THE Town of Boston having by the generous Care of WILLIAM BOLLAN, Esq formerly a very worthy Inhabitant in it, but now a Resident in London, receiv'd authentick Copies of Letters, Memorials, &c. written by Governor Bernard, General Gage, Com­modore Hood, the Commissioners of the American Board of Customs and others, and laid before the Parliament; which contain many base Insinuations and virulent Charges of an high Nature against the Town: The Freeholders and Inha­bitants in a legal Town Meeting assembled for the Purpose, have considered the same. As they have not yet been favor'd with the particular Vouchers, if indeed these Gentlemen have produc'd any to the Ministry before whom they laid their Accusations, it cannot be expected they should be ena­bled to make so full a Vindication of the Town as otherwise they might: They have however endeavor'd to extract from these Writings, so far as the Town is concern'd in them, and to lay before the Publick their true Spirit: From whence it will appear how restless Governor Bernard and his Associates have been in their malicious Intrigues to traduce not this Town and Province, alone, but the whole British American Continent.

In this Letter to the Earl of Shelburne, dated March 19th 1768, he tells his Lordship, that "he sees such an Opposi­tion to the Commissioners and their Officers, and such a De­fiance to the Authority by which they are appointed, conti­nually growing, that he can no longer excuse his informing his Lordship of the Detail of Facts, from whence the most dangerous Consequences are to be expected."—It is ob­serveable [Page 4] here, how artfully he connects an Opposition to the Commissioners with a Defiance of the Authority by which they are appointed; and this with an apparent Design to represent this Town as disaffected to his Majesty's Govern­ment in general, than which nothing can be more false and malicious. That the People should entertain the highest Disgust of a Board, instituted to superintend a Revenue to be rais'd from them without their Consent, which and still is exacted with the utmost Rigor, is natural; after they had so loudly as well as justly complain'd of the Revenue it­self, as depriving them of they very Idea of Liberty: But it cannot be said with the least Appearance of Truth that they set at Defiance the King's Authority, at the very Time when they were actually yielding Obedience to those Revenue Laws, under all the Hardships of them, and were patiently waiting for the happy Issue of their just Complaints, and their humble Petitions to their Sovereign for the Redress of their Grievances.—The Commissioners had however at that Time surely no reasonable Grounds to expect any Injury to their Persons or Interruption in their office; for they had been more than four Months in the Town, without the least Danger of this Kind, altho' they had from their first Arrival discover'd such an Arrogance & Insolence of Office, as led many Persons to apprehend, that they aim'd at nothing less than pro­voking the People to such a Degree of Intemperance as to make an Appearance of it. But being disappointed in this, mere Shifts and Pretensions are to be sought after; and accord­ingly we find Mr. Bernard beginning his "Detail" to his Lordship with telling him there had been "frequent Reports of Insurrections intended, in which it had been said, the Houses of one or more of the Commissioners were to be pulled down." The Governor, it is to be observed, relies much upon Reports in his Letters even to Ministers of State, while few if any among us ever heard of such Reports: He does not so much as attempt to make it appear to his Lord­ship that these frequent Reports were brought to him by Persons of Credit, or that they were well grounded; and it is very much to be questioned, whether he received his In­telligence from any other Persons, but the Commissioners themselves, their Dependents and Expectants, the Number of whom are increas'd to an enormous Degree, more than suf­ficient to devour the whole Revenue, and many of them are of the most abandon'd Characters.

[Page 5] But to give a Colouring to these Ideas of an Insurrection, there must be something more alledged than barely that there had been frequent Reports of its being intended; and therefore his Lordship is told of an Event which in Fact took place as some few remember, but the Story is wrought up by the Governor with all the Strokes of mas­terly Invention to serve the Purpose. "A Number of Lads, says he, paraded to Town with a Drum and Horn." And what possible Harm could there be in that? Why a­mong other Houses "they passed by the Council-Chamber when he was sitting in Council:" And did they stop to insult the Governor and Council? Such a Circumstance would doubtless have embellished his Excellency's Narrative. Their passing by however carried the Air of an Insult, tho' in all Likelihood the unlucky Boys might not know that his Excellency was there.—But they had "assembled be­fore Mr. Paxton's House," and lest it should be forgot, his Lordship is reminded that Mr. Paxton is "a Commissioner." And did they do Mr. Paxton the Commissioner any Injury? Yes truly; "they huzza'd," and went off.—Then they "invested Mr. Burch's House," and his Lordship is also told, that Mr. Burch is "another Commissioner." and "his Lady and Children were obliged to go out of the Back Door to avoid the Danger that was threaten'd;" so that they were not threatened with Mischief, but with Dan­ger only. It has been usual for the Commissioners to affect an Apprehension of Danger to themselves and their Families, to serve the Purposes they had in View. There is indeed no accounting for the real Fears of Women and Children: The Ladies however can sometimes vie with their Husbands in Intrigue, and are thoroughly vers'd in the Art even of political Appearance. And it is said that all are Politicians in this Country: Whether this Lady, whom Gov. Bernard has politely ushered into the View of the Public, really thought herself in Danger or not, it is incumbent on him to show that there were just Grounds for her Apprehensions, that Mr. Burch's House was in Fact "invested," and that "the most dangerous Consequences were to be expected." The World may be assured, there was not the least Appearance of this Kind; and yet, these are Mr. Bernard's own Declarations to his Majesty's Ministers, grounded upon vague & idle Reports, beneath one of his Rank [Page 6] and Station to take any notice of, & especially with a Design to misrepresent. He expresses a Surprize, & surely he must counterfeit it, that this Matter of "the Parade with the Drum and Horn," was after all treated as the Diversion of a few Boys, as it is still thought to have been by all who can remember so trifling an Occurrence, except the Gover­nor and his Adherents—the Diversion of a few innocent, tho' perhaps vulgar Boys, who neither did nor intended to do the least Harm to them or any other Persons, nor were they able to effect it, if they had such a Design. But after this says Mr. Bernard, "it was reported, that the Insurrection was postponed 'till the 18th of March"—The Idea is still kept up of a designed Insurrection, how else could it be Post­poned? and "two Persons, says he, one of them Mr. Pax­ton, a commissioner, were mentioned as devoted to the Re­sentment of the Mob." It is strange that no Persons should have heard of all this but the Governor and his Informers; for he tells his Lordship that he "took all the Pains he could to discover the Truth of this Report;" and "on the very Day before, he spoke with the most knowing Men he could procure", who had heard nothing about the Matter. At length, however, "late in the Evening, he had certain Advice that Effigies were prepared, but it was late too late to do any Thing, and—his Information was of that Nature, he could not make Use of it in Publick." To induce his Lord­ship however to believe that the Reports of the Insurrection, which was postponed to the 18th of March, will every Circumstance as just now related, were well grounded, he tells him, as if it was designed to be the Prelude to the whole, that "early in the Morning the Sheriff informed him that the Effigies of Mr. Paxton and Mr. Williams were in Truth hanging upon Liberty Tree"!——There was in the Time of it, a strong Suspicion in the Minds of many, that these Effigies were hung up by some particular Persons on that Day (which was to be observed as a Day of Festi­vity), with a Design to give a Colouring to just such a Re­presentation as Gov. Bernard now makes.—There are Per­sons here capable of playing such a Game; and there are some Circumstances which make it appear that such a Sus­picion was not groundless. Particularly it is difficult to ac­count for Governor Bernard's neglecting to give Orders to prevent their being hung up after he certainly knew it was [Page 7] intended; and that he should pretend it was too late the Evening before; but especially, his not chusing to make Use of his Information, or it may rather be supposed his Informants Name is publick, unless it was thro' Fear of discovering the Plot, is dark and unaccountable—If there was a Design of this Nature, it must have been truly mortify­ing to those who were in the Secret, that the Design was so soon frustrated: For before the Governor could meet his Council, which he had prudently "the Day before summoned to meet," and while he was "sending round to get them together assoon as possible it might be; amidst all these careful Preparations, the Effigies, says the Governor, "were taken down by some of the Neighbours without Op­position"! Their being thus, perhaps unexpectedly, taken down, is sufficient to evince the good Disposition of the In­habitants in general: That They were not in the Plan of an Insurrection, whoever else might be, and that the Gover­nor therefore might with Safety, if he had been so inclin'd, make use of his Information in Public——It might possibly indeed have totally overthrown his Design in writing this very Letter to his Lordship.

