the Change That as to the Collufion charged upon them in not intending any of the Bills they had offered for the Defence of their Country fhould pafs, they could, with humble Confidence, appeal to the Searcher of all Hearts, that their Intentions perfectly correfponded with their Actions: That, not to mention the Unfairness of afcribing to a whole People the Indifcretion of a few [thofe who had declared they would fuffer, rather than pay for military Meafures] the Governor himself muft own, they could not be under the Influence he fuppofed, when they affured him that feveral more Votes had been given for thofe Measures fince they were petitioned againft, than before: That they were totally ignorant of the many other Ways of railing Money, to which the Governor had no Objection; as alfo, what that other Bill might be, which he might think confiftent with his Duty to pass: That he thought it inconfiftent with his Duty to pafs any Bills contrary to his Inftructions from the Proprietaries, which (like the Inftructions of the Prefident and Council of the North, mentioned by Lord Coke, 4. Inft. P. 246.) were to them impenetrable Secrets: That, according to the fame great Lawyer's Remark on Governing by fuch Inftructions, Mifera eft Servitus ubi Jus eft vagum aut incognitum: That, therefore, it would be in vain for them to fearch for other Ways, or frame other Bills: And that here the Matter muft reft till his Majefty fhould be gracioufly pleafed to relieve them; fince, with the Governor, they could no otherwife hope to end their unhapy Divifions, than by fubmitting to one Part or the other of the miferable Alternative mentioned by him; either, not to have a Privilege worth difputing about, or be deprived of a Country to difpute it in."

But tho' this Anfwer was, in every Particular, con. formable to the Senfe of the Houfe, and was afterwards printed in the Appendix to their Proceedings, they declined making use of it; and that for the prefent reported by the Committee was to the Effect following: To wit, "That the Bulk of the Governor's

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long

long Meffage confifted of groundless Charges and Ca lumnies, which, having been repeatedly refuted, might be fafely left to themselves: That tho' they had prepared a full Anfwer to the reft, yet as there were now fome Hopes of an Agreement with him in the Money-Bill, which was, the principal Bufinefs of the Seffion, they fubmitted it to the Houfe, Whether it would not be more confiftent with their Prudence and Moderation to fupprefs it: That there being, however, one or two new, Charges brought againft the Affemblies of that Province, it might be proper to take fome Notice of them That the firft of thefe was, that they contemptuously treated the Proprietary Offer of 4001. for erecting a Place of Strength on the Ohio, and of 100l. per Annum towards its Support: That this contemptuous Treatment was not specified, but might be explained, by a Paffage out of the Brief State [a Proprietary Pamphlet] where it is faid, "The "Houfe refused this Propofal a Place, in their Mi"nutes" That the Fact was, however, otherwife; that the faid Propofal appears in feveral Pages there fpecified; and that nothing farther than what is there, could properly be made a Part of thofe Records: And the Reafon thereof is then affigned in the following Narrative; which, for various Reafons, deferves to be made a Part of this Difcourse.

.

The late Governor Hamilton, after fending the Meffage of the Thirteenth of August, 1751, requefted a private Meeting with fome of the Mem⚫bers of that Houfe, but without any Authority from the Affembly.

At this Meeting Governor Hamilton offered, on Behalf of the Proprietaries, Four Hundred Pounds, • towards building fuch a Houfe upon or near the • Obio (but not a Syllable of maintaining or fupporting it.) The Indians were fo far from preffing our engaging in it, that Inftructions were drawn by this • Government to require it of them, at a Treaty held by G. Croghan, in May, 1751, and they evidently thewed themfelves apprehenfive fuch an Attempt

