USA > Maryland > Maryland, two hundred years ago, a discourse > Part 6
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" Ample was the boon He gave them, in its distribution fair And equal ; and he bade them dwell in peace. Peace was awhile their care ; they plowed and sowed, And reaped their plenty without grudge or strife."
His Lordship's new conditions of plantation, intended par- ticularly for these settlers, but addressed also " to all people in general," were received in the province late in October, 1649, and with them came the startling news of the execu- tion of Charles, the downfall of the monarchy, and the estab- lishment of a commonweath. Mr. Thomas Greene, who was then acting as Governor, during the temporary absence of Capt. Stone, regardless of the remonstrances of the Secre- tary and the opposition of the Council, and in defiance of an
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act of Parliament, making it treason to recognize any person as king of England, proclaimed Charles II. the lawful suc- cessor of the decapitated monarch. That this act was not unacceptable to a large portion of the inhabitants, is quite probable ; yet there was undoubtedly a strong party, and among thein the recently arrived settlers at Providence, ' S/. ... whose sympathy with Parliament must have rendered such a recognition exceedingly unpalatable.
In January of the following year, Governor Stone, having /. .. : returned to the province, summoned an Assembly, to discuss his Lordship's letter, received during his absence, and to consider the body of laws, which he had again transmitted, with an expression of his belief, that upon more deliberate and careful examination, the members would be better satis- fied with them ; and, instead of its being necessary for him to urge their adoption, they would rather entreat him to favor them with his assent.
Of this Assembly, which came together carly in April, 1650, Mr. James Cox, one of the two burgesses sent from. " Providence, was elected Speaker; which shews that their members were men of ability, and that the Parliamentary interest was strong in the House. The number of burgesses in the lower House was thirteen ; of whom eight? certainly _ were Protestants.
The legislation of this session touches upon each of the three points which I have already enumerated, as forming the principal sources of difficulty with which the Proprietary had to contend from the commencement of his colony; and shews that, by his firmness, tact, and perseverance, he had appar- ently overcome the principal obstacles that had stood in the way of his complete success. The very first act of the Assembly was one, "prohibiting all compliance with Capt. William Claiborne, in opposition to his Lordship's right and dominion." That indefatigable opponent of the Proprietary,
! Now Annapolis.
2 We know this from their signatures as Protestants, affixed during the ses- sion to a declaration, testifying that they were unmolested in the exercise of' their religion.
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encouraged by the changes that had taken place in England, - and perhaps by the strength of the Protestants in Maryland, had strongly urged his claim to Kent island, in letters addressed to Governor Stone ;- whereupon this Assembly denounced the penalty of death and confiscation of estate upon any person who should countenance Capt. Claiborne in any attempt upon Kent island or any other part of the pro- vince. This strong endorsement of the Proprietary's right, in opposition to the claim of Claiborne, seemed to give the former all the assurance he could reasonably ask, upon a subject which had so long been a source of controversy and apprehension.
The next act of the Assembly, was most probably induced by a strong appcal in his Lordship's recent letter, to the jus- tice and loyalty of his people. The body of laws transmitted by him, was taken up and passed, not excepting the Act of 42 Recognition of his absolute Lordship and royal powers, which had proved the principal objection to the code at the last ses- sion. By the passage of this act, another earnest wish of the Proprietary was gratified, in the public recognition of his prerogatives by the legislature of the province; yet it is to be, observed that the Burgesses, even while conceding to him the long coveted acknowledgment, cautiously coupled it with a clause, sufficiently restrictive to protect all their rights as English subjects, and allowing a liberal latitude of construc- tion, in case a difference should arise between the Proprietary and them, in regard to the extent and bearing of their respec- tive rights. Thus, the legislators of Maryland, two hundred years ago, even while acknowledging the prerogatives of the Lord Proprietary, shewed themselves watchful guardians of the " liberties of the people."
