorderly behavior, nothing unbecoming our characters as Americans, as citi- zens and Christians, be justly chargeable to us."^ It was said, during the session of the general congress, ^ that there was a wide difference in spirit between New England and the other colonies.^ The letters, however, 1 The Address of the Provincial Congress, Dec. 10, 1774, to the Freeholders and other Inhabitants of Massachusetts, in the newspapers. 2 The " Alassachusetts Gazette " of Oct. 24, 1774, has an elaborate paper, " From the 'New-York Gazette ' of October 10, to the Inhabitants of North America," signed "A New-York Freeholder," which has the following: — " There is a wide difference between the state of New England and that of the other colonies : the same spirit by no means seems to actuate th6ir conduct. In the colonies south of New England, there is no training up to military discipline, nor mustering forces with the avowed design to resist the king's troops; there is no attempt by the populace to buy up arms or ammunition; no violence or persecution is offered to olHcers of government, or to such as do not choose to join in popular tumults; few or 394 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. flowing into Boston manifested that one feeling animated them all, — that they were substantially members of one body, and that with the one that was suffering all suffered. The warning of the congress to be prepared for mournful events, the increase from time to time of the army under General Gage, and the determination to coerce Massachu- setts into subjection to arbitrary power, produced a profound impression ; and the colonies south of New England began to arm. It was announced in the public prints that Virginia was organizing her militia. Washington was now prompt to volunteer as a soldier. His name went through the country as the chairman of the meeting held in his county (Feb. 2, 1775) to enroll the militia and levy a tax to pay for their service.^ Maryland and Pennsylvania also were preparing for self-defence. Indeed, there was in the ranks of the popular party the same determination. The scene was delineated by General Charles Lee, then recently from England. " I have now run through the whole of the colo- nies from North to South. I have conversed with every order of men, from the first-estated gentleman to the poorest planters, and cannot express my astonishment at the unani- mous, ardent spirit reigning through the whole. They are determined to sacrifice every thing — their property, their wives, childreA, and blood — rather than cede a tittle of what they conceive to be their rights. The tyranny over no pulpits resound or are In a foam with politics. You may travel from the southern limit of Connecticut, as far as Florida, without meeting with any of these untoward symptoms, which are certainly to be found in New England. The other colonies pro- ceed no further than to assert with proper firmness and spirit what they conceive to be their rights." 1 The "Essex Gazette" of March 7, 1775, has the resolves of the county of Fairfax, Va., " Col. George Washington " in the chair, voting a tax for the purchase of arms, &c., and the enrolment of the inhabitants trom sixteen to sixty years of age, and the practice of the military exercise, " as recommended by the provincial congress of the Massachusetts Bay oij the 29th of October last." The officers of the Virginia Independent Companies, in April, 1775, countersigned a spirited declaration of a pledge to maintain and defend " the law, the liberty, and rights of this or any sister colony," with the motto, "God save the liberties of America." — Kives's Life of Madison, i. 92. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 395 Boston, indeed, seems to be resented by the other colonies in a greater degree than by the Bostonians themselves." In the midst of these scenes the popular party ratified the Association, provided the machinery for its execution, and gave it the force of law. In some cases, as in Connecticut, the general assembly was the first to approve of the pro- ceedings of congress, and directed the towns to observe its recommendations. In other cases, as in Virginia, the free- holders met in the counties, voted that the Association should be their sole rule of conduct, pledged themselves, " by the sacred ties of honor, virtue, and love of country," to execute it, and thanked the delegates for their faithful- ness, — thus acting directly under the advice of congress. All but two of the colonies ratified the Association: New York, in whose assembly a motion of approval was voted down ; and Georgia, in which the patriots were not strong enough to carry it in the commons. The approval by the municipalities, in meetings of the qualified voters, called in the usual form, was very general. One meeting voted that it expected to see every city, town, and county accept the Association ; another expressed satisfaction that every town, city, and county throughout America had accepted it, — and this included the municipalities in Georgia and New York. But the partial ratification of these two .colonies was not allowed to pass in silence. The general committee of South Carolina formally presented Georgia as inimical to the liberty of America ; and when its patriots pleaded that St. John's Parish and others had accepted the Association, the general committee would only refer the matter to the con- gress. The Virginia convention instructed its committee of correspondence to ascertain authentically whether the New-York assembly "had deserted the union," and report at the next convention. The Tories prepared a counter Association, designed to defeat the Association of the gen- eral congress ; but the project was soon abandoned. The spirit exhibited in the municipalities was the same, whether 896 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. they had grown up under charter, proprietary, or royal forms of government, and whether the individual or denominational sympathies were Congregational, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, or Quaker: underlying all were Christian brotherhood, sym- pathy in fundamental political ideas, and enthusiasm for the rights of human nature. These sentiments could not be bound by provincial lines. They expressed the yearning for American unity, — and this for the sake of principles as wide in their application as the common humanity.^ 1 In New Hampshire, a convention of a liundred and forty-four deputies from the towns met at Exeter, January 25, 1775, and heartily approved of "the" proceed- ings of the late grand continental congress." In a spirited address they recom- mended the inhabitants " strict!}^ to adhere to the Association." In Massachusetts, the provincial congress, December 5, in an elaborate resolve, approved the proceedings of the general congress, on the report of a committee, ordered to be attested by the secretary and sent to all the towns and districts. The report and resolve are in the "Massachusetts Gazette," December 16. In some of the counties the inhabitants signed a covenant to execute the Association. In Connecticut, the delegates reported to the assembly the proceedings of the congress, which were unanimously approved. The assembly sent orders to the towns for the strict execution of the Association. — Massachusetts Gazette, November 14. Ilollister (ii. 159) savs nearly all the towns complied with the order. In Rhode Island, a special meeting of the assembly was called to receive the report of the delegates. The proceedings of congress were approved December 8. The vote is in the " Massachusetts Gazette," December 22. In New Jersey, Elizabeth Town, December 1, and Newark, December 7, unani- mously approved the Association; Woodbridge, January 7, 1775, instructed its committee on the subject "in every respect [to] follow the directions of the Associa- tion as much as if it was a law of this province; " Middlesex County, January 16, pledged itself to enforce it "by the ties of virtue, honor, and the love of our country." On the 24:th of February the delegates from this colony to the congress laid before the assembly the proceedings of that body, when the house unanimously voted to approve of them, "such as are of the people called Quakers excepting only to such parts' as may have a tendency to force." In Pennsylvania, the assembly, December 10, approved the proceedings, and most seriously recommended the good people to observe them inviolate. (Force's Archives, i. 1023.) The City and Liberties, November 7, had chosen by ballot an inspection committee, who m a letter say they met with no impediments in executing the decrees of congress. (Force, i. 1243.) Reading chose its committee December 5; Chester County, December 20. A convention of delegates, among them Dickinson, Read, Wilson, Clj'mer, and Mifflin, met January 23, 1775, in Philadelphia, "most heartily approved of the measures of congress, and resolved to faithfully endeavor to caiTv into execution the Association ; if this did not effect a redress of grievances, but, instead, if force should be used to effect submission, then to rpsist such force, and at every hazard to defend the rights and liberties of America." — Pennsylvania Evening Post, Jan. 31, 1775. In Delaware, the counties first (New Castle, December 5), and then, March 15, THE REGULATINCJ ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 397 The simple narrative of the progress of events shows how a noble spirit spread from breast to breast, and from colony to colony, beyond the power of human calculation. The 1775, the assembly, voted to approve " of the proceedings of the late congress." The , votes are in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post " of March 21, 1775. In Maryland, a provincial meeting of deputies fi-om the several counties met at Annapolis, November 21, unanimously approved the proceedings, and voted that every person ought inviolably to adhere to the Association. The counties had begun to choose committees (Anne Arundel, November 9; Baltimor.-, November 12; Cal- vert, November 16; Frederick, November 18) "to carry into execution the Associa- tion agreed on by the American Continental Congress." A convention representing all the counties met by adjournment, December 8, and in addition pledged Maryland to support i\Iassachusetts in resisting by force. See on this a letter of John Adams, Jan. 3, 1775 (Works, ix. 353). In Virginia, the freeholders began in November to meet in their several counties, agreeing to stand by the Association, and appointing committees to carry it out; and these meetings continued through the winter. Northampton County, after choosing "a committee to see the Association faithfully executed," as "directed by the late continental congress," voted that it " should be considered as the sole rule of the committee's conduct," &c. The freeholders of James City met November 25, when the Association was read and cordially acceded to, and the meeting bound themselves "by the sacred ties of virtue" inviolably to keep the same, chose a committee to secure a due observance of it, and voted that the resolutions of the general congress " ought to be considered by the committee and the whole countrv as the sole rule of their conduct in all matters respecting their present political en- gagements." The address of Fincastle County, January 20, to the Virginia dele- gates, is a noble production, vowing allegiance to the lawful sovereign, but faith''i'.l "to the liberty with which God, nature, and the rights of humanity had vested them." On the 20th of March, "a convention of delegates for the counties and corporations" of the colony was held at Richmond, when one hundred and eighteen members were present, comprising nearly all the popular leaders of the colony, by whom it was voted unanimously "that this convention doth entirely and cordially approve of the proceedings of the American Continental Congress." The proceedings were widely circulated in the newspapers. North Carolina, in a provincial convention of August, 1774, agreed, in advance, to abide by the decisions of the General Congress and to cut off dealings with nil towns or individuals who refused or neglected to dn this. Its assembly, April 7, 1775, adopted a resolve highly approving of the proceedings of the Continental Con- gress, pledging adherence to its resolutions and efforts to have every individual in the colony observe them. For this act Governor Martin, April 8, dissolved the assembly. A provincial convention of delegates had been convened at the same time and place. Colonel Casewell presented a copy of the Association of October 20, which was read, when the convention passed a resolve (April 5) 'highly approv- ing of it, and recommended their constituents to adhere firmly to the same." Then all the members but one subscribed their names to this resolve. The proceedings of both bodies are in Force's Archives, 4th Series, ii. 266. In South Carolina, a provincial congress, consisting of " deputies from everv parish and district" in the colony, with Charles Pinckney as the president, assem- bled on the 7th of January, and voted " that this congress do approve the American 898 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. time having come for the people to pass from the control of the mother country, the Governor of the Universe, b}^ a secret influence on their minds, disposed them to union,^ and to give to this union the strength of law. Hence the Twelve United Colonies. Hence, while the old forms of government remained, the Association virtually constituted a new and independent authority, ^ — a government through congresses and committees. Hence the manifestation, in the pledge to support Massachusetts, of a readiness to use the united strength for the common defence. Hence the stern deter- mination that the recommendations of the general congress Association," and that committees should be appointed in each parish to carry it out. A letter dated Charleston, March 1, says: "In this <;olony the Association takes place as efTectually as law itself." The "Boston Gazette" of March 27 has the proceedings of "the General Committee," declaring non-intercourse with Geor- gia, and pronouncing its people inimical to the liberties of their country, because it had not acceded to "the continental Association." The proceedings were sent to the Northern colonies. The patriots of Georgia had a hard struggle. The provincial congress assembled at Savannah on the 18th of Jtlarch, and forty-five of the deputies entered into an association in behalf of the American cause; but the colony, as a unit, did not adopt the continental Association until a later period. In Xew York, though the assembly refused to approve the proceedings of con- gress, yet the committee of correspondence (November 7) and many of the counties chose inspection committees. The committee of correspondence of Jamaica, L.I., in a letter addressed to tlie New-York delegates, expressed the hope that the measures of congress might be adopted "by every city, town, and county in the British colonies." The "Edinburgh Advertiser" of October 11, 1774, says: — "Private letters inform us that the late measures of government towards the Massachusetts province have united all America beyond what could have been imag- ined; and it is thought that whatever measures are recommended by the congress, they will be almost unanimously pursued in such a manner as will surprise the world, reflect lasting lionor on America, and prove that its inhabitants are worthy of their claim of being descended from British ancestors." The " Pennsj'lvania Evening Post " or January 24, 1775, has the following: — " All the provincial assemblies that have met since the Continental Congress have fully approved and adopted the measures agreed upon and recommended by that august body, and have taken all proper measures to carry the whole into full execu- tion. . . . Where the assemblies have not yet met, they are all with vigor and una- nimity exerting themselves In the same important and glorious cause, so that it is thought there never was framed a set of human laws that were more strictly and religiously observed than these will be." 1 Ramsay's History of American Revolution, i. 145. * Ibid., 144. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 399 sliould have the force of laws. This result was profounder than any ever attained by the States of Greece. The Ara- phictyons, often called to view in those times in the public prints, never reached the dignity of a federal council habitu- ally directing and hal)itually obeyed. "Had there existed," Grote forcibly remarks, " any such commune concilium of tolerable wisdom and patriotism, and had the tendencies of the Hellenic mind been capable of adapting themselves to it, the whole course of later Grecian history would prob- ably have been altered ; the Macedonian kings would have r(!mained only as respectable neighbors, borrowing civiliza- tion from Greece, and expending their military energies upon Thracians and Illyrians, while united Hellas might even have maintained her own territory against the conquer- ing legions of Rome."^ The Americans, through the mod- ern instrumentality of representation, inaugurated a general council ; and they now began to look to it as their guide, and to consider it a necessity that its decisions concerning the common welfare should be respected as laws. It is scarcely possible to overrate the importance of this result. It is safe to say that it influenced the whole future course of American history. Indeed, union had not only passed from sentiment into law, but had become a power. The Loyalists could, not see this. The chain that appeared to the Whigs bright and golden, appeared to the Tories but a rope of sand. Their type may be studied in Galloway, their keenest champion. He could see only the old diversity ruling as the law of society, and held that it was impossible for the colonies to unite "either to avoid any general mischief or to promote any general good." Having probably in mind the common language of the public prints, most likely the every-day talk, as to the vital need of an American Constitution, he said in congress : " I know of no American Constitution : a 1 Grote's History of Greece, ii. 35. 400 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Virginia Constitution we have, a Pennsylvania Constitution we have ; we are totally independent of each other." ^ Patrick Henry was a type of the American who stood on the top of the mountain, and whose vision was illumined by the glory of a common country. When the old diver- sity was adjusting itself to the new union, he exclaimed in congress: " The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsyl- vanians, New-Yorkers, and New-Englanders are no more. I am not a Virginian, but an American." ^ Glorious man ! His instincts were ever true to his country, if his judgment — as in opposing the adoption of the Federal Constitution — was sometimes wrong. It is but just to add, that no one of the great men of those times was more opposed to the fatal unity that runs into centralization. The popular leaders estimated justly the importance of the Union, and of the stand which the Union had taken. Samuel Adams wished the ministers would consider the very momentous truth, that a regular attempt to subdue a colony " would open a quarrel which would never be closed until that what [independence] some of them affect to apprehend, and we sincerely deprecate, would take effect." ^ Richard Stockton, who signed the Declaration, wrote : " There is not the least doubt that, if the British government should attempt to carry its Acts into execution by force, but that the associ- ated colonies would repel force by force." ^ John Dickinson wrote : " The first act of violence on the part of the admin- istration in America will put its whole continent in arms from Nova Scotia to Georgia." Josiah Quincy, Jr., in London, 1 John Adams's Works, ii. 390. 2 John Adams's Works, ii. 367. Mr. Innis, in the Virginia convention of 1787, remarked of the feeling in 1775: "It was not a Virginian, Carolinian, nr Pennsyl- vanian, but the glorious name of an American that extended from one end ot the continent to the other that was then beloved and confided in." — Elliot's Debates, iii. 633, ed. 1866. 8 Letter to Arthur Lee, Feb. 14, 1775. A part of this letter is in Wells's " Life of Adams," ii. 274. 4 An Expedient for the Settlement of American Disputes, Dec. 12, 1774. His- torical Magazine, November, 1868, p. 228. THE REGULATING ACT AND ASSOCIATION. 401 wrote : " I look to my countrymen with the feelings of one who verily believes they must yet seal their faith and constancy to their liberties with blood." The prophecies of the future of America by Herbert, Cowley, and Berkeley, cited in this narrative, were circulated in the newspapers : which contained one by the Earl of Orrery, — the old thought that " the ball of empire might roll westward and stop in America; a world unknown when Rome was in its meridian splendor, — a world that might save the tears of some future Alexander." ^ An American also cast the horoscope : " All power of government is derived from God through the instrumentality of kings or the people. Has the impartial Governor of the Univer.se communicated his attributes of power, wisdom, justice, and mercy to kings only, and denied the least portion of tliem to every other class of mankind ? . . . The American con- gress derives all its power, wisdom, and justice, not from scrawls of parchment signed by kings, but from the people. A more august and equitable legislative body never existed in any quarter of the globe. It is founded on the principles of the most perfect liberty. A freeman, in honoring and obeying the congress, honors and obeys himself. . . .The least deviation from the resolves of the congress will be treason. It will be treason against the present inhabitants of the colonies, against the millions of unborn generations who are to exist hereafter in America, against the only liberty and happiness which remain to mankind. , , . We are now laying the foundation of an American constitution. Let us therefore hold up every thing we do to the eye of posterity. They will probably measure their liberties and happiness by the most careless of our footsteps. Let no unhallowed hand touch the precious seed of liberty. . . . Wise and good men in Britain have lifted up the curtain of futurity in America. Let us not be afraid to look through it. Ye intuitive spirits who see througli the connection of cause and effect, ye holy 1 Essex Gazette, March 1, 1774. 26 402 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. spirits who have been accustomed to trace the operations of Divine Providence, ye decisive spirits who resolve and exe- cute at once, — ye know what I mean. ' In oeternitatem pingo,^ said a poet. Let us neither think, write, speak, nor act, without keeping our eyes fixed upon the period which shall dissolve our connection with Great Britain. The deliverance of the present ministry may precipitate it, but the ordinary course of human things must accomplish it. Britain may relax from her present arbitrary measures ; but political necessity, not justice, must hereafter be the measure of her actions. Freemen cannot bear a middle state between free- dom and slavery. It is essential to the happiness of liberty that it should be secure and perpetual." ^ 1 Essex Gazette, Dec. 20, 1774. A piece entitled Political Observ^ations, vnih- out order, addressed to the people of America, copied from the " Pennsylvania Packet." John Adams, in a letter to a member of congress in Philadelphia, dated Dec. 12, 1774 (Works, ix. 349), comments on this piece. The "Massachusetts Gazette" of Jan. 28, 1773, has the following prediction, copied from a London paper : — "The celebrated Choiseiil, late prime minister of France, being a few weeks ago asked why he ceded so amazing a tract of country as all Canada to Great Britain by the last peace, replied: 'I ceded it on purpose to destroy the English nation. They were fond of American dominion, and I resolved they should have enough; for I have given them not only a constant drain for their most valuable inhabitants, but a formidable rival, which in less than a century will find full employment for the coun- cils of that turbulent people.' Choiseul's words are already prophetic. Our own ministers begin to discover that America is a very problematic benefit to England, and Lord Hillsborough actually resigned because we were opening on the Ohio fresh graves for the inhabitants of the kingdom." CHAPTER X. When the Popular Leaders recognized the Fact of Revolu- tion AND BEGAN TO AIM AT INDEPENDENCE, AND HOW THEY MET THE Question of Sovereignty, 1775. — January to November. As the United Colonies were organizing to support Massa- chusetts in resisting the acts altering its charter, the admin- istration was preparing to carry them into effect, when a detachment of the king's troops, sent out from Boston into the country to destroy a collection of military stores, fired on the provincial militia at Lexington and Concord, killing some and wounding others. This occurrence brought on hostilities, changing the situation from commercial war to armed resistance ; whereupon the king, by proclamation, declared divers subjects in the colonies in a state of rebel- lion. The popular leaders then recognized the fact of revolution, resolved to aim at independence, and began to deal with the question of sovereignty by advising the colo- nies to abrogate authority under the crown, and form local governments. Tlie United Colonies contained a population, according to the estimate of Congress, of three millions ■; other estimates placed it lower.^ Pioneers had penetrated the forests west of the Alleghanies, and begun settlements that grew into great States ; but the body of the people lived on the belt of land stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Gulf of Mexico. The relative increase in twenty years, or since 1754, was as 1 The estimates of the population of the colonies in 1774 differ widclv. One estimate is 2,141,307; another, 2,590,000; another, 2,810,000; that of Congress, 404 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. follows : New England had risen from 436,000 to 690,000 ; the Middle Colonies from 528,000 to 870,000 ; the Southern from 461,000 to 1,030,000. This people — a new race, moulding their institutions under Christian influences ^ — were fixed in the traits that characterize Americans. Without the infection of wild political or social theories, they were animated by a love of liberty and a spirit of personal independence unknown to the great body of the people of Europe, while at the same time recognizing the law which united the individual to the family and to the society in which he is appointed to live, to the municipality and the commonwealth which gave him protection, and to a great nation which met and satisfied the natural sentiment of country .^ The colonies had reached their development as thirteen distinct communities, each of which, though claiming a com- mon property in certain fundamental ideas, had modes of life, likes and dislikes, aims and ambitions, and an internal polity 3,026,678. Tucker, in his " History of the United States " (i. 96), makes the follow- ing apportionment, which indicates the relative importance of the colonies : — Massachusetts 360,000 New Hampshire 80,000 Connecticut 200.000 Rhode Island 50,000 New York 180,000 New Jersey 130,000 Pennsylvania 300,000 Delaware 40,000 Maryland 220,000 Virginia 560,000 North Carolina 260.000 South Carolina 180,000 Georgia 30,000 2,590,000 1 See above, p. 107. 2 Winterbottom, in his "View of the United States " (i. 409, Am. ed. 1796), says: " The political creed of an American colonist was short, but substantial. He believed that God made all mankind originally equal ; that he endowed them with the rights of life, propert}', and as much liberty as was consistent with the rights of others; tliat lie had bestowed on his vast family of the human race the earth for their sup- port; and that all government was a political institution between men naturally equal, not for the aggrandizement of one or a few, but for the general happiness of the whole community." THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 405 in many respects local and peculiar. They had attained the condition, in Milton's words, long wished for and spoken of, but never yet obtained, in which the people had justice in their own hands, and law executed fully and finally in counties and precincts.^ They were not like the United Provinces of Holland, — many sovereignties united in one commonwealth, — but, unlike any previous political organization, peoples consolidated into commonwealths, all having separate gov- ernments with distinct jurisdictions, and all " under one united and intrusted sovereignty,"^ allegiance to which they were proud to acknowledge. They could present in science a Franklin, and in metaphysics an Edwards, — great in these provinces, — but little else of enduring fame in art, philosophy, or literature. They, however, had made a great history. Tliey had taken up the principles of the revolution of 1640, which England had cast down, and showed their working in political institutions, — how they tended to make a people "virtuous, noble, and high-spirited." When called upon to maintain these institutions, they evinced a culture and intelligence that surprised the civilized world. Edmund Burke, in the House of Commons, spoke of them in the following terms : " Nothing in the history of man- kind is like their progress. For my part, I never cast an eye on their flourishing commerce and their cultivated and commodious life, but they seem to me rather ancient nations, grown to perfection through a long series of for- timate events and a train of successful industry accumulating wealth in many centuries, than the colonies of yesterday.'.' ^ These flourishing colonies were in the relation of umon*. This was not a factitious result, but a providential issue, having as its inner springs fidelity to similar political ideas, a feeling of brotherhood, common peril, and a common object. This union — before the Constitution, before the Confedera- 1 A Free Commonwealth, Prose Works, Bohn's ed., ii. 135. 2 Milton, Ibid., ii. 136. 3 Speech on American Taxation, April 19, 1774. Parliamentary Historj', xvii. 1236. 406 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. tion, before the Declaration — was familiar in the speech of Americans, and instinctively clung to as their rock of sal- vation. ^ The spirit animating the people appeared in the interchange of sentiment cited in the preceding chapter, in which the terms "country," "countrymen," "common- wealth," "nation," and "America" were used to denote a certain collective life. These terms were the signs of a fur- ther development, — namely, of the sentiment of nation- ality. The people of these dependent colonies in union were advancing to the condition of people of independent States in union ; and they were growing into the relations with each other wliich such a development required ; or were determining what powers they would exercise through the existing unit of the colony by its local government, and what through a general government for the new unit of the United Colonies or States. When the public mind, attained convictions on vital points, it became the province of states- men to devise a written Constitution to meet the require- ments of the unwritten law. The early formative pro- cess was rather institutional than conventional, — rather the instinctive judgment than the formal compact. The grand result was the oneness, sovereignty, and nationality of the people, within prescribed limits, proudly upheld by all parties in the revolutionary age.^ The people waited, in keen anxiety, to learn the effect produced in England by the fact of union, and the measures of the congress. In their action, they pleaded with the sovereign, not that they had attained majority, and therefore were entitled to separation and to national power, but that 1 "If I am called an enthusiast for it, I cannot help thinking that this union among the colonies and warmth of affection can be attributed to nothing less than the agency of the Supreme Being." — Samuel Adams, March 12, 1775- James Bowdoin, Sept. 6, 1774, wrote to Franklin of the penal measures: " The spirit those Acts have raised throughout the colonies is surprising. It was not propagated from colony to colony, but burst forth in all of them spontaneously as soon as the Acts were known; and there is reason to hope that it will be productive of a union that will work out the salvation of the whole." — Sparks's Franklin, viii. 127. 2 Writings of James Madison, iv. 330. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 407 the proud development portrayed by Burke was the fruit of the exercise of English liberties according to American interpretation and application, and that their progress in the future depended on their power of resistance to the ideas and practices which a Tory administration was trying to force upon them at the point of the bayonet. These Tory ideas were impersonated in the king. He continued, to a great degree, to shape the measures of the Cabinet. However his recently published correspondence may affect our estimate of his culture and judgment, it cannot but increase respect for his honesty and fidelity to his convictions of duty. He now wrote : " I entirely place my security in the protection of the Divine Disposer of all things, and shall never look to the right or left, but steadily pursue the track which my conscience dictates to be the right one." ^ These words are expressive of the intrepid will, and corresponding action is all that can be expected of a statesman. But in this case the action marks the absence of clear vision. It shows that the terrible errors of the Tory school had, with the king, the force of truth. The America mirrored in his mind was a picture of faction, hypocrisy, ingratitude, and treason ; and its great characters, who were adding lustre to human nature, were but actors playing their parts. He looked upon New England as in a state of rebellion, the colonies as ripe for mischief, and believed that blows must decide whether they were subject to England or were independent.^ Nor had he the smallest doubt that blows, well laid on, would produce submission. He asked simply for a united England. His faith in the nation, in this state, was well- nigh perfect. He thought it needed only to lift a vigorous liand, and opposition would crumble. He even expected to see a resolve of Parliament " put an end to congresses.' Henceforth he approved of every jneasure for distressing America, as the means of bringing about a return to duty.^ 1 Donne's Correspondence of George III., i. 229. 2 Ibid., i. 215. 8 Ibid., 274 408 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. His one steadfast purpose was subjection. If for nothing more than the monarchical principle, and as its represent- ative, he felt moved to inflict a deadly blow on the repub- licanism which he had been brought to believe had long been pressing on " To tread down fair respect of sovereignty." In a letter of the 18th of November the king refers to important despatches just received from America.^ They probably gave the information that Congress had approved the resistance offered by the inhabitants of Massachusetts to the Regulating Act, — a fact which he heard with profound emotion. In his speech at the opening of Parliament (November 29), he said " that a most daring spirit of resistance and disobedience to the law still unhappily pre- vailed in the province of the Massachusetts Bay, and had, in divers parts of it, broke forth in fresh violences of a very criminal nature, " and that " these proceedings had been countenanced and encouraged " in the other colonies. He assured the two Houses that they might depend on his firm and steadfast resolution to withstand every attempt to weaken or impair the supreme authority of the imperial legislature over all the dominions of the crown.^ Both Houses, in addresses of thanks carried by great majorities, echoed the language from the throne, and pledged themselves to co- operate in the measures that might be necessary to maintain the dignity, safety, and welfare of the British Empire. On the 22d of December, Parliament adjourned to the 19th of January. The proceedings of Congress now appeared in the public prints of England and Scotland, eliciting warm tributes.^ 1 Donne supposes that these despatches announced that congress had passed the votes of October 8, pledging support to Massachusetts ; but the series of votes to which he refers were printed in the "Edinburgh Advertiser" of Dec. 23, 1774. The despatches probably related to the votes of September approving the resistance of Massachusetts. 2 Parliamentary History, xviii. 33. 8 The "Pennsylvania Evening Post," Jan. 28, 1775, has a piece from the " Lon- THE king's, proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 409 The petition to the king was received by Franklin, who called a meeting of the colonial agents to consult on the manner of presenting it. Three declined to act, and hence the decision rested with Franklin, Bollan, and Lee. They, after con- sulting their best friends, gave the petition to Lord Dart- mouth, who soon (December 24) informed the agents "that His Majesty had been pleased to receive the petition very graciously, and to command him to tell them it contained matters of such importance, that, as soon as Parliament met, he should lay it before them." Soon after (Jan. 4, 1775), Lord Dartmouth, in a circular to the governors of the colo- nies, instructed them to use their endeavors to prevent the appointment of deputies within their several governments to the congress appointed for May ; and he reiterated the orders to General Gage, to use the force at his command to execute the Acts altering the Massachusetts charter. On the 12th of January, the Privy Council decided that the proceed- ings of the congress did not supply a basis for reconcilia- tion ; and it was determined that the force of the nation should be used to protect the loyal in the colonies, and that all others should, by proclamation, be declared traitors. On the reassembling of Parliament (Jan. 19, 1775), the petition to the king, with a mass of papers relating to America, was laid before it. Great debates followed. Lord Chatham submitted a motion for the withdrawal of the troops from Boston, and Burke delivered his immortal speech in favor of conciliation. But the argument in support of a reversal of the policy of the administration fell powerless on don Public Ledger," which says: " I look on the dignity of the American Congress as equal to any assembl}' on earth, and their deliberations and resolutions more impor- tant in their nature and consequences than any which were ever before agitated in council." The "Edinburgh Advertiser" of December 23 issued a supplement containing a continuation of the proceedings of Congress, with the following observa- tion : "The letters of the American Congress, written with so much spirit, sound reason, and true knowledge of the Constitution, have given more real uneasiness thaa all the other proceedings of the Congress." The " Boston Evening Post" of March 27, 1775, has a letter, dated London, which saj's of the proceedings of Congress: "It is impossible that any production could have done more honor to America, or gained more universal approbation." 410. THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. an intense nationality stirred by wounded pride. The inter- esting history of that period has been often related. The results may be briefly stated. The two Houses agreed (Feb- ruary 7) on a joint address ; and, to give it the more impos- ing form, both Houses waited on the king in a body and presented it. They declared that they never could so far desert the trust imposed on them as to relinquish any part of the sovereign authority over all His Majesty's domin- ions; and assured the king, in the most solemn manner, that it was their fixed resolution, at the hazard of their lives and properties, to stand by him. The king returned his thanks for this affectionate address, and, ten days later, called for an augmentation both of the land and naval forces. " I have not the smallest doubt," he wrote (February 15), "when once vigorous measures appear to be the only means left of bringing the Americans to a due submission to the mother country, that the colonies will submit." Thus neither the fact of union nor the proceedings of the con- gress, from which so much was expected, had any political significance with the administration. They did not occasion even a pause in the execution of the coercive measures. The main effect of the action of the Americans seemed to be astonishment that they should conceive it possible to resist successfully so great a power as England. The culmination of the whole series of measures was to be in the proposed proclamation. This, however, for the present, was with- held. These proceedings, soon followed by an Act slmtting the ports of New England, gratified the national pride. They were, popular. In a short time, loyal addresses from cities and corporations, from churchmen and dissenters, from tlie great seats of learning, from all parts of the kingdom — indorsed the coercive policy, and showed a public sentiment strongly in sympathy with the king.^ Thus England had a 1 In Somerville's "Life and Times" (1861), p. 187, it is said: "There does not perhaps occur in the annals of Britain a single instance of a war more popular at its THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 411 strong government, or, more precisely, a strong adminis- tration. But, as remarked by one of her most distinguished modern statesmen, an administration which overleaps wis- dom and violates justice is one of the worst evils that can befall a country : ^ especially if it disregards the Constitution and still retains its hold on public sentiment : for then the bonds of constitutional morality are loosened, error has pos- session of the popular mind, and the waters of political life are poisoned at the fountain. The popular feeling was represented in Parliament, when Lord North introduced (February 20) his plan of concilia- tion. He proposed to tender to each colony, as a separate community, freedom from taxation, except such duties as might be necessary for the regulation of the commerce of the whole empire, on its making provision satisfactory to His Majesty in Parliament for the general defence and for the support of the civil government. The high prerogative party pronounced this a concession ; their dissatisfaction was general and violent ; and the storm, for two hours, was so furious that many thought the minister was about to be left in a minority. The king's friends, however, rallied to his support ; and he carried the resolution embodying his plan by the usual majority. The king now wrote, that, as this measure put an end to congresses, it certainly would have a good effect in England, and he hoped it would have a good effect also in at least some of the colonies.^ With keener insight, Colonel Barr^ said that it was intended to divide the Americans, — to dissolve that generous union in which they stood as one man in defence of their rights commencement than that which fatally took place between Great Britain and her colonies," — and (p. 100) "it was prompted and carried on by the desire of the British nation at large." 1 " Thus the nation had the satisfaction of tinding that it had a strong govern- ment. But a strong government which overleaps wisdom and violates justice is one of the worst evils that can befall a country." — Lord John Russell's Life ind Times of Charles James Fox, i. 72. 2 Donne's Correspondence of George III., i. 31. 412 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. and liberties ; ^ and Lord Cbatham wrote : "It is a mere verbiage, a most puerile mockery. Everything but justice will prove vain to men like the Americans, with principles of right in their minds and hearts, and with arms in their hands to assert those principles." ^ As the sword suspended by a thread was about to fall, Lord North caused it to be made known to Franklin that the administration, for the sake of peace, might repeal the tax on tea and the Port Act, but " that the Massachusetts Acts, being real amendments of their Constitution, must, for that reason, be continued, as well as to be a standing example of the power of Parliament." This involved the subjection of the free municipalities of America — indeed, its whole internal polity — to the caprice of majorities in a legislative body three thousand miles away, in which they were not represented, and consequently the establishment of centralization in its worst form. Opposed to this assumption was the principle of local self-government, obscurely realized in the German Fatherland, the basis of the polity of Saxon England, recognized as a fundamental in Magna Charta, guarantied in America by royal char- ters, here, by usage, become written and unwritten law, and hence inherent and inviolable. Franklin comprehended the greatness of the issue : his simple method of diplomacy was frankness and truth ; and he answered the proposal of Lord North by saying that the claim of Parliament to alter the colonial charters and laws rendered all the constitutions micertain, — and that as by the claim to tax they deprived Americans of their property, so by the claim of altering charters and laws at will they deprived them of all privileges and rights whatever, except what they should hold at the pleasure of Parliament.^ He accordingly, by his friend 1- Parliamentary History, xviii. 334. 2 Chatham's Correspondence, iv. 403. 8 Sparks's Works of Franklin, v. 22, where is an account of the negotiations in London just before Franklin left England, dated March 22, 1775. Ramsay's History of the Revolution, i. 180. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 413 Lord Howe, sent the following declaration, to be delivered to Lord Noi'th : " The people of Massachusetts must suffer all the hazards and mischiefs of war, rather thaja admit the alteration of their charter and laws by Parliament. They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." These were the last words which the illustrious American, on leaving Eng- land, addressed to the obsequious instrument of arbitrary power.^ The news of the reception of the petition to the king and of the address of both Houses of Parliament reached America when the popular party was in a state of great excitement. The numerous public meetings were demonstrations that one heart animated and one understanding governed this party. Li Massachusetts, John Adams was urging in the public prints that all men were by nature equal, and that kings had l)ut delegated authority, which the people might resume. ^ A South-Carolina judge, William Henry Drayton, was declar- ing from the bench that he was servant not to the king, but to the Constitution, which he charged juries they were bound to maintain at the hazard of their lives.^ The Assem- blies were approving the measures of the last Congress, and appointing delegates to the second Congress. The colonies were moving so compactly and firmly as to elicit the remark, that, if any should neglect to choose delegates, the effect on it would be ruinous, as all intercourse would immediately 1 Bancroft, vii. 242. The last sentence was much used in the Revolutionary period. It occurs even so early as November, 1755, in an Answer by the Assembly- ot' Pennsylvania to the Governor, and forms the motto of Franklin's "Historical Review of Pennsylvania." printed in 1759, appearing also in the body of the work, — thus: "There is not in any volume, the sacred writings excepted, a passage to be found better worth the veneration of freemen than this: ' Those who would give up essen- tial liberty to purchase a little temporarj- safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.' " These words were sometimes put at the head of the calls of the patriots for public meetings, an instance of which is found in the " Boston Chronicle," Aug. 8, 1768. A portrait of Franklin, in the fifth volume of Almon's "Remembrancer," printed in 1778, has this motto engraved on it. 2 Novanglus, in Essex Gazette, Feb. 21, 1775. 8 Charge in Essex Gazette, Feb. 21, 1775. 414 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC, cease between that colony and the whole continent.^ And when the adlierents of the ministry in England were arriving at the conclusion that "the Americans were a nation of noisy cowards," Joseph Warren uttered the prediction, " America must and will be free. The contest may be severe ; the end will be glorious. We would not boast; but we think, united and prepared as we are, we have no reason to doubt of suc- cess, if we should be compelled to make the last appeal; but we mean not to make that appeal, until we can be justified in doing it in the sight of God and man."'^ This prediction was based on the fact of union. The faith of the patriots in a United America was as strong as that of the king in a United England. The appeal to which these words referred was at hand. The Massachusetts militia, as before related,^ were organized, and the committee of safety were empowered to call them into the field whenever the attempt should be made to exe- cute by force the Regulating Acts ; while General Gage was instructed to disarm the inhabitants. As the news from England became more warlike, the committee of safety authorized the purchase of military stores, a portion of which were carried to Concord, a rural town about eighteen miles from Boston ; and they organized express riders to summon the militia, in case the king's troops should take the field. In this preparatory work Joseph Warren was partic- ularly active. The military stores deposited in Concord General Gage resolved to destroy, and for this purpose planned an expedition which he intended should be a secret one. A detachment left Boston stealthily on the evening of the 18th of April, and continued their march during the night. Warren, however, obtained intelligence of the movement in season to despatch two expresses, by different routes, into the country, with directions to call out the militia. The mes- 1 Letter of Joseph Warren, April 3, 1775. 2 Ibid. « See page 392. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION, 415 sengers mounted horses and spurred on from town to town on their eventful errand. " The fate of a nation was riding that night." At sunrise on the nineteenth of April, the detachment reached Lexington, a small town eleven miles from Boston, on the road to Concord. The militia of this place had promptly answered the summons to parade, and were fired upon by the troops, who killed some and wounded others. The detachment then moved on, reached Concord, about six miles from Lexington, at seven o'clock, and halted in the centre of the town, whence parties were sent in different directions to destroy the military stores. A guard of a hundred men was stationed at the old North Bridge. About ten o'clock, as a body of the militia were approaching this bridge, the guard fired upon them, when more citizens were killed and wounded. No mausoleum ever commanded such honor as Americans attach to the graves of tliese early mar- tyrs to American liberty. This precious blood roused right- eous indignation in the breasts of the yeomanry, who had been flocking in, and stood with their old firelocks in their hands on that village green. They resolved to avenge the death of their brethren. Two hours after the firing at the bridge the king's troops began their march for Boston, when the militia fell upon them in such fiery spirit, and with such deadly effect, that the march was soon turned into a run. The proud veterans were saved from total destruction by a re- inforcement which left Boston in the morning and joined them at Lexington ; and they found security only in the shelter of ships of war at nightfall, when by the light of the flashing musketry they entered Charlestown and rested on Bunker Hill. The news of this scene of blood roused the spirit of the patriots throughout the colonies. John Stark in New Hamp- shire, Israel Putnam in Connecticut, the military oracles of their neighborhoods, leaving unfinished the work on their farms, and mounting their horses to join tlieir brethren in peril, — the committee of Orange County, James Madison 416 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. one of the. number, pronouncing the blow struck in Massa- chusetts an attack on Virginia and every other colony,^ — the patriots of the Carolinas entering into associations pledg- ing their lives and fortunes to defend an injured country ,2 — are illustrations of the general uprising to support at every hazard a common cause. The high resolve of that his- toric hour is embodied in the calm, sorrowful, determined words of Washington, penned in the quiet retreat of Mount Vernon. " Unhappy," he wrote, " is it to reflect that a brother's sword has been sheathed in a brother's breast, and that the once happy and peaceful plains of America are to be either drenched with blood or inhabited by slaves. Sad alternative ! Bat can a virtuous man hesitate in his choice?" — language in which the yearnings of the patriot give affect- ing solemnity to the implied resolve of the soldier.^ The use of force to repel force without a thought of consequences was instinctively and universally justified by tlie popular party, and the preparation for it which foresight had enjoined proved efficient at least for the crisis. The bands appearing on the roads leading to Massachusetts had been organized and delegated by the public authorities to bear the sword 1 The address of the committee, May 9, 1775, was from Madison's pen. His father signs it as chairman. — Rives's Life of JIadison, i. 95. 2 An "Association" was unanimously agreed to in the provincial congress of South Carolina, on the 3d of June, 1775, and signed by all the members. It runs thus: '• The actual commencement of hostilities against this continent by the British troops, on the 19th of April last, and the dread of insurrections . . . are causes suffi- cient to drive an oppressed people to arras. We, the subscribers, inhabitants of South Carolina, holding ourselves bound by that most sacred of all obligations, the duty of good citizens towards an injured country, and thoroughly convinced that under our present distressed circumstances we shall be justified before God nnd man in resisting force by force, do unite ourselves under everv tie of religion and honor, and associate as a band in her defence against every foe; hereby solemnly engaging that, whenever our continental or provincial councils shall deem it necessary, we [•will go forth, and be ready to sacrifice our lives and fortunes to secure her freedom and safety, and hold all those persons inimical to the liberty of the colonies who shall refuse to subscribe this Association." This was printed in the "Massachusetts Spy " of July 12, 1775. The form was used in North Carolina, and is nearly word for word the "celebrated Cumberland Association," dated June 20, 1775, which, Jones says, in his " Defence of North Carolina " (p. 179), was the composition of Robert Rowan. He remarks that these associations prevailed throughout the province. 8 Irving's Life of Washington, i. 439. