USA > Georgia > A history of Georgia : from its first discovery by Europeans to the adoption of the present constitution in MDCCXCVIII. Vol. II > Part 3
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The act was to take effect from the 1st November, 1765, yet, as neither the papers nor distributing officer had arrived, the Governor, by advice of his Council, on the 31st October, stopped the issue of all warrants and grants for land, and gave "let-passes" to the ves- sels, certifying the non-arrival of any stamped papers or officer in the province, while at the same time he wrote to the Board of Trade :-
" I am, my lords, under great difficulty with respect to the Stamp Act, not having received the act of Par- liament, or one scrape of the pen about it; nor is any stampt paper or officer yet arrived here. I fear, my lords, there has been an omission somewhere, relative
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to this matter, which embarrasses me greatly. The moment I receive the act, it shall be punctually ob- served, to the utmost of my power; but am very sorry to acquaint your lordships that too much of the rebel- lious spirit in the northern colonies has already shown itself here; indeed, for many months past, stimulated by letters, papers, etc., sent them from the northward to follow their example."
On the 5th of December, his majesty's ship Speed- well, Captain Fanshawe, with the stamps, arrived in the river, and the papers were secretly transferred to Fort Halifax, and placed under the care of the com- missary; for the "Liberty Boys," as they were then termed, had entered into an association to prevent the distribution of the papers, and to compel the officer to resign as soon as he arrived. To oppose these mea- sures, Governor Wright summoned all his energies, and labored day and night, in public and in private, and, by his commanding influence, ably seconded by his Council, was partially successful. Secret meetings, however, were often held, all business was stopped, and the province remained in a state of anxious agitation. Burdensome as the Stamp Act was felt to be by all the colonies, it was peculiarly oppressive to Georgia. "The annual tax raised here," says the excellent James Habersham (President of his majesty's Council, a true loyalist, but a true patriot), "for the support of our internal policy, is full as much as the inhabitants can bear; and suppose the stamps produce only one- eighth of what they would in South Carolina, it would amount to as much in one year as our tax laws will raise in three ; and perhaps we have not five thousand pounds, in gold and silver, come into the province in
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five years, though the act requires it in one. If this is really the case, as I really believe it is, how must every inhabitant shudder at the thought of the act taking place, which, according to my present appre- hension, must inevitably ruin them." It was not pos- sible, therefore, for the Georgians to remain passive under such exactions; for not only was the tax oner- ous in itself, but the act which levied it involved a question, on the issue of which depended the liberty or the slavery of America. It is a just remark of the profound Locke, " Men can never be secure from ty- ranny, if there be no means to escape it, till they are perfectly under it; and therefore it is, that they have not only a right to get out of it, but to prevent it;" and to prevent it the colonists were determined, or to perish in the attempt.
On the 2d of January, 1766, about 3 P. M., Cap- tains Milledge and Powell informed the Governor that nearly two hundred "Liberty Boys" had assembled together, threatening to break open the fort and de- stroy the papers. The Governor immediately ordered the two companies of rangers, numbering fifty-four men, to attend him, and marched to the fort, took out the stamps, placed them in a cart, and, escorted by the military, conveyed them to the guard-house. The people looked on in sullen silence ; but it was a silence which gave the Governor so much alarm, that for many days he kept a guard of forty men over his house, and during four nights was in such anxiety and fear, that he did not remove his clothes.
The next day, about ten o'clock, the Governor, by preconcerted signals, was made acquainted with the arrival of Mr. Agnus, the stamp distributer, at Tybee,
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and, fearing the rage of the citizens, immediately de- spatched an armed scout-boat, with two or three of his particular friends, who, with much secrecy and a charge to allow him to speak to no one, brought him to the Governor's house, on the 4th, where he took the required oath. But a few days' residence here, even with a guard mounted night and day, convinced Mr. Agnus of his insecurity, and in a fortnight he left the town.