But the best Improvement is to be made of every Appear­ance: Accordingly the Governor hastens to his Council, who were then met, agreeable to his Appointment the Day before, and there he tells his Lordship, he "set forth in strong Terms the Attrociousness of this Insult; the Danger of its being followed by actual Violence, and the Necessity there was of providing for the Peace of the Town." How­ever attrocious the Insult might be, where could be the Danger of its being followed by actual Violence, when some of the Inhabitants themselves, had taken down the Effigies, with, at least the tacit Consent of the whole Com­munity; for it was done without the Opposition expected, perhaps hoped for: And what Necessity of providing for the Peace of the Town, when the People already discover'd so peaceable a Disposition. It would doubtless have pleas'd the Governor well, if his Council had advis'd to some severe Measures; such as might have afforded a firmer Foundation for him to have represented the Town as upon the Eve of an Insurrection, than groundless Reports or Informations, from his own Pimps, which it was not prudent [Page 8] for him to make use of in publick. But "all he could say" to that Purpose, tho' he strove hard fox it, "made no Impression on the Council," They, says he, "persever'd in treating the Affair as of no Consequence," as well they might; for it is questionable after all, whether there was the least Apprehension then of any Commotion even in the Mind of the Governor himself, whatever were his Preten­sions. The Commissioners however took this Opportunity "of setting forth the Danger they apprehended"; and the Governor, very readily no doubt, took the Occasion to ac­quaint the King's Minister, that he had receiv'd a Letter from the Commissioners, "desiring the Protection of the Government."

Mr. Bernard proceeds in his Narrative, and entertains his Lordship with a very minute Account of the Celebra­tion of the Anniversary of the Repeal of the Stamp-Act; and "the terrible Night it produc'd"—to Mr. Burch, one of the Commissioners, and his Lady and Children who had mov'd to his House for Safety;—"to the Lieutenant­Governor and the Sheriff of the Country who were also with him"; and in fine to all "those who thought them­selves Objects of the popular Fury." It may be here observed as in general true, that no Man has Reason to fear the popular Fury, but he who is conscious to himself of having done that which has expos'd him to their just Resentment——The Governor himself owns that "the Selectmen of the Town" and "some others", and even the Gentlemen who dined at two Taverns near the Town­House, upon the Occasion of the Day "took great Paius that the Festivity should not produce a Riot." There is no Reason to suppose this was mention'd for the Sake of giving a Credit to any of those Gentlemen, but rather to insinuate that the People were so outrageously dispos'd as that they could not be restrain'd even by their own Leaders; for most of those whom the Governor has honor'd with that Character were present. The Truth is, none of them were apprehensive that their Festivity would produce a Riot; but they were careful to prevent the lighting a Bonfire, because the Governor had constantly represented that as "the usual Signal for a Mob;" and the Joys of the Evening among the lower Sort, which however innocent [Page 9] are sometimes noisy, would of Course be represented as riotous. And thus he did in Fact represent it to his Lord­ship; for he tells him that "many Hundreds of People of all Kinds, Sexes and Ages, paraded the Streets with Yells and Outcries"——That they "invested Mr. Williams's House"—That "at two different Times about Midnight they made Outcries about Mr. Paxton's House". And tho' after all, he owns it was "out of mere Wantonness", yet he says the whole made it a terrible Night". This is Painting indeed, much beyond the Life: But Mr. Bernard has the Art in Perfection. He could not however perswade even General Gage, to give it such a Colouring; for the General in his Letter to Lord Hillsborough dated Boston the 31st of October 1768, tells his Lordship quite other­wise; and that "according to the best Information he had been able to procure, the Disturbance in March (which was this very Instance) far from being "terrible as the Governor represents it, was in Truth "trifling". This being the Account given by one of the principal Servants of the Crown in America, and who has discover'd himself far from being partial in favor of the Town, it is needless to add any Thing further on this Head—Trifling as indeed this "Disturbance" was, such Improvements were made of it by Governor Bernard and others, that it occasion'd the ordering two Regiments from Halifax to this Town for a Purpose for which the military Power was certainly never design'd; a very dangerous Purpose, an abhorrent to the British Constitution and the Spirit of a free Govern­ment, namely to Support the Civil Authority—A Measure which has caus'd continual Terror to his Majesty's peace­able Subjects here, and has been productive of more Dis­turbance and Confusion than has been known in the Me­mory of any now living, or than is recorded by any His­torian, even the most partial against this Country.

We shall now take Notice of Governor Bernard's Letter to the Earl of Hillsborough, dated Boston, June 11, 1768, wherein he gives his Lordship an Account "of a great Riot that happened in this Town the preceding Evening." And it must be confess'd there was a Riot on that Evening, which is by no means to be justify'd. It was however far from being so great an one as the Governor represents it to [Page 10] be.—The Collector and Comptroller of the Customs indeed represent it as a "numerousMob," but they being particu­larly interested, their Fears might deceive them.——It was not a numerous Mob; nor was it of long Continuance, neither was there much Mischief done. It was occasioned by the unprecedented & unlawful Manner of seizing a Vessel by the Collector and Comptroler: And considering their ille­gal Proceedings in making the Seizure, attended with the most irritating Circumstances which occasioned this Mob—the intolerably haughty Behaviour which the Commission­ers who ordered this Seizure, had constantly before disco­vered towards the People—the frequent Threats which had been given out, that the Town should be put under a Military Government, and the armed Force actually employ'd as a Prelude to it, it cannot be wondered at, that in a populous Town, such high Provocations, and the sudden Exertion of Lawless Power, should excite the Resentment of some Persons beyond the Bounds of Reason, and carry them into Excess.—We cannot state the Circumstances of this Affair with greater Impartiality, than by reciting the Sentiments of his Majesty's Council after two Days Enquiry and Con­sideration, in their own Expressions, viz.

"HIS Excellency having laid before the Board a Re­presentation of some Transactions relating to, and in Con­sequence of the Disorders in the Town of Boston on the Evening of the 10th of June last, the Board think it neces­sary in Justice to the Town and Province, and in Vindica­tion of themselves, to make some Observations thereon, and to give a fuller Representation than is contained in the Paper laid before the Board.

