Perhaps they thought the Abfurdity he had fallen into, by charging them with a Refolution to take Advantage of their Country's Danger, to aggrandize and render permanent their own Power and Authority, too glaring to need any Comment. Perhaps they did not think it proper to retort, That the Inhabitants of a Colony, fo remote from the principal Seat of Empire, had abundantly more to apprehend from an Excess of Power in their Governor, than the Governor could poffibly have from a like Excess in their Reprefentatives: The Executive, as before obferved, being a fingle Principle always in Force, and the Legislative compofed of two co-equal Principles, which muft always tally, or can no otherwise operate, than by reftraining and controlling the Operations of each other, as in the Cafe before us: And, perhaps, they had not. the Refolution of the House of Commons of July 2, 1678, in Sight at that Time: which was as follows: viz.

• That all Aids and Supplies granted to his Majesty in Parliament, are the fole Gift of the Commons: That all Bills for the granting any fuch Aids and 'Supplies ought to begin with the Commons: And that it is the undoubted and fole Right of the • Commons to direct, limit and appoint in fuch Bills, the Ends, Purposes, Confiderations, Conditions, Limitations and Qualifications, of fuch Grants, which ought not to be changed by the House of Lords.' To fay nothing of certain remarkable Provifions of theirs in the Year 1678 (which, in a Course of Conferences with the Lords, they adhered to) to appoint a Receiver of their own for the Adminiftration of the Money then granted for the Payment and difbanding of the Army, and the Payment of the fame into the Chamber of London instead of the Exchequer.

Their Adjournment was to the First of September; but they were affembled by special Summons on the 13th of June; and the first Minute on their Books of publick Note is, One, to fpecify the Approbation

given by the Lords Juftices to Governor Thomas's A& for granting 500ol, out of Bills of Credit for the King's Ufe. The Date of this Approbation is October 9, 1748: So that it was fubfequent to the King's Inftruction fo pertinacioufly infifted upon; and hav ing, either by fome Accident or Neglect been overlooked thus long, the Governor, as we have seen, had in the December before taken the Advantage to exprefs himself thus hardily to the Affembly: Colonel Thomas's Conduct is no Rule to me, nor will mine be for any one that may fucceed me; and if we may judge from his not tranfmitting that Act to England, we may prefume, that he did not look upon that Particular as the moft recommendatory Part of his Administration. It is true, he was never cenfured for it; and, indeed, how could he, as the Tranfaction was never made known to his Majesty or bis • Minifters.'

And the next Minute that follows this concerning the faid Approbation, notifies,

That fundry Letters from Sir Peter Halket and Colonel Dunbar were then read, acknowledging the Receipt of certain Presents from the Houfe to the Officers of their respective Regiments, of the moft confiderate and acceptable Kind, and returning Thanks for the fame.

The Reason of this Summons affigned by the Governor in his Meffage was to this Effect, That General Braddock having begun his March towards Fort Du Quefne, had reprefented to him, That, in Cafe he fhould reduce that Fort, his Intentions were to leave a Garrison, with all the Guns, Stores, &c. he should find in it: That, in Cafe the French fhould abandon and deftroy the Fortifications, &c. as he had Reason to apprehend they would, he fhould then repair it or conftruct fome Place of Defence: But that in either Cafe, as the Artillery, Stores, &c. he had with him would be abfolutely neceffary for the Profecution of his Plan, he was determined to leave none of them bebind him, and expected to have all his Wants of that Kind,

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Kind, as well as Provifions for his Garrison, fupplied by the Governments of Virginia, Maryland and Penfylvania; and, that he might not be delayed in his Operations, thofe Things might be immediately forwarded to him under proper Convoys. Adding, That the faid General had lately received Intelligence, which he had communicated to him, that the French, together with their Indians, intended, as foon as the Army was far advanced, to fall upon the Back Country and that, though the General thought it a Bravado, he alfo thought it advifeable to take all poffible Precautions against it: That he had called them together upon this Application and Intelligence: That he recommended it to them to enable him to furnish fuch of the Things demanded as were proper for the Province, and to conduct them to the Places where they would be wanted, which could not be well done without a strong Guard: As alfo by a Militia, or otherwife, to protect the faid Back Country against the Incurfions of the Enemy: That, upon the Receipt of the General's Letter, he had written to the Governors of Virginia and Maryland, to know what Shares of thefe Supplies their Governments would respectively furnish: That he needed not inforce the Point by any other Arguments, than that Fort Du Quefne was within their Province, and that the great Expence the Nation was at on this Occafion would be thrown away, his Majefty's Intentions rendered abortive, and his Arms dishonoured, if the Countries the faid General should recover were left in fuch a naked Condition, that the French might take Poffeffion of them again, as soon as the Army should be withdrawn, &c. &c. f

