USA > Massachusetts > Berkshire County > Pittsfield > The history of Pittsfield (Berkshire County), Massachusetts, from the year 1734 to the year 1800 > Part 34
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Among the Berkshire patriots, the belief became very early fixed that the British dominion over the Colony would never be re- stored ; and it alarmed them that no disposition was shown by the General Court to ascertain the will of its constituents with regard to a new constitution. They deemed it evidence of a design to usurp power, that after the circumstances which might have been held by some to justify the advice given by Congress had ceased to exist, and even after that advice had been practically revoked, a determination was manifest at Boston to still build upon this undermined foundation, and with the most rotten material of the Provincial ruins.
Against this wrong, which appeared a very gross one from the Berkshire stand-point of 1775, Mr. Allen, in the fall of that year, took the field with even more than his accustomed ardor, resolved to agitate for a change until it should be effected ; and, from that
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time forward, he was "restless in his endeavors " to that end, until, in 1780, Massachusetts obtained a Bill of Rights the most nearly perfect which had ever been constructed, and a Constitution which, although some of its provisions conflicted with his ultra-demo- cratie notions, as a whole commanded his approbation, and which, having the sanction of that authority to which he always bowed, - the will of the people freely expressed, - he held to be entitled to the full allegiance of every good citizen.
During the four years of that contest, the Pittsfield minister was the apostle in Berkshire of constitutional government and democratic ideas ; visiting every town, and urging his views every- where by specches, sermons, resolutions, conversations, and letters. His success was remarkable. A large majority of the people acceded to his doctrines. The towns and county conventions adopted resolutions, addresses, and memorials in accordance with them, and often drafted by him; while most of the committees of inspection were remodelled in order to secure vigor in prosecuting the measures adopted by his advice.
It is a conspicuous proof of the power of Mr. Allen's carnest- ness, eloquence, and personal consideration, that a single address by him was sometimes sufficient to revolutionize the entire senti- ment of a town against the wishes of its own most prominent citi- zens, and that his teachings impressed upon the people of Berk- shire political characteristics which remain strongly marked to this day; for it was in this fiery campaign, rather than in his sub- sequent political career, that he had the opportunity to inculcate those enduring principles whose deep root among these hills, and wide-spread influence wherever the sons of Berkshire have found a home, are ascribed to him by those most familiar with the intel- lectual history of the county. In argument, he was logical, and not unskilled in the subtler arts of oratory. In appeal, he was vehement and carnest; impassioned often to a degree that car- ried him to extremes in his expressions concerning opponents, and to something like exaggeration in his denunciation of measures. Righteous indignation was not greatly tempered by any thing in the composition of his mind. Exaggerated denunciation was, however, a fault of the day; and it is to Mr. Allen's credit, that in his papers we find none of that coarseness of epithet, or vulgarity of invective, which disgraced the pages of many of his contempo- raries. His blade, if trenchant, was at least polished.
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The first town action in the agitation for a constitution, of which we find a record, although some must have taken place earlier, was on the 26th of December, 1775, when the following memorial was adopted : 1 -
The Petition, Remonstrance, and Address of the Town of Pittsfield to the Honorable Board of Councillors and House of Representatives of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, in General Assembly, now sitting at Watertown.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR HONORS, -
The inhabitants of the town of Pittsfield, unalterably attached to the liber- ties of their country and in the fullest approbation of Congressional measures, with all humility, deference, and candor, beg leave to manifest the painful anxieties and distresses of our minds in this definitive crisis, not only in be- half of ourselves, but of this great and powerful Province, and declare our abhorrence of that constitution now adopting in this Province. Nothing but an invincible love of civil and religious liberty for ourselves and future posterity has induced us to add to your accumulated burdens at this great period.
