1724. May.

and in May, 1724, Sir Philip Yorke, afterwards Lord Hardwicke, and Sir Clement Wearg made the reply which, at a later day, impressed itself deeply on the mind of Lord Mansfield. "If Jamaica is to be considered as a colony of English subjects, they cannot be taxed but by the parliament of Great Britain, or some representative body of the people of the island." On the question that had been raised in Massachusetts, the same great lawyers gave a calm report, deciding every question against the colony, yet not encouraging harsh measures of redress. The Duke of Newcastle evaded the true issue. Leaving the despised instructions respecting revenue to remain unaltered, he ventured, on the power of the assembly to choose its speaker and to adjourn itself, to make such explanations of the charter of Massachusetts as the assembly were willing to accept; the arrears of salary due from that refractory people to the fugitive Shute he settled by a pension out of the revenue of Barbados, which thus found out how unwise it had been in granting the crown a permanent revenue.

1726.

In May, 1726, the New York assembly, which had been continued more than eleven years, came together in ill-humor. Burnet had sedulously endeavored to obtain payment of Horatio Walpole's sinecure; to prevent its payment in future, the assembly, in their periodical grant settled what offices were necessary, and limited their emoluments. Morris, whose annual grant as chief justice was reduced, questioned the conduct of the assembly as an invasion of the prerogative; to that body, of which he was himself a member, he denied all "innate power," deducing their privilege of legislation from the king's good-will alone. And he appealed to the ministry against the "example, mischievous to the rest of the plantations, and of tendency to shake off dependence on the British government."

Burnet was distinguished for his fidelity to his employers; but, on the accession of George II., his merit did not prevent his transfer to the less desirable government of Massachusetts.

1728.

To the government of New York, at the very time when the ministry were warned that "the American

assemblies aimed at nothing less than being independent of Great Britain as fast as they can," Newcastle sent the igno rant and intemperate John Montgomery. Weak and sluggish, yet kindly and humane, the pauper chief magistrate had no object in America but money; and being the most bashful man in the colony, aud diffident of himself, he escaped strife in New York and New Jersey by never resisting their assemblies.

1728.

Nov.

While Burnet with a heavy heart repaired to Massachusetts, Sir William Keith, formerly surveyor of the customs for the southern department, afterwards governor of Pennsylvania for nine years, then a fiery patriot, boisterous for liberty and property, by which he meant more paper money, was used as the organ in London for suggesting a new plan of colonial administration. None of the plantations, he held, could "claim an absolute legislative power within themselves, none could evade the true force of any act of parliament affecting them." To give unity and vigor to the colonial government, he repeated the advice of the board of trade to make its first lord a secretary of state; and, as a measure for a revenue, submitted to the king the inquiry, "whether the duties of stamps upon parchment and paper in England may not, with good reason, be extended by act of parliament to all the American plantations." The suggestion, which probably was not original with Keith, met at the time with no favor from the commissioners of trade. Meanwhile, Burnet, who honestly and single-handed obeyed his instructions, demanded of the Massachusetts legislature a stated annual salary. The legislature refused to modify the constitution by relinquishing any part of their power over the annual appropriations; and, by forbidding their adjournment, the governor sought to weary them into an assent. The rustic patriots scorned "to betray the great trust reposed in them by their principals." Burnet hinted that the parliament of England might be invoked as arbiter of the strife, and the charter of Massachusetts be dissolved by its act. The representatives at once appealed to their constituents, transmitting a statement of the controversy to the several towns in the colony. Boston, in

1728.

town-meeting, with Jonathan Belcher as moderator, unanimously applauded the refusal to fix a salary. To Oct. 24. escape the influence of that town, the general court was adjourned to Salem. In vain did Burnet strive to force the legislature into compliance, by arbitrarily subjecting them to inconvenience. They sent Belcher as their patriot envoy to plead their cause in England. At the same time, Burnet again and again begged for the interposition of parliament, to "rebuke the daring encroachments on the

prerogative," to "resent the conduct of the insuffer1729. ably arrogant;" and, in March, 1729, he declared to Newcastle "that some of the British forces would be necessary to keep the people of his province within the bounds of their duty." To make "the people respect the government," it was proposed "to send an independent company to take possession of the fort in the harbor of Boston." Cosby, of New York, wrote to Newcastle that "the Boston people were spirited up by Pulteney and that faction at home."