Nor were these feelings confined to Savannah. The whole province was aroused; parties of armed men assembled in various places; society was convulsed, and its tumultuous heavings threatened general ruin and desolation. Then was exhibited in an eminent degree the zeal and energy of the Governor; and such was his resolution and weight of character, that for a time all rebellious proceedings ceased; so much so, that he wrote, on the 15th January, 1766, " Every- thing, at present, is easy and quiet, and I hope peace and confidence will be restored in general." A few days served to dissipate this hope. About the 20th, menacing letters were sent to Governor Wright. Pre- sident Habersham was waylaid at night, his new and well-stored house was threatened with destruction, and he was obliged to take refuge in the garrisoned mansion of the Governor. Towards the close of January, a body of six hundred men assembled within a few miles of the town, and intimated to the Governor that, unless the papers were removed, they would march to Savan- nah, attack his house and fort, and destroy the stamps. Immediately he sent the papers down to Fort George, at Cockspur Island, and placed them in charge of the rangers. But even this was not deemed sufficient security, and on the 3d of February, they were once
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more removed, and deposited on board the man-of-war Speedwell, which had brought them to the colony.
The next day the town was again alarmed, by the appearance on the common of between two and three hundred men, with arms and colors, clamorous for the redress of their grievances. The company of rangers was ordered up from Cockspur, and all the regulars and volunteers, together with a party of marines and seamen from the Speedwell, were marshalled for the defence of the town. For several hours the state of affairs was critical, and suspense added its harrowing influences to the trepidation of alarm. By evening, ยท however, nearly all the provincials had dispersed, though a few at night burned an effigy of the Go- vernor, holding in his hand the offensive circular of Secretary Conway, of the 24th October, 1765.
The situation of Mr. Wright was one of singular trial and difficulty. The province was on the verge of civil war, and one act of indiscretion would have plunged it into its ensanguined horrors. The whole military force of the colony consisted of two troops of rangers, of sixty men each, and thirty of the Royal American Regiment-in all one hundred and fifty men, officers and privates; who were distributed in five forts widely separated, and totally inadequate to sus- tain the executive authority. With this handful of soldiers, the Governor had to contend with faction and disloyalty, and so inefficient did he deem them, that he was on the point of writing to General Gage and Lord Colville for support.
On the arrival of the stamps there were between sixty and seventy sail in port waiting for clearance, and the necessities of the case seemed so urgent, that,
V
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though the people refused to use stamps for any other purpose, they consented to employ them to clear out their ships, by which means the port was opened, though the courts remained closed, and every species of judicial business was suspended. Such a course gave great umbrage to the other colonies, and par- ticularly to South Carolina. Governor Wright was termed by the Carolinians "a parricide," and Georgia " a pensioned government," which had " sold her birth- right for a mess of pottage, and whose inhabitants should be treated as slaves without ceremony." Nor did they stop at invectives; they resolved "that no provision should be shipped to that infamous colony," Georgia; "that every vessel trading there should be burnt;" and that "whosoever should traffic with them should be put to death;" and these were not idle threats; for two vessels, about sailing for Savannah, were captured before they had cleared Charleston bar, were taken back to the city, condemned, and, with their cargoes, destroyed.
But the injustice of these measures towards Georgia will be evident, when it is remembered, that through the irresolution of Governor Bull, the port of Charleston itself was open, under pretence that no stamped papers could be had, when in fact they were lodged, by his au- thority, in Fort Johnson, whence, overawed by the popu- lace, he dared not remove, nor did he dare to use them. Charleston, also, was a city of many thousand inhabi- tants, and its Governor hesitating or timorous; while Savannah had hardly as many hundreds, controlled by a chief magistrate whose energy and decision could neither be wearied by importunity, nor daunted by danger. Georgia, therefore, did not deserve the re-
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proach which Carolina cast upon her; for everything which a province similarly situated could do, was done ; and she rested not from her efforts until the repeal of the act, and a change of ministry brought with them temporary quiet and repose.
The course of Governor Wright, during these diffi- culties, was approved by the King; and though it was reported at one time that his conduct had given offence to his majesty, who had resolved to send over a Lieutenant-Governor to supersede him, yet the Earl of Shelburne assured him that this was untrue, "the King having no thought of recalling or superseding him."