An oath of fidelity was also prescribed by the Assembly, similar in form to that previously administered ; yet differing in one or two points, the more worthy of note, that they made its spirit variant from that of the Act of Recognition, and that the alteration has been ascribed to the influence of 5 / the Independents of Providence. It will be remembered that the rejection of his Lordship's code by the Assembly of
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1649, was mainly grounded on the terms "absolute," as 42 ...; applied to his proprietorship, and "royal," as applied to his jurisdiction ; so that a jealousy on these points existed in the province, before the advent of the Independents. Lord Bal- - timore combated, in his last letter, the objections made to these terms, and did not see fit to alter or expunge them. Neither did the present Assembly, in passing the Act of Recognition, though they inserted a clause, saving the liber- ties of the people ;- but when they came to theoath of fidel- ity, they omitted both of the objectionable terms, merely recognizing Lord Baltimore as Lord and Proprietary, and promising to maintain such just and lawful rights as had been granted by the Charter, "not any ways understood to infringe or prejudice liberty of conscience in matters of reli- gion."
This latter clause is understood to have been added at the suggestion of the Burgesses from Providence ; whose con- "3. stituents had begun to show some dissatisfaction with the terms of the oath, and were especially anxious to guard themselves against a repetition of the persecutions to which they had been exposed in Virginia, on account of their peeu- liar faith .. Unfortunately, with all their experience of the : evils of intolerance, and their possible willingness to concede the rights of conscience to the various Protestant seets, these people brought with them the old hatred of Popery, and looked with distrust upon the oath, because it required them to obey a government, that was bound to respect the reli- gious convictions of the Roman Catholics in the province. This, in the eyes of the more zealous, was no better than upholding Antichrist ; and, although they at first submitted, yet, as they gained strength and their friends in England consolidated their power, they more openly manifested their repugnance, and finally refused to take the oath, as it had been prescribed. Yet, for the present, all appeared content ; new immigrants came from Virginia, and the territory on which they had settled, was erected into a county, and called, after the lady of the Proprietary, ANNE ARUNDEL. :
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Another act of the Protestants of the Assembly and the province, during this session, shows their willingness to aid Lord Baltimore in meeting any objections that might be brought against him in England, on the score of the religious condition of his colony. A declaration was signed (April 17th, 1650,) by Governor Stone, three members of the Coun- cil, eight members of the Assembly, and forty-three colonists, stating that by Act of Assembly and injunctions of his Lord- ship, they enjoyed full freedom in the exercise of their reli- gion, and were in no wise troubled on account of their Protes- tant opinions. This document, with copies of the laws passed, and a letter from the Assembly, was transmitted to his Lordship, and received by him about July. He at once prepared and despatched to Maryland an answer, (August 6th, 1650,) in which he authorised the acceptance of the oath 35 of fidelity, as modified at the recent session. 1
And now, to human apprehension, the government of the province appeared firmly established, the rights of the Pro- prietary fully acknowledged, and all needful precautions taken to secure the peace of the colony, and to sustain him against insidious attacks upon his charter or his use of the powers conferred on him by it ;- yet the elements of a storm were gathering, powerful enough to dash him from his proprietary seat, and ultimately to spread discord and confusion through the colony.
His Lordship found himself suddenly assailed from two quarters. On the one hand, Charles II. professing his royal displeasure that Lord Baltimore " did visibly adhere to the rebels in England, and admitted all kinds of seetaries and ill affected persons into his plantation," in effect, so far as was in his power, annulled the charter, and appointed Sir William Davenant, the poet, royal governor of Maryland ; 1-on the
' Davenant actually started with an expedition from France, but, with his ship and colonists, was captured by a Parliament cruiser, in the English Chan- nel, and was imprisoned in Cowes Castle. His life was spared, through the intercession of two Aldermen of York, whom he had protected during the civil wars, aided by the friendly efforts of Milton. It is said, that, after the Restora- tion, Davenant was enabled to repay the debt of gratitude due to the great poet by interceding successfully with the authorities in his behalf.
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other, Parliament was becoming awake to the necessity of extending its sway over the colonies ; the more particularly as Barbadoes and Virginia had declared Charles IJ. king, and Maryland, through the wilfulness of her temporary Gov- ernor, had followed their example. In October following, therefore, an act was passed, asserting the right of Parlia- ment to control the colonies, and authorising the Council of State to send out a strong fleet to reduce the rebellious plan- tations, as they were called, to obedience.
