USA > Georgia > The history of Georgia, Volume II > Part 12
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success. But, my Lord, I fear it will be impossible to counteract or defeat the effect of the Pennsylvania Farmer's poison. . . . They now to the Northward not only deny the power of the British Parliament to tax them, but that they are subject to, or may be governed by any other laws whatever to which they have not given their consent, and 't is those things my Lord that cher- ish the spirit of Independency, and keep up the flame in the Southern Colonies.
" Much, with respect to the conduct of the people here, my Lord, I conceive, will depend on the notice taken of this by Gov- ernment or Parliament, as the controverted matters between Great Britain and America seem now to be at or near the crisis. And, my Lord, it is not to be expected that a reform is to be effected in America 'till it is at least begun in the Mother Country. The King, my Lord, has not a servant better disposed or more zeal- ously devoted to the support of his Majesty's just authority and the true sovereignty of Great Britain, or who will go greater lengths to do it than myself, but my Lord, what can a Governor do at present in America, where the voice of the people is so general and strong against the measures pursued in the Mother Country, and when some of the Colonies expressly deny the power and authority of Great Britain over them ? . . . I am des- titute of the means of support and protection either for myself or for those who are friends to government against any insults &c. that may be offered by mobs, &c., &c. And my Lord, I fear it
1 See letter dated Savannah in Georgia, 6 Aug. 1768.
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is vain for a Governor to expect to set the people right by reason- ing. A Demosthenes or a Cicero would spend his breath in vain, and it gives me the greatest concern to find that the sentiments and opinion I at first conceived and very early intimated, have been so strongly and fully supported by diverse events. But I then clearly saw that certain declarations, followed by the repeal of the Stamp Act and other indulgencies, instead of having the salutary and wished for effect, would only serve to encourage and convince the Americans of the rectitude of their claims and meas- ures, and that they were legal and constitutional : - at least such is their apprehension : - and I must crave your Lordship's par- don for saying that the disease, as I have observed, having been in some measure promoted and encouraged by the Mother Coun- try, I conceive the remedy and reform must come from thence likewise."
Mr. Wylly being absent upon the assembling of the legisla- ture, the Honorable Noble Wimberley Jones was elected speaker of the Lower House. In his opening speech the governor referred in terms of disapprobation to Mr. Wylly's reply to the commu- nication received from the speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, acquainted the assembly with the fact that his majesty regarded the measures therein proposed as dangerous and disloyal, warned the members against giving any countenance to those suggestions, and threatened the assembly with early dis- solution if it should attempt any formal sanction of them.
'The ordinary business of the session having been attended to, and such laws enacted as the necessities of the colony demanded, Mr. Wylly, on the 24th of December, 1768, laid before the House the letter from Massachusetts, and also one of like tenor from the Honorable Peyton Randolph, speaker of the Commons House of Assembly of Virginia. Having ordered them both to be en- tered on the journal, the House adopted the following resolu- tions : -
" Resolved, That from the inherent right of the subject to peti- tion the Throne for redress of grievances, a right allowed and confirmed by the Act of William and Mary, the said letters 1 do not appear to the House to be of a dangerous or factious ten- deney, but on the contrary, in the opinion of this House, only tend to a justifiable union of subjects aggrieved in lawful and laudable endeavors to obtain redress by an application founded upon and expressive of duty and loyalty to the best of Kings, a
1 From the assemblies of Massachusetts and Virginia.
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becoming respect for the Parliament of Great Britain, and an equitable and natural affection for our Mother Country, and arises from the tender and commendable attention of those Col- onies to the natural rights and liberties of the British subjects in America, and to which they are undeniably entitled upon the happy principles of our constitution.
" Resolved, That copies of this resolution be, by the Speaker of the House, transmitted to the Speaker of the House of Rep- resentatives of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and to the Speaker of the House of Burgesses in Virginia, and that they be acquainted by him that this House approves of the measures by them pursued to obtain redress of our common grievances, also of the method by them taken of communicating these measures to the other Provinces of the Continent.
