Courts of Justice in this Province, as set forth in my Vindication, the present Proceedings put it out of Doubt on the least Reflection.—But my Lord when Judges are Parties and Prosecutors, backed by the influence of the Council and Assembly, and of the Lawyers, who have a dangerous weight in this Government, it may well be fear'd that Juries will not have resolution enough to oppose such power.—As I presume your Lordship will readily immagine on considering the state of the Merchants, in the City of New York, mentioned in my last letter.

My friends assure me that from ceveral incidents it appears that the design of my Ennemies is to ruin my Fortune. When a Governor, who is charged with nothing but a scrupelous obedience to the King's Instructions, and submission to an Act of Parliament, cannot defend himself against the malice & resentment of Men who openly deny the authority of Parliament, & submission to the Mother Country, and he be not sufficiently supported and protected; what officer of the Crown will dare to perform his Duty?

My case must have a great influence upon all others, and in that light alone I presume your Lordship will think it deserving your attention: but as it is the case of an Old Servant of the King's who throughout a long life has been attached to the Interest and Authority of the Crown and who has incurred the dangerous resentment of a powerfull Faction, by a faithfull discharge of his duty to the best of his abilities, may he not, my Lord, hope for the particular and immediate protection and favour of His Majesty's Ministers; especially as his receiving no marks of either must give the greatest assurance to his Ennemies.

I have at several times, my Lord, informed the King's Ministers, while the Administration was in my hands, that it is impossible that Justice can be administer'd to the People, or the Rights of the Crown & dependance of the Colony be secured, without disinterested Judges. Men of integrity and ability, sufficiently supported, without depending on the pleasure of an Assembly yearly for their scanty allowance. I gave my opinion that our present Judges are not such, and that it would be difficult to find proper Persons in the Province. It is not easy to support this opinion of the Judges by legal Evidence. They have now given proof by makeing themselves in the same Cause, Parties, Accusers, and Judges. I wish, my Lord, that you may know from indifferent Persons the opinion which People have of our Judges and Lawyers. And that you may have a true account of the Cheif Justice Horsmanden's past conduct in Life.

I must again intreat your Lordship to lay my Case before His Majesty, for His protection against such dangerous & malicious Ennemies, and to obtain some gracious recompense for my losses & sufferings,

I am with the greatest submission

My Lord,

Your most obedient &

faithfull servant

CADWALLADER COLDEN

Right Honble Earl of Shelburn, His Majesty's principal Secrettary of State for the So: Department.

N° 1.

Earl of Hillsborough to the Governors in North America.

[PlantatioiM Genera] (S. P. O.) CCLIV., No. 1. ]

Whitehall Jan: 23. 17G8

His Majesty having been graciously pleased to appoint me to be one of his Principal Secretaries of State, and to committ to my care the Dispatch of all such business, relative to His Majesty's Colonies in America, as has been usually Dispatched by the Secretary of State for the Southern Department, I have His Majesty's Commands to signify this Arrangement to you, and His Majesty's Pleasure that your Dispatches be for the future addressed to me, conformable to the Rule of Correspondence prescribed in His Majesty's Order in Council of the 8,b of August 1766, a Copy of which is herewith transmitted to you.

It is His Majesty's intention in making the present Arrangement that all possible facility & Dispatch should be given to the business of his Colonies and as nothing can more effectually contribute to this salutary purpose than a frequent and full Communication of all Occurrencies that may happen and a regular and punctual transmission of all Acts and Proceedings of Government & Legislature and of such Papers as have any Relation thereto, I have it in Command from his Majesty to recommend this to your particular Attention, His Majesty having observed with concern that this essential part of the duty of His Officers in America has scarcely any where been duly attended to, and in several Colonies particularly in the Charter and Proprietary Governments almost entirely neglected.

I have nothing further to add but to express my earnest wishes that by the utmost Attention & Application I can give, I may be able to fulfill His Majesty's most gracious Intentions and I take the liberty to assure you, that I will not omitt to lay your Dispatches, as soon as I receive them before the King, and to forward and assist as far as I am able, your measures for the Publick Service

Among the Acts pass'd by the Council & the House of Assembly during the course of this last Session, there was one for the Repeal of two Acts, (the Copies of which are here inclosed) relative to insolvent Debtors in which the Legislative Bodies have interested themselves greatly and were very desirous of having it pass'd into a Law, as the Acts intended to be repealed had been a means of introducing many frauds & abuses loudly complain'd of and had not answer'd the purposes for which they were made. His Majesty's 13th Instruction having forbid the repealing of Acts pass'd here although the Royal assent had not been given to them, has prevented my passing it, and obliged me to transmit by this opportunity the Laws intended to be repealed by this last mention'd Act, that His Majesty's leave may be obtained

for that purpose, The inclosed List of Acts repealing former Acts pass'd in this Province was extracted from the Book of our printed Laws and sent to me in order to remove my present objections to this Act, by shewing that His Majesty had never insisted on this Instruction being rigidly observed, since Acts of the kind had been so frequently pass'd for repealing others in Every Governor's time since the year 1708. I do not mention this as any reflection on my Predecessors in the Government here, for I am likewise a delinquent in this respect, the last Article in the List pointing to an Act pass'd here a few days after my arrival from England, which repeals some clauses in former Acts for making Roads in two small precincts here, and in which I was misled by no mention being made of any intended repeal either in the title or preamble of the Act, and I hope your Lordship will have so much indulgence for me as to believe that in my particular situation at that time during the continued scenes of Riot and disorder which prevail'd so long here after I landed that my attention must have been fully taken up with them, and that an omission of the kind might be easily made, especially as the object was so inconsiderable. I beg leave to mention here that my Refusal of passing the abovemention'd Bill has given great uneasiness, and that this Instruction will be the greatest obstacle to the getting of Acts pass'd for any length of time, which I am directed to endeavour at, as the House of Assembly upon being restrain'd from repealing Acts once pass'd to which manifest objections may be afterwards made will of course frame their Bills for as short a space as they can, in order to suffer as little as possible from any Act in which they are not permitted to remedy the inconveniencies when discover'd: I know these to be their present Sentiments, and submit it to your Lordship whether in matters relating intirely to our internal Policy, and in which neither the particular Interests of the Crown, or it's power and Dignity are concern'd, a Relaxation of this Instruction may not be thought proper, and be attended in many circumstances with Benefit to the Province.

