difficult and unnecessary for us to be particular in our Sentiments concerning it, until we are ascertained how it will be taken by other Colonies; and whether any, & which of them, shall concur in such an Appointment. If such Commissioners shall be thought necessary for securing the Indians of the Six Nations in the British Interest, or for any other purposes which may appear to us to be for the general Good, we shall chearfully concur in it. And we are made acquainted that such an Appointment is generally acceded to by other Colonies, and the time and place of Meeting proposed; it will then, we think, be time enough for us, who are near the Centre of these Colonies, and who meet frequently on the Public Affairs of the Province, to deliver our Resolutions thereupon. As to the Letter from Governor Shirley, we observe it was written before the account of the Arrival of the Regiments sent from Gibralter to the Garrison at Louisbourgh, and the Proposition he makes appears to us to be intended principally as an Expedient to have taken Place in case of their Miscarriage; and as by the Publick Accounts there is reason to believe those Regiments are since arrived, we presume the Necessity of the Application to this Province may be removed. The Expedition to Carthagena, the Manning of divers private Ships of War, and the numbers which have enlisted in the King's Service, with the Recruiting Officers from the Islands of Jamaica and Antigua, have drained this Province of many of its inhatants, and had we no other Objections we conceive it can hardly be thought reasonable the Province of the Massachusetts should have the Assistance required from hence, even tho' it were necessary, rather than from Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, whose Situation and engagements Interest them more deeply than us in the preservation of Nova Scotia and Cape Breton. "Sign'd by Order of the House. "12th Mon. 5th, 1745." “JOHN KINSEY, Speaker. The Bill entitled "an Act for amending the Laws relating to the Poor, & for the better appointment of Overseers of the Poor within the City of Philadelphia," was read a second time, & divers Amendments were reported and proposed by the Committee, which were read and approved. The Bill entitled "a Supplement to the Act entitled 'an Act for erecting Houses of Correction and Work houses in the respective Counties,' and to the Act entitled an Act to enable Jeremiah Langhorn, & to Build a Court House in the County of Bucks,' were read a second time & some Amendments propos'd, which were read and approv❜d. The Secretary was order'd by His Honour to transcribe the several Amendments fair, & deliver them with the Bills to the House. MEMORANDUM. 24th February, 1745, P. M. Two Members of Assembly waited on the Governor & acquainted him that the House was met according to their Adjournment, & ready to receive any thing the Governor shou'd have to lay before them. His Honour was pleas'd to say he shou'd to-morrow morning send down to the House the Bills that had been laid before them, with some Amendments. At a Council held at Philadelphia February 28th, 1745. PRESENT: The Honoble. GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieutenant Gover nor. Abraham Taylor, Robert Strethil, } Esqrs. The Minutes of the preceding Council were read and approv'd. The Governor laid before the Board a Bill entitled " an Act for the Re-emitting and continuing the Loan of the Bills of Credit of this Province;" which was read for the first time. At a Council held at Philadelphia, March 3d, 1745. PRESENT: The Honoble. GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieutenant Gover nor. Abraham Taylor, Robert Strethil, Esqrs. The Minutes of the precceding Council were read and approv❜d. The Governor laid before the Board the Bill Entitled "an Act for the Re-emitting and continuing the Loan of the Bills of Credit of this Province;" which was read a second time, and some Amendments being propos'd the same were agreed to, & the Secretary received His Honour's Commands to transcribe them fair & deliver them to the House with the Bill. The Governor likewise laid before the Board two other Bills, oneentitled "a supplementary Bill to the Act.entitled 'an Act for preventing the Exportation of Bread and Flour not Merchantable,'" the other entitled "an Act for the more effectual suppressing profane Cursing and Swearing;" which were read; and the Flour Act was committed to Mr. Hasell, Mr. Taylor, & Mr. Strethil, to consider & Amend. VOL. V.-3. At a Council held at Philadelphia, March 4, 1745. PRESENT: The Honoble. GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieutenant Gover The Minutes of the preceeding Council were read and approv❜d. The Bill for preventing the Exportation of Bread and Flour not Merchantable, and the Bill for the more effectual suppressing profane Cursing and Swearing, were read a second time, & some Amendments being propos'd to both Bills, they were order'd to be transcrib'd fair & delivered with the Bills to the House. The Governor laid before the Board a Bill for erecting a House of Correction & Work House in the Burrough of Bristol, in the County of Bucks, & for raising of Money on the Inhabitants of the said Burrough for the Publick Use and Benefit thereof; which was read and agreed to. A Message was delivered by two Members of Assembly to the Governor in Council, that the Amendments propos'd to the Bill for the Re-emitting & Continuing the Loan of the Bills of Credit of this Province were agreed to by the House; whereupon, the Governor said they might proceed to engross the Bill. At a Council held at