Discover any Evil minded persons to have ill Designs agt. this Governmt., or any Part of it, they must without Delay Disclose it to the Governour or some person in authority under him. In fine, they Ought ever to Consider us as their Best & nearest Friends, who have always been & ever will Continue Ready to Releive & protect them, while they on their parts Remain faithful as their ancestors or ffathers have hitherto done before them. That as they offered the Governour a small Token, so now for the Conveniency of their return, there are a few Garments Provided for them, with some powder & Shot to kill Venison, some Tobacco & pipes, and when they Go some Bread & a Dram will be provided for them, and the Governour Expects they will be Carefull hereafter to - Provide Likewise for himself & his attendants, or those who shall be sent at any time for their service to Conostogoe. These things being delivered to them they appeared very well pleased, and to that part in which the Inclosing by Surveys the Lands where they are seated, which should not be broke in upon; they further desired, that the Lands on which the Shawneis & Ganawese are settled on Susquehannah, should Likewise be Encompassed with Lines at the Distance of four miles from the River, that they might not be Disturbed by the Cattle of any persons settling near them. The skins they delivered in the morning having been numbered & weighed as ordered, they were found to be, 38 summer Deer Skins in the hair, many of them ordi nary, wt. 681. at 18d., 10 small Drest Deer Skins, wt. 181. at 3-6d, 1 Good Winter Buck in the hair, 2 Bear Skins a 8 ps. What is prepared & was now Delivered them, are 8 Stroud Water Coats of the best sort, a 17-6d. 10 lb. of Powder, a 20d. 20 lb. Lead, a 3d, 5. 0 6 pr. Stockings, pt. Blew & pt. Red, a 2-9d. 16. 6 1 Dozn. Tobacco Boxes, a 1 Dozn. Tobacco Tongs, a 12 lb. Tobacco, a 4d., 3 Dozn Pipes, 1 Red Stroud to the Queen, 0908000 -£10. 12. 2 These being Delivered the Governour Gave them an Entertainment, and the Secretary was Ordered to provide for them as from the first, all necessarys During their stay & for their Journey on their return home. At a Council held at Philada, the 4th day of July, 1718. PRESENT: The Honble WILLIAM KEITH, Esqr., Lievt. Govr. Jonathan Dickinson, Samuel Preston, James Logan, The Board proceeded to nominate persons to be added to the Commissions of peace for the County of Philada. & Chester, & the Persons following were appointed: For the County of Philada: Samuel peres, Samuel Carpenter, Richard Moore, Charles Read & Robert Jones, of Merion. For the County of Chester: John Wright, next to Jasper Yeates, Nathaniel Newland, Andrew Job, Elisha Gotchell, John Cartledge, & Francis Worley. A Peticon of several of the Inhabitants of the township of Northern liberties, was Read, setting forth that they had purchased & Improved several Tracts of Land between the City of Philadelphia & Whitsabicken mill, and that there was no Road from the sd. City to the sd. mill as yet, Establisht according to Law, whereby they were at a Great Loss how to bound their Lands, & Craved that the Board wou'd appoint some fit persons to Lay out the sd. Road. The Board having taken the sd. Peticon into Consideracon. Did Order that George ffezwater, George Claypoole. Israel pemberton, William ffishbourn, Jacob Dubric, & Andrew Robeson, junr., or some ffour of them Do Lay out the sd. Road, & make Report thereof to this Board, in Order to be Confirm'd. At a Council held at Philada., the 22d July, 1718. ] PRESENT: The Honble WILLIAM KEITH, Esqr., Lievt. Govr. William Trent, Samuel Preston, James Logan, The Governour acquainted the Board that several mariners, who had lately been taken by pirates, having made their Escape in a Sloop to which some of them formerly belonged in the merchant service, were Come hither for protection, & had Voluntarily delivered themselves & the Sloop into the Governrs. hands, and the sd. mariners attending, they were ordered to be Called in and answered to their names, as follows, Viz.: Richard appleton, John Robeson, William Williams, John fford, Benjamin Hodges, John Barfield, James Mathews, Samuel Barrow, Gregory Margoveram, Renold Glorence, Walter Vincent & Timothy Harding, Richard Appleton for himself, & in the name of all the others present, being desir'd to give the Governr. & the Board as Particular an account as he could of himself & his ffellow Companions. The following narrative was taken from his mouth, to which they all agreed, Vizt. : That he had sailed from Jamaica about five months ago on board this very Cloop, under the, Comand of Capt. Pinkethman. in Order to Go upon the Wrecks: That the Captain Dying Outward bound, one Tempest, who was master, had the Comand after him: That they Called in at Providence at the same time that his majesties ship Phoenix was there, & sail'd out from thence with the man of war & proceeded to Walkers Key, where in Company with another Sloop, Capt Greenway, they workt upon a wreck almost three weeks, but not with any Success; So that both Sloops went to the Bimmenys other Keys, where they found another wreck, but nothing Left upon it. This bad Fortune so Discouraged the people, that by Greenways Instigacon, upon the Twenty ffourth of May Last they mutiny'd, took possession of this Sloop & all the arms, & threatened to shoot Captain Tempest & all that wou'd not Go along with Them, under Greenways Comand, to Death Immediately; but in a Day or two they put Capt. Tempest & ten or twelve men along with him in the other Sloop, & then they departed on pretence to Go upon the Florida Wrecks, where they arrived & Came too under one of the Spanish Batteries; But the people from shoar firing upon them they went from thence a Little to the Southward of Charles Town, in South