I

might

might give Umbrage to the French, and bring them down the Ohio with an armed Force, to take Poffeffion of thofe Lands. And about two Years afterwards, these very Ohio Indians, at the Treaty held at Carlisle, in October, 1753, fay to our Government, "I defire you would hear and take Notice "of what I am about to fay; the Governor of Vir"ginia defired Leave to build a strong Houfe on Ohio, which came to the Ears of the Governor of Canada, "and we fuppofe this caufed him to invade our Country." Treaty, Page 8. The fame Sentiments appeared among the Six Nations at the Albany Treaty; "That the English and French were only con"tending which of them fhould have their Lands." The Reasoning made ufe of by the Members at this private Conference with the late Governor was, that the Land where they propofed to build it was claim⚫ed by the Crown, and was very probably beyond "the Limits of Penfylvania: That at least it would be beyond the Reach of our Laws, as appeared by the People already fettled on Juniata, juft beyond the North Mountain: That this, inftead of healing, might create irreconcileable Breaches with our Indians, confidering what Sort of People would probably refide there: That the Indians had never heartily requested it, nor did it feem to be their Intereft fo to do; and if they had requested it, as they were in Subjection to the Six Nations, it would be neceffary to have their Affent: That this precipitate Act would probably create a Jealoufy in the French, and give them fome Pretence of an Infraction of the Treaty of Utrecht on our Part, and might finally engage the British Nation in a War with France. Thefe, and many other Reafons, were urged at that private Conference, as feveral of thofe Members apprehended, to Governor Hamilton's Satisfaction. And it appears by George Croghan's Journal, that thofe Indians neither did, nor did they think they could, give Leave to build a Houfe on the Obio, without the exprefs Confent of the Six Nations; and • accord

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accordingly they took two Months to acquaint the Onondago Council with this Transaction, and then to fend us Word, which they never complied with.

t

It appears further, by the Affembly's Meffage to • Governor Hamilton, on the Twenty-firft of August, 1751, taken from the Informations of Conrad Weifer, • and Andrew Montour," that the Request inferted in "George Croghan's Journal as made by the Indians at "Obio to this Government, to erect a strong trading "Houfe in their Country, as well as the Danger 'tis "there faid they apprehended from the Attempts of "the French, was misunderstood, or misreprefented "by the Pérfon the Governor confided in for the "Management of that Treaty." But it may be unneceffary to purfue this Enquiry into an Affair wherein George Croghan thought himself unkindly, if not unjustly, facrificed to private Ends, as is well known to fuch as were acquainted with this Affair, and appears in the Letters and other Papers fent by • himself to fome of the Members of that Affembly.'

Coming then to the other new Charge, namely, That the Affembly would not admit, that the French Encroachments were within the King's Dominions, they maintain that this Charge is as ill-founded as the other: "For, fay they, tho' the House never took upon them to afcertain the Bounds of the King's Dominions, they never directly or indirectly denied those Encroachments to be within them."-They then proceeded to examine the Extracts from the Council Minutes fent by the Governor, in Proof that MoneyBills had been amended by former Governors. They demonstrated in ten feveral Inftances, thofe Extracts had not been fairly reprefented. And they concluded in thefe Words: Were all these to be deducted from "the Lift, it would appear that there are but few Inftances in our Journals of proper Money-Bills amended by the Governor, and the Amendments agreed to by the Houfe; this is no more than was acknowledged by the preceding Affembly, in their Meffage of the Twenty-ninth of September, where

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⚫ they

they fay, that in a very few Inftances their Predeceffors might have waved that Right on particular • Occafions, but had never given it up.'

Scarce had the Houfe agreed with their Committee in laying afide, for the prefent, the firft of thefe Anfwers, for the Reasons affigned in the second, than certain Inhabitants of Philadelphia, joined with others of the County of Chefter, in all Twenty-nine Perfons, thought themselves at Liberty to affail the House in Perfon with a Petition, defiring, that the Governor and the House would unite in the Fear. of God, &c. And as the Minute taken of this ftrange Incident (which followed the Philadelphia Remonftrance in much fuch a Manner as the Legion Letter followed the Kentish Petition before referred to) will ferve at once to fhew the Ferment which then prevailed in the Province, and yet how far the People in general were from defiring to be preserved against the Incurfions of the Enemies, at the Expence of their conftitutional Liberties; it is here inserted, to wit,

The Speaker told them, that it was well known this House was compofed of Members chofen with< out any Sollicitation on their Parts, to be the Reprefentatives of the People, and Guardians of their Liberties: That the whole Powers the House were invefted with, were derived from the People themfelves, and that as the House had hitherto, fo they fhould still continue to discharge the high Truft repofed in them to the beft of their Understanding and Abilities; and then asked them, Whether they defired that the House should give up any Rights, which, in the Opinion of the House, the People were justly intitled to? Some of the Petitioners, in Behalf of the Whole, anfwered, No; they were far from requiring any Thing of that Kind; all they wanted was, that fome Expedient might be fallen upon, if poffible, to accommodate Matters in fuch a Manner, as that the Province might be relieved from its prefent un• happy Situation. To this the Speaker replied, That Nothing could be more agreeable to this House

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than