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Credit and emitting the same upon Loan. This Act will, if confirmed by His Majesty, be an useful Act, as such a Medium of Commerce begins to be wanted, on Account of great Quantities of Paper Money, which had been struck & circulated during and since the late War, being now called in, and sunk agreeably to the Acts of Assembly for that Purpose. It will besides enable the People to part with their Gold and Silver for Remittances to England, and the Assembly to make a more adequate Allowance to the Officers of Government out of the Interest, which will amount to Five Thousand Pounds a Year. Both the Council and I tried to get the Assembly to appropriate in the Bill a certain Part of the Interest towards paying the Salaries of Officers during the Continuance of the Act, and for building Houses for the Residence of the Governor and the Meetings of the Legislature, of which there is a shameful Want in this Province; but they would not consent to any other Appropriation than what is contained in the Bill, i, e, making the Interest Money Subject to the Disposition of future Acts of the whole Legislature. Some of them however in their private Capacities, declared that in case the Bill should be confirmed, they would be very willing to augment the Salaries, and to provide for the building of such Houses, out of that Fund. Most of the Gentlemen of the Council are notwithstanding of Opinion that if this Act was disallowed on Account of its not containing such special Appropriations, and some Intimations given that it would have been confirmed had it been different in that respect, the Assembly, rather [than] not obtain so beneficial a Law, would consent to pass a Bill conformable to the proposed Alterations. But it did not appear altogether proper for me to refuse the Bill on this Account, as it was tendered with a Suspending Clause, and as the two adjoining Provinces, New York & Pennsylvania, have each of them lately obtained Acts of a similar Nature.

The other Act which has a Suspending Clause, is an Act for the Relief of Abner Hetfield an Insolvent Debtor, the Reasons for Passing of which are truely set forth in the Preamble, and are such as it is hoped will induce His Majesty to confirm it.

There are only two other Acts which need any particular Notice. One of them is to oblige the Treasurers of the Colony to give Security for the due Execution of their Offices, and the other is to authorize the present Treasurer of the Eastern Division to bring an Action against the late Treasurer of the said Division for the sum he alledges to have been stolen from the Treasury. The first of these was necessary, as there was no Law before for the Purpose; but the second seemed to me to be entirely needless, as I look'd upon the Attorney General to be fully authorized by his Office to file an Information for the Recovery of the Money, and that that was the proper and legal Method to be taken in this Case. However, as the Attorney General happened to be the Brother of the late Treasurer, and as a Majority of the Council as well as of the Assembly were of Opinion that there were some peculiar Circumstances in the Case, which made such a Law proper, and there being several Precedents of Laws of the like Nature being passed on similar Occasions, in this and the neighbouring Colonies, I gave it my Assent on being assured by the late Treasurer that neither he nor his Council learned in the Law had any Objection to it. The Particulars of what passed in the Privy Council respecting these two Laws may be seen in the Minutes of the 9th & 10th of March last, to which I beg leave to refer your Lordship.

I have the Honor to be, with the greatest Respect and Regard,

My Lord, Your Lordship's most obedient
& most humble Servant
W FRANKLIN

Letter from Governor Franklin to the Earl of Dartmouth, transmitting certain resolutions adopted at a meeting of the freeholders and inhabitants of Essex County, aiming to bring about a Congress of deputies from all the Colonies.

[From P. R. O. America and West Indies, Vol. 177 (195).] BURLINGTON June 28th 1774

Rt. Honble the Earl of Dartmouth

My Lord

I have just received a Copy of some Resolves entered into at a Meeting of a Number of Freeholders and Inhabitants of the County of Essex, in this Province, on Saturday last, which I think it my Duty to transmit to your Lordship. The Meeting was occasioned, it seems, by an Advertisement requesting the Attendance of the Inhabitants on that Day, and published in one of the New York papers, and signed by two Gentlemen of the Law who reside in that County. I have likewise had an Application made to me, by some of the Members of the House of Representatives, to call a Meeting of the General Assembly in August next, with which I have not nor shall not comply, as there is no public Business of the Province which can make such a Meeting necessary. It seems now determined by several of the leading Men in most if not all of the Counties in this province to endeavour to follow the Example of the Freeholders in Essex. Meetings of this Nature there are no Means of preventing, where the chief Part of the Inhabitants incline to attend them. I as yet doubt, however, whether they will agree to the general Non-Importation from Great Britain which has been recommended. Their principal

Aim seems to be to bring about a Congress of Deputies from all the Colonies, as proposed by Virginia, and that that Congress should not only apply to His Majesty for the Repeal of the Boston Port Act, but endeavour to fall upon Measures for accommodating the present Differences between the two Countries, and preventing the like in future. It is indeed thought by many of the Friends of Government here, that a Congress if properly authorized by His Majesty, and consisting of the several Governors, & some Members of the Council and Assembly in each Province, would be productive of the most beneficial Consequences to the British Empire in general, more especially if they were assisted by some Gentlemen of Abilities, Moderation and Candour from Great Britain commissioned by His Majesty for that Purpose. There has been, indeed, an Instance of Commissioners being sent over to settle Matters of far less Importance to the British Interest, than those now agitated, which are, perhaps, worthy of more Attention and Consideration than any Thing that has ever before concerned Great Britain. At present there is no foreseeing the Consequences which may result from such a Congress as is now intended in America, chosen by the Assemblies, or by Committees from all the several Counties, in each of the Provinces.

I have the Honour to be, with the greatest Respect and Regard,

My Lord, Your Lordship's most obedient
and most humble Servant

W FRANKLIN

Copy of the Resolves of the Freeholders of the County of Essex in New Jersey June 11th

1774

At a meeting of the Freeholders & Inhabitants

of the County of Essex, in the Province of New Jersey, at Newark in the said County, on Saturday the 11th June 1774

This meeting taking into Serious consideration some late alarming measures adopted by the British Parliament, for depriving his Majesty's American Subjects of their undoubted and constitutional rights and privileges, & particularly, the act for blockading the Port of Boston, which appears to them, pregnant with the most dangerous consequences to all his Majesty's dominions in America: do unanimously resolve and agree,

I. That under the enjoyment of our constitutional privileges and immunities, we will ever cheerfully render all due obedience to the crown of Great Britain, as well as full faith and allegiance to his most gracious Majesty, King George the third: and do esteem a firm dependance on the mother country, essential to our political security and happiness.

II. That the late act of Parliament relative to Boston, which so absolutely destroys every idea of safety and confidence, appears to us, big with the most dangerous and alarming consequences; especially, as subversive of that very dependance, which we would earnestly wish to continue, as our best Safe-guard and protection: and that we conceive, every well-wisher to Great Britain and her Colonies, is now loudly called upon to exert his utmost abilities, in promoting every loyal and prudential measure, towards obtaining a repeal of the said Act of parliament and all others subversive of the undoubted rights and Liberties of his Majesty's American Subjects.

III. That it is our unanimous opinion, that it would conduce to the restoration of the liberties of America, should the Colonies enter into a joint agreement not to purchase or use any articles of British Manufactory;

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