Gambar halaman
PDF
ePub

be put to no further trouble in the Law until the further order of the said Governments respectively: As appears by the papers laid before you with these Instructions

34 In case therefore you cannot agree in either of the Settlements aforesaid; and to put a stop to and remove all occasions of Contention among the Borderers, You shall and may treat, and if possible, agree with the Commissioners on the part of the Massachusetts Bay in the fixing and running a Temporary Line of Peace and Jurisdiction between the two Provinces to remain as their Respective Limits and bounds until his Majesty's Pleasure shall be known therein or the Controversy shall be finally determined So as that such Temporary Line of Peace and Jurisdiction do not include on the Massachusetts side thereof any Settlements or Possessions made under that Governm' since the Agreement abovementioned in the years 1726 and 1727, and that such Line, except as to the Settlements made before the said Agreement, be run at the distance of Miles at least from Hudson's River the whole length thereof until it meets with the line of Connecticut Government and Provided that the said temporary line shall not take effect until the Settlement thereof be reported to and approved of by the Governor or Commander in Chief of this province for the time being in Council.

Given under my Hand and Seal at arms at Fort George in the City of New York by and with the advice & Consent of his Majesty's Council of the said province the thirtieth day of May 1754, in the twenty-seventh year of his Majesty's Reign. -[N. Y. Col. MSS., lxxviii, 125.

[COMMISSION.]

GEORGE THE SECOND by the Grace of God of Great Britain France and Ireland King, Defender of the faith, and so forth. To all to whom these Presents shall come GREETING WHEREAS the Bounds between Our Province of NEW YORK and Our Province of MASSACHUSETTS: BAY are contested and great disorders arise daily among our loving Subjects there, concerning the different Claims of the said Governments to Soil and Jurisdiction. We being therefore graciously inclined to put an end to, and prevent, all such animosities for the future. KNOW YE that we have constituted and appointed, and Do by these Presents constitute and appoint, Our Trusty and Welbeloved Cadwallader Colden Joseph Murray and William Smith Esq. Members of Our Council of Our Province of New York, and Benjamin Nicol and William Livingston Esq, Our Commissioners, for and on behalf of Our Province of

New York; And Do hereby Authorize and empower them, or any three or more of them, in Conjunction with Commissioners Nominated or to be nominated and appointed on the part of Massachusets Bay, to settle agree upon fix and Ascertain the Bounds between our two said Provinces, and upon such Settlement to Report their proceedings thereupon to Our Lieu! Governor or the Commander in Chief of Our Province of New York for the time being in Council for his approbation, In Order that the said Settlement when so reported to and approved of by Our said Governor or Comander in Chief in Council, may be Transmitted and laid before us for Our Royal Approbation or Disallowance thereof: And if Our said Commissioners and the Commissioners on the Part of Massachusets: Bay should think it best to agree upon and settle certain Bounds between our said Provinces, to be immediately submitted to us for our Royal Approbation or Disallowance, without being first approved of by our said Lieu! Governor or Commander in Chief in Council, and by the said Governm of Massachusets: Bay, We fully empower and Authorize Our Commissioners above named or any three or more of them to settle and agree upon the same: But for-as-much as the said Commissioners may not agree in either of the Cases before mentioned, And that the good ends and purposes proposed by this Our Commission, may not be Wholly defeated, We have thought fit to Authorize and impower, and we do in such case Authorize and impower Our Commissioners above named or any three or more of them, in Conjunction with the Commissioners aforesaid on the part of the Massachusets Bay, to settle provisional or temporary Bounds to be deemed and esteemed as the Line of Jurisdiction and Limits between our said Provinces, until the true Bounds shall be finally established and settled between these Our two Governments. IN TESTIMONY whereof we have caused these our Letters to be made Patent and the Great Seal of our province of New York to be hereunto affixed WITNESS Our Trusty and Welbeloved James De Lancey Esq' our Lieutenant Governor and Commander in Chief in and over our Province of New York and Territories depending thereon in America. GIVEN at our Fort in our City of New York by and with the advice and Consent of our Council of our said Province the thirtieth day of May one thousand seven hundred and fifty four in the twenty seventh year of our Reign.

[Endorsed.] 30th May 1754 Draft of Commission for Settling the Bounds between New York and Massachusets Bay

-[N. Y. Col. MSS., lxxviii 127.

[blocks in formation]

Mr Murray and M' Smith two of the Commissioners appointed on the part of this province to agree with the Commissioners of the Massachusets-Bay in the Settlement of the Bounds between the two provinces, (M2 Nicoll and Mr Livingston the other two of the Commissioners for this Province being also present) informed the Board that they had proposed Connecticut River as the Eastern bounds of this Province, which the Massachusets Commissioners would not agree to, but on their part proposed instead thereof a line twelve Miles Eastward of Hudson's River, which as the Commissioners of this Province could not agree to, they proposed to treat on a Settlement of a Temporary Line of Peace between the two Governments, until the controversy should be determined by his Majesty, to which the Massachusets Commissioners replied that they had no authority to treat relating to a Temporary line and declared they would not confer thereupon. And therefore that they the Commissioners desired Instructions from this Board, what they should do further relating to the Execution of their Commission.

