USA > New York > Westchester County > Westchester County, New York, during the American Revolution > Part 4
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"their discretion and wisdom, they may seem meet." 1 | house. "*Pant Allen, " ( History of the American Revolution, i., 186) said,
Notwithstanding the meeting at the Coffee-house was called at one o'clock, an hour when every Mc- chanic and Laborer would probably be employed in his daily labor, it is said that "a great concourse of "the Inhabitants" assembled at that place," at the ap- pointed time, [ Thursday, May 19, 1774, at one o'clock; ] and we are also told that the assemblage was addressed by Isaac Low, who was in the Chair ; that some dis- cussion arose, which resulted in the addition of Fran- cis Lewis to the proposed Committee, increasing the
number of that Committee to fifty-one ; and that, the
maintained its own ground and voted down every at- tempt to oust it, which was made by the latter; and unfranchised masses having been placated by the ad- in making the nomination of the fifty whom it pro- dition of another of their leaders to the propo-el Committee of Correspondence, the entire list of nomi- nees was confirmed, without farther opposition.3 posed for the Committee of Correspondence, it did no more than to drop the names of three of those whom the minority had already selected, as its proposed Committee of Twenty-five, and to -lip into the list of 3 Minutes of the Committee of Correspondence ; Holt's New- York Jonen, No. 135, New-YORK, Thursday, May 20, 1771; Caine's New - York Gratte and Mercury, No. 117%, NEW YORK, Mou lay. May, 174 ; Lin- I ment governor Colden to Governor Tryon, SPRING HILL, 31 May "1174;" the same to the Earl of Dartmouth, " New-York, Ist Jane 1774;" History of the War in America, ( Dublin: 1999, i., 22; Dublaj's love York, i., 133; Hildreth's Posted States, First Spring, il., 35 ; Butipoft's I'vend States, original edition, vii., 12, 1% ; Frothinglan's Rive of the Be- the twenty-two who were retained, without breaking the order in which they had been arranged on the original list, the names of twenty-eight other persons with whom the promoters of the Caucus were better pleased-as nearly the entire minority was included in the list of nominees, giving it a small share of the public. 327 ; Bancroft's United States, centenary edition, is, 327, 12%; responsibilities and of the honors or dishonors of the Sparks's Life of Gouverneur Morria, 29-26; Dawson's Park and its Vicinity. proposed Committee, its opposition to the action of its aristocratic and conservative opponents appears to have ccased ; and the establishment of the proposed Committee of Fifty, by the body of the inhabitants, was, thereby, assured.
Notwithstanding the important results which the appointment of that Committee of Correspondence produced, it was not even alluded to by I Stedman, (History of the American Wie; Merry Warren, (History of the American Revolution ;) More, Hands of the American Revolution ;) Pitkin. History of the Urted States ; Lussing, to copteen hundred and security-it ; History of the United States, edition of ISNT ; and Field-book of the Beralu- tion ; ) utel many others.
Judge Jones, (History of New York, during the Recilutionary War, i., 34) supposed the "Committee was chosen," at the Caucus, at Sam. Frath- cis's : and made no allusion to the Meeting at the coffee-house, where it 1. was chosen." Doctor Gordon, ( History of American Revolution, Lol- lon : 1786, i., 361, 362,) said the Camens was called by Seurs, M. Dougal, and others of the popular party, so called ; that " the Tories," or gov- einmental party, opposed them, in the caneus ; that Sears secured the appointment of a hfty-second member of the Committee ; and that the whole subject wes disposed of by the Cancus. He made the minority of the Caucus, the victors; and did not allude to the Meeting at the Coffee-linuse. Ductor Ramsay, ( History of the American Heroirtion, Lon- don : 17.1, 1., 114,) said " the Whigs and Tories were so nearly balanced " in New - York, that nothing more was agreed to at the first meeting of " the indulatants," [after the receipt of the Boston Post-bill] " then " recommendation to calla Congress, " although, in truth, the subject of a Congress was not even alluded to, at either the Canous or the Coff +-
" At New York, there was a considerable struggle between the friends "of Administration and the friends of Liberty ; but the latter at length " prevailed, by the influence and management of two individuals, who " laul, on several occasions, manifested great activity and zeal, in their " opposition to the obnoxious measures of the Ministry, " .although, in truth, the friends of the Government took no part whatever in the poli- tic- of that particular period ; and the conflict was only between rival factions of the same party of the Opposition to the Government, each contending for the control of that particular party, while both professed to be equally opposed to the Government. It is also true that those to whom this author referred, as the prevailing fwtion, were the minority, were ontvetml and in every other respect were entirely defeatml. Grahanie, (History