Our forefathers left, the delightful abodes of their native country, and passed a raging sea, that in these solitary climes they might enjoy civil and religious liberty, and never more feel the hand of tyranny and persecution ; but that despotic, persecuting power which they fled reached them on these far-distant shores, the weight of which has been felt from their first emigra- tion to the present day. After the loss of the charter of this Province in the reign of Charles the Second, a popish tyrant, a new one was obtained, after the Revolution, of King William of glorious memory, which was lame and essentially defective, and yet was of great value for the support of tol- erable order till we had grown up to our present, strength to seck that by force of arms which was then unjustly denied us.
The nomination and appointment of our governors by the king has been the source of all the evils and calamities that have befallen this Province and the united Colonies. By this means, a secret poison has been spread throughout all our towns, and great multitudes have been secured for the corrupt designs of an abandoned administration. Many of these men, who had drank of this baneful poison, could not be confided in to aid and assist their country in the present contest ; which was one reason for the necessity of a suppression of government.
At this door all manner of disorders have been introduced into our consti- tution, till it has become an instrument of oppression and deep corruption, and would probably, had it been continued, have brought upon us an eternal destruction.
The want of that one privilege of confessing judgment in cases of debt
1 This memorial, in the handwriting of Mr. Allen, is preserved in the State archives.
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has overwhelmed great multitudes in destruction, and afforded encouragement to our mercenary lawyers to riot upon the spoils of the people.
We have been ruled in this county for many years past with a rod of iron.
The tyranny, despotism, and oppression of our fellow-subjects in this county have been beyond belief. Since the suppression of government, we have lived in peace, love, safety, liberty, and happiness, except the disorders and dissensions occasioned by the Tories. We find ourselves in danger of returning to our former state, and of undergoing a yoke of oppression which we are no longer able to bear.
We have calmly viewed the nature of our ancient mode of government, its various sluices of corruption, the danger and effects of nominating to office by those in power, and must pronounce it the most defective, discord- ant, and ruinous system of government of any that has come under our observation. We can discern no present necessity of adopting that mode of government so generally reprobated by the good people of this Province, or which will inevitably be so as soon as the great rational majority of the people have had time for proper reflection.
The adopting this mode of government to the length we have gone has, in our view, been hasty and precipitate. It was surprising to this town, and directly contrary to the instructions given to their representative. By this means, a considerable number of incurable enemies to a better constitution have been made; and, if ever adopted by the people, we shall never, perhaps, be able to rid ourselves of it again.
We have seen nothing done by the Continental Congress which leads us to conelnde that they would limit us to this mode of government. We do not know of their having given us any advice that must necessarily be con- strued in opposition to what they gave the governments of New Hampshire and South Carolina, who, if they think it necessary, are to choose such a form of government as they in their judgment shall think will best promote the happiness of the people, and preserve peace and good order, during the present dispute with Great Britain.
Certainly the Continental Congress could have no intention of forcing upon us a constitution so detested by the people, and so abhorrent to common sense, and thus to reward us for our unparalleled sufferings. We have been led to hope for new privileges, which we still hope to obtain, or remain, so far as we have done for some time past, in a state of nature.
We have with decency and moderation attended to the various argu- ments of those gentlemen lately created our rulers ; particularly we have heard it urged as the advice of the venerable Continental Congress. We have sufficiently attended to that and the various other arguments in favor of re-assuming our ancient constitution, and are of opinion there is no such advice, the qualifying expressions leaving ample room to new-model our con- stitution ; but, if there is, we are of opinion that unlimited passive obedience and non-resistance to any human power whatever is what we are now con- tending with Great Britain, and to transfer that power to any other body of men is equally dangerous to our security and happiness.
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We choose to be known to future posterity as being of the number of those who have timely protested against the re-assumption of this discordant constitution, and shall be restless in our endeavor that we may obtain the privilege of electing our civil and military officers. We assure your Honors that some of those who have been appointed to rule us are greatly obnox- ious to people in general, especially those who have protested against the just proceedings of a Congress lately held in Stockbridge. We beg leave further to assure your Honors that a court has been held in this town in a clandestine manner, and great dishonor hereby done to the dignity of ma- gistracy.