These proceedings not only caused Lord Baltimore great anxiety in England, but produced most unfavorable effects in his colony, as Rumor, with her usual exaggeration, represen- ted there that his charter had been taken from him or volun- tarily relinquished. The minds of the people were thus un- settled ; and those especially who favored the cause of Parlia- ment, began to look with jealousy on the existing government and to doubt its right to control them. The people of Anne se. SC Arundel went so far as to decline sending Burgesses to an Assembly called by Governor Stone for March, 1651; and Governor Berkeley, of Virginia, prepared to occupy Palmer's island, formerly Claiborne's advanced trading post, but for many years recognized as belonging to Maryland.
Preparations for the reduction of Barbadoes and Virginia, went meanwhile steadily forward in England. By the middle of May, Sir George Ayscough,' with a strong fleet, was s. ready to sail against the former, but the expedition against the latter was still a subject of discussion in the Council of State. Lord Baltimore now experienced the evil conse- quences he had apprehended from the ill-timed recognition of Charles II. by Governor Greene ; and found it necessary to .: bring all the influence of which he was master, to bear, to prevent the insertion of the name of his province with that of Virginia, in the instructions about to be issued for the guid- ance of those appointed to conduct the contemplated expedi- tion. For this purpose, he went before the committee, showed that Governor Stone was a Protestant and a Parlia- 45 mentarian, disowned Greene's act of recognition of Charles,
1 By some writers spelt, Ayscue.
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032 proved by the testimony of the Protestants themselves that they enjoyed their religious rights undisturbed, appealed to the recently enacted laws for evidence that the principle of toleration was publicly recognized in Maryland, claimed the S/ credit of having given the Independents an asylum, when driven from Virginia, and substantiated his assertion that Maryland neither was nor had been in opposition to Parlia- ment, by the testimony of several Protestant merchants, who were engaged in trade with the colony and well acquainted with its condition. His efforts were successful ; and, he had finally the satisfaction of obtaining a decision from the com- mittee that Maryland ought not to be disturbed, and of see- ing the name of his province erased from the instructions.
This was indeed an anxious period for Lord Baltimore. On the north of England, Charles, with his faithful Scots, ? maintained a desperate struggle against Cromwell; and from what had already transpired, the Proprietary had reason to believe that the success of the royal cause would be the sig- nal for his own ruin, or at least for the abrogation of his char- ter ; while, in the action of Parliament and the discussions before the Committee, he was made aware that strong reli- gious and political, if not personal prejudices, were working against him. To crown his trials, came letters from Gover- $/ nor Stone, apprising him of the reports in circulation in Mary- land, the growing disaffection of a portion of the people, and the spirit of aggression manifested by Virginia. To this he replied, (Aug. 20th, 1651,) mildly rebuking the contumacy of the people of Anne Arundel, and advising the passage of a law for the punishment of persons, convicted of spreading false reports, " tending to the disturbance of the minds of the > people and of the public peace."
Two days after the signing of this letter, (Aug. 22nd,) Charles, as his ill-fated father had done just nine years before at Nottingham, raised his standard at Worcester, where he had arrived at the head of sixteen thousand inen, principally Scotch ; and within a fortnight, Cromwell, pressing upon him with a superior force, overwhelmed and scattered his army, extinguished the last hopes of the royalists, and com-
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pelled their master, in mean disguises and with extreme risks, to flee from the kingdom. The result of this battle fixed the expatriation of Charles for weary years, and in fact placed Cromwell in the chair of State. On the ninth day after the . battle, "my Lord General," soon to become " my Lord Pro- tector," attended by an obsequious delegation from Parlia- ment, entered London amid the shouts of an admiring multitude, with a port in which conscious power so predomi- nated, that even Hugh Peters, the stern republican, could not but whisper to himself, " this man will yet be king of Eng- land."