of the United States. London : 1sat, iv., 240.) said, "At New " York the members and activity of the Tory party restrained the As- " sembly and the people at large from putdiely expresing their senti. " niehits with regard to the treatment of Massachusetts ;" although. in truth, the friends of the Home Government were, then, so greatly in the minority that they did nothing whatever to restrain the popular feelings ; while the utterances of both the Committee of Correspondence and the General Assembly were as unequivocally antagonistic to the Home Government's Colonial policy, as anything which appeared else- where. He made no allusion whatever to either the Caucus or the Meeting at the Coffee-house. Hildreth . Honory of the United States, First Series, ili., 35) said that the off Committee of the " Sons of Liberty " " was dissolved a'l a new one elertel." without alluding to either the Caneus or the Meeting at the Coffre-loinse ; although, in fact, the Com- mittee of Correspondence of an early date und ceased to exist when the Stamp-Act was repealed ; and neither that vor any other Committee was alluded to, in the slightest degree, during the proceedings now under consideration ; notwithstanding those who had confused the Committee, in their individual capacities, in many instances, are known to have participated in both the Caucus and the Meeting at the Coffee-house. Bancroft (History of the Invited States, original edition, vi., 41 : the same, centenary edition, iv., 320) made " the old Connaittee " of " the Son- of
1 Advertisement " To the Public, " calling the Meeting at the Coffee- house, dated " New-York, Tuesday, May 17, 1774," copied into the 1 Minutes of the Committee of Correspondence.
Sre, also, tire maine Advertisement and an editorial note thereon, in Holt's New- York Jourund, No 1637, NEW-YORK, Thursday, May 10, 1771; und Hiringfor New-York Gusefter, No. 57, NEW-YORK, Thursday, May 19, 1774; Gaine's New York Gazette and Merrury, No. 1178, NEw- YORK, Monday, May 23, 1774 ; Lieutenant-governor Coblen to tincernor Tryen, "SPRING-HILL, 31-t May, 1774;" the same to the End of Dirt- month, "NEW-YORK 1st June 1774 ;" Irake's Mandir of Gereral John Lamb, 87; Dawson's Park and its Vicinity, 33 ; etc.
? " The Coffee-house," that place which was so frequently mentioned in the commercial as well as in the political affairs of the City, stood on the southeastern corner of Wall and Water-streets, opposite the " slip " which bore its ume.
Mr de Laurey, in his Xbox on Jones's History ti , 4990 says it was on the "sontherst carter of Wall and Pearl Streets ; " but he was certainly : in error. Stevens, in his Progress of New York in a Century, 1976-1976, 25, correctly described the site of the obl " Merchants' Coffee-house."
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WESTCHESTER COUNTY.
By the direct action of the body of the inhabitants of the City, thus Only called, and assembled at the Coffee-house, for that specific purpose, all the discord- ant elements of the party of the Opposition to the Home Government, in New York, were seemingly consolidated and placed under the leadership of the Committee of Fifty-one, which was, then and there, appointed for that ostensible purpose ; and those who had taken alarm at the growing audacity of those who were assuming to be the leaders of the unfranchised | political power of the great body of the people had masses, were gratified with ample evidence of the fact . disarmned the former of their animosity, by rendering that the well-considered " art" which those who had planned the Caucus at Sam. Francis's and the Meet- ing at the Coffee-house had employed, in order to check the rising pretensions and power of the working, revolutionary multitude. in political affairs, had been
crowned with an abundant success. There had been, fpolitical pretensions, in the privilege which was ex- indeed, a display of wise caution and great tact, as well as of well-concealed duplicity, in all which had been done by those aristocratic, conservative politi-
vians ; and, very evidently, they ha l fairly overcome their plebeian, revolutionary rivals, in an appeal to the body of the inhabitants. With a complete knowl- edge of the small number of those who had previously assumed to represent the masses of the unfranchised inhabitants, and with as complete a knowledge of the general harmlessness of those masses, in the absence of their self-constituted leaders, the high-toned pro- moters of the unpublished scheme of abridging the
them harmless, as the helpless minority of the Com- mittee of Fifty-one1-an empty honor with which. however, for the time being, they were evidently satisfied-while the latter were made contented, for a : short time, also, by receiving a recognition of their tended to them of confirming or rejecting the nomi- nations made by the Caucus, among whom, with two or three exceptions, the names of their self-constituted leaders were conspicuously presented. 3