"With Regard to the said Disorders, it is to be observed that they were occasioned by the making a Seizure (in a Manner unprecedented) in the Town of Boston on the said 10th of June, a little before Sunset, when a Vessel was seized by several of the Officers of the Customs; and immediately after, on a Signal given by one of said Officers, in Consequence of a preconcerted Plan, several armed Boats from the Romney Man of War took Possession of her, cut her Fasts, and carried her from the Wharff where she lay, into the Harbour, along side the Romney; [Page 11] which occasioned a Number of People to be collected, some of whom, from the Violence and Unprecedentedness of the Procedure with Regard to the taking away of the said Vessel, and the Reflection thereby implied upon the Inhabi­tants of the Town as disposed to rescue any Seizure that might be made, took Occasion to insult and abuse the said Officers, and afterwards to break some of the Windows of their Dwelling-Houses, and to commit other Disorders. Now, tho' the Board have the utmost Abhorrence of all such disorderly Proceedings, and would by no Means attempt to justify them, they are obliged to mention the Occasion of them, in order to shew, that however culpable the said disorderly Persons were, the Officers who seized, or those by whose Orders such unusual and violent Measures as were pursued in seizing and taking away the said Vessel, were not faultless: It being highly probable that no such Disorders would have been committed, if the Vessel had not been with an armed Force, and with many Circum­stances of Insult and Threats, carried away from the Wharff."

The Council further say, "With Regard to what hap­pen'd on the 10th of June, it seems to have sprung wholly from the Persons who complain of it, by the Plan said and the Orders given for making the Seizure aforesaid, and carrying it away by an armed Force. Which Circum­stances, together with the Time of Day of seizing the Vessel, makes it seem probable that an Uproar was hoped for and intended to be occasioned by the Manner of Pro­ceeding in making the Seizure."

From this impartial State of the Matter, it must evi­dently appear to every candid Mind, that the Opposition was made, not at all to the seizing of the Vessel by the Officers of the Customs, but wholly to the Manner in which it was secured; and that if it had been done in the usual Manner, as the Council afterwards say, "it would have remain'd secure in the Hands of the Officers"—This corresponds with the Commissioners own Account; for they say in their Letter to Governor Bernard, June 12, that they receiv'd a verbal Message from the People to the fol­lowing Purpose, "that if the Sloop seiz'd was bro't back [Page 12] to Mr. Hancock's Wharff, upon Security given to answer the Prosecution, the Town might be kept quiet". But this pacific Proposal, tho' brought to them as they acknowledge "by a Person of Credit", they expresly declare "appear'd to them as a Menace", and it was in Fact one of their very Reasons for requesting the Governor to give Directions that they might be received into the Castle for Protection—So totally regardless were they of the Peace of the Town, and so excessively fond of being thought by others as im­portant as they fancied themselves to be, that when this reasonable and timely Proposal was brought to them even by a Person of Credit in their own Esteem, they haughtily reply'd, that "they gave no Answers to verbal Messages", which plainly indicated either a Wantonness of Power in them beyond all Bounds, or the Hopes if not the Intentions of a further Uproar.—

Governor Bernard tells his Lordship that this Riot "had very bad Consequences", which is undoubtedly true: The exaggerated Accounts which he and the Commissioners gave of it to the Ministry, and their taking Occasion to represent the Town itself as in a State of Disobedience to all Law and Authority, and indeed the whole Continent as ripe for a Revolt, were attended with the worst of Conse­quences to the Town. The Commissioners says in plain Terms that "there had been a long & extensive Plan of Resistance to the Authority of Great-Britain", and that "the Seizure refered to "had hastened the People of Boston to the Commission of actual Violence sooner than was intended". Such Inflamatory Representations as these had the Effects which they had long wish'd for; and induc'd the Ministry to order two other Regiments to this Town; the Conse­quence of which, if they or any of them are continued, it is to be fear'd, far from reconciling the People to the pre­sent Measures of Administration, will only increase their Discontent, and even alienate their Affections.

The Governor in the Postscript to his Letter June 13, mentions his having Intelligence from the Commissioners of some Particulars from whence they concluded, that they were immediately expos'd to further Violences, and desir'd Protection at the Castle.—This Intelligence is contain'd in their Letter of June 12, just now mention'd, wherein [Page 13] they take upon themselves to charge the Government with having used no Measures for securing the Peace of the Town, alledging in general Terms that "there was the strongest Reason to expect further Violences". And they further say, that "His Excellency himself had acquainted them that Boston was no Place of Safety for them". Here we see that the Intelligence which the Governor represents to his Lordship as having been receiv'd by him from the Commissioners, he first communicated to them; and there­upon they grounded their pretended Fears in their Letter to him, and desire the Protection of the Government. This is all of Piece, and may serve to explain the frequent Ru­mours of an Insurrection, mention'd in a former Letter, and from what Quarter these frequent Rumours came. It shows the Combination, and the settled Design, of the Go­vernor and the Commissioners, to blacken the Character of the Town; and how dextrously they can play into each others Hands—The Governor the next Day, June 13, wrote to the Commissioners, and acquainted them, that "having communicated their Letter of the 12th to the Council, they desired him to inform them that during the Sitting of the Council on Saturday Morning, there was no Reason at all given to expect further Violences, and that there was no Apprehension either in the Governor or the Council of an immediate Danger." It is incumbent on the Governor, or his-Friend, if he has any, reconcile this with what he had before told the Commissioners, "that Boston was no Place of Safety for them". It seems Gov. Bernard was perpetually teizing the Council with the Commissioners vague Reports of an Insurrection, and of the Danger they were in; and indeed it appears to be the main Point in View to perswade the Council if possible into a Belief of it, or if not, to form a Complaint to the Ministry that they were negligent of their Duty in not advising to proper Measures for the Protection of the Com­missioners; and from thence to enforce a Necessity of mi­litary Force to restore and support Government in Boston—Why did he not lay before the Council the Particulars, which he tells his Lordship he had receiv'd from the Com­missioners, from whence they concluded that they were ex­pos'd to further Violences? This we hear nothing of; perhaps the Intelligence, like that which he mentions in a [Page 14] former Letter, "was of such a Nature that he could not make use of it in Publick." He indeed tells the Commissioners that "he had inform'd the Council of their present Apprehensions of further Violences, and that they were then taking the same into Consideration."—But he should have fairly represented this Master to the Commissioners, and told them that the Council had already taken the same into Consideration, and come to a Conclu­sion, as in Fact they had; for by their own Minutes we find, that "the Matter being fully debated, is appeared to the Board that there was no immediate Danger of fresh Disturbances." They at the same Time advis'd that the Matter Should be laid before the General Court then Sitting, and postponed the Consideration of it by them, as of Council to the Governor, till the Effect of such a Propo­sal should be known. All this the Governor knew; how then could he consistently say that they were then taking it into Consideration. He tells Lord Hillsborough that "He was against the Business being laid before the General Court, but was obli'd to give it up"; and that "he had many Objections to the Measure." He knew very well that the drawing this Matter into open Day light, would effectually defeat his Design; and that the Intention of bringing the Council, if possible, to join with the Governor in requiring the military Force, or accusing them of Negligence in Case they did not, would thereby be entirely frustrated.—The removing the Business to the General Court, he tells his Lordship, was however, upon one Consideration, not "en­tirely to his Dissatisfaction;" for he says, it was then in a great Measure "taken out of his Hands"; and he con­cludes, that "as he cannot conduct this Business as it ought to be, or rather as he chose it should be, it may be best for him to have but little Hand in it."—It may not be amiss here to recite the Declaration of his Ma­jesty's Council at a full Board on the 29th of July, six Weeks after the commissioners voluntary Exile to the Castle in Consequence of these pretended Apprehensions of further Violences. The Council say, "the Commissioners were not oblig'd to quit the Town; there never had been any Insult offered to them; their quitting the Town was a vo­luntary Act of their own; we do not apprehend there was any sufficient Ground for their quitting it; and, when they [Page 15] had quitted it, and were at the Castle, there was no Occasion for Men of War to protect them." Such an Authority, will, no doubt, be deem'd sufficient to vindicate the Town from this Aspersion; especially, As the Council had then had Time cooly to recollect the Matter: As they had born their full Testimony against the Disorders, and taken every Step which belong'd to their Department, to bring the Offenders of condign Punishment: But more especially, as that very Board had always before supported the Governor's Measures to the utmost Extent that their Consciences would allow, and many Times against the general Sentiments of the People, for which they had gain'd the Governor's Ap­plause, and his particular Recommendations to his Majes­ty's Minister; and he himself could at this Time have no other Exception to any Part of their Conduct, but their Opposition to his favorite Plan, to introduce a military Go­vernment, into the Town, without the leaft Colour of Ne­cessity, and thereby to break thro' the Mounds, and tear up the very Foundation of the civil Constitution.