" Ordered that the several proceedings and resolutions respect- · ing the said letters be published in the Gazette of this Province, and that the Clerk do furnish the printer1 with a copy of the same."
Informed of what had transpired, and mortified that his per- suasions and threats had proved of no avail in deterring the Commons House of Assembly from entering this formal indorse- ment of the Massachusetts and Virginia communications, Gov- ernor Wright addressed the House as follows : - " Mr. Speaker and Gentlemen of the Assembly.
"From the disposition that appeared amongst you at the open- ing of the Session I flattered myself that it would have been brought to a happy conclusion. It gives me great concern to find it now otherwise, and that you have disregarded the prin- cipal matter I had in charge from the King, and thereby missed a fair opportunity of cherishing the confidence his Majesty has in your affections. But by receiving and countenancing the Boston letter in the manner you have done, you have laid me under the necessity of dissolving you. You well know that more than ordinary pains have been taken to prevent this event. If any disagreeable consequences should attend it, you will have brought them upon the Province by a deliberate act, and it is you, and you only who will have to answer to your constituents.
" However you may have been influenced by the conduct of the other Provinces, be assured that your trne Liberty and pros- perity must depend upon the free and uninterrupted course of Law and Government under the support and protection of the
1 James Johnston.
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MESSAGE OF GOVERNOR WRIGHT.
Mother Country, and that you cannot possibly enjoy these inval- mable blessings without that protection and support. And how can you expect this or with what right can you pretend to it if you declare yourselves an independent people ? To me it ap- pears a flat contradiction to acknowledge the British Parliament to be the supreme Legislative power over the whole British Em- pire, (of which we are a part, ) and in the same breath to deny the power of that very Parliament over us. Nor can I see or admit the propriety of the Americans declaring that they ' cheer- fully acquiesce in the authority of the British Parliament to make laws for a necessary dependence and regulating the trade of the Colonies,' and at the same time denying its authority to make other laws, which I conceive to be a very loose and im- proper jumble or system of Government without any criterion but the mere caprice of the populace. I presume the authority of the Parliament must be full and complete, or it does not oper- ate at all.
" The distinction between internal and external taxes I con- crise, and said to be, a distinction without a difference. I said also that if it was granted to the Americans that they were not subject to be constitutionally taxed by Parliament, not being rep- resented there, then I apprehended the same reasons would hold in every case, and the same objection lie against every law made by Parliament to affect the Colonies. It seems absurd to say that the Colonies are not bound by Acts of Parliament imposing what are called internal taxes because they have not assented to such laws, not being represented in that Parliament, and at the same time to admit that they are bound by and subject to the laws made by the same Parliament. .
" I have declared that if America was to become independent of the Mother Country, from that day you may date the foundation of your ruin and misery.
" These were the sentiments I declared three years ago, and which I still retain, and I most ardently wish I had been able to prevail upon you to be so far of my opinion as to have paid due regard to his Majesty's expectations from you, and to have ob- served a more prudent conduct in that particular until the mat- ters of difference between Great Britain and the Colonies were clearly settled. But as things are circumstanced here, there is only one thing. for me to do, which is, by virtue of his Majesty's authority and in his name, to dissolve this Assembly, and I do necordingly dissolve the same."
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Thus did Governor Wright in the same breath argue, explain, regret, and prophesy. His action in dissolving the assembly was not unanticipated. That body had previously prepared this ad- dress : -
" To the King's most excellent Majesty.
" The humble address of the Commons House of Assembly of the Province of Georgia, 24th December, 1768.
" MOST GRACIOUS SOVEREIGN : -
" Your dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons House of As- sembly of Georgia, with the greatest humility beg leave to rep- resent to your sacred person the grievances this Province labors under by the late Acts of the Parliament of Great Britain for raising a revenue in America.