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 417 for the common defence. They met in the towns around Boston, and here pitched their tents. They placed the British army in a state of siege, and thus rendered it useless for the purposes for which it was sent over. These events created the stage of armed resistance. Thus the ten years of discussion, formation of public opinion, political organi- zation, and military preparation culminated in " a Runnymede in America." In the midst of the impulses and passions incident to an outburst of war, the governors of the colonies received Lord North's plan of conciliation, which the king termed an olive- branch, and the administration commended in a pamphlet it caused to be written and circulated in the colonies. It was ordered to be submitted to the Assemblies. Several were .petitioning tlie king. Connecticut sent a mission to confer with General Gage. The Plan accorded with this separate action, and was designed to tempt local pride and consequence : much was expected from it in England, and especially from the course of New York with regard to it. Governor Penn of Pennsylvania was the first to lay the Plan before an Assembly, giving the assurance in a message (May 2, 1775) that they would be revered to the latest pos- terity, if they should be instrumental in rescuing both coun- tries from the dreadful calamities of civil war. He most earnestly urged separate action. The Assembly was prompt to answer, that they would deem it a dishonorable desertion of sister colonies joined in a union conducted by general councils, to adopt a measure of so extensive a consequence without the consent of those engaged by solemn ties in the same common cause ; and they could form no prospect of any lasting advantages for Pennsylvania but such as must arise from a communication of rights and property with the other colonies.^ The New Jersey Assembly, convened by 1 The " Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 6 has the Governor's Message and the answer. The latter (dated May 4) was "passed without one dissenting voice." It had the following sentence: " Your Honor, from your long residence and conver- 27 / 418 ^ THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Governor Franklin expressly to receive this plan, informed the Governor (May 19) that they had not the least design of deserting the common cause, declined to act separately on it, and declared that they should abide by the united voice of Congress. The Virginia House of Burgesses, in an address (June 12) to Governor Dunmore, — a masterly paper, pre- pared by Jefferson, — remark, that, " as an individual part of the whole empire," they express their sentiments freely against an acceptance of this plan; but that they left the final determination to the General Congress, in the hope that this body would so strongly cement their former union that no partial application would produce the slightest departure from the common cause. ^ The action of other bodies was in a similar tone. The general committee of New York in a circular to the other colonies, say, that the inhabitants had resolved to " stand or fall with the freedom of the conti- nent." 2 The committee of South Carolina depicted the danger of the several provinces entering into separate nego- tiations, and urged the duty of preserving the great conti- nental chain unbroken.^ Subsequently every Assembly refused to treat separately with Great Britain, or otherwise than through the General Congress. In this manner it was irrevocably settled that this body should exercise the sation with us, must be persuaded that the people we represent are as peaceable and obedient to government, as true and faithful to their sovereign, and as aflfectionate* and dutiful to their superior state, as any in the world; and though we are not inattentive to the opinion of posterit}', as it might reflect honor upon our country, yet higher motives have taught us upon all occasions to demonstrate, by every testimony, our devotion to our king and parent state." 1 The "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of June 22, 1775, says: "The printer was favored with the following address this morning by a gentleman from Williamsburg." It is entitled, "To His Excellency, John Earl of Dunmore, His Majesty's Lieutenant, and Governor-General of the Colony and Dominion of Virginia, and Yice-Admiral of the same." It says: "Next to the possession of liberty, my Lord, we should con- sider such a reconciliation as the greatest of all human blessings " 2 The circular, dated May 5, is in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 15. 3 The circular, dated April 27, 1775, is in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 20. The South Carolina Assembly, April 6, 1776, resolved that this colony should not enter into any treaty or correspondence with the court of Great Britain, or with anj' person or persons under that authority, but through the medium of the Contmeutal Congress. — Almon's Remembrancer, iii. 200. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 41 P national function of peace and war; and this carried Avitli it the power to establish prize courts, the cases in which are determined by the laws of nations. This was the beginning' in America of what in matters of international law is termed sovereignty. The members elect to the General Congress were now on their way to Philadelphia, often receiving hearty testimonials of affection and respect from the communities through whicli they passed. On the 10th of May they convened in the building long known as the State House. This was the beginning of the uses and associations which invest this venerable structure with national interest. It is a large, plain building of brick, two stories high. At that time it had a small belfry to contain the bell for the town clock, which still continues an object of curiosity. The provincial assembly held its sessions in one room, the supreme court of judicature in the other. ^ The upper story had a long gallery, used for festivals, and here the members of the last Congress had been entertained. The Congress assembled in the lower room, now Independence Hall, which still retains the style of finish it had then. The walls are graced with rich historic memorials of the days of the Revolution. Nearly all the delegates elect had been members of the last Congress. Among those who appeared for the first time in this body were George Clinton, one of the great characters of New York, subsequently Vice-President, — and Franklin, rich in fame and wisdom, and fresh from the inner circles of British politics. Georgia was at first par- tially and afterwards fully represented. The former presi- dent, Peyton Randolph, was unanimously re-elected, — also the former secretary, Charles Thomson. After providing for an iimtation to the Reverend Jacob Duchd to read prayers, and the appointment of a door-keeper and messenger, Con- gress adjourned until the next day. On the 11th they proceeded to business, when the creden- 1 History of Independence Hall, 52. 420 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. tials were submitted.^ They term the members delegates, or deputies, — or simply 'say that the persons named were chosen to represent the colony, or to attend the session of the Continental Congress. The credentials which state the object of the meeting say, " to obtain redress of American grievances," " to recover and establish American rights and liberties," "to restore harmony between Great Britain and her colonies," and " to advance the best good of the colonies" ; and they confer power to consult and agree upon such measures as seem calculated to bring about these results. The Congress formed a general council, representing majori- ties in thirteen colonies who had agreed to abide by its decisions, and embodied the will of the people. It did not possess the machinery by which to carry its decrees into effect ; and yet so fixed was the determination to have them respected, that ways and means were found through various committees to give its acts the force of law. Hence it was the public authority, or head of a great movement based on the general consent, and as such was recognized and obeyed. 2 The credentials being approved, the doors closed, and the members under the strongest oliligationn of honor enjoined to secrecy, business was formally brought before them in official papers. A letter from the agents in England stated that the petition to the king had been laid before Parlia- ment, " but undistinguished from a variety of papers and letters from America," and, relating the fate of other peti- tions, contained the remark that this mode could afford no reliance.^ John Hancock presented a paper from the Mas- sachusetts congress, dated May 3, 1775, reciting the events 1 The credentials are printed in the Journals of Congress, i. 70-76. 2 Ebenezer Hazard, the editor of the invaluable Collections bearing his name, in a letter to Silas Deane, April 7, 1775, says of the Congress: "Had I the honor of being appointed a member of that truly august assembly (whose memory latest pos- terity will revere as that of the saviour of their country and liberties), I would not give it up for a kingdom " — 2 Col. Conn. Hist. Soc, 213. 3 The letter was dated London, Feb. 5, 1775, and signed by William Bollan, Benjamin Franklin, and Arthur Lee. — Journals, i. 76. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 421 occasioned " by the sanguinary zeal of the ministerial army," the patriots, Washington wrote, could not prevail on them- selves to call this army the king's troops.^ And the paper stating that the emergency precluded the possibility of their waiting for the direction of Congress in their military action, urged that a powerful army on the side of America was the only means left to stem the rapid progress of a tyrannical ministry. In a paper of May 16 this body dwelt more fully on the political situation, declaring " that government in full form ought to be taken up immediately," but, though urged by the most pressing necessity, declining to assume the "reins of civil government without the consent of Con- gress." They stated that they were ready to submit to such general plan as it might direct for all the colonies, or would study to form such a government as would not only promote their advantage, but the union and interest of all America, and that they anxiously waited explicit advice on this sub- ject.^ The city and county of New York, through their delegates, requested (May 15) to be advised how to conduct towards the British troops expected there. The taking of Ticonderoga required a decision relative to the military stores that were captured. The New-Hampshire convention, in a letter of the 23d of May, stated, that, when the alarm sounded that the foe had begun a scene of blood on the lives of their brethren, they generally, listening only to the calls of humanity, ran to give aid with all the speed of common interest and friendship ; that there was not time " to consult America at large," and they voted to raise two thousand men ; that they ardently desired to preserve the connection between Great Britain and the colonies, yet many among them were disposed to conclude that the voice of God and Nature, since the late hostile attempt, was that they were bound to look to their whole political affairs ; that they had " not yet largely and fully consulted with one another on 1 Sparks's Works of Washington, ii. 406. 2 Journals of Congress 422 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. this article," and trusted they should keep self-defence in view until they heard " the united plan of the colonies in the general council, which they prayed and trusted might be under the influence of Heaven." ^ The committee of Meck- lenburg County, North Carolina, in a series of resolves, declared that the address of both Houses of Parliament in February annulled and vacated all civil and military com- missions granted by the crown, provided a set of rules for their county to meet the exigency, by which officers were to exercise their powers by virtue of the choice of the people independently of the crown, and sent the resolves to Con- gress. ^ The Massachusetts papers were referred to a special 1 Letter by Order of the Convention, iu Force's Archives, 4th Series, ii , 696. This noble letter was signed by Matthew Thornton. It contains the earliest sugges- tion oil the subject of independence, by an organized body, that I have met with. It was received and read in Congress June 2, 1775. I have not seen it in the news- papers of the time. - The North-Carolina convention of August, 1774, and the Continental Associa- tion of the succeeding October, advised the choice by the several counties of com- mittees to carry out the plan of the General Congress. Mecklenburg County, with thirty-five other counties of this colony, chose its committee. There are notices in the newspapers of monthly meetings of these committees, at which, it is said, persons not members were present. The committee of Mecklenburg met in Charlotte on the 31st of May, 1775, other persons also being probably present. The committee ex- pressed its sentiments on public afl'airs in a preamble and nineteen resolves, admirably worded, from the pen of Dr. Ephraim Brevard. They afKrmed that the joint address of both Houses of Parliament, in February, declaring the colonies in rebellion, annulled and vacated all offices and suspended the constitution of the colonies; and, for the better preservation I'f order, provided a set of rules to serve for the county until the provincial congress should " regulate the jurisprudence of the province," or until Parliament should resign its arbitrary pretensions, — also for the choice of county officers, to exercise authority by virtue of this choice, and independently of the crown of Great Britain. These resolves were read to the people from the steps of the court-house, and printed in "The Cape Fear Mercury," "The South-Carolina Gazette" of June 13, 1775, and, among Northern jounials, in "The New-York Journal" of June 29, 1775, and four of the resolves, with the preamble, in the "Massachusetts Spy," at Worcester, July 12, 1775. The publication in the "Spy " had the following head: " Charlotte Town, Mecklenburg County, May 31, 1775. This day the committee of this county met and passed the following resolves." On the 20th of June, 1775, Governor Wright, of Georgia, sent the whole series in the " South-Carolina Gazette " to Lord Dartmouth. (Wheeler, North Carolina, ii. 255.) On the 30th of June, 1775, Governor Martin, in a letter to the Earl of Dartmouth, says, he sends him a newspaper containing " the resolves of the committee of Mecklenburg," and states that he was informed that a copy was sent off by expi'ess to the Congress in Phila- THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 423 committee, and the New- York request to the committee of the whole. The Mecklenburg resolves were not formally laid before Congress. delphia as soon as they were " passed in committee." On the 8th of August, 1775, he issued a long and bitter proclamation, recounting the practices of the colony of North Carolina, which he alleged to have been treasonable. This occupies more than one side of the •' Pennsylvania Journal " of Nov. 1, 1775. In it he says, "I have seen a most infamous publication in the 'Cape Fear Mercury,' importing to be resolves of a set of people styling themselves a committee for the county of Mecklenburg, most traitorously declaring the entire dissolution of the laws, government, and Constitution of this country, and setting up a rule." The inference is fair that this was the news- paper which Governor Martin sent to Lord Dartmouth. It will be observed that in all these authorities the word "committee " is used. The first resolve, here copied from the "Massachusetts Spy," is as follows. ''That all commissions, civil and military, heretofore granted by the crown, to be exercised in these colonies, are null and void, and the constitution of each particular colony wholly suspended." The second is: ''That the provincial congress of each province, under the direction of the great Continental Congress, is invested with all the legislative and executive powers within their respective provinces, and that no other legislative or executive power does or can exist at this time in any of these colonies." These resolves are, word for word, like those printed in the "South- Carolina Gazette." This action, though bold in the direction of self-government, was still in the spirit of subordination of the county to the colony, or to the decision of the provincial congress and the Continental Congi'ess, — that is to say, in entire harmony with the revolutionary movement. North Carolina may point to it with pride as evincing the spirit of the people, and even as taking substantially the position that was taken on the 15th of May, 1776, when Congress recommended all the colonies to form local governments. This record, however, found no place in the early histories of the State or of the United States, because their authors did not search the newspapers. The silence of the historians probably induced the actors in the proceeding to think it had been forgotten, and to make the laudable attempt to supply the supposed loss of the record from recollection. This was done in a series drawn up before 1793, which remained twenty-five years in manuscript. At length the "Raleigh Register" of April 30, 1819, printed five resolves, termed " The Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence," bearing the date of May 20, 1775. They contain ideas and matter relative to local affairs to be found in the resolves of May 31, 1775, with a few phrases of the Declaration of Independence of 1776: some accounts say, adopted at a convention of delegates held in Charlotte; other accounts, at a meeting "of perhaps half the men in the county." The largest number named as being present is twenty-nine. The modern history of this proceeding culminated in IS'42, in a memorial addressed to the Assembly of North Carolina, in which it is presented as ''full of moral sublimity, and a source of elevating State pride," that the sons of North Carolina should assemble at Charlotte, and without assurance of support from any quarter should "declare themselves a free and independent people, and of right (lught to be sovereign and self-governing." nVheeler's North Carolina, ii. 2')9.) The five resolves, much altered, were printed in 1829, by INIartin, in his " History of North Carolina," together with an additional resolve. In a North-Carolina publica- tion, in 1853, it was stated, that it was not known where Martin obtained his copy, 424 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. These applications forced on the popular leaders in Con- gress an issue which in their local assemblies thej had endeavored to avoid, — the issue of sovereignty, the influ- ence of which, latent or obvious, direct or indirect, gives to communities their tendencies and their fate.^ Sovereignty is the fountain of power. Its definition by the jurists of the Old World was colored by customs, ideas, and preju- dices which time had rendered venerable. It " had some- times been viewed as a star, wliich eluded our investigation by its immeasurable height ; sometimes it had been consid- ered as a sun, that could not be distinctly seen by reason of its insufferable splendor." ^ It was regarded as some- thing more than human, and held in mysterious and pro- found awe. As such, it had been the dispenser of political riglits, — and especially when a nation, however diversified as to race, was regarded as one community, and was ruled from a single central point. The terms in which Americans throughout the colonial period expressed their loyalty to the king indicated that they shared largely the old feeling as to which was described as "evidently a polished edition" of the copy printed in 1819. (Randall's Life of Jeflferson, iii. 575.) The copy of 1819 was widely circulated. Its genuineness was questioned, and it occasioned a voluminous controversy. The aged patriots, in letters and certificates, supplied recollections of events that occurred when the resolves were passed, which, with the resolves of May 20, were printed by the assembly of North Carolina, in 1831, in a pamphlet. The resolves of May 20, 1775 (the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence), are examined with critical acumen by Hon. Hugh Blair Grigsbj', in his admirable "Discourse of the Virginia Convention of 1776" (1855), and by Dr. Randall, in Iiis thorough "Life of Jefferson," Appendix No. 2, vol. iii. (1858), who present facts and reasonings adverse to their genuineness which seem to be conclusive. I have not met with any contemporary reference, in manu.script or in print, to the conven- tion or the public meeting whicli is said to have passed these resolves. 1 "What is the source of the sovereign power, and what is its limit? Whence does it come, and where does it stop? In the answer to this question is involved the real principle of government; for it is this principle whose influence, direct or indirect, latent or obvious, gives to societies their tendency and their fate " — Guizot, History of Representative Government, 57. 2 Works of James Wilson, i. 25. Wilson was born in Scotland, studied law in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and was a member of the Pennsylvania Convention, a delegate in the Congress of 1775, and subsequently Judge of the United States Supreme Court, and Professor in the University of Pennsylvania. His lectures and speeches are well worthy the study of Americans. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 425 sovereignty. Their training, however, in the municipality and tlie general assembly in the exercise of seU'-guvernuientj and the convictions they had attained as to what should be made fundamentals in a system of public liberty, qualified them for the practical solution of the problem ; and when, forced back on themselves, they were obliged to grapple with it, " to trace the dread and redoubtable sovereign to his ultimate and genuine source, he was found, as he ought to have been found, in the free and independent man," ^ Sovereignty is in the people. In them are " those inherent powers of society, which no climate, no time, no constitution, no contract, can ever destroy or di- minish." Li them, as the supreme power, resides the right of command, or the right to institute organic law, — to establish public authority, and to compel obedience to it. On this foundation rose the American superstructure of government. The architects of this superstructure, however, did not feel themselves called upon to cut loose from the past or to deal with man according to any untried theory of natural rights ; but, regarding him as a political being, they dealt with him as he stood related, by the cumulative law of ages, to the institutions of family and society, and as related to the commonwealth by a polity which he had moulded. They regarded him as thus entitled to a great inheritance of order, but subject to correlative obligations of duty. Hence, instead of yielding to the demands of amiable enthusiasts, or of" confident theorists, or of merci- less iconoclasts, and trying to cast society into a new mould, on the flattering, but deceitful, promise that in the process every wrong should disappear, they dealt with man on the basis of existing facts. They concentrated their efforts to preserve what had been gained, in the faith that time would bring whatever was w^rong in existing law nearer to that justice which is " the only true sovereign and supreme majesty on earth." 1 Works of James Wilson, i. 25. 426 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Thus, throughout their work, the founders of the Repub- lic recognized the fact that the people had not been ruled from a single central point, but were divided into commu- nities, or bodies politic, each of which had exercised a share of political power. Each community occupied a territory of definite boundaries, each had a regular government and a distinct code of laws, each was a unit. In changing the base of tlifi sovereignty, or in effecting a revolution, they used, in each, so far as it was practicable, existing forms of law. Except in Pennsylvania, they did not attempt to change the qualifications of voters until after the Declaration of Independence. Hence the political action which brought about this change was determined by those qualified under the law to vote in elections. They were summoned to act on test questions through the regular forms of proceed- ing in the municipalities, and transmitted their views by representation to the larger bodies, expressing the voice of the unit called the Colony or State. The will of the majority, collected and declared in this manner, was held to be binding as the law, whether it related to the domes- tic concerns of the Colony or State, or to the general wel- fare of the Colonies or States in union, or the nation. This fidelity to a vital principle in republics — submission to the regularly collected will of the majority — may be traced througli all the confusion and turmoil unavoidable in the transition from the old to the new, during which influence had necessarily to supply the place of established public authority. The period of transition was brief in the case of the local governments, which, in each community, were developments gradually adjusted to their circumstances and wants ; but to adjust the powers of a general government, adequate to the needs of a nation composed of independent States, required the experience and deliberations of several years. The basis of both governments was the same, — the people. The qualified voters, it was assumed, expressed the will of the whole people. This wiH was embodied in THE king's PROCLAJVIATION AND REVOLUTION. 427 written constitutions, or organic laws. These were acts by which the sovereignty prescribed the spheres and degrees of the power which officers chosen periodically should exercise in the unit of the State, or of the States in union, or United States, — in other words, the rules that should govern the conduct of the executive, legislative, and judicial agencies in the functions of government. The formative process was termed taking up, ordaining, instituting government. In doing this, the qualified voters were practically the sover- eigns.^ The result which they reached — a republican gov- ernment — was a solution practically of the profound ques- tion of sovereignty ; and the infant nation was saved from being offered up by enthusiasts as a sacrifice on the unsettled shrine of political ideas.^ The case of Massachusetts involved not merely the ques- tion of sovereignty, but that of cooperation also, — whether the Congress should advise its inhabitants "to set up a government in full form," or take a step equivalent to independence, before it could be known whether the other colonies would join in such a measure. It had long been presented in the public prints as the only step that could place American liberty on a permanent foundation ; and the foremost of the popular leaders were convinced, that, in the progress of events, it was inevitable. But the popular party generally, through their various organizations, disclaimed such a purpose, and averred that they aimed only at a redress of grievances. Thus, the Virginia Convention, in dealing with Lord North's plan of conciliation, averred, that, next to the possession of liberty, they would regard reconciliation as 1 The late Josiah Quincy, in relating the circumstance that he and the late Lord l.yndhurst, the son of John Singleton Copley, were born the same year in Boston, said: "It fell to the lot of 3'oung Copley to emigrate to a land the natural growth of which was lords, and so he became a lord : it fell to my lot to be reared in a land the natural growth of which is sovereigns, and so I became a sovereign." 2 Necker, after independence had been won. said to Americans: "Do not ofier up your nation as a sacrifice at the unsettled shrine of political ideas." — Taken from Wilson's speech in Elliot's Debates, ii. 529. 428 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the greatest of all human blessings ; ^ and the IVIassachn- setts Provincial Congress declared that the bloody mark of ministerial vengeance, made on the day of Lexington and Concord, had not detached them from their lawful sover- eign. John Adams had recently, in print, pronounced the assertion that the inhabitants panted after independence '• as great a slander on the province as ever was committed to writing." 2 Nothing was clearer than that the public mind was not ripe for independence, and to take such a step prematurely was to invoke division and ruin. The debates on this case, in the committee of the whole, were long and earnest. Congress were quite unanimous in declin- ing to give such advice as in their judgment involved the point of sovereignty, and would close the door of reconcilia- tion. They decided the case on a consideration of its special circumstances, rather than on general principles. It was judged that the English precedent of the conven- tion that deposed King James would meet it. The charter, given by the king, was held to be in the nature of permanent declaratory law, irrevocable and unalterable ; and hence the two penal Acts of Parliament were judged illegal, and so null and void. As the Governor and Lieutenant-Governor recog- nized these Acts, they, like James II., were considered absent, and their offices vacant. But as the evils of suspended authority were intolerable, the Provincial Congress was advised to write letters calling for an election of representa- tives under the charter, who, in the customary mode, should choose councillors, " to exercise the powers of government until a governor of His Majesty's appointment consent to govern the colony according to its charter." The answer given to New York was in the same spirit of moderation. The inhabitants were advised to remove the 1 Jefferson, in his "Notes on Virginia" (p. 165, ed. 1825), says of Virginia: "It is well known that in July, 1775, a separation from Great Britain and establish- ment of republicaji government had never yet entered into any person's mind." 2 Novanglus, dated March 13, 1775. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 429 warlike stores from the town ; to allow the British troo])s, daily expected, to land, and occupy barracks, so long as they were peaceable ; but to resist the erection of fortifica- tions, and the cutting off the communication between town and country, and to repel force by force. Congress ordered an inventory to be taken of the cannon and stores captured at Ticonderoga, with the view of returning them when it should be consistent with the overruling law of self-preser- vation. The delegates from North Carolina advised the committee of Mecklenburg County to be a little more patient, until Congress should adopt the measure thought to be best.^ Other action of Congress evinced its stern determination. "When its president, Peyton Randolph, returned to Virginia, it unanimously chose (May 24) John Hancock as his suc- cessor ; elevating to the highest post of honor one who was identified with the action of the colony pronounced in rebel- lion by the king. Two days later (May 26), " ardently wishing for a restoration of harmony," it ^^esolved to present " an humble and dutiful petition to His Majesty ; " but at the same time, " for the express purpose of securing and defending these colonies," it further resolved that they " be immediately put into a state of defence." It accord- ingly thereupon assumed the force besieging Boston, and adopted a code of rules for the government of the army of the United Colonies. Now arose the delicate question of the appointment of the commander-in-chief. Successive opportunities had made known the qualities and resources of George Washington. Service in the French war had developed in him singular military ability, in union with marked personal character ; and his merits were discussed not only in America, but in 1 The recollections of Captain James Jack, in 1819, at the age of eighty-eight, who bore the Mecklenburg resolve to Philadelphia, and of Rev. Francis Cummins, a student in Charlotte in 1775, are as applicable to the resolves of March 31, 1775, as to those dated May 20. The fact in the text is from the letter of Cummins. — Pamphlet of the Slate of North Carolina in Force's Archives, 4th Series, ii. 855. 430 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Europe. He was so much of a public man that his move- ments were chronicled in the journals. His political course, during the long controversy with the mother country, had been decisive and manly. His name went through the colonies as a signer of the Virginia non-importation agreement, and as chairman of the county meeting where contributions were made for Boston, where Massachusetts was enjoined to resist the Regulating Acts, and where the militia was organized. Then, without thought of an independent fortune at risk, he gave utterance to the most eloquent speech in the Virginia convention, — that he would raise a company, and march at its head for the relief of Boston. In the first Congress, he ranked foremost among its great men for solid wisdom and sound judgment ; and in the second Congress, being then a colonel of the Virginia militia, and commanding four com- pauies, he appeared in unifoi-m. In this way Providence revealed to America the treasure reposing in her bosom. This simple record will account for the expectation that he would be selected to lead the American armies, seen in the letters of James Warren, and of Elbridge Gerry for himself and Joseph Warren. It is to the honor of John Adams that he expressed the general conviction in the debate on the adoption of the army, when he said : " I had but one gentleman in my mind for that important com- mand, and that was a gentleman from Virginia, who was among us, and very well known to all of us, — a gentle- man whose skill and experience as an officer, whose inde- pendent fortune, great talents, and excellent universal character would command the approbation of all America, and unite the cordial exertions of all the colonies better than any other person in the Union." Thomas Johnson, of Maryland, nominated him commander-in-chief of the armies raised and to be raised for the defence of America, and John Adams seconded the motion. The election (June 15) was by ballot, and it was unanimous. The vote repre- sented the popular feeling and judgment. The great selec- THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 431 tion was accompanied by no competition, and was followed by no envy worth the naming.^ The trust was conferred with the simple charge to see to it " that the liberties of the country receive no detriment." The character thus advanced to the position of the representative man of the cause and the personification of the sentiment of union was the product of the times. It was wholly and grandly American. When Washington left Philadelphia to engage in the work which was to gain for him the appellation of Father of his Country, Thomas Jefferson (June 21) entered Con- gress. Several productions written by him were passed round among the members, as evidence of his talent in the use of the pen. During the preceding year, he published his " Summary of the Rights of British America," in which he held that expatriation was a natural right, in the face of the old law maxim. Once a subject, always a subject ; ^ and he brought the answer of Virginia to Lord North's plan, already referred to, a paper which came up to the ideas of the great men who "were wisely guiding the Revolution. These productions, for soundness of views, felicity of lan- guage, and genuine American sentiment, will bear the test of the severest criticism. Their author was received with 1 Silas Deane, June 16, 1775, wrote that he was "elected to that office by the uuanimous voice of all America." — Connecticut Historical Collections, ii. 264. Washington, in a letter to his wife, on his appointment, said: "It has been a kind of destmy that has thrown me upon this service"; to his brother Augustine: " I have been called upon, by the unanimous voice of the colonies, to take the com- mand of the Continental Army " ; and to the mdependent companies in Virginia, "It was an honor I was solicitous to avoid," but "the partiality of Congress, assisted by a political motive, rendered my reasons unavailing." John Adams, in his "Autobiography" (Works, ii. 415), and his grandson, Hon. Charles Francis Adams, in an interesting paper (Proceedings of Massachusetts Historical Society, 1858-60, p. 68), give the only details of this great measure I have met with. Ram- say (History of the Revolution, i. 216) says: "It was a fortunate circumstance attending his election, that it was accompanied by no competition and followed by no envy. That same general impulse on the public mind which led the colonists to agree in many other particulars pointed to Washington as the most proper person," &c. - The " Edinburgh Advertiser" of Nov. 18 and Dec. 9, 1774, has long extracts from '"The Summary View of the Rights of British America." 432 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. open arms by the members, was at once called upon for important service, and soon took rank among the leaders. Congress aimed to act as dutiful subjects contending for their constitutional rights, — herein representing the great majority of their constituents. While they invoked the blessing of Almighty God on George III., the lawful sover- eign, they reasserted the grounds on which the liberties and immunities of the colonies were based, declaring their cause just and their union perfect. They solemnly averred that the United Colonies, having advanced from commercial op- position to armed resistance to the arbitrary measures of Government, would not lay down their arms until the hos- tilities which had been invoked in support of these measures ceased, the grievances which they had been so long suffering were redressed, and — the new feature — a guaranty was provided for the future. This was the ultimatum. The points in controversy were treated in elaborate pa- pers, prepared with care, and characterized by great ability. In an earnest appeal to the Canadians, it was contended that the issue embraced freedom of conscience, — that the sun did not shine on a single freeman in all their extensive dominions, — that the destiny of the Catholic and Prot- estant colonies were strongly linked together, — and a cor- dial invitation was extended to that people to join the Union. In a declaration of the causes of taking up arms, it was averred that there Avas no wish to dissolve the connection which had so long and happily subsisted between Great Britain and her colonies, but only to invoke reconciliation. In an address to the inhabitants of Great Britain, calling them " friends, countrymen and brethren, fellow-subjects," Congress entreated them to disclaim the acts of injustice of the administration, and affirmed that the charge that the colonies were aiming at independence was supported only by the allegations of the ministry, not by the actions of the colonies. In a letter to the Lord Mayor of London, they declared that " North America " wished most ardently for a THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 433 lasting connection with Great Britain on terms of just and equal liberty, " less than which generous minds would not offer, nor brave and free ones be willing to receive." In an address to the Assembly of Jamaica, they dwelt on the ministerial insolence, which had become lost in ministerial barbarity. In an appeal to the people of Ireland, they remarked : " Though vilified as wanting spirit, we are deter- mined to behave like men ; though insulted and abused, we wish for reconciliation ; though defamed as seditious, we are ready to obey the laws ; and, though charged with rebellion, will cheerfully bleed in defence of our sovereign, in a right- eous cause. "What more can we say ? What more can we offer ? " And, as though gifted with prophetic insight, they remarked that, with a firm reliance on the Supreme Disposer of all human events, they anticipate already the golden period, when Liberty, with all the gentle arts of peace and humanity, shall establish her mild dominion in this Western World, and erect eternal monuments to the memory of those virtuous patriots and martyrs who shall have fought and bled and suffered in her cause. Franklin submitted to Congress a plan of confederation and perpetual union, with the name of " The United Colo- nies of North America." It contemplated the accession of Canada and the Westrlndia Islands, and even provided for the admission of Ireland. It recognized the old local self- government in the unit of the colony, while it aimed at a general government of limited powers for the whole. It proposed that each colony should retain and enjoy as much as it might think fit of its present laws, customs, and pecu- liar jurisdictions within its own limits, and tlie right of amending its constitution ; that the Union should have an annual congress to make general ordinances relating to commerce, the currency, the post-office, an army, and a common treasury ; that this congress should determine on war and peace, and settle disputes between colony and colony ; and that it should choose an executive council 28 434 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to manage the continental business, and to deal with for- eign nations. Tlie power of taxation was to remain with the several colonies. The plan was to be submitted to the colonies for their ratification, and provided for future amend- ments. It was not acted on at this session.^ The plan of Lord North for conciliation had been referred to the Congress by three Assemblies. On the 30th of May, a paper in the handwriting of C-rey Cooper, Under-Secretary of the Treasury, was laid before Congress, as having been sent by the minister. It stated that no further relaxation could be admitted, as the temper and spirit of the nation were so much against concessions, that the administration, if it were their intention to propose any, could not carry them. A committee, consisting of Franklin, Jefferson, John Adams, and Richard Henry Lee, was appointed (July 22) to consider this plan. The European world could not show four greater statesmen. They agreed upon a report, prepared by Jefferson ; and it was adopted in Con- gress on the 31st of July. According to Lord North's plan, each colony was to enjoy exemption from all taxation, except duties for the regu- lation of commerce, as soon as its Assembly should make such provision for its proportion of the common defence and for the support of civil government as would be satisfactory to the King and Parliament. This offer was pronounced by Congress a high breach of the privilege of determining the purposes for which moneys should be granted. It was characterized as unreasonable, because it obliged the colo- nies to purchase the favor of Parliament without knowing the price ; insidious, as likely to produce a division of the colonies, by grants to some of easy terms, and compelling others to renewed opposition, separate from their sister colonies ; insulting, since the presence of fleets and armies seemed to present the proposition as addressed rather to their fears 1 This plan was submitted on the 21st of July, 1775. It is in Sparks' s Works of Franklin, v. 91. J THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 435 than to their free determination ; unnecessary, as the objects specified had been fully provided for in their character as freemen; unjust, as it required equality of contributions, while the monopoly of trade possessed by Great Britain cut them off from the commerce of the world ; a violation of the plan of civil government within their own jurisdiction, which was suited to their circumstances, and which they claimed to enjoy without molestation as freely as the plan of civil government by Parliament was enjoyed within their jurisdiction ; unsatisfactory, as the proposition was only a suspension of the existing mode of taxation, but not a renun- ciation of the right ; and, what was of more importance than all, deceptive, being held up before the world to induce a belief that there was nothing in dispute but the levying of taxes, whereas the claim to alter the charters and establish the laws of the colonies was still persisted in, which would leave them without any security for their lives and liberties. In conclusion. Congress say, that nothing but their own exertions can defeat the ministerial scheme of death or abject submission. 1 In this remarkable answer, the United Colonies took the position which Franklin, in his last word to Lord North, assigned to Massachusetts, — deliberately choosing the hazards of war, rather than give up their ancient right of self-government. Thus they proceeded as though they were one nation dealing with another nation, when the ministry had resolved to deal with them only as separate units. A second petition to the king was now agreed upon, through the efforts of a party represented by Dickinson and Jay, who had faith in its efficacy in procuring a redress of grievances. Those who lacked this faith considered the united cooperation of the colonies as the condition of success. The people had been far from being unanimous. 1 This answer to Lord North's resohition was printed in the " Pennsylvania Even- ing Post" of Aug. 8, 1775. It is dated July 31, and signed by John Hancock, President. It is in every newspaper I have been able to consult. 436 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The Tories had opposed the Association. Numbers even of Whigs, though acquiescing in it as an instrument of self- defence, were reluctant to push it so far as to make it law : some, on the principle that it was a duty to submit to the sovereignty ; many, from self-interest ; the mass, for fear of the mischievous consequences. ^ Whigs of the stamp of Dickinson involuntarily shrank from the step of independ- ence. It was alleged, that, if the proposed petition met with the fate of former petitions, the moderate, who thus far had held back, and had not taken sides, when they were convinced there was no hope but in war, would heartily unite in prosecuting it with efficiency .^ The petition, drawn up by Dickinson, spoke in affectionate terms of the king, and expressed the wish that his lot might be the signal and lasting glory achieved by illustrious personages, who, in extricating states from dangerous convulsions, had erected noble monuments to their fame. It averred that the colonists entertained too tender a regard for the kingdom from which they derived their origin to ask such a reconciliation as might in any manner be inconsistent with its dignity or welfare ; and it besought the king that he would be pleased to direct some mode by which the united applications of his faithful colonists to the throne, in pursuance of their common councils, might be improved into a happy and per- manent reconciliation. It was signed by the members indi- vidually, as the previous petition had been, and was intrusted to the care of Richard Penn, a loyalist, who immediately sailed for England. It was composed with great elegance, and, Gordon says, deserved to be written in letters of gold, for the sentiments it breathed toward the parent state. ^ 1 Gordon, History of the American War, i. 426. 2 The "Essex Gazette," July 21, 1775, has a letter from Philadelphia, dated July 6, which says: "The Congress have determined to petition the King once, more, under this idea, that, if it should be rejected, those moderate people who now keep back will, when they find no hopes but in the success of a war, most heartily unite with us in prosecuting it effectively. " 8 Gordon, ii. 71. He says (ii. .32) that Dickinson labored hard to procure this second petition, and that the opposition occasioned strong debates. Sparks says THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 437 Congress, on the first day of August, adjourned to the 5th of September. The public prints stated that it had established postal communication from New Hampshire to Georgia, and appointed Franklin postmaster ; had designated two persons to act as joint treasurers of the United Colo- nies, and taken the control of Indian affairs from the officers of the crown ; but had made no other alteration of " the Continental Association " except to permit vessels bringing powder into the colonies to carry away merchandise. Only defensive measures were adopted. These were heartily wel- comed. " You cannot conceive," one wrote, " what univer- sal joy diffused itself through every breast, and triumph in every countenance, on publication of the glorious resolu- tions of the Continental Congress." ^ Moderation was then acceptable to the public mind. While the popular party throughout the colonies were determined to assert their rights, and to do this jointly, they involuntarily shrank from revolution, even when it was fairly upon them. The loyalists, in their habit of ascribing to the patriots aims which were indignantly disavowed, charged that Con- gress, in this second petition, treated the king with " the fal- lacy, treachery, and deceit " which had characterized all its proceedings ; ^ and history, constructed from their point of view, treats its course as a piece of dissimulation.-^ It is, however, certain that civil war, though it roused bitter hatred to the ministry, had not effaced the old affection for the mother country, and that the majority of the popular party still looked yearningly towards her. When the case was presented, that the next step must necessarily be revo- lution, with a separation of the empire into two peoples, with war between them as between two nations, the recoil in the (Life of John Jay, i. 36) that the measure originated with Mr. Jay. Go'^ernor Penn, in his examination before the House of Lords, said that the petition had been considered as an olive branch, and he had been complimented by his friends as the messenger of peace. — Philadelphia Evening Post, Feb. 20, 1776. 1 Connecticut Historical Society Collections, ii. 237. 2 General Gage uses these words. 8 Adolphus, History of England, ii. 234. 438 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. public mind was involuntary and powerful. This fidelity was honorable. One of the lessons of the late civil war is to make Americans more appreciative of the nature of national life, and of the profound sentiment of country; and they can now better understand the feelings of the founders of the Republic, when they were called upon to give up the old flag. The theory that the popular leaders were playing a game of hypocrisy may be tested in the case of Washington, whose sterling patriotism was not more conspicuous than his irreproachable integrity. The New- York Provincial Congress, in an address to him (June 26, 1775), on his journey from Philadelphia to the American camp around Boston, say that accommodation with the mother country was " the fondest wish of each American soul." Washing- ton, in reply, pledged his colleagues and himself to use every exertion to reestablish peace and harmony. " When we assumed the soldier," he said, " we did not lay aside the citizen'; and we shall most sincerely rejoice with you in that happy hour when the establishment of American liberty on the most firm and solid foundations shall enable us to return to our private stations, in the bosom of a free, peaceful, and happy country." ^ There was no incompati- bility in the position of military leader of a great uprising with a desire to preserve the old political ties. When the Barons at Runnymede, surrounded by their armed retainers, wrested frQm King John the Great Charter, they meant not to renounce their allegiance, but simply to preserve the old government. Though an act of apparent rebellion, yet it was in the strictest sense an act of loyalty.^ So the popular leaders, in their attitude of armed resistance, were loyal to what they conceived to be essential to American liberty. They were asserting the majesty of Constitutional Law 1 The "London Chronicle" of Aug. 8, 1775, has the speech of the New-York Provincial Congress, and the reply of Washington, of the 26th of June, 1775. 2 Maurice, in his '' Social Morality," p. 183. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 439 against those who would have destroyed it, and thus were more loyal to the Constitution than was George III. There is really no ground on which justly to question the sincer- ity of declarations like those of Congress and Washington. The condition of things at this interesting point of time was stated precisely in a letter written by Franklin, and read in the House of Commons. " If you flatter yourselves," he says, " with beating us into submission, you know neither the people nor the country. The Congress . . . will wait the result of their last petition." ^ The word italicized by Franklin was prophetic. The popular leaders said what they meant. They aimed at a redress of griev- ances ; and the idea was quite general, of a Bill of Rights, or an American Constitution, embodying the conditions on which the integrity of the empire might be preserved. This was their last appeal for a settlement on such a basis. The Tory judgment on their course in again petitioning the king is tinctured with the injustice of this school in regard to the spirit and aim of the popular party and the integrity and sincerity of its leaders.^ It was now said that " several colonies continued to be much embarrassed between their respect for their old form of government and its officers and their regard for their freedom and the rights of human nature, which it had been long the avowed object of these forms and officers to abolish." ^ 1 Sparks's "Works of Franklin, viii. 161. Sparks states that the letter, dated Oct. 3, 1775, was probably addressed to David Hartley, and was first printed in Vaughan's edition of Franklin's Works. Hartley was a member of the House of Commons, and read the letter in this body in 1775, a few days after receiving it; and again used it in his speech of Dec. 5, 1777, which was printed in the " London General Advertiser," Jan. 23, 1778. In this speech he remarked as to the first reading: " You were then confident of having America under your feet, and despised every proposition recommending peace and lenient measures." 2 Rives's Life of Madison, i. 109. 3 The "Essex Gazette," July 21, 1775, under the date of New York, July 13, has the following: — '•The people of Virginia and some other American colonies continue to be much embarrassed between their respect to the ancient form of government, and officers which according to those forms were appomted to the administration of public 440 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. The New- York Provincial Congress declined to refuse sup- plies to the British army : at the same time the mayor of New-York city and the Committee of Safety earnestly desired Governor Tryon to continue his residence there, and he freely visited the Continental camp of General Wooster, making inquiries as to the numbers of the men and their arms.^ The North-Carolina Provincial Congress pronounced it cruel to assert that they desired to cut otf their connection with Great Britain. The South-Carolina committee informed Governor Campbell that they would insure to him the respect which they ever wished to show to the representative of their sovereign. Governors Dunmore of Virginia, Eden of Maryland, Franklin of New Jersey, and Penn of Penn- sylvania were recognized in their official capacity. Papers from several of these loyal officials, ending " God save the king," appear in the public prints by the side of the details of the progress of hostilities.^ It was regarded as important to confine the war to Massa- afFairs, and their regard to their own freedom and the most important rights and privileges of human natui-e, which it has long been the avowed business of these forms and officers to take away and abolish. Instead of trying and punishing these officers as traitors against the Constitution, the most horrid of all traitors, the respect shown them, and the attempts made to reconcile natural inconsistencies, are truly ridiculous, at the same time that they obstruct and have the most pernicious effect on public affairs. Lord Dunmore still continues to inj are and insult the people of Vir- ginia with impunity." 1 Connecticut Historical Collections, ii 278. 