The Governor in his Letter to Lord Hillsborough of the 14th of June, being resolved to give his Lordship and exact Detail of every Occurrence "from whence the most dan­gerous Consequences are to be expected," takes Occasion to mention "a Paper stuck up on Liberty Tree." This Paper, he had said in his Letter of the 13th, contain'd "an Invi­tation of the Sons of Liberty to meet at Six o'Clock to clear the Land of the Vermin which were come to devour them." A very innocent, if not a laudable Proposal, for which the Country should think itself oblig'd to them, to besure if they could have effected their Design. But in this Letter it is called "a violent and virulent Invitation to rise that Night to clear the Country of the Commissioners & their Officers, to avenge themselves of the Custom-house Officers, & put one of them to Death:" And, still more alarming, "there were also some indecent Threats against the Governor!" Could the Governor think that by the Vermin that were come to devour the Land they meant his Excellency and the Com­missioners! But perhaps the Mind of the Sheriff who brought this Information to the Governor was somewhat agitated with the Fears of an Insurrection; and moreover we may presume that he had not seen the Paper himself, but took it from Report, in Conformity to the Example of the [Page 16] Governor, who believ'd or pretended to believe every Word of it, till he had the mortifying Sight of the true Contents of this very important Paper; of which the following as he himself at length tells his Lordship is "an exact Copy" viz. Boston, June 13, 1768. The Sons of Liberty request all those who in this Time of Oppression and Distraction wish well to and would promote the Peace, Good-Order and Security of the Town and Province, to assemble at Liberty­Hall under Liberty Tree and Tuesday the 14th Instant, at Ten o'Clock precisely.—It might have been suppos'd that so harmless a Thing would have given Offence to none. In the first Place the Matters alledg'd in it were confessedly true: That this was a Time of Oppression, the People all felt: That it was a Time of Distraction, the Governor and the Commissioners loudly proclaim'd: A Design then at such a Time to promote the Peace, Good-Order, and Se­curity of the Town, was at least unexceptionable. But the Governor complains that "it was not consider'd as an Implication of Danger": Strange would it have been in­deed, if so salutary a Proposal as the promoting the Peace, Good-Order and Security of the Town had been thus con­sidered. "Neither, says he, was the Impropriety of the Sons of Liberty appointing a Meeting to secure the Peace of the Town, when the Governor and Council were sitting upon that Business, and seemly to little Purpose, taken much Notice of." But surely if the Governor and Coun­cil could be suppos'd to be fitting upon such Business, at such a Time, and seemingly to little Purpose, there could be no great Impropriety in other Peoples undertaking it. But without adopting by any Means the Measure, Is not here a striking Instance of the Disposition of Governor Bernard, and some others, to receive with the greatest Avidity the most aggravated Accounts of every trifling Occurrence that has happened, and without any Enquiry, to paint them to the Ministry in the deepest Colours! Behold a Meeting, the prosess'd Design of which was to promote the Peace, Good Order and Security of the Town, and that in open Day-Light, represented to the King's Minister as a Meet­ing design'd to be held at six o'Clock, near Sun-set, in one Letter; and in another the next Day, "a most violent and virulent Invitation to rise that Night! and clear the Country of the Commissioners,—threaten the Governor, and [Page 17] commit Murder"! In Consequence of which he tells the Council, there is "no Time to enquire into the Particu­lars of the former Riot". They are to be hurried to Measures to provide for the Peace of the Town;" and to prevent "new Disturbances premeditated" and "imme­diately threatned"; and his Lordship is to be forthwith inform'd of it.—Certainly, every candid Person will from hence be inclin'd to believe all that Governor Bernard re­lates to the Prejudice of this Town, or any particular Persons, with great Diseretion.

His Letter of the 16th of June, for he seem'd to be al­most every Day employ'd in writing his "Detail" of common Reports, gives the Earl of Hillsborough an Account of "the Meeting at Liberty-Tree in pursuance of the printed Notice". And after entertaining his Lordship with a particular tho' awkard and inconsistent Description of the Tree, the vast Heighth of the Flag Staff, and the Design of hoisting the Flag, namely "for a Signal," which to besure must be a Discovery quite new to his Lordship, he proceeds to say; that "at least 4000 Men assembled"; that "the principal Gentlemen attended to engage the lower People to concur in Measures for Peace and Quiet", which was the prosess'd End of their Meeting—that "one of the Selectmen was chosen Moderator or Chairman"—that they adjourn'd to the Town-Hall" for the Accommo­dation of so large a Number. And there it being "ob­jected that they were not a legal Meeting" they adjourn'd to the Afternoon", he should have said, broke up; and the Selectmen instead of "legalizing the Assembly" as it is oddly express'd, call'd a Town-Meeting agreeable to the Directions of the Law, to meet in the Afternoon. All this was certainly an innocent Proceeding, and the Governor himself, it is presumed did not think otherwise, for it hap­pens for once, that he makes no particular Remarks upon it; and if it should be said of them, that they me seemingly to little Purpose, it might be said truly enough; but it is to be remembered, that another Assembly, with their Chairman at their Head, if the Governor's ludicrous Account of the Meeting of that very respectable Body could be credited, might in that Respect keep them in Countenance.——But innocent as it was, the Governor did not chuse it should be [Page 18] tho't that he view'd it in that Light, and therefore told the, Council, and his Lordship afterwards, that "had it been the first Business of the Kind, he should have asked their Advice, whether he should not send to the General for Troops: And to show his own excessive Fondness for so arbitrary and violent a Measure, he adds, that "he was ready to do it, if any one Gentleman would propose it"!