I have the honor to be with the greatest Respect,

In obedience to His Majesty's additional Instruction dated Sepf 11. 1767 and transmitted to me by your Lordship, directing me "to consider what is likely to be the Effect of the newly "inserted clause in the Miltia Act, relative to the Provincial Military Force, and to report my opinion whether any objection lyes against it." I have made various enquiries concerning the first introduction of the clause and I find as well from general information as from His

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Majesty's Council here, before whom I this day laid the Instruction, that it was inserted in the Act for the following Reasons,—There are in many Districts of this Province, Independent Companies who acknowledge no subordination to the Colonels of the Militia in those Districts, or will receive any Orders from them, as they look upon the Governor of the Province to be their Colonel and that they are not to obey any Orders but such as they receive from him. This in times of sudden Alarms and Invasions has been productive of bad Consequences, for the Officers of those Companies which are remote from the Seat of Government, being at two great a distance from the Governor to receive any immediate orders from him in such an exigency have chosen their own stations on such an occasion, whereby the part of the country then in danger has not reap'd that advantage from their services, which it might have done, if they had at that time been under the command of the Colonels of the Militia; It was therefore thought proper to put them under such command at that particular time in order to make them more serviceable, but at the same time without any intention of infringing the power of the Governor, who is not only supposed to command them himself, but has frequently given power to the Colonels of Regiments to take upon them the command of such Companies; The Clause as printed in our Laws here differs so much from the quotation in His Majesty's Instruction that I beg leave to lay them both before your Lordship,—The Instruction says "that in case of Alarm or Invasion when the Commander in Chief shall be absent, the "command of the Provincial Military Force shall be vested in the respective Colonels of "the Independent Companies." The Clause in our printed Laws runs thus, "that in case of a "General Alarm or Invasion all unregimented or independent Companies and Troops, shall in "the absence of the Captain General or Commander in Chief be under the immediate command " & direction of the Colonel, and in his absence the next commanding Officer of the Regiment "or Battalion of the City or County where such unregimented or Independent Companies or "Troops are or may be." Your Lordships will be pleased to observe that the Explanation I have given is adapted to the clause as printed here although it cannot so well be reconciled to the Words of the Instruction.—I do not apprehend that there will be any great difficulty in getting a Militia Law pass'd for five years, but from the Genius and Disposition of the people, I have all the reason in the world to imagine, that the suspending clause directed to be inserted in it will occasion the total failure of the Bill; It would very ill become me to say anything against suspending clauses, and I hope your Lordship will not imagine I presume to do it, but as 1 have very lately, (and from such information as I think may be depended on) had the honor of informing your Lordship of our situation in regard to our Indian Neighbours, and of our Expectations that Hostilities will soon be commenced against us by them, I thought it incumbent on me to repeat my apprehensions of such a misfortune, and meant only to blend the wellfare of the Province committed to my charge, with my Duty and obedience to His Majesty's Orders, I have the honor to be with the greatest Respect,

Circular.

Earl of Hillsborough to the Governors in North America.

[Mus: Brit: Kings MS., 206, p. 29.]

Whitehall, 20th Feb. 1768.

I am commanded by the King to send you a duplicate of the address to His Majesty from the House of Commons, of the 27th of March, 1766, transmitted to you by the Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations, on the 1st of August, 1766; to which address you will take care to pay exact obedience, otherwise you will incur the censure of that House. I am, &c

Since the Earl of Shelburne's Letter to you, dated the 14,h of Novr last N° 12, your several letters to His Lordship from N° 22. to N° 31. have been received and laid before the King. His Majesty trusted that the ill consequences flowing from a want of Respect to, and Authority in, the Civil Magistrate, so evidently manifested during the late Disorders on account of the Stamp Act, would have induced all men of Rank & Consideration in the Colony to have co-operated with you in every Measure that could possibly tend to secure the Peace, and promote the Happiness of the Community, and to give that strength and consistency to Government, by which alone it can be supported and therefore it was a great concern to His Majesty to find by your letter N° 22. that you had failed in your Expectation of Assistance in this great work from the better sort of People, and more so, that their Backwardness should proceed from Considerations so unworthy those whose duty it is, from the Rank they hold in the Community, to make it's welfare & happiness the objects of their Care & Attention.

His Maty is sensible that the wisest & best Institutions that can be framed for the Benefit of Society will fail of their effect, if entrusted to the Execution of Magistrates such as are described in your letter, & therefore His Majesty thinks, that in the case of the Establishment in New York, for the Adjudication of suits of a small value in a summary Way, the Remedy lies in that Reform of the Magistracy you say you propose to make, and which His Maty very much approves, and not in the Repeal of the Establishment itself, which has already receiv'd His Maty's sanction & Approbation, and has from a conviction of the Utility of it, been a Measure recommended to the Governors of all the Colonies.

His Majesty is glad to find, that you consider what the Assembly has done, in the case of making Provision for Quartering His Maty's Troops, as a perfect and complete Obedience to the Acts of Parliament; And it will be a great satisfaction to His Majesty, if, upon the

1 For this Address, see Pennsylvania Archives, IV., 292.-ED.