Equally attached by interest, principle, and affection for our Mother Country, we readily ac- knowledge a constitutional subordination to its supreme Legisla- ture. At the same time, with inexpressible concern, we much lament that by their imposition of internal taxes we are deprived of the privilege which, with humble deference, we apprehend to be our indubitable right, that of granting away our own prop- erty, and are thereby prevented from a ready compliance with any requisition your Majesty may please to make, and which to the utmost extent of our small abilities we have hitherto always most cheerfully obeyed.
"From your Majesty's equity, wisdom, and truly paternal regard for the rights and liberties of your subjects, however remote, we flatter ourselves with, and firmly rely upon, redress in this our unhappy situation ; and as we of this Province experience your Majesty's particular countenance and protection in our present infant state, for which we are impressed with the deepest sense of gratitude, so we most earnestly hope we shall also experience in general, with our sister Colonies on this occasion, fresh marks of your Majesty's royal Justice and attention to the supplications of your distressed subjects.
" We beg leave to assure your Majesty that none of your numerous subjects can or do more ardently wish and pray for a continuance of your most auspicious reign, and that your latest posterity may happily rule over a free, grateful, and loyal people, than your faithful Commons of Georgia.
" By order of the House. N. W. JONES, Speaker."
This memorial, in which a profession of loyalty and devotion to the king, a suggestion of grievances, an acknowledgment of constitutional subordination to Parliament, and an assertion of
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REMARKABLE LETTER OF GOVERNOR WRIGHIT.
reserved rights are strangely commingled, was by the speaker of the House forwarded over the head of the governor to Dr. Frank- lin, Georgia's agent in London, with instructions to present it to his majesty, and to unite with the agents of the other American colonies in an earnest effort to compass a repeal of those acts of Parliament which were deemed oppressive, and destructive of that harmony which should exist between England and her American provinces.
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The fate of this address is thus disclosed in a communication from the Earl of Hillsborough to Governor Wright : 1 "Dr. Franklin having delivered to me an address, to his Majesty, of the House of Commons of Georgia on the subject of the late Revenue Law, I have not failed to present it to the King: and tho' his Majesty considers the transmission of this Address through any other channel than that of his Governor as irregular and disrespectful, yet his Majesty has not weighed the contents with the less attention : but finding that it does both in the letter and spirit deny and draw into question the authority of Parlia- ment to enact laws binding upon the Colonies in all cases whatso- ever, bis Majesty has directed me to signify to you that he does on this account disapprove of this Address, being firmly re- solved to support the Constitution as by law established, and not to countenance any claims inconsistent with its true principles." Governor Wright's action in promptly dissolving the assembly was approved.
And here we make no apology for reproducing the following remarkable letter of the governor of Georgia to the Earl of Hills- borough, which has long lain in silence among the files of the Public Record Office in London. Written on the day Napoleon the First was born, it conveys a wonderfully accurate impression of the political aspects of the period, and abounds in sugges- tions most wise and statesmanlike. Had the British government maturely considered and adopted the views and advice contained in this communication, instead of leaving it unread for fifteen months, as appears by the indorsement, how different might have been the course of events in America !
" SAVANNAH IN GEORGIA, 15th August, 1769.
" MY LORD, - On the 7th inst I had the honor to receive your Lordship's letter of the 13th of May enclosing his Majesty's most gracious Speech at the close of the last Session of Parlia- ment, nad observe the satisfaction his Majesty expresses at the
1 Dated Whitehall, March 23, 1769.
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assurances given him by Parliament of their firm support in the prosecution of such measures in America as may best promote the execution of the laws and enforce the legislative authority of Great Britain over the Colonies ; and I should hope the peo- ple on this Continent, seeing the united concurrence and resolu- tion of every branch of the Legislature relative to America, and also the generous disposition of his Majesty and the Parliament towards them, would be induced cheerfully to submit to that su- preme and sovereign authority. And his Majesty may rely on my fullest and best explanation of his measures, and that I will, to the utmost of my power, endeavour to remove the prejudices which have been excited by the misrepresentations of the ene- mies to the peace and prosperity of Great Britain and her Colo- nies, and to reestablish that mutual confidence and affection upon which the glory and safety of the whole British Empire depend.