2 The Governor of Virginia having taken up quarters on board a man-of-war, the Council and House of Burgesses, June 23, 1775, in a joint address, besought him to return to the capital. (Pennsylvania Evening Post, July 18.) A Proclama- tion of John Penn, Governor of Pennsylvania and Delaware, Oct 5, 1775, ends with " God save the king." (Ibid., Oct. 10, 1775 ) The correspondence between Governor Tryon and Mayor Hicks and the committee of New York is in the '' Pennsylvania Evening Post" of Oct. 21, 1775; and that between Governor Campbell and the gen- eral committee of South Carolina, in the issue of Nov. 2, 1775. The letter of the committee is signed by Henr}' Laurens. The North- Carolina Provincial Congress, consisting of delegates from forty -four counties and towns, in an address, on Sept. 8, 1775, sa3': " We have been told that independence is our object: that we seek to shake off all connection with the parent State. Cruel suggestion ! Do not all our professions, all our actions, uniformly contradict this?" Mecklenburg County was represented in this congress, and among the delegates two are named as having been present, May 20, 1775, when the alleged Declaration of Independence of this county was adopted. — Force's Archives, 4th Series, iii. 201. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 441 cliusetts, the operations in Canada being considered merely defensive. The great scene of the battle of Bunker Hill, with the sacrifice of Warren, lent its varied influence to the cause. It was a revelation of character that was felt through- out the war. It demonstrated that Americans would fight. While the battle was going on, a messenger arrived in the camp with the news that Congress had adopted the army, — had even ordered the purchase of military supplies to be paid for out of the continental treasury, which, however, was directed to be kept secret. This messenger was also the bearer of the advice to Massachusetts to use the old charter. Though a disappointment to the patriots, who desired to form a government worthy of freemen, they nevertheless complied with the advice, therein exhibiting a spirit of subordination of the local feeling to the judgment of Con- gress cliaracteristic of the time. " We are all submissive," wrote James Warren. A government was soon established. Congress reassembled on the 5th of September ; but so few of the members appeared that it adjourned to the loth, when it proceeded to business. The colony of Geor- gia was now fully represented. Its Provincial Congress, in declaring that all men were born free and equal and were entitled to the natural rights of mankind, accepted an idea thoroughly identified with the American cause ; and, in adopting the Association, it complied with the condition of admission to the Union. Its delegates differed widely in their politics. Noble Wimberly Jones had rendered large service to the cause, and continued its steadfast supporter ; the Reverend Dr. Zulily looked upon a republican govern- ment as little better than a government of devils,^ and soon found his proper place in the ranks of the loyalists. From this period the Union was called " The Thirteen United Colonies." Congress was anxiously waiting the fate of its second petition. Much was thought to depend on tliis. The key to 1 Works of John Adams, ii. 469. 442 THE KISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the action of the popular leaders down to this time is Union ^ they aimed at such measures as would secure the coopera- tion of the people of thirteen colonies - — it was hoped more than thirteen — in efforts to obtain a redress of grievances. Seemingly, the course of Congress was marked by hesitation and vacillation: one day a measure would be pressed, in order to the more vigorous prosecution of the war ; the next day it was urged that nothing should be done to widen the breach.^ Its debates concerned the important matters of forming local governments, creating a navy, opening the ports, dealing with the Tories, entering into foreign alliances, and declaring independence. It was the talk of Samuel Adams in private (September 24), that, if the "second petition to the king were rejected or neglected, or not answered and answered favorably, he would be for acting against Britain or Britons, as in open war against France or Frenchmen, — fit privateers, and take their ships any- where." ^ In the course of the debates in Congress, Thomas Johnson of Maryland said (Octol^er 6) that he saw every day less and less prospect of reconciliation, but that he was not yet ready to render reconciliation impossible, for he dreaded the effect of such a stand on North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and New York. " If," said he, " what we have done had been proposed two years ago, four colonies would not have been for it " : in sixteen months thirteen colonies had been brought to the position of armed resistance to the claims of Great Britain ; hence, he concluded " the line we have pursued is the line we ought to have pursued."* 1 John Adams says, in the number of Novanglus in the "Essex Gazette" of Feb. 28, 1775: "The grand aphorism of the policy of the Whigs has been to unite the people of America and divide those of Great Britain. The reverse of this has been the maxim of the Tories: viz., to unite the people of Great Britain and divide those of America. All the movements, marches, and counter-marches of both parties, on both sides of the Atlantic, may be reduced to the one or the other of these rules." 2 Letter of Samuel Ward, Life, p. 324. 8 Works of John Adams, ii. 428. * Ibid., 459. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 443 The simultaneous manifestations in various quarters of the state of the public mind on the subject of independence illustrate the force of this remark. In Hanover County, Virginia, a person who had said that the country aimed at independence more than opposition to Parliamentary taxa- tion, was compelled by the county committee to confess his sorrow for such an offence.^ In Pennsylvania, the committee of Chester County being charged with aiming at independ- ence, they declared that they held in horror so pernicious an idea .2 In South Carolina, the Provincial Congress in- structed its delegates to refuse their consent to any plan of confederation. In North Carolina, the Assembly, the County Convention, and the Provincial Congress averred, with fervent expressions of loyalty, that reconciliation was their object ; and the Provincial Congress, after all the members had (Aug. 23, 1775) signed a test containing a declaration of allegiance to the king, voted (September 4) that the plan of a general confederation " was not at present eligible," but that " the present Association ought to be relied upon for bringing about a reconciliation witli the ])arent state." ^ It certainly was the part of wisdom in the Congress to heed public opinion and to wait. A high authority expresses the judgment that " nothing could have been wiser, at that time, than moderation."* There was a pressure on Congress to authorize the for- mation of local governments. A request of this nature was presented from New Hampshire, which was experiencing the intolerable evils of an absence of authority, and asked per- mission " to regulate its internal police." The two delegates in Congress (October 2) suggested, in a joint letter to Matthew Thornton, that the convulsed state of the colony should be represented to Franklin, Lynch, and Harrison, a committee appointed to visit the camp around Boston, and the absolute 1 Force's Archives, 4th Series, iii. Hi. 2 Ibid., 774. Tliis was Sept. 25, 1775. 3 Ibid., 18G. This was Au<,^ 24, 1775. * Ramsay's History of the United States, i. 214. 444: THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. necessity urged of forming a government ; they likewise laid before Congress (October 18) their instructions on this point. Congress, however, hesitated to give the desired advice.^ Another request of this nature came from beyond the Alleghanies. Pioneers, among them Daniel Boone, having satisfied the Indians for the territory now Kentucky, founded four towns. They elected representatives to a House of Delegates, who agreed on a form of government, and then, by a memorial to Congress, asked that theii colony, Transylvania, might be admitted one of the United Colonies. The agent who bore this memorial gives at much length the details of his interviews with several of the members. He states the objection of the two Adamses. They held that there would be an impropriety in Congress engaging to protect a people who defied the king's procla- mation ; " for it would be looked upon as a confirmation of that independent spirit with which Congress was daily reproached." ^ Although no members were more decided on the question of independence, yet this statement is con- clusive as to their views at this time. No measure was taken in October designed to alter the political situation of the colonies. In the mean time Richard Penn hastened to England with the second petition. The king was now continually occupied with American affairs. He directed that General Gage should be ordered '• instantly to come over " on account of 1 It was not until the 26th of October that this subject was referred to a com- mittee, consisting of Messrs. Rutledge, John Adams, Ward, Lee, and Sherman. On that day the New-Hampshire delegates wrote to their constituenta : "We some time since made a motion for the reguUition of our civil government, and this day a committee was appointed to consider the motion and report thereon. Could have wished that a petition from our Congress, setting forth all the reasons, had been trans- mitted us, which would have helped the matter much." - The interview between Mr Hogg, the agent, and the Adamses, took place on the 24th of October. (John Adams's Works, ii. 4-30. ) He says : " I showed them our memorial, to convince them that we did not pretend to throw off our allegiai;ce to the king, but intended to acknowledge his sovereignty, whenever he should thmk ns worthy of his regard. They were pleased with our memorial, and thought it very proper." This memorial is in Force's Archives, 4th Series, iv. 544:. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 445 the battle of Bunker Hill, thought Admiral Graves ought to be recalled from Boston " for doing nothing," ^ and completed the arrangements for the employment of Hanoverians in America. Impatient at the delay of the Cabinet in acting on the proclamation agreed upon, he put this in train by order- ing one to be framed, and submitted August 18 to Lord North, and fixed the day for its promulgation. He was con- firmed in his extreme views by General Haldimand, fresh from America, who reported that " nothing but force could bring the colonies to reason," and that it would be danger- ous to give ear to any propositions they might submit. The king was convinced that it would be better " totally to aban- don " the colonies than '" to admit a single shadow " of their doctrines.2 Five days after penning these words, he issued (August 23) a proclamation for suppressing rebellion and sedition. It charged, that many subjects in divers parts of the colonies in North America, forgetting their allegi- ance, and after obstructing the lawful commerce of loyal subjects carrying it on, had proceeded to open and avowed rebellion, and that this rebellion had been promoted by the counsels of divers wicked and desperate persons within the realm of England ; and commanded all civil and military officers, and all loyal subjects, to use their utmost endeavors to' suppress this rebellion, and to give full information, of all persons corresponding with the persons in arms in North America, in order to bring them to condign punishment. This proclamation, unlike Lord North's plan, ignored the 1 Donne's Correspondence of George III., i. 257. 2 Ibid., i. 263. Aug. 18, 1775, when the king wrote to Lord North: "There has been much delay in framing a proclamation declaring the conduct of the Amer- icans rebellious, and warning persons from corresponding with them. ... I have directed Lord Suffolk to have it shown to you." The king's words given in the text are from the letter. They were accurately stated in the "Philadelphia Evening Post" of Nov. 16, 1775: "A private letter, by Captain Collins, lately arrived from London, says that on the 19th of August General Haldimand was closeted with His Maje.^t}' two hours, giving him a state of the American colonies; and that, in the course of the conversation. His Majesty expressed his resolution in these memorable words : ' I am unalterably determined, at every hazard and at the risk of every con- sequence, to compel the colonies to absolute submission.' " 446 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. colonies as political units. It is levelled against individuals in rebellion, and all within the realm who should aid them. At that period, Burke wrote of the king, " Nothing can equal the ease, composure, and even gayety of the great disposer of all in this lower orb ";^ of his minister, " I am told by one who has lately seen Lord North, that he has never seen him or anybody else in higher spirits";^ and that " the violent measures were fairly adopted by a majority of individuals of all ranks, professions, or occupations in this country." ^ It was to such parties that Richard Penn tendered the American olive branch, or the second petition. He handed a copy of it to Lord Dartmouth on the 21st of August, and named the 23d as the day for the formal presenta- tion of the original ; but on that day the king issued his proclamation, which six days later was read by the heralds in Palace Yard, Westminster, and Temple Bar, — also at the Royal Exchange by one of the Lord Mayor's officers. On the first day of September Lord Dartmouth received the original petition, but Penn was not asked a single question relative to American affairs. The king would not see him. On being pressed for an answer. Lord Dartmouth replied, " that, as His Majesty did not receive the petition on the throne, no answer would be given." On the 22d he wrote to General Howe, who (Aug. 2, 1775) superseded General Gage as the commander of the British army, that there was " no room left for any other consideration but that of pro- ceeding against the twelve associated colonies in all respects with the utmost rigor, as the open and avowed enemies of the state." 4 Intelligence of the fate of the second petition reached America when the public mind was stirred by profound impulses, and " anxiety possessed every heart." It came 1 Correspondence of Edmund Burke, ii. 41. 2 Ibid., 38.' 3 Ibid., 68. * Force's Archives, 4tli Series, iii. 773. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 447 by an arrival at Philadelphia on the 31st of October;^ and the city newspapers of the next day contained the king's proclamation. They also had the statement, that ten thou- sand Hanoverians were about to join the British forces in America, and that the Elector of Hanover had a rescript from George IH. for the subsidies to embark for their desti- nation. And on this day an express from Washington sup- plied a lurid commentary on the king's proclamation, in the news of the burning of Falmouth. These were truly mo- mentous advices, such as leave a mark in the progress of events. Congress, through the month of October, had debated, in committee of the whole, the state of the United Colonies. On receiving the advices, members who had held back were ready to act with decision. " Thank God ! " Samuel Ward, a member from Rhode Island, now wrote, " the happy day which I have long wished for is at length arrived : the South- ern colonies no longer entertain jealousies of the Northern ; they no longer look back to Great Britain." One member very jealous of New England, addressing him as Brother Rebel, said: "We have got a sufficient answer to our peti- tion : I want nothing more, but am ready to declare ourselves independent." Ward continued: "My anxiety is at an end: I feel a calm, cheerful satisfaction in having one great and just object in view, and the means of obtaining it certainly, by the Divine blessing, in our hands." ^ Samuel Adams had now a majority with him ready to take a decisive and irrevocable step forward. This was the adoption, on the 1 A paragraph in the newspapers, dated Philadelphia, November 1, announces the arrival of two vessels with advices from London to August 26, with the following: " It is reported that no answer has yet been given, nor will anj'' be given, to the petition of the Continental Congress, as it is thought beneath the dignity of the government to acknowledge an assembly which has no constitutional or legal exist- oiKO." This news was soon authenticated by a card having the signature of Charles Thomson. Secretary of Congress. The "Pennsylvania Journal" of November 1 irintcd the king's proclamation. - Gammell's Life of Samuel Ward, 323. This letter bears date November 2. It says that the advices the two ships brought, naming the Proclamation, were of im- mense service to the patriots. 448 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. report of the committee^ to whom had been referred the memorial of New Hampshire, of a recommendation (Novem- ber 3) to the Provincial Convention of that colony, " to call a full and free representation of the people and the represen- tatives, if they think it necessary, and establish such a form of government as in their judgment will best promote the happiness of the people, and most eflfectually secure peace and good order in the province during the continuance of the dispute between Great Britain and the colonies." A people are here recommended to exercise their inherent right of forming a government. The next day. Congress, on the report of the committee, gave similar advice to South Carolina, with the important addition of making pro- vision for an army to defend the colony at " the continental expense." This was an earnest that the combined strength of the colonies should be used for their defence, — the germ of the provision in the Constitution which guaranties to every State protection and a republican government. The advice to these colonies gave the American interpretation to vital political principles, hitherto hardly more than abstrac- tions. It was revolution, for it contemplated a change in the base of the sovereignty. Its friends so understood it, and were ready and anxious to make the recommendation general. Those who, in the hope of reconciliation, still hesitated, so regarded it, and pronounced it the first step towards independence. Indeed, the popular leaders of largest insight now shaped measures with a view to a Republic. Samuel Adams, the Palinurus of the Revolu- tion, ^ — if there was one, — now wrote, as he labored in 1 The report of the committee was made on the 2d of November. On the 3d Congress appointed acoramittee of five, — Messrs. Harrison, Bullock, Hooper, Chase, and Samuel Adams, — to take into consideration certain papers and letters relating to South Carolina. 2 Jefferson said: "If there ever was ora?/ Palinurus to the Revolution, Samuel Adams was the man. Indeed, in the Eastern States, for a year or two after it began, he was truly the man of the Revolution." (Randall's .Jefferson, i. 182.) Samuel Adams's letters, freely cited from time to time in the text, give his position in his own words. He was now urging on Congress the measure of independence. The memoir of THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 449 the committees, and as if under a spell of prophecy : " Every moment should be improved to some serious purpose. It is the age of George III. ; and, to do justice to our most gra- cious king, I will affirm it is my opinion that his councils and administration will necessarily produce the grandest revolutions the world has ever seen. The wheels of Provi- dence seem to be in their swiftest motion. Events succeed each other so rapidly, that the most industrious and able politicians can scarcely improve them to the full purposes for which they seem to be designed. You must send your best men here: therefore recall me from this service. Men of moderate abilities, especially when weakened by age, are not fit to be employed in founding empires." ^ This letter, writ- him, written by James Sullivan, a Revolutionary patriot, and printed in the " Boston Chronicle," Oct. 10, 1803, has the following remark: "There is no doubt among his intimate friends, and indeed it is well known to his confidential compatriots, that he was the first man in America who contemplated a separation of the colonies from the mother country." A memoir of him by Samuel Adams Wells, MS., has the follow- ing: " It was thought during the Revolution, and it is still said, that he first con- ceived and dared to announce the grand design of independence. "We believe this to be true; but the time when he had fully determined, and was willing to avow this opinion, is a question of some magnitude, and cannot be accurately determined." (p 143.) A little further on (p 154), Mr. Wells says: " We doubt not that he went to the Congress of 177.5, fully prepared for the adoption of that decisive measure." The sentiment expressed in his letters harmonizes perfectly with this view. He was then ready to advocate a step which down to the day of Lexington he was in the habit of disavowing privately and publicly, but which he had long thought the colonies would be forced to adopt by the aggressive policy of the British administration. 1 This is taken from a letter dated Philadelphia, Nov. 4, 1775, addressed to James Warren, the President of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress. There are two letters of this date: one mentioning the vote on New Hampshire only, the other the vote on South Carolina also ; probably the one being written in the morn- ing and the other in the evening of this day. They have not been printed. The following are extracts : — "I wish I was at liberty to communicate to you some of our proceedings; but I am restrained ; and, though it is painful to me to keep secrets from a few-confldential friends. I am resolved that I will not violate my honor. I may venture to tell you one of our resolutions, which, in the nature of it, must be immediately made public ; and that is, to recommend to our sister colony, New Hampshire, to exercise government in such a form as they shall judge necessary for the preservation of peace and good order, during the continuance of the present contest with Britain. This I would not have you mention abroad till you see it published, or hear it publicly talked of. The government of the New-England colonies, I suppose, will soon be nearly on the same footing; and I am of opinion that it will not be long before every colony will see the necessity of setting up government within themselves, for reasons that appear to me to be obvious." " I confess I am giving my friend as much information as I dare of thlJigs which are 29 450 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. ten on the morning after the vote relative to New Hampshire, and when the writer was maturing the thorough action with respect to South Carolina, and the letter just cited of Samuel Ward, who was on the committee who reported the advice to New Hampshire, penned on the day before this vote, reveal the inner springs of momentous political action, and the spirit in which the popular leaders crossed the Rubicon. In this action they accepted the fact and laid out the work of revolution. They no longer contemplated, in their aims and plans, a union in unnatural conformity with allegiance to the crown, but wholly an American union, identified with a new national power. Congress now assumed a bolder tone, and went forward steadily, with great deference to the common statements, yet leading, not following, popular sentiment. In passing judgment on its measures, it ought to be borne in mind, that it had entered an untrodden field, which presented obstacles at every step onward, — but that the path it laid out, which was strictly kept to, at least at this early stage, led to the greatest political result in human history. Each successive step might not always have been the wisest ; but, from the time it gave these vital recommendations to New Hampshire and South Carolina, it took no step backwards. It put forth no more disclaimers of a purpose of independ- ence. It sought no longer to confine hostilities to Massa- chusetts. It was for war in earnest, — for offensive war, as though it were war against France and Frenchmen ; and this was its injunction to the colonies. It advised (Novem- ber 4) South Carolina to seize and destroy British ships-of- war, and to resist all" attempts to occupy Charleston. It framed (November 9) a new pledge of secrecy, which each member was required to sign. It took steps (November of such a nature as that they cannot long be kept secret, and therefore, I suppose, it never was intended they should be. I mention them, however, in confidence that you will not publish them. I wish I was at liberty to tell you many of the transactions of this body, but I am restrained by the ties of honor ; and, though it is painful to me, you know, to keep secrets, I will not violate my honor to relieve myself or please my friend." THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 451 17) to create a naval code. It raised a committee (Novem- ber 29) to correspond with foreign powers.^ It declared (December 4) that it would be very dangerous to the welfare of America, if any colony separately should petition the King or Parliament ; and the same day it advised the inhab- itants of Virginia to resist by force the arbitrary measures of their governor, Lord Dunmore, and recommended its Convention to call a full and free representation of the people and form a local government. These votes are in marked contrast to the votes of the preceding June. There had been progress. The determined tone of Congress is seen in its answer to the king's proclamation. In this paper it was declared, in the name of the people of the colonies, and " by authority, according to the purest maxims of representation, derived from them," that the punishment that might be inflicted on the supporters of the cause of American liberty should be retaliated on the supporters of ministerial oppression. The news that caused " the daybreak of revolution" ^ in Independence Hall produced a profound impression on the popular heart. The public prints abound with evidences of the rising spirit. One, on reading the " late most extraordi- nary proclamation," gave expression to his feelings in the following verses: — "Rebels, — avaunt the inglorious name! To those who burn with virtue's flame, — The hero, whose undaunted soul Spurns haughty B 's rude control, And mocks the tyrant's nod. Usurper, 'tis in vain thy sway: True Courage deigns not to obey, Or bow beneath the rod. 1 Nov. 29, 1775. Resolved, "That a committee of five be appointed for the sole purpose of corresponding with our friends in Great Britain, Ireland, and other parts of the world, and that they lay their correspondence before Congress, when directed. " Mr Harrison, Dr. Franklin, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Dickinson, and Mr. Jay were appointed the committee. — Secret Journals, ii. 5. 2 Bancroft, viii. 137. 452 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. True Courage, roused by Honor's laws, Will perish in her country's cause; Her claim, the heaven-born rights which Freedom gave : Though worlds against her league, she will not sink a slave." 1 Every newspaper circulating these verses was an American minstrel stirring the blood by his song. The idea of independence was now boldly advocated by the press. One wrote : " We expect soon to break off all con- nection with Britain, and to form a Grand Republic of the American United Colonies, which will by the blessing of Heaven soon work out our salvation, and perpetuate the lib- erties, increase the wealth, the power, and the glory of this Western World." ^ Another wrote : " When the throne of independence rises before the eyes of the admiring world, when our seas and our harbors are thronged with ships from the remotest corners of the earth, when our farmers are princes and our merchants kings, what conscious pleasure must be ours ! And what praise shall be given us who are engaged in all the danger and heat of the day ! " ^ The voices of the dead in the battle-fields, and the valor of the living, were summoned to nerve the people to worthy effort for the cause. A relation of the deeds of a lad of sixteen at Bunker Hill, who fired all his cartridges and then began afresh with the cartridges of a comrade slain at his side, closes, — " Dear Liberty ! thou dost our youths inspire With more than Grecian, more than Roman fire." Private letters evince the same resolute spirit. " The king's silly proclamation," wrote James Warren, " will put an end to petitioning : movements worthy your august body are expected, — a declaration of independence, and treaties with foreign powers."* Joseph Hawley wrote: " The eyes of all the continent are fastened on your body, to see whether 1 Pennsylvania Evening Post, Nov. 16, 1775. 2 Essex Gazette, Nov. 23, 1775. 8 This is ftom a piece entitled " A Reverie," by a soldier, dated Dec. 11, 1775. * James Warren to Samuel Adams, cited in Bancroft, viii. 136. THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 453 you on this occasion act with firmness and integrity, and with the spirit and despatch which our situation calls for. It is time for your body to fix on periodical annual elections, — nay, to form into a parliament of two houses."^ Abigail Adams wrote : " I could not join to-day in the petitions of our worthy pastor for a reconciliation between our no longer parent state, but tyrant state, and these > colonies. Let us separate." ^ George Mason expressed the feeling roused in Virginia, when, at a later day, reverting to these occur- rences, he wrote : " When the last dutiful and humble peti- tion from Congress received no other answer than declaring us rebels and out of the king's protection, I from that mo- ment looked forward to a revolution and independence as the only means of salvation." ^ The disclosures of opinion in the halls of Congress and among the people, together with the subsequent recollec- tions of the actors in these events,* fix the time when the 1 Joseph Hawley to Samuel Adams, Nov. 12, 1775. MS. 2 Abigail Adams to John Adams, Nov. 12, 1775. Letters, 61. 3 George Mason, Oct. 2, 1778, in Virginia Historical Register, vol. ii. 28. •* Sparks, in tlie valuable note entitled "American Independence," in the second volume of the Writings of Washington, says: " It is not easy to detennine at what precise date the idea of independence was first entertained by the principal persons in America." (p. 496.) Samuel Adams, after the events of the 19th of April, 1775, was prepared to advocate it. (Seep. 449.) Members of the Pro\-inciaI Congress of New Hampshire were of the same opinion. (See p. 422 ) President Dwight (Travels in New England and New York, i. 159) says: " In the month of July. 1775, 1 urged, in conversation with several gentlemen of great respectability, firm Wliigs, and my intimate friends, the importance, and even the necessity, of a declaration of independ- ence on the part of the colonies, . . . but found them disposed to give me and my arguments a hostile and contemptuous, instead of a cordial reception. . . . These gentlemen may be considered as the representatives of the great body of thinking men of this country." In the note of Sparks, just cited, are embodied the recollec- tions of Madison, .lay, and others, and the contemporary statements of Franklin and Penn. They are in harmony with the statements and quotations in the text, and sustain the judgment of Dr. Ramsay (History of South Carolina, i. 1641, who -saj's: " Till the rejection of the second petition of Congress, a reconciliation with the mother country was the unanimous wish of Americans generally." The "Massachusetts Spy" of Feb. 2, 1776, contains a piece entitled •' Remark- able Events in the Year 1775." The twentieth and last is the following: — " XX. The colonies at last were roused to a proper sense of the injuries tbey had sustained from the usurpations of the British Parliament, from the insolence of the 454 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. mo-vement advanced from the simple aim of a redress of grievances. What Royal Instructions were to the organiza- tion of the popular party, what the Tea Act was to Ameri- can union, what the Regulating Act was to association, the Proclamation was to revolution. Then the inspiring sentiment of union became identified with the still more in- spiring sentiment of nationality. Then the popular leaders recognized the mission of that generation to found a repub- lic. The thought lifted them up to the heights of their cause, strengthening their convictions of its justice, deepen- ing the faith that they were co-workers with Providence, and investing their action with the highest moral dignity. But, however great became the influence of the religious element over the minds of the popular leaders, it never led them into the extravagance of fanaticism. 'They kept in mind the fact that Providence works by human means. They estimated the magnitude of the task before them. It was easy to suggest an American commonwealth, or republic ; it was not difficult to speculate on what might follow from the establishment of such a polity ; it was pleasant to in- dulge in visions of the rising glory of America : but it was quite another thing to devise the means of achieving the grand object of these aspirations. It required great insight to determine the steps which the state of public opinion in thirteen different, and in many respects widely diverse, com- munities would sanction, bring them to act in concert, and thus reach the condition of success. A plan mentioned by some who were in favor of separation was for the people of the several colonies to abrogate all authority under the crown, and form local governments ; then to agree on a Constitution for the United Colonies, and make foreign alliances ; and then to issue a declaration of independence. It was urged that the people who established such governments would never ministry, the obstinacy and bloody-mindediiess of the king, and the inhumanity of their brethren in Great Britain ; and began to . ... as the only means that could iiecure peace, liberty, and safety to America." THE king's proclamation AND REVOLUTION. 455 give them up, but would range themselves permanently on the side of independence. The party who looked upon the measure of independence as ruinous, appreciated the strength of this movement, and sought to secure to their side the local Assemblies ; and such for a time was their success, that six months elapsed before a majority in Congress would recom- mend all the colonies to abrogate the royal authority, or before the popular leaders could make independence a party question. These six months constitute a great period in American history, and in the history of humanity. Then a free people, in the unrestrained exercise of its convictions on political affairs, moved steadily forward to the realization of the idea of an American Republic, — an idea which more and more impressed itself on their minds, and is recognized as great by the civilized world. CHAPTER XL How THE People op the United Colonies by the Declabation OF Independence decreed their Existence as a Nation com- posed OF Free and Independent States. November and December, 1775, and to July, 1776. The course of events, after the popular leaders accepted the work of revolution, created a desire for independence and developed a sentiment of nationality. When the colonies had agreed to join in dissolving the connection with Great Britain, and had so instructed their representatives, they, in Congress assembled, voted that these colonies were free and independent States, and by the Declaration of Inde- pendence announced to the world that they had assumed a separate station among the powers of the earth : where- upon the people, in public meetings and by their general assemblies, ratified the Declaration, and pledged themselves to maintain it with their fortunes and their lives. Thus they decreed their existence as a nation. The king, in a speech from the throne (Oct. 26, 1775), declared that the war, on the part of the colonists, was " manifestly cari-ied on for the establishment of an Ameri- can empire." He stated, that, to put an end to the disorders in the colonies, he had increased the naval establishment and land forces, and was in treaty with foreign nations. He recommended the appointment of commissioners with large powers for the purpose of granting pardons to such of " the unhappy and deluded multitude " as might be convinced of their error by the display of arms.^ The House of Lords, in their address in reply, heartily approved the decisive use 1 The King's Speech is in the " Peansylvania Evening Post" of Jan. 9, 1776. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 457 of arms, yet could not sufficiently admire His Majesty's benevolent proposition relative to pardon. The House of Commons more than echoed the fierce wor.ds of the king in characterizing the colonial proceedings as the wicked pretences of ambitious and traitorous men, which had led unhappy fellow-subjects to set up the standard of rebellion ; but they heard with gratitude " the declaration of the father of his people " of his design to pardon. Important changes were made in the cabinet. Loi"d George Germain was appointed, in place of Lord Dart- mouth, head of the American department. His speech on the penal measures ^ embodied the spirit of hostility to popular rights that animated the ruling classes. This im- portant position was the reward. His single aim, as a legislator, had been to assimilate the policy of America to that of England ; his single word, as minister, was force. He entered (Nov. 10, 1775) upon his duties at tlie very time when the people whom he would not have allowed to meddle with politics were advised by Congress to form governments. The other appointments which the king now made were of the class of violent men, haters of American ideas. His course, however, was popular. It was sustained Ijy heavy majorities in Parliament, while public opinion was expressed in loyal addresses. " No arts," wrote Gibbon, " no management whatsoever, have been used to procure the addresses which fill the gazette." ^ In the picture of the times, these extreme measures do not stand out in conne3tion with the progress of events in America, in the relation of proximate cause and effect, with the distinctness of prior measures of the ministry ; yet the popular leaders could hardly have spared one of the terrible denunciations of King, Lords, and Commons, or the appoint- ment of the violent Lord Germain. They were all needed, and did good service in the patriot cause, as accounts of them 1 See above, page Sib. 2 Gibbon's Miscellaneous Works, 270. Letter to J. Holroyd, Oct. 14, 1775. 458 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. circulated in the newspapers.^ They found their way into the little towns in the forests beyond the Alleghanies, as well as into the flourishing municipalities along the Atlantic coast, — in which probably a far larger proportion of the people were taking an active part in politics than ever be- fore, in any country, shared in the direction of public affairs. The key of their action was fidelity to the decisions of the General Congress. The work of this body may be summed up in a single sentence: while it accepted, after an American interpretation, the continuity of the body of English liberties, or of English constitutional law, it resisted the assimilation of American political life to the English model. In doing this, it said, " Our cause is just"; and it was pronounced a Christian duty to defend it. Congress also said, " Our union is perfect " ; and the re- mark was made in the face of differences of long standing between the colonies relative to jurisdiction, which even the common peril could not induce them to reconcile. New York and New Hampshire were on the verge of war about the territory now Vermont, and Connecticut and Pennsyl- vania about the Wyoming settlement; and Maryland and Virginia had sharp passages with regard to current politics.^ Then there was the traditional jealousy of New England, which, if not general, was mischievous. The cause had also 1 A captured despatch of Lord George Germain, dated Dec. 23, 1775, addressed to Governor Eden, of Maryland, was printed in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post" of April 23, 1776. It stated that an armament of seven regiments, and a fleet, were in readiness to operate in the Southern colonies. 2 Galloway, in his " Candid Examination of the Mutual Claim of Great Britain and the Colonies," New York, 1775, urged that the colonies, " in respect to each other, are so many perfect and independent societies, destitute of any political connection " ; and he seconded a motion made by Mr Ross in the Congress of 1774, that Massachu- setts " should be left to her own discretion with respect to government and justice." (John Adams's Works, ix. 349.) As to the controversies between the colonies, he says: "Disputes between Pennsylvania and Marj'land began, and would have ended in civil war, had not the authority of the state interposed. Similar disputes have existed between New York and Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, and still subsist between New York and New Hampshire, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania and Virginia, all arising from the uncertainty of their boundaries and right to the soil." BIRTH OF THE NATION. 459 a powerful internal enemy in the Tories, who denounced the Congress and its measures, and grew more arrogant, bitter, and bold, as they saw British armies and fleets a}> pearing in America to fight on their side. And the popular party were very far from being agreed as to what should be the next step. In saying the union was perfect, therefore, Congress could mean only that the colonies were united in the determination to resist aggressions on their rights, and in demanding a redress of grievances. Ten years had elapsed since the course of events devel- oped a public opinion in favor of union, and one year since this opinion was embodied in a " Continental Association." The union, in common speech, was pronounced indissoluble. It attained the efficiency of organic life and system through the General Congress, and the local committees of safety, inspection, and correspondence. These committees were charged with important duties, and especially with the duty of securing an observance of the Association and the decrees of Congress. Hence, at this time, there had arisen what was termed the Government of Committees, universally regarded only as a bridge to carry the people safely over to the goal of regularly established authority. It was said that Congress had " the supreme authority over the continent," ^ and was " held in the highest venera- tion imaginable by all ranks and orders of men " : ^ of course the Tories were an exception. The popular party regarded Congress as the public authority directing the general concerns of thirteen communities united to promote their general welfare, and especially for the national object of wielding the combined strength for the defence of their rights. It was proceeding, in external affairs, or in matters of peace and war, as though " The United Colonies " were one political power. A common banner waved over them. 1 The Maryland Council, April 19, 1776. Force's Archives, 4th Series, iv. 983. 2 Penn's evidence before the House of Lords, Nov. 10, 1776: in the "Pennsyl- vania Evening Post" of Feb. 20, 1776. 460 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. Thus the party stood on union, when union had become the portal of nationality. This fact of union inspired the patriots with enthusiasm, as, with arms in their hands, and the conviction that their cause was just, they demanded of hitherto invincible Eng- land a redress of grievances. The military events down to November, 1775, strengthened their confidence in their ability to defend themselves ; but the war from November to July proved of a more checkered cast. In Massachusetts, Washington won his first triumph in the revolutionary struggle in forcing the British army to evacuate Boston. In Virginia, the provincial militia were victorious (Dec. 9, 1775) in the famous battle of the Great Bridge. In North Caro- lina, the Tories were defeated (Feb. 27, 1776) in the hard fight at Moore's Creek. In South Carolina, a British fleet was repulsed (June 28, 1776) in an attack on Charleston ; and Manly and his associates roused great exultation by captures (December, 1775) on the ocean. On the other hand, the brave Montgomery fell (Dec. 31, 1775) before Quebec. Dunmore burned Norfolk (January, 1776). Clin- ton invaded North Carolina. In New York, Carlcton, in tlie flush of triumph, advanced (June) from Canada; and while the Indians sounded their war-whoop along the frontier, the Howes, with an army and fleet, approached the city. Hostile cannon almost within the hearing of Congress served as a reminder of the reality and nearness of the danger. The force which Washington had to meet these invasions was entirely inadequate ; and at one time his immediate com- mand was reduced to eight thousand men. While these scenes of war were occurring, and the highest hopes were followed by the keenest disappointments, the popular leaders of clear vision pressed independence as the next and only worthy step. The measure was urged as necessary to insure permanency to the civil and religious institutions of the colonies, — as essential to their material prosperity, in order to secure fair scope for the industrial BIRTH OP THE NATION. 461 energies of the land, — as vital to the expansion of American ideas over the continent, and to the creation of an opening for the spread of the Gospel, — as the only escape from tyranny, and the only guaranty of that government which is " an ordinance of Heaven to restrain the usurpations of wicked men, to secure to all the enjoyment of their natural rights, and to promote the highest political interests and happiness of society." It was urged that independence "was the path of empire, glory, liberty, and peace," ^ and that labor in such a cause was labor on the side of Prov idence. " The Almighty," said Chief-Justice Drayton, of South Carolina, from the bench, " created America to be independent of Great Britain : to refuse our labors in this divine work is to refuse to be a great, a free, a pious, and a happy people." ^ This citation illustrates the way- in which a sentiment of nationality instinctively mingled in political utterances with the idea of independence, — or the idea that the colonies ought not only to cast off the authority of Great Britain, but to be a political unit, a nation. This sentiment was minis- tered to by the physical characteristics of the country : a vast, connected, and fertile land ; the absence of impassable barriers between the several sections ; a climate uniting the productions of the torrid and the temperate zones ; majestic rivers inviting inland communication ; an imperial line of coast, stimulating maritime enterprise. As the thoughtful reflected on the resources of this magnificent country, it seemed to them that the Almighty had formed it for the abode of a people that should stand pre-eminent in the world. But their ideal of what should constitute a country was not simply hills and valleys, land and water, but spiritual things as well ; and as they mused on the estab- 1 The citations are from what purports to be an Address of an Honest, Sensible, and Spirited Farmer to an Assembly of his Neighbors, on entering the Continental Service, printed in the " Pennsylvania Journal " of Feb. 28, 1776, and copied into the "Boston Gazette" of March 25. 2 Charge at the Court of General Sessions, April 23, 1776. 462 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. lisliment upon a field like this of political liberty grounded in justice, — on the characteristics of the American race, — on the Christian idea of man that was moulding their insti- tutions, — it seemed to them that human progress was about to receive a fresh impulse, "as if the New World was to surpass the Old, and the glory of human nature was to receive the highest perfection near the setting sun." In the inspiration of this thought of a glorious future, the popular leaders shaped and carried into effect measures having in view the founding of a republic. The ideal of the territory which the contemplated republic was to comprehend is seen in the common use of the term " continental " ; the ideal of the cause is seen in the common remark that it was the cause of human nature. By utterances and action in har- mony with these views, the sentiment of nationality became the spring and passion of the popular party. To trace its development is to trace the steps of a free people, when, with minds exalted by such views, they assumed the dignity and responsibility of decreeing themselves a nation. ^ 1 The following extracts from elaborate articles in the newspapers give an idea of the high-toned political utterances of the period of the adoption of the Declaration, and of the first years of its maintenance. " It is apparent that the Almighty Constructor of the Universe, having formed this continent of materials to compose a state pre-eminent in the world, is now making use of the tyranny of the British rulers as an instrument to fashion and arrange those materials for the end for which, in his wisdom, he had formed them." — William Henry Drayton, Chief Justice of South Carolina, Charge to the Court, April 2.3, 1776. "A Soldier" writes: "The whole series of divine dispensations, from the infant days of our fathers in America, are big with importance in her favor, and point to something great and good. If we look round the world, and view the nations with their various connections, interests, and dependencies, we shall see innumerable causes at work in favor of this growing country: Nature and Art seem to labor, and as it were travail, in birth to bring forth some glorious events that will astonish mankind and form a bright era in the annals of time." — Independent Chronicle, Oct. 17, 1776. "Look around the world, and you cannot find a country like this. Nature has been lavish of her bounties to America, as if the New World was to surpass the Old, and the glory of human nature was to receive its highest perfection near the setting sun. . . . America is more extensive in territory than all the states and kingdoms of Europe, is blessed with every climate, and situated for the commerce of the world ; and, according to the best computations, in the course of one century the United BIRTH OF THE NATION. 463 It is n^^t easy to select and compress into a small space such facts from the voluminous records of this period as will mark the stages of the growth of public opinion in favor of independence. The argument for it, viewed under the brilliant light of success, seems to-day to have been of commanding power : yet it was urged long before a majority would pronounce in its favor ; and, even at the last, una- nimity on it was far from having been obtained. A final separation from Great Britain was opposed by the Tories in solid phalanx, in the conviction that it was sure to be ruinous ; and they were strong in talent, character, social and official influence, and numbers. A large party in the Whig ranks, in the fear that anarchy would result from a change, were in favoi' of preserving the connection with the mother country, and down to the last moment they urged that the door of reconciliation was still open ; another por- tion had reached the conviction that a separation must take place, and were in favor of it, but held that the time for it ^had not come : and both classes comprehended characters held by that generation deservedly in respect, and by pos- terity in veneration. Then numbers, who took no decisive part in the struggle, were lukewarm : and this class are never to be overlooked in practical politics, for they are apt to veer to the side which they hope or expect will prove the strongest, and so turn the scale. Then there was the dis- position, especially in New York and the Southern colonies, to trust time to bring about a redress of grievances. It was much urged, also, that independence involved a landing in republicanism, as if to make this point clear were conclu- sive against the measure. Republican principles, since the "Revolution, had been loaded with obloquy in England ; and this feeling prevailed to no small extent in tlie colonies, particularly south of New England. It is scarcely just to State's will have sixty millions of people. No human mind can form an adequate idea of the millions whose happiness may depend on our virtue in this important crisis." — Boston Gazette, Feb. 10, 1777. 464 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. state the position of a party in the language of its opponents ; but a "Whig appeal in favor of independence gives the gist of the matter with which the journals teemed, stating the points urged against it in these words : " Intestine confu- sions, continual wars with each other, Republics, and Presbyterian governments compose the bugbear of the day ; and the very name of them frightens people more than the vhole force of Great Britain." As the popular leaders urged a dissolution of the bonds that connected the people with a monarchy, they sought not only to form local governments, but to establish a general govern- ment with a limited range of powers, to execute certain functions necessary to all, — or to form ties that would unite the people in a permanent political society, and combine the strength of the whole for the common defence. It was a grave question, whether the two objects of independence and a general government should be pressed at the same time. Some urged that, first, the colonies should abrogate royal authority, set up local governments, establish a constitution for the whole, form an alliance with France, and then they might safely venture to issue a declaration of independence. They held that the people should organize a general govern- ment before decreeing themselves a nation. Others, not less convinced of the necessity of a general government, bent their energies to the single work of bringing about an abrogation of royal authority in the several colonies, and a joint declaration of independence, relying for success on the fact and the strength of union. They were in favor of decreeing themselves a nation, in the faith that a general government would follow in course. Among the latter was Samuel Adams. He did not cease to urge a confederation; but after the reception of the king's proclamation, and the news of the fate of the second petition in November, he advocated a declaration of independence. In Congress, in private letters, and in the newspapers, he set forth this as the next step. This was the significance of BIRTH OF THE NATION. 465 tlie recommendation which Congress gave to New Hamp- shire, South Carolina, and Virginia to form local govern- ments. The advice was unaccompanied with any details as to methods, or any restrictions. It was looked upon as equivalent to revolution, and a step towards a declaration of independence. This decisive step roused into activity the opponents of independence. Of these John Dickinson was by far the most prominent, one of the few popular leaders w^io had a colonial reputation of so much influence as to constitute him a power. He had faith in the rights and liberties to be enjoyed in union with the mother country, but looked with doubt and trembling at the future which a premature sep- aration might bring. " The rescript to our petition," he said, " is written in blood. While we revere and love our country, her sword is opening our veins. France and Spain, if not other powers, long jealous of Britain's force and influ- ence, will fall upon her, embarrassed •with an exhausting pivil war, and crush, or at least depress her ; then turn their arms on these provinces, which must submit to wear their chains, or wade through seas of blood to a dear-bought and at best a frequently convulsed and precarious independ- ence." ^ He regarded the step as premature. His course met the approval of the Quakers, who now put forth an address for peace when the very air was hot with war, and pleaded for the avoidance of all such measures as were likely to widen or perpetuate the breach with the parent state.