A fortnight after Cromwell's triumphant entry into London, (Sept. 26th, 1651,) the fleet destined for the reduction of ". Virginia, was ready for departure. The military force con- sisted of seven hundred and fifty men, embarked on board the ship John and the Guinea frigate, the former commanded by Capt. Robert Denis, the latter, by Capt. Edmund Curtis. There were also on board, one hundred and fifty Scotch prisoners, taken in the recent battle of Worcester, and sent over to be sold as servants. The chief command of the expedition was given to Capt. Denis, and with him were named as Commissioners, Capt. Thomas Stagg, then in Eng- land, and Richard Bennett and Capt. William Claiborne, 5. residents of Virginia. Lord Baltimore had doubtless laid aside all apprehension in regard to Maryland, after twice obtaining the erasure of its name from the order for the expe- dition ; but if he was made aware who were nominated as Commissioners from Virginia, or of the form which the instructions finally assumed, he could not have seen the departure of the fleet, without some anxiety.
The instructions direct any two or more of the Commis- sioners, to use their best endeavors for the reduction of all the plantations within the Bay of Chesopiack to a due obedience to Parliament ; to see the acts against kingship and a House of Lords, for abolishing the book of Common Prayer, and for subscribing the engagement, to be received and published; to administer to the people an oath to be true to the Com- monwealth of England; and to cause all writs and processes
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to be issued in the name of the Keepers of the Liberty of England. In case of the death or absence of Capt. Denis, Capt. Curtis was empowered to act in his stead, and to take command of the expedition.
On the voyage out, the frigate John, in which were Cap- tains Denis and Stagg, was lost, and with them, the original commission ; but Capt. Curtis had been provided with a copy, and on him devolved the command. Weakened by the loss of the principal ship and her commander, and with sickness prevailing on board, Capt. Curtis touched at Barba- 37 does, where he found Sir George Ayscough held in check by the resolute inhabitants. The reduction of the island had proved a more difficult undertaking than had been antici- pated, for, though settled but a few years before Maryland and under a similar charter, it had vastly outstripped the lat- ter in increase of population and wealth, and had mustered a truly formidable body to repel the invasion. The show of additional force presented by the arrival of the Virginia expe- dition, enabled Sir George to push his attack and compel the Barbadians to surrender.1 After a stay of seven days, Capt. Curtis sailed for Virginia, and arrived before James City early in March, 1652.
Governor Berkeley had made preparations for resistance, but, finding the means of defence at his command insufficient to withstand even the small force that appeared against him, concluded with the Commissioners an arrangement, (March
1 In a letter in the State Paper Office in London, dated Feb. 16th, 1651-2, from Col. (afterwards Sir Thomas) Modiford, of the island of Barbadoes, to Bradshaw, then President of the Council of State, the following suggestions occur, which show that the spirit which roused the colonies to armed resis- tance to British tyranny in 1776, was alive and active in the West India Islands a century and a quarter before. " The great difficulty is, how we shall have a > representative with you in your government and our parliament. To demand to have Burgesses with yours to sit and vote in matters concerning England, may seem immoderate ;- but, to desire that two representatives be chosen by this island to advise and consent to matters that concern this place, I presume may be both just and necessary; for, if laws be imposed upon us without our personal or implied consent, we cannot be accounted better than slaves, which, as all Englishmen abhorre to see, so I am confident you detest to have them. This is so clear, that I shall not need to enforce it with argument."
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12th, 1652,) by which the most liberal terms were conceded to Governor, Council, Assembly, and people.
Having accomplished the reduction of Virginia, the Com- missioners proceeded to discharge the additional duty imposed on them by the clause in their instructions, which directed them to reduce " all the plantations within the Bay." It has been the custom for most writers upon our early history, to father upon Claiborne all sins of opposition to Lord Balti- more, committed in the colony or elsewhere at this period ; and accordingly, the change in the form of the instructions, by which Maryland was virtually included, and all the pro- ceedings consequent upon them, have been attributed to his personal interference and his hostility to Lord Baltimore. But the fact is, neither he nor Bennett appear to have had 56, 63 any cognizance of the proceedings in England, preparatory , to the expedition ; nor is it certain that they were even aware of their appointment as Commissioners, until the arri- val of Capt. Curtis, with whom they acted. Captains Denis and Stagg had been present at the debates of the Committee, and were aware that, at Lord Baltimore's remonstrance, the name of Maryland had been stricken out ; but they had been lost on the voyage, and the remaining Commissioners had only the letter of the instructions for their guidance. By whom the phrase " all the plantations within the Chesapeake Bay," was inserted, is not known. It was certainly sufficient to justify the Commissioners in requiring the formal submis- sion of the inhabitants of Maryland. There is no evidence that Claiborne had any agency in the matter, beyond that of simple obedience to the commands of that power, which was then recognized as supreme in England.
