USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > History of Boston, the metropolis of Massachusetts, from its origin to the present period; with some account of the environs > Part 31
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As soon as this determination of the Company was known, a number of American merchants, then in London, petitioned
* These letters were originals, which had been obtained in England through the instru- mentality of Dr. Franklin, as it afterwards appeared, (News-Letter, March, 1774,) and for- warded to Mr. Bowdoin.
t MS. account of the proceedings of the E. I. Co. relative to the exportation of tea to America, 1773. pp. 262.
The first tea that paid the American duty arrived in 1768 : from that time to Nov. 1773, there had been entered at Boston, 3092 chests. A chest was estimated 340 pounds wt.
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very greedily for the privilege of receiving the consignments or furnishing vessels to convey the tea. Jona. Clarke, of the firm of Richard Clarke and Sons, of Boston, obtained the fa- vour for his house, and the friends of Benja. Faneuil jr. and Joshua Winslow, and those of Elisha and Th. Hutchinson jr. obtained similar privileges for them.
All these facts became known in Boston early in October, and several caucus meetings were held, ' in various parts of the town, of a large number of persons, to consult and con- clude on some method to prevent the execution of the Com- pany's plan.' About one o'clock on the morning of Tuesday, the 2d of November, the Messrs. Clarkes were roused out of sleep by a violent knocking at their door, when a letter was delivered to them, purporting to be from the freemen of this province, requiring them to appear at Liberty Tree, at 12 o'clock on Wednesday, to make a publick resignation of their commission as consignees of the tea. On Tuesday, there was a notification to the freemen of this and the other towns, to attend to witness this resignation. On Wednesday the bells began to ring at 11, and continued ringing till 12 o'clock, and the town crier went through the streets summoning the peo- ple to assemble. About 500 collected ; (the selectmen were present to prevent disorder ;) but the gentlemen consignecs did not appear. A committee was therefore appointed, con- sisting of Mr. Molineux, Mr. Wm. Dennie, Dr. Warren, Dr. Church, Major Barber, Mr. Gabriel Johonnot, Mr. Proctor, and Mr. Ezekiel Cheever, to expostulate with them on the high insult they had cast upon the people, and demand their signature to a paper, obligating theinselves not to land or pay duty on any tea sent by the E. I. C. . The assembly then accompanied the committee to the store of Messrs. C. & Sons, at the lower end of King-street, where all the consignees were assembled, and waited for their answer ; which not being satisfactory, some little indignity was offered to them, but the people were soon persuaded to disperse, without doing any essential injury.
The next day a town meeting was notified, to be held on the 5th, when the consignees were called upon by the Town to resign their appointments ; but they still refused to do it, on the ground 'that they knew not on what terms the tea would be sent to them, nor what obligations of a moral or pe- cuniary nature they might be under to fulfil the trust.' The meeting was adjourned to the 6th, when these answers were voted to be daringly affrontive to the town, and the meeting immediately dissolved. On the 17th, Mr. Jonathan Clarke arrived, and at night the town was disturbed by an assem- blage around his father's house, in School-street. A pistol was fired from the windows, which in return were saluted
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with stones, but no personal injury appears to have been done to any one.
The consignees threw themselves upon the Gov. and Coun- cil for protection ; and, after having the subject under dis- cussion for ten days, the Council could only advise His Ex. to order the justices, sheriff, and other officers of the law, to exert themselves to the utmost for the preservation of the pub- lick peace. The consignees and custom-house officers there- upon took refuge in the Castle.
During this time all was expectation. At length, on Sun- day, Nov. 28, the ship Dartmouth, Capt. James Hall, arrived, with 112 chests of the tea. The next morning, the following notice was widely circulated :
Friends, Brethren, Countrymen !
That worst of plagues, the detested TEA, shipped for this port by the East India Company, is now arrived in this har- bour. The hour of destruction, or manly opposition to the machinations of Tyranny, stares you in the face. Every friend to his country, to himself and to posterity, is now called upon to meet at Faneuil-Hall, at nine o'clock, this day (at which time the bells will ring) to make a united and successful re- sistance to this last, worst, and most destructive measure of administration.