^ This influence was strong in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. In addition, there was the powerful element of the Proprietary interest, which sturdily resisted a change. This compact body of conservatism now made itself felt. •The Pennsylvania Assemljly (Nov. 9, 1775), mainly through the instrumentality of Dickinson,^ instructed its delegates 1 Letter, April 29, 1775. Life of Arthur Lee, ii. 311. 2 This "Address of the People called Quakers" is in the "Pennsylvania Packet" of Nov. 13, 1775. 8 Reed's Life of Reed, i. 155. 30 466 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. in Congress to endeavor to restore harmony between Great Britain and her colonies, using this language : " We strictly enjoin you, that you, in behalf of this colony, dissent from and utterly reject any propositions, should such be made, that may cause or lead to a separation from our mother country, or a change of the form of this government." The Assembly of New Jersey, on the 28th of November, used nearly the same language, directing their delegates " not to give theii* assent to, but utterly to reject, any propositions, if such should be made, that may separate this colony from the mother country, or change the form of the government thereof." ^ The Maryland Convention, which assembled on the 7th of December, ordered a "Declaration" to be entered on their journals, which averred that the people of that province " never did nor do entertain any views or desires of independency," and as they considered their unioh with the mother country " their highest felicity, so would they view the fatal necessity of separating from her as a misfor- tune next to the greatest that can befall them." The New York Provincial. Congress, on the 14th of December, de- clared that none of the people of that colony had withdrawn their allegiance, and that their turbulent state did not arise " from a desire to become independent of the British crown," but from " oppressive Acts," and " the hostile attempts of the ministry " to carry them into execution. ^ The Delaware 1 Governor Franklin, of New Jersey, in a speech to the Assembly, Nov. 16, 1775, states that His Majesty's squadrons had orders to proceed against any town raising troops, &c., and adds: "As sentiments of independency are by some men of present consequence openly avowed, and essays are already appearing in the public papers to ridicule the people's fears of that horrid measure, and remove their aversion to republican government, it is high time every man should know what he has to expect." The General Assembly in reply said: "We know of no sentiments of independency that are by men of any consequence openly avowed; nor do we approve of any essays tending to encourage such a measure. We have already expressed our detestation of such opinions." Franklin's speech is in the "Pennsyl- vania Evening Post " of Nov. 18, 1775. 2 The Provincial Congress of New York, on the 14th of December, 1775, — " Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Congress that none of the people of this colony have withdrawn their allegiance from His ^Majesty. " Resolved, That the supposed present turbulent state of this colony arises not from BIRTH OP THE NATION. 467 Assembly instructed its delegates to promote reconciliation, and shared the feeling of Pennsylvania. Thus, to counteract the movement begun in Congress, the governments of the Middle Colonies were arrayed in solid phalanx against the measure of independence. xin address of the North-Carolina Provincial Congress now appeared in the newspapers, which disclaimed in earnest terms the design of independence, and invoked the Almighty to attest " tliat it was their most earnest wish and prayer to be restored, with the other united colonies, to the state in which they were placed before the year 1763 ";i also instructions of the town of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to their delegates in the Provincial Congress (December 25), adverse to the formation of a local government, on the ground that it would furnish their enemies " with arguments to per- suade the good people there that we are aiming at indepen- dency, which we totally disavow." These expressions were in harmony with the past earnest avowals by individuals and public bodies, and especially with the declarations of the General Congress. An elaborate argument against separation, a little later, was fortified by an array of these disclaimers, representing that one-third of the inhabitants were on record in favor of reconciliation, without taking into account the disavowals of independence by Congress. These facts show how general the idea was that the popular party was opposing an administration, and not overturning a government. Notwithstandhig these disclaimers, the logic of events led directly to independence ; and from the memorable nine- the want of a proper attachment to our prince and the establishment of the illnstrious House of Hanover, nor from a desire to become independent of the British crown, or a spirit of opposition to that just and equal rule to which, by the British Constitution, and our ancient and established form, we are subject; but solely from the inroads made on both by the oppressive Acts of the British Parliament, devised for enslaving His Majesty's liege subjects in the American colonies, and the hostile attempts of the ministry to carry these Acts into execution." — New York Constitutional Gazette, Dec. 16, 1775. 1 The citation in the text is copied from the Address as printed in the Pennsyl- vania Packet" of Dec. 4, 1775. 468 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLTC. teeiitli of April the growth of the measure was steady. As early as October it was a favorite in the camp around Boston.^ The press of New England then circulated glow- ing appeals in its support.^ Before the close of the year the great step was more widely advocated. In North Carolina, a writer, criticising severely the action of the Pennsylvania Assembly, reasoned, that, " to become a happy, wealthy, powerful, and respectable people," it was necessary to declare " an immediate ijidependency, and open the ports to every European power except Great Britain." ^ Almost simul- taneously a writer in Massachusetts urged that " the con- curring circumstances in divine Providence make it a present duty, for laying the foundations of well-being for many gen- erations," that " The United Colonies " form themselves into " an independent constitution, or republic state."* One writer in Virginia argued that the time had come to cut the Gordian knot that bound the colonies to Great Britain,^ and another recommended the formation of " what might be called the Constitution of the United English Colonies." In the beginning of the memorable year seventeen hundred and seventy-six there was a public opinion in favor of inde- pendence in New England, and l)ut little more than individual preferences for it in the Middle or Southern Colonies. On New Year's Day Washington for the first time unfurled the Flag of the Thirteen Stripes as the flag of the United Colonies. To array this flag, as the symbol of national power, against the far-farjued banner of Saint George, involved great labor. It required time and patience to encourage the timid, to instruct the unenlightened, and above all to sur- mount prejudice. So deeply seated was the affection for the 1 Dr. Jeremy Belknap visited the camp in October, and in his journal of the 19th says: "I found that the plan of independence was become a favorite point in the army, and that it was offensive to pray for the king." — Life, p. 92. 2 See citations above, p. 452. 3 A British American, Deo. 28, 1775, in Force's Archives, 4th Series, iv. 470. * -Johannes in Eremo, dated Jan. 1, 1776, in "Essex Gazette." 6 Article in "Virginia Gazette" of January and "New-England Chronicle" of Februarv 1. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 469 mother country, that it required all the severe acts of war directed by an inexorable mhiistry and the fierce words from the throne to be made fully known throughout Americaj' before the majority of tl^e people could be persuaded to renounce their allegiance and assume the sovereignty. Jeiferson says that Samuel Adams was constantly holding caucuses of distinguished men, in which the measures to be pursued were generally determined upon, and their several parts were assigned to the actors who afterwards appeared in them ; ^ but he does not give the dates of these consulta- tions, or the names (with the exception of Richard Henry Lee) of the persons who attended them, nor tell precisely what was done there. He ascribed great influence to Samuel Adams in promoting the Revolution. His labors in the cause had been for years so unremitting, that it may be justly said of him, " His feet were ever in the stirrup, his lance ever in its rest." A goodly band were now with him in urging the measure of independence. A contemporary happily re- marks : " For a nation to be born, it required all the mighty efforts of those bold, wise, and noble-minded statesmen who adorned this era in the annals of tlieir country."^ The popular leaders who are found earliest identified with independence are Samuel Adams, John Adams, Joseph Hawley, Elbridge Gerry, James Sullivan, and James War- ren, of Massachusetts ; Matthew Thornton, of New Hamp- shire ; Nathaniel Greene and Samuel Ward, of Rhode Island ; Benjamin Rush and Benjamin Franklin, of Penn- sylvania ; Thomas McKean, of Delaware ; Samuel Chase, of Maryland ; Richard Henry Lee, George Wythe, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington, of Vir- ginia ; Cornelius Harnett, of North Carolina ; and Chris- topher Gadsden, of South Carolina. It is remarkable that the popular instinct kept so true to the cluster of Revo- lutionary statesmen. This remark is applicable not only to 1 Randair? Life of Jefferson, i. 182. 2 Eliot's Biographical Dictionarj', 13. 470 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the band of patriots just enumerated, but to others also whose names are household words. Through the entire struggle, the people sought out, held fast to, and rallied around greatness and virtue, and made these qualities sub- serve the public good. No outpourings of obloquy, no thick- ening peril, shook this noble trust. No gusts of feeling from temporary reverses moved them to seek new guides ; but as dangers multiplied, confidenee strengthened. And so it was that out of rare public virtue grew our great repub- lican government. One of the earliest advocates for a declaration of inde- pendence was Nathaniel Greene, a noble representative of the sentiment of the army around Boston. Besides previous suggestion, he wrote on the 4th of January: "Permit me to recommend from the sincerity of my heart, ready at all times to bleed in my country's cause, a declaration of inde- pendence, and call upon the world, and the great God who governs it, to witness the necessity, propriety, and rectitude thereof. My worthy friend, the interests of mankind hang upon that truly worthy body of which you are a member. You stand the representatives not of America only, but of the whole world, the friends of liberty and the supporters of the rights of human nature. How will posterity, millions yet unborn, bless the memory of those brave patriots who are now hastening the consummation of truth, freedom, and religion !"i Three days later (January 7) Samuel Adams, urging not only independence, but confederation, wrote: "It [confederation] is not dead, but sleepeth. "While I am writ- ing, an express has come in that the ships-of-war were can- nonnading Norfolk. This will prevail more than a long train of reasoning to accomplish a confederation, and other matters which I know your heart as well as mine is much set upon." ^ 1 Greene's entire letter, dated from the camp on Prospect Hill, and addressed to SamTiel Ward, member of Congress, is in Force's Archives, 4th Series, iv. 572. He had -written to William B. Greene, Dec. 20, 1775, "We are now driven to the neces- sity of making a declaration of independence." 2 Letter to James Warren, MS. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 471 On receiving the king's speech, he wrote: "The tyrant! his speech breathes the most malevolent spirit. ... I have heard that he is his own minister : why, then, should we cast the odium of distressing mankind upon his minions ? Guilt must lie at his door : divine vengeance will fall on his head." ^ On seeing the instructions of the town of Ports- mouth, he wrote : " What have we to expect from Britain but chains and slavery ? I hope we shall act the part which the great law of Nature points out. It is high time that we should assume that character which, I am sorry to find, the capital of your colony has publicly and expressly disavowed. It is my most fervent prayer to a mighty God that He would direct and prosper the councils of America, inspire her armies with true courage, . . . and lead them on to victory and triumph." 2 Washington soon urged shaking off the connec- tion with Great Britain, using words " as clear as the sun in its meridian brightness." ^ One of these pioneers, Benjamin Rush, a physician of cul- ture and public spirit, was much pleased with a piece in favor of the abolition of slavery, written by Thomas Paine, an Englishman. Bred in a Quaker family, on being dis- missed, at nearly forty years of age, from his office of exciseman, Paine emigrated to America. He arrived here in December, 1774, bearing a letter from Franklin, which procured him employment, first in the service of a book- seller, and soon after as editor of the " Pennsylvania Maga- zine." Imbued with the republican ideas of Milton and Sidney, though without the elevation of their reverence and Christian faith, he became convinced of the justice and great- ness of the American cause, which, he said, "in a great measure was the cause of all mankind." Rush having 1 Letter quoted by Bancroft, viii. 242. 2 Letter to General James Sullivan, Jan. 12, 1776, MS. On the subject of the New-Hampshire instructions, Samuel Adams, Jan. 12 and 15, wrote to John Adams, who was then at Braintree, "I wish, if it be not too late, that jou would write your sentiments," &c. — John Adams's Works, ix. 371. 3 Sparks's Writings of Washington, iii. 286. 472 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. called ou him, and suggested that he should prepare a work on separation, he forthwith began to write, and as he pro- ceeded, read the sheets to his adviser: they were also submitted to Franklin and Samuel Adams. The work, at the further suggestion of Rush entitled "Common Sense," ^ was published on the 9th of January, in a pamphlet of forty- four pages, announcing itself as " written by an English- man," and " addressed to the inhabitants of America." The matter is arranged under the four heads " Of the origin and design of government in general, with concise remarks on the English Constitution " ; "Of monarchy and hereditary succession" ; "Thoughts on the present state of military affairs " ; and " Of the present ability of America, with some miscellaneous reflections." The portion on Gov- ernment has little of permanent value, the glance at the English Constitution is superficial, and the attack on Mon- archy is coarse. This division commences with affirming that mankind were originally equals in the order of creation. The treatment of the American question, under the twoO^t'^ heads, gave the pamphlet its celebrity. The following selections from " Common Sense " may serve to show how it presented the American race, their union, their call to take independent rank as a nation, and their duty to establish a general government. " I offer nothing more than simple facts, plain arguments, and common sense. The period of debate is closed. Arms, as the last recourse, decide the contest. The appeal was the choice of the king, and the continent hath accepted the chal- lenge." " The sun never shined on a cause of greater worth. 1 Benjamin Rush to James Cheatham, July"17, 1809. Cheatham's Life of Paina, 34. Rush says: "I called upon Mr. Paine, and suggested to him the propriety of preparing our citizens for a perpetual separation of our countrj' from Great Britain, by means of a work of such length as would obviate all the objections to it. He seized the idea with avidity, and immediately began his famous pamphlet in favor of that measure. He read the sheets to me at my house, as he composed them. I advised him to put them into the hands of Dr. Franklin, Samuel Adams, and the late Judge Wilson." BIRTH OP THE NATION. 473 'Tis not the aflfair of a city, a county, a province, or a king- dom, but of a continent, — of at least one-eighth part of the habitable globe. 'Tis not the concern of a day, a year, or an age : posterity are virtually involved in the contest, and will be more or less affected, even to the end of time, by the proceedings now. Now is the seed-time of continental union, faith, and honor. The least fracture now will be like a name engraved with the point of a pin on the tender rind of a young oak : the wound will enlarge with the tree, and posterity read it in full-grown characters." " By referring the matter from argument to arms, a new era for politics is struck, a new method of thinking has arisen. All plans, proposals, &c., prior to the 19th of April, — i.e., to the commencement of hostilities, — are like the alma- nacs of the last year, which, though proper then, are super- seded and useless now." " Britain is the parent country, say some. Then the more shame for her conduct. Europe, not England, is the parent country of America. This New World hath been the asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty from every part of Europe. The same tyranny which drove the first emigrants from home pursues their descendants still. We claim brotherhood with every European Christian, and triumph in the generosity of the sentiment." " I challenge the warmest advocate for reconciliation to shew a single advantage that this continent can reap by being connected with Great Britain. Everything that is right or reasonable pleads for separation. The blood of the slain, the weeping voice of Nature cries, 'Tis time to part. Even the distance at which the Almighty hath placed Eng- land and America is a strong and natural proof that the authority of the one over the other was never the design of Heaven. Men of passive tempers look somewhat lightly over the offences of Britain, and, still hoping for the best, are apt to call out, ' Come, come ! we shall be friends again for all this.' But examine the passions and feelings of mankind, 474 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. bring the doctrine of reconciliation to the touchstone of Nature, and then tell me whether you can hereafter love, honor, and faithfully serve the power that hath carried fire and sword into your land? If you cannot do all these, then are you only deceiving yourselves, and by your delay bring- ing ruin on posterity. But if you say you can pass the violations over, then I ask. Hath your house been burnt ? hath your property been destroyed before your face ? have you lost a parent or child by their hands, and yourself the ruined and wretched survivor ? If you have not, then you are not a judge of those who have. But if you have, and can still shake hands with the murderer, then are you unworthy the name of husband, father, friend, or lover; and, whatever may be your rank and title in life, you have the heart of a coward and the spirit of a sycophant. 'Tis not in the power of England or of Europe to conquer America, if she doth not conquer herself by delay and timidity. The present winter is worth an age, if rightly employed, — but if lost or neglected, the whole continent will partake of the misfortune." " But the most powerful of all arguments is, that nothing but independence — i.e., a continental form of government — can keep the peace of the continent, and preserve it inviolate from civil wars. The general temper of the colonies toward a British government will be like that of a youth who is nearly out of his time : they will care very little about her. And a government that cannot preserve the peace is no government at all. I have heard some men say that they dreaded independence, fearing that it would produce civil wars. The colonies have manifested such a spirit of good order and obedience to continental government as is sufficient to make every reasonable person easy and happy on that head. If there is any true cause for fear respecting inde- pendence, it is because no plan is yet laid down. As there is a peculiar delicacy from whom or in what manner this business must first arise, let a continental conference be held. Let their business be to frame a continental charter. 4 BIRTH OF THE NATION. 475 or charter of the United Colonies (answering to what is called the Magna Charta of England), fixing the number and maimer of choosing members of Congress, members of Assembly, with their date of sitting, and drawing the line of business and jurisdiction between them ; alway remembering that our strength and happiness is continental, not provin- cial ; securing freedom and property to all men, and, above all things, the free exercise of religion according to the dic- tates of conscience." " All men allow the measure, and vary only in their opin- ion of the time. The time hath found us. The general concurrence, the glorious union of all things, prove the fact. 'Tis not in numbers, but in unity, that our great strength lies ; yet our present numbers are sufficient to repel the force of all the world. Debts we have none ; and whatever we may contract on this account will serve as a glorious memento of our virtue. Can we but leave posterity with a settled form of government, an independent constitution of its own, the purchase at any price will be cheap. Nothing but continental authority can regulate continental matters. Youth is the seed-time of good habits, as well in nations as in individuals. It might be difficult, if not impossible, to form the continent into one government half a century hence. The vast variety of interests occasioned by an in- crease of trade and population would create confusion. Colony would be against colony. Each being able would scorn the other's assistance ; and while the proud and foolish gloried in their little distinctions, the wise would lament that the union had not been formed before. Wherefore the present time is the true time to establish it. The present time, likewise, is that peculiar time which never happens to a nation but once in the time of forming itself into a government." " Under our present denomination of British subjects," are the closing words, " we can neither be received nor heard abroad : the custom of all courts is against us, and will be 476 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. SO until by an independence we take rank with other na- tions. These proceedings may at first appear strange and difficult, but, like all other steps which we have passed over, will in a little time become familiar and agreeable ; and until independence is declared, the continent will feel itself like a man who continues putting off some unpleasant busi- ness from day to day, yet knows it must be done, hates to set about it, wishes it over, and is continually haunted with the thoughts of its necessity." However crude may be the conception both of local and general constitutions, the presentation of the argument for independence was strong. The author wrote in a plain and nervous style, and used homely and even coarse illustra- tions. He had a genius for handling the " torch for burn- ing," and there is a wild fire in his work. It was read by a pcjple prepared to listen to a plea addressed through their lacerated feelings to their manhood. Never was a political a^)peal more generally welcomed or more cordially indorsed. Edition upon edition was called for. "It did wonders-, worked miracles." " Thousands," says Ramsay, " were converted by it, and were led to long for a separation from tlie mother country." ^ ^ " Common Sense, -written by an Englishman," -was advertised in the "Penn- sylvania Evening Post" of Jan. 9, 1776, as published that day by Robert Bell, Third Street, Philadelphia. On the 20th Bell advertised a new edition, in subsequent advertisements termed the second. The words "written by an Englishman" are left out in this edition. On the 17th of February he announced "Additions to Common Sense," on the 20th advertised as " Large Additions." Two of these, signed "Candidus" and "Sincerus," were written bj' Samuel Adams, and copied from the newspapers. The third edition, also printed by Bell, has the following title- page: "Common Sense: with the Whole Appendix: the Address to the Quakers: also the Large Additions, and a Dialogue between the Ghost of General Montgomery just arrived from the Elysian Fields and an American Delegate, in a Wood near Philadelphia, on the Grand Subject of American Independency. Philadelphia. Sold bj' R. Bell, 1776." pp. 147. The Dialogue at the end makes sixteen pages, and is furnished with a separate title-page which serves also for a cover to this piece in a separate pamphlet. Meantime, on the 25th of January W. & T. Bradford announce the preparation of a new edition of "Common Sense," "with large and interesting additions by the Author, as will be expressed at the time of publication, among which will be a seasonable and friendly admonition to the people called Quakers. They state that J BIRTH OF THE NATION. 477 The great question was now discussed at every fireside, and tlie favorite toast at every dinner-table was, " May the independent principles of ' Common Sense ' be confirmed throughout the United Colonies." ^ It was pronounced over the remains of Warren, that his spirit forbade a continuance of the connection with a country which had forfeited every claim of kindred.- It was declared as the voice of Mont- gomery, that God did not awaken the attention of all Europe, of the whole world, nay, of angels themselves, to the present controversy, without a purpose ; that the country teemed with patriots, heroes, and legislators impatient to burst into light, and that the decree had gone forth that Great Britain and America were distinct empires.^ It was said to a people trained under Christian influences, who "several hundreds are already bespoke, one thousand for Virginia"; also that a German edition was in press. This advertisement had a card, addressed "To the Public," stating that the publisher of the first edition was expressly directed by the author not to proceed to issue a new one. This was the beginning of an angry paper war between the two parties. On the 20th of February the edition announced by Bradford was advertised as follows: "The new edition of ' Common Sense,' with additions and improvements in the body of the work: to which is added an appendix and an address to the people called Quakers. N.B. The additions which are here given amount to upwards of one-third of any former edition." This is a pamphlet of fifty pages. It has the following P.S. : " The publication of this new edition hath been delayed, with a view of taking notice (had it been necessary) of any at- tempt to refute the doctrine of Independence. As no answer hath yet appeared, it is now presumed that none will; the time needful for getting such a performance ready for the public being considerably past. Who the author of this production is is wholl}' unnecessary to the public, as the object of attention is the doctrine, not the man. Yet it may not be unnecessary to say, that he is unconnected with any party, and under no sort of influence, public or private, but the influence of reason and principle." Philadelphia, Feb. 14, 1776. An answer, "Plain Truth," was adver- tised in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post " of March 14. " Common Sense " was reprinted, in 1776, in Boston, Salem, Newburyport, Provi- dence, Newport, Norwich, New York, Charleston, copies of these several editions being still extant in libraries in Massachusetts. It was probably reprinted in other places. It was reprinted in London, and extracts from it are in the " London Chronicle " of May 30, 1776. The Additions also were reprinted, and one side of the issue of that journal of June 29 is filled with extracts from them. It was printed in 1776 in Edinburgh. In 1792, an edition in London is called the ninth. It was reprinted in 1817. Chasms occur in the English editions, as the reflections on the king and government could not have been printed without hazard. It was reprinted likewise in France. 1 New-England Chronicle. 2 Oration by Perez Morton, April 8, 1776. 8 Paine's Dialogue. 478 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. habitually looked upward in eveiy form of supplication, that the spirit which actuated the United Colonies " was as much from God as the descent of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost, and was introductory to something great and good to mankind." ^ The issue was of a nature to rouse passion, alarm wealth, and stir society to its depths. In each colony, the friends and opponents of independence, animated at tunes by intem- perate as well as by judicious zeal, hurled against each other the usual weapons of partisan strife, poisoned by the hatred and revenge engendered by civil war. With the Whigs it was not yet a test question, and they were divided on it : while the political leaders advocating it were uniformly veterans in their ranks. The Tories, of course, vehemently opposed independence ; while Whigs, held in the highest regard took the character of conservatives, and were recog- nized by those of the opposite party as their leaders on this question. These strange affinities, and the fearful rising of the political waves, became a source of painful anxiety. Washington expressed deep concern lest the prevailing divisions and parties should prove the ruin of the American cause.^ The divisions, however, were not geographical. They did not grow out of provincial or temporary questions. They concerned the rights of human nature, as well as the question of American independence, and formed the basis for a noble homogeneity ; and the intermingling in each of the thirteen colonies of the adherents of two great parties, devoted to the cause they mutually supported, and placing its fortunes uppermost, served to lift their thoughts and affections from things merely provincial, to concentrate 1 Article in the "New-England Chronicle." 2 Letter to Joseph Reed, April 15, 1776. He writes: "I am exceedingly con- cerned to hear of the divisions and parties which prevail with you, and in the Southern colonies, on the score of independence. . . . Nothing but disunion can hurt our cause. This will ruin it, if great prudence, temper, and moderation are not mixed in our councils, and made the governing principle of the contending parties." — Sparks's Washington, iii. 357. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 479 them on vital ideas, and to unite them in the bonds of a common sentiment and object. In the case of the Whigs, the very intensity of the feeling on so grand an issue as independence, tended to ennoble and strengthen their union. "The Republicans are the nation," remarked Jefferson ; and this may be designated as the period during which a people of living faith in the republican idea were determining to be a nation. The contemporary authorities relating to the growth of the national sentiment become now of peculiar interest. I have examined much of this material in manuscript and in print. I have not met, down to this date, the proposal by a Whig to decree the existence of thirteen nations, or to seek refuge in a monarchy or in imperialism, much less to hawk about an offer of American sovereignty amqng foreign powers.^ The purpose uniformly expressed is, to rely on the resolution and virtue of thirteen free communities, their power if united, and their ability to bind their union with the cement of law and government. A few citations may serve to show the political aim and tone. In by far the most famous publication of the time, " Common Sense," it was urged that nothing short of a continental government could insure domestic peace ; and this publication was indorsed by zealous Whigs from Massa- chusetts to the Carolinas.2 A New- York writer, in enforcing 1 Governor Pownal, Dec. 2, 1777, in a speech in the House of Commons, said of the Americans: "They are determined to maintain their independence at all events. The Dutch, in their distress, hawked about the offer of the sovereigntj- of their country. They offered it to the Duke of Anjou, they offered it to Henry the Third of France, they offered it to Elizabeth of England; but the Americans will never offer that of their country to any power on earth." This was printed in the "London General Advertiser," Dec. 6, 1777. 2 A note on page 476 contains statements relating to the editions of " Common Sense" The evidence of its effect is abundant. A few extracts will show how it was received in different sections of the country: — "New-England Chronicle," of March 28, 1776, copies the appendix to "Common Sense," written by Paine, with the following remarks: "The public in general having read, and (excepting a few timid Whigs and disguised Tories) loudly applauded that truly excellent pamphlet, entitled ' Common Sense,' our readers will doubtless be pleased with the following appendix," &c. The " Boston Gazette," 480 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the importance of establishing government local and general, regarded the internal polity of the colonies so different, that uniformity among them in this matter could not be expected ; " though," he said, " it would be happy if they might agree in all essential particulars, as it would tend to cement their union and make them coalesce as one continental body politic." And he urged that each colony should be left to form its own internal polity, but that there should be " a solemn stipulation or confederation of all the colonies, to endure until time shall be no more." ^ A Virginian rea- soned that, unless Great Britain repealed the obnoxious acts and reimbursed America for her losses, the war ought to go on until the colonies were acknowledged a free and independ- ent republic.^ One member of the convention of this colony argued .that, if any government were formed, it should be the best that could be obtained ; ^ another, that April 29, 1776, has the following: "Had the spirit of prophecy directed the birth of a publication, it could not have fallen upon a more fortunate period than the time in which 'Common Sense' made its appearance. The minds of men are now swal- lowed up in attention to an object the most momentous and important that ever yet employed the deliberations of a people." Kew York, March 22. ".4. pamphlet entitled 'Common Sense' has converted thousands to independence that could not endure the idea before." — Almon's Remem- brancer, iii. 87. It IS stated in the " New- York Gazette," April 8, that " the subject of conversation throughout America for these few weeks past hath been excited by a pamphlet called 'Common Sense.' " A Philadelphia letter of March 12 says: " ' Common Sense ' is read to all ranks; and as many as read, so many become converted ; though perhaps the hour before were most violent against the least idea of independence." — Almon's Remem- brancer, iii. 31. The '• Pennsylvania Evening Post " of Feb. 13, 1776, contains a letter from Mary- land, dated February 6, which saj^s : "If you know the author of Common Sense,' tell him he has done wonders and worked miracles, made Tories Whigs, and washed blackamores white. He has made a great number of converts here." The same 'paper of March 26 contains a letter dated Charleston, February 14, which says: " Who is the author of ' Common Sense ' ? I can scarce refrain from adoring him. He deserves a statue of gold." A letter dated Georgetown, South Carolina, March 17, 1776, says: " ' Common Sense ' hath made independents of the majority of the coun- try, and Gadsden is as mad with it as he ever was without it " — Proceedings of Massachusetts Historical Society, 1869, 1870. 254. 1 This essay is dated March 21, 1776. Force's American Archives, 4th Series. V. 450. 2 A planter, April 6, 1776 Ibid., 798. 8 Letter dated Feb. 25, 1776, he writes: "Some people among us seem alarmed BIRTH OP THE NATION. 481 a uniform plan prepared by Congress and approved by the colonies " would be a surer foundation for harmony than for each colony to form its own government." ^ A Connec- ticut writer said, that an American state or empire was much talked of, which was to be formed of colonies heretofore independent of each other ; and was in favor of a " con- federation, covenant, or compact," limiting " the power of their head or congress," without infringing the rights of any. He thought that with a declaration of independence, such a covenant would be as necessary as their political existence.^ A Philadelphia writer, in an elaborate essay, averred that the true principles of republicanism were so well understood, and the mode of conducting such government so simple, and America so fit for its reception, that it would be easy to form a plan for the United Colonies which " would as much exceed any now existing as the British Constitution does that of Caffraria ; " and he could not help cherishing a secret hope that " God had destined America to form the last and best plan that could possibly exist, and that He would gradually carry those who had been long under the galling yoke of tyranny in every other quarter of the globe into the bosom of perfect liberty and freedom in America." ^ Franklin alone of the popular leaders submitted to Con- gress a plan for a confederation.* Others, however, ex- at the idea of independence, while they support measures and propose plans that comprehend the spirit of it. . . . Are we not criminal in the sight of Britain for what we have done. ... If we institute any government, let it be the best we can. We shall as certainly be hanged for a bad as for a good one ; for they will allow nothing for the waverings of filial tenderness." — Pennsylvania Journal, April 3, 1776. 1 Richard Lee. John Adams's Works, ix. 374. 2 This essay is dated May 9, 1776. Force's Archives, 4th Series, vi. 399. 8 Xhe citations are from an elaborate article addressed " To the People of North America on the Different Kinds of Government," in the "Pennsylvania Journal" of March 13, 1776, signed " Salus Populi." ■* Franklin in Januarj' endeavored to get a day fixed for the consideration of his plan, but he was opposed by Hooper and Dickinson, and they prevailed. — Bancroft, viii. 245. One side of the " Pennsylvania Evening Post " of March 5, 1776, is filled with '' Proposals for a Confederation of the United Colonies." It contains seven arti- cles. Taxation was to be levied by the assemblies. The colonies, by their assem- 31 482 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. pressed in general terms their convictions of the necessity of establishing a government. Samuel Adams was in favor of formiiig " one government with the consent of the whole, — a distinct state composed of all the colonies, with a common legislature for great and general purposes." John Adams stated, as the teaching of the school of Milton, the proposi- tion that there was no good government but the republican ; and he held that each colony ought to mould its own internal government, and that the colonies ought to form " a conti- nental constitution for the whole." Joseph Hawley, in a series of noble letters addressed to members of the Con- gress, urged the formation of " an American supreme government wisely devised and designed, well established and settled," and suggested that there should be a legis- lature with two branches ; remarking that " without such a government the colonies would be always like a rope of sand, but, with this well done, invincible." Patrick Henry was in favor of forming a confederation before making a declaration of independence ; and John Dickinson persisted in maintaining that the formation of a general government, complete in all its parts, ought to precede an assumption by the people of their station among sovereigns. The voluminous record thus glanced at, the anonymous utterances of the press, and the general views of distin- guished leaders, may be said to embody the results of a discussion of fundamental politics covering fifteen years (1761-1776) ; for the intellectual life of the colonies during this period spent itself mainly on this noble theme. " There had been excited," a British historian remarks, " a spirit of inquiry and discussion into the rights of human nature and society at large, such as had never been exceeded, if ever blies or conventions, were to ratify it before it should be valid. It is said, " The Xew-England colonies, by many years' experience, found great advantages by a confederation, in carrjang on their wars with the Indians, in treating with neigh- boring colonies settled under other States, and in adjusting and settling matters among themselves." This is copied in the " Boston Gazette " of April 22. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 488 equalled, in any country in Christendom." ^ The results of this discussion warrant the statement, that the conviction had become general, that the civilization which had been planted in America demanded for its future a common country ; and that the sentiment of nationality and the ideal of a repub- lican government were correlative in their development. A pressure on Congress to make a declaration of inde pendence began in November, soon after the circulation of the memorable proclamation of the king, declaring the patriots in rebellion ; but a strong party opposed this step. They had John Dickinson as their most distinguished leader, who carried with him patriots of the juridical learn- ing of James Wilson, the culture and purity of John Jay, the sturdy zeal of the Livingstons, and the noble integrity of Robert Morris. This party consisted of a few delegates from New England, the greater number from the Middle Colonies, and about half of the Southern delegation, includ- ing two delegates from Virginia. They, generally, looked upon the proposed step as premature ; Morris averring that it would dissolve the Union. Wilson, on receiving the king's speech charging the Americans with aiming at inde- pendent empire, moved the appointment of a committee to frame an address to meet this allegation. The motion alarmed Samuel Adams. He succeeded in having the sub- ject postponed, though he could not prevent a day being assigned to consider it.^ Wilson was not opposed to inde- pendence, but desired that the puljlic mind should first become ripe for it, and that the people should confer on their repre- sentatives the power to act on so great a question. He submitted (February 13) an address designed to prepare the way for a separation. " We deem it an honor," are its words, "to have raised troops and collected a naval force, and, clothed with the authority of the people, from whom all legitimate authority proceeds, to have exercised legislative, 1 Andrews's History of the War, ii. 183. 2 Wells's Life of Samuel Adams, ii. 358. 484 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. executive, and judicial powers, . . Though an independent empire is not our wish, it may be the fate of our country- men. . . . That the colonies may continue connected, as they have been, with Britain, is our second wish : our first is, that America may be free." ^ The majority of the members, however, were opposed to any disclaimer of sep- aration, and in this probably reflected the public sentiment. The address was withdrawn. Eight days later Congress refused to pass a vote of thanks to Doctor Smith, the provost of the college in Philadelphia, for his eulogy on General Montgomery, because he represented Congress to be in favor of continuing in a state of dependence on Great Britain. ^ The party in favor of independence had Samuel Adams at their head. He had with him nearly all the New-England members, a few from the Middle Colonies, the greater number from Virginia, and one-half of the other Southern members.^ This party received (February 9) an important accession in the election in Massachusetts of Elbridge Gerry in the place of Gushing. Gerry had long been a zealous, trustworthy, and efficient laborer in the cause at home, and in Congress he became a hearty co-worker with the Adamses, his life-long friends. The journals of Congress, during the period from Decem- ber to June, consist mainly of records of the military and financial transactions which the exigencies of the times required. The powers exercised were revolutionary in their nature. Among the measures adopted were certain high acts of sovereignty, considered essential to secure the object for which the Congress was called, — namely, the protection of American rights ; and they were justified on the ground of necessity. These measures were in the spirit of independ- ence, and led directly to it ; but there is no allusion to this question in the journals. • 1 Rives's Life and Times of James Madison, ii. 282. 2 Bancroft, viii. 315. 8 Interesting statements relative to parties in Congress at this period may be found in the Life and Works of John Adams, i. 212. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 485 Congress aimed to enlarge the Union. A committee — Jolin Adams, George Wythe, and Roger Sherman — re- ported ill favor of saying to the Canadians that, on joining the Union, " they might set up such a government as would most likely produce their happiness." This proposition was opposed by Jay and others on the ground that it was an independency. The report, however, was accepted.^ Frank- lin. Samuel Chase, and Charles Carroll of Carrolton, — a bolil and feai'less patriot of large culture and independent fortune, not yet a member of Congress, — were appointed commissioners to proceed to Canada and communicate the invitation. Their instructions authorize a tender to the Canadians of the protection of the Union on the basis of an intercommunication of rights, civil and religious,^ — an application of the principle of equality between the colonies in the Union, which was scrupulously recognized in the revo- lutionary period, and which became one of the fundamental principles of the American polity. Congress ordered the Tories to be disarmed. Samuel Adams was zealous in urging this measure. The first action (January 6) was liberal, and to the effect that the honest and well-meaning, who had been misled by the arts of minis- terial agents, ought to be treated with kindness and modera- tion ; but that the unworthy, who, regardless of their duty to their Creator, their country and posterity, opposed the meas- ures formed to preserve American liberty, ought to be dis- armed, and the more dangerous be kept in close custody or to give sureties for their good behavior. Subsequently (March 14) the assemblies, conventions, and committees of safety were advised to disarm all persons who refused to associate for the defence of the United Colonies. The advice was 1 Bancroft, viii. 319 2 The instructions are in the Journals of Congress under the date of March 20, 1776. The commissioners were directed to explain to the Canadians the method of the United Colonies "of collecting the sense of the people and (onducting their atfairs regularly." 486 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. resolutely followed. This measure, a statesman remarks, never received the attention it deserved.^ Congress authorized the equipment of privateers. Frank- lin thought that this measure ought to be preceded by a declaration of war, as of one independent nation against another; 2 but the majority were not ready for this stand. The declaration (March 28) which accompanied the resolves cited as a justification a recent Act of Parliament, forbidding all trade and commerce with the inhabitants of the Uiiited Colonies, and making their property when found upon the water liable to seizure. The resolves authorize the iiihab- itants to fit out armed vessels to cruise against their enemies, prescribe the forms of the commissions, provide for the establishment of admiralty courts and of rules for the distri- bution of prizes. In cases in the Supreme Court, growing out of captures under the commissions that were issued, the plea was made that there was no competent authority to issue these commissions; but the court ruled that the Con- gress had this power, because it was acquiesced in by the majority of the people in every colony.^ Congress ordered the ports to be thrown open to all nations. This policy was suggested very early in the strug- gle, was advocated in the press for years, and at length was formally proposed by the Virginia Convention. To-day it seems to have been obviously required : then nothing seems to have been more difficult. The lion in the path was 1 Daniel Webster. Address before the New-York Historical Society, 1852, p. 41. 2 Bancroft, viii. 320. 8 The opinion of the Supreme Court (1795) in this case contains the following: — " Congress was the general, supreme, and controlling council of the nation, the centre of union, the centre of force, and the sun of the political system. To determine what their powers were we must Inquire what powers they exercised. Congress raised armies, fitted out a navy, received and sent ambassadors, and made treaties ; Congress commissioned privateers to cruise against the enemy, directed what vessels should be liable to capture, and prescribed rules for the distribution of prizes. These liigh acts of sovereignty were submitted to, acquiesced in, and approved of, by the people of America. In Congress were vested, because by Congress were exercised with the approbation of the people, tlie rights and powers of war and peace." Penhallow v. Doane's Adminis- trators, Curtis's Decisions, 1. 87. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 487 attachment to the mother country and the vain hope of reconciliation, — the same sentiment that led to the fatal policy of short enlistments in the army. This fact appears in the debates. Harrison said: "They had hobbled along under a fatal attachment to Great Britain. I felt it," he said, " as much as any man, but I feel a stronger attachment to my country." Wythe, in referring to the idea of inviting foreigners to enter into treaties, asked : " In what character shall we treat ? As subjects of Great Britain ? As rebels ? Why should we be so fond of calling ourselves dutiful sub- jects ? If we should offer our trade to the court of France, would they take notice of it any more than if Bristol or Liverpool should offer theirs, while we profess to be sub- jects ? No. We must declare ourselves a free people." ^ To open the ports was to strike a blow at British acts of navigation. It was to wound England in her sorest place. " Open your ports to foreigners," a member said : " your trade will become of so much consequence that foreigners will protect you." The sketch of the debate on this subject is meagre, but it is sufficient to show that the proposal was severely contested : though introduced into Congress on the 12th of January, it was not disposed of until the 6tli of April. The result was embodied in a series of elaborate resolves. One provided that no slaves should be imported into the United Colonies ; and another, that certain powers relative to trade, exercised by the local committees of inspection and safety, should cease.^ Congress dealt with foreign powers. In December their secret committee of correspondence addressed letters to Arthur Lee in London, and Charles Dumas at the Hague, requesting them to ascertain the disposition of European courts respecting America, enjoining great circumspection and secrecy.^ They hoped the most favor from France. 1 Works of John Adams, ii. 486. 2 The Resolves of Congress, of April 6, signed "By order of Congress, John Hancock," were immediately printed. 8 The Life of Arthur Lee (i. 53) contains the letter to Lee copied from the origmal 488 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Some, however, were opposed to applying for aid to the ancient enemy of England. Their feeling was expressed in a declaration by Dr. Zubly, of Georgia. " A proposal," he said, " has been made to apply to France and Spain. T apprehend the man who would propose it [to his constit- uents] would be torn in pieces like De Witt." ^ Three months after these words were spoken in Congress, an emis- sary, M. de Bouvouloir, sent by Vergennes, appeared in Philadelphia, held secret conferences with the committee, and assured them that France was well disposed to aid the colonies on just and equitable conditions.^ A few weeks later the committee appointed Silas Deane commercial agent for Europe, mainly to procure military supplies, but he was instructed (March 3) to say to Vergennes that " there was a great appearance that the colonies would come to a total separation ; " that France was looked upon as the power whose friendship they would most desire to cultivate ; and he was instructed to inquire whether, " if the colonies should be forced to form themselves into an independent state," France would acknowledge them as such and receive their ambassadors.^ Here the committee, in the beginning of their intercourse with foreign nations, desired it to be under- stood that the colonies would treat as one political power, — - an idea in harmony with the action of the colonies with regard to England.'* MSS. in the handwriting of Franklin. It is dated Dec. 12, 1775, and was signed by Franklin, Dickinson, and Jay. 1 Works of John Adams, ii. 459. 2 De Witt's Jefferson and The American Democracy, 388. This work, printed in 1862, contains abstracts of the correspondence between the French ministers, Duke de Choiseul and Count Vergennes, and the French diplomatic agents on American affairs. De Bouvouloir says that the committee met him at an appointed place after dark, each going to it by a ditferent road. S'Sparks's Diplomatic Correspondence, i. 5. ■^ Governor Dunmore, on board a British ship in Elizabeth River, addressed Jan. 27, 1776, a letter to Richard Corbin, tendering his services to Virginia " to procure, by any means that should be thought most advisable and honorable, permanent, speedy, and happy reconciliation between this colony and its parent state." Corbin referred this letter to the committee of safetj', who returned an answer through Edmund Pen- dleton. Referring to the last petition of the Continental Congress, they say: "If BIRTH OF THE NATION. 489 The growing feeling in favor of independence in Congress is indicated in a proclamation (March 16) appointing a day for a general fast. They invoked Almighty God " to bless their civil rulers and the representatives of the people in their several assemblies and conventions, to preserve and strengthen their union, and to direct them to the most efficacious measures for establishing the rights of the people on the most honorable and permanent basis." This tone was in marked contrast to that of a similar proclamation in the previous June, when Congress implored God " to bless our rightful sovereign George III." ; an indication of progress that did not pass unnoticed.^ The important measures just glanced at, were those of a substantially independent government. In April the inquiry was made of Franklin, " When is the Continental Congress by general consent to be formed into a supreme legislature? " Franklin replied, " Nothing seems wanting but that general consent. The novelty of the thing deters some ; the doubt of success, others; the vain hope of reconciliation, many. Every day furnishes us with new causes of unceasing enmity and new reasons for wishing an eternal separation ; so that there is a rapid increase of the formerly small party who were for an independent government." ^ The steps of Samuel Adams — certainly the foremost of the popular leaders in urging independence — may be followed almost daily in the grand service he was rendering the country. " Why," he reasoned on the 2d of April, " why not declare for independence. Because, say some, it will for ever shut the door of reconciliation. Upon what terms will Britain be reconciled to America. . . . She will be reconciled upon our abjectly submitting to tyranny, and receiving pardon for administration are disposed to heal this unnatural wound in the empire, they will embrace that occasion, which probably will be the last, for accomplishing it. At all events, any other steps to be taken must proceed from the representatives of the con- tmeut, not from us." — Remembrancer, ii. 358. 