A very little Skill in Political Matters would have fhewn thofe concerned, That there was rather more Management concealed under this Speech than was Atrictly neceffary, and put them on their Guard accordingly.

The Affembly of Penfylvania had fome Wisdom as well as much Plainnefs; and therefore, by Way of Q 2

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Preliminary, defired to have the Letter in their Cuftody, which was to be the Ground of their Proceedings. The Governor hesitated; faid it contained many Matters not proper to be made public chats it would not be fafe, therefore, unless the Houfe would previously promife him it should not be printed; but, however, he would fhew it to a Committee, if the House would appoint one for that Purpose. The House, on the other Hand, renewed their Request in Writing, alledged that it had always been the Cuftom, when Affemblies were called together on Occafion of Letters received, to communicate thofe Letters; that giving a Committee a Sight of Letters, on which any important Step was to be taken, did not feem fufficient; but that the Letters fhould lie before the House to be read as often as neceffary to the right understanding of the Matters they contained or required; that the Governor might fafely put his Truft in the Prudence of the Houfe: In fine, they would hear of no Alternative, fince the Importance of the Contents of that Letter had been urged as the Reafon for calling them together at fo unfeasonable a Time of the Year; and, as they could not take the Letter into Confideration without feeing it, they hoped he would not, by starting new Methods of Proceeding, and engaging them in trivial Difputes, any longer obftruct or delay the publick Service.

*

This was done the fixteenth. The next Day, inftead of an Anfwer, the Governor fent them down a Brace of new Meffages. One in the Morning, giving them to understand," That the Roads they had ordered to be made to the Ohio would be attended with a much greater Expence than was at first imagined: That the Money fent to the Commiffaries was already fpent: That more was wanting: And, that the General, having difcharged the Soldiers Wives out of the Army, with a Stoppage of One Shilling Sterling a Week out of their Husband's Pay for their Subfiftence, it would become the Compaffion of the Province to fupply what would be farther neceffaty

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for that Purpose."--And another in the Afternoon, containing more Intelligence. Intelligence he himself had now received, and had forwarded to the General: Namely, That feveral Bodies of Troops had paffed from Canada over the Lake Ontario in their Way to the Ohio, to join the Forces already there. That the French were doing their utmost to engage the Indians on their Side; and, rather than fail, were determined to oppofe General Braddock with the whole Force of Canada Containing alfo a Repetition of what in Effect he had faid before concerning the Back Country; heightened with fome new Apprehenfions, That when the Troops were removed, the Enemy might either cut off or greatly interrupt their Communication with the Province, which might be every Way attended with fatal Confequences. And all was made Use of to authorize a fresh Demand for a Militia-Law and a new Demand for a Supply to enable him to build Strong-Houfes on the new Road to the Ohio, and to maintain fuch a Number of Men as fhould be neceffary to keep the Communication between the Province and the Army open, efcort Provifions, Stores, &c. that the General might neither be forced to weaken his Army by making Detachments from it, nor expose those Detachments to be furprized and cut off; and that he might occafionally make Ufe of them as Auxiliaries too, in Cafe the Numbers brought against him fhould make fuch a Re-inforcement neceffary: And (after having rung all the Changes that fuch a Medley of Demands and Suggeftions in fuch Hands was capable of) making the Province anfwerable, as ufual, in Cafe of Non-Compliance, for all Mifchiefs.f

On the 21ft, however, when the House (having taken into. Confideration, That the 15,000l. given to the King's Ufe in the preceding April, and paid out of the Money in the Difpofition of the House, which was almost exhausted, could not anfwer all the Purposes intended by the Bill for granting 25,000l. to which the Governor refufed his Affent) had already