The displacement of the obnoxious ministry in June, 1765; and the repeal of the Stamp Act, February 22d, 1766; removed, for a time, some of the causes of colonial discontent; and order and approval took the place of anarchy and opposition. The official an- nouncement of this repeal was received by the Governor on the 6th of July; and he immediately by proclama- tion convened the General Assembly, which met in Savannah on the 16th of the same month.
Addressing the Assembly, the Governor said: "I think myself happy that I have it in my power to congratulate you on this province having no injuries or damages, either of a public or private nature, with respect to property to compensate, and that you, Gen- tlemen of the Assembly, have no votes or resolutions injurious to the honor of His Majesty's Government, or tending to destroy the legal or constitutional depen- dency of the Colonies on the Imperial Crown and Par- liament of Great Britain, to reconsider ; I say, Gentle- VOL. II.
4
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men, these are points that give me, and I dare say must give you, the greatest satisfaction.
" When you consider the papers I shall now lay before you, I am persuaded your hearts must be filled with the highest veneration and filial gratitude, with a most ardent zeal to declare and express your grateful feel- ings and acknowledgments, and to make a dutiful and proper return, and show a cheerful obedience to the laws and legislative authority of Great Britain."
To this the Commons' House of Assembly returned the following answer: " We, His Majesty's most duti- ful and loyal subjects, beg leave to return your Excel- lency our sincere thanks for your affectionate speech. Hopeful as we were that no occasion would have offered of calling us together till the usual season of our meeting, yet it is with the highest pleasure and satisfaction, and with hearts overflowing with filial affection and gratitude to our most gracious Sovereign, that we embrace the opportunity now presented to us of expressing our most dutiful acknowledgments to the best of kings for his paternal and princely attention and regard manifested to his faithful subjects in these remote parts of his dominions, in graciously conde- scending to lend his royal ear to their supplications, and removing from them those evils they lamented. Nor can we sufficiently venerate and admire the mag- nanimity and justice of the British Parliament in so speedily redressing the grievances by them complained of."
" We cannot, indeed, but felicitate ourselves in that we have no injuries or damages, either of a public or a private nature, nor any votes or resolutions deroga- tory to the honor of his Majesty's government, or tend-
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ing to destroy the true constitutional dependency of the Colonies on the Imperial Crown and Parliament of Great Britain to reconsider."
" We will immediately proceed to take into our most serious consideration the papers laid before us by your Excellency, and we shall upon all occasions be ready to testify our loyalty to our king and firm attachment to our mother country."
Both Houses also united in the following loyal address to the king, couched in terms of almost abject servility, yet not exceeding the usual character of such papers at that period :
"To the King's most excellent Majesty, the humble address of both Houses of Assembly of the Province of Georgia.
Most Gracious Sovereign :
" We, your Majesty's loyal subjects, the Council and Commons of your Majesty's Province of Georgia, in General Assembly met, beg leave to approach your royal person with hearts full of the most dutiful affec- tion and gratitude. Influenced by principle and ani- mated by your Majesty's exemplary justice and pater- nal care in redressing the grievances of your faithful subjects in these remote parts of your wide-extended empire, with the deepest sense of your Majesty's royal clemency and goodness, we humbly offer to your most sacred Majesty our sincere thanks for the repeal of the late Act of the British Parliament, commonly called the American Stamp Act. Nor can we sufficiently admire the magnanimity and justice displayed by the British Parliament on this occasion. Permit us, dread sire, while we endeavor to express our gratitude to the best of kings for affording us so speedy and necessary relief, to assure your Majesty that we shall upon all occa-
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sions strive to evince our loyalty and firm attachment to your Majesty's sacred person and Government, being truly sensible of the advantage derived to us from the protection of our mother country ; and that it is, and ever will be, our honor, happiness, and true interest to remain connected with and dependent on the Imperial Crown and Parliament of Great Britain upon the solid basis of the British Constitution. That your Majesty's Illustrious House may continue to reign over a free, loyal, and grateful people, to the latest posterity, is, most gracious sovereign, our constant prayer, unfeigned wish, and our most sanguine hope."