1 In Almon's Remembrancer for 1776 (vol. iii. 176) the two proclamations are contrasted. 2 Franklin to Josiah Quincy, April 15, 1776. Sparks's Works, vol. viii. 181. 490 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. submitting to it. Will this redound to the honor or safety of America." ^ On the 16th he expressed indignation at the plea for the postponement of independence, on the ground that commissioners were on their way with new terms, saying: " The salvation of the country depends on its being done speedily. I am anxious to have it done. Every day's delay tries my patience. . . . We are told that com- missioners are coming to offer us such terms as we may with safety accept of. I am disgusted exceedingly when I hear it mentioned. Experience should teach us to pay no regard to it. The child Independence is now struggling for birth. I trust in a short time it will be brought forth; and, in spite of Pharaoh, all America will hail the dignified stranger." ^ On the 30th he surveyed the whole field with the eye of a statesman, and wove a great deal of philosophy into an elaborate summary of salient facts : " The idea of independence spreads far and wide among the colonies. We cannot make events: our business is wisely to improve them. Mankind are governed more by their feelings than by reason. The Boston Port Bill suddenly wrought a union of the colonies which could not be brought about by the industry of years. Since the memorable 17th of June one event has brought another on, till America has furnished herself with more than seventy battalions for her defence. One battle would do more towards the declaration of inde- pendence than a long chain of conclusive arguments in a provincial convention or the Continental Congress."^ 1 Wells's Life of Samuel Ad.inis, ii. 393. 2 Samuel Adams to James Warren, April 16. MSS. 3 Samuel Adams to Samuel Cooper, April 30, MSS. The letters of John Adams, dated this month, show that he had no more faith in the expected commissioners than Samuel Adams had. He wrote April 2: "We continue still between hawk and buzzard. Some people yet expect commissioners to treat with Congress and to offer a chart blanc. All declare, if they do not come empowered to treat with us and grant us our Bill of Rights in every iota, they will hesitate no longer." — Massachu- setts Historical Society Proceedings, 186f>, p. 208. He wrote April 12: "The ports ai'e open wide enough at last, and privateers are allowed to prey upon British trade. This is not independency, you know. What is? Why, government in each colon}', a confederation among them all." He termed this confederation "a continental BIRTH OP THE NATION. 491 The next great measure of Congress was the recommen- dation to form local governments, based on the power of the people. Before relating the proceedings respecting this measure, it may be well to glance at the progress in this work by several colonies acting under the recommendations already given. Massachusetts, as before stated, acted promptly in July, on the advice of Congress respecting its government, by using the old charter. A summons was issued by the Provincial Congress for the election of representatives under the exist- ing law, " in observance of the resolve of the Continental Congress." 1 The representatives convened as an assembly, and chose counsellors who constituted a co-ordinate branch of the legislature, and were also the executive. Regular sessions of the legislature were held. In the third session, John Adams sat in the council, and was also appointed Chief Justice.^ There had been delay in opening the courts. As they were about to sit, the government — executive and legislative — issued (Jan. 23, 1776) a proclamation drawn up by John Adams, enjoining officers and people to use their utmost endeavors to have the resolves of the General constitution " He wrote April 14: "A more egregious bubble was never blown up than the story of commissioners coming to treat with the Congress: yet it has gained credit," &e. He wrote on the 16th to Col. Ward: " You seem to wish for independ- ence. Do the resolves for I rivatecring and Oi e ing of the ports satisfy you ? If not, let me know what will? Will nothing do but a positive declaration that we will never be reconciled on any terms V It requires time to bring the colonies all of one mind, but time will do it." — Literary World, Sept. 18, 1852. 1 The proceedings of Massachusetts were printed in the newspapers. The "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of July 22, 1775, contains the warrant of Congress calling a general assembly. There is first the resolve of Congress of June 9, 1775, and then the warrant proceeds: "In observance of the foregoing resolve of the Honorable Continental Congress now sitting in Philadelphia, these are to request you forth- with to cause the freeholders and other inhabitants of your town," who had an estate of forty shillings per annum or other estate to the value of forty pounds sterling, " according to an Act regulating the House of Representatives," to choose representa- tives. It was signed as follows : '• Given under my hand this nineteenth day of June, A.D. 1775. By order of Congress. James Warren, President. Attest, Samuel Freeman, Secretary " 2 John Adams left Congress on the 9th of December, 1775, and resumed his seat on the 9th of Februarj', 1776. 492 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. Congress and the laws of the colony duly executed In this paper the controversy with the mother country is briefly reviewed ; the position of Massachusetts is stated ; the con- sent of the people is declared to be the only foundation of government, and the happiness of the people its sole end ; and that generation is congratulated " on the acquisition of a form of government more immediately in all its branches under the influence and control of the people, and therefore more free and happy than was enjoyed by their ancestors." The proclamation closed with the invocation, " God save the People." ^ It was ordered to be read at the opening of every court, at the March town-meetings, and by the ministers of the gospel on Sundays to their congregations. It was also widely circulated in the newspapers. This admirable paper was a fit inauguration of the first government in America based on the power of the people. It was established at Watertown, near Boston, in the midst of hostilities, — indeed, almost under the line of fire of the enemy. In New Hampshire, the popular party proceeded in their political action with dignity, and with forbearance to the constituted authorities. The royal governor, Wentworth, was greatly respected. He deemed it his duty to enter one of the early provincial conventions, when the members rose, listened respectfully as he declared the meeting illegal and disloyal, and when he retired, resumed their sitting and their business. In the progress of events the evils of an absence of authority became intolerable ; yet the patriots waited several months for the advice of the General Congress, before they acted on the matter of establishing a govern- ment. When the advice came, the Whigs of the school of 1 A previous proclamation for a Thanksgiving, Nov. 4, 1775, closed with "God save the People." A Tor}', in the "News Letter," printed in Boston, Jan. 11, 1776, in an address to the soldiers of the United Colonies, remarked on this close, instead of the "heretofore invariable God save the King." He regarded it a sign that the popular leaders meant to deny the authority of the King. " "Will it i.ot suffice your leaders," he says, "to moek the king, but they must mock Heaven also?" The proclamation of Jan. 23, 1776, is in the ''Pennsylvania Evening Post" of Feb. 27. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 493 Dickinson, drew from it the inference that Congress were in favor of independence, and said that this would be ruinous.^ The majority, however, summoned a convention to meet at Exeter, and to consist of delegates to be elected under the existing laws providing for the choice of representatives. This body framed a constitution, which was adopted in the following terms: "In Congress at Exeter, Jan. 5, 1776, voted, that this Congress take up civil government in this colony in manner and form following," — consisting of provisions for the executive, legislative, and judiciary de- partments. In this way, even the forms of royal authority were done away; and, in the words of the preamble, a consti- tution was established by "the free suffrages of the people." ^ In South Carolina, the circumstances were peculiar. The population was " a medley of different nations and com- posed of the most contradictory characters ; " it had doubled in ten years ; wealth had poured in upon the colony from a thousand channels ; and all ranks and orders gloried in their attachment to the mother country.^ Throughout this period of rare prosperity, the popular party, constituting a majority, entered with generous enthusiasm into the measures, in op- position to the aggressions of the British administration. When the issue passed from commercial war to armed resistance, and the question of independence arose, the rela- 1 The "New-Hampshire Gazette" of Jan. 9, 1776, contains an elaborate piece against a declaration of independence, addressed "To the Congress at Exeter." The writer warns this body that the Continental Congress were in favor of independ- ence, saying: " We began the controv^ersy on this principle, to seek redress of griev- ances: since we have lost sight of the object, and are in quest of what will most certainly terminate in our ruin and destruction, — I mean independency." One of the grounds on which the writer relied for this conclusion was, that "the grand Congress," on an application from this province, recommendod to them to assume " a new form of government." An instance of the deference felt in this colony to the Congress has been given on page 422. John Sullivan, Dec. 12, 1776, writes: " I hear that the Continental Congress has given our province a power to assume government." 2 The form of government was printed in the newspapers in full. It is in the "New-England Chronicle" of Feb. 1, 1776, and "Pennsylvania Ledger" of Feb. 10. 8 Kamsay's Revolution in South Carolina, i. 7. 494 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. tive state of the parties was changed. It is estimated that half of the population were opposed to a separation. The government in February, 1776, was vested in a Provmcial Congress. The President, William Henry Drayton, in a speech (February 9) occasioned by the return of two of the delegates of the General Congress, warmly thanked them for their service. In doing this, he enumerated their acts, mentioning, — the " permission granted to colonies to erect forms of government independent of and in opposition to the regal authority." On that day a committee was appointed to consider the recommendation given by Con- gress to South Carolina, on the 4th of November, to form a government. On the next day Christopher Gadsden arrived, and also received the thanks of his constituents. He urged not only the formation of a government, but independence. The debate was earnest. Both measures were warmly opposed. The Congress voted (Fel)ruary 11) that the ex- isting establishment " was entirely inadequate to the well- governing the good people of the province." On the next day (Sunday) a committee was appointed to prepare a plan. On the 24th of March they reported a final draft of a consti- tution, which, though opposed by a strong party that included Rawlins Lowndes, was ordered to be fairly engrossed upon royal paper. On the 26th of March it was adopted. It is entitled " a constitution or form of government agreed to, and resolved upon, by the representatives of South Carolina." It provided for the executive and legislative branches, and went at once into effect. The Provincial Congress resolved themselves into an Assembly.^ When the officers were inaugurated, with John Rutledge as the President, there was in Charleston an imposing parade, with universal expressions 1 Journal of the Proceedings. This was printed in Charleston in 1776, and reprinted in London. It is in Force's Archives, 4th Series, v. 562. Ramsay says, p. 81: " The formation of an independent constitution had so much the appearance of an eternal separation from a country by a reconciliation with which many yet hoped for a return of ancient happiness, that a prreat part of the Provincial Congress oppii-ed the measure. The .\ct of Parliament of December 21, throwing the colonies out of protection, turned the scale." BIRTH OF THE NATION. 495 of joy.i The government, remarks Ramsay, " rested on this fundamental point, — that the voice of the people was the source of law, honor, and office." When the courts were opened, the Chief Justice, William Henry Drayton, deliv- ered a famous charge, embodying the spirit of the time ; and, at the close of the session of the legislature, the gov- ernor in a spirited address was in harmony with Massa- chusetts as he said, "The consent of the people is the origin, and their happiness is the end, of government." It is not material (hat the people in the three colonies just glanced at, had not abandoned the hope of recon- ciliation, or that a permanent government had not been formed. They had exercised the right of establishing public authority in all its branches. On law derived from the people the municipalities now rested. Their functions can hardly be said to have been disturbed. Indeed, in all the colonies they were in healthy activity i they never before or since performed more important service : and they consti- tuted the foundations on which the American builders pro- ceeded to erect their superstructure. The results reached in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and South Carolina, were warmly welcomed by the patriots, and other colonies were enjoined to follow in the same course. " I wish," one writes, " to see the hands of the Continental Congress strengthened by a regular system of government in each colony." ^ The Tories and the repre- 1 The "New-England Chronicle" of May 2 contains the following, under date of Charleston, April 3 : — " On Thursday last the new Constitution, agreed upon by our Congress, by the approbation of the Continental Congress, ' to serve for regulating the internal policy of this colony until an accommodation of the unhappy differences between Great Brit- ain and America can be obtained, an event which is earnestly desired,' was published here in due form. A detachment of the Provincial regiment of artillery and the Charleston militia were drawn up in Broad Street from the State House to the Ex- change, where the Constitution was read, and the commissions of John Rutledge, Esq., President and Commander-in-Chief, and Henry Laurens, Esq., Vice-President of the Colony, were proclaimed, amidst the shouts of the numerous spectators, firing of field- pieces, and the cannon on board the provincial armed vessels " 2 •'! wish to see the confusion of Bunker's Hill avoided betimes. I wish to see the hands of the Continental Congress (who have too much to do to regulate the 496 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. sentatives of the proprietary interests in the Middle Colonies vehemently opposed this change. The bitterness between the contending parties increased. " The passions," wrote John Adams (April 28), "were never in more lively exercise than they now are, from Florida to Canada inclusive." ^ Nowhere were they more lively than in the colony, city, and building in which Congress held its sessions ; for some of the colonial conventions met in a room over their heads. In the centre of this political whirl. Congress matured the action just referred to, respecting local governments. The nearest approach to an application for advice on this head, was a request preferred by a few zealous .Whigs of New York for leave to this colony to form a government. It was expressed in a letter addressed to John Adams.^ He now began to take the station to which his earnestness in the cause, legal erudition, intellectual vigor, and superior powers of debate entitled him.^ He submitted, on the 6th of May, in com- mittee of the whole, a resolve recommendi'ng to all the colo- nies, where it should be considered necessary, to form such governments as might conduce to their happiness in partic- ular and that of America in general, — which was agreed to on the 9th of May, and reported to Congress. On the request of a colony, it was postponed until the next day, when it was adopted. A committee * was appointed to prepare a preamble to accompany this resolve. They reported a draft drawn up by John Adams. It declared that it was absolutely irrecon- affairs of every colony) strengthened by a regular system of government in each colony. . . . New Hampshire and Massachusetts have gone before us, and the rest must speedily follow. ... I would by no means have this step taken without con- sulting the Continental Congress. Let us lay our case before them, as did the people of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Let us beg their advice and approbation. They advised and approved of the proceedings of the last-mentioned colonies. " — Pennsylvania Packet, April 15, 1776. 1 Letters of John Adams to his Wife, i. 106. 2 Compare the letter in Gordon, ii. 269, with the letter of John Adams in his Works, ix. 407. 3 Life and Works of John Adams, i. 212. ■4 The committee were John Adams, Edward Rutledge, and Richard Henry Lee. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 497 cilable with the conscience and reason of the people now to take the oaths to support a government under the crown, that all such ought to be suppressed, and government estab- lished on the power of the people ; and it adduced as a justification, that the king, lords, and commons had excluded the inhabitants of the United Colonies from protection. An exciting debate followed the submission of this report. Duane, of New York, in opposition said: "You have no more right to pass the resolve than Parliament has. How does it appear that no favorable answer is likely to be given to our petitions ? Every account of foreign aid is accom- panied with the account of commissioners. Why all this haste ? Why this urging ? Why this driving ? Disputes about independence are in all the colonies.' What is this owing to but our indiscretion. I shall take the liberty of informing my constituents that I have not been guilty of a breach of trust. I do protest against this piece of mechan- ism, — this preamble. If the facts in this preamble should prove to be true, there will not be one voice against inde- pendence. I suppose the votes have been numbered, and there is to be a majority." Wilson, of Pennsylvania, rea- soned that all government originates from the people ; that the members were the servants of the people sent to act under delegated authority ; that, if they exceeded it, they deserved neither excuse nor justification ; and that he had no authority to vote for this preamble. "If it passes," he said, " there will be an immediate dissolution of every kind of authority." In favor of the preamble, McKean, of Dela- ware, said : " Don't doubt that foreign mercenaries are coming here to destroy us ; " and he held that the people would lose their liberties, properties, and lives, unless this step were taken. Samuel Adams said that the petitions had not been heard, and yet had been answered by armies and fleets ; that they were answered also by myrmidons from abroad ; and that they could not act upon stronger reasons than that the king has thrown the colonies out of his 32 498 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. protection. " Wlij." he said, " should we support goveru- inent by his authority ? I wonder that the people have con- ducted themselves so well as they have." ^ The preamble was adopted on the Fifteenth of May, and, with the resolu- tion, was ordered to be printed. The resolution and preamble were the decision of the polit- ical power, or the United Colonies, that the time had come to abrogate all public authority exercised in them in the name of the sovereignty symbolized by the crown, and to establish in each colony such authority on the basis of a sovereignty residing in the free and independent man or the people.^ This was revolution.^ The Resolution became the platform of the popular party, — the touchstone of fidelity ; and, embodying as it did the will of the majority, they were bound to maintain it against all opposers. It appears at once in the front of the most exciting political 1 Life and Works of John Adams, ii. 490, 491. The resoUition was printed on the 16th of May, 1776, in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post," as follows: — In Congress, May 15, 1776. Whereas his Britannic Majesty, in conjunction with the Lords and Commons of Gieat Britain, has, by alate Act of Parliament, excluded the inhabitants of these United C ilonies from the protection of his crown. And whereas no answer whatever, to the humble petitions of the colonies for redress of grievances and reconciliation with Great Britain, has been, or is likely to be given; but the whole force of that kingdom, aided by foreign mercenaries, is to be exerted for the destruction of the good people of these c jlunies. And whereas it appears absolutely irreconcilable to reason and good con- science for the people of these colonies voto to take the oaths and affirmations neces- sary for the support of any government under the crown of Great Britain ; and it is necessary that the exercise of every kind of authority under the said crown should be totally suppressed, and all the powers of government exerted under the authority of the people of the colonies for the preservation of internal peace, virtue, and good order, as well as for the defence of our lives, liberties, and properties, against the hos- tile invasions and cruel depredations of their enemies. Therefore Resolved, That it be recommended to the respective Assemblies and Conventions of the United Colonies, where no government sufficient to the exigencies of their affairs has been hitherto established, to adopt such government as shall, in the opinion of the representatives of the people, best conduce to the happiness and safety of their con- stituents in particular and America in general. By order of Congress. John Hancock, President. 2 See pages 424-427. 3 "What is revolution? Why, that is revolution which overturns, or controls, or successfully resists the existing public authority ; that which arrests the exercise of the supreme power; that which introduces a new paramount authority into the rule of the State." — Works of Daniel Webster, iii. 459. i BTRTH OF THE NATION. 499 action, and thus played an important part in the formative process of the country. It happened that on the 15th of May a great popular movement also reached a decisive result. This bore directly on independence, demanded in November by a few, in Jan- uary by only a small party, but in March by a public opinion becoming every day more importunate. This change was by no means unrepresented in Congress, which was paving the way to independence ; ^ but the proceedings with this in view — the instructions, for instance, to Silas Deane — were necessarily secret, and hence the opponents of the measure were enabled to say that " Congress had never lisped the least desire for independence or republicanism." ^ Then the Assemblies of the Middle Colonies, so far from recall- ing their instructions against independence, in some cases renewed them. Above all other considerations was the question of power to act on so grave and irrevocable a step as a separation ; for the power delegated was simply to mature such action as would obtain a redress of grievances under the existing government. While Congress was hesitating, " A Lover of Order," on the 9th of March, proposed through the newspapers that the constituents of each delegation should be invited to declare their sentiments on independence through their local organizations ; remarking that in this manner the continent 1 Joseph Reed (Reed's Reed, i. 164) writes March 3: " The Congress are paving the way to a declaration of independence, but I believe will not make it until the minds of the people are better prepared for it than as yet they are." 2 The "New- York Gazette" of April 8, 1776, contains a paper entitled "Plan of the American Compact." It was designed to keep the colonies united with England. It is characterized as a "Compact of Reconciliation." The writer asks, " For what are we, to encounter the horrors of war," &c. ? He answers: "It is a form of government which Baron Montesquieu and the best writers on the subject have shewn to be attended with many mischiefs and imperfections, while they pass high encomiums on the excellency of the British Constitution. But why should I dwell on the dangers of this scheme? The Continental Congress have never lisped the least desire for independency or republicanism. All their publications breathe another spirit." This plan was reprinted in a pamphlet entitled "Observations on the Reconciliation of Great Britain and the Colonies," &c., written by a Whig of the Dickinson school, and printed in Philadelphia, 1776, by Robert Bell. 500 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. first declared their determination to resist by force the power of Great Britain, and in so important a question the Congress ought only to echo back the sentiments of the people, and their decision ought to determine the question. ^ This course might have been agreed upon in one of the consultations of the popular leaders, and preferred to a proposition which John Adams probably intended to submit in Congress, with the view of procuring a repeal or a sus- pension of the instructions against independence.^ How- ever this may have been, it was in harmony with the political genius of the country to collect the sense of the people on so great a question. It tended to keep armed resistance to constituted authority in the line of order, to secure co- operation, and to guide passion in its wildest mood with much of the regularity of law. It corresponded with the work done ; for, as no colony formed a local government until Congress recommended it to be done, so no delega- tion voted for a declaration of independence until authorized by its constituents. Members of Congress soon after requested their Assem- 1 The following is the piece alluded to in the text. It is in the Boston news- papers of April 1. It is here copied from the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of March 9, 1776: — Mr. Towne, — It is the opinion of many people among us that the Congress should not declare the colonies independent of Great Britain, without a previous recess to consult their constituents about that important question. But the complicated and increasing business of the Congress will not admit of such a recess. Would it not be proper, therefore, for their constituents to declare their sentiments upon that head as soon as possible? This may be done by the various committees and conventions on the continent. Their votes or resolves should determine the question in the Congress. It was in this manner the continent first declared their determination to resist by force the power of the British Parliament. The first Congress was nothing but the echo of committees and conventions. In the present important question concerning independence, the Congress should, as in the former case, only echo back the senti- ments of the people. This can only be done through the medium of committees and conventions. The sooner, therefore, they are convened for that purpose the better. A LovEB OF Order. 2 The proposition referred to in the text is in the Life and Works of John Adams, i. 216. No date is given. The purport of a preamble and resolve was to recommend to the assemblies which had limited the powers of their delegates "to repeal or sus- pend those instructions for a certain time," that Congress might have the power to act according to its discretion. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 501 blies to express their sentiments on independence. Elbridge Gerry, on the 26th of March, wrote to the speaker of the Massachusetts Assembly as follows : " This [opening the ports] will not in itself satisfy you; and I hope nothing will, short of a determination of America to hold her rank in the creation, and give law to herself. ... I sincerely wish you would originate instructions expressed with decency and firmness, and give your sentiments as a court in favor of independency. I am certain it would turn many doubtful minds, and produce a reversal of the contrary instructions adopted by some Assemblies. Some timid minds are terri- fied at the word ' independence.' If you think caution in this respect good policy, change the name. America has gone such lengths she cannot recede."^ Richard Henry Lee (April 20) urged Patrick Henry to propose a separation in the convention which was about to assemble in Virginia, remarking : " Ages yet unborn and millions existing at present may rue or bless that Assembly on which their hap- piness or misery will so eminently depend." ^ Subsequently members from New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Maryland, — among them the venerable Stephen Hop- kins, — appealed to their constituents for instructions on independence. The facts just stated may account for the movement respecting independence which, on the 15th of May, reached a result that gave a decisive turn to the course of events. The procedure in each colony is so important that it deserves to be given in full ; but the narratives must neces- sarily be much abridged. They may, however, serve to show the source of the local streams, and how they came together, and formed a current wide, deep, and irresistible in its flow. 1 Life of Elbridge Gerry, i. 174. He did not avsk instructions to enable the Massachusetts delegates to act, for they were fully empowered by their commissions. He suggests the publication of any instructions which the Assembly might adopt, in order to influence public sentiment. 2 Grigsby's Discourse on " The Convention of 1776," p. S. 602 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. North Carolina "was the first colony to act as a unit in favor of independence. It was the fourth in importance of the United Colonies. Its Provincial Congress had organized the militia, and vested the public authority in a provincial council for the whole colony, committees of safety for the districts, and county and town committees. A large portion of the people were adherents of the crown, — among them a body of Highland emigrants, and most of the party of regu- lators. Governor Martin represented, not without grounds,^ that, if these loyalists were supported by a British force, the colony might be gained to the royal side. The loyalists were also numerous in Georgia and South Carolina. Hence it was determined by the King to send an expedition to the Southern Colonies in the winter, to restore the royal author- ity.^ This was put under the command of Sir Henry Clin- ton, and ordered to rendezvous at Cape Fear. " I am clear," wrote George III., " the first attempt should be made on North Carolina, as the Highland settlers are said to be well inclined."^ Commissions were issued to men of influence among them, one being Allan McDonald, the husband of the chivalrous Flora McDonald, who became famous by romantic devotion to Prince Charles Edward. Donald McDonald was appointed the commander. These officers, under the direction of the governor, after much secret consultation, enrolled about fifteen liundred men. The pop- ular leaders, however, were informed of their designs. The militia were summoned, and took the field under Colonel James Moore. At length, when Sir Henry Clinton was 1 In Anson County, Governor Martin had 227 loyal addresses ; in Guilford County 116; in Rowan and Surry, 195 — Sabine's American Loj'alists, 27. 2 Lord George Germain, in a despatch to Governor Eden of Maryland, dated Deo. 2-3, 1775, says: "An armament consisting of seven regiments, with a fleet of frigates and small ships, is now in readiness to proceed to the Southern Colonies, in order to attempt the restoration of legal government in that part of America. It will proceed in the first place to North Carolina, and from thence either to South Carolina it Virginia, as circumstances of greater or less advantage shall point out." This despatch was intercepted, and printed in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post " of April 23, 1776. 3 Correspondence of George III., i. 276. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 503 expected at Cape Fear, General McDonald erected the royal standard at Cross Creek, now Fayetteville, and moved for- ward to join Clinton. Colonel Moore ordered parties of the militia to take post at Moore's Creek Bridge, over which McDonald would be obliged to pass. Colonel Richard Cas- well was at the head of one of these -parties : hence the force here was under his command : and this place on the 27th of February became a famous battle-field. The Provincials were victorious. They captured a great quantity of military supplies, nearly nine hundred men, and their commander.^ This was the Lexington and Concord of that region. The newspapers circulated the details of this brilliant result. The spirit of the Whigs run high. " You never," one writes, " knew the like in your life for true patriotism." ^ A strong force was soon ready and anxious to meet Clinton. Amidst these scenes, the people elected delegates to a Pro- vincial Congi'ess, which met, on the 4th of April, at Halifax. It embraced many eminent patriots, among whom were Cornelius Harnett, called the Samuel Adams of North Caro- lina, William Hooper, who had read law with James Otis, Richard Caswell, a member of the General Congress. At- tempts were made to ascertain the sense of the people on independence. It was said that in some of the counties fondness for the King was gone, and that there was not a dissentient voice. It was not stated that in other counties the majority was largely on the side of the crown. The subject was referred to a committee, of which Cornelius Harnett was the chairman. They reported an elaborate preamble in which was delineated the war which the King and Parliament were carrying on against the colonies, and a resolution to empower the delegates in the General Con- gress " to concur with the delegates in the other colonies 1 The "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of March 23 has Colonel Moore's long relation in his letter of March 2, addressed to Cornelius Harnett, Caswell's account, and the correspondence between Moore and McDonald. They were copied by the Massachusetts papers. 2 Letter in " Pennsylvania Evening Post," March 26, 1776. 504 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. in declaring independency and forming foreign alliances, — reserving to the colony the sole and exclusive right of forming a constitution and laws for it," also " of appointing delegates in a general representation of the colonies for such purposes as might be agreed upon." This was unanimously adopted on the 12th of April.' Thus the popular party carried North Carolina as a unit in favor of independence, when the colonies, from New England to Virginia, were in solid array against it. The example was warmly welcomed by the patriots, and commended for imitation. The bold instructions and the military triumph were the sequence of the king's expedition. The royal indignation was soon (May 5, 1776) embodied in a proclamation declaring a rebellion in North Carolina, but promising pardon to all who would return to their duty, except Cornelius Harnett and Robert Howe. Harnett was the foremost actor in the movement for independence, and Howe, having accepted a military commission from the Provincial Congress, was rendering noble service in the field. Rhode Island acted next on independence. Its people were satisfied with their charter. Under it tliey elected their rulers and made the laws. A portion, not inconsiderable in number, were adherents of the crown ; and the measure of independence had strong opponents. Their venerable delegate in Congress, Stephen Hopkins, requested implicit instructions on this head. On the 4th of May the Assembly, on his re-election and the election of William Ellery, adopted the form of a commission, empowering them to consult on "promoting the strictest union and confederation" between the United Colonies ; and to secure their rights, whetlier by forming treaties, or " by such other prudent and effectual means " as might be agreed upon, "taking the greatest care to secure to this colony, in the strongest and most perfect manner, its present established form and all the powers of government so far as it relates to its internal police and 1 This paper, in the newspapers, was signed James Green, Jun., Secretary. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 505- conduct of its own affairs, civil and religious." Independ- ence is not named in this document ; but Governor Cooke advised the delegates that by it they would know that they had the power to vote for this measure. They acted on this interpretation of their commission. Another Act of the same date provided that all commissions, writs and pro- cesses in the courts, issued in the king's name, should be issued in the name of " The Governor and Company of the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Planta- tions." The Act enumerated the measures that justified disowning allegiance to the king. This concerned their local status. The commission bore directly, and with intel- ligence, on the relation which Rhode Island as a community was to sustain in an American Republic. This, however, was kept secret. It roused no enthusiasm, and made no mark.^ Massachusetts was the next to act on independence. The popular party were in great exultation. The British army in March was driven from Boston, the government was in the hands of the people, and the Tories had emigrated or were powerless. In May the legislature was in session at Watertown. On the 1st of this month the member of the largest influence, Joseph Hawley, wrote to Elbridge Gerry : " The Tories dread a declaration of independence, and a course of conduct on that plan, more than death. . . . My hand and heart are full of it. There will be no abiding union without it. . . . Without a real continental government, our army will overrun us ; and people will by and by, sooner than you may be aware of, call for their old constitutions, as they 1 The commission was read in Congress, May 14, and is printed in the Journals, ii. 163 It was not printed at the time. Stephen Hopkins, — at this time a member of the Rhode Island Assembly, Chief Justice, and member of Congress, — Ma}' 15, wrote to Governor Cooke : " Your favor of the 7th of May I have received, and the papers enclosed. I observe you have avoided giving me a direct answer to my queries concerning dependence or independence. However, the copy of the Act which you have sent me, together with our instructions, leave me little room to doubt it," &c. Force's Archives, 4th Series, vi. 467. The act relating to civil pro- cesses was printed in the newspapers. 506 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. did in England, after Cromwell's death, call in Charles the Second. For God's sake, let there be a full revolution, or all has been done in vain. Independency and a well-planned continental government will save us. God bless you. Amen and amen." ^ These ringing words expressed the voice of the people. The House sent to the Council a resolution on independence, which that body negatived, chiefly on the ground that the colony had long been charged with dicta- tion, and that to legislate on independence before Congress acted would injure the cause .^ Both branches agreed (May 1) to an Act providing that on and after the 1st of June all civil processes, instead of being issued in the name of the king and bearing the date of a reign, should be issued in the name of the government and people of Massachusetts, and bear the date of the year of the Christian era, the act to continue in force until a recommendation of " Congress or Act of a general American legislature, or the local legis- lature, should otherwise prescribe."^ Both branches also 1 Life of Elbridge Gerry, i. 176. On the same day (May 1) Gerry (Ibid., i. 178) wrote to .James Warren: "I am glad you approve of the proposal for instructions, and can with pleasure inform you that North Carolina has taken off fi-om their dele- gates the restriction relative to this matter; " i.e., independence. 2 Dr. Samuel Cooper, in a letter to Samuel Adams, May 1-3, says of a resolution of the House. " The House sent up the vote to the Council for their concurrence. The propriety of this was doubted by eome, who did not think the Coimcil could properly act on such an affair. It was however done, and the Council negatived the vote. Mr. Cashing, among others, was against it. He said that it would embarrass the Congress, that we ought to wait until they moved the question to us, that it would prejudice the other colonies against us, and that you had wrote to somebody here that things with j'ou were going on slowly and surel}^, and any kind of eager- ness in us upon this question would do hurt." — MSS. 3 This Act was printed in 1862 in a pamphlet, with a facsimile, by Henrj^ B. Dawson, in which it is entitled " Declaration of Independence of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay" Arnold (History of Rhode Island, ii. 373) attaches like im- portance to a similar Act of Rhode Island passed on the 4th of May, saying: "It established Rhode Island as an independent State two months before the general declaration of the United Colonies." These were important Acts, but assuredly not declarations of independence. Joseph Hawley was not pleased with the wording of the Act. He said (May 17) in a letter to Samuel Adams: " I wish we had adopted a shorter, more noble, popular, and rational a style. . . . However, the dropping the title of George III., &c., is no small attainment. The retaining it created no small uneasiness among our good people of common sense." — MSS. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 507 agreed on a test Act, which required all "to defend by arms the United Colonies and every part thereof" against the fleets and armies of Great Britain. The House proceeded separately on the question of independence. On the lOtL of May it voted, that the towns ought to call meetings to determine whether, if Congress should declare the colonies independent of Great Britain, the inhabitants " would sol- emnly engage with their lives and fortunes to support them in the measure." ^ In pursuance of this call, during May and June meetings were held in the towns, in which inde- pendence was discussed and votes to sustain it were passed ; sometimes accompanied by elaborate papers, going over the history of the colony and the list of American grievances. Wrenthum declared that reconciliation had become as dan- gei'ous as it was absurd. Palmer could see no alternative but inevitable ruin or independence. Maiden (May 27) voted, " That the present age will be deficient in their duty to God, to their posterity and themselves, if they do not establish an American Republic." Acton (June 17), using these words ^ of Maiden, added : " If Congress should de- clare America to be a free and independent republic," they would defend the measure with their lives and fortune." In tliis way, from the battle-fields of Lexington and Con- cord, from the ruins at the base of Bunker Hill, from Faneuil Hall, from a hundred villages aglow with patriotic fires, 1 The resolve was as follows: "In the House of Representatives, May 10, 1776. Resolved, as the opinion of this House, that the inhabitants of each town in this Col- ony ouf^ht, in full meeting warned for that purpose, to advise the person or persons who shall be chosen to represent them in the next General Court, whether that, if the honorable Congress should, for the safety of the said colonies, declare them independent of the kingdom of Great Britain, they, the said inhabitants, will solemnly engage, with their lives and fortunes, to support them in the measure. Samuel Freeman, Speaker. Attest, William Story, Clerk /jz-o tern.'''' It is a singular coincidence that on this 10th of May Congrss agreed to the resolution prepared by John Adams advising the formation of local governments, and the committee of Charlotte County, Virginia, instructed its delegates to vote for independence. '•^ The instructions of Maiden and Boston were the earliest I have found in the newspapers. Those of twenty-three towns may be found in Force's Archives, 4th Series, 698-707. 508 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. went forth the pledge of determmed and stern men to support such a declaration as Congress might make with their fortunes and their lives. " The whole province," said Pittsfield, " are waiting for the important moment which tliey in their great wisdom shall appoint for the declaration of independence and a free republic." ^ Virginia was profoundly agitated on the question of inde- pendence. The royal governor, Dunmore, had taken refuge with the British fleet. The House of Burgesses, summoned by him, held several sessions, and finally dissolved them- selves. The political power resided in a convention consist- ing of delegates chosen by those qualified to elect Burgesses. The delegates were re-elected in pursuance of an ordinance of their own making. " It was," Tucker says, " the great body of the people assembled in the persons of their deputies to consult for the common good and to aid in all things for the safety of the people." ^ They had organized the militia, and appointed a committee of safety to act in the recess as the executive. They did not immediately comply with the recommendation of Congress in December to form a govern- ment. This procedure was looked upon generally as in the direction of independence, if not as independence itself, which then a few only in the colony regarded with favor. " The convention of August, 1774," says an eminent author- ity, ''had met and adjourned; the convention of March, of July, and of December, 1775, had also met and adjourned without the expression of a single opinion in favor of inde- pendence." ^ It had, however, been urged in the Vii^inia 1 Hawley, June 12 (Life of Gerrj', i. 186), wrote: " About two-thirds of the towns in the colony had met, and all instructed in the affirmative, and generally returned to be unanimous." These returns were made to a new house convened on Sd of June, which, on the 3d of July, in a brief letter addressed to the Massachusetts dele- gates, stated that independence "was almost the universal voice of this colony" collected from far the greater number of the towns. The letter concludes: "This House therefore do, b}' a unanimous vote, submit this letter to be made use of as you shall think proper." — Massachusetts Archives, Ivii. 284. 2 Tucker's Blackstone, i part 1, 88. 8 Grigsby, Discourse on "The Virginia Convention of 1776," p. 7. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 609 press. There soon followed the victory of the militia on the 9th of December at the Great Bridge ; the burning of Norfolk on the 1st of January ; and the publication of an intercepted despatch of Lord Germain, explaining the bold rising of the Tories of North Carolina, and naming Virginia as the theatre of future operations.^ There was a sudden change in public sentiment ; and the idea of independence, said to be alarming to Virginians in March,^ was welcome to them in April. One writes on the 2d : " Independence is now the talk here. ... It will be very soon, if not already, a favorite child." Another, on the 12th, writes : " I think almost every man, except the treasurer, is willing to declare for independency." ^ Only eleven days later, on the 23d, the Charlotte-County Committee published this charge to their delegates in convention : " By the unanimous appro- bation and direction of the whole freeholders, and all the other inhabitants of this County, ... we give it to you in charge to use your best endeavors that the delegates which are sent to the General Congress be instructed immediately to cast off the British yoke ; and as King George, under the character of a parent, persists in beliaving as a tyrant, thau they, in our behalf, renounce allegiance to him for ever ; and that taking the God of Heaven to be our king, and depend- ing on His assistance and protection, they plan out that form of government which may most effectually secure to us the enjoyment of our civil and religious rights and privileges to the latest posterity." * On the next day, a majority of the freeholders of James City, remarking that reasons drawn from justice, policy, and necessity were everywliere at hand for a radical separation from Great Britain, instructed their 1 This despatch (see p. 502) directed Governor Eden to co-operate with Lord Dun- more. It is named in the proceedings of Charlotte County. 2 Joseph Reed in Philadelphia writes Washington, March 15: "It is said the Virginians are so alarmed with the idea of independence that they have sent Mr. Braxton on purpose to turn the vote of that colonj'." — Reed's Reed, i. 173. 8 See papers in " Southern Literary Messenger," September and October, 1858. * This paper is in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 21, under the heading " Wilhamsburg, May 10." 510 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. delegates " to exert their utmost abilities in the next conven- tion towards dissolving the connection between America and Great Britain, totally, finally, and irrevocably." ^ Bucking- ham County was in favor of a constitution providing for a full representation, and a government the most free, happy, and permanent that human wisdom could contrive. Augusta County added, " one that might bear the test of future ages." In May the avowals for independence were numerous. In this spirit and with such aims, a new convention was chosen, and on the 6th of May met in Williamsburg. It contained illustrious men, — among them, James Madison, in the twenty-fifth year of his age ; George Mason, in the maturity of his great powers ; Richard Bland, Edmund Pendleton, and Patrick Henry, rich in Revolutionary fame.^ The President, Pendleton, in opening the session, said that almost all the powers of government had been suspended for two years; and he asked whether the colony could longer maintain the struggle in that situation. On the 14th of May the convention w^ent into a committee of the whole on the state of the colony, with Archibald Carey in the chair ; when Colonel Nelson submitted a preamble and resolutions on independence, prepared by Pendleton.^ These were dis- cussed in two sittings of the committee, and then reported to the House. They were opposed chiefly by delegates from the Eastern District, but were advocated by Patrick Henry, and passed unanimously when one hundred and twelve members were present, — about twenty absenting them- selves. This paper enumerated the wrongs done to the colonies ; put as the crowning grievance the king's procla- mation declaring them out of his protection ; averred that there was no alternative but absolute subjection or total 1 The instructions are printed in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 11, from the "Virginia Gazette" of April 26. 2 The Discourse delivered before the " Virginia Alpha and Phi Beta Kappa So- ciety" at V^illiamsburg, July 3, 1855, by Hon. Hugh Blair Grigsby, contains an admirable historj' of this convention, with the character of the actors. 3 Ibid., in a note on p. 204. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 511 separation, and instructed the delegates appointed to repre- sent the colony in the General Congress " to propose to that respectable body to declare the United Colonies free and independent States," and to " give the assent of the colony to measures to form foreign alliances and a confed- eration, — provided the power of forming government for the internal regulations of each colony be left to the colonial legislatures." The same paper also provided for a committee to form a plan of government for Virginia. This action was transmitted by the President to the other assemblies, accompanied by a brief circular.^ On the evening of the day the people of Williamsburg rang the bells, fired salutes, struck down the British flag from the State House, and raised " The Union Flag of the American States." The militia welcomed this action with acclamation. It was hailed by the patriots in other colonies with enthusiasm, and elicited through the press and in private letters glowing tributes to the patriotism of the Old Dominion. The convention agreed (June 12) upon the famous Declaration of Rights declaring all men equally free and independent, all power vested in and derived from the people, and that government ought to be for the common benefit ; also that all men are equally entitled to the free exercise of religion according to the die- tates of conscience. It also complied with the recommenda- tion of Congress, by forming a constitution and electing a 1 This paper was copied into the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 28. It is in all the newspapers of this period that I have seen. The following are the resolves : — Jlesohed unanimously, That the delegates appointed to represent the colony in the General Congress be instructed to propose to that respectable body to declare the United Colonies free and independent States, absolved from all allegiance to, or dependence upon, the crown or parliament of Great Britain; and that they give the assent of this colony to such declaration, and to whatever measures may be thought proper and necessary by the Congress for forming foreign alliances and a confederation of the colonies, at such time and in the manner as to them shall seem best. Provided, that the power of forming government for, and the regulation of the internal concerns of, each colony be left to the respective colonial legislatures. Besolued unanimously, That a committee be appointed to prepare a declaration of rights, and such a plan of government as will be most likely to maintain peace and order in this colony, and secure substantial and equal liberty to the people. 512 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. governor and other officers.^ In this great procedure Vir- ginia joined with North Carolina in confronting the instruc- tions against independence of the Middle Colonies. Its action constitutes a brilliant link in the chain that marked the nation's birth.