Carolina, & Came on shore in Order to fit the Sloop with a new mast, which accordingly they did in about three Weeks time; Coming out from thence they met with a small Sloop from Providence, bound for Carolina, Daniel Stillwell, master, but Took nothing from him Except what they paid for, afterwards they Concluded to Go into the Latitude of Bermuda, & in their Way met with a ffrench Ship, about twenty ffour Guns, they ffired a shot at the ffrench man, who Return'd another & Slung his yards Ready to Engage them, but they Chose to Leave her, knowing the ship to be the same which Jennings had formerly taken & sent to Jamaica; Upon which account he was ffirst Declar'd Pirate, two Days after this they saw Eleven sail which they supposed to be the Spanish ffleet & gave them Chace, but observing one Large Ship Lie by untill the other Got a head, they Left the Pursuit & kept on the same Latitude, about thirty Leagues distant from the Island of Bermuda, where they met with a small Sloop from Maryland, bound to Bermuda & Barbados, took some Tobacco & hoggs from her, & fforced two of their men, vizt: John Ford & Gregory Margoveram, both present, next Day they Came up with a Bermudas Sloop, put ffive & Twenty men on board of her & kept her for a Consort; One of the men belonging to the Bermudas Sloop is here, vizt.: Benjamin Hodges, then they stretched to the Eastward for three Days, with Intent for Mona or some part of the West Indies. On the third about two o'clock, being Sunday, the Sixth Day of this month, in the morning, they Gave Chace to a Ship, & when they Came up with her fir'd a Shot with a Volley of small arms, upon which she struck; she belonged to Liverpool, about one hundred & thirty tons, homeward Bound fram St. tophers, with sugar, Richardson, master. The Pirate, Capt. Greenway, the Gunner, Doctor & other officers went Immediately on board the Ship, but the Sloop being to Leward of the Ship the Ship took the wind from their sails, by which means they accidentally fell on board the Ship & broke a Set of Oars upon the Sloops Quarter, this Gave Occasion for most of the men in the Sloop, being eager ffor plunder to Jump on board the Ship, & when the Sloop sheer'd of these men here whisper'd one another, that now was their Best Opportunity to Escape, Whereupon Richard Appleton being armed, seized the Helm, sent John Robinson down to Secure the Stores & order'd the Negroes to hoist the sails, upon which one of the Pyrates took up a musket & snapt it twice at the sd. Richard, then fired but missing, he Club'd the peice & wounded Richard on the head, upon which One oh Negocs shot the Pirate with a Pistol through the belly, & another wounded him in the Thigh; then they bound this Fellow & Seven morre of his Companions, being half Drunk, put them in the Canew & Set them adrift, the Ship & Sloop Gave us Chace, & we saw them take up the men in the Canoe, but this Sloop sailed so well that. we soon Lost them; We saw several Sail in our way hither, but avoided Speaking with any, being all Resolutely Determined to Blow our selves up before we shou'd be taken by any Pirate; that we were unanimous in Coming into this Place to Deliver the Sloop & ourselves up to the Governr., & to Implore his Countenance & protection, not as Pirates, but as honest men Imploy'd in the mercht. service, and who never had been accessary or in the Least Concern'd in the Villainous Designs & practices of those from whom we have now made Our Escape with the utmost Risqe of our Lives, and all of them with one Voice submitted themselves in this manner, affirming the same thing. The above narrative being taken into Consideracon with all the Circumstances, it was the unanimous opinion of this Board, That it did not appear that these men had been Guilty of any piracy whereby to subject them to any punishment or other Legal process, but rather that they ought to be well used & Civilly Intreated for the Service they had Done in order to Encourage others to Do the Like, That the Present most Dangerous & too frequent Practice of Piracy in these parts may at Last be subdued. Then the Governour said, that although he had seized the Sloop in his Majesties name, in Order to Bring the Vessell & whatsoever was on board to a Legal Tryal, Yet he Cou'd not but think himself Obliged to acquaint the Governmt. of Jamaica with this accident, & the Circumstances of it, whereby the first adventurers being honest & Good men, might have an opportunity to Lay such Claims to what had so lately been their Proper Effects, as in Justice or Equity the Law wou'd permit. At a Council held at Philada., the 11th of August, 1718. PRESENT: The Honble WILLIAM KEITH, Esqr., Lievt. Govr. William Trent, Isaac Norris, Jonathan Dickinson, James Logan, Robert Assheton. The Governour putting the Board in mind, that at their Last meet ing at which those persons, who had brought a Sloop into this Port, lately in Possession of the Pirates, were Examined. The Governr. had then assured the Board he wou'd take no steps in Relation to that affair without their knowledge & approbacon, thought now fit to Inform them that Capt. Hardy, whom at the Sloops ffirst arrival he had Commissionated to take her under his Care, was now attending, with an Inventory of what was fund on board her, which is as follows: 1 Sprit Sail, 1 Square Sail, 1 boat Main Sail & ffore Sail, 22 Spare Blocks, 1 main Sheet, 1 Topmast Stay, 1 ffore halliards, 1 Jib halliards & Down hall, 1 Topping Lift, 2 Grinding Stones, 24 Water Casks, 1 barl. of Tar & a peice, 30 barr. of Powder, 7 Dead Eyes, 1 Kittle, 2 Iron potts, 3 Anchors, 1 Cable, 1 old peice of Junk, 13 planks, 2 Top Sail Sheets, 1 Boom Tackle, 13 bbr. of Beef & pork, VOL. III.-3 2 Ensignes, 2 pendants, 1 Jack, 8 Sloppers, 1 fflying Jibb halliards, 1 Jib Sheet, the other for Bow |