⚫ down to us before and fince the Return of the Ex

preffes dispatched to Ohio. We have alfo carefully * examined the Meffenger himself, and fuch Indian Traders, and others, who could give us any Infor⚫mation of the Numbers, and Designs of the Forces, • raised by the Governor of Canada, and of the Condition of the Twigtwees, as well as the other Indians, our Allies, upon the Waters of Ohio, and up< on mature Deliberation, have refolved to contribute generously to their Affiftance, by a Present suitable to their Want of the Neceffaries of Life.

Tho' the Alliance between the Crown of Great• Britain and the Six Nations, and the Protection and • Affistance they expect to receive in Virtue of that Alliance, is more immediately under the Direction of the Government of New-York; and altho' Virginia, at this Time, has entered largely into the Trade, and will, no Doubt, on the present Occafion, affift them and their Alliés, yet we have always endeavoured, in Proportion to our Abilities, by Prefents, as well as by obliging our Indian Traders to behave with Juftice towards them, to preferve their Friendship; and on the prefent Cccafion, notwithftanding we have the Misfortune to differ in Sentiments with our Proprietaries in the Part they ought to bear in thefe Expences, we have rather confider⚫ed the Advantages both they and the Province may receive by our Liberality, which we have voted chearfully, and recommended the Diftribution to the Care of the Governor, that the Six Nations at Onondago (upon any Application to be made to him in their own Behalf, or for their Allies who refide to the Weftward, and are likely to be more immediately affected) may be fatisfied, and the Prefent intended them beft anfwer their Neceffities, and our peaceable and friendly Intentions."

The Prefent was 800 l. 200 l. as a Prefent of Condolance to the Twigtwee Nation, for the Lofs of fourteen of them cut off in the preceding Year, by the • French

5

French and their Indians *, and the reft to be diftributed by the Governor among the other Nations, at his own Difcretion.

Thus far all was calm and quiet.-And at their next Meeting in the latter End of August, they received two other Meffages from the Governor, relating to the Money-Bill and the Indian Prefent. The Latter importing, that he had not, as yet, received any Application for any Purpose whatever, from any of the Indians; nor even fuch well-grounded Advices of their Wants and Diftreffes as to induce him to make any Ufe of the Credit repofed in him: That he had, however, dispatched Weifer [the Interpreter] for Intelligence; and that, having received Advices by all who came from the Westward, that the French were on their March towards the Ohio, and had fent out their Parties to fcour the Woods before them, he had not fent the Prefent of Condolance, for Fear of its falling into the Enemy's Hands, &c. &c.

And as to the Former, it related to the CurrencyBill, returned at the fame Time with fome few Amendments, to which he, the Governor, prefumed the House could have no Objection; and concluded `with these remarkable Expreffions. I cannot, however, but acquaint you, that, in giving my Affent to this Bill, I have acted rather in Compliance to your ' repeated Application, than that, in my own Judgment, I could think an Addition, to our Currency at this Time, abfolutely neceffary: I am in Hopes nevertheless, that as the Sum to be emitted is not.

* They fuffered this Lofs in Defence of fome English Traders then in one of their Towns. The French came with a ftrong Body, and demanded that the Traders and their Goods fhould be delivered up to them. The Indians determined to protect them, but were overpowered by Numbers; fome of the Traders were killed and the reft carried away to Montreal, and afterwards fent Prifoners to France. This was before the Commencement of the present War, and one of the many Hoftilities of the like Kind vious to our feizing their Ships.

pre

exorbitant, it may be attended with no bad Confequences to the Province.'

Now the principal of thefe Amendments was the following Provifo, viz. Provided always, and it is hereby farther Enacted by the Authority aforefaid, that this Act or any Thing therein contained, fhall . not take Effect, or be deemed or conftrued or taken to have any Force or Effect; until the fame fhall have received the Royal Approbation of his Majefty, his Heirs, or Succeffors." Which prov'd to be fo far from being unobjectionable, that, upon the Queftion, the Houfe unanimoufly refolved, Not to agree to this Amendment, because they apprehended it to be deftructive of the Liberties derived to them by the Royal and Provincial Charters, as well as injurious to the Proprietaries Rights, and without any Precedent in the Laws of the Province.' And the Governor, on the other Hand, adhered, Because the Claufe fo propofed to be added, was founded on the additional Inftruction from the Lords Juftices, in Purfuance of the Commons Addrefs above fpecified; which Inftruction had been known to the Province ever fince January, 1740; and confequently, they might fee the Reafon of his adding it was fuch as he could not allow himself the Liberty of receding from.'