" Liberty," "convoke the inhaldtant, of their City " to the Caucus at Sam. Francis's, although it was called by their aristocratie and conserva. tiye rivals in the party of the Opposition, and without any consultation 1 Dientement-governor Calden to Governor Tryon, " SPRING HILL Sist " May, ITTE ; " the same to the Part of Inotmonth, "NEW YORK June Ist "1771;" Jones's History of New York during the Revolutionary Nur, i., 34; Leake's Memoir of General John Land, ST ; Dawson's History of the Park and its Vicinity, 33 ; Bancroft's United States, original edition, Mi .. 41, 42 ; the same, centenary edition, iv., 327 ; etc. with that Committee, if there was one, or with those who were in hair- mony with it. He said, also, "the Motion prevailed to supersede the "old Committee of Correspondente by a new one of fifty ;" although neither of the three Resolutions of the Caucus contained the slightest allusion to any such supersednre, nor to any other Committee or body or person whatever than to the proposed Committee of fifty, which it Of the fifty-one members of the Committee, a very great majority were of the aristocratic, conservative, anti revolutionary portions of the inbat- itants. On the fourth of July, when a test question was before it, thirty- right menthers being present, only thirteen votes were cast by those who : Assumed to represent the uofranchised inhabitants ; and in the greater nominated. He said of the Meeting at the Coffee-house, "and the nom- "ination of the Committee was accepted, even with the addition of Isaac "Low as its Chairman, who was more of a loyalist than a patriot ; " although, in fact, Ivac Tow's name was on the best which had been nominated at the Caucus, against which no opposition was muude ; and i contest, three days afterwards, on Mr. Thurber's Resolution, disavowing the only "addition " which was made by the Meeting was that of Fran- ; the proceedings of the great popular "Meeting in the Fields," over cis Lewis, whose name had been included on the original list of the , which Alexander MeDougal lud pressled, only nine votes were rast in
minority, and rejected by the Cauens. The Meeting at the Coffee-house opposition to the vote of disavowal. made no attempt to supply the Committee of Fifty-one with a Chairman, It may also be stated, in this plece, that, notwithstanding none of the fifty-one, at that time, were of the Governmental party, but, on the con- teary, that every one was earnestly opposed to the Colonial policy of the Home Government, twenty-one of the number, at a subsequent juriv.l, lecame acknowledged Loyalists ; that a considerable manter took no active part in the proceedings of the Comunittey, ont could have been relied on; by the aristocratic, conservative leaders, had their presence and thu ir votes been, at any time, needed ; and that a greater number than in the person of Isine Low, as Bancroft bas stated : Isaac Low was called to that place by the Committee itself, at its first Meeting, ou Monday, May 23, as its Martes abundantly prove. Ductor Sparks, (Life of Gonreravier Morris, i., 22) merged the doings of the Cavens and the Meeting at the Coffee-house, into one mass ; made Isaac Sears the master sph it of all that was done ; atalsandl " the Connuliter consisted of La nearly equal number of both parties, but with a preponderance on "the liberal side; " although the truth was, the friends the Home Gov. . there were of the last-named class-a working majority of the Commit- ernuient took no part whatever, in either of those meetings; that both : tre, indeed -- included such as John Alsop, Gabriel H. Lollow, John Jay. were composed of only those who oppoand the Home Government ; that and James Duane, who invariably acted and voted with the aristocratie. antirevolutionary portion of the Committee, and, until they became candidates for the Congress, always in opposition to the revolutionary leaders and the revolutionary purposes. the struggle, in each of the two assetodages, was between conflicting factions of the latter party ; that, in both, the faction of the aristocratie conservative element of the party ontvoted and defeated the fairtion rep- resenting, or pretending to represent, the unfranchised masses ; that the Comunitree contained a large proportion of those who belonged, at that
Well might the exiled Judge, Thomas Jones, writing of this Commit- ton, in the light of subsequent events, say, within tou years of his cren- time, to the aristocratic conservative faction of the party ; and that it is . fiou, notwithstanding what he hadsaid of the opposition to the Colonial not known, nor is it supposed, that a single person was named on the ( policy of the Home Government, which all of them had presented. " Itin Committee, who was bot, at that time, opposed to the Colonial policy of "majority were real friends to Government." - History of New York dur- ing the Rerolutionary War, i., 34.) the Home Government. Indeed, as Judge Jones, whose opportunities for ascertaining the exact truth and whose integrity and fearlessness in uttering it no one will wriously question, has emphatically stated, "all parties, denominations, and religions, apprehended, at that time, "that the Colonies laboured under grievances which wanted redressing :" and no one, therefore, opposed any reasonable movement which tended, or appeared to tend, to a peaceful regress of these serious grievances.