" And here, my Lord, permit me to observe that I am fully persuaded not a man in a thousand, or I believe I may say ten thousand, has the least spark of disaffection to his Majesty's per- son or his illustrious family. This I dare venture to say is not to be found anywhere either amongst the Americans born, or any other people of what Country or Nation soever. And I con- ceive that the opposition which has been given to government and the legislative authority of Great Britain has not proceeded from any spirit or principle of this sort, nor do I apprehend it to have proceeded from any dislike to monarchical government; al- tho' there may be some few of Republican principles in America, there being a good many of the descendants of the Oliverian Puritans &e scattered abont.
"But my Lord, the Americans are so clearly convinced that they are not represented in the British Parliament, and also are so enthusiastically possessed with an opinion that they cannot be constitutionally taxed by a Parliament in which they are not represented, or be subject to be taxed by laws to which they have not consented, I say my Lord, the many printed publica- tions and speeches in Parliament, together with the repeal of the Stamp Duty Law, &c, have so firmly fixed them in their opinion on this point, and of the rectitude of their measures since these unhappy disputes first took place, that I am fully persuaded they U never will be brought to change their sentiments or to acquiesce quietly under any tax or duty law. And my Lord, the partial relief proposed to be given in the next session of Parliament by the repeal or taking off the duties upon glass, paper, and colours,
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I humbly conceive will not answer any effectual purpose, and that the spirit of discontent and dissatisfaction will nevertheless continue and be as violent as ever, for the grievance complained of, whether real or imaginary, will still remain unredressed, and no new line drawn or established settling the power or right of Parliament to tax America, till which I fear there will be con- tinmal associations &e injurious to Great Britain as well as the Colonies, and which your Lordship has seen or will see has be- come almost universal, and the Americans will certainly be drove to observe strict economy and to manufacture everything they possibly can amongst themselves in prejudice to Great Britain. A more declaration of the right of Parliament to tax America will not now have any weight. There was a time my Lord, when that, and enforcing a particular law, (if it had been only for six months ), would have most effectually settled and established the point ; but believe me, my Lord, the time and the only time has been mised, and those things are considered not as the real and true sense of either Parliament or People, but as the effect of Ministerial influence, and some other mode will now be neces- sary for settling and bringing this matter to a point ; not force or troops which I conceive are of no use further than a few just to prevent riots, and support the Governors &c from public af- fronts and insults. I don't mention this as with respect to this Province, for I have received none since the Winter and Spring of 1765 and 1766, when I had my full share ; tho' I thank God we are now very easy, quiet, and happy ; and I believe the Peo- ple are convinced that my vigilance, activity, and firmness in op- posing their measures at that time, and enforcing the Stamp Act, proceeded from an honest principle and resolution to discharge my duty to his Majesty to the utmost of my power and to sup- port the Sovereignty and Honor of Great Britain.
"My Lord, my opinion has ever been, and is well known in this part of the World to be, that according to the present consti- tution the Parliament has an absolute right to bind the Colonies, and that America is and can be bound by every Act of the Brit- ish Parliament in all cases whatever, and that both the Parlia- mentary right and power, and the sovereignty of Great Britain, does extend to and operate fully and entirely in America, and this notwithstanding any claim of the Americans by any Charter or other kind of right whatever to the contrary. But my Lord thoughit or could be supposed that America would so soon, if
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ever, become that vast, populous, and opulent Empire or Domin- ion that it now is. May it not therefore my Lord, in point of true policy, as well as from motives and principles of equity and justice, now, from the present circumstances and situation of affairs, become expedient to make some alteration in the present Constitution relative to America ? But least what I have al- ready suggested may be considered as too presumptive in me, I shall forbear saying anything further, altho' my Zeal for his Maj- esty's service and the real happiness of both Great Britain and the Colonies strongly prompt me to proceed.
