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A93211
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A Short discourse shewing the great inconvenience of joyning the plantation charters with those of England in the General Act of restoration, and the necessity of having for them a particular act humbly offered to the Parliament on the occasion of that bill : wherein is contained a full answer to a late pamphlet intituled, New-England vindicated, &c. / by a true lover of his country, and a hearty wisher of the prosperity of the said plantations.
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1689
(1689)
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Wing S3585; ESTC R42874
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5,579
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4
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A Short DISCOURSE SHEWING The great Inconvenience of joyning the Plantation CHARTERS with those of ENGLAND in the General Act of Restoration and the Necessity of having for them a Particular ACT. Humbly Offered to the Parliament on the Occasion of that BILL Wherein is Contained A full ANSWER to a late Pamphlet Intituled NEW-ENGLAND Vindicated c. By a true Lover of his Country and a hearty Wisher of the Prosperity of the said PLANTATIONS THE Bill now depending in the Honourable House of Commons for restoring Charters to the state they were in in the year 1660 is perhaps as necessary a Law as any amongst the many excellent ones the Parliament have passed this Sessions yet if it should include as it appears by the Votes it is design'd to do those Charters of the Foreign Plantations which were taken away on quite different Reasons from these in England as will appear by and by and highly agreeable to the sense of former Parliaments it might prove in a few years as prejudicial to England by ruining the Trade Navigation and Staple Manufactures thereof as the breach of all the others could do And this will appear to any Rational Man who will consider The great Powers granted to some of those Foreign Plantations but more particularly that of the Massachusets Colony in America who affect to call themselves by the general Name of New England though they are not above a tenth of those Colonies which go under that denomination the Inconveniencies of which could not be so well foreseen until they began to grow somewhat numerous and then it was so obvious that the Parliament in King Charles I. time presented it as one of the greatest grievances of the Kingdom and contrary to the Law and Privileges of the 〈◊〉 the Parliament doubting they would in a short time wholly shake off the Royal Jurisdiction But the King having granted it thought it a diminution to his Prerogative to have it question'd Vide Sir Ferdinando Gorges Account of new-New-England P. 43. And so Dissolving the Parliament and the Wars breaking out nothing was done in it until King Charles II. his Restoration when immediately he and his Council began to be very sensible of the great mischief those Plantations in America did to the Trade of England and the Unlimited Authority some of them pretended to exercise as well among themselves as over their weaker Neighbours And vast numbers of complaints came daily over as well of their viz. the Massachusets Incroachments on their said Neighbours with Petitions for Redress from the Colonies so grieved as also of their Abominable Illegal way of Trade As to the Trade the Parliament took it into Consideration and made several Laws to Regulate it as the Act of Navigation in the 12th of the said King and others made in the 22d and 23d and the 25th of the same King. But the Government of the Massachusets Colony being in the hands of those who were the Principal Offenders those Acts had no effect there though 't is worth observing that they in the year 1663 made a Law That the said Act of Navigation should be observed there which plainly demonstrates that they think the Laws of England of no force there unless Confirmed by their General Court as indeed it appears by their first Law in their Law-book Printed in the year 1672 by Authority of their said General Court viz. That no Law shall be submitted to but what is made in their General Court But this was only a Colour for it was never known either that any of their Governours whatever they may pretend who were Chosen by their Charter did take the Oath prescribed in that Act or that any man was ever punished by Vertue of it though the Offences were as frequent as before And when these and all other the Law of Trade were broken as they were daily no Redress could be had for the Persons offending were those chiefly concerned in the Government These innumerable complaints put the King to vast Expence to maintain Persons in several places of Europe as France Hamborough Holland c. to detect their Illegal Traders after by long Experience having found it impracticable in New England by reason of the largness of the Country and the many Navigable Rivers there But after such Detection no Redress could be had or indeed expected from Persons who must be Party Judge and Jury and whose Determinations there are final for they will allow of no Appeal to England as all other the Plantations do and ought to submit to which makes them as absolutely Independant on the Crown of England as are the Subjects of any other Prince And this made them boldly employ two or three hundred Sail of Ships yearly Trading to and fro from the several Plantations and most Parts of Europe supplying those several