Boston, Nov. 29, 1773.
This notification brought together a vast concourse of ' THE PEOPLE of Boston and the neighbouring towns,' at the time and place appointed. Jona. Williams of B. was cho- sen moderator. The first step of this meeting was to confirm the resolve of the town, that the tea should ' be returned to the place from whence it came, at all events.' It then appear- ing, that the Hall could not contain the people assembled, it was voted to adjourn to the Old South (leave having been obtained for this purpose.) There it was further resolved, that ' the tea should not only be sent back, but no duty should be paid thereon.' Then, to give time to the consignees to prepare a communication to this body, the meeting was ad- journed to 3 P. M. In the afternoon, Capt. Hall, and Mr. Francis Rotch, the owner of the Dartmouth, were convented and charged not to land the tea at their peril. A watch of 25 persons, under direction of Capt. Edw. Proctor, was ap- pointed to prevent the landing of the tea in the night. Cen- sure was passed on the Governour for an order he had issued to the law officers. An excuse was then offered by Mr. Hancock, in the name of a friend of the consignees, for their delay ; and, ' out of great tenderness' to them, the meeting was adjourned to nine o'clock the next morning.
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HISTORY OF BOSTON.
Tuesday, Nov. 30th, the Body met, according to adjourn- ment, and received a letter from the consignees, informing that their orders had arrived from the E. I. C. and stating, that it was entirely out of their power to send the tea back, but that they were willing to store it, until they could send to England for further advice. Before the assembly had time to express their indignation at this communication, Mr. Sheriff Greenleaf came into the meeting, and ' begged leave to read a letter he had received from the Governour,' requiring him to read a proclamation to the people here assembled ; which was granted and done. 'Whereupon it was moved and the question put, whether the sheriff should be permitted to read the proclamation, which passed in the affirmative, nem. con.' It was an order ' forthwith to disperse and surcease all fur- ther unlawful proceedings, at their utmost peril. And the same being read by the sheriff, there was immediately after a loud and very general hiss.'-And the question being put, whether the assembly would disperse, &c. according to the Governour's requirement, it passed in the negative, nem. con.
There was another meeting in the afternoon, when, after ineffectual conference with Mr. Copley, the friend of the con- signees, Captain Hall, and the owners and factors of the Dartmouth and the other vessels expected, were put under solemn injunction not to land a particle of the Tea. Captain Ezekiel Cheever was appointed to command the watch this night, and provision was made for a watch ' the following nights, until the vessels leave the harbour.' If the watch should be molested in the night, the bells were to be tolled, or rung if any thing happened in the day time. Six persons were ap- pointed ' to give notice to the country towns, when they shall be required so to do, on any important occasion.'
Resolutions of gentle censure were then passed against those who had inadvertently imported tea from G. B. while subject to a duty, and followed by another, which declared whoever should hereafter import, until the said unrighteous act shall be repealed, an enemy to this country. Then it was ' Voted, that it is the determination of this Body to carry their votes and resolutions into execution, at the risk of their lives and property.' Provision then being made for the disposal of the expected vessels, and thanks from those of the Body belonging to Boston to their brethren from the neighbouring towns, and to the moderator for his good services, the meeting was dissolved.
On the first of December, Capt. James Bruce, in the ship Eleanor, arrived with another portion of the tea. On the 3d he was ordered to attend the next day, on a committee of the people, in Faneuil-Hall, where he was commanded by Samuel Adams and Jonathan Williams, assembled with John Rowe,
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John Hancock, Wm. Phillips, and John Pitts, esqrs. and a great number of others, not to land any of the said tea, but to proceed to Griffin's whf. and there discharge the rest of his cargo. Capt. Hez. Coffin arrived in the brig Beaver, near the same time, and was ordered to pursue the same course.
It being perceived, that Mr. Rotch rather lingered in his preparations to return the Dartmouth to London, and the twenty days being nearly expired, after which the collector might seize the ship and cargo, Mr. R. was summoned before the committee, and stated to them, that it would prove his en- tire ruin, if he should comply with the resolutions of the 29th and 30th of November, and therefore he should not do it. A meeting of the people was assembled at the Old South, on Tuesday p. m. Dec. 14th, when Mr. R. appeared, and was enjoined forthwith to demand a clearance. It was ascertain- ed, that one could not be obtained till the next day, and there- fore the meeting was adjourned to Thursday at the same place.