Philadelphia, March 7th, 1745. PRESENT: The Honoble. GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieutenant Gov ernor. Samuel Hasel, Abraham Taylor,} Esqrs. The Minutes of the preceeding Council were read and approved. The Governor inform'd the Council that the House had agreed to the Amendments propos'd to the Flour Act, & that he had told them they might. order the several Bills which had been approv'd to be engross'd, and Mr. Taylor & Mr. Strethil were desir'd as a Committe of Council to examine them when engross'd, with a Committee of the House, which they did, and found them to agree with the Copies, but that as in one of the Bills there were some words that were rendered superfluous by one of the Amendments agreed to, the Governor, on a Message from the House, assented they shou'd be erased. The Governor further inform'd the Council that he had appointed this Day, at 12 o'Clock, to receive the Speaker & the whole House in order to pass the several Bills, and accordingly the Speaker, at the head of the whole House, presented the following Bills, which the Governor Enacted into Laws, Viz1: "A Bill for the Re-emitting and Continuing the Loan of the Bills of Credit of this Province." "A Bill for amending the several Acts for Electing Members of Assembly." "A Bill for the more easy and speedy Recovery of small Debts." "A Supplement to an Act entitled 'an Act for Erecting of Houses of Correction and Work Houses in the respective Counties,' And to the Act entitled 'an Act to enable Jeremiah Langhorn, &c to Build a Court House in the County of Bucks.'' “A Bill for Erecting a House of Correction and Work House in the Borough of Bristol, in the County of Bucks, and for raising of Money on the Inhabitants of the said Borough for the Public Usc and Benefit thereof." "A Supplementary Bill to the Act Entitled 'An Act for preventing the Exportation of Bread and Flour not Merchantable."" "A Bill for the more effectual suppressing profane Cursing & Swearing." And Mr. Laurence & Mr. Hassel were desir'd to see the Great Seal Affixed to them. The Speaker at the same time presented the Governor with two Orders, one on the Trustees of the Loan Office for £500, and the other on the Provincial Treasurer for £1,000, & inform'd the Governor that the House propos'd to Adjourn to the 19th of May, to which His Honour made no objection. At a Council held at Philadelphia, June 3d, 1746. PRESENT: The Honoble. GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieutenant Governor. Robert Strethil, Thomas Laurence, James Hamilton, Benjamin Shoemaker, Esqrs. The Minutes of the preceding Council were read and approved. The Governor inform'd the Board that on the 19th of May two Members of Assembly had waited on him to inform him the House was met according to their Adjournment, and that he had sent a Message to the House the next Day and received an Answer from them, which, together with the Letter & the several Papers therein referr❜d to, were read, and the Messages were ordered to be enter❜d. A Message from the Governor to the Assembly. "Gentlemen : "You will see by the Letter and other Papers received from Governor Clinton since your last Meeting, that I am again desired to. appoint Commissioners in order to concert Measures with those already appointed by him and by Governor Shirley for the Security and Defence of His Majestie's Colonies during the present War, and that the positive Refusal of the Six Nations to join in the War against the French and the Indians in Alliance with them is urged. to shew the immediate Necessity of such an Appointment. "My Answer to this Letter was in substance, that I had laid his former Letter on this Subject before you, as I should this at your next Meeting, and I repeated that you had expressed a readiness to enter into any reasonable Measures for His Majestie's Service and the Welfare of the Colonies, but that you had thought it would be time enough to appoint Commissioners for this when you should be made acquainted with the Resolutions of the Neighbouring Governments. I observed, likewise, that those of Virginia, Maryland, & Connecticut, were still unknown to us. "As my Sentiments on this matter have been fully delivered to you already, I shall only add, that notwithstanding the seeming Resolution of the Council of the Six Nations to preserve a Neutrality, it is much to be apprehended that their young Men who are fond of Military Achievements will join the French Indians in their barbarous Incursions upon the British Colonies, and that the old Men not having Power to restrain will be obliged to wink at them, and perhaps in the end break out into an open Revolt. How fatal such a procedure will be to this and the British Colonies in general you will judge, and I trust that you will not be so wanting to yourselves as not to take the most reasonable Measures to prevent it. “GEO. THOMAS. "May 20th, 1746." A Message from the Assembly to the Governor. "May it please the Governor: "We look upon it as a Matter of great Importance to this and the neighbouring Governments that the most effectual Measures be taken, as often as it becomes necessary, to secure the Six United Nations, and the Indians in Alliance with them, in their Fidelity to the Crown of Great Britain, and to cultivate and maintain that Friendship and good Understanding which hath so long subsisted between us and them. To this end, as the Governor well knows, this Province hath at many times been at great Expence as well in Presents made to those Indians as for carrying on of Treaties with them, sometimes in conjunction with other Colonies, sometimes |