SIR

GOV. SHIRLEY TO LT. GOV. DELANCEY.

Boston May 25. 1755.

Since closing mine of the 21st Instant I have received the Inclosed Returns from two of the Justices of the Sessions at Springfield, and Attorney General there, of their doings in pursuance of my Orders to them concerning the Discharge of the Sheriff of Albany and others bound over to that Court, on acct of the Riots upon the Borders, and of Mr Levingstons men there in Custody; by the former of them your Honour will see, that the Sheriff and others were continued upon their Recognizances to the next Court, and gone from Springfield before my Orders for entering a noli prosequi arriv'd there; and by the latter, that the Execution of my Orders were suspended with regard to Mr Levingston's men on account of some New Violences (contain'd in the copy of the Inclosed Depositions) having been Committed by some of his People; Among whom your Honour will observe it is said, that he that kill'd Race was seen; However, upon the Receipt of the last mention'd Return, giving an account of the Suspension of my orders as to Mr Levingston's Workmen, which was sent me by Express, I instantly sent the Messenger back to Springfield with Orders to have Mr Levingstons Men sent towards Albany to be deliver'd upon the like Release of the People belonging to this Province, whom your Government hath detain'd according to your Honour's proposal; Depending entirely that you will Cause an Inquiry to be forthwith made into these New Violences on the part of Your Province, and take effectual Measures for putting an Immediate End to them.

ROBT LIVINGSTON TO LT GOV. DE LANCEY.

MAY IT PLEASE YOUR HONOUR.

Inclosed, I transmit to your Honour, a Letter from Messrs Livingston and Smith, Containing a Narrative of what passed

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last week upon the Borders, relating to the Dispute Between us and the Massachusets Bay-A Regard to the Province in General, the County of Albany in particular, My own Interest, and Compassion to the Distressed state of the Poor people, who live on the Eastern parts of this Province, Adjoining to the Massachuset's Bay Government, induce me to Intreat Your Honour, to consult some method or other for the Protection, Peace, & Safety of those, who claim under this Colony. It is Impossible for the Tenants in my Manor, the people of Claverack, Kinderhook and parts adjacent, who are poor and Live on scattered Farms, to Maintain their Possessions, against an Armed Body of Men, Who are easily collected and sent out, from the Western Towns & settlements of the Massachusets Government; and unless a Speedy stop is put to their Encroachments, we have great Reason to expect, that they will in a Short time, extend their Possessions as far as lludson's River- Your Honour will find by the Inclosed Letter, that above one Hundred Armed men, were Last week Laying out Townships in mine, and the Manor of Renslaerwick; The Account of Such a Body, so alarmed the Inhabitants, that upwards of Forty of them, betook themselves for Protection, to a small Inclosure, and Lived together Armed, from the 16th till the 24th Instant, when they were Informed, that the New England men were returned home. During their absence from Sober, a place where I have erected a Forge, about five Hundred Weight of Bar Iron, was pilfered and Carried off; and Whether any other of the Inhabitants had suffered by this Invasion, I have not yet been informed. How Distressing to Husbandmen, so great a Loss of time must necessarily be, is easy to conceive; nor is it Less Difficult to forsee, that the Repetition of these Irruptions, must naturally tend to Subdue the Spirits of our Inhabitants, and Either Induce them to Abandon their Farms, or hold them under the Massachuset's Bay Government. The very next week, the Committee will again be convened upon the Borders, and what may be the Consequence of their proceeding any further, I know not, but fear the worst- I thank Your Honour, for the favour of Your Promise, to lay the inclosed before the Council, and hope with Submission, that Your Honour and that Board, will think proper to send an Express to Boston,

to prevent if possible, the Committee's making any further Encroachments upon this Province.

I should be glad to receive Your Honour's Directions, if any are necessary to be sent, to the Judges and Justices of Albany, with respect to the prisoners that we have apprehended, who are either imprisoned or bound over to appear there, at the next General Session of the Peace, which will open on the first Tuesday of next month.

Relying upon the Vigilance and Activity of this Government, for the restoring a General Tranquility to the poor People on the Borders

I am,

New York

29th May. 1755.

with all due respects,

Your Honours most humble Servt

ROB LIVINGSTON Jun".

MESSRS SMITH & LIVINGSTON TO LT. GOV. DELANCEY; ENCLOSED IN THE PRECEDING.

MAY IT PLEASE YOUR HONOR

New York 28th May 1755.

In Obedience to Your Order of Yesterday, we beg leave to lay before You in Writing, the Account then Verbally given, concerning the Proceedings of Sundry Persons of the Massachuset's Bay Government last Week.