^ On the fifteenth day of May, only four of the colonies had acted definitely on the question of independence. North Carolina had authorized her delegates to concur with the dele- gates from the other colonies " in declaring independency;" Rhode Island had commissioned hers " to join in any meas- ure to secure American rights ; " in Massachusetts various towns had pledged themselves to maintain any declaration on which Congress might agree; and Virginia had given the positive instruction to her delegates to propose that Con- gress should make a declaration of independence. These proceedings were accompanied with declarations respecting a reservation to each colony of the right to form its own government, in the adjustment of the power universally felt to be necessary, and which was to be lodged in a new political unit designated by the terms " Confederation," " Continental Constitution," and " American Republic." The Virginia instructions were carried to Congress by their mover in the convention, Colonel Nelson. Three weeks elapsed before a motion on independence was submitted in this body. The popular party was aglow with the measure. It was not then the custom for statesmen to attend public meetings out of their respective colonies. The voice of Patrick Henry was never heard in Faneuil Hall. John 1 The Declaration of Rights was reported to the Convention in May and printed for the use of the members. It is in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post " of June 6, under the head " Williamsburg, May 2'1." The journal of the convention in Force's Archives gives May 27 as the date of its presentation. The copies vary. Thus the Report has these words: " That all men are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent natural rights." This was changed to "That all men are by nature equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights." The pre- amble to the Constitution states that it was adopted "in compliance.with the recom- mendation of the General Congress." 2 Rives's Life of Madison, i. 129. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 513 Adams never addressed a Virginia gathering. The press was rehed on for intercommunication of sentiment. The newspapers were now circulating noble utterances in favor of independence. A few sentences from the Boston instruc- tions are selected, not because they were the most pointed, or were peculiar, but because behind them was the brave municipality which so long commanded the admiration of patriots everywhere for fidelity to the common cause. " The whole United Colonies," was now the language of Boston, *■' are upon the verge of a glorious revolution. We have seen the petitions to the king rejected with disdain. For the prayer of peace he has tendered the sword ; for liberty, chains ; for safety, death. Loyalty to him is now treason to bur country. We think it absolutely impracticable for these colonies to be ever again subject to or dependent upon Great Britain, without endangering the very existence of the State. Placing, however, unbounded confidence in the su- preme councils of the Congress, we are determined to wait, most patiently wait, till tlieir wisdom shall dictate the neces- sity of making a declaration of independence. In case the , Congress should think it necessary for the safety of the United Colonies to declare them independent of Great Britain, the inhabitants, with their lives and the remnant of their fortunes, will most cheerfully support them in the measure." This admirable paper was printed in Philadel- phia, and might have been read by members of Congress during the progress of the first debate on independence.^ On the 7th of June, Richard Henry Lee, in behalf of the Yirginia delegates, submitted in Congress resolves on independence, a confederation, and foreign alliances. His biographer says that " tradition relates that he prefaced his motion witli a speech," portraying the resources of the colo- nies and their capacity for defence, dwelling especially on the 1 The "Instructions to their Representatives" by the town of Boston were adopted and printed in May, and are in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of June 8. 33 514 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. bearing which an independent position might have on foreign powers, and concluded by urging the members so to act that the day might give birth to an American Republic.^ Tlie motion was : — " That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be totally dissolved. " That it is expedient forthwith to take the most effectual measures for forming foreign alliances. " That a plan of confederation be prepared and transmit- ted to the respective colonies for their consideration and approbation." John Adams seconded the motion. The Journal of Con- gres's says, " that, certain resolutions respecting independ- ency being moved and seconded," they were postponed till to-morrow morning, and " that the members were enjoined to attend punctually at ten o'clock in order to take the same into their consideration." Jefferson says that the reason of the postponement was that the House were obliged to attend to other business. This record indicates that no speech was made on that day.^ The next day was Saturday. John Hancock, the Presi- dent, was in the chair ; and Charles Thomson was the Secre- tary. The resolves were immediately referred to a commit- tee of the whole, in which Benjamin Harrison presided, — the 1 Lee, in "Life of Richard Henry Lee," says (vol. i. 169), that as soon as the instructions arrived, the delegates appointed Lee to move a resolution conformably to them. Madison (Writings, iii. 282) saj-s, that the duty, in consequence of the death of Peyton Randolph, devolved on Lee, as the next in order on the list of dele- gates. On the 27th of May " the delegates of North Carolina and the delegates from Virginia laid before Congress certain instructions which they received from their respective conventions." (Journals of Congress, ii. 183.) Elbridge Gerrj'. on the 28th of Maj', sent these instructions to James Warren, saying: "Their conventions have unanimously declared for independency, and have in this respect exceeded their sister colonies in a most noble and decisive measure." — Life of Gerry, i. 181. - Memoir, &c., ed. 1830, p. 10. Bancroft (viii. 289) does not name any speech delivered on the 7th. BIRTH OF THE NATION. ol5 confidential correspondent of Washington, and subsequently governor of Virginia. They were debated with animation until seven o'clock in the evening, when the President resumed the chair, and reported that the committee had considered the matter referred to them, but, not having come to any decision, directed him to move for leave to sit again on Monday. In Congress, on Monday, Edward Rutledge moved that the question be postponed for three weeks. The debate on this day continued until seven o'clock in the evening. Not a single speech of any member is known to be extant. Jef- ferson, at the time, summed up the arg-ument used by the speakers during both days. It was said by James Wilson, Robert R. Livingston, Edward Rutledge, John Dickinson, and others, that, though they were friends to the measures themselves, and saw the impossibility that they should ever be united with Great Britain, yet they were against adopting the motion at that time. Their main reason was the lack of unanimity. It was said that the people of the Middle Colonies were not ripe for bidding adieu to British connec- tion, as was shown by the ferment into which the Resolution of the Fifteenth of May had thrown them, but that they were fast ripening, and in a short time would join the general voice of America ; that with such want of unanimity there was little reason to expect an alliance with the powers named ; that France and Spain had reason to be jealous of that rising power which would certainly strip them of all their American possessions, and would be more likely to form a connection with the British court, which, to recover the colonies, would agree to restore the Canadas to France and Florida to Spain. On the other side, it was urged by John Adams, Richard Henry Lee, George Wythe, and others, that no one had argued against the policy or the right of separation from Britain, or had supposed it possible that they should ever renew their connection, but that the only opposition was to an immediate declaration ; that the 516 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. question was not whether by a declaration of independence they should make themselves what they were not, but whether they should declare a fact which already existed ; that the people were waiting for Congress to lead the way ; that they were in favor of the measure, though the instruc- tions given to some of the representatives were not ; that the effect of the Resolution of the Fifteenth of May proved this, — for the murmurs against it, in the Middle Colonies, called forth the voice of the freer part of the people, and proved them to be a majority in favor of it ; that it would be vain to wait either weeks or months for perfect unanimity, since it was impossible that all men should ever become of one sentiment on any question. It was said that a declara- tion of independence alone could render it consistent with European delicacy for European powers to treat with them or receive an ambassador from them.^ Besides the general summary of Jefferson, are a few individual notices. Wilson avowed that the removal of the restriction on his vote did not change his view of his obligation to resist independence, while John Adams defended the proposed measures as " objects of the most stupendous magnitude, in which the lives and liberties of millions yet unborn were intimately interested." 2 The result may be given in the words of Jefferson : " It appearing in the course of these debates that the colonies of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela- ware, Maryland, and South Carolina, were not yet matured for falling from the parent stem, but that they were fast advancing to that state, it was thought most prudent to wait awhile for them." It was agreed in committee of the whole to report to Congress a resolution which was adopted by a vote of seven colonies to five. This postponed the resolu- tion on independence to the first day of July ; and " in the 1 The summary of Jefferson occupies four pages of the Memoir printed in 1830, in the " Memoir, Correspondence, and Miscellanies from the Papers of Thomas Jefferson." It is said in the preface, "This is the first disclosure to the world of those debates." 2 The citations are from Bancroft, viii. 391. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 0l7 mean while, that no time be lost, a committee be appointed to prepare a declaration in conformity to it." On the next day a committee was chosen for this purpose by ballot : Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, John Adams of Massachu- setts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, and Robert R. Livingston of New York. On the 12th, a committee of one from each colony was chosen to report the form of a confederation, and a com- mittee of five to prepare a plan of treaties to be proposed to foreign powers. When Congress postponed the vote on independence, the popular movement in its favor was in full activity. Some of the members left this body to engage in it. Others pro- moted it by their counsel. One of them, John Adams, on the Sunday intervening between the two days of the great debate, wrote : " Objects of the most stupendous magnitude, and measures in which the lives and fortunes of millions yet unborn are intimately connected, are now before us. We are in the midst of a revolution the most complete, unex- pected, and remarkable of any in the history of nations." ^ Perils were multiplying on every side. The Indians were scalping along the border settlements. Carleton was driv- ing the continental army out of Canada. The Howes, with a powerful land and naval force, were threatening New England, and moving on New York. Parker's fleet was approaching Charleston. The loyalists were arming and rising in Delaware, New Jersey, and New York. " Armies," it was said, "composed of Hessians, Hanoverians, Regulars, Tories, and Indians, were plundering and murdering, while the king was amusing a distressed people with the sound of commissioners crying peace when there was no peace." ^ "Anxiety," says Tucker, " and apprehension invaded every breast. Every public assembly, every religious congregation, every scene of social intercourse, or of domestic privac}- and 1 Letter, June 9, 1776. Life and Works of John Adams, ix. 391. * Article in "Connecticut Courant," June 17, 1776. 518 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. retirement, was a scene of deliberation on the public calam- ity and impending danger." ^ The colonies were without a government, or military supplies, or money. They were strong in courage and indomitable will. " America," says "Walter Savage Landor, " was never so great as on the day when she declared her independence. In fact no nation is ever greater than at the time it recovers its freedom from under one apparently more powerful." ^ The combination of an internal enemy with foreign in- vaders has goaded nations to madness : but, in America if it added intensity to the party strifes, it seems to have also increased the caution of the popular leaders. The Resolu- tion of the Fifteenth of May connected the question of local government with that of independence. In the Middle Col- onies, the popular party, with these issues on their banners, were met by a powerful combination of Tories and friends of the proprietary interests, opposed to change and revolu- tion. Thus a providential current was checked and chafed by dams, and there was the noise of many waters. It would be idle to say that the Whigs were always in the right, and the Tories always wrong. There began at this period, in localities where the war became one of extermi- nation, excesses that were shocking to the common human- ity. Congress had enjoined upon the people " to take care that no page in the annals of America be stained by the recital of any action which justice or Christianity might condemn ; " now in a resolve it strove to keep their cause in the line of order ;^ and during the month of June, the wild power of passion spent itself mostly in hot words and goading crimination. The political appeals continued to be 1 Tucker's Blackstone, i. part 1, 84. 2 The Works of Walter Savage Landor, London edition, 1868, i. 126. 3 The vote of Congress in June, in relation to the treatment of the Tories, shows the desire to keep the cause free fi-om excesses. It is in the " Philadelphia Evening Post" of June 18. '■'■ Resolvetl , That no man in these colonies charged with being a Tory, or unfriendly to the cause of American liberty, be injured in his person or properly, unless the proceeding against him be founded on an order of this Con- gress," or committee, &c. BIRTH OP THE NATION, 519 high toned, and to embody the reverent spirit and the true heroism of patriots.^ " May America," writes one, " rise triumphant, blossom as the rose, and swell with increasing splendor, like the growing beauties of the spring, bearing in her right hand the great charter of Salvation, the Gospel of the Heavenly Jesus, and in the left the unfolding vol- umes of Peace, Liberty, and Truth." ^ Pennsylvania was fairly alive with the idea of independ- ence. Nowhere had the question been more thoroughly discussed than in its press ; and nowhere was the opposition to it more strongly intrenched, for it had on its side the proprietary government. Tories could point to the instruc- tions of the Assembly against it as the voice of an eighth of the inhabitants of America. Then, too, warm advocates of independence - — Charles Thomson, for instance —desired to retain the charter ; agreeing in this with the Tories, the majority of the Quakers, and the proprietary party. Hence it is not easy to describe the political feeling with precision.^ Personal preferences and political rivalries, how- ever, gave way before the power of ideas. It was the policy of the Whigs to avoid national distinctions and provincial narrowness, and to become united " under the sole denomi- nation of Americans ;" ^ and it was not possible for them to 1 The following stanza is in the "New Hampshire Gazette" of June 8, and the " Connecticut Gazette " of June 28, and in other newspapers: — " From North though stormy winds may blow To blast fair Freedom, fragrant flower, And urge the seas to overflow The banks, that shield it from their power: Yet, planted here by God's own hand, Be not, dear fugitive, dismayed. The winds shall cease at His command, • The sea's proud waves shall soon be stayed." 2 Force's American Atchives, -Ith Series, v. 1171. Under the date of May, 1776; under the signature of "Cosmopolitan." 3 Reed's Life of Reed, i. 151. On p. 152 may be found a letter of Thomson on the subject of the Charter. * The Twenty-first Rule of the Military Association was : "All national distinc- tions in dress or name to be avoided, it being proper that we should be united in this general association to defend our liberties and properties, under the sole denom- ination of Americans." — Pennsylvania Evening Post, April 25, 1776. 520 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. rest satisfied with a govei'nment which excluded so large a share of population as the Germans, from the ballot. Tliere was also the great fact of Union. Under its influence, the old proprietary party and the popular party buried their former animosities, and united against a common oppres- sion,^ when, in line upon line, Pennsylvania pledged herself to abide by the decisions of Congress, — a proceeding in which politicians of the type of the Tory Galloway joined.^ On this well-prepared soil fell the Resolution of the Fif- teenth of May. The principle it embodied was accepted by the popular party as their rule of action, as they had accepted the Continental Association ; and they determined that it should be respected as law throughout the province. They said that their governor was commissioned by, and the char- tered power of the assembly was derived from, their mortal enemy the king ; and that a body of men bound by oaths of allegiance was " disqualified to take into consideration " this Resolution. Fidelity to the cause required the abroga- tion of all royal authority, and the organization of a govern- ment on the authority of the people. The public conviction was embodied in a great public meeting held on the 20th of May at the State House. It was called to order by Major John Bayard, a man of singular purity of character*, brave and devout, in which Colonel Daniel Roberdeau, a gallant soldier of the Revolution, presided, and Thomas' McKean, an eminent civilian, took a part. The Resolution of Con- gress was read, when " the people in testimony of their warmest approbation gave three cheers." The instructions of the Assembly against independence, of Novemlier 9tb, were read, when the meeting unanimously resolved that they had the " dangerous tendency to withdraw this prov- ince from that happy union with the other colonies which we consider both our glory and protection." In a protest 1 Gordon's History of Pennsylvania, 525. 2 See page 338 for the pledge to abide by the decision of Congress, and page 396 for approval of its proceedings. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 521 to the Assembly denying its authority, and acknowledging that of the Resolution of Congress, it is said : " We are fully convinced that our safety and happiness, next to the immediate providence of God, depends upon our complying with and supporting the said resolve of Congress, that thereby the union of the colonies may be preserved in- violate." 1 This meeting applied the far-reaching principle, that in matters relating to the welfare of a common country, the union is paramount. An appeal to the public, signed " One of the Seven Thousand who appeared at the State House and swore to support the Union," says: "You will be called on to declare whether you will support the union of the colonies in opposition to the instructions of the House of Assembly, or whether you will support the Assembly against the union of the colonies. We have declared for the former ; and we will, at the hazard of our lives, support the Union." ^ This great demonstration was felt throughout the province. The position it took was responded to by local committees, public meetings, and military battalions. The Resolution of the Fifteenth of May was everywhere greeted with enthusiasm. A remonstrance against it, issued by the friends of the old charter, was burnt as a seditious and treasonable libel.^ But I have space only to give results. The Assembly so far yielded to the outburst of popular feeling as, on the 8tli of June, to adopt instruc- tions authorizing the delegates to concur in forming further 1 The proceedings of this meeting are in the '• Pennsylvania Evening Post " of May 21. 2 Ibid. In Marshall's "Remembrancer" (p. 82) it is stated that the great meet- ing met in the State-House yard, in the rain, at ten o'clock, and continued until twelve, and that after the adjournment the committee of Philadelphia appointed oersons to carry the resolves to the counties. 3 '• We hear that the remonstrance to the Assembly of this Province against the resolve of the Honorable Congress of the 15th inst. (now signing.by a few people in this cit}') was burnt in the most ignominious manner, at Reading, in Berks County, ts a seditious and treasonable libel tending to destroy the union of the colonies and to ruin this province " — Pennsylvania Evening Post, May 30. This remonstrance n'as printed in the issue of this paper of the 23d of May. 522 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. compacts between the United Colonies, and in promoting the safety and interests of America, reserving to the people the sole right of regulating their internal government. The committee of Philadelphia had (May 21) issued a circular addressed to the committees of the several counties, say- ing : " If you wish this province to be restored to their rank in the Continental Union, we recommend you to send a delegation to meet the deputies of tlie other committees, to agree upon the mode of electing members to a Provincial Convention, " for the express purpose of estabhshing a new government on the authority of the people only, according to the enclosed recommendation of the Honorable Conti- nental Congress." ^ This call was enthusiastically responded to. On the 18th of June the conference assembled in Carpenters' Hall. Thomas McKean was the President. On the 24th, this body issued a call for a convention to form a government ; and the paper inaugurating the American practice in insti- tuting organic law is so calm, just, and simple, as to denote a period of repose rather than the turmoil out of which it sprung.^ The conference, on the motion of Benjamin Rush, adopted (June 24) a declaration expressing their determination to concur in a vote of Congress declaring the United Colonies free and independent States, provided that the power of forming the government and the regulation of the internal concerns of each colony be always reserved to the people. This patriotic conference, on giving the fin- ishing stroke to the revolutionary action of Pennsylvania, declared that their procedure did not originate in ambition or in impatience of lawful authority, but that they were driven to it by the first principles of nature, by the oppres- sions and cruelties of the king and parliament, and had adopted it as the only means that were left to them of pre- 1 This letter, dated May 21, is in the " Philadelphia Evening Post " of June 13. 2 This paper was printed in " Pennsyh:ania Evening Post" of June 25. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 523 serving and establishing their liberties, and transmitting them inviolate to their posterity. In the three lower counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sus- sex, or Delaware, independence met with strong opposition. These counties were intimately connected with Pennsylvania, and shared largely its political feelings and agitations. Thomas McKean, who took so prominent a part in the movements in Pennsylvania, was equally prominent in Dela- ware. On the 22d of March the Assembly instructed it» delegates to join in the military operations required for the common defence, to cultivate the Union with the greatest care, and to " avoid and discourage any separate treaty " ; but to aim at reconciliation. This restricted the action of McKean and Caesar Rodney, stanch advocates of independ- ence. The third delegate, George Read, sympathized with Robert Morris and Dickinson, in viewing a change of gov- ernment and independence premature. The Resolution of the Fifteenth of May brouglit on a crisis. The popular party in Kent County instructed their delegates to demand of the Assembly compliance with the Resolution, and, in case of a refusal to call a convention, to withdraw, and thus dissolve the House. The anti-revolutionary party presented a remonstrance against this course, and against changing the constitution at that crisis. The popular party won a partial victory. The Assembly, on the 14th of June, authorized their delegates to concur with the other dele- gates " in forming such further compacts between the United Colonies,'' and " adopting such other measures as shall he judged necessary " to promote the liberty of America, " reserving to the people of this colony the sole and exclusive right of regulating the internal government and police of the same." ^ On the next day, it declared that all persons holding office should continue to exercise power " in the name of the government of the Counties 1 Life and Correspondence of George Read, 165, where may be found the othei papers cited in the text. 524 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex upon Delaware, as they used to exercise them in the name of the king, until a new government should be formed agreeably to the resolution of Congress." Thus the popular party removed the restriction respecting independence, and prepared the way for a new government.^ In New Jersey the struggle for independence was exciting and interesting. The opposing parties, both in their ele- ments and in their relation to the cause, were much like those of Pennsylvania.^ The Governor, William Franklin, continued to the last a zealous and dogged loyalist ; and behind him was a strong party for reconciliation. Besides the instructions against independence, the Assembly resolved on a separate petition to the king ; when Congress sent to this body the illustrious trio, John Dickinson, John Jay, and George Wythe, to procure a reversal of their determination. They were courteously received on the floor, and urged in addresses that nothing but unity and bravery in the Colo- nies would bring Great Britain to terms ; that she wanted to procure separate petitions ; but that such a course would break the Union, when the colonies would be like a rope of sand.^ The Assembly yielded. It was soon prorogued, and did not reassemble. The political power was vested in a Provincial Congress; representing a constituency who had, in their numicipalities, their party organizations, and their Assembly, agreed to abide by the decisions of Con- gress; and had approved of the Association.* The vigorous measures for the common defence met with a generous re- sponse. The royal governor, seeing the torrent of public opinion sweeping away the powers and services pertaining to his office, determined to restore the old authority ; and he 1 Force's Archives, 4th Series, vi. 884. 2 Gordon in the History of New Jersey- (1834) uses (pp. 178-180) to describe the parties the hinguage iu which he (1829) had described (pp. 524-526) parties in Penn- sylvania. 3 Bancroft, vii. 214. ■* In pages 340 and 396 wiU be found the pledges of New Jersey. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 625 issued (May 30) a proclamation summoning the Assejubly. Soon afterward a new Provincial Congress — the delegates to which were chosen pursuant to its own ordinance — met on the 10th of June, at Burlington. Jonathan Dickinson Sergeant, John Witherspoon, Frederick Frelinghujsen, — distinguished in the history of the country, — were among the members. They voted that the proclamation of Frank- lin " ought not to be obeyed;" that "by such proclamation he had acted in direct contempt and violation of the Resolve of Congress of the 15th of May " ; and that (June 16) measures be taken to secure his person, as that of an enemy to the liberties of the country. The Governor was confined to his own house, and his case referred to the Gen- eral Congress, which ordered him to be sent a prisoner to Connecticut. The Provincial Congress voted (June 21) to form a government " for regulating the internal police of the colony, pursuant to the recommendation" of Congress. On the next day a new set of delegates were chosen, who were empowered to join with the delegates of the other colo- nies in " declaring the United Colonies independent of Great Britain," and entering into a confederacy, " always observ- ing that, whatever plan of confederacy they entered into, the regulating the internal police of this province was to be reserved to the colony legislature." ^ In Maryland the party in favor of independence encoun- tered peculiar obstacles. Under the proprietary rule the colony enjoyed a large measure of happiness and prosperity. The Governor, Robert Eden, was greatly respected, and to the last was treated with forbearance. " You need," he wrote to his brother, April 28th, " be under no concern about me. I am well supported and not obnoxious to any, unless it be to some of our infernal independents who are in league with the Bostonians." 2 The political power was vested in 1 Journal of the Provincial Congress in Force's Archives, 4th Series, vi. 1615. The votes relative to Governor Franklin are in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of June 18, attested by the President and Secretary of Congress. 2 MSS. in Jared Sparks's Collection. 52b THE EISE OP THE REPUBLIC. a Convention which created the Council of Safety and pro- vided for the common defence. This was, however, so much under the control of the proprietary party and timid Whigs that, on the 21st of May, it renewed its former instructions against independence ; and after considering the Resolution of Congress of the Fifteenth of May, and providing for a suspension of the oaths of allegiance, it declared that it was not necessary to suppress every kind of authority under the crown, or to establish government on the power of the people.^ This action created the issue which stirred the neighboring colonies so profoundly, whether this decision or the recommendation of the United Colonies should stand. The popular leaders determined " to take the sense of the people." Charles Carroll of Carrolton, and Samuel Chase, who had just returned from Canada, entered with zeal into the movement on the side of independence and revolution. Meetings were called in the counties, and the political sentiment embodied in their proceedings har- monized with that of the counties in Virginia and Pennsyl- vania, and of the towns in Massachusetts, in principle and object. Anne Arundel County declared that the province, except in questions of domestic policy, was bound by the decisions of Congress, that the instructions of this colony against independence ought to be rescinded, and that their own action proceeded " from a thorough conviction that the true interests and substantial happiness of the United Cofonies in general, and this in particular, are inseparably interwoven and linked together, and essentially dependent on a close union and continental confederation." This sentiment was embodied in instructions, under ten heads, — as clear, strong, and sound as any paper of the times, — addressed to Charles Carroll, Barrister, Samuel Chase, 1 The resolves occapy a column of the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 25. In the same issue is a memorial to the Congress of the Committee of the City and Liberties of Philadelphia, dated May 24, saying '• that they have beheld with great affliction the Assembly of Pennsylvania withdraw from its union with the Con- gress," by its action on the Resolve of May 15th. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 527 Thomas Johnson, "William Paca, and Charles Carroll of Carrolton. Charles County followed, pronouncing for inde- pendence, confederation, and a new government. Talbot County, addressing, among others, Matthew Tilghman, " saw with grief and astonishment the Convention of Maryland, in matters of the utmost importance, resolving in direct oppo- sition to the honorable Congress," and regarded their action on the Resolution of the Fifteenth of May as " a direct breach of the Continental Union." Frederick County (June 17) unanimously resolved : " That what may be recommended by a majority of the Congress equally delegated by the people of the United Colonies, we will, at the hazard of our lives and fortunes, support and maintain ; and that every resolution of the Convention tending to separate this prov- ince from a majority of the colonies, without the consent of the people, is destructive to our internal safety, and big with public ruin." ^ This was immediately printed. " Read the papers," Samuel Chase wrote on the 21st to John Adams, " and be assured Frederick speaks the sense of many coun- ties." - Two days afterward the British man-of-war, Fowey, with a flag of truce at her top-gallant mast, anchored before Annapolis ; the next day Governor Eden was on board ; and so closed the series of royal governors on Maryland soil. A convention assembled at Annapolis, on the 21st of June, in which were Chase, Carroll of Carrolton, Johnson, and Tilghman ; and on the 28th it recalled the former instruc- tions against independence, and authorized the delegates " to concur with the delegates of the other colonies in declaring the United Colonies free and independent States," and in forming a compact or confederation, " provided the sole and exclusive right of regulating the internal government and police of this colony be reserved to the people thereof."^ 1 I copy the Resolve of Frederick County as printed from the "Pennsylvania Journal " of June 26, 1776. The proceedings of the several counties are in Force's Archives, Uh Series, Volume vi. 2 Life and Works of Johfa Adams, ix. 412. 8 Force's Archives, -Ith Series, vi. 1491. 528 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The result was. hailed with the liveliest satisfaction by the popular leaders in Congress. In Georgia there was strong opposition to independence. The Provincial Congress chose a new set of delegates, and on the 5th of April authorized them to join in all measures which they might think calculated for the common good, — charging them " always to keep in view the general utility, remembering that the great and righteous cause in which they were engaged was not provincial, but continental."^ It was circulated in the newspapers that the delegation were authorized to go to the full length of a separation from Great Britain. In South Carolina independence was opposed by a large portion of the people. The new government, however, on the 23d of March, gave full authority to their delegates to agree to any measure judged necessary for the welfare of the colony or of America. On the 1st of April the legis- lature, in an address to the President, said, that their new constitution looked forward to an accommodation with Great Britain, an event, " which, though traduced and treated as rebels, we earnestly desire " ; yet on the 6th they declared that the colony " would not enter into any treaty or corre- spondence with that power, or with any persons under that authority, but through the medium of the Continental Con- gress." 2 In New York there was great hesitancy in acting on the question of independence. The external danger was immi- nent ; the internal strife, bitter. A party, which had in its ranks John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, Robert R. Livingston, and George Clinton, was certainly a power ; but it had hard odds to contend against, and down to the date of the dec- laration it had failed to bring over a majority to decisive measures. The course of things here gave the popular 1 " Pennsylvania Evening Post," May 28, 1776. 2 These important resolves were directed to be forthwith printed and made pub- lic." They are in the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of May 28. Also the address to Governor Rutledge and his reply. These papers occupy one side the paper. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 529 leaders in Congress great vexation. In vain did the New- York delegates write letters soliciting instructions on the subject of independence. The Resolution of the Fifteenth of May elicited in the Provincial Congress — in which the political power resided — an elaborate report and, on the 31st of May, a measure designed to ascertain the sense of the electors on the propriety of instituting such government as Congress recommended. The final instruction to the delegates on independence was chilling. In reply to their pressing letter of the 8th of June, the Provincial Congress, on the 11th, advised them, that they were not authorized to vote for independence, that Congress declined to instruct them on that point, and that as measures had been taken to obtain the authority of the people to establish regular gov- ernment, " it would be imprudent to require the sentiments of the people relative to the question of independence, lest it should create division and have an unhappy influence on the other." However able and brilliant New York might have been in laying down the principles of the Revolution, it was the least unanimous in embodying them in the great meas- ures of independence.^ In New England the issues that stirred up the Middle Colonies were already virtually settled. The Governments were in the hands of a people who were longing for a declaration of independence. Only in Massachusetts, how- ever, were the towns called upon to express their views ; and the returns showed that a people could not be more united than this people were on the expediency of a declara- tion of independence. In Connecticut the king's name was disused in issuing writs and civil processes ; the governor returned a cordial reply to the circular of Virginia on inde- 1 Force's Archives, 4th Series, vi. 814. This vohime, p. 1299, has the proceed- ings of the Provincial Congress. On the 11th of June it adopted a series of resolves in relation to local government, and requesting the freeholders to express their opin- ions "respecting the great question of independency," but agreed t<> postpone their publication until after the election of deputies, with powers to form a new govern- ment. 34 530 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. pendence, expressing " the most sensible satisfaction to see the ancient and patriotic Colony of Virginia had nobly advanced " to the point of instrncting their delegates to propose independence ; and the legislature, on the 14th of June, instructed their delegates to propose in Congress, " to declare the United American Colonies free and independent States," and to promote a permanent plan of union and confederation, — "saving that the power for the regulation of the internal concerns and police of each colony " be left to the colonial legislature. The New-Hampshire legislature, on the loth of June, instructed their delegates '' to join in declaring the Thirteen Colonies an independent State, . . . provided the regulation of their internal police be under the direction of their own assembly." In the last days of June the agitation on the question of independence ceased in every colony except New York. Ten colonies — North Carolina, Rhode Island, Massachu- setts, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Mary- land, Connecticut, and New Hampshire — expressed their will in direct action upon it ; while Georgia and South Caro- lina gave commissions to their delegates which covered the power to vote for it. Thus twelve of the United Colonies authorized their representatives to join in making a declara- tion of independence ; and hence designated Congress to perform this high act of sovereignty. Indeed no other course was suggested. " Such a declaration," Judge Dray- ton said from the bench, " was of right to be made only by the general Congress, because the united voice and strength of America were necessary to give a desirable credit and prospect of stability to a declared state of total separation from Great Britain."^ The unanimity was thought remark- able. The secret and providential influence Which disposed 1 Charge in a court in Charleston, Oct. 15, 1776, " On the rise of the American Empire." He says: " A decree is now gone forth not to be recalled! and thus has suddenly risen in the world a new empire, styled The United States of America." — American Remembraucer, v. 327. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 531 the hearts and minds of the people to form a union/ and to give the union the force of law, disposed them to go forward together and assume rank as a nation. All through this popular movement, the union is seen act- ing in obedience to the primal law of self-preservation, — clinging to life, and frowning on whatever tended to destroy life. Yet in all the enthusiasm roused by unfurling a national flag, and the prospect of attaining independence, there is manifested no desire for such consolidation as . would weaken the old self-government. The intelligent grasp by the public mind of fundamentals in a republic is seen in the sagacious reservation by each colony of the right to regulate the internal police or to frame the local law. In this way the people, as they entered into the solemn covenant which recognized a common country, marked the outlines of the two spheres of political power — the two orders of trusts — which they intended to establish in a new American system, — local governments for the States, and a general government for the Union. Neither language nor acts could have been desired to show more conclusively that both political units — the State and the Nation — were designed to be paramount, each in its allotted sphere. The publicity attending every important movement rela- tive to independence enabled the members of Congress to judge for themselves of the state of public opinion on the question. They could see a type of the sentiment of New England in the noble instructions of Boston, which declared that loyalty to the king had become treason to the country. They could know the spirit that triumphed in the Middle Colonies, from the admirable Declaration of the Pennsylvania Conference, which averred that the public virtue would be endangered by a longer connection with Great Britain. They had the determination of the Southern Colonies, as embodied in the strong papers of North Carolina and Vir- 1 See the citation from Ramsay on p. 398. 532 THE EISE OF THE REPUBLIC. ginia.^ On the 29th of June they might have read a fresh and most spirited expression of the public feeling in an article in a Philadelphia newspaper, denouncing in severe terms those who thought of reconciliation ; and, with the remark that Americans could not offer terms of peace with Great Britain until they had agreed upon a name, suggest- ing that the contemplated power be called The United States of'America.2 The popular verdict had settled the question in favor of a declaration of independence ; and as the expectation was general, if not universal, that it should be made at once, to postpone it was to hazard internal convulsion. The form only remained to be determined upon. The committee appointed to report a draft requested their chairman, Jeffer- son, to prepare one, which he did. He submitted his manu- script to Franklin and Adams separately, members whose critical judgment he valued the most ; and each made a few verbal alterations, still to be seen in their handwriting. Then the paper was read in a meeting of the committee, and, without further alterations, was accepted. It was re- ported in Congress on the 28th of June, and ordered to lie on the table. On the same day Francis Hopkinson of New Jersey, one of the five new members from that colony, " all independent souls," presented instructions in favor of a declaration. Congress, as assembled on the first day of July in Independence Hall, contained probably fifty-one delegates.^ Some met for the first time. The names of the new mem- bers, and of others who signed the declaration but who were not yet elected, are found connected with the past revolu- 1 The papers referred to in the text were printed in the Philadelphia newspapers. 2 "Republicus," in the " Pennsylvania Evening Post," June 29. He says: " The condition of those brave fellows who have fallen into the enemies' hands makes a declaration of independence absolutely necessary, because no proper cartel for an exchange of prisoners can take place while we remain dependents. It is some degree of comfort to a man taken prisoner, that he belongs to some national power, — is the subject of some State that will see after him." 8 Bancroft, viii. 459. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 533 tionary action of their several colonies. Among the dele- gates were the enterprising merchant, the learned lawyer, the eminent divine, the profound jurist, and the ripe scholar. It was a body remarkably rich in individuality of character, containing illustrious men: "not such as they are lauded by chosen encomiasts, but as they are proved to have been" by their character, designs, and works. Thus their political ideas had an anchorage in morals, law, order, and religion ; and they acted upon principle to a degree unparalleled in the examples of collective public virtue.^ John Hancock and Samuel Adams were under sentence of proscription from the king. Franklin, " the genius of the day and the patron of American liberty," ^ had fame as wide as civilization. Many were destined to serve their countrymen in a new political system, as representatives, senators, judges, governors, and cabinet officers ; others, to enlarge the bounds of knowledge by contributions to literature and science ; and the greater number, to live to a great age, and to see the fruits of their labors ripen. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, to the honor of that generation, rose to be presidents. They were permitted to linger among a new generation, beloved and venerated ; and after passing an old age of singular beauty and glory, to enter into their rest, on the fiftieth anniversary of the event whicli, by their large service in hastening it, is indeli- bly associated with their memories. On this morning of an eventful day Adams expressed the foregone conclusion as he wrote of the work laid out : " Heaven prosper the new-born republic, and- make it more glorious than any former repub- lics ; " ^ while Jefferson had the sanction of his colleague to the great instrument which embodied the principles on which the republic was to be based. The preliminary business having been disposed of, the resolution of the Maryland Convention on independence was 1 American Quarterly Review, i. 437. 2 This term was applied to him in the newspapers in June, 1776. 3 John Adams to Archibald Bullock, July 1. Works, ix. 414. 534 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. read ; and this trophy of a hard political fight diffused gen- eral joy. The order of the day was read, when Congress voted to " resolve itself into a committee of the whole to take into consideration the resolution respecting independency," and to refer " the draft of the declaration to this committee." Benjamin Harrison was called to the chair. The new dele- gates from New Jersey now desired to hear the question discussed, and Richard Stockton was so importunate that several remarked, "Let the gentlemen be gratified." "All was silence," John Adams writes. " No one would speak. All eyes were turned upon me. Mr. Edward Rutledge came to me and said, laughing, ' Nobody will speak but you upon this subject. You have all the topics so ready that you must satisfy the gentlemen from New Jersey.' " Others also said to him, " You must recapitulate the arguments." Adams, somewhat confused at this personal appeal, rose and began: "This is the first time of my life when I seriously wished for the genius and eloquence of the celebrated orators of Athens and Rome, called in this unexpected and unpre- pared manner to exhibit all the arguments in favor of a measure the most important in my judgment that had ever been discussed in civil or political society. I had no art or oratory to exhibit, and could produce nothing but simple reason and plain common sense. I felt myself oppressed by the weight of the subject ; and I believe if Demosthenes or Cicero had ever been called to deliberate on so great a ques- tion, neither would have relied on his own talents without a supplication to Minerva, and a sacrifice to Mercury or the god of eloquence."^ No further report of this unpremedi- 1 "All this," he says, "to be sure, was but a flourish, and not, as I conceive, a very bright exordium." — John Adams to Mrs. Mercy Warren, dated " Quincy, 1807." I am inaebted to Hon. Charles H. Warren for a copy of this letter, which may be found in the appendix. Daniel Webster (Curtis's Life, ii. 295) in a letter dated Jan. 27, 1846, says: " So far as I know there is not existing in print or manuscript the speech, or any part or fragment of a speech, delivered by Mr. Adams on the Declaration of Independence." The biographer of Adams (Works, i. 228) says of this speech, " Not a word has been transmitted to posterity " Adams in his Auto- biography (Works, iii. 58) gives some of the incidents attending this speech, but not the exordium. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 535 tated speech is known to be in existence. According to one statement he set forth the justice, the necessity, and the advantages of a separation from Great Britain ; dwelt on the neglect and insult with which their petitions had been treated by the king, and on the vindictive spirit which showed itself in the employment of German troops to compel the colonists to unconditional submission ; and concluded by urging the present time as the most suitable for separation, because it had become the desire of the communities which the dele- gates represented.^ Another account snys, that he urged the immediate dissolution — and the questions of time and form were really the Only open questions — of all political connection of the colonies with Great Britain, " from the voice of the people, from the necessity of the measure in order to obtain foreign assistance, from a regard to consis- tency, and from the prospects of glory and happiness which opened beyond the war, to a free and independent people." ^ This speech was replied to by John Dickinson. He began an elaborate argument in favor of the postponement of a declaration by saying, that the member from Massachusetts introduced his defence of a declaration by invoking a heathen god, but that he should begin his objections to it by solemnly invoking the Governor of the Universe so to influ- ence the minds of the members, that if the proposed measure ■was for the benefit of America, nothing which he should say against it might make the least impression.^ He said : — " I value the love of my country as I ought, but I value my country more, and I desire this illustrious assembly to witness the integrity, if not the policy of my conduct. The first campaign will be decisive of the controversy. The declaration will not strengthen us by one man, or by the least supply, while it may expose our soldiers to additional 1 Bancroft, viii. 452. 2 Ramsay's History of the American Revolution, i. 341. 3 Ibid., i. 341. This remark of Dickinson, with the positive statement of Dr. Ramsay and others, that Adams invoked the god of eloquence, occasioned the letter of 1807 alreadv cited. 586 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. cruelties and outrages. Without some prelusory trials of our strength, we ought not to commit our country upon an alternative where to recede would be infamy, and to persist might be destruction. With other powers it would rather injure than avail us. Foreign aid will not be obtained but by our actions in the field, which are the only evidences of our union and vigor that will be respected. Before such an irrevocable step shall be taken, we ought to know the dispo- sition of the great powers ; and how far they will permit any one or more of them to interfere. The erection of an independent empire on this continent is a phenomenon in the world ; its effects will be immense, and may vibrate round the globe. The formation of our governments, and an agreement on the terms of our confederation, ought to precede the assumption of our station among sovereigns. When this is done, and the people perceive that they and their posterity are to live under well regulated constitutions, they will be encouraged to look forward to independence, as completing the noble system of their political happiness. The objects nearest to them are now enveloped in clouds, and those more distant appear confused ; the relation one citizen is to bear to another, and the connection one State is to have with another, they do not, cannot know. The boundaries of the colonies ought to be fixed before the declaration. The unlocated lands ought also to be solemnly appropriated to the benefit of all. Upon the whole, when things shall thus be deliberately rendered firm at home and favorable abroad, then let America, ' Attollens humeris famam et fata nepotum,' bearing up her glory and the destiny of her descendants, advance with majestic steps and assume her station among the sovereigns of the world." ^ No member immediately rose to reply to this speech ; 1 Adams says in his Autobiography, written twenty -nine years afterward (1805), while Dickinson had published his speech, he made no preparations beforehand, and never committed an}' minutes of his to writing. His letter is dated lfe07. The cita- tions in the text are copied Irom Bancroft, viii. 452-456. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 537 and, after waiting some time, Adams again took tlie floor, saying that he believed he .could answer to the satisfaction of the House all the arguments which had been produced, notwithstanding the ability they displayed, and the eloquence with which they had been enforced.^ No further account of his reply has appeared. James Wilson now said that he had at an early day foreseen independence as the probable, though not the intended result of the contest, and had uni- formly declared in his place that he never would vote for it contrary to his instructions ; nay, that he regarded it as something more than presumption to take a step of such importance without express instructions and authority. For ought that act to be the act of four or five individuals, or should it be the act of the people of Pennsylvania ? But now that their authority was given by the conference of committees, he stood on very different ground, and could no longer agree with his colleague.^ Others spoke, — Paca of Maryland, " who behaved nobly," McKean, of Delaware, and Edward Rutledge being named. Samuel Adams could hardly have kept silent during a long debate on a question in which he was so deeply interested. There is, however, no report of what they or others said. Imagination alone can supply the picture of a scene indelibly impressed on the minds of those present.^ The question before the committee was the portion of the motion relating to independence, submitted by the Virginia delegates on the 7th of June. The New- York members read their instructions, and were excused from voting. Of the three delegates from Delaware, Rodney was absent, McKean was in the affirmative. Read in the negative, and thus the vote of this colony was lost. South Carolina was in the negative ; and so was Pennsylvania, by the votes of Dickinson, Willing, Morris, and Humphries, against those 1 "Works of John Adams, iii. 55. 2 Bancroft's History', viii. 456. 3 "A scene which has ever been present to my mind," George Walton, a dele- gate from Georgia, wrote, Nov. 7, 1789. John Adams's Works, iii. 56. 