Order once more prevailed, and the various avoca- tions and pursuits of industry were resumed with dili- gence and success, as will fully appear from a compa- rison, in a few points, with the condition of things some years back.
During the first quarter of a century of the colonial existence of Georgia, there was not even a wharf at Savannah. The few vessels which traded there were landed alongside of the bluff, and their cargoes dis- charged upon the sandy bank of the river.
The first wharf built in Savannah was constructed in 1759, by Thomas Eaton, under the direction of John G. Wm. De Brahm, Surveyor-General of the Southern Provinces of North America, and an engineer of distinguished attainments. De Brahm says, in his report upon the Province of Georgia, that he advised the builder " to drive two rows of piles as far asunder as he desired his wharf to be wide, and as far toward the river as low-water mark, secure their tops with plates, and to trunnel planks within on the piles. This done, then to brace the insides with dry walls of stones
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intermixed with willow twigs. In the same manner to shut up the ends of the two rows with a like front along the stream, to build inside what cellars he had occasion for, then to fill up the remainder with the sand nearest at hand, out of the bluff or high shore of the stream under the bay."
"This plan," he says, writing many years later, " has been followed ever since to this day."1
The next year, 1760, the number of vessels which entered at the custom house, was forty-one, but in 1766, there were one hundred and seventy-one.
The population in 1760 was 6100 whites and 3600 blacks; but in 1766, notwithstanding the ravages of the small pox, two years before, there were 10,000 whites and 8000 blacks.
There were no manufactures in the colony, for they were rigorously disallowed in all the provinces; but commerce and agriculture were carried on with much zeal, and with the reward usually attendant upon all well-directed industry. Governor Wright, who had travelled extensively through the province, speaks en- thusiastically of it, as " the most flourishing colony on the continent;" and in a letter to the Earl of Hillsbo- rough, he assured him, that "it was certain, beyond a doubt, that this province has, must, and will, make a rapid progress, and in a few years will make as con- siderable a figure as most on the continent." Address- ing the Earl of Shelburne, he thus forcibly states the advancing condition of Georgia :
" On Governor Ellis's departure from hence, on the 2d of November, 1760, I took upon me the govern-
1 De Brahm's Province of Georgia, p. 45, Wormsloe, 1849.
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ment of this province; and at that time, my lord, from the returns of the militia officers and the best information I could get, the whole number of white people throughout the province, men, women, and children, amounted only to 6000 (and I had after- wards reason to think there were not so many) ; of which number there was about sixty men belonging to his majesty's independent companies, and two troops of rangers, consisting of five officers and seventy pri- vate men each, and the foot militia amounted to 1025; and now, my lord, by a very careful inquiry from every part of the province, the white people amount to 9900, or say 10,000, of which 1800 are effective militia. We have still the two troops of rangers; but the inde- pendents are broke, and we have only thirty Royal Americans.
" When I came, the return made me of negroes in the province amounted to 3578, but which I soon found greatly exceeded the real number then in the province; and now, my lord, we have at least 7800.
" In 1760, they exported, as appears by the custom- house books, only 3400 lbs. of rice, and in 1765, though a short crop, 10,235 lbs. In the year 1761, we loaded only 42 sail of sea-vessels; and the last year we loaded 153, and, on an average, of much greater burden.
"Our crop of rice this year will be short for the quantity planted, owing to the excessive rains and inundations that we had in the spring and fore part of the year.
" The Royal Americans and rangers here, my lord, garrison and do duty at seven different places, viz. : 20 of the Royal Americans at Fort Augusta, about
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150 miles by land up this river; also, 30 of the rangers in the town of Augusta. The other 10 Royal Americans are at Frederica, about 80 miles south of the town. 25 rangers at Fort Barrington, on the Al- tamaha River, about 65 miles from hence ; 15 at Fort Argyle, on Ogeechee River, 20 miles from town; 19 at Fort George, near the entrance of this river; and the rest here at Savannah. So that your lordship sees how they are scattered about; but I conceive it to be the most useful manner in which such an handful of men can be employed here.