The Governor then proceeds to give a Detail of the Meeting of the Town in the Afternoon; in which he tells his Lordship, that "many wild and violent Proposals were made". It ought here to be observed, that Governor Bernard constantly represents Bodies of Men, even the most respectable, by Proposals made by Individuals, which have been misrepresented by Pimps and Parasites, and perhaps aggravated by himself, instead of allowing them to stand or fall by their own Conclusions—Can any Thing be more base, more contrary to Equity than this?—What should we think of the most respectable Corporations at Home—what even of both Houses of Parliament, if they were to be judg­ed of by every Motion that has been made, or every Ex­pression that has drop'd from Individuals in the Warmth of Debates. If it had been true that such Proposals were made, nay, if measures that could not have been altogether justified, had been even adopted by the Town, at a Time when every Art had been practiced to irritate the People, and inflame their Minds, the candid Part of Mankind would have been ready to overlook it.—The Governor has often been observed to discover an Aversion to free Assemblies: No Wonder then that he should be so particularly disgust­ed at a legal Meeting of the Town of Boston, where a noble Freedom of Speech is ever expected and maintained: An Assembly of which it may be justly said to borrow the Lan­guage of the ancient Roman, with a little Variation, Sen­tire quae volunt at quae sentiunt dicere licet, They think as they please, and speak as they think.————Such an Assembly has ever been the Dread—often the Scourge of Tyrants——But these "wild and violent Pro­posals", which no one can recollect but the Governor, and perhaps his Informers, it seems were "warded off" as the Governor is pleas'd to express it, from whence it may be suppos'd that Prudence directed at this Meeting, "ori­ginated [Page 19] and compos'd as (he says) it was"—By these Ex­pressions it is conceiv'd, he would intimate to his Lordship that it was both illegal and tumultuous; and if that was his real Intention, the Insinuation was both false and inju­rious.—The Meeting was "originated" as the Law directs, and nothing was there concluded upon according to the Governor's own Account, but the Appointment of a Com­mittee, which he himself says "in general was very res­pectable", to wait on him "with a Petition"; the re­ceiving his Answer, as he is pleas'd to say, with "universal Approbation"! writing a Letter to a Friend, and voting such Instructions as they tho't proper to their Representatives. After which he tells his Lordship they "broke up quietly" and the Meeting ended." But notwithstanding this quiet and as may be concluded by the Governor's Account of it, coalziing Town Meeting, which consist­ed of so large a Number, and among whom he himself was so "popular" that even "the Moderator declared that he really believ'd he was a Well-wisher to the Pro­vince". (Thus saith Governor Bernard, but no one re­members or believes it) yet all this will not avail to soften his Mind or alter his Intentions. And altho' he tells his Lordship "the Romney and a Sloop of 16 Guns just come in will compleat the Command of all the Approaches to the Castle, and other Ships of War are expected, so that the Security of the Commissioners is effectually provided for"; yet the favorite Point will not be carried, till the long-wish'd-for Troops arrive, to enforce his arbitrary De­signs, and suppress the Spirit of Liberty. And now is the Time, if ever, to press the Matter: Every Hand therefore must be set to work, and nothing will serve the Cause like continually holding up the Idea of an Insurrection. Ac­cordingly we find one of the Auxiliaries, whose Letter, tho' anonimous, has Credit enough to appear in the List laid before Parliament, says "It is my Opinion that the Pro­moters of the present Evils are ready to unmask, and openly to discover their long and latent Design to REBEL"—and—"involve this Country in Blood and Horror"! Another anonimous Writer, who is said to be "well ac­quainted with the State of the Town of Boston", says, that "He observes a Sourness in the Minds of the People in general", and adds, "He that runs may read, that without [Page 20] speedy Interposition, a great Storm will arise."—The Collector and Comptroller of the Customs mention with deep Concern, as they affect to express themselves, "that a general Spirit of INSURRECTION prevails, not only in the Town, but throughout the whole Provinces."—The Commissioners themselves, in their Letter to General Gage, tell him, "that it is utterly impossible to carry on the Bu­siness of the Revenue in the Town of Boston, from the outrageous Behavior of the People:" They acquaint the General "of the alarming State of Things in the Town, and desire him to give them Protection". And tho' Gov. Bernard, when not so much on his Guard, or perhaps under some little Compunction of Mind, in his Letter to the Commissioners, June 13, gently chides them for their ill-grounded Fears, and tells them "he is very sorry that they think themselves so much in Danger in Boston (which he had before said was no Place of Safety for them) as to think it unsafe for them to reside there"; notwithstanding all this, yet in the Letter we are now considering, which was written nearly at the same Time, he positively assures his Lordship, that "if there is not a REVOLT, the Leaders must falsify their Words and change their Purposes" Per­haps he would have been more consistent if he had imagined these Letters would ever have seen the Light. He con­cludes his Letter with mentioning a few more "Papers stuck up on the Town House".—No Evidence however appears to have accompanied all these heavy Charges upon a whole Community: But Gov. Bernard and others seem to have conducted their Proscriptions as if they could have even for seen, that the bold Assertions of Persons apparently in inimical to a Country, anonimous Letters, Street Conver­sation picked up by Pimps and Spies, and Papers stuck by no one knows whom on a publick Building, would be of so much Weight as to influence the Measures of Admi­nistration! Can any Person believe this a just Representa­tion, when Governor Bernard with all his Industry and And has not been able to furnish Proof that any Body or Combination of Men, or even a single Person, had incur'd a legal Penalty, if we except the Disturbances that hap­pen'd on March and June already considered.

The Governor in his Letter of the 9th of July informs his Lordship of a Measure, as he calls it, of the Sons of [Page 21] Liberty; a Number of them going out of Boston at the close of a certain Day in Parties, and meeting on each Side of a House in Roxbury, which Mr. Robinson (and his Lordship must be inform'd that he also was one of the Commissioners) had lately hired, with a Intention to sur­prize him and prevent his Escape; but he being at the Castle, where the Commissioners had been driven for Safety, they did nothing but plunder his Fruit Trees. This is a very solemn Account indeed; but he never laid this "Ma­noevre of the Sons of Liberty", extraordinary as it was, before the Council, which he never fail'd to do on like Oc­casions; thinking possibly, that respectable Body might be of Opinion, that a Gentleman of any political Party may be suppos'd to have had his Orchard or Fruit Gardens robb'd by liquorish Boys, without making a formal Repre­sentation before his Majesty's first Ministers of State. As the Governor will still have it that the Commissioners were "driven to the Castle for Safety", we take Occasion to observe here, that it was notorious, that they frequently landed on the Main, and made Excursions into the Country; visiting the Lieutenant-Governor and other Gentlemen at their Seats, where it would have been easy to have seized them if any Injury had been intended them; which as his Majesty's Council very justiy have observed, "demonstrated the Insincerity of their Declarations", as it did those of the Governor "that they immured themselves at the Castle for Safety".