638 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. of Franklin, Morton, and Wilson. Nine Colonics — New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia — voted in the affirmative. The committee rose, the President resumed the chair, and Harrison reported the resolution as having been agreed to. Edward Rutledge, of South Caro- lina, said, that were the vote postponed till the next day, he believed that his colleagues, though they disapproved of the resolution, would then join in it for the sake of unanimity. The final question, in accordance with this request, was postponed until the next day ; but it was agreed to go into a committee of the whole then on the draft of the declaration. On the second day of July, probably fifty members were present in Congress. After disposing of the business of the morning, it resumed the consideration of the resolution on independence, and probably without much debate pro- ceeded to vote. McKean sent an express to Rodney, at Dover, which procured his attendance, and secured the vote of Delaware in the affirmative ; while the same result was reached for Pennsylvania by Dickinson and Morris absent- ing themselves, and allowing Franklin, Wilson, and Morton to give the vote against Willing and Humphries.^ The South-Carolina delegates concluded to vote for the measure. Thus twelve colonies united in adopting the following reso- lution : " That these United Colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent States ; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is and ought to be totally dissolved." And now John Adams wrote, in a generous enthusiasm : " The greatest question has been decided which ever was debated in America, and a greater perhaps never was or will be decided among men." ^ The United Colonies were then decreed the political unit of the United States of America. 1 Thomas McKean to John Adams. Aug. 20, 1813. Niles's Register, xii. 308. Also (Ibid., 278) Letter to William Corkle & Son, June 16, 1817. 2 Letter dated July 3, 1776. BIRTH OF THE XaTIOX. 539 Congress went immediately into committee of the whole to consider the draft of a Declaration of Inde}>endence, or the form of announcing the fact to the world, Dm-iug the remainder of that day, and during the sessions of the third and fourth, the phraseology, allegations, and principles of this paper were subjected to severe scrutiny. Its author re- lates : " The pusillanimous idea that we had friends in Eng- land worth keeping terms with still haunted the minds of many. For this reason, those passages which conveyed censure on the people of England were struck out, lest they should give them offence. The clause, too, reprobating the enslaving the inhabitants of Africa was struck out in com- plaisance to South Carolina and Greorgia, who had never attempted to restrain the importation of slaves, and who. on the contrary, wished to continue it. Oar Northern brethren also, I believe, felt a little tender under those censures : for though their people had very few slaves themselves, yet they had been pretty considerable carriers of them to others." ^ The striking out of the passage declaring the slave trade " piratical warfare against human nature itself," was deeply regretted by many of that generation. Other alterations were for the better, making the paper more dispassionate and terse, and — what was no small improvement — more brief and exact. On the evening of the fourth, the com- mittee rose, when Harrison reported the Declaration as having been agreed upon. It was then adopted, as follows, by twelve States, unanimously, as " The Declaration by the Representatives of The United States of America in Con- gress assembled " : — " Wlien, in the course of human events, it becomes neces- sary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and -equal station to which the laws of Xatiu-e and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect for the opinions of mankind requires that they 1 Memoirs of Jefferson, i. 15. 540 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. should declare the causes which impel them to the separ- atiou. '' We hold these truths to be self-evident — that all men are created equal ; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights ; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happi- ness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate, that governments, long established, should not be changed for light and tran- sient causes ; and accordingly all experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty to throw off such govern- ment, and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has been the patient sufferance of these colonies ; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former systems of government. The history of the present king of Great Britain is a history of repeated in- juries and usurpations, all having in direct object the estab- lishment of an absolute tyranny over these States. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world. " He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. " He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of imme- diate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation, till his assent should be obtained ; and, when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 541 " He has refused to pass other laws for the accommoda- tion of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature — a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only. " He has called together legislative bodies, at places unu- sual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. " He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people. " He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected ; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large, for their exercise ; the State remaining, in the mean time, exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within. " He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States ; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturaliza- tion of foreigners ; refusing to pass others, to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands. " He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers. " He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries. " He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance. " He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies, without the consent of our legislatures. " He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the civil power. " He has combined with others, to subject us to a juris- diction, foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by 542 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. our laws ; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legis- lation : — " For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us : " For protecting them by a mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabi- tants of these States : " For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world : " For imposing taxes on us, without our consent : " For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury : " For transporting us beyond seas, to be tried for pre- tended offences: " For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighbouring province, establishing therein an arbitrary gov- ernment, and enlarging its boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these colonies : " For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valu- able laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our gov- ernments : " For suspending our own legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power, to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever. " He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection, and waging war against us. " He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people. " He is, at this time, transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries, to complete the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun, with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy, scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation. " He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high seas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 543 " He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian savages, wliose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions. " In every stage of these oppressions, we have petitioned for redress, in the most humble terms : our repeated peti- tions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince whose character is thus marked, by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. " Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We have warned them, from time to time, of attempts made by their legislature, to extend an unwarrant- able jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred, to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably inter- rupt our connexions and correspondence. They, too, have been deaf to the voice of justice and consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of man- kind — enemies in war ; — in peace, friends. " We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world, for the rectitude of our intentions. Do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, Free and Independent States ; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connex- ion between them and the State of Great Britain is and ought to be totally dissolved ; and that as Free and Indepen- dent States, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which Independent States may of 544 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." Congress ordered that the Declaration be authenticated ; printed under the direction of the committee that reported it;^ sent to the several committees and conventions, and the commanding officers of the Continental troops ; and pro- claimed in each of the United States, and at the head of the army. A committee — Franklin, John Adams, and Jeffer- son — were directed to prepare a device for the seal of "The United States of America." The Declaration went forth authenticated by John Han- cock, President, and Charles Thomson, Secretary. It was received in the new convention of New York on the 9th of July, and referred to a committee of which John Jay was the chairman, who reported the same day, when the conven- tion, pronouncing the reasoning of the Declaration cogent and conclusive, resolved to support it with their fortunes 1 A letter dated Philadelphia, July 5, in the "Continental Jonrnal," Aug. 8, 1776, says the Declaration was " published yesterday." On the 5th the President transmitted copies, printed probably on a broadside, to several assemblies. The "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of Saturday, the 6th, contains it, signed by order of Congress, John Hancock, President, and Charles Thomson, Secretary. It is printed with great accuracy. It is in the " Maryland Gazette " of July 11, the " Continental Journal" (Boston) of July 18, and "New-Hampshire Gazette" of July 20. A synopsis of it is in the " Virginia Gazette " of July 19, and in full in that of the 26th. Jefferson's original draft was printed in "Niles's Weekly Register" of July 3, 1813, from a copy in his handwriting, found among the papers of George Wythe, and communicated by his executor to the editor of the "Richmond Inquirer." It is said there had been "much curiosity and speculation " about this paper. In 1824 Timothy Pickering in his "Review" of the Cunningham Correspondence printed the original draft from a copy made from one in Jefferson's handwriting — the same which he sent on the 8th of July to Richard Henry Lee. In 1840 it was printed in the " Papers of James Madison " purchased by Con- gress, fi"om the copy which Jefferson sent in his own handwriting to Madison. A. facsimile of the original draft, with the interlineations of Franklin and Adams, and the erasures, was printed in 1829, in Randolph's '• Memoir, Correspondence, and Miscellanies," from the papers of Thomas Jefferson, from Jefferson's own copy; in 1853, in "The Writings of Thomas Jefferson," printed from his original manu- scripts in the Department of State, purchased by Congress, and edited by H. A. Washington; in 1858, in the "Life of Thomas Jefferson," by Henry S. Randall. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 545 and their lives, and ordered it transmitted to the county committees. They announced their action as that of " The representatives of the State of New York." Thus the Declaration of Independence hecame the act of the Thirteen United States, According to the journals, Congress, on the 19th of July, resolved that the " declaration, passed on the 4th, be fairly engrossed on parchment, with the title and style of ' The unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America,' and that the same, when engrossed, be signed by every member of Congress." On the second day of August the journals say, " The Declaration being engrossed, and compared at the table, was signed by the members." ' On 1 This manuscript is preserved in the office of the Secretary of State. In the proposals to print an engraving of it, with facsimiles of the signers, dated March, 1816 (Niles's Register, Vol. x. 310), it is said there was no authentic copy of it in print. This splendid engraving was published in November, 1819. A. fac-dmile of the engrossed copy is in the 5th Series of Force's Archives, i. 1595. The copy in the text is printed from this copy. The statements relative to signing the Declaration are conflicting. Jefferson states that it was signed; generally on the 4th (Memoirs i. 94), and he in other places reiterates this statement, but this manuscript is not known to be extant. (Randall's Jefferson, i. 171). John Adams, on the 9th of July (Works, ix. 417), says, "As soon as an American seal is prepared, I conjecture the Declaration will be superscribed by all the members." Thomas McKean, in a letter dated June 16, 1817 (Niles's Register, xii. 280) says: "Probably copies with the names then signed to it were printed in August, 1776." One of the signers, Thornton, was not a member until Nov. 4. But the list was otherwise incorrect. The early lists, in law books and other works, omitted the name of McKean, which is not in the list printed by Ramsay in 1789 (vol. i. 346), nor in the ''Journals of Congress," published by authority, by Folwell, in 180 (vol. ii. 232). The fifty-six signers are as follows: — New Hampshire — Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton. Massachusetts — John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry. Rhode Island — Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery. Connecticut — Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott. New York — William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris. New Jersey — Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abram Clark. Pennsylvania — Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Mor- ton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Koss. Delaware — Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean. 35 546 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the 20tli of January, 1777, it was voted that an authenti- cated copy, with the names of the signers, be sent to each of the United States, with the request that it be put on record. There is no mention of the service of the members who took part in the proceedings except what has been related. Richard Henry Lee and George Wythe returned to Virginia, and were not in. Congress when the question was taken ; and there is not a word of Gerry, of Franklin, or of Samuel Adams, — who could hardly have kept entirely silent. There is nothing recorded of Hancock, whose bold signature stands first and most conspicuous. Daniel Webster describes Samuel Adams as " of the deepest sagacity, the clearest foresight, and the profoundest judgment in men," and as one who hungered and thirsted for the independence of his country.^ Some of the signers were not members when the question was taken ; but it does not follow that they had no part in bringing it about. Large service was rendered on local fields by some who had been or were to be members : among them Gadsden in South Carolina, Nelson in Virginia, Chase in Maryland, McKean in Delaware, Rush in Pennsyl- vania, Sergeant in New Jersey, Jay in New York ; and Thornton signed the first State paper suggesting independ- ence in New Hampshire, and signed the Declaration, though not a member until November. John Dickinson and John Adams stand forth the most prominently in the debates, and their great encounter was on the 1st of July. The speech of Dickinson, delivered on that day, is preserved entire, — the only speech delivered in Maryland — Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrolton. Virginia — George W3'the, Richard Henrj' Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton. North Carolina — William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn South Carolina — Edward Rutledge, Thomas Hey ward, Jr., Thomas LA-nch, Jr., Arthur Middleton. Georgia — Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton. i AVorks of Daniel Webster, i. 136. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 547 these debates known to be extant. It is clear, strong, marked by great ability ; and in making it lie courageously acted up to his convictions. He breasted the popular will. He required too many great questions to be settled at once, and thus embodied the conservatism that unwisely holds back. He ran counter to the time, and his voice was no longer that of an accepted leader. A few sentences only of the great speech of John Adams on this occasion remain. He then was fully roused ; for on that debate of nine hours " all the powers of the soul had been distended with the magnitude of the object";^ and of this speech he wrote, "I wish some one had remembered the speech, for it is almost the only one I ever made that I wish was literally pre- served." ^ The tribute of his contemporaries to this grand service is full and unreserved. " John Adams," said Jeffer- son to Daniel Webster, " was our Colossus on the floor. He was not graceful, nor elegant, nor remarkably fluent, but he came out occasionally with a power of thought and expres- sion, that moved us from our seats." ^ Madison well recol- lected that " his fellow-laborers in the cause from Virginia filled every mouth in that State with the praises due to the comprehensiveness of liis views, the force of his arguments, and the boldness of his patriotism."* The high honor of having been the author of the Declara- tion belongs to Jefferson ; for the changes by the committee of the whole in the original draft altered neither the arrange- ment, the tone, nor the general character. His genius for political science, and his talent of compressing sentiment into maxims, enabled him to embody so faithfully the cur- rent thought of his countrymen as to mirror the soul of the nation. This, and not originality, is the crowning merit of this immortal paper. In preparing it neither book nor pam- phlet was referred to ; but so thoroughly imbued was its 1 Jeiferson's Letter, dated Paris, Aug. 29, 1787. 2 John Adams to Mercy Warren, 1807. 3 Ticknor's relation in Curtis's Life of Webster, voL i. 589. 4 Writings, voL iii. 20'4. .'^48 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. author with the repuhlican sph-it of the Parliamentarians of the times of the Commonwealth, that the paper reflects their dignity of thought and solidity of style. " To say that he performed his great work well would be doing him injustice. To say that he did it excellently well, admirably well, would be inadequate and halting praise. Let us rather say, that he so discharged the duty assigned him, that all Americans may well rejoice that tlie work of draw^ing the title-deed of their liberties devolved upon him." ^ To welcome this great State-paper, thousands in all the States rested from their daily toil, and gathered at their accus- tomed places of meeting. The occasion of its proclamation was the event of the day in hundreds of villages, towns, cities, and counties. The record of the proceedings is voluminous. There were imposing assemblages that listened to the read- ing from the balcony of the Old State House, in Boston ; in New Hampshire, at Portsmouth and Amherst ; in Rhode Island, at Newport and Providence ; in New York, at the City Hall ; in New Jersey, at Trenton ; in Delaware, at Dover ; at Philadelphia, in Independence Square, when the Liberty Bell of the State House was rung ; in Maryland, at the Baltimore Court House ; in Virginia, at Williamsburg ; in N(jrth Carolina, at Halifax ; in Georgia, at Savannah ; and at other places too many to enumerate. Similar terms of description will apply to most of the proceedings. The civil authorities were present. The military paraded, bear- ing the standard of the United States. The salutes were often by thirteen divisions. The population gathered as on gala days. The Declaration was read amidst the acclama- tions of the people, mingled with the roll of drums and the roar of cannon. Then followed the feast and the toasts, and in the evening bonfires and illuminations, with the re- moving or destruction of the emblems of royalty .^ 1 Works of Daniel Webster, i. 127. Jefferson gave the portable writing-desk on which he wrote the Declaration to Joseph Coolidge, Jr. It is now in Boston. — Mass. Hist. Soc. Proceedings, 1855-58, p. 151.^ 2 The newspapers contain full accounts of these occasions. BIRTH OF THE NATION. 549 In soiT\e celebrations there were peculiar features. Sucli was the case in the rural town of Amherst, New Hampshire, the shire-town of Hillsborough County. The committee of safety required the Declaration to be proclaimed by the sheriff. Ho, accompanied by the greater number of the magistrates of the county, and a large body of citizens, escorted Ijy the militia, marched to the church, and attended prayers. Then the procession went to the parade ground, and there formed in a circle round an eminence. Here the sheriff on horseback, with a drawn sword in his hand, read the Declaration. " After that was done, three cheers were given, colors were flying, drums beating ; the militia fired in thirteen divisions, attended with universal acclamations." In Savannah, Georgia, the executive officers and council met in the Council Chamber and listened to the Declaration ; then proceeded to the square before the Assembly House, where it was read before a great concourse, after which the Grenadiers and Light Infantry fired a general volley. Then a procession, with the Grenadiers in front, the Provost Marshal with his sw^ord drawn, the Secretary with the Declaration, and the civil authorities, closing with the Light Infantry, went to the Liberty Pole, where they met the Georgia Battalion, when there was another reading, and salutes were fired. The procession then went to the Bat- tery, where the paper having been read for the last time, cannon were again discharged. The principal gentlemen dined in a grove of cedar trees, and in the evening the town was illuminated.^ A few of the narratives report the words spoken on these occasions. In Delaware, at Dover, a picture of the king was carried by a dnniimer in a procession ; the military marched to slow time, and then formed in a circle round a fire, when the president of the day committed the portrait 1 Washington, on proclaiming His Majesty's Declaration of War against France, in 1750, at Winchester, Va., marched his troops to several places, where it was read. See p. 134. 550 ' THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. to the flames, saying, " Compelled by strong necq^sity thus we destroy even the shadow of that king who refused to reign over a free people ; " on which three loud huzzas rose from the multitude assembled.^ In Savannah, in the evening, an effigy of the king was borne in a procession, and buried before the Court House ; the speaker saying " that George the Third had most flagrantly violated his coronation oath, trampled upon the constitution of the country and the sacred rights of mankind. . . . Let us remember America is free and independent ; that she is, and will be, with the blessing of the Almighty, great among the nations of the earth. Let this encourage us in well doing, to fight for our rights and privileges, for all that is near and dear to us. May God give us His blessing and let all the people say Amen."^ At Cumberland, New Jersey, the gathering was large, the procession moved to the court house, and, after the reading and an address, the peace officers' staves having the king's coat of arms were burned in the streets. The address by Dr. Elmer, the chairman of the committee, — one of the few things of this kind preserved entire, — is admirable, embodying the spirit of fidelity to law^ as well as to liberty, characteristic of the time. He said that the Declaration had been brought about by unavoidable necessity, and had been conducted with a pru- dence and moderation becoming the wisest and best of men ; that a new era in politics had commenced ; that no people under heaven was ever favored with a fairer oppor- tunity of laying a sure foundation for future grandeur and happiness ; and that it was impossible for any one possessed of the spirit of a man who is a friend to the United States, to stand by, an idle spectator, while his country was strug- gling and bleeding in her own necessary defence, and that all such ought to be shunned as enemies or despised as cowards.^ 1 Biography of the Signers, viii. 100. 2 Force's Archives, 5th Series, i. 882. 8 Ibid., 811. \ • BIRTH OF THE NATION. 551 No State paper was ever more widely circulated, or moi-e thoroughly read, or more heartily indorsed, than the Declar- ation. The act it justified was hailed everywhere with a feeling as spontaneous as the joy that burst forth on the destruction of the tea, or the fraternity that was manifested on the passage of the Port Act. " Was there ever a reso- lution brought about," wrote Samuel Adams, " especially so important as this, without great internal tumults and violent convulsions ? The people, I am told, recognize the resolution as though it were a decree promulgated from Heaven." But the strictly official action, following the transmission of the Declaration by the President of Congress to the civil and military authorities, is far too important to be omitted. The President, in sending (July 5th and 6th) the Declar- ation to the assemblies and conventions, said that Congress had judged it necessary to dissolve all connection between Great Britain and the American colonies, and requested that its action be proclaimed in the inanner that might be thought best. The approval of its terms was general. The Massa- chusetts Assembly (September 4) expressed their " entire satisfaction " with it ; their congratulations on the very general approbation it met with among all ranks of people in the United States ; and pledged their fortunes, lives, and sacred honor to support it. The South Carolina Assembly said (September 20) that it was with the most unspeakable pleasure they expressed their joy and satisfaction at the measure. " It is a decree now worthy of America," say the council. " We thankfully receive the notification of and rejoice at it ; and we are determined at every hazard to endeavor to maintain it, that so, after we have departed, our children and their latest posterity may have cause to bless our memory." The greater number, if not all, the Assemblies made similar pledges. The Maryland Assembly resolved that they would maintain the freedom and inde- pendence of the United States with their lives and fortunes ; 552 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. the Noj'th Carolina Council added, under the sanction of virtue, honor, and the sacred love of liberty and their coun- try ; the Pennsylvania Convention, in behalf of themselves, their constituents, and before God and the world. These ratifications were printed, and in some instances, as was the case in Rhode Island, were read before great assemblages of the civil authorities, the military, and the people.^ The ratification was hearty and unanimous. These bodies or the councils ordered the Declaration to be published in due form in every locality ; as by the selectmen in every town, or by the sheriffs in every county, or by the clergy from the pulpit on Sunday. The President wrote to the Commander-in-Chief that Con- gress had for some time been occupied with one of the most important subjects that could possibly come before any as- sembly of men, which, in obedience to the duty they owed to themselves and to posterity, they had decided in the best manner they were able, and left the consequences to that Being who controls both causes and events, to bring about his own determinations ; and he requested Washington to proclaim the Declaration ' at the head of the army in the way he should think most proper. Washington (July 9) communicated it in a General Order, in which he said: " The General hopes this important event will serve as an incentive to every officer and soldier to act with fidel- ity and courage, as knowing that now the peace and safety of his country depend (under God) solely on the success of our arms ; and that he is now in the service of a State possessed of sufficient power to reward his merit and ad- vance him to the highest honors of a free country." The 1 The following is the pledge of Rhode Island : — " State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. In General Assembly, July session, 1776. This General Assembly, taking into the most serious consideration the Resolution of the most Honorable the General Congress of the United States of Amer- ica, of the 4th instant, declaring the said States Free and Independent States, do approve the said Resolution ; and do most solemnly engage that we will support the Bald General Congress, in the said Resolution, with our Lives and Fortunes. " A true copy. Henky Waed, Secretary " BIRTH OF THE NATION. 553 Declaration was read at six o'clock that evening at the head of each brigade, when copies of it were freely distributed. " The expressions and behavior," wrote Washington, " of officers and men, testified their warmest approbation." " Three cheers," writes another, " proclaimed the joy of every heart in the camp." In other places there were military parades and rejoicings. At Ticonderoga, " the language of every man's countenance was, " Now we are a free people, and have a name among the States of the world." This picture of joy and exultation of a free people — this pledge of life and fortune — had its shadow in the anguish in their homes created by internal war and foreign invasion. The land was poor, and the future all uncertain ; but the sentiment of nationality — the fresh emotion of country — was inspiration, and it was strength. The people were confident that their cause would raise up defenders ; and though the cloud of war made their horizon as the night, yet a living faith in the providence of God looked up in trust, and in the darkened sky saw golden hues that gave the promise of the morning. I have endeavored to traverse the course of events — as one prepared the way for another — by which the subjects of thirteen dependent colonies became transformed into citizens of independent States. They undoubtedly had a right, at the outset, to resist the obnoxious measures sepa- rately, or as distinct communities, each in its own way, and each fighting its own battle, as was insidiously suggested by the tory leaders : they might have continued this policy in declaring their independence ; and if success, and not ruin, had been the result, they might have decreed that each should ha\e external as well as internal powers of sover- eignty, or the right to deal with foreign nations as well as the right to regulate their " internal police." ^ But they did not choose this course. They strove so persistently as dis- 1 Reports of Decisions in the Supreme Court Curtis, i. 100. V 654 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. tinct communities to unite in general measures of resistance, that for ten years Union was the key to their politics. It grew to he a conviction that a common country was a neces- sity ; and when they came to act on the large scale of assuming national powers, they declared their independence by a joint act. Hence they became one nation. The stages of the " national birth " ^ were the ripening of public senti- ment, the delegation of power, the resolution declaring the colonies independent States, the Declaration, and the ratifi- cation. Thus the united colonies assumed their station as The United States. That generation comprehended the greatness of the result. John Adams said that it would be " a memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by sncceedhig genera- tions as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be com- memorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of de- votion to God Almighty." ^ Colonel Haslett wrote : "I congratulate you on the important day which restores to every American his birthright ; a day which every freeman will record with gratitude, and the millions of posterity will read with rapture." ^ " It is the most important event," it was said in the press, " that has ever happened to the American colonies ; " and it was predicted that, as a grand era in their history, it would l)e celebrated by anniversary commemorations through a long succession of future ages.* 1 That decisive and important step (Independence) was taken jointly. We de- clared ourselves a nation by a joint, not by several acts. — President Jackson's proclamation, Dec. 10, 1832. Madison (Writings, iii. .3-37) terms the action of Virginia in instructing her delegates, May 15, 1776, " A link in the history of our nationa. birth > 2 Letter dated July 3, 1776. The important portion of this celebrated letter was printed in " The Universal Asylum," for May, 1792. A few phrases are diiferent in this copy from the letter in the works of John Adams, ix. 420 Thus : the words in the last, "of the thirteen," are not in the copy in the Asylum. The publica- tion for March has the two letters of Adams, dated July 1, 1776. 8 Letter to Caesar Rodney, July 6, 1776. Biography of the Signers, viii. 99. Col. Haslett was the commander of the Continental troops in Delaware. 4 The "Continental Journal," of Boston, of July 18, 1776, contains the following under the New York head: "The first (fourth?) instant was rendered remarkable by the most important event that ever happened to the American colonies, — an BIRTH OF THE NATION. 555 The contemporary prophecy breathed the assurance that the entire series of divine dispensations, from the infant days of the fathers of America, was big with omens in her favor, and pointed to something great and good, — a faith that the grand chorus of praise and thanksgiving which greeted the Declaration would echo along the line of future generations. The Declaration not only announced that the heretofore dependent colonies were independent States, but that they were United States, meaning that the same Union which had existed between them as colonies, should be continued between them as States. ^ Hence it has been termed the fundamental act of Union.^ It was an embodiment of the public will, as a source of authority, when it was the will of the people composing one nation.^ f This act, however, did not consist merely in the Declaration issued by Con- gress, but embraced the prior action of the colonies con- ferring the power to adopt the measure, and the subsequent ratification of it by them. They were successive stages of one joint act, by wdiich the Declaration of Independence was ordained and established as organic law. It was a covenant of country in which the people recognized the providential development of Union. This Union had al- ready been consecrated by precious blood and revered mem- ories. Joint effort, common 'suffering, and patient labor, were to make it more perfect. Thus, hardening more and more into a mighty historic force, it was bequeathed as a sacred possession to posterity. event which will doubtless be celebrated through a long succession of future ages by anniversary comiiieinorations, and be considered as a grand era in the historj' of the American States. ( )n this auspicious day the Representatives of the Thirteen United Colonies, by the I'rovidence of God, unanimously agreed to and voted a Proclamation declaring the said colonies to be Free and Independent States, which was proclaimed at the State House in Philadelphia, on ]\I(inday last, and received with joyftil acclamations " i " A Brief Enquiry into the Nature and Character of our Federal Government," p. 40. This was written by Hon. Abel P. Upshur. 2 Letters and other writings of James Madison, iii. 482. 8 "In our (■om[)lex system of polity, the public will, as a source of authority may be the will of the people aa composing one nation," &c. — Madison's Letters &c., iii. 479. 656 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. The Declaration established Union as a fundamental law by the side of the old law of Diversity. These laws appear as correlative forces, the existence of the one being depend- ent on that of the other ; and, in their normal requirements they are so free from antagonism or conflict, that fidelity to one cannot be treason to the other, while obedience to both — each paramount in its sphere — constitutes the life, harmony, and glory of the American political world. On the one rests local self-government ; on the other National Union. These historic ideas, entwined like warp and woof, influenced results along the whole line of the revolutionary struggle ; and, if as it advances, the Union appears to grow more stern and to become at times imperative, yet there is evinced the same determination to secure the right of local government in future from internal violation, as there had been in the past to protect it from foreign aggression. The Declaration transformed the sentiment of nationality into the fact of nationality ; thought into reality. This was the precise nature of the birth. The revolutionary leaders expressed it exactly, — the birth of the Nation. The transcendent fact of Union was now joined to the fact of a Repviblic. This Union was the country. This feeling of country does not come of compacts, cannot be improvised by great men, but is a growth, a development. It is the moral power, or the influence, or the spirit that precedes the letter or the forms of organic law. It sprang from the aggregate of habits, energies, affections — the inner life — of a free people, imbued with a traditionary republicanism to such a degree that they unconsciously applied it in their customs and laws, and thus attained a common character. Tliey grew into the feeling that they had the right, as indi- viduals, to a country all their own, — a right to the incal- culable benefits of a Fatherland for which the language has no term, but a love for which Providence has planted deep in the human heart. Its spirit breathes in national song. Its power is symbolized in the national flag. Americana felt the full force of the inspiration. BIRTH OP THE NATION. 557 The Declaration announced to the world the fact of The United States of America, and the justification of the fact. The existence of a new political sovereignty de facto among the nations is sufficient to establish it de jure. Sovereignty, as used in matters of international law, is classed as exter- nal and internal. To render external sovereignty perfect, it is necessary that the established powers should act ; for it is by their recognition that a new power effects an en- trance into the society of nations, and enjoys its advantages, — enters upon the rights to which nations are entitled, and the duties they are called upon reciprocally to fulfil. Hence the external sovereignty of the United States was imperfect until other nations recognized its independence. It was not so with its internal sovereignty. This was at once complete within the limits of its own territory, and in all action re- lating to its own citizens, — none the less complete for its not having been recognized by foreign powers. Nor were its people any the less a nation for their not having attained an adequate general government. They delegated the power to sever their relations with the monarchy, and to take steps to form a new government or confederation, and not only left the local law undisturbed, but stipulated that each com- munity should retain full right over its domestic affairs ; and this right was by the Declaration freed from the interference of a foreign power. The Declaration changed the allegiance of the individual from the monarchy to the new political unit of the United States. This power — in the language of Congress, in treaties, in official letters, in the thought of American statesmen, termed at once a nation — was in a state of war with Great Britain, and all persons residing in its jurisdic- tion were expected to govern themselves accordingly. The popular party accepted the declaration as though it were law ; just as they accepted the Association and the Resolve on local government. It was the title-deed of the individual unit to his right in a common country. It was a test of 558 THE RISE Op'tHE REPUBLIC. loyalty. Whoever upheld it was counted as a friend ; who- ever spoke against it was an enemy ; whoever took up arms against it was guilty of treason. The Declaration embodied the doctrine of the funda- mental equality of the race, and thus clothed abstract truth with vitalizing power. Its mighty sentences aver as self- evident " that all men are created equal : that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights ; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happi^ ness ; that to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed ; that whenever any form of government be- comes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it and institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as shall to them seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness." This is the American theory, expressed " in words the memory of which can never die."^ It includes far more than it expresses : for by recognizing human equality and brotherhood, and the individual as the unit of society, it accepts the Christian idea of man as the basis of political institutions ; ^ and by proclaiming the right to alter them to meet the progress of society, it provided for the results of a tendency to look, not to the past, but to the future, for types of perfection that was brought into the world by Christianity.^ To maintain such a theory were fought the battles of the revolution. To build on it a worthy superstructure of government and law, was the work entered upon by heroes and sages, and bequeathed to pos- terity. The Declaration met the requirements of the American cause. " It has had a glorious effect — has made these col- 1 Buckle's History of Civilization, i. 846. 2 See pages 6 and 9 of this work. 3 Maine's Ancient Law, 71. He remarks: "Ancient literature gives fewer no hints of a belief that the progress of society is neces^arilj' from worse to better." BIRTH OF THE NATION. 559 onies all alive," writes one.^ " The continent should defend the continent,"^ was the great thought of another. The conviction was general that American liberty could find permanent security only in the protection of an American Republic. The ideal of what this Republic ought to em- brace as to territory, the earnest devotion to principle, and the self-reliant Americanism of that remarkable era, are reflected in the terse war-cry : — " In vain do ye rely on foreign aid, By her own arm Columbia must be freed. Eise, then, my countrymen ! for tight prepare, Gird on your swords and fearless rush to war ! 'Tis your bold task the generous strife to try, For your grieved Country nobly dare to die And empty all your veins for Liberty ! No pent-up Utica contracts your powers, But the whole boundless Continent is yours." ^ A just cause, maintained in such a spirit, commanded the respect of the liberal world,'* and its triumph was de- sired throughout Europe. " The Declaration " says one historian, " had an immense effect. . . . The cause was so noble and the effort was so grand, that there was not a doubt, not a hesitation, in the sentiment of the entire world, and that governments and the rulers of States 1 Letter of William Whipple, a signer, July 16, 1776. Force's Archives, 5th Series, i. 368. 2 Letter of Samuel Tucker, President of the New Jersey Provincial Congress, to John Hancock, July 9, 1776. Ibid., 139. 3 "A new Epilogue to Cato," in the " Continental Journal" of April -30, 1778. This was written by Jonathan Mitchell Sewall. It was altered by the author for his collection of Poems printed in 1801. 4 It is curious to contrast this judgment with that of the tory school. Thomas Hutchinson was true to this school to the last. He pronounced the reasons of the Declaration "false and frivolous," and the counts '' a list of imaginary grievances." He avers that "there were men in the principal colonies who had independence in view " before the Stamp Act, and soon after the reduction of Canada. His " Stric- tures upon the Declaration of the Congress at Philadelphia, addressed to the Rt. Hon. the E of " is dated London, Oct. 15, 1776. He cites the Decla- ration in paragraphs, and denies the soundness of its principles, and the accuracy of nearly all its statements. This is a bitter partisan production. 560 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. would seek glory by thinking like the people." ^ Buckle, sympathizing with " the great people who gloriously ob- tained their independence," remarks that their Declara- tion " ought to be hung up in the nursery of every king, and blazoned on the porch of every royal palace." ^ 1 Histoire des Fran?ais, par J. C. L. Simonde de Sismondi, &c., 30 p. 139. '■^ History of Civilization in England, London Ed., 1857, i. 846. CHAPTER XII. How THE People by ordaining the Constitution of the United States instituted Republican Government. 1776 TO 1790. When the people of the United States assumed rank as a nation, the conviction was general that a common country and national government were essential to promote the pub- lic welfare. The first result they reached of a confederation, matured in Congress and ratified by the legislatures of the States, created a government depending on the local author- ities to give effect to its decrees, and proved inadequate to meet their wants. When this became manifest, a general convention ordained and established a " Constitution for the United States," which was ratified by the people, act- ing as separate communities through local conventions. They thus instituted a self-sustaining Republican govern- ment. By the Declaration of Independence the sovereignty of the thirteen colonies passed from the crown to the people dwelling in them, not as an aggregate body, but as forming States ^ endowed with the functions necessary for their sepa- 1 President Monroe, in tracing American institutions to their origin, says that two important facts are disclosed. "The first is, that in wresting the power, or what is called the sovereignt}', from the crown, it passed directly to the people. The second, that it passed directly to the people of each colony, and not to the people of all the colonies in the aggregate: to thirteen distinct communities, and not to one. To these two facts, each contributmg its equal proportion, I am in- clined to think we Hre, in an eminent degree, indebted to the success of our Revolu- tion." — Niles's Register, xxii. 366. " The people of the United States must be considered attentively in two very dif- ferent views, — as forming one nation great and united, and as forming at the same 36 562 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. rate existence ; also States in union. Wlioever had refused to acquiesce in the decisions of the head of the Union, Congress, had been summarily dealt with. The individual had been disarmed, the assembly had been anmdled, the governor had been imprisoned : the Union in its sphere was paramount. Congress for several years continued to be the political power. As the war began, so it virtually ended, under its direction. The spirit of the people, and the necessity of combining their strength, supplied the place of efficient po- litical machinery.^ " In every stage of the conflict," says a contemporary, "from its commencement until March, 1781, the powers of Congress were undefined, but of vast extent. . . . Never was a movement so spontaneous, so patriotic, so efficient. The nation exerted its whole faculties in sup- port of its rights and of its independence." ^ Whatever power Congress had exercised, even to the creation of a dictator, was acquiesced in by the people. This power, however, was strictly influence, not government. It was foreseen that, although enthusiasm and patriotism mi^ht lie relied on in the struggle for independence, yet after it was over American liberty could be secure only in American law.^ Not one of the popular leaders, perhaps, had a just conception of the political machinery which the public needs required ; and as to the powers to be conferred, beyond the few of a national character already vested in the Union, all was vague. There were, however, in the public mind sharply defined objects ; and " it is impossible to overrate time a number of separate States, to that nation subordinate, but independent as to their own interior government. This very important distinction must be continually before our eyes. If it be properly observed, every thing will appear regular and proportioned : if it be neglected, endless confusion and intricacy will unavoidably ensue." — James. Wilson's Works, ii. 122 1 Bancroft, ix. 57. 2 President Monroe. Niles's Register, xxii. 364. 3 A diffenmt view is taken by high authority Thus John Quincy Adams, in his Jubilee Oration, says of the people: "In the enthusiasm of their first sponta- neous, unstipulated, unpremeditated union, they had flattered themselves that no general government would be required," «&:c. — p. 10. See pp. 479-483. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 563 the importance to a nation or profession to have a distinct object to aim at in the pursuit of improvement." ^ The general aim as presented in the newspapers was a system of organic law adequate to meet the requirements of a people who deemed local self-government and national union to be institutions as real as habeas corpus and trial by jury. The work was going on when the Declaration was made. The people of six colonies, under the advice of Congress, liad established governments independent of the crown, which governments Congress, as the political power, recog- nized as the public authority. " From the moment of the Declaration," it was said, " every thing assumed a new appearance." New terms came into use. The colonies had been transformed into States ; and hence Congress habitu- ally designated them as " Sovereign, Free, and Independent States," and referred to these States in Union as a nation. Thus Congress declined to receive peace-commissioners, because they did not present letters of credence " to an inde- pendent State ; " and they would listen only to such terms as might consist" with the honor of an independent nation."^ In fact the people of thirteen States, imbued with the spirit of a new political life, which gave them a distinctive character as Americans, by working together for years to vindicate their rights, and by combining their strength to defend them, had grown unconsciously into a nation.^ The work of con- 1 Maine's Ancient Law, 75. 2 Journals of Congress, iv. 253, v. 175, vii. 52. In an ordinance, " a free and independent nation," vii. 59. The Revolutionary statesmen, habitually, in their correspondence use the word "nation." It will be found in the diplomatic corre- spondences of Jefferson and John Adams, and in the treaties they made. 3 " Nation. A body of people inhabiting the same country, or united under the same sovereign or government, as the English nation or French nation." — Web- ster's Dictionary. " When any society of men, or body politic, is united for the purposes of govern- ment and for mutual protection, we are accustomed to call such society or body politic a state or nation." — Encyclopajdea Americana, Law of Nations. "By the Declaration of Independence the colonies became a separate nation from Great Britam." — Tucker's Commentaries on Blackstme, vol. ii App. 54. "On which day they declared themselves an independent and sovereign nation." — Ibid, i., part ii p. 101. 564 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. structing government had necessarily to go on during the confusions of a distressing war, in the vicissitudes of which eleven of their capitals were occupied by the enemy. In New Jersey, several townships, after the imprisonment of the Governor, petitioned the Provincial Congress to com- ply with the recommendation of the General Congress to form local governments. A committee, two days after its appointment, reported (June 24, 1776) a constitution. The Provincial Congress was answering pressing appeals for powder and troops, disarming all "whose religious principles would not permit them to bear arms," preparing to meet an insurrection of the Tories, — in a word, exercising the powers of government. On the second day of July it adopted the " Constitution of New Jersey." The government thus established went into full operation, and lasted sixty-eight / years. The Delaware Assembly advised the people of each of the three counties to choose ten delegates to meet in convention and ordain a government. The electors acted accordingly. The convention, on the 20th of September, 1776, adopted a constitution which continued sixteen years.' In Maryland the convention, exercising powers of gov- ernment on the 3d of July, called a convention " for the express purpose of forming a new government by the au- thority of the people only, and enacting and ordering all things for the preservation, safety, and general weal of the colony." In pursuance of this call, delegates were elected and met in convention. On the 3d of November they agreed upon a Declaration of Rights, and on the 8th upon a con- stitution. This Convention also exercised the powers of " This Declaration has ever been considered, by the constituents of those who made it, to mark the era of their birth as a nation." — George Tucker, Historj^ of United States, i. 173. "In truth Anglo-America had, almost unknown to herself, grown into a sep- arate nation." — Gordon's Histoiy of Pennsylvania, 538. " The Declaration passed July 4, when the United States were declared to be, and became in fact, an independent nation." — Sparks's Franklin, i. 406. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 565 government. The constitution thus formed was not changed for seventy-five years. In Pennsylvania the convention called to frame a consti- tution assembled in Philadelphia on the 12th of July, chose Franklin President, and assumed the powers of government. On the 28th of September the members signed a constitu- tion, declared it to be in force and ordered it to be laid before the Charter Assembly. This body, however, de- nounced the convention, and declared that no obedience was due to its ordinances. On the 26th '' the House rose." This was the end of the charter. The constitution was not satisfactory to a poi-tion of the popular party, and a large public meeting held in Independence Square instructed their delegates to propose amendments.^ The following year, when the State was threatened with invasion, Samuel Adams, Mr. Duer, and Richard Henry Lee, were appointed a com- mittee of Congress, to exercise, in conjunction with the high officers of the State, all authority requisite for the public safety ; and the commanders of the Continental forces were ordered to support their authority. The State amended its constitution in 1790. In North Carolina the Provincial Congress vested the political power in a council of safety consisting of twelve members, who (July 24, 1776) signed a pledge to carry out tlie decisions of the Provincial Congress and the Gen- eral Congress, The council recommended (Aug. 9, 1776) the good people of the State " to pay the greatest attention " to the election of delegates on the 15th of October, and par- ticularly to have this in view, that it will be their business " not only to make laws for the good government of, but 1 In the "Pennsylvania Evening Post" of March 13, 1777, is an appeal "To the citizens of Philadelphia to amend the Constitution," in which it is said: "Massa- chusetts amended her constitution at Watertown, within four miles of Howe's army; New Jersey made her government, within sight of the whole body of the British and Hessian troops, on Staten Island; Virginia made their government when Lord Dun- more was spreading devastation on every part of the seacoast; and New York is at this time framing her government, although several of ttyeir counties are now in possession of the enem}'." 