And here it is to be lamented, That, while this Affair was firft under the Confideration of Parliament, neither the Proprietary nor the Provincial Agent thought fit to lay thofe Clauses of their Charter before the Houfe, by which the faid Proprietary and the Affembly are intrufted with the whole Legiflative Power, fubject to the Royal Revifion and Ratification, and may even put Laws not inconfiftent with their Allegiance in Force, for the Term of Five Years, without it; fince, in all Probability, that Measure would have produced fome fuch a Temperament as might have prevented the Broil which enfued apparently for Want of it.

The Affembly took the Governor's Reply immediately into Confideration, and prepared a fuitable Re

joinder;

joinder; in which having inwoven the unanimous Refolution juft fpecified, they declared themfelves affured, from the Report of their Committee, to whom they had referred both the Clause and the Examination of their Laws, That there had not been one fingle Inftance of a Law paffed under fuch a Restriction as that then contended for from the firft Settlement of the Province to that Day. And here they might have fafely ftopt, if they had thought fit, feeing nothing could be added in their Juftification ftronger than their Charter-Claims, and fuch a Series of Practice founded upon them: But, willing to be every way fortified, they entered farther into an Enquiry, Why fo dangerous an Experiment fhould be then preffed upon them without the leaft apparent Neceflity? And proceeded to fhew, That the Inftruction itself was a temporary one: That, though it was directed to a Governor of that Province among the Reft, it neither did or could fuit their Circumftances either at that or at any other Time before or fince: That This, having been manifested to and acknowledged by the Lords of Trade, the Ends of it, as to them, had been fully anfwered: That the faid Lords, in their Report to the House of Commons, fubfequent to that Addrefs to the Throne concerning the Paper Currencies of America, having fignified, that they would humbly propofe that his Majefty would be graciously pleased to repeat his Orders to his Governors of the Plantations not to give their Affent, for the Future, to any Bill or Bills for iffuing or re-iffuing Paper Money, proceed to say, 'We hope thefe Propofitions for reducing and difcharging the Paper Currency of the Plantations may have a good Effect in thofe Governments which are held by immediate Commiffion under his Majesty; 'but we are very doubtful, whether they will pro'duce the like Effect in the Charter Governments, who do apprehend themselves by their particular ¿ Charters and Conftitutions to be very little dependent upon the Crown, and for that Reason feldom pay ⚫ that Obedience to his Majefty's Orders, which might I

• be

be reasonably expected from them :' That, notwithftanding what is here faid concerning the Repetition of thefe Orders, they had good Reason to believe those Orders, at least to their Governors, had never been repeated: That a Bill, in which was a Claufe to inforce the Orders and Inftructions of the Crown in America had been repeatedly brought into Parliament, and as often rejected: That the Governor himself had represented this Bill (to reftrain the Iffues of Paper Money) as of mischievous Tendency: That even the very Proprietaries had made a Merit of oppofing it: That, as in the Act of Parliament for that Purpose which did pafs in June 1751, the Eastern Colonies alone were included, fo Penfylvania was left in full Poffeffion of its Rights, even by the Parliament it felf: That, as the Date of the Governor's Commiffion was many Years pofterior to the Date of the Inftruction, they hoped and presumed, he was at full Liberty to pafs all their Acts upon the Terms granted them by the Royal and Provincial Charters, without putting them to the difagreeable Neceffity of examining the Validity of fuch Inftructions, &c. And, laftly, as to the Iflue of their Enquiry, concerning the Neceffity of contending for the prefent Amendments, they not only declared themselves at a Lofs to find it out, but alfo called upon the Governor to comply with the general Voice of the People, and the repeated unanimous Applications of their Reprefentatives in granting them and the Province the feafonable Relief provided for in the Bill, by giving his Affent to it as it ftood.

How the Governor was circumftanced may be ga thered from his Actions: He,adhered to his Amendments, and returned the Bill as before, with a written Meffage, in which he perfevered in holding up the Inftruction as an infurmountable Bar, till revoked, to the Affent required of him; urging, That his Predeceffor had done the fame in the Year 1746: That the Affembly admitted the Validity of it in ordinary Cafes; and, without pretending to difpute, only hoped he

5

would