Another Part of the Detail in this Letter is the Rescue of a Vessel which had been seiz'd by the Custom-House Officers It seems by Governor Bernard's Account, it had been "thought proper to try an Experiment"; for says he, "When the Sloop was seiz'd which occasion'd the Riot, and in Consequence of which the Commissioners were ob­lig'd to leave the Town, the greatest Part of the Resent­ment was express'd against the putting her under the Care of the Man of War"; which was very true, and he might have also said, the making the Seizure with an armed Force, and therefore, he adds, "when this Schooner was seiz'd it was left at the Wharff, under no other Care but two Custom-Houses Officers", in hopeful, no Doubt, if not certain Expectation that the Rescue would be made, from [Page 22] whence it might possibly be made to appear that the Resentment against the Proceedings of the Custom-House Officers in the former Instance, as being violent and illegal, was mere Protence. The Rescue was made, and it was universally displeasing to the Town. The Governor says, "this very Molasses was the next Day return'd," and tells his Lordship, that "the Selectmen of the Town sent for the Master of the Schoona," and "ordered him to return it, under Pain of the Displeasure of the Town"; which is a gross Misrepresentation of the Matter, and art­fully designed to prepare for the subsequent ungenerous Remark, that "all Government in now in the Hands of the People." A good Magistrates would have rejoiced at this Instance of the People's voluntarily affording their Aid in the Recovery of the King's Due, which had been rescued from him, without torturing his Invention to find an il­natured Construction for it: But Gov. Bernard is disturb'd that "the Humour of the People," which he says this was done "to please," should ever comcide with their Duty to their Sovereign—The voluntary Association of the People to promote Peace and good Order, he had before said "carried an Implication of Danger" to the Government; and now, when they seem to unite in taking Measures for the Execution of a Law, altho' in its Nature disagreeable to the People, why truly "the Government is in the Hands of the People, and not of those deputed by the King, or under his Authority." But if the People had a View to save their own Reputation in this Piece of Service to the Crown, as the Governor intimates, surely he will not say it was "ill-judged" or "ill-timed." The Truth is, they had a particular View at this Time to prevent Governor Bernard's improving this Rescue, which they were in no Sort Concerned in, to the Prejudice of the Town, as had been his constant Practice in other Cases, and as it now evi­dently appears he intended: And it was certainly a wise Precantion; tho' a candid Mind will by no Means exclude any other good Intentions.——We cannot for bear taking Notice hero with Freedom, of a very extraordinary Assertion of Governor Bernard, in this Letter to his Lordship. That "every Seizure made, or attempted to be made on Land at Boston for these three Years past, before these two In­stances, had been violently rescued or prevented."—An As­sertion [Page 23] so notoriously false, that few Men could have [...] it without Brushing; and we may suppose even Governor Bernard himself would not have made it, had he apprehend­ed it would ever have become Public. ^*—The Officers of the Customs themselves will not venture to affirm it. If the Assertion is true, his Majesty's Council must have been egregiously mistaken when they declare that "no Instances can be alledg'd of any Vessel seiz'd or any Seizure whatever in the Town of Boston being rescued out of the Hands of the Officers, except what took Place here on the 8th of July Instant, when a Quantity of Molasses (this very Molasses) having been seiz'd, was taken away from the Officers who had Charge of it; which unwarrantable Proceeding being universally condemn'd, the Molasses was very soon return'd". At this [...] Story was invented and told by Gov.Bernard, with the sole Intention of casting an Odium upon the Town, we have Reason to expect his Retractation of it; or he must bear the Reproaches of an highly injur'd Com­munity, and the just injurious Assertions, he thinks it a proper Time to acquaint his Lordship, that the one Regiment which he had [...] flattering Expectation of, from a Letter he had receiv'd from General Gage, "tho' it might secure the Castle, would not be sufficient to awe the Town"; which was in Effect acting for more. Thus we see the Means which Governor Bernard and his Confederates have been incessantly using to accomplish their Designs; and strange as it may in some better Times hereafter appear, these Means and these very Instruments at Length prevail'd to introduce a military Power into this Town—A Power which is daily trampling on our Laws, contemning our [Page 24] Religion, and invading the Rights both of Persons and Property—A Power by which a truly loyal but long abus'd and highly provok'd Community, is, not indeed [...], but distress'd—And were it not for the certain Advice that our humble and dutiful Supplications have at Length reach'd the Royal Hand, we should be reduc'd even to a State of Desperation!

Governor Bernard in his Letter to Lord Hillsborough of the 16th of September, begins with acquainting his Lord­ship with the prudent Methods he took, to communicate the Expectation of the Troops gradually, for Fear of cer­tain ill Effects that might arise from their sudden Arrival. And no wonder that the Man who had long been repre­senting a whole Country as Rebels; and had been one of the principal Instruments in bringing such a Curse upon it, should at that Juncture be under some Apprehensions of Danger. In his last Letter he talks of his personal Courage, and tells Lord Hillsborough that "he did not feel his own Firmness of Mind to fail"; He also mentions "the spi­rited Conduct of the Lieutenant-Governor; and with Plea­sure assures his Lordship that "he could depend upon his Resolution and Steadiness as much as he could upon his own"; from whence he concludes that "there would be ho want of a due Enforcement of the Laws to the Cor­rection of the present Abuses":—But now he seems to be conscious of Fear!—Happy was it for him, that he was in the Hands of a People; who attended to the Dictates of sound Policy, Religion and Loyalty—He first opens this Matter to one of the Council, and tells him that "he had private Advice that Troops were order'd hither, but that he had no publick Orders about it himself"; and he ob­serves that "it quickly was very thoro'ly circulated all over the Town", and the Faction immediately took the Alarm". By this he would insinuate that the better Sort of the People, and even the Generality of the Town, were well enough pleas'd with it. If the Faction only took the Alarm, the Generality of the Town must have been in­cluded in the Faction: For in Truth, he had the Mortifi­cation of seeing the whole Body of the People, saving his own very few Adherents who were properly an implacable Faction, thoro'ly awakened and alarm'd at the sudden Ex­pectation [Page 25] of a military Force, which had indeed been often threatned by this Faction, but few realiz'd it before—And now the Pimps were all immediately sent out, who no Doubt were rewarded in Proportion to their Success in the Business; and the Governor soon had Intelligence brought to him of the Conversation of "private Companies": And that in one "it was the general Opinion to raise the Country and oppose the Troops"; in another "it was resolv'd to surprize and take the Castle". How ridiculously im­pertinent must he appear in the Eyes of Men of Sense, after all to acquaint his Lordship, that "he does not relate these Accounts as certain Facts." To what Purpose then did he relate them at all! It seems that he was full as designing, in communicating to Lord Hillsborough, as he was in communicating to the People, tho' his Designs were different: For the People were not to be told the whole that the Governor knew to be true; but his Lordship was to be induc'd to believe more:—In either Case if the Pur­pose could be served, Sincerity was out of the Question. Uncertain however as these Facts were, his Lordship is informed, that they were yet "believed"! Strange, as they were said to be Facts of Yesterday, that no one, after all the Pains that had been taken, could make them certain; and if they were not to be made certain, stranger still that any in their Senses should believe them.—Some Men are very apt to believe that which they wish were true: This no doubt is the present Case.—And besides, we are to re­member, that more than two Regiments were wanted to awe the Town; and if the Governor could boldly say, that these Reports, vague as they were, had obtained any Credit here, no Matter by whom believed, they would have some Weight. But he must be presumed to think very injudi­ciously of the Head or the Heart of a Minister of State, to suppose that such an undigested and ridiculous Account of Things would influence his Measures. Nothing, we should think, but the great Candor which has ever appeared in Lord Hillsborough towards Governor Bernard, could have prevented his severest Censure.—But admitting they were true, which was by no Means the Case, certainly the Town is not accountable for what one of his Excellencies Spies might have overheard in a "private Company."—Let us then consider the Account the Governor [Page 26] gives of the public Conduct of the Town, at a Meeting legally called on Monday September 12. And first he says, "at the Hall the Faction appeared surrounded with all its Forces"; and an Appearance very decent at least, it seems, they were capable of making according tot he Go­vernor's Account. For he tells his Lordship, "a Set of Speeches by the Chiefs of the Faction, and no one else, fol­lowed in such Order and Method, that every Thing both as to Matter and Order, seem'd to have been preconcerted;" while alas! the "very few principal Gentlemen there," the better Sort in the Governor's Estimation, appeared "as curious, perhaps anxious Spectators"! Where is now the little Remains of an expiring Factions, which he had so of­ften told the World of? The Tone is wonderfully al­tered; the Body of the People are now truly represented as united firm and regular in their Opposition to his Measures, while his own few Partizans, who yet must be stiled "the principal Gentlemen," tho' expecting every Moment to be surrounded with all their Forces," appeared inquisitive and anxious for the Event! But noting was resolved upon says the Governor, but to put two Questions to me, and appoint a general committee to consider and report." The main Question to the Governor was, Whether he had certain Expectation of the Troops? To which he answered with an artful Ambiguity, that he had private Advice, but no publick Orders about it. His private Advice might have been certain; or he might have had authentick publick Advice without publick Orders about it, for General Gage was Commander in Chief of the King's Forces. Being however somewhat press'd by the Committee who waited on him, he discover'd a Duplicity for which he has a pecu­liar Talent, and said, that he would not have the Town certainly expect the Troops; altho' he then expected them himself, and fully believ'd they were on their Passage from Halifax; and in this Letter to Lord Hillsborough he tells him, that it was at that very Time his Intention to communicate these Expectations of the gradually—His Account of divers Speeches made in the Town Meet­ing is as uncertain, and with Regard to some of them, as untrue, as the Intelligence he had receiv'd of the private Conversation: Perhaps it was carried to him by the same Hands, at some of his principal Gentlemen were there. [Page 27] The Resolves and Determinations of this Meeting, as the Governor says, were publish'd to the World; and they remain on the Records of the Town that Posterity may judge of them. The Town has seen no Reason since to revoke these Resolves, notwithstanding they have been sentenc'd as "very dangerous Resolves, procured by mad People", by so exquisite a Judge, in Matters which regard civil Government, as well as so polite a Gentleman as General Gage. The Governor himself has been since res­pectfully requested by the Selectmen, in Behalf of the Town, to shew in what Respect the Resolves and Proceedings of this very Meeting had militated with Law; but he de­clined it: And we believe he declin'd it, because he was not able to do it. Spirited indeed they were, but not too spirited for the Times.—When the Constitution is threat­ened, the Principles of the Constitution must, if ever, be asserted and supported—The Governor indeed takes Notice of our Claim to a certain Clause in the Bill of Rights as "a large Stride": But as we are free British Subjects, we claim all that Security against arbitrary Power, to which we are entitled by the Law of God and Nature, as well as the British Constitution. And if a Standing Army may not be posted upon the Subjects in one Part of the Empire, in a Time of Peace, without their Consent, there can be no Reason why it should in any other; for all British Subjects are or ought to be alike free.—