566 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. also to form a constitution for this State ; that this last, as it is the corner-stone of all law, so it ought to be fixed and permanent ; and that as it is well or ill ordered it must tend in the first degree to promote the happiness or misery of the State." The delegates elected under this advice con- vened at Halifax, and on the 18th adopted a Bill of Rights and constitution which lasted sixty-nine years. In Georgia the government was vested in a Provincial Council. The President, by proclamation, called a conven- tion to meet at Savannah in October, on the warrant of the resolution of Congress of The Fifteenth of May. In a cir- cular letter the people were enjoined to adopt such govern- ment as would " conciliate the affections of the United States ; for under their shadow they would find safety, and preserve to themselves their invaluable rights," thougli " they should be purchased with garments rolled in blood." The convention adopted a constitution on the 5th of Febru- ary, 1777. It was peculiar in permitting the delegates to Congress to sit and vote in the assembly, in requiring this body to advise with the council in making laws, and in enacting that the vote in the council should be by counties. It was in force but eight years. In New York the draft of a constitution was submitted by John Jay, and was adopted by a convention which was exercising the powers of government, on the 20th of April, 1777. It was ordained and declared by this body, " in the name and by the authority of the good people " of the State. It was pronounced superior to any of the constitutions, and forty-five years elapsed before a convention was called to amend it. A glance has been given at the six States which formed governments before the Declaration of Independence. South Carolina amended hers in 1778, " to accommodate it to that great event." Virginia did not alter hers until the mem- orable convention met in 1829. Rhode Island and Con- necticut did not displace their charters for many years. ESTABLISHMENT OF KEPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 567 New Hampshire provided a new government in 1784. Mas- sachusetts, after rejecting one form mainly because it did not contain a Bill of Rights, adopted in 1780 a constitution which was not amended until 1820. It was not only an improvement on all that preceded it ; but the American method of preparing and establishing an organic law was pursued in all its stages. The existing authority called a convention, to be composed of delegates chosen as the rep- resentatives were, for the sole purpose of preparing a frame of government. These delegates assembled in convention, matured a constitution which had been reported by John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Bowdoin ; and, after submitting it to the people to be voted on, adjourned. They reassembled to receive the returns of the votes. After examination they declared the constitution adopted. I have not space to analyze these constitutions. In all there were the three departments, — the Executive, Legisla- tive, and Judicial; and these were rendered independent of one another. In most of the States the executive was ham- pered by a council. In Pennsylvania and Georgia the leg- islature consisted of one branch ; in the others of two branches, according to the custom of the colonial period. In four States the Governor was to be chosen by the people ; in the otliers, by the legislature. These constitutions were said to be " ordained, declared, established," and were not to be altered unless in the man- ner pointed out. Thus they assume to be modes of action different from ordinary acts of legislation. They were uni versally recognized and held to be such. They were really decrees of the people as constituting the sovereignty. They prescribed the degrees and spheres of power by which their agents or " trustees " periodically chosen to make or admin- ister the laws were to be governed in their various depart- ments. Their sphere is internal government. Their provisions give validity and continuity to the body of local law. In no instance is there power conferred on these local 568 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. agents to deal with foreign nations. This function had been vested by the same sovereignty in a congress ; and the con- stitutions contain provisions for the appointment of members to compose it. These governments went immediately into operation. Well-known characters were selected to fill the high offices. At the head of Virginia were Henry, and then Jefferson ; of Massachusetts, Hancock, and then Bowdoin ; of Maryland, Johnson ; of New Jersey, William Livingston ; of New Hampshire, successively, Weare, Langdon, and Sullivan ; of Connecticut, Trumbull ; of South Carolina, John Rut- ledge, and then Rawlins Lowndes ; of North Carolina, Cas- well ; of Pennsylvania, Joseph Reed, and subsequently Franklin ; of Delaware, George Read; of New York, George Clinton. These names gave eclat to the new governments. This field of labor and honor proved more attractive than the national council ; and the work of enfranchising the local law from features derived from European traditions — the abolition of entails, primogeniture, and an established church — worthily employed the time and thought of the most able statesmen. The spectacle of republican order was a novelty in the political world. Congress characterized the result as thir- teen independent States formed with republican govern- ments, on the basis of " the rights of human nature," say- ing that " the citizens of the United States were responsible for the greatest trust ever confided to a political society." ^ *' Thirteen governments," John Adams wrote, " thus founded on the natural authority of the people alone, with- out a pretence of miracle or mystery, which are destined to spread over the northern part of that whole quarter of the globe, are a great point gained in favor of the rights of mankind. The experiment is made, and has completely succeeded." 2 1 Journals of Congress, 8, 201. Address to the States, April 26, 1783, drawn by Madison. 2 Defence of the American Constitution, by John Adams, Ed. Phil. 1787, Preface, xii. Dated Grosvenor Souare. London, Jan. 1, 1787. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 569 In the mean time the formation of a republican govern- ment for the United States, or an American Constitution, kept so continuously before the public mind, was awaited with deep interest. Several plans had appeared in the newspapers, and the subject was embraced in the motion on Independence, submitted in Congress by Richard Henry Lee, on the 7th of June, 1776. On the 11th they voted to appoint a committee " to prepare and digest the form of a confederation to be entered into between these colonies ; " and the next day they voted that it should consist of one member from each colony. ^ On the 12th of July they reported arti- cles, which were drawn up by John Dickinson. Eighty copies were ordered to be printed for the use of the mem- bers, the strictest secrecy being enjoined as to their pub- lication.^ There is a voluminous history connected with the suc- cessive stages of this plan. " One great question," John Adams wrote on the 29th of July, " is how we shall vote, — whether each colony shall have one, or whether each shall have weight in proportion to its number or wealth, or im- ports or exports, or a compound ratio of all ? Another is whether Congress shall have authority to limit the dimen- sions of each colony, to prevent those which claim by proc- lamation, or commission, to the South Sea, so as to be dano-erous to the rest." 1 Tlie Committee consisted of Josiah Bartlett of New Hampshire, Samuel Adams of Massachusetts, Stephen Hopkms of Rhode Island, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Robert R. Livingston of New York, John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, Thomas McKean of Delaware, Thomas Stone of Maryland, Thomas Nelson, Jr., of Vir- ginia, Joseph Hewes of North Carolina, Edward Rutledge of South Carolma, Button Gwinnett of Georgia. Francis Hopkinson, of New Jersey, was appointed June 28. - Notwithstanding the injunction of secrecy, a copy of the articles purporting 'to have been signed by all the delegates the 4th of October" appeared in Europe. They differ materially from the articles as finally agreed upon, and num- ber sixteen. The articles adopted are thirteen in number. In the " Annual Regis- ter" for 1776 they follow the Declaration of Independence. They are in " Almon's Remembrancer," vol. iv. 2-tO. 570 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Slavery is not named in this letter. The silence of the popular leaders on this question is remarkable. It was ignored as a political issue in general politics, though eman- cipation was freely advocated in pamphlets and newspapers. Nearly all the colonies sought to abolish the slave-trade ; in all emancipation was desired ; and stronger language could hardly have been chosen than that in which slavery was denounced at this period by the most illustrious of the Revo- lutionary statesmen. 1 They looked forward to its abolition. The work, however, was left to each State. Still, in adjust- ing the political power, slavery had to be taken into account. The earliest di^dsion between large slaveholding States and States in which slavery was of little account was in October, 1777, when the rule was adopted for the distribution of the quotas to be assessed on the States. All property in slaves was exempted. Slavery was not the great difficulty of that period. The broadest political sentiment was embodied in the State papers coming from the largest slaveholding States. Though slavery necessarily had to be considered in the political arrangements, it did not seriously disturb current politics until after the invention of the cotton-gin and the increase of the culture of cotton. The plan submitted by the committee did not meet the cordial approval of the members of Congress. The ques- tions of commerce, the public lands, taxation, the relative positions of the large and small States, were difficult to set- tle. Then the pressing demands of the war and the uncer- tainty as to the future caused delay. Hence sixteen months elapsed before Congress could agree upon articles of confed- eration. On the loth of November, 1777, they were trans- mitted by the president, Henry Laurens, to the several legislatures, with the recommendation that their respective 1 "The abolition of domestic slavery is the great object of desire in those colo- nies where it was unhappily introduced in their infant state." — JeflFerson's Summary of Rights, 1774. There is no more terrible denunciation of slavery than may be found in Query xviii. of Jefferson's " Notes in Virginia," written in 1781. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 571 delegates be authorized to ratify them in the Congress of the United States. ^ A circular letter accompanied the articles. It commends them as a plan " for securing the freedom, sovereignty, and independence of the United States;" as the best that could be adapted to the circumstances of all; as the only one which afforded any tolerable prospect of general ratification ; as " essential to their very existence as a free people," and "without which they might " soon be constrained to bid adieu to independence, to liberty and safety." The following extract from this letter embodies the current feeling relative to the States and the Union : " Per- mit us then earnestly to recommend these articles to the immediate and dispassionate attention of the legislature of the respective States. Let them be candidly reviewed under a sense of the difficulty of combining in one general system the various sentiments and interests of a continent divided into so many sovereign and independent communi- ties, under a conviction of the absolute necessity of uniting all our councils and all our strength to maintain and defend our common liberties ; let them be examined with a liber- ality becoming brethren and fellow-citizens, surrounded by the same imminent dangers, contending for the same illus- trious prize, and deeply interested in being for ever bound and connected together by ties the most intimate and indis- soluble ; and finally let them be adjusted with the temper and magnanimity of wise and patriotic legislators, who, while they are concerned with the prosperity of their own more immediate circle, are capable of rising superior to local attachments when they may be incompatible with the safety and glory of the general confederacy." The thirteen legislatures now discussed the articles, bringing to this work the results of experience in the past, 1 Journals of Congress, iii. 404. Thirteen copies of the articles were ordered to be made out, signed by the President, and forwarded to the several States; and (Nov. 29) they were ordered to be translated into French and sent to Canada. 572 THE. RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. and fresh from the debates elicited by the framing of the local governments. As a result, nine conferred authority on their delegates in Congress to sign the articles ; which were accordingly ratified by them in July, 1778. They, however, were not to be binding unless ratified by all the legislatures. On the 10th of July, Congress issued an appeal to the remaining States " to conclude the glorious compact," say- ing that they " never ceased to consider a confederacy as the great principle of Union which can alone establish the liberty of America and exclude for ever the hopes of its enemies." This was a period of great political languor. The burden of the war was severely felt. The blaze of freedom, it was said, that burst forth at the beginning, had gone down ; and numbers, in the thirst for riches, lost sight of the original object. 1 " Where," wrote Henry Laurens, the president of Congress to Washington, — " where is virtue, where is patri- otism now ; when almost every man has turned his thoughts and attention to gain and pleasures, practising every arti- fice of Change-alley or Jonathan's ? " ^ A" train of great events, however, soon revived enthu- siasm. The surrender of General Burgoyne and his army (Oct. 16, 1777) was an earnest of the fact that Great Britain could not conquer America. This was followed by the French Treaty and Alliance (Feb. 6, 1778) to estab- 1 Independent Chronicle, March 12, 1778. 2 Letter, Nov. 20, 1778. Jonathan's was the name of a coffee-house in Lon- don, the great resort of speculators. It is referred to in British periodicals. In the "Gentleman's Magazine" for May, 1767, is the line: "And all the tongues at Jonathan's lie quiet." The British called the Americans Jonathan and Jonathans. A British ballad on the expedition to Rhode Island in 1778, in "Rivingston's Gaz- ette," has, "Jonathan felt bold, sir." The British account of the burning of Fair- field in 1779 uses the term "Jonathan," all through. "The troops faced about and drove Jonathan." "Rivingston's Gazette" in 1780 says, "Col. Delaney took a cannon which the .Jonathans in vain attempted to defend." I have not met thus early the term " Bi-other Jonathan." Water-marks on paper used in 1780 by Wash- ington has a figure that ma}' represent Jonathan as a Yankee in an enclosure, hold- ing a staff with the figure of a hat on the end, over the British lion, moving out of the enclosure. It had on it "Pro Patria." ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 573 lisli " the liberty, sovereignty, and independence of the United States, " — a treaty faithfully carried out by Ver- gennes to this great result. In a few months Congress received (Aug. 6, 1778) a minister from France, M. Gerard. A description of the imposing ceremonies of the audience closes : " Thus has a new and noble sight been exhibited in this new world, the representatives of the United States of America solemnly giving public audience to a minister plenipotentiary from the most powerful Prince in Europe. Four years ago, such an event, at so near a day, was not in view even of imagination. But it is the Almighty who raiseth up. He hath stationed America among the powers of the earth, and clothed her in robes of sovereignty." ^ These events produced a profound impression throughout the civilized world. In Parliament the invectives of the opposition against the ministers were terrific. The remedy, said the Duke of Richmond, " is instantly to declare Amer- ica independent, and withdraw our fleet and armies." ^ The ministry, in bills' introduced into Parliament, gave up the points in dispute, and again sent over commissioners of peace. The States were approached separately. One overture was made through Governor Tryon to Jonathan Trumbull, Governor of Connecticut, to tempt that State to act as a sovereignty. He spurned the offer. After remark- ing that such proposals were usually made " from the supreme authority of one contending power to the similar authority of the other," he said that " all such proposals were to be addressed to the Congress of the United States." ^ The drawback on the rising fortunes of the Republic was a failure to ratify the Confederation. Lord North used this fact in Parliament to justify his hope of effecting disunion, and it gave uneasiness to France. The obstacle to a ratifi- 1 Continental Journal, Aug. 17, 1778. 2 The " General Advertiser," London, of March 30, 1778, contains the Duke of Richmond's speech, and is very severe on the administration. 8 Trumbull's Reply to Tryon is dated April 23, 1778. The Bills, *' Tryon's Let- ter and the Reply," are in the "Continental Journal," April 30, 1778. 574 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. cation was the disposal of the western lands, which Dickin- son insisted on settling before a declaration of independence. There was no ground for controversy about the bounda- ries of Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey, Maryland, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island ; but the remaining seven States, on the letter of their charter or other grounds, claimed that their bounds extended to the South Sea or to the Mississippi River. The States which preferred no claims held that a territory unsettled, and ceded to the crown by the treaty of Paris, if wrested from the common enemy hy the blood and treasure of the thirteen States, ought " to be considered as a common property, subject to be parcelled out by Congress into free, convenient, and independent governments." ^ Maryland, on these grounds, instructed her delegates not to consent to the Confederation until an article was added securing that domain for the common benefit, f his drew a strong remonstrance from Virginia, defending her claims. The issue at stake was the magnificent domain now divided into great States, each an empire in itself. At length the legislature of New York (Feb. 19, 1780) em- powered its delegates to cede a portion of its territory for the common benefit. Congress (September 6) advised a liberal surrender by the States of a portion of their terri- torial claims, as they could not preserve them entire without endangering the stability of the confederacy ; and reminded them how important it was to establish the Union, how essential to public credit and confidence, to tranquillity at home and reputation abroad, " to their very existence as a free, sovereign, and independent people." ^ A month later (October 10) it resolved that the lands that might be ceded should be formed into repul)lican States, and become members of the Union, with the same rights of sovereignty, freedom, and independence as those possessed by the orig- inal States. This assuredly was the action of patriots and statesmen. 1 Journals of Congress, v. 160. 2 Journals of Congress, vi. 123. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 575 The Assembly of Virginia, " preferring the good of the country to every object of smaller importance," now ten- dered to Congress for the common benefit the whole of the vast territory claimed by her, north-west of the Ohio and extending to the Mississippi and the lakes, — a great act, in the consummation of which Madison bore a leading part. Although it was not completed at once, yet its effect was very great in removing obstacles to the establishment of the Republic.^ The refusal of Maryland to ratify the articles was severely commented on, dismemberment being suggested as the remedy for standing out against the wishes of the majority of the Colonies. But at length, impressed among other considerations with the idea that " their friends and illus- trious ally '" believed that the common cause would be promoted by their acceding to the Confederation, both branches of the Assembly united (Feb. 2, 1781) in an act authorizing their delegates to ratify the articles.^ These instruments were not uniform. Some were brief; some embraced the articles entire ; some, in accepting them, called for amendments. But Congress resolutely adhered to the articles which they had sent out. The form of the final ratification .in Congress was im- pressive. ." Whereas," it runs, " it hath pleased the Great Governor of the world to incline the hearts of the legisla- tures we respectively represent in Congress to approve of and authorize us to ratify the articles, we do solemnly plight and engage the faith of our respective constituents that 1 Rives's Life of Madison, i. 124. 2 Journals of Congress, vii. 727. The "Independent Chronicle" of July 5, 1781, says: "Lord North had the impudence to declare, with an air of triumph, to the Parliament of Great Britain, that the confederation of America was not accom- plished, and that iMaryland had refused to accede to it. . . . This Confederation is now completed, and by the confession of our enemies themselves it is an immense advantage we have gained against them. But the noble motive which actuated Maryland in this accession was to content Congress and to satisfy his most Chris- tian Majesty, who appeared earnestly to wish that the union of the States might be consummated." 576 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. thej shall abide by the determination of the United States in Congress assembled," on all questions which by the said Confederation are committed to them. The signature of Maryland on the first day of March, 1781, completed the ratification of the Articles of Confederation, the advance from the government of committees and congress to an American Constitution. The title was " Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union ; " the style, " United States of America ; " and the object, a firm league of friendship for the common defence against attacks on them, whether on account of religion or of sovereignty. The free inhabitants of each State were to be entitled to the privileges and immunities of the free citi- zens of every other State. This provision recognized the individual as the unit of society, and guaranteed the com- bined strength for his protection. The Union was represented in a single body, — a congress of delegates in which each State was to have one vote. It was to have the sole i-ight of determining on war and peace ; of determining the quota of men which each State was to raise for the common defence, and the amount of funds "which each was to supply; of forming treaties and alli- ances ; of establishing prize-courts and granting letters of marque and reprisal ; of deciding disputes between two or more States respecting boundaries or for other causes, with the restriction that no State should be deprived of territory for the benefit of the United States ; of borrowing money, regulating the value of coin, fixing the standard of weights and measures, establishing post-offices, and making rules for the government of the army and navy. The assent of nine States was required for the decision of the more important questions. Local self-government was fully recognized. The reserved powers were thus stated : " Each State retains its sover- eignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdic- tion, and right, which is not by this Confederation expressly ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 577 delegated to the United States in Congress assembled."^ The term State here means a people or community dwelling within definite boundaries and in the possession of political power. Among the powers reserved were those of regulating commerce, and, in general, that of taxation. Among the prohibitions were, that the several States should not receive or send embassies from or to foreign powers, or treat with them, or enter into alliances with one another. Each State i- was bound to abide by the determination of the United States in Congress assembled on all questions submitted to them by the Confederation. An article vested authority in Congress to appoint a com- mittee of one from each State to sit during the recess of this body, and execute such powers as they might designate. The articles might be amended by being agreed to in Con- gress, and confirmed by every legislature. Congress directed the articles, attested by the President, to be sent to the executives of the thirteen States, to the Commander-in-Chief, with directions to announce them to the army, and to the ministers abroad, to be communicated to the several courts near which they resided ; and to be trans- lated into French and circulated in Canada. By order of Congress the final ratification was announced to the public on the 1st of March, 1781, at twelve o'clock, under a discharge of cannon on the land and from the vessels in the Delaware, conspicuous among which was the Ariel Frigate, under Paul Jones, beautifully decorated. " The day," it was said, " will be memorable in the annals of America to the latest posterity." " Thus has the Union begun by necessity been indissolubly cemented. Thus America is growing up in war into greatness and conse- quence among the nations." ^ 1 In the articles as found in English pubhcations in 1777, this article reads: " Each State reserves to themselves alone the exclusive right of regulating their internal government, and of framing laws in all matters that are not included in the present confederation, and which cannot any way prejudice the same." 2 These citations are copied from "Diary of the American Revolution" by Frank Moore, il. 390. 87 578 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. Congress had voted (June 14, 1777) " that the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternately red and white ; that the union be thirteen stars, white, in a blue field, representing a new constellation ; " and it adopted, June 20, 1782, for " the great seal," the American eagle iolding in his dexter talon an olive branch, in his sinister a bundle of thirteen arrows, in his beak a scroll inscribed " E Pluribus Unum," and over his head on an azure field thirteen stars, — on the reverse, a pyramid unfinished, with an eye, having over it " Annuit coeptis," on the base MDCCLXXVI, and underneath " Novus Ordo Seclorum." The articles took from Congress powers which it had exercised, — the cojitrol, for instance, of commerce, — and increased the importance of the States. While the latter had government, the Congress was virtually but a consulting body. The Confederation, as a whole, had no proper common executive, no judiciary except admiralty courts, no machin- ery to carry its decrees into effect ; and it depended on requisitions upon the States for every dollar of its revenue. It leaned on the State governments, and had no self-sustain ing capacity. The establishment of regular government, local and gen- eral, produced a salutary effect on the American cause abroad. " The eagerness to complete the American code," John Adams wrote from Passy, " and the strains of pane gyric in which they speak and write of those parts of it which have been published in Europe, are very remarkable, and seem to indicate a general revolution in the sentiments of mankind upon the subject of government." The Confederation was scarcely less beneficial at home. Under the provision conferring on Congress the authority to settle controversies between States, the long dispute between Connecticut and Pennsylvania was decided in favor of the latter, with the acquiescence of the former. " A singular event," writes Robert R. Livingston. " There are few in- stances of independent States submitting their cause to a ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 579 court of justice. The day will come when all disputes in the great republic of Europe will be tried in the same way, and America be quoted to exemplify the wisdom of the measure." ^ In this way the Confederation, notwithstanding its defects, was of extended benefit. It met the pressing wants of the Union, and thus strengthened it. It conferred a great edu- cational service through the experience of its defects ; and it carried the nation along until a more efficient system was provided. " This service alone entitles that instrument to the respectful recollections of the American people, and its framers to their gratitude." ^ The decline of public spirit, evinced in the neglect to comply with the requisitions of Congress, was painfully felt in the national ^ finances, before the Articles of Confedera- tion took effect and drew attention to the question of reform. John Adams was convinced that deep and broad taxation was the only remedy.* Hamilton said that the want of power in Congress was universally acknowledged.^ Wash- ington declared that independence, respectability, conse- quence in Europe, and greatness as a nation depended on a change.^ Congress recommended that the States should lay an impost of five per cent on imported goods and on prizes (Feb. 2, 1781), to keep the public faith inviolate. Some States passed the necessary laws ; others were silent. This shameful neglect induced Madison " to urge the necessity of arming Congress with coercive powers," and he proposed to clothe it with authority to use the force of the United States by sea and land to compel the delinquent States to fulfil their engagements.'' Soon after the ratification of the Articles. 1 Sparks' s Diplomatic Correspondence, x. 21. 2 Marshall's Washington, iv. 416. 8 Congress habitually used the word national; as, "national debt" (Journals, V. 238), " national faith " (ibid. 266). * Letter, 1778. Diplomatic Correspondence, iv. 263. 6 Letter, Sept. 3, 1780. 6 Letter, Feb. 28, 1781. 7 Letter and Report, April IG, 1781. Madison Papers, i. 86. 680 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. Robert Morris, in a clear and strong circular, uttered a warning against the policy of showing " a distrust of the States in the sovereign representation of America," and ui"ged the Whigs to give to the union of sentiment, daily increasing, " a proper political form and consistency." ^ Perhaps not one of the prominent public men regarded the Articles as more than a step toward a better system. Great events were at hand. The remarkable campaign of General Greene in the Southern States was consummated by the victory at Eutaw on the 8th of September, 1781. The brilliant operations of Washington and Rochambeau cul- minated at Yorktown, on the nineteenth day of October, in the surrender of Lord Cornwallis and his army to the com- bined forces of France and the United States. The journals are crowded with the details of this decisive result. The spectacle is said to have been inspiring when " the flags of the two nations were borne in triumph by their officers." The enthusiasm was intense and general. Days were set apart for demonstrations of the general joy. Congress went in procession to church to give thanks to Almighty God for the victory. Hostilities were kept up in various quarters, but the main armies remained inactive, and the war was virtually over. At length, in March, 1783, the newspapers spread the great and joyful intelligence that terms of peace had been agreed upon. Congress soon (April 11) by proclamation an- nounced that provisional articles were signed on the 30th of November, and declared a cessation of arms. Washing- ton, in an admirable general order, named the nineteenth day of April — completing the eighth year of the war — as the time to read to the army this proclamation, which he said, " like another morning star, promised the approach of a brighter day than hath hitherto illumed the western hemi- sphere." There was now an outburst of joy, gratitude, and 1 The circular was addressed to the Governors. It is dated July 27, 1782. Dip- lomatic Correspondence, xi. 408-414. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 581 praise, such as is seldom seen in the annals of a people. Certain provisions relative to the refugees were criticised by those who kept up a war on the Tories after the war with Great Britain was ended ; but " fault-finders were borne down by the general torrent of applause," ^ and hearty com- mendation was awarded to the negotiators, Franklin, John Adams, and Jay. Wasliington was the idol of the people. The air was vocal with his praise. " Your services," said the President of Congress to him in an audience, ^ " have been essential in. acquiring and establishing the freedom and independence of your country. They deserve the grateful acknowledg- ments of a free and independent nation. . . . Hostilities have ceased, but your country still needs your services." Washington expressed himself as amply rewarded by the af- fection of his fellow-citizens ; and said, " I cannot hesitate to express my best endeavors towards the establishment of the national security in whatever manner the sovereign power may think proper to direct." He soon issued an elaborate farewell address to the army. He appealed to every offi- cer and every soldier to add to the immense service they had rendered by using every endeavor to " support the Federal Government, and enlarge the powers of the Union, on which depended the very existence of the nation." The eulogistic notices of this address warrant the remark that it produced a profound impression on the public mind. Three months afterward occurred the interesting scene in Congress, at Annapolis, when, in the presence of a bril- liant audience, Washington laid down his authority. It is related that the members " were seated and covered as representatives of the sovereignty of the Union." Wash- ington, standing, read a brief speech, in which he said that he was " happy in the confirmation of independence and sovereignty, and pleased with the opportunity afforded the United States of becoming a respectable nation." He 1 Robert Morris's letter, Sept. 20, 1783. a August 26, 1783. 582 THE EISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. then advanced to the chair, and gave his address and his commission to the President. He, in a reply penned by Jefferson, said that " Congress accepted with emotions too affecting for utterance the solemn resignation of authority ; assured him that he had the blessings of his fellow-citizens ,* expressed the conviction that the glory of his virtues would continue to animate remotest ages ; and joined him in beseeching Almighty God to dispose the hearts and minds of the citizens to improve the opportunity afforded them of becoming a happy and respectable nation."^ The citizen- soldiers, following their beloved and illustrious commander, impressed an American lesson on mankind, as, with unsat- isfied claims and impaired constitutions, they quietly returned to their former occupations. On the 14th of January, 1784, Congress announced by proclamation that the treaty of peace had been confirmed, and enjoined on " all good citizens of the United States " to carry it into effect by " reverencing those stipulations entered into on their behalf, under the authority of that federal bond by which their existence as an independent people is bound up together, and is known and acknowledged by the nations of the world." " The times that tried men's souls are over," wrote the author of " Common Sense," " and the greatest and complet- est revolution the world ever knew is gloriously and happily accomplished. . . . That which . . renders easy all inferior concerns is the union of the States. . . I ever feel myself hurt when I hear the Union, that great palladium of our liberty and safety, the least irreverently spoken of. It is the most sacred thing in the Constitution of America, and 1 On this day, Dec. 23, 1783, on motion of Mr. Williamson, seconded by Mr. Jefferson, Congress ordered that letters be addressed to the executives of New Hampshire, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, South Carolina, and Georgia, infonning them that the honor of the United States required the attendance of their delegates; that during that session there had not been more than seven States represented, and the most of those bj' only two delegates; and that "matters of great national concern " required the utmost despatch, and the assent of nine States. Journals, ix. 12. ESTABLISHMENT OF EEPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 683 that which every man should be the most proud and tjender of. Our citizenship in the United States is our national character. Our citizenship in any particular State is only our local distinction. By the latter we are known at home ; by the former to the world. Our great title is Americans ; our inferior one varies with the place." ^ This citation will show the sentiment expressed in private and official letters, — from those of Washington down, — in the toasts at public festivals, by the press and at public meetings. The times of trial were by no means over. To construct the republican government, represented by the press as easy ,2 proved the hardest of work. On the return of peace the need of it was more painfully felt than ever. The great minister of finance, Robert Morris, engaged in Herculean labors, wrote : " The necessity of strengthening our con- federacy, providing for our debts, and forming some federal constitution, begins to be most seriously felt. But, unfor- tunately for America, the narrow and illiberal prejudices of some have taken such deep root, that it must be difficult, and may prove impracticable, to remove them." Great Britain, baffled on the field of arms, kept up an insidious war on the Union. The king, from the throne, expressed a desire that America might be free from the calamities which had proved in the mother country how essential monarchy was to the enjoyment of constitutional liberty. The cabinet required, before treating on commerce, that each State should send separate ambassadors.^ An or- der in council excluded from the West Indies American ves- sels and American products, except in British ships. The free trade for the United States was met by restriction and monopoly. Congress, in endeavors to form commercial treaties, declared that in every case under them the United States should be considered " as one nation upon the prin- 1 The Last Crisis, No. XIIL ; Boston Evening Post, May 10, 1783. 2 See p. 481. 8 John Adams (Works, viii. 243) commented severely on the idea of thirteeQ plenipotentiaries. 584 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. ciples of the federal constitution." ^ Lord Sheffield urged that the American States were not to be feared as a nation.^ The acts of local legislatures, in retaliation, were failures. All branches of industry — the rice and tobacco of the South, as well as the trade and commerce of the North — suffered from this foreign policy. In the " war of imposts," as Washington termed it, the Confederation proved entirely inadequate to the common defence. American agriculture, commerce, and manufactures demanded the protection of an efficient government. Intelligent minds in every quarter lamented the evils of the existing system ; but Hamilton and Madison identi- fied themselves so thoroughly with the measures adopted to effect a reform, as to stand out prominent in this work. Alexander Hamilton was born at Nevis, in the West Indies. At the age of fifteen he was sent to New York to obtain an education, and became a student in Columbia Col- lege. About two years afterward, in the heat and glow of the fraternal feeling evoked by the Port Act, he. electrified a public meeting held in the Fields in New York in a speech indicative of remarkable intellectual gifts ; and followed this up by an able pamphlet on the American cause. At seventeen Hamilton was in the army as captain of an artil- lery company ; at twenty he was, a member of Washington's military family ; and to the proud day of Yorktown was as chivalrous, generous, and gallant a soldier as ever drew his sword for his country. He became a member of the New- York Assembly, and then of Congress. He wrote elaborately on political affairs, exposing the defects of the Confederation, and in legislative action aimed to reform them. His productions evince great maturity of thought, rare logical power, and the intuitive grasp that marks the great intellect. They assign him to the school that distrusts the capacity of the people, seeks paternal government, and 1 The Instructions to the Ministers Plenipotentiary abroad are in Pitkin's His- torj', ii. 534. 2 ibid., 189. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 585 relies more on physical force than on consent. His plan of government contained life-tenures for high executive and legislative offices, tended towards monarchy, and was not adapted to the genius of his countrymen. James Madison was born in Orange, Va., and educated at Princeton, N.J. He began public life as a member of the great convention that formed the first constitution of that State, and he afterward became a member of Con- gress. At thirty-four, he felt himself called to the study of politics, with the view of laboring to establish an ade- quate government for his country. He left Congress when the war closed, and served for three years in the Virginia Assembly, when he was again returned to Congress. His ripe culture and remarkable power in debate — having the rare gift of the eloquence that persuades — rendered him able to cope in argument with the ablest of his contem- poraries. His labors were uninterrupted in the civil line, and present the record of a great and wise statesman. They class him as a disciple of the republican school. It is not, however, history to select one or two great men, and to ascribe the Union to their influence, and the Consti- tution to their insight. It is only necessary to state things as they occurred to see that no Lycurgus had been born to give the law to the United States. Franklin, with his great conception of a self-sustaining government, held to a single legislative body ; Richard Henry Lee was against endowing the Union with the vital function of regulating commerce ; Hamilton would have had a convention act as the sovereignty in creating a new sovereignty ; Madison proposed to give Congress the power of a negative on State laws, Madison, however, was the earliest to give an outline of a government for the Union designed to operate on individuals, and to be established by the people of the States in their sovereign character.^ This was sent to Jefferson, then in France, who had written profoundly on government in his 1 Madison Paj ers, ii. 714. 586 THE RISE OF THE EEPUBLIC. " Notes on Virginia." He now wrote : " The interests of the States ought to be made joint in every possible instance, in order to cultivate the idea of our being one nation, and to multiply the instances in which the people should look up to Congress as its head." ^ Washington continued to manifest greatness of mind in entering on the work of peace. He did not attempt to con- struct a political system. He devoted himself to developing the resources of his native State. He treated with great abil- ity the questions connected with the commerce and political wants of the one country always in his mind and near his heart ; and contemporary records will be searched in vain for clearer expositions of existing evils, and of the necessity of removing them, than his writings afford. His unrivalled judgment frowned down vagaries. He comprised the sub- stance of what the Union required in this strong statement : " I do not conceive we can long exist as a nation without having lodged somewhere a power which will pervade the whole Union in as energetic a manner as the authority of the State governments extends over the several States." ^ The method of obtaining an American Constitution through a representative convention was historical, and was sug- gested when the idea was to form a union that should be consistent with allegiance to the crown. It was renewed in the speculations on independence, as in " Common Sense," in 1776. When the aim was to reform the Confederation, a convention was suggested by Hamilton in 1780 ; by Pelatiah Webster in 1781 ; by the New- York Legislature in 1782 ; was named in Congress by Hamilton in 1783 ; was proposed by Richard Henry Lee in a letter in 1784 ; and was recom- mended by Governor Bowdoin in a speech to the Massachu- setts Legislature in 1785. No action, however, grew out of these suggestions. In 1786, the Assembly of Virginia, 1 Memoirs of Jefferson, i. 235; letter dated June 17, 1785. See also letter dated Feb. 8, 1786. 2 Letter dated Aug. 1, 1786. Sparks' s Writings of Washington, ix. 187. ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 587 under the lead of Madison, appointed commissioners to meet in convention and consider the question of commerce, with the view of altering the Articles of Confederation ; and it was made the duty of this committee to invite all the States to concur in the measure. The convention was summoned to meet at Annapolis, and delegates from five legislatures assembled, on the eleventh day of September, 1786. Hamilton was present from New York, Madison from Virginia, and Dickinson from Pennsylvania. The commissions of four legisla- tures authorized their delegates to consider what ought to be done to benefit the commerce of the United States. The commission of the New-Jersey delegates embraced " other important matters." The representation was so partial, that this body refrained from entering upon the business of their mission. In a brief report, drawn up by Hamilton, addressed to their constituents, and signed by John Dick- inson, the chairman, they recommended the powers granted by New Jersey as an improvement of the original plan, and unanimously urged the five States to use their endeavors to procure the appointment of commissioners from all the States, to meet in Philadelphia, on the second Mon- day in May next, to devise such measures as might appear necessary to render the Constitution of the Federal Govern- ment adequate to the exigencies of the Union. ^ In the mean time, national affairs grew worse. To the chronic neglect to comply with the requisitions of Congress, the New Jersey Legislature added positive refusal by an act of legislation. The legislatures of States having ports for foreign commerce, taxed the people of other States trading through them ; others taxed imports from sister States ; in other instances the navigation-laws treated the people of 1 This address to the legislatures of Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New York, is in the American Museum for April, 1787. It states that commissioners were appointed by New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and North Carolina, who did not attend ; and that no notice of appointments were received from Con- necticut, Maryland, South Carolina, or Georgia. 588 THE RISE OP THE REPUBLIC. other States as aliens. The authority of Congress was dis- regarded by violating not only the Treaty of Paris, but treaties with France and Holland.^ Congress, in a circular letter (April, 1787) addressed to the Governors, to be laid before the legislatures, say that " the national Constitution having compiitted to them the management of the national concerns with foreign states and powers, it was their duty to take care that all the rights which they ought to enjoy within their jurisdiction, by the laws of nations and the faith of treaties, remain inviolate ; " and " that when a treaty was constitutionally made, it immediately became binding on the whole nation and superadded to the laws of the land, without the intervention of a fiat of State legislatures." ^ Ac- cording to American law, the sovereignty had not entrusted to the State legislatures, the right of exercising national functions, and their high-handed acts were usurpations of power. These bodies were transforming the Union into the low condition in which it was before the organization of committees of correspondence.^ This was the period of " Shays's Rebellion " in Massachu- setts, in which the spirit and example of disobedience to law, exhibited for years by the local legislatures, broke out among a people. It created a profound impression. At home it seemed a herald of approaching anarchy ; abroad it exalted the hopes of monarchists, and was regarded as the knell of republicanism. The treason was easily subdued by a military force, under General Lincoln, called out by Governor Bow doin. It was the first rising in arms against a government established by the people in this State, and thus far has P 1 The "Introduction" in Madison Papers, ii. 712. The letter of Alexander Hamilton to James Duane (Works of Hamilton, i. 150), dated Sept. 3, 1780, con- tains a masterly presentation of the defects of the Confederacy. Its recommenda- tions are criticised in Rives's Life of Madison, i. 306. " The Vices of the Political System of the United States," in the Writings of Madison, i 320, contain an able summary of the evil practices of the States. 2 This circular was signed by A. St. Clair, Presif'ent. American Museum, i. 349. 8 See pages 256-259. ESTABLISHMENT OP REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 689 proved the last. It had the effect to ripen the public mind for a general government. A month after this insurrection began, the Virginia Legis- lature, under the lead of Madison, provided (Nov. 9, 1786) for the choice of commissioners to attend a convention at Philadelphia, " to concur in such further suggestions and pro- visions " in the Federal Government, " as might be neces- sary to secure the great objects for which that government was established, and to render the United States as happy in peace as they have been glorious in war." ^ Washington was placed at the head of the delegates. The legislatures of Pennsylvania and Delaware, saying, among other things, that they desired to co-operate with Virginia, soon chose com- missioners, as did those of New Jersey and North Caro- lina. Congress, viewing a convention as the most probable means of " establishing in those States a firm national government," recommended (Feb. 21, 1787) the legisla- tures to appoint delegates to meet in convention at Philadel- phia " for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation," and report to Congress and the several State legislatures." ^ Afterward the legislatures of seven other States chose delegates ; all electing but Rhode Island. The delegates elect were summoned to meet in Philadel- phia on the fourteenth day of May, in Independence Hall ; but, a majority of the States not being then represented, those present adjourned from day to day until the twenty- fifth. They then organized into a convention, and elected George Washington as President. Sixty-five delegates had been chosen ; ten, however, did not take their seats. The credentials, generally, are like those of Virginia, which name, as the object, to devise " such further provisions as may be necessary to render the Federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of the Union." 1 Rives's Life of Madison, ii. 134. 2 Journals of Congress, xii. 17. 690 THE RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. The members were identified with the heroic and wise counsels of the Revolution. The venerable Franklin was in the Albany convention, and now, at eighty-one, was the President of Pennsylvania. Johnson of Connecticut, Rut- ledge of South Carolina, and Dickinson, were in the Stamp Act Congress. Seven of the delegates were in the Congress of 1Y74. Eight of them signed the Declaration of Inde- pendence, one of whom, James Wilson, was next to Madison in ability, culture, and preparation for the work before them. Eighteen were then members of Congress, and only twelve had not been members of this body. Among the great men who were elected, but declined, were Richard Caswell and Patrick Henry. The delegates most distinguished by Revolutionary service were Langdon, Gerry, Sherman, Liv- ingston, Read, Mifflin, Morris, Clymer, Wilson, Mason, Wythe, Rutledge, Randolph, the two Pinckneys, Madison, Hamilton, Dickinson, Franklin, and Washington. Of those who were destined to be widely known were Rufus King, Caleb Strong, Nathaniel Gorham, Oliver Ellswoj*th, Jared Ingersoll, and James McHenry. This roll of names marks the rank of this assembly as to intellect, character, experi- ence, and patriotism. The Convention was occupied for nearly four months (May 25 to Sept. 17) in its great labor. Its sessions were held with closed doors; secrecy was enjoined, — no mem- ber being even allowed to copy from its journal ; and little transpired of its proceedings until its adjournment. Its journal was intrusted to the keeping of Washington, who deposited it in the State Department. It was printed by direction of Congress in 1818. Robert Yates, one of the members from New York, made short notes of the debates in the earlier sessions, which were printed in 1821 ; and Madison took short-hand notes of each day's doings, which he wrote out daily. They were printed in 1840. Luther Martin, in a remarkable letter addressed to the legislature of Maryland, gave important information concerning the ESTABLISHMENT OF REPUBLICAN GOVERNMENT. 591 Convention. These and other authentic materials ^ furnish nearly a complete view of the process by which the Consti- tution for the United States was matured. The Virginia delegation, through Edmund Randolph, then the Governor, submitted fifteen resolutions concerning the establishment of a national government, to consist of a legis- lature of two branches, an executive and a judiciary. Charles Pinckney also presented a draft of a Federal Government. These propositions were referred to the committee of the whole. They were debated from day to day until the 13th of June, when nineteen resolutions were reported to the House. Before they were acted on, Mr. Patterson, of New Jersey (June 15), submitted eleven resolutions, proposing to revive the Articles of Confederation, " so as to render the Federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of gov- ernment and the preservation of the Union." These reso- lutions, together with the nineteen resolutions previously reported, were referred to the committee of the whole. In the discussion, after John Dickinson had spoken on the Articles of Confederation, Hamilton, in the course of a speech, read a paper containing his ideas of a Plan of Gov- ernment, with a legislature of two branches, — the assembly to consist of persons who should serve for three years, and the senate as well as the governor, the executive head, to serve during good behavior. He proposed that the gen- eral government should appoint the governor of each State, who should have a negative on the laws to be passed by the legislature. This plan was not acted on. On the 19th of June, the committee of the whole reported to the House that they did not assent to the resolutions offered by the Hon. Mr. Patterson, but submitted again the nineteen reso- lutions before reported. The first was : " That it is the opinion of this committee that a National Government ought 1 Elliott's Debates, ed. 1866, i. 121-123, contains an account