places with such Commodities as ought by Law to be had from no place but England or paying English Duties and this without being under the Restrictions of such Laws as put our Merchants to vast Charges either by Customs or otherwise which inabled them to under-sell our English Merchants 50 per Cent. at least to the unspeakable prejudice of the Kings Customs and the decay of our Manufactures as well as an Infallible Bait to all our Manufacturers to remove thither where People Trade with such advantage over their fellow Subjects But why do I call them Subjects when indeed they Act as a Free and Independant Commonwealth as they in their Law-book stile themselves though I am not ignorant that a certain Person has lately with as much confidence as falsity affirmed that word Commonwealth to be Repealed And this was what the Parliament in K. Charles I. time did suspect and thereupon all Persons were Prohibited going thither without first taking the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy but this was never observed Now to shew the Unlimited Authority they pretend to in some few of those many Instances might be produced Vide Law Book p. 43 45 48 55 56 58. 1. They took upon them to Coyn Money in the Name of the Commonwealth as they call it 2. To make several Laws sufficiently repugnant to those of England especially in matters of Religion as well as making many offences Capital which are not so in England though this was absolutely against the very words of their Charter as may be seen for the more ease in an Abstract of some of their Laws lately Printed and presented to the Members of the Honourable House of Commons 3. Their Arbitrary and Barbarous usage of the Kings Commanders of his Ships To Instance particularly Sir John Weybourn who they dragged about by the Hair of the Head and beat most Inhumanly for which neither he nor the King could have any satisfaction And they shew themselves excellent observers of the Laws of Navigation when they cannot distinguish the Kings Ships and Legal Traders from Pirates which is the weak pretence made use of by he who calls
himself the New England Vindicator to palliate this horrid usage of the Kings Commanders and excuse their giving entertainment of a quite different nature to Pirates 4. They Arbitrarily and with Force intruded on their Neighbour Colonies and on their Complaint to the King they refused his Commissioners sent to determine the difference occasioned thereby as may be seen in Mr. Ogilby's History of America p. 164 165 where he sets forth how in the years 1665 1668 they in a Warlike manner with Horse and Foot turned the Kings Justices out of their Seats at Boston who had been three years Impowered and quietly Executed their Trust to keep matters in Peace till the difference between the Colonies was Adjusted Sat down in their Places Executed their own Commission from the General Court Imprison'd the Kings Povost Marshal and committed several other Notorious Affronts to the King by his Ministers as is more at large in the Book it self These Commissioners of the Kings who were sent to Determine the Differences between the Colonies were Authorized to do it by their sound Discretion which the aforesaid Vindicator calls Illegal and Arbitrary and such as could not be submitted to Whereas they could possibly be Determined no otherwise than by their Discretion on View and Examination for they were matters of difference between distinct Colonies relating to their several Bounds and Limits of their Jurisdiction which could not be Determined by any other Law but that of Reason They have often said since that Vote passed That if their Charter was restored the King of England had nothing to do there and that if he did send any such thing as a Governor thither he should not be obeyed Nay one of them who is a great Proprietor in a Colony there and were there occasion should be named did say to a Person that is not ashamed or afraid to declare it That what Power soever the King of England had formerly in Himself now had And that no Governor should be Obeyed there For these and several other notorious Abuses not to be prevented so long as the Supream Governing Power is in that People it was that the King was forced to advise how to reduce them to Obedience and no way was thought so proper as to vacate their Charter for their acting so much beyond the Powers therein granted though they were so large as to be thought Grievances by the Parliament as above and not on the Measures these Charters of England were taken away and therefore as I humbly 〈…〉 Power which may soon give them opportunity of setting up for themselves as the Parliament formerly feared These new-New-England Gentlemen on thoughts of being restored immediately cast off all Proposals with the Subscribers for working Copper Mines in their Country in hopes of getting it into their Power once again to prosecute their old way of Trade and now I have mentioned the Copper Mines I doubt not but the Parliament will take into their Consideration the great Advantage that Work may be to England since it is none of the Product of England and will not only be a sufficient Imployment and Staple Commodity for that Country the want of which forces them to seek those illegal ways formerly mentioned But if this be well incouraged and the Subscribers secured by having the Government of it here and not subject to those in New England may prove of unspeakable return to this Kingdom when as at present those Colonies serve only to exhaust us of our People run away with our Trade and put