We therefore pray your Honors to issue out your orders to the good people of this Province, that their votes may be collected in the election of a gov- ernor and lieutenant-governor to act in concert with the Honorable Board and House of Representatives; after which we pray that every town may retain the privilege of electing their justices of the peace, and every county their judges, as well as the soldiers of every company of militia their officers. If the right of nominating to office is not vested in the people, we are indifferent who assumes it, - whether any particular persons on this or the other side of the water.
When such a constitution is formed, you'll find us the most meek and in- offensive subjects of any in this Province; although we would hope, in such a case, that the wisdom of our rulers would not admit of collecting private debts for the present, as we imagine that measure would be of great detri- ment to our common cause, as it would put much money into the hands of our enemies, and create divisions among ourselves.
But, if this just and reasonable request is denied us, we pray that, as we have lived in great love, peace, and good order in this county for more than sixteen months past, in the most vigorous unintermitted exertions in our country's cause, that you would dispense with a longer suspension of this ancient mode of government among us that we so much detest and abhor. The government of our respective committees is lenient and efficacious; but if it is necessary, for carrying into more effectual exertion the means of com- mon safety, that some mode of government should be adopted, we pray that it may be de novo, agreeable to that fore-mentioned advice of the Continen- tal Congress, and no more of our ancient form be retained than what is just and reasonable. We hope, in the establishment of such new constitution, that regard will be had for such a broad basis of civil and religious liberty, as no length of time will corrupt as long as the sun and moon shall endure.
And as in duty bound will we pray.
Per order of the town, ISRAEL DICKINSON, Town Clerk.
N. B. - Upon the foregoing premises, and on account of obnoxious per- ยท sons being appointed to rule us, the court of this county of Quarter Sessions is ordered to desist from any future sessions.
Our resolves may be seen at Mr. Thomas's, which we entered into at the same time this petition was accepted by the town.
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No record of the Congress at Stockbridge remains, and the Pittsfield resolutions are also lost: so that it is not known what measures they directed in order to exclude the new civil adminis- tration from the county; but their spirit may be inferred from the quaintly audacious postscript to the Pittsfield memorial, and from the subsequent action of the people. It was certainly rec- ommended by one, and resolved by the other, effectually to resist the holding of the county courts, and the exercise of the magis- tracy by those who had lately received commissions signed by " a majority of the council," and running in the name of the king against whose authority their soldiers were fighting.
The justices of the Sessions, before the plans of the people were ripe, had made haste to hold a secret meeting, at which they had transacted business, so far at least as to license certain innholders, who paid six shillings each to the pockets of the justices for papers which proved worse than useless; for the towns, which had assumed the powers of this court, not only refused to recognize the validity of its licenses, but in many cases would not be per- suaded to replace them with their own, - rigidly excluding from the honorable fraternity of Bonifaces the favorers of the new government as well as the friends of the king.
The next court appointed to be held was the term of the quarter sessions at Pittsfield on the last Tuesday of February, 1776; and, until the near approach of that day, it seems that public sen- timent was not, in all the towns, ripe for obstructing the sitting; for Col. Ashley and others, in a petition to the next April session of the Legislature, asserted that the people of Richmond, having, only a short time previous, voted to sustain the government, Mr. Allen, on Sunday evening, Feb. 18, delivered them an address, " which, together with his private exhortations, had the desired effect, and the people were influenced to the degree the preacher designed."
It may perhaps be well to note, that, although an odor of sanctity, derived from its proximity to the " sabbath," pertained to Sunday evening with the New-England fathers, it was not "holy time" in the sense which the evening of Saturday was; but, if it had been otherwise, it is by no means certain that Mr. Allen would have considered it profanation to devote it to the defence of a cause which he held to be holy.