" For the purpose of providing an additional authority, concerving much that has been stated, in this work, concerning the relations which existe il be ween the confel-rated " Merchants and Traders " and other high-toned citizens, and the more numerons, but unfranchised, " Inhabi- "tants of the City and Conty ; " concerning the desireof the former to abridge the influence which laul been secured by the latter, while they It will be seen, from this comparison of the original authorities with the to which has been made of thetu by the several leading writers of -history in our country, just how little or how much reliance can be placed on what is called " Latory," in what relates to less important were subject to the frequent appeals of the former ; and couverning the formation of the " Committee of Correspondence, " since known as the " Committee of Fifty one," for the purpose of recovering, to the coufal- erateil, conservative " Merchants and Traders " and the Gentry, the con- subjects, while this, which was second to few others, in the history of the ; trol of the political affairs of the City, we invite attention to the follow- Revolution, has been treated with so little of respect and of fidelity to ting very important Letter, written by a Westchester county gentleman, the truth.
who, when he could no longer serve the party of the Home. I. A .ramen.
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WESTCHESTER COUNTY.
The Committee which was thus created by ile aris- tocratie, anti-revolutionary portion of those who, at that tinte, were opposing the Colonial policy of the Home Government, was largely intended, as we have shown, to serve as a check on the rising power, in political affairs, of the unfranchised Mechanics and Workingmen of the City of New York, especially of the revolutionary faction of those Working-men, while it would tend. also, to concentrate in "the Merchants "and Traders" and Gentry of the City, thus confed- erated for the exercise of it, all of that political power, especially in matters of national concern, which that City and Province, at that time, could command, without the existence of a thought, among those who had promoted the scheme, if such a thought had any-
was among the earliest to become its nominal opponent ; and, sulne- quently, to pose as a distinguished " patriot" und as a not less distin- guished repub/iran statesman :
"NEW YORK, May 20, 1774.
" DEAR SIR :
"You have heart, and you will hear, a great deal about politics ; "and in the heap of Chiaff you may find some grains of good sense. Be- "lieve me, Sir, Freedom and Religion are only watchwords. We have "appointed a Committee, or, rather, we have nominated one. Let me " give you the history of it.
" It is needless to premise, that the lower orders of Mankind are more " easily led by speriuns appearances than those of a mor- exalted statiou. " This, atal many similar propositions, you know better than your hum- " ble servant.
"The troubles in America, during Grenville's Administration, put our "Gentry upon this finesse. They stimulated some daring Coxcombs to " rouse the Mob into an attack upon the bounds of order aml decency. "These fellows became the Juck Codes of the day, the Leaders in all the " Riots, the Bellwethers of the Flock. The reason of the mameuvre, in " those who wished to keep fair with the Government aml, at the same "time, to receive the incense of popular applanse, you will readily per- " ceive. On the whole, the Sheparis were not much to blame, in a po- " litical point of view. The Bellwethers jingled merrily, and roared "out, 'Liberty,' and 'Property,' aml 'Religion,' and a multitude of " rant terms, which every one thought he understouil, atul was egregi. "ously mistaken ; for you must know the Shepherds kept the Dictionary "of the Day ; and, like the Mysteries of the ancient Mythology, it was " not for profane eyes and cars. This answered many purposes : the "simple Flock put themselves entirely under the protection of these ! "most excellent Shepherds.
" By-aml-bye, belofl a great metamorphosis, without the help of fivid "or his Divinities ; bnt entirely effectnated by two modern Genii, the "Gol of Ambition and the Goddess of Faction. The first of these " prompted the Shepherds to shear some of their Flock ; anl, then, in " conjunction with the other, converted the Bellwethers into shepherils. " That we have been in hot water with the British Parliament, ever "since, every body knows : consequently these new Shephenk have handl " their hatals full of employment. The old ones kept themselves least in " sight ; and a want of confidence in each other was not the least evil " which foll aved. The Port of Barton has been shut up. These Sheep, "simple as they are, cannot be gulled, as heretofore In short, there is " the ruling them ; and, now, to leave the metaphor, the heads of the " Mobility grow dangerous to the Gentry ; and how to keep them down " is the question.