On Thursday, there was the fullest meeting ever known : 2000 men at least were present from the country. Samuel Phillips Savage, esq. of Weston, was appointed moderator. Mr. Rotch reported, that the collector would not give him a clearance. He was then ordered upon his peril to get his ship ready for sea this day, enter a protest immediately against the Custom house, and proceed directly to the Governour, (then at Milton, 7 miles distant,) and demand a pass for his ship to go by the Castle. An adjournment to 3 P. M. then took place. At three having met, they waited very patiently till five o'clock, when finding that Mr. Rotch did not return, they began to be very uneasy, called for a dissolution of the meeting, and finally obtained a vote for it. But the more judicious, fearing what would be the consequences, begged for a re-consideration of that vote, ' for this reason, that they ought to do every thing in their power to send the tea back, according to their resolves.' This touched the pride of the as- sembly, and they agreed to remain together one hour.
This interval was improved by Josiah Quincy jr. to ap- prize his fellow citizens of the importance of the crisis, and direct their attention to the probable results of this contro- versy. He succeeded in holding them in attentive silence, till Mr. Rotch's return, at three quarters past five o'clock. The answer which he brought from the governour was, 'that, for the honour of the laws, and from duty towards the king, he could not grant the permit, until the vessel was regularly clear- ed.' A violent commotion immediately ensued. A person who was in the gallery, disguised after the manner of the Indians, shouted at this juncture the cry of war : it was answered by about thirty persons, disguised in like manner, at the door. The meeting was dissolved in the twinkling of an eye. The multitude rushed to Griffin's wharf. The disguised In-
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dians went on board the ships laden with the tea. In less than 2 hours, 240 chests and 100 half chests were staved and empti- ed into the dock. The affair was conducted without any tu- mult : no damage was done to the vessels or to any other effects whatever.
This was executed in the presence of several ships of war lying in the harbour, and almost under the guns of the castle, where there was a large body of troops at the command of the commissioners. We are left to conjecture for the reasons why no opposition was made to this bold adventure. The names of the men, who dared to engage in it, have never been made publick. Three or four of them are yet living. They had the honour of a part in the act, which brought the king and parliament to a decision that America must be subdued by force of arms.
CHAPTER LI.
" Well, let them come,
And to the fire-eyed maid of smoky war All hot and bleeding we will offer them."
THE reception, which the news of this transaction met in En- gland,may readily be anticipated. It produced an instantaneous determination, that 'as the people of Boston had notoriously struck the first blow,' it should be returned with the full force of ministerial vengeance. 'Delenda est Carthago,' said one member of the House of Commons, 'the town of Boston ought to be knocked about their ears and destroyed. ( I am of opinion, you never will meet with that proper obedience to the laws of this country, until you have destroyed that nest of locusts.'
A vast majority of parliament was of the same mind, and the king, on the 31st of March, 1774, gave his assent to the Boston Port Bill ; by which it was enacted, that, from and after the first of June, the landing and discharging, lading or shipping of goods at the town, and within the harbour of Boston, should be discontinued. Information of the passage of this bill was received on the 10th of May. On the 13th, the town was called together upon the subject, and passed the following vote :
VOTED, That it is the opinion of this town that if the other colonies come into a joint resolution to stop all importations from G. B. and exportations to G.B. the same will prove the
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salvation of N. America and her liberties. On the other hand, if they continue their exports and imports, there is high reason to fear that fraud, power, and the most odious oppression will rise triumphant over right, justice, social happiness, and freedom. And ordered, That this vote be transmitted by the Moderator to all our sister colonies in the name and behalf of this town.