" I have the honor to be with great deference, my Lord, Your Lordship's most obliged and most obedt Servt JA: WRIGHT.
" To the EARL OF HILLSBOROUGH, &c. &c. (Endorsed) Read Nov' 7, 1770." 1
Parliament being still intent upon an enforcement of the acts of which the American colonies complained, and all petitions for redress having proved fruitless, the provinces resolved to take the matter in their own hands, and, by a suspension of commercial dealings with England, to work that change in the purposes of the administration which their remonstrances had failed to effect. Upon her colonial trade did the prosperity of England largely depend. Commercial non-intercourse, therefore, could not do otherwise than seriously affect the well-being of the mother country. The appeal to sentiment, affection, and right was aban- doned. The argument was now addressed to the pockets of the English people. The proposition was to import no articles what- ever which could be manufactured or produced at home, and to abandon the use of luxuries. To the merchants of Boston does the credit belong of suggesting this plan, " but the Assembly of Virginia, in June 1769, was the first Legislative Body which adopted resolves of non-importation which ere long were sanc- tioned by the other Colonies."
Georgians quickly recognized the advisability of the scheme, and earnestly sympathized in its consummation.
On the 16th of September, 1769, at a meeting of merchants convened at the residence of Mr. Alexander Creighton, in Sa- vannah, it was agreed that the late acts of Parliament, against which the Northern colonies had so unanimously remonstrated, "were unconstitutional, and that the taxes therein contemplated were inconsistent with the abilities of the American Provinces."
1 P'. R. O. Georgia, B. T., No. 32.
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Full sympathy was expressed with the other colonies upon the question of non-importation. Speaking for the interests of Georgia, the gentlemen then present affirmed that the sterling current money of the province, which, by act of the General Assembly, assented to by his majesty, was declared equal in value to the coin of the realm and a lawful tender for the pay- ment of all dues, having been refused when offered in payment of the duties imposed by the acts of Parliament, had been thereby greatly depreciated in value ; that in consequence of this refusal all the citizens of the province had suffered injury ; and that Georgia having been excluded from the benefit of the Spanish trade, by means of which specie was most readily procurable, and the recent acts imposing duties which were solvable only in gold or silver, the inhabitants of the province were, from the nature of the case, rendered incapable of responding to any call which the mother country might constitutionally make.
It was therefore resolved " That any person or persons what- soever importing any of the articles subject to such duties, after having it in their power to prevent it, ought not only to be treated with contempt but deemed enemies to their country : - it being a circumstance that need only be mentioned to any per- son inspired with the least sense of liberty, that it may be de- tested and abhorred."
Not long afterwards, at a called public meeting, the Honorable Jonathan Bryan being in the chair, the following resolutions, re- ported by a special committee, were agreed to and ordered to be published in the next issue of the " Gazette." 1
" We, inhabitants of Georgia, finding ourselves reduced to the greatest distress and most abject condition by the operation of several acts of the British Legislature by means whereof our property is arbitrarily wrested from us contrary to the true spirit of our Constitution and the repeatedly confirmed birthright of every Briton, under all these oppressions finding that the most dutiful and loyal petitions from the Colonies for redress of these grievances have not answered the salutary purpose we intended, and being destitute of all hope of relief from our multiplied and increasing distresses but by our industry, frugality, and economy, are firmly resolved never to be in the least accessory to the loss of any privilege we are entitled to :
" Therefore, we, whose names are hereunto subscribed, do sol- emnly agree and promise to and with each other that until the
" This was the only newspaper then printed within the limits of the province. VOL. II. 8
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said acts are repealed, we will most faithfully abide by, adhere to, and fulfill the following resolutions.
"I. That we will encourage and promote American manufac- tures, and of this Province in particular.
"II. That as the raising of Sheep for the benefit of wool will be of the utmost utility, we do therefore engage not to kill or sell any lambs that shall be yeaned, before the 1st of May in every year, to any butcher or other person who, we may have reason to think, intends to kill the same.
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