" We have no manufactures of the least conse- quence : a trifling quantity of coarse homespun cloth, woollen and cotton mixed; amongst the poorer sort of people, for their own use, a few cotton and yarn stock- ings; shoes for our negroes ; and some occasional blacksmith's work. But all our supplies of silks, linens, woollens, shoes, stockings, nails, locks, hinges, and tools of every sort, etc., etc., etc., are all imported from and through Great Britain. We have no kind of illicit trade carried on here, and our whole strength and attention is employed in planting rice, indigo, corn, and peas, and a small quantity of wheat and rye, and in making pitch, tar, turpentine, shingles, and staves, and sawing lumber and scantling and boards of every kind, and in raising stocks of cattle, mules, horses, and hogs; and next year I hope some essays will be made towards planting and making hemp. And every- thing here, my lord, is going on extremely well, and the people in general well disposed, except some few re- publican spirits, who endeavor to inculcate independ- ency and keep up jealousy and ill blood, a small spe- cimen of which your lordship will perceive by the
-
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inclosed paper. I think it is my indispensable duty to give your lordship every information that may tend to his majesty's service, or that his ministers ought to know. Your lordship may be assured I shall perse- vere in my utmost endeavors for his majesty's service, and that I shall, in every respect, discharge my duty as I think a faithful servant and an honest man ought to do.
" The spirit that prevailed here, and our transac- tions with respect to the Stamp Act, your lordship may see by my letters to Mr. Secretary Conway. Amazing to think, what a propensity to faction, sedi- tion, and almost rebellion, there appeared, even in this infant colony ; although I must do them the justice to say, they did not think of it till spirited on by our northern neighbors, who never let them rest or gave them time to cool."
CHAPTER VI.
LEGISLATIVE TROUBLES.
THE restoration of order by the repeal of the Stamp Act, was, as Governor Wright well expressed it, " but' a temporary calm." On the 6th of January, 1767, Captain Philips, commanding the Royal Americans in South Carolina and Georgia, wrote to the Governor, stating the barrack necessaries he required, and desir- ing to know where he could procure them. The Gov- ernor sent the letter with a message to the Assembly, on the 20th, but the House replied " they humbly conceive their complying with the requisition would be a violation of the trust reposed in them by their constituents, and founding a precedent they by no means think themselves justifiable in introducing," and the Governor finding them inflexible, and that compliance with the terms of the "Mutiny Act" was to be expected, had the mortification to transmit their proceedings to His Majesty's ministers.
This Act of Parliament for quartering troops upon the Americans, and making them answerable for the means of their subsistence and transportation, was but another phase of the plan of taxation, and under what- ever form such a principle was avowed, it could never be countenanced or sustained by Americans.
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The British Constitution solemnly guaranteed to every man the property which he had honestly ac- quired; and left the disposal of it to his own choice, with which neither corporations nor government could interfere without his consent, expressed by himself, or his accredited representative. If the Americans could be taxed without their agreement by any laws, of what- ever name; or if soldiers could be quartered in their houses without their consent, it was a palpable viola- tion of the indefeasible birthright of a British subject ; and justified the language of the Massachusetts As- sembly to their agent, that, "if they were taxed with- out representation, they were slaves." It was in truth making the Americans "tenants at will of liberty," a tenure from which they were liable to be ejected at any moment, and which reduced them from the condi- tion of free subjects to a state of ignominious vassalage.
Nor would the condition of things have been much altered, had the King and Cabinet been of a lenient temper; it was the principle which the colonists con- tended for; and they justly reasoned, with Cicero, that though the sovereign did not oppress and tyrannize, the condition of his subjects was still miserable; that he had the power if he but exercised his will.
This repudiation of the Mutiny Act was followed by a refusal to comply with a clause appended, at the sug- gestion of the Governor and Council, to two bills grant- ing ferries, and providing for the free carriage of post- men according to the Statute 9th Ann. ch. 10, sec. 29, because they would not seem to adopt or submit to an Act of Parliament.
When the Assembly displaced Mr. Knox as agent of the colony, the Governor desired the House to
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