On the day previous to that fixed for the court, the several
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committees of inspection, &c., met at Pittsfield, summoned, as Col. Ashley charged, by Mr. Allen and his associates, to hinder the session from taking place. "Mr. Allen," continues Ashley, " al- though not a member of the convention, appeared as the chief agitator and spokesman, and, having read a pamphlet entitled ' Common Sense,' as his text, made great reflections upon the General Court as his doctrine and improvement, after which he produced a large number of resolves, by himself previously com- piled, which were put and voted by a majority of those present."
Paine's " Common Sense" had been issued from the press in Philadelphia three months previous to this convention ; and it had evidently powerfully impressed Mr. Allen, confirming and advan- cing his opinions of republican polity.
Adapted as it was, by the clearness and vigor of its style, to ready popular comprehension, it was a shrewd device in those days, when the circulation even of political tracts was limited, to read and enlarge upon it in an assembly of leading politicians from all parts of the county. The old meeting-house under the elm that day sent out one of those influences of which it was prolific, and which are felt to this day in every nook and corner of Berkshire. It is likely enough, too, that, in addition to laying down and applying general principles, Mr. Allen may have said severe things of the Great and General Court, being more than ever convinced, that, having assumed power without sufficient warrant, it intended to perpetuate it.
The influence of these harangues seems to have been as powerful with the people as with the convention ; for Col. Ashley goes on to inform us that they "were so much influenced that no court was suffered to sit, and all commissions of civil officers upon which hands could be laid were taken away." The gentle- men of the Sessions went home unincumbered by the spoils of office, and holding that the county was reduced to a state of anarchy and confusion. The convention called it "a state of nature." It was, in fact, the somewhat arbitrary rule of town- meetings and revolutionary committees ; something very different, to be sure, from the beneficent operation of established laws, but far removed also from anarchy, and that confusion which a relapse to unrestrained nature would entail.
The story of the Courts of Common Pleas throughout the Commonwealth does not show so much haste in re-establishing
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the tribunals specially designed for the protection of property as, according to the Provincial Congress, the direful circumstances of the Province demanded. In all the eleven counties of the State, except Worcester, impediments of one kind or another seem to have prevented the machinery of those courts from going into immediate operation ; although in all, except Berkshire and Hampshire, commissions to the new judges were issued in Octo- ber, 1775.
In Worcester, the court sat promptly on the 5th of the ensuing December ; in Suffolk, in April ; and in Middlesex, in May, 1776. In Plymouth, there is no record of any terms held by the judges first appointed ; and those appointed April 10, 1777, did not take their seats until December of that year. Dukes was without a Court of Common Pleas until March, 1777; and Nantucket until 1783. The records of Essex, Barnstable, and Bristol are imperfect, but indicate more or less delay.
New judges for Hampshire were commissioned about the first of January, 1778, and probably took their seats in the course of the same year. No new commissions were issued for Berkshire until Feb. 26, 1779, when Col. John Ashley of Sheffield, John Bacon of Stockbridge, Col. William Whiting of Great Barrington, and Col. John Brown of Pittsfield, were appointed, but never attempted to hold courts.1 The impediments to the courts in Hampshire were identical with those existing in Berkshire: although in the former county they yielded to the promise of a constitution; in the latter, only to its actual establishment. How far delay in the other counties, or in any of them, indicated a public sentiment similar to that which prevailed in Western Massachusetts, we have not at hand the means of ascertaining ; but it would have been very strange if in no other part of the State the opponents of the Congressional scheme had been ready to adopt the measures of those in the west, with whom they sym- pathized in feeling.
In Berkshire, the ordinary channels of justice, obstructed, as we have seen, when the king's judges were crowded from their seats at Great Barrington in 1774, were not re-opened until the re-organ- ization of the judiciary under the constitution of 1780; so that for six years no courts were held in the county. During the inter-
1 Washburn's History of the Judiciary of Massachusetts.
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regnum, the local authorities preserved public order, and restrained crimes against person and property, far from perfectly, it is true, but less imperfectly than was to have been expected; and the want of the civil courts was not so severely felt in business re- lations as it would have been in communities with larger and more complicated mercantile interests.