The Governor in a former Letter to Lord Hillsborough mention'd the Selectmens ordering the Arms belonging to the Town to be brought out and clean'd; and to make something of the Story, he told him that "they were expos'd some Hours at the Town House": In this Letter he says "these Arms were deposited in Chests, and laid upon the Floor of the Town Hall to remind the People of the Use of them". Could any one besides Governor Bernard, descend to so pitiful an Artifice as to insinuate that these Arms were clean'd, expos'd to the People, and finally laid on the Floor of the Hall at this Juncture, to induce his Lordship to believe, that these were the Forces with which the Faction appear'd "surrounded", and that the Selectmen who are the principal City Magistrates, and the leading Part of the Town itself, were actually in the Plan which he had just before mentioned, as concerted in one of the private Meet­ings, "to raise the Country & oppose the Troops": And [Page 28] that these Arms deposited in Chests were laid on the Floor of the Hall, to "remind the People of the Use of them," and inspirit them for the Purpose of opposing the Troops. Whereas the simple Truth of the Matter is, these Arms had for many Years been deposited in Chests and laid on the Floor of the Town Hall; but the Hall itself being burnt a few Years ago, the Arms were sav'd from the Ruins and carried to the Town House: After the Hall was Re-built the Town ordered their Removal there; and tho' it happen'd to be done at a Juncture when the Gover­nor and his Confederates talked much of the Town's re­volting, there was no other Thought in the Minds of any, except the Governor and a few more, and it is a Question whether even he, or they, really thought otherwise, but to lodge them in their proper and usual Place.

We cannot help taking Notice how very exact the Go­vernor sometimes is even in the choice of Words, in his "Detail of Facts" to a Minister of State: An Instance of which we have now before us, wherein he mentions to his Lordship his inclosing "a blank Copy of the Precept (as he is pleas'd to call it) which the Selectmen have used", it is a Wonder it was not issued, for that would have made it appear more formal, "in calling together the Convention"; from whence he takes Occasion to say, it was "a daring Assumption of the Royal Authority". Here then is the Treason and Misprision of Treason, or a Part of it least, about which there has been such an Eclat of late; for which the Governor tells his Lordship in his Detail of the Convention, every Well-wisher of the Province, of whom he is doubtless one, "most devoutly desires the Charter may be forfeited"—And some of the Leaders were to be sent to England to be tried there—Nay, his Lordship, or some one of his Majesty's Servants is informed that they expected it themselves; for Commodore Hood in one of his short and pithy Epistles, says, "they were alarm'd, and expected nothing less than a Voyage to England against their Inclinations".—But his Lordship's deep Penetration might have discover'd that this "Precept to call a Con­vention" was nothing more than a friendly circular Letter to the Selectmen of the several Towns in the Province, desiring them to propose to their respective Towns the sending Committees, to join with those of the Town of Boston, in consulting Measures to promote Peace and good [Page 29] Order: which was so far from an Assumption of the Royal Authority, that it assumed not the least Shadow of any Authority whatever—This very innocent Measure of the Town in "calling together a Convention" as the Governor expresses it, which he so highly censures, and upon the Promoters of which he loudly calls for the national Ven­geance, was most certainly attended with all the happy Effects for which it was propos'd: For the general Senti­ments of the Province were thereby collected, which could not otherwise have been done; the Governor having arbi­trarily dissolv'd the General Assembly, and positively re­fus'd to call another, against the dutiful Petition of the Convention itself, as well as of the Town, even before they propos'd or thought of it—The several Towns hav­ing the Opportunity of conferring together by their Committees, had the same Effects which followed a certain circular Letter, which formerly so perplex'd his Excellency; for the People became the more united in the Measures proper to be taken for the Preservation of their common Rights at so critical and alarming a Juncture. And tho' the Governor says "at the Fountain Head it was intended to provoke Resentment", yet to this very Measure has been imputed, in some small Degree at least, whether justly or not, it becomes not this Town to say, that Prudence as well as Firmness and Perserverance in the Cause of Liberty, of which it is hoped this Country will forever avail itself. Even Governor Bernard cannot but own that the Conven­tion discover'd "Moderation" and "a temperate Conduct", which is far from being inconsistent with true Fortitude: But he is not willing that the Town of Boston should "assume the Merit of it". They are content to have that Share of Merit which their beloved Countrymen are willing they should have. And tho' he would insinuate to his Lordship with his usual Cunning, that there was at the Convention an essential Difference of Sentiments between the Town and the Country; and that "many of the De­puties came down with a Disposition and Instructions to prevent the Bostoners (as he elegantly expresses himself) involving the Province in the Consequences of their own mad Devices"; and that many of them "were from the beginning sensible of the Impropriety and Danger of this Proceeding"; His Lordship, as "they printed what they [Page 30] did", has no Doubt been since convinced, that they were united in their Sentiments of the common Cause.