a people, at such a time, and under such circumstances as then existed, aml which would probably continue to exist, might, also, sensibly or insensibly, weaken if where existed, that such an organization, among such it should not destroy all those bonds of recognized dependence, and loyalty, and love, which, hitherto, had so firmly bound the Colony to the Mother Country. But, notwithstanding the evident intentions of those among whom the thought of creating such a Com- mittee had originated; notwithstanding the purposes for which it had been created included no such pur- pose ; and notwithstanding a separation of the Colo- nies from the Mother Country had not yet become one of the questions of the day, that Committee of Corre- spondence in the City of New York, created and
"Chickens, not only before any of thein were hatched, but before above "one half of the Eggs were laid. In short, they fairly contended about "the future forms of our Government, whether it should be founded "upon aristocratic or democratic principh -.
"I stood in the Balcony ; and, on my right hand were ranged all the " people of property, with some few poor dependants : and, on the other, "all the Tradesmen, etc., who thought it worth their while to leave "their daily labour for the good of the Country. The spirit of the "English Constitution hay yet a little influence left, and Int a little. "The remains of it, however, will give the wealthy people a enperiority, "this time ; Ent, would they secure it, they must banish all Schoolmas- " ters and contine all Knowledge to themselves. This cannot be. The "Mob begin to think and to reason. Pour Reptiles! it is, with them, a "vernal Morning ; they are struggling to cast off their Winter's Slough ; "they bask in the Sunshine ; and, ere Noon, they will bite, depend "upon it. The Gentry begin to fear this. Their Committee will be "appointed ; They will dereive the People; and, agnin, they will forfeit "a share of their Confidence. And if these instances of what with one "side is Policy, with the other Perfidy, shall continue to increase, and " become more frequent, farewell, Aristocracy. I see, and I see it with " fear and trembling, that if the Disputes with Great Britain continue, "we shall be under the worst of all possible dominions ; we shall be "under the domination of a riotons Mob.
"It is the interest of all men, therefore, to seek for ie-union with the "Furent State. A safe Compart seems, in my poor opinion, to be uow "Tendered. Internal taxation to be left with ourselves. The right of "regulating Trade to be vested in Britain, where alone is found the "power of protecting it. I trust you will agree with no, that this is "the only possible mode of union. % * **
"I am, Sir,, etc., " Got VERNEUR MORRIS."
It was never pretended, if our memory serves us correctly, that the writer of this letter was a democratic republican : our readers can en-ily determine, from his contemptnons words, while describing the unfranchised Mechanic- and Working.men of this City, how little of a republican of any other class, how much of a believer of the political dogma of the unqualified equality of all men, he was, notwithstanding what some historians, so called, have written of him.
In the same spirit, Was that note written by James Rivington, of New York, and received by lletry Nowy, of Beston, sulesquently a General in the Army of the Revolution and Secretary of War umler President Washington, and in his own estimation never one of the people, which note was detected by the revolutionary leaders in Boston, and commu- nicated to the "Sons of Liberty," in New York, by note, dated 19 June, 1574. The words used by Rivington were these: "You may rest as- "sured that no ion-im-, mor non-ex-portation will be agreed nyou "either here or at Philadelphia . The power over our crowd is no
"White they correspond with the other Colonies, call and dismiss " popular Assemblies, make Resolves to bind the Consciences of the rest "of Mankind, tully poor Printers, and exert with full force all their "other tribunitial powers, it is impossible to curb them. But Art some- "times goes farther than Force : and, therefore, to trick them hand- "longer in the hands of pears, Lamb, and auch unimportant persons, "Amely, a Committee of Patricians was to be nominated ; and into their. " who have for six years past, been the demagogues of a very tmibulent "faction in this City ; but their power an I mischievous capacity ex- "piter instantly upon the election of the Committee of Fifty-one, in "which there is a majority of inflexibly bouest, loyal, and privlent " hands was to be committed the Majesty of the People ; and the highest "Irust was to les pommed in them by a mandate that they should take "care, good respublica non expert injuriam. The Tritames, through the " w uted gal legerdemain in the senatorial order, perceived the linesse ; + "citizens."-MS letter of Thomas Young to John Lamb, " Boston, 19th "and, prereplay, I was present at a grand division of the City; al, " " Jane, 1774," In the "Lomb Papers," New York Historical Society's "there, i beheld my fellow-citizens very accurately conuting all their: Library.1
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