On the arrival of the frigate at St. Mary's, negotiations were opened with Governor Stone. The commissioners de- clared that they asked only a compliance with the requisitions of Parliament, as expressed in their instructions; and pro- posed that Lord Baltimore's officers "should retain their places, conforming to the laws of the commonwealth in point of government only, and without any infringement of his Lordship's just rights." Governor Stone and Council de- 9
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clared themselves willing to recognize Parliament as the supreme power and to take the engagement ; but declined to issue writs in the name of the Keepers of the Liberty of England, on the ground that they had been assured the Council of State did not intend to deprive Lord Baltimore of his proprietary rights or to make any changes in his pro- ' vince ; and furthermore represented, that, as the king's name had never been used in writs in Maryland, but only the Lord Proprietary's, there could be no reason for enforcing that clause in his colony, which was applicable only in England or Virginia. But the Commissioners, on their part, professed to have no power to vary from the terms of their instructions, and gave the authorities further time to deliberate. They persisted in their refusal. A proclamation was thereupon issued, appointing a Council of Government to supersede Governor Stone and administer the engagement to the people, and requiring that Lord Baltimore's commissions should be surrendered, and the records of the province placed in the hands of the new Council.
The 29th of March, 1652, is known in English annals as " black Monday ;" a day remarkable for a total solar eclipse, the deep darkness of which made many a strong heart quake with apprehension, and led many enthusiastic spirits, who had been brought by the great political and religious changes going on around them to look for a sign from Ileaven to believe that the end of the world had come. If Lord Baltimore was a believer in omens, he might have felt that so solemn an obscu- ration at mid-day was not without its portents for him ; for on that day the instrument was signed, which deposed the offi- cers appointed by him in Maryland, and virtually severed him from all connection with the administration of affairs in his province. It is true, the Commissioners professed to estab- lish the new government only " until further order could be taken therein, and until the Council of State's further pleasure could be known ;" --- but, as affairs then stood in England, it was probable that the action of the Commissioners would be sustained ; and that only by means of protracted controversy
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and earnest efforts, could he hope to obtain a reversal of their decision and a recognition of his proprietary rights. This, in the sequel, proved to be the fact.
Having thes established in the colony the power of Parlia- ment instead of that of the Proprietary, the Commissioners departed from St. Mary's. Capt. Curtis, in the Guinea fri- gate, returned to England, bearing to the Council of State a report of the manner in which he and his coadjutors had effected the reduction of the plantations within the Chesa- peake Bay, and to Lord Baltimore information of the unfa- vorable position in which their action in Maryland had placed him and his officers ;- while Bennett and Claiborne repaired 21 to James City, to meet an Assembly before summoned by them ; by which body, on the 26th of April,' the former was elected Governor, and the latter, Secretary of State of that colony, " with all the just powers and authorities belonging to those places respectively."
Here, close we for the present our view of Maryland, "two hundred years ago." We leave Cecilius, Lord Baltimore, after all his sacrifices and efforts, deprived of authority over his province, and placed in the position of a suppliant to the supreme authorities in England, for the preservation of his charter and the restoration of his proprietary powers ; while, by one of those vicissitudes so often occurring in social and political revolutions, William Claiborne, his rival claimant for the honor of the first settlement of the soil of Maryland, charged by the Council of State with an official trust of high responsibility, and raised to the second post in the govern- ment of Virginia, holds the control of the province from which he had been driven by violence, and the legislature of which, fourteen years before, had branded him as constructively a pirate and a murderer, attainted his name, and confiscated his estate. The government is in the hands of persons, selected by the Commissioners for their devotion to Parliament, and pledged to make their administration conform to the laws
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