But this very peaceable Proposal, the Governor thinks, exceeded the "Great Rebellion when it was at the highest, and the Confusion arising there from most urgent for some extraordinary Measures". Here is the Burden of the Song—extraordinary Measures! And surely his Lordship must propose some very extraordinary Measures to chastise a greater than the Great Rebellion, even when it was at the highest.—Not content with pouring forth this Torrent of Zeal, the Governor still presses upon his Lordship; and assures him that "unless it is prevented by some Power from without, not only the Crown Officers will be exclud­ed", but "every Ingredient of Royalty" in the Govern­ment of the Province will be totally destroy'd——What Rhetorick! to arrest his Lordship's Attention, and hurry him on to conclude with the Governor, that "the Force already order'd by General Gage, viz. two Regiments, will not be sufficient".——In Order still to heighten the Ideas of an intended Rebellion, the Governor adds, "It is now a great Question whether the King's Troops will be suffer'd to enter the Town or not". And "the Design against the Castle in now so well known that it is probable that the very Names of the People who were enroll'd for that Service to the Number of Five Hundred, or of the Chiefs of them will be discover'd". It is pretty remarka­ble the Governor in the former Part of this Letter inform'd his Lordship, that he did not relate this very Account as a certain Fact; his Spies must then make very quick Rota­tions, and the Intelligence flow in very fast, to be so well assured of it before he concluded; or the Governor must be so unfortunate, perhaps not having Time in the Multiplicity of his Affairs, to keep a regular Diary, as to forget what he had wrote, and as we every now and then find it happens, in the "overflowings" of his Zeal, to be inconsistent with himself.

It would be an endless Task to take particular Notice of every false and injurious Representation contain'd in these voluminous Letters. ^* No one can read them without being [Page 31] astonish'd at seeing a Person in so important a Department as Governor Bernard sustain'd, descending in his Letters to [Page 32] a Minister of State, to such trifling Circumstances, and such slanderous Chit-chat: Boasting, as he does in one of his Letters, of his over-reaching those with whom he was trans­acting publick Business; and in Order to prejudice the most respectable Bodies, meanly filching from Individuals belonging to those Bodies, what had been drop'd in the Course of Business or Debate: Journalizing every idle Re­port brought to him, and in short acting the Part of a Pimp rather than a Governor.——As these Letters, being now made public, will be a Monument of Disgrace to him, it can­not be suppos'd, that any Honor can be deriv'd from them, to those great Men to whom they were address'd.

Notwithstanding the Town have been oblig'd in Justice to themselves, to say thus much in their own Vindication, we should yet be glad, that the ancient and happy Union between Great-Britain and this Country, which Governor Bernard has so industriously labor'd to interrupt, might be restor'd. Some have indeed flatter'd themselves with the Prospect of it; as Intelligence is said to have been receiv'd from Administration, that all the Revenue Acts would be repeal'd: But as it since appears by Lord Hillsborough's own Account, that nothing more is intended, than the taking off the Duties on Paper, Glass, and Painter's Colours, upon commercial Principles only; if that is all, it will not give Satisfaction: It will not even relieve the Trade from the Burdens it labours under; much less will it remove the Grounds of Discontent, which runs thro' the Continent, upon much higher Principles. Their Rights are invaded by these Acts; therefore untill they are are all repeal'd the Cause of their just Complaints cannot be remov'd: In short, the Grievances which lie heavily upon us, we shall never think redress'd, till every Act, pass'd by the British Parliament for the express Purpose of raising a Revenue upon us without our Consent, is Repeal'd; till the Ame­rican Board of Commissioners of the Customs is dissolv'd; the Troops recall'd, and Things are restor'd to the State they were in before the late extraordinary Measures of Ad­ministration took Place.

Besides these Letters of Governor Bernard, we find others written by General Gage, and Commodore Hood. And we cannot but observe, that altho' both these Gentlemen were perfect Strangers in the Town they have yet taken such extraordinary Freedoms, and the General in particular has wrote in such a positive Strain, as must unavoidably give high Disgust to every Reader of Candor and Impar­tiality.——If these Gentlemen receiv'd the Character of the Town, or of any of its Individuals, from Governor Bernard, as we are ready to think they did, they must have been long before convinc'd, if they knew any Thing at all of the State of the Town, that the Governor was too deeply interested in misrepresenting, to be credited in a Point of that Importance: and therefore common Justice would have dictated a Suspension of their publick Testimony to the Prejudice of a Community, till they could have had [Page 34] the Opportunity of doing it upon impartial Enquiry, or their own Observation—The General seems to have early imbib'd some Sort of Prejudice against a Town, that had been before prejudiced in his Favor: For the Governor in one of his Letters to Lord Hillsborough acquaints him, that the General "had sent Capt. Montresor from New-York, to assist the Forces as Engineer, and enable them to RECOVER and maintain the Castle, and such other Posts as they could secure", upon Intelligence that the People in and about Boston had revolted. Now even the Gov. himself declares this to be a mistake, and says that Things were not quite "so bad as that came to."—As there are two constant and regular Posts between this Town and New-York, each of which carries Intelligence from the one to the other in the Course of a Week; and more especially as he might rea­sonably expect authentick Accounts of a Matter of such Importance, by Express in a shorter Time; it is strange, if the General's Mind was unbias'd, that he should so strongly rely upon private Advice, as to form his Measures from them, which the Governor asserts.—It was a Measure of Importance, as it issued, to the Town: for Col. Dalrymple who had the Command of the Regiments, from the Authority of these new Orders, as the Governor declares, tho't proper to alter the Plan, which was to land only one, and landed both the Regiments in Boston without Loss of Time. Perhaps it was under the Impression of these private Advices, and "the Narrative of the Proceedings of the Town Meeting", which the Governor also mentions as influential on the General's Measures, and which possibly was a Nar­rative of the Governor's own writing, that so wrought upon the General's Imagination, as to induce him to give his Opinion to his Lordship that the "Intentions of the Town were suspicious, and that he was happy the Troops from Halifax arriv'd at the Time they did"! These and many such like unprovok'd Expressions are to be found in the Letters of both these Gentlemen, and especially the General's; but as they partake of a full Portion of the Spirit of Governor Bernard's, and as the Sense of this Pro­vince fully appears in the late spirited Resolves of the House of Representatives, we shall avoid troubling the Publick with particular Remarks upon them, and to borrow an Expression of great Authority, "treat them with the Contempt they deserve".