bly of 1741, before mentioned, which provides that Doctor Lloyd Zachary be paid a reasonable Reward for visiting Sick Vessels, &t.; Provided he make such Report in Writing, & Lodge the same in the Secretary's office, &t. Those who have a Right to give, may annex Conditions to their Gifts. The Assembly had the Right to direct where they thought it was fit the Doctor's Report should be lodge'd, and altho' it was not in his power to file that Report (for putting on the file is the act of the Officer, and is a Term we did not Use), it may be in his Power to lodge or leave it there. Whether the Secretary will think fit to receive it or not may be another Question. If he shall refuse, the Assembly have an easy Method of providing against that Defect, and making the Gentleman sensible of his Duty.

"The sixth Resolve contains these Words, Viz":

"That the Supposition of a Default in the Governor & Council in a Matter that so highly concerns the Welfare of the inhabitants of this province, carrys with it an unjust Reflection both upon the Governor and the Council.'

"On this We Remark:

"The Event has shewn there was great Reason for the Assembly in August, 1741, to provide against a Default, the present Declaration of the Governor & Council that they will have no regard to the resolutions of the Assembly proves it; And, therefore, it was well provided by that Assembly, that in such Case they would pay the Doctor as often as he should be sent by any two Justices of the City & County of Philadelphia, &t. If they Chuse rather to employ a Doctor of their own appointment, it is in their Power, but if they disregard their Duty in Execution of the Act, the fault will Iye at their Door.

"But why the Supposition of a fault in the Governor & Council should be asserted to carry with it an unjust Reflection, we are at a loss to Say. The Act of Parliament in the 11 & 12 of W. 3 Cap. 12, recites, That whereas a due punishment is not provided for several Crimes Committed out of his Majestie's Realm of England, whereof divers Governors, Lieut. Governors, &t., have taken advantage, and have not been deter'd from oppressing his Majesty's Subjects, &t. To infer from hence that the King & Parliament reflected on all the Governors in America, would be very bad reasoning, and yet it would be equally forcible with the Conclusion drawn by the Governor & Council in the Case before mentioned.

"The seventh and last of their Resolves follows, viz":

"And it is the Resolution of this Board, in Conjunction with the Governor, to take all proper Measures, as we have hitherto done, pursuant to a Law of this Province concerning Sickly Vessels: Provided the Assembly will allow a suitable reward to one or more persons, to be appointed as usual, to visit them."

"In what Manner the Act mentioned in this Resolve has been Executed in Time past we have already taken Notice, and if it be duly executed for the future, we presume it will be agreeable to all the Inhabitants of the Province; And we make no doubt that whatever may be incumbent on the House to do on that Occasion will be chearfully performed.

"On the whole, we are humbly of Opinion that to prevent dispute concerning the Rights of the Appointment of a Person to visit unhealthy Vessels hereafter, and to amend divers other Defects in this Act, it will be necessary to appoint a Committee of the House to prepare and bring in a Bill for that purpose against the next sitting of Assembly.

"And that the House do come into such Resolutions as they shall judge necessary to support the Rights & Privileges of the Representatives of the ffremen of this Province, and encourage a due Execution of the act in the mean Time. But it is nevertheless submitted to the Judgment of the House by

"And accordingly it was "Resolved,

"THOMAS LEECH,
"ISAAC NORRIS,

"ISRAEL PEMBERTON,
"JAMES MORRIS,
"EDWARD WARNER,
"SAMUEL BLUNSTON,
"ABRAHAM CHAPMAN,
"JEREMIAH STARR."

"That for the Governor & Council to draw in Question, arraign, & Censure the proceedings of the Representatives of the ffreemen of this Province in Assembly met, after the Adjournment of such Assembly, is assuming to themselves a power the Law hath not intrusted them with, is illegal, unwarrantable, a high breach of their Privileges, and of Dangerous Example.

"Resolved,

"That if the Master of any Ship or Vessel having Sick passengers on board shall, contrary to the Tenor of the act entituled An Act to prevent sickly Vessels coming into this Government, come nearer than one Mile to any of the Towns or Ports in this Province, or shall land such Passengers or their Goods thereat without License first obtained for the same, as by the said Act is directed, that such Master may be indicted and fined for transgressing the said Act; And that such Offences may by Law be heard & determined by the Justices of the respective Counties in which they shall be Committed."

All which being read, the Governor desired that a Committee of

the Council might be appointed to Consider of them; and accordingly it is

Ordered,

That Clement Plumsted, Samuel Hasell, William Till, and Abraham Taylor, Esq be a Committee to Consider of all the foresaid Matters, and Report their Opinion thereof to the Board at the next Meeting of the Council.

At a Council held at Philada., May 17th, 1742.

PRESENT:

The Honble GEORGE THOMAS, Esqr., Lieut. Governor.

The Minutes of the preceeding Council being read & approved, The Gentlemen to whom the Report of a Committee of the Assembly in relation to unhealthy Vessels was referred, made their Report thereupon, which being read & approved, was ordered to be enter'd upon the Minutes, & is as follows:

"The Governor & Council having been pleased to refer to Us the Report of a Committee of Assembly, delivered to the Clerk of this Board, & to require our Sentiments thereupon, Altho' it will be a Journey long & disagreeable to Us to follow that Committee through all their Mazes, we have the more readily enter'd upon it as the insinuations & Objections contained in that Report have rendred it necessary to give a fuller account of the ffacts under Consideration to support the former Resolves of this Board, and to assert the Rights of Government against the Invasions of the last Assembly and the Attempts of the present to Justify them.