us to great Expence to maintain them without bringing in any considerable profit as is with highest Probabilities believed by the most understanding Men amongst the Subscribers who notwithstanding the false Suggestions of the New England Vindicator have really spent above 500 l. in Experiments and soliciting a Charter and who were the Charter Sealed would in a very little time make up that Sum already Subscribed 100000 l. or more if there were occasion as was agreed amongst them when they shut up their Books after about 60 Thousand which was only Subscribed as an Earnest to give them a Title to act as Members of that Society with resolution to make up the said Sum a 100000 l. when the Charter was passed And so horridly false was the said Vindicators Pretence that several Persons of Quality refused to come into the Subscription because the Government of those Colonies were altered that on the contrary every one refused to come in so soon as they apprehended their Charter was like to be restored and immediately on that Vote of the Honourable House of Commons there was a general Meeting of the Subscribers where the thoughts of their being stated in their former Powers and their declaring that the King now had nothing to grant them had like to have dissolved the Society who at this time only defer that Dissolution in hopes the Parliament will take them into Consideration by providing for them in the Act or leaving room for the King to grant such Privileges as shall be thought requisite for so great an Undertaking resolving otherwise to have nothing to do with men so wedded to their own interest at such a distance and not to be controuled by any Power in England A further Reason for not restoring their Charters without some Limitations and Powers reserved in the Government is the great Danger of all those Plantations falling into the hands of the French for should their several Charters be restored by a General Act they would as formerly be divided into 8 or 10 several Independent Governments so far from being able or so much as willing to unite against a common Enemy that they never was or ever can be at Peace amongst themselves perpetually Quarrelling with one another about Bounds Limits and Jurisdictions nay the Differences of Religion in the several Colonies raises them to such an inveteracy against one another that when one of the Colonies was fighting against the Indians and wanted Provision and another Colony being of a different Perswasion in Religion out of pure Charity sent them some a Dispute arose amongst them whether they should Eat thereof because it came from an unsanctified People but their Stomachs produced a Dispensation and they after long debate fell on The Fable of the bundle of Arrows needs no Application here But it is well enough known that it cannot be in the Power of the French to injure those Plantations if several of them were joyn'd under one entire Superintendancy according as may be most conveniently disposed and this will put them in a Capacity to resist a common Enemy and determine on the place all Differences arising between the several Jurisdictions and on this account without any other all rational men must and do think themselves and their Effects much safer under the present sort of Government than formerly not to excuse the Governour if he has done any unjust Acts for which he is answerable and that is more than the Charter-Government will allow of there being no Appeal from them Besides let the New England Vindicator pretend what he will if these Charters be restored in general terms it must necessarily ruin many Families who have laid out all their Substance in improving such Lands as they were necessitated to accept of a Title far from the present Government and great Confusions must arise in Disputes about Titles and several other Matters which will all be prevented or determined by such a Superintendancy as is above-mentioned not to prejudice any Man or Body-Corporate in their just Proprieties and reasonable and convenient Privileges ☞ Last of all it must be remembred that the restoring these Charters without Limitation to the state they were in in the Year 1660 with all the Powers and Privileges they then enjoyed does in effect repeal as to what relates to them the Act of Navigation and all other Acts made since the Year 1660 to restrain their Illegal Trade the Dangerous Consequence of which may be seen in the Preambles of those Acts. On the whole therefore 't is humbly Offered as the most Safe and Advantagious way for the Interest of England that the Charters of the Plantation may be restored by an Act on purpose and not by the General Act with these in England they being quite of a different Nature and that there be in their Act 1. Such Restrictions as shall in your great Wisdoms seem necessary as to the Government to keep it dependant on England and subject to be called in question on any Irregularities by Appeal or otherwise to England 2. Some sort of Indempnity or else Power to punish or forgive such past Misdemeanours as shall seem requisite 3. With a Confirmation of such Titles as shall appear to be reasonable in your said Wisdom To which might be added a vast number of weighty things fitter for the Consideration of a Committee for that purpose than the Thoughts of any private person Thus the Plantations may as at first designed yearly produce a prodigious Income to their Mother England not without a proportionable return of Nourishment from her which they must not be suffered to get into a Capacity of refusing FINIS