On which the Board, conceiving that any Settlement the Commissioners should make, would in its nature be only Temporary as to this province, since it must be subject to his Majesty's confirmation or disallowance; were of Opinion and it is accordingly Ordered by his Honour with the advice of the Council, that it be an Instruction to the Commissioners on the part of this Province.

Το propose and agree with the Commissioners of the MassachusetsBay, in the Settlement of a Line, to run Northerly from the North bounds of Connecticut, so as equally to divide the Lands between Connecticut and Hudson's Rivers as the boundary Line between the two Governments.

-[N. Y. Council Minutes (MS.), v. 23, p. 207.

*

Albany July 11, 1754.

The Commissioners for settling the Boundaries between this and the province of Massachusets-Bay being present informed the Board, that they had met the Commissioners of Massachusets-Bay and proposed the Settlement of a Line agreeable to the Instructions and Opinion of this Board declared in Council yesterday; which they would not agree to, and seemed to decline any further Conference with them; and proposed that as the Commissioners could not agree in the Settlement of a Line, that they (the Commissioners of this province) should propose to this

Board, that the two Governments should refer the dispute to some Gentlemen of the neighbouring provinces to settle the matter as arbitrators, and to agree that what they concluded upon should be final.

Whereupon this Board not thinking it adviseable to leave the Matter to arbitration, but being willing to make a further Concession in order to preserve the peace and prevent Bloodshed among the Borderers, are of Opinion that it should be proposed finally on the part of this Government that the line be settled in the following manner Viz!

That Westenhook River' should be the bounds or line between the two Governments, from the north Line of Connecticut, as far as the place where the North line of the Patent of Westenhook crosses that River being about eighteen Miles, that from that place or point on the said River a line should be run Northerly so as to leave Fort Massachusets one hundred yards Eastward of such Line.

-[N. Y. Council Minutes, (MS.), v. 23, p. 208.

[blocks in formation]

His Honour laid before the Board sundry affidavits & other Papers by which it appears that the People of Massachusets Bay, have lately taken the Sherif of Albany and several other Persons, and carried them to Springfield Goal, and obliged the Sherif to give Bail for his Appearance in the sum of £150 Lawful Money of that Province

His Honour then Communicated to the Board a Draft of the Letter he had wrote & sent to Mr Shirley thereupon, and recommended to the Gentlemen Present who are of the Committee, to examine into the Eastern Boundaries of this Colony, to finish the Business before the Committee and Commissioners relating to that Matter.

[blocks in formation]

[LT.-Gov. DE LANCEY TO GOV. SHIRLEY.]

New York 17 Febry 1755

* * the proposal of a temporary line the west side of Housatanik River to 100 yrds West of Fort Massachusetts made by the Commissioners of this Province at Albany to your Commissioners is such as appears to me very reasonable to be embraced by Massachusetts Bay, it leaves your Government one third of Westenhook Patent which was granted under this Province in the year 1705 and purchased of the Indians in 1685, the rather as from the Records I have seen and the

"The modern " Housatonic."-[P.

arguments used, it seems very evident, that his Majesty's rights extend eastward as far as Connecticut River, which is above thirty miles beyond the line proposed by this Province.

Gov' Shirley

Yours &c

-[N. Y. Doc. Hist., iii, 465 (4° ed.); 779 (8°).

My Lords

*

**

[GOVERNOR HARDY TO THE LORDS OF TRADE.]

*

Fort George New York 234 Feb 1756

I must therefore beg your Lordships will please to take such measures as you shall judge proper to oblige the Inhabitants of the Massachusets Government to keep within their respective Limits till his Majesty shall please to determine the Line of jurisdiction between the two Provinces

*

*

CHAS: HARDY.

[N. Y. Col. Docs., vii, 38.

[LORDS OF TRADE TO GOVERNOR Hardy.]

To Sir Cha' Hardy Kn' Gov' of New York.

Sir,

*

Another circumstance in your letter which gives us great uneasiness is, the refusal of the Assembly to make provision for the expence of a Commission for determining the controversies with New Jersey and Massachusets Bay concerning their boundaries, the unsettled state of which has already been productive of so much mischief, and is an evil every day increasing. * Upon the whole, we are of opinion, that the only proper and effectual method of determining these disputes will be by a Commission,

13 April 1756.

*

-[N. Y. Col. Docs., vii, 79, 80.

*

[GOVERNOR HARDY TO THE LORDS OF TRADE.]

*

Albany the 2a of August 1756.

* I shall not fail of recommending again to the Assembly to make Provision for defraying the charges of His Majesty's commission for determining the Line in dispute between this Province. and New Jersey but I cannot flatter myself with much success.

The

« SebelumnyaLanjutkan »