Massachusetts defended itself openly without disguise. Its able counsel, Fazakeley and Sayer, argued that it was right for the governor and colonial officers to depend for

their support on the good-will of the provincial legisMay 22. lature. But in May, 1729, the privy council, in the

presence of Queen Charlotte, agreed that such dependence weakened the royal authority, "by bringing the whole legislative power into the hands of the people ;" and they concurred with the board of trade in advising the king "to lay the whole matter before the parliament of Great Britain."

The board of trade reproved the conduct of the house; the agents of Massachusetts advised concession, lest parliament should interfere; but the representatives answered: "It is better that the liberties of the people should be taken from them than given up by themselves." In a public letter to Burnet, Newcastle assumed an air of firmness, which deceived no one; and, having done all he could to intimidate, in a private letter of June, 1729, the secretary permitted him, " as if of his own motion," to demand only

"an allowance during his own government," leaving victory to the strong will of Massachusetts.

The assembly received the opinion of the privy council with "the utmost insensibility." "Their principles of independence," wrote Burnet, in July, "are too deeply rooted to be managed by any thing but the legislature of Great Britain." And, exhausted by the conflict and heartbroken by poverty, he died suddenly of an accidental injury in the following September.

The field was now open for Newcastle's favorite policy. The colonial agent, the sly, shrewd Belcher, whose piety was of the most perfect pattern of observance, whose quiet cunning could smooth every obstacle to his interest, returned from his embassy with a commission to govern Massachusetts and New Hampshire. His patron, Lord Townshend, the other secretary of state, whose grandson was within twenty years to engage in the same questions, asked if Belcher could influence the people to comply with the instructions. The ministry were already assured from Boston that there was "not the least prospect " of such a result. And the instructions, which Newcastle had neither the vigor to enforce nor the good sense to annul, continued to expose the royal authority to contempt.

The ministry wished that "extremity might be avoided." The board of trade were already familiar with the opinion that Massachusetts "should be placed under a different form of government; " that its "people were as ripe for rebellion now as their ancestors had been in 1641;" that 66 every concession was attributed to fear;" yet in August, 1731, Newcastle permitted the governor to accept, in lieu of a standing salary, arbitrary grants from the legislature.

The victory revived a new struggle. Instead of leaving money to be issued on the warrant of the governor and council, the house demanded the right to dispose of all money; and, to effect their purpose, withheld all support for a period of nineteen months. The attention of the ministry was arrested. The crown lawyers, Sir Philip Yorke and Sir Dudley Ryder, saw in the conduct of the assembly a "design to assume the executive power of gov.

1733. May.

ernment, and to throw off their dependence on Britain." The people of Massachusetts, confident that their conduct "had endeared them to all lovers and asserters of liberty," were so infatuated with reliance on the patriot party in the house of commons, that in May, 1733, their agents entreated that body to "become intercessors with his majesty to withdraw the royal orders relating to the issuing and disposing of the public moneys, and also those restraining the emission of bills of credit, as contrary to their charter, and tending in their nature to distress, if not ruin them." The ministry seized the advantage so rashly offered. The house of commons might set its own power above the prerogative, but would never make an alliance with a restless colony against the king. After debate, the petition was dismissed, as "frivolous and groundless, a high insult upon his majesty's government, and tending to shake off the dependency of the colony upon the kingdom, to which by law and right they ought to be subject." The board of trade, proceeding to frame a plan of taxation by parliament, inquired "what duties might be laid in New England with the least burden to the people." Yet the ministry of that day, like the ministry of Queen Anne, avoided a decision; and, in 1735, Belcher was allowed to accept an annual vote of a stipend, though the board still thought it "better policy for the king to establish a standing salary out of the revenue of the colonies." But the spirit of the people was not changed; we know from Charles Wesley, who was in Boston in 1736, that the general language was: "We must shake off the yoke; we never shall be a free people till we shake off the English yoke." Meantime, Belcher confessed himself disposed to let the assembly "do the king's business in their own way, if they would do it in a generous manner; " with no instruction as to the fashion, but that given by the Duchess of Kendall to the goldsmith when the late king promised her a set of gold plate: "Make them thick and get them done out of hand."

In New York, the council "perceived the force of popularity daily increasing;" "the representatives, since Mont