It happened that Gen. Gage arrived here on the same day from England, with the commission of Governour and Vice- Admiral of the Province, Mr. Hutchinson having received permission, at his own request, to come to England .* > Gov. Gage stopped a day or two at the castle, and provision was made by the Council that he should be received with military honours' at the end of Long-wharf, and thence escorted to the State-house,t and a publick dinner be prepared on the oc- casion.' H. E. met the two houses in assembly on the 26th of May, and in his speech advised them to despatch the busi- ness of the session as speedily as possible, because it was made his duty to remove the court to Salem on the first of June. When that day arrived, the court was accordingly adjourned ; and at twelve o'clock, at noon, all business ceas- ed in the Custom-house of Boston, and the port was shut against every vessel that offered to enter. The next day, an arrival from England brought the intelligence, that the bills were before the parliament, which immediately after became acts, whereby the charter of the province was completely subverted, and the administration of justice to criminal offen- ders transferred from the province courts to courts in England.
These things bore heavily upon Massachusetts, and particu- larly upon Boston, but her citizens did not sink under the weight of them. Confiding in the sympathy of their country- men, already loudly expressed, the Boston Committee of Cor- respondence framed a Solemn League and Covenant, whereby all that signed it bound themselves from henceforth to suspend all commercial intercourse with G. Britain, until a restoration of their charter rights. This League was sent to every part of the province ; and, in despite of a proclamation from Gov. Gage, denouncing the authors of it, and cautioning all persons to beware of entering into this traitorous combination, thou- sands put their names to it, and faithfully complied with its obligations.
The air of Salem was no less propitious to Liberty than that of Boston. The Court, after entering a protest against their
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* The Privy Council had acted on the petition against Hutchinson and Oliver, and pro- nounced a judgment of acquittal.
t It is observable, that this building has been variously called, the Town-house, Court- house, State-house, old State house, or old Town-house. It belongs now to the city.
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removal, proceeded to make arrangements for the choice of Delegates to the Continental Congress, to be held on the first of September at Philadelphia. On the 17th of June, they elected for this purpose Messrs. Bowdoin, Cushing, S. and J. Adams, and Robert Treat Paine. Gov. Gage could suffer this spirit to progress no farther : on that day he dissolved the court by proclamation.
Boston soon began to suffer under the operation of the Port Bill : all business was at a stand, the poor were thrown out of employment, and the means of subsistence became en- hanced in price, from the rigour with which the Commission- ers executed the act. The town could hardly have support- ed the affliction, if assistance and encouragement had not been afforded her from all quarters. Donations of all sorts of pro- visions were forwarded for the use of the poor, and employ- ment was found for many of them at the town's expence.
The solemnity of these sad times was heightened by the occurrence of a Fire, on Wednesday, Aug. 10th. It. broke out between 10 and 11, P.M. in a large brick dwelling-house, belonging to Mr. Milliken and Mrs. Campbell, in Fish-street, five or six doors north of Mountfort's corner, at the foot of North-square. The lower part of the house was in flames be- fore the distressed tenants were apprized of it. Several es- caped out of the windows, some naked and much burnt, and five others perished in the flames, three women and two small children. The house was entirely consumed with part of a bake-house. The inhabitants speedily assembling, with their usual dexterous management happily put a stop to the further progress of the flames. Earl Percy politely offered the ser- vices of some soldiers, who could be depended upon, but was informed that the regulations of the town rendered their as- sistance unnecessary.
In the course of June, July, and August, troops had been constantly arriving, and the Governour had them employed in the construction of barracks, and the erection of fortifica- tions on the neck. The town's people would afford no assist- ance in these works, and H. E. was obliged to send to other places for suitable persons to perform that part of the work, which the soldiers did not understand. On the first of Sep- tember, 200 troops in 13 boats went from Long-wharf up the Mystick river, landed at Temple's farm, and took from the powder-house on Quarry-hill, 212 half-barrels of powder, be- longing to the province. A detachment from the same corps went to Cambridge and brought off two field-pieces. This excursion caused a great alarm, and by the next day, several thousand people were assembled in arms, in the vicinity of Cambridge. Finding no armed foe to combat, they laid aside their muskets, and went in a body to the houses of several 38
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individuals, who had taken part on the side of government, and compelled them to recant and forswear all concern in any offices under the law for altering the charter. The same thing was done so effectually in all the other counties, that Gov. Gage had scarcely a mandamus counsellor left to give him advice, except the few that resided in Boston under his protection. The jurors also refused to serve under judges subservient to the crown, or paid by salary from the king, and the province was thus left almost in a state of anarchy.