On Friday the 16th Instant, at the Request of Robert Livingston Jun' Esq', we set out from his House at the Mannor of Livingston, with an Intent to meet a Committee appointed by the General Court of the Massachuset's Bay, to transact Sundry Affairs relating to the Lands Claimed in Common by both Provinces. We proceeded to Tachonick, and were there informed, that about One Hundred Men had in the Morning, passed Southward under the west Side of Tachonick Mountains, and from thence Westward towards Hudson's River, and that their Business was to run lines for new Townships, to be laid out and settled under the Massachuset's Bay Government. In the

Evening we arrived at Sheffield, and were Informed that the Company who were gone out from thence; consisted of about One hundred and Ten men. Here we found the Committee, who were Brigadier Dwight, Coll Choat and Major Hawley : We held a Conferrence with them, upon the Dispute between the two Governments, laid before them an Office Copy of the Report of Council of the 8th Instant, and informed them, that an Express was gone from Your Honour, to his Excellency Governour Shirley, and urged the Committee, by the Prospects of a Speedy Settlement of the Line of Jurisdiction, and the Consideration of the mischiefs and Blood Shed, that would probably ensue upon their proceeding any further at present, to desist from the Execution of their Powers, or at least to Postpone it for a few Days untill it could be known how your Honour's Letter and the Advice of Council, were Received by their Governour and Council. In this Conference, the Gentlemen declared their disapprobation of the present method of Proceeding, on the Part of both Governments, in Seizing and prosecuting the Inhabitants upon the Borders, and confessed that such Courses, had no suitable Tendency, to bring about a Settlement, but Still alledged in their own Justification, that their Government, had made reasonable Proposals to the Province of New York for an Accomadation or Settlement of the Dispute, which being rejected, rendered it proper for the Massachuset's Bay, to extend its Jurisdiction & Possessions, as far westward as its Right did extend. We were very particular in our Inquiries, as to the Nature of those offers, and the time of their being madeBrigadier Dwight and Major Hawley confessed, that their knowledge concerning them depended upon frequent Informations, which they believed to be true-but Collo Choat declared, that he was in the House of Representatives, when they concurred in the Offers Last Winter, and moved an Amendment, which he carried, That the Tenor of the Proposals was for each Province, to chuse two Commissioners in the Nature of Referees to settle the Line, granting them power to Chuse a fifth man, if they should happen to be equally divided: That their Adjudication was not to be final without his Majesty's Confirmation, but that untill Such Confirmation, the Jurisdiction of both Provinces,

was to be regulated by the Judgment of the Commissioners. Collo Choate would not take upon him to assert, that Mr Shirley had transmitted an Account of these Proposals to this Province, but believed he had and thought that he had seen a Letter from Your Honour to M Shirley, declining a Compliance with their offer. The next morning we offered the Committee, a Copy of the Minute of Council of the 8th Instant, and beged a Copy of the Vote of the General Court, under which they now acted, but the Gentlemen declined the former, and refused the latter which nevertheless they permitted us to peruse.-The purport of it, was, as well as we can remember, to enable them, to grant Rights under the Massachusetts Bay, West of Sheffield & Stockbridge, as far as to the Province of New York. We observed to the Committee, that they had a dangerous part to act, their Government Reserving by this Vote, a Right of Judging any of the Lands they might grant, to be within or without the Province of New York. At Springfield on the 20 Instant, Coll" Partridge also insisted, that the Massachuset's Bay Government, had made that offer last winter of which Coll Choat had informed us, and assured us, that he had seen a Letter from Your Honour to Governor Shirley, declining an Acceptance of the Proposals -Collo Williams and Collo Worthington, declared that they had often heard, and beleived it to be true, that such offers, had been made by that Government, and refused by this; & Collo Dwight of Springfield, afterwards confirmed the same Account. Collo Choat spent the Evening with us, and seemed then to declare with more Certainty, concerning Your Honours Letter to Mr Shirley, than he had done before at Sheffield.

While we were at Springfield, Abraham Yates Esq" the Sheriff of Albany, arrived with Dispatches from Mr Shirley to Messrs Dwight Williams and Worthington; and we accordingly waited upon these Gentlemen, to know the Contents of His Excellency's Letters, and were informed that they were desired, to Bail James Elliot and the other Prisoners, that were apprehended upon the Death of One Race, if they were not Charged with the Actual Murder. And that the Court of Sessions, which was to be opened on that day, were also desired, to Continue Abraham Yates and others on their Recognizances to the next Court. His