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CHAPTER XIX. THE BERKSHIRE CONSTITUTIONALISTS (CONTINUED).
[1775-1780.]
Pittsfield challenges legislative Attention to its Recusance. - Second Memorial. - Congress practically revokes its Advice. - Berkshire demands a Constitution, which the General Court neglects to provide. - Projected Constitution of 1777. - Pittsfield accepts it in Part, but the State rejects. - The Non-constitutionalists memorialize. - Their Statement. - The Legislature appeals to the People of Berkshire. - Consegnent Action. - Vote of the Towns still excluding the Courts. - The County petitions for a Constitutional Convention. - Strong Language of the Petition. - The Legislature passes an act of Pardon and Oblivion. - Pittsfield denounces it as uncalled for and libellous. - The Legis- lature informs Berkshire of Measures towards complying with its Demands. - The County nevertheless excludes the Courts until the Constitution shall be actually adopted. - Final Memorial to the Legislature. - Instructions of Pittsfield to its Delegate in the Constitutional Convention. - Newspaper Libels. - Conclusion.
W HATEVER may have rendered tolerable the lack of civil government in Berkshire, the General Court could not have passed over in silence the flagrant rebellion existing there against its own authority, which had not only been brought formally to its notice by the memorial of Col. Ashley, and by the complaint of Justice Goodrich, who had been roughly handled by the Pittsfield committees for attempting to act under its commis- sion, but had been boldly announced by the town for the very purpose of challenging the attention of the legislature.
A joint committee was therefore appointed to visit Pittsfield, and inquire into the causes of complaint, but did not do so; the desired information having come from other sources, among which the following paper from a Pittsfield town-meeting was prominent : -
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TO THE HONORABLE COUNCIL AND THE HONORABLE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF TIIE COLONY OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY MET AT WATERTOWN, MAY 29, 1776.
The petition and memorial of the town of Pittsfield in said Colony humbly showeth, -
That they have the highest sense of the importance of civil and religious liberty, the destructive nature of tyranny and lawless power, and the absolute necessity of legal government to prevent anarchy and confusion.
That they, with their brethren in the other towns in this county, were early and vigorous in opposing the destructive measures of British adminis- tration against these Colonies; that they early signed the non-importation league and covenant, raised minute-men, agreed to pay them, ordered their public moneys to be paid to Henry Gardner, Esq., receiver-general, cast in their mite for the relief of Boston, and conformed in all things to the doings of the Honorable Continental and Provincial Congresses.
That they met with the utmost opposition from an unfriendly party in this town in every step, in every measure they pursued agreeable to the common councils of this Continent, which nothing but the most obstinate persever- ance has enabled them to overcome and surmount, which, together with the inconveniences we have labored under, afford the true reason why we have been so behind in the payment of our public taxes.
That they, with the other towns in this county, have come behind none in their duty and attachment to their country's cause, and have exerted them- selves much beyond their strength on all occasions.
A fresh instance of their zeal was conspicuous in our late defeat at Quebec, when a considerable number of men were raised and sent off in the dead of winter, and lay dying of sickness before the walls of Quebec, before any one man from this Colony had so much as left his own habitation for the relief of our distressed friends in Canada.
That from the purest and most disinterested principle and ardent love for their country, without selfish consideration, and in conformity with the advice of the wisest men in the Colony, they ordered and assisted in suspending the executive courts in this county in August, 1774.
That on no occasion have they spared either cost or trouble, without hope of pecuniary reward, vigorously and unweariedly exerting themselves for the support and defence of their country's cause, notwithstanding the most violent discouragements we have met with from open or secret enemies in this town and county, and in the neighboring Provinces.
That, till last fall, your memorialists had little or no expectation of obtain- ing any new privileges beyond what our defective charter secured to us.
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