Gambar halaman
PDF
ePub

This

expected entered the town escorted by a troop of horse. appeared to be a singular escort for those coming to settle the peace of the Province, but it proved highly serviceable by the impression its presence gave the inhabitants, who were quite unused to such demonstrations of power. Jocelyn, and his friends of the King's party, met the Massachusetts gentlemen as they alighted at the door of the Ordinary, and, after a becoming salute, informed them of their desire to confer with them early the next morning. The commissioners told them that they would listen to what they might have to say, but would not treat with them about the matter for which they had been sent into the Province; for they came to govern the affairs of the Province, not to talk about them. The Judges then showed their commission as the King's chosen rulers of the Province, and also a letter from one of the royal Commissioners confirming their authority. The Massachusetts men could not deny the validity of these, but shrewdly evaded the matter by replying that such things concerned the General Court, not them. If the General Court had seen fit to disregard the King's authority, and to make the Justices' right to the government of no account, it was not for them to demur who were the humble agents of that body; their business was to do the will of the Court and nothing else. Such is the substance of the commissioners reply; and of course it was wholly unsatisfactory to the Judges who justly denied the right of the General Court, or of its agents to proceed in this manner. Jocelyn then remarked to the commissioners, in his quiet manner, that there were not more than "five or six of a town" for them; intimating that although they had come on the important business of the General Court, they would find there little business for themselves to do. They

Jocelyn's Voyages p. 199-Holines Annals chron. note 1668-Chalmer's His. p. 137-Letter from the Inhabitants of Maine to Charles II. 1680. Vol. 1st, Maine His. Coll. p. 302.

could better see how that was when the town returns came in, replied they, and until then their duty as commissioners must be attended to. After having duly warned Jocelyn and his associates against attempting any opposition to their proceedings, they repaired to the church to hold their Court.

On the other hand Jocelyn made known to them his intention to hold a Court during the day. The Commissioners opened their Court by reading to the people assembled their commission from the General Court, and by explaining to them, as best they could the reason of their proceedings. They then received the returns of five of the seven towns of the Province; a result more favorable doubtless than they themselves anticipated, and certainly exceeding the expectations of Jocelyn.

While they were engaged within, sorting and counting these votes, the Justices came to hold their Court, and finding no more convenient place unoccupied, they took possession of the church steps as their tribunal. They then made proclamation for all to attend to the King's commands. This reached the ears of the gentlemen within the house, and, with no little show of loyalty, they immediately ordered out their marshal to proclaim "that if any had any (command) from his Majesty they coming and showing it to the Court, the Court was open and ready to hear the same." Upon this the Justices went in and requested that their commission as officers, and the letter from the King's Commissioner, which they had showed the Massachusetts gentlemen in the morning, might be publicly read. The Commissioners replied that they were then pressed with other business, and could not allow them to be read until afternoon. With this refusal the Justices retired. Soon afterwards the commissioners adjourned for dinner. While they were at dinner the Justices, deeming their Court fairly entitled to the use of the house, at least half of the day, took possession of the vacant seats. Before doing this they had sent out the marshal of the Province

to proclaim a meeting of the Assembly. When the commissioners got notice of this, they caused the marshal and his assistant to be arrested, and then hurried to the church and found there a full bench of Province Judges, holding court in a situation more agreeable, to themselves at least, than that they occupied in the morning. The dignity of the Commissioners was shocked on beholding this, for they say in their report to the General Court, "we told them we expected other things than that they would have put such an affront upon the Court." But undoubtedly the uncertainty of regaining their lost position troubled them more than the apparent breach of courtesy. According to the Commissioners own report of the affair none but gentle means were resorted to in order to recover their seats. The Justices seem to have unfortunately expended all their firmness and energy in getting to the seats. Once in them they might easily have kept themselves there, at least until forcibly driven out; and in this way perhaps they might have given a different direction to the subsequent events of the day. Jocelyn was by far too peaceable a man to be the leader in such a contest. The emergency required the presence of some such an opposer of Massachusetts as John Bonython of Saco; his determined resistance, without the motive, would have been a valuable help to the Justices that day. Some of the people in Court attempted to speak, but the commissioners silenced them, and then ordered their officers to clear the Court of the specta tors. Some of Jocelyn's friends, who were standing near him, showing an unwillingness to be thus driven out of the house, he himself requested them to leave peaceably, which they at once did. The Commissioners, being thus left alone with the Justices, invited them down from the seats to hold a private conference. The Justices, though they had already yielded too much, gave up also their seats, and went down to talk with the Commissioners. After some discourse with them in which they

strongly insisted upon having their papers read to the people, the reading was agreed to on condition that the Justices would allow the others to take their seats and proceed with their Court. Again the Justices yielded, and the Commissioners resumed their places on the bench. The royal commission was then read to the re-assembled people, and their own petition to the King, to be taken into his immediate protection, was offered as the reason of the King's grant of this commission. To this the Commissioners readily replied by appealing to the people themselves, telling them" that they could best give answer thereto;" but the people said nothing. From this supposed tacit acknowledgement of their authority by the people the Commissioners took good courage, and desiring to cut short the controversy with the Justices, refused them permission to read the royal Commissioners' letter; pretending that it did not concern the people, and therefore was not worth the reading to them. They then attempted a justification of their whole course with regard to this Province, repeating to the people the old story of the rights conferred by the charter of the Province of Massachusetts Bay. After this Jocelyn and his associates retired leaving the Commissioners to proceed with their business undisturbed by the presence of Justices. Had not the majority of the inhabitants present on this occasion manifested such an unaccountable indifference towards their own cause, the Justices would have resisted this bold-faced invasion upon their rights in a manner better according with their usual zeal and firmness. As it was we can hardly blame Jocelyn for the course he pursued. It was much better for him to retire from the field as he did, than to contest the matter longer against a force so unequal, only to have been at last shamefully overcome. During the proceedings of the Court after the withdrawal of the Justices, a paper which had been sent from Scarborough was read to the people. What the contents of this paper were does not appear

by the report of the Massachusetts Commissioners. Propably it was a statement of reasons for not having obeyed the Court's order by forwarding their returns of town officers.

In this strange manner Massachusetts completed a second usurpation of this Province. The affair as here represented appears in a light as favorable to the Massachusetts Commissioners as their own report of the circumstances will allow.* Another brief account of these proceedings, written by one who was at the time residing in Scarborough, and whose statements, for aught we know, are as reliable as those of the Commissioners, is in the following words: "Sir Ferdinando Gorges suffered in the cause of the King; wherefore he was discountenanced by the pretended commissioners for foreign plantations, and his Province encroached on by the Massachusetts Colony, who assumed the government thereof. His majesty that now reigneth sent over his Commissioners to reduce them within their bounds, and to put Mr. Gorges again into possession. But these falling into a contest about it, the Commissioners settled it in the King's name (until the business should be determined before his majesty) and gave commissions to the Judge of their court and the justices to govern and act according to the laws of England, and by such laws of their own as were not repugnant to them. But as soon as the Commissioners were returned for England, the Massachusetts enter the Province in a hostile manner with a troop of horse and foot, and turned the Judge‡ and his assistants off the bench, imprisioned the major or commander of the militia, and threatened the Judge and some others that were faithful to Mr. Gorges interest."§

Notwithstanding the apparent willingness with which most of

* See their Report on Massachusetts State files, or in Hutchinson's Massachusetts p. 240.

+ Charles II.

Henry Jocelyn.

§ John Jocelyn 's" Voyages." Neither the Commissioners' nor Jocelyn's

« SebelumnyaLanjutkan »