"The ffacts stand thus:

"Doctor Grome for above twenty Years before the Year 1738, by the special Order of the Governor & Council, visited Sickly Vessels at the Port of Philadelphia. In that Year the Assembly made him an Allowance of what they thought reasonable for his past Services, justly concluding that if the reward was insufficient they were not to blame, as his own Delay had rendered a particular Examination of those services impracticable; And that Assembly perceiving the Evils that might attend Stale Demands upon the Publick, Order'd the Doctor to bring in all future Accounts Annually, at the same Time acquainting him that if he did not he might reasonably expect to have them disallowed.

"The Doctor by the Governor & Council's Orders continued to visit unhealthy Vessels until the Sessions of Assembly in August, 1740, And then preferr'd the Account mentioned in the Report.

"The whole that pass'd upon it before the Committee or in the Assembly (for nothing appears in their Votes or Proceedings concerning it) can be known only to those within their own Walls, and therefore must principally depend upon their Representations beyond a possibility of Contradiction. But to the Doctor or the Publick upon finding the Amount disallowed nothing could appear but that the Assembly had rejected it without vouchsafing to Assign the least reason for the Satisfaction of either.

"Soon after the Doctor informed the Governor in what manner the Assembly had treated his Account, and desired to be excused from acting any longer in the Employment, To which the Governor replyed that he could not in justice require it of him, since the Assembly had used him so unhandsomely; And the Governor at the same time expressed his Apprehensions that no Person of Character in the Profession would after such ungenerous treatment be perswaded to risque his Life or spend his Time in a Service he was not to be paid for, which would Subject the Province and the City in Particular to very great Inconveniences and Dangers; And from this Time Doctor Graeme look'd upon himself as discharged.

"In the fall of that year, during the Governor's frequent Avocations on the King's immediate Business and the Business of the Government of the lower Countries, several Palatine Vessels arriving here, suspected to be sickly, the Eldest of the Members of Council that had ever given any attention to such Matters sent for Doctor Grome & desired he would visit them. To which the Doctor objected, as conceiving himself an unacceptable person to the Assembly, Since they had refused to pay him for what he had done before. But the Doctor being very earnestly pressed by that Gentleman, and observing his uneasiness and the Difficulties he was laid under by the Governor's absence, his regard for the welfare of the - Province prevailed, for the present, over the resolution he had taken not to Act more in that Employm

"On the Arrival of several Vessels in the Spring, 1741, the Governor order'd the Masters of them to apply to Doctor Zachary & Doctor Bond, and to return both or either of their Certificates of the Condition of the passengers & Seamen on Board; but these Gentlemen refused for sometime to undertake the Business. At length they agreed to visit vessels together, for neither of them would consent to do it alone.

"Doctor Zachary & Doctor Bond visited all the Sickly vessels that arrived afterwards, untill the Session of Assembly in August, 1741, except one that arrived about the Time of that Session, which Doctor Grome visited, upon the Master's promising to make him Satisfaction. Doctors Zachary & Bond being both absent, or under

other Engagements, this Vessel & the Palatine Ships above mentioned are the six charged in Doctor Grome's account of August, 1741. We shall now consider the Remarks of the Committee upon the ffacts as they have been pleased to State them; And in Order to draw them out of the confusion they are designedly placed in by the committee, we beg Leave to range them under two heads:

"1st. Charges against the Governor & Council.

"2d. Justifications of the Assemblys in 1740 & 1741.

"As to the first, the Committee Demands if the Governor & Council did look upon the Doctor to be discharged, why they did not apply to the Assembly for some Remedy, but suffer the affair to lye dormant above a year?

"To this modest Demand we Answer, that when the Governor had the first Notice of Danger from sickly Vessels, the Assembly was not sitting; therefore if he had inclined to such an Application it was impossible. He had then Expectations of the Assistance of some other Physicians in the Room of Doctor Grome, which he obtained tho' with Great Difficulty; But before that could be accomplish'd the Distemper broke in upon Us and got past prevention.

"Permit Us now to ask what is the Power of an Assembly in the Province of Pennsylvania that the Governor and Council must apply to them for aid to Execute a Law of the Country, a Law which, in respect to the present Controversy, requires their personal Execution? We have often heard of applications to the Supream Magistrates to remedy Mischiefs or Neglects in the Execution of Laws, But for a Committee of the representatives of the People to question the Supream Magistrate why he did not apply to the lower of the Assembly alone to remedy a Defect in the Execution of a Law, especially when that Defect was occasioned by the voluntary misconduct of the Assembly, is certainly of the first Impression, And we think a bolder Attempt towards Seizing the Powers of Government than ever was made in this Province or any other Part of his Majesties Dominions.

"They next complain of the Governor & Council for not giving Directions to restrain the Ships of Mr. Willing & Mr. Baynton from coming into the Port, which Ships they say were unhealthy & spread the Distemper in the City.

"The Landing of the Passengers from Mr. Willing's Vessel was intirely owing to an Accident. The Ship riding in the Stream received Damage by an anchor and was Sinking, so that with great Difficulty she was brought to the Wharf, and then the Passengers got on Shore. Their staying on Board at the Wharf could be of no Service, but rather the Contrary, as the Distemper probably would have raged the more from the Confinem Mr. Baynton's Vessel arrived at the same time with Mr. Willing's, and we are assured by