The new Charter, so to call it, made it unlawful that any town meetings should be held, except the March and May meetings, without the previous approbation of the Governour, and H. E. had informed the selectmen of Boston, that he should insist on a compliance with this regulation. Instead, therefore, of meeting in Boston, the people of the county of Suffolk assembled at Dedham, on the sixth of September, and thence adjourned to Milton, where, on the 9th, they pass- ed a set of spirited resolutions, which were forwarded to the Congress then sitting in Philadelphia. Congress unanimously approved them and recommended them for universal adop- tion .*
Gov. Gage was pleased to issue His Majesty's writs for con- vening a General Assembly at Salem, on the fifth of October. But finding from the many tumults and disorders that were taking place, and ' the instructions given by the town of Bos- ton and some other towns to their representatives,' that it would be highly inexpedient to convene a general court at that time, he prorogued the same indefinitely by proclama- tion, on the 28th of September. The representatives, howev- er, appeared, and after waiting a day for the Governour's no- tice, on the 7th of October they resolved themselves into a Provincial Congress, and chose a chairman and clerk, John Hancock and Benjamin Lincoln, and adjourned to meet at Concord, on the 11th of the month. Dr. Warren, Dr. Church, and Mr. Nath'l Appleton, together with the representatives, composed the Boston delegation to this assembly.
The Provincial Congress continued in session to the 29th of October, during which time they proposed to the people to take measures for an efficient organization of the militia and the supply of the town stores with ammunition. They also appointed a treasurer and receiver general, in the room of Mr. Gray; and advised all persons to refrain from paying the publick monies to the latter. They also denounced the man-
* The law against town-meetings was obviated in Boston by adjournment of the May meeting and the Boston Port-bill meeting from time to time. In this way, meetings were continually held, until the next March meeting in 1775.
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damus counsellors as rebels against the state. For these and other offensive acts, Gov. Gage denounced the congress by proclamation, as an unlawful assembly, with whose recom- mendations it would be dangerous for any person to comply. This, however, did not deter the same persons from meeting .. again in December, and pursuing similar measures of prepa- ration for defence, and also for the execution of the plans of the Continental Congress. They created a body, termed the Committee of Safety, which became the real executive of Massachusetts. These were elected anew at every session, and were empowered generally to watch over the safety of the commonwealth, and advise the Congress of such measures as they thought beneficial, and especially to assemble such of the militia as they judged necessary, and station them where they deemed it most conducive to the defence and ser- vice of the colony.
On the 19th of December, the people of Boston were some- what enlivened by news from .Portsmouth, N. H. that a party of the people of that province, on the 15th, attacked the fort at Newcastle, scaled the walls, disarmed the captain and his men, took possession of 97 barrels of powder, with upwards. of 60 stands of small arms, and 16 pieces of cannon, and conveyed them to a safe place in the country. The acqui- sition made a partial offset to the loss at Cambridge. Gov. Wentworth, with some propriety, proclaimed the act to be ' in open hostility and direct oppugnation of His Majesty's government.' Affairs were evidently approaching to a crisis in the vicinity of Boston. Exertions were made with the ut- most solicitude to procure the arms and ammunition, recom- mended by the provincial congress. As these articles were principally held in Boston, the inhabitants employed all their address to transport them to places of safety in the country, by deceiving the guard stationed upon the neck. Cannon, balls, and other implements of war, were carried through the fortification gates, in carts apparently loaded with manure ; powder in the baskets or panniers of the market men ; and cartridges were concealed in candle boxes.
At the close of the year 1774, Gov. Gage had under his command, in Boston, eleven regiments, besides four compa- nies of artillery. Five hundred men were on duty every day. The behaviour of the troops was generally peaceable : some of the officers were gentlemen of the first standing in society, and there appears hitherto to have been no disposition on their part to countenance any licentiousness.
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CHAPTER LII.
The army broken, And but the backs of Britons seen, all flying, Through a strait lane, the enemy full hearted, Chickens the way which they stooped eagles. Shakspearc.
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