those Committees were respectively located, was seen in the action of ''the Committee of Observation for "the united Town of Bedford and Precinct of Pound- " ridge antl Salem, in Westchester," on the tenth of January, 1776, in which that pompous body, " con- " ceiving that bad consequences do arise to this dis- '' tressed country from supplying the markets, at New " York, on supposition that the common enemy may, " by that means, be furnished with Provisions," for the purpose of regulating that grave irregularity, as its narrow and bigoted understanding presented the subject to its official censorship, bravely, "Resolved, "That from and after the date hereof, the said Com- " mittee do hereby strictly forbid any of the inhabit- "ants of the said Town and Precincts, directly or, " indirectly, to carry or cause to be carried, by land "or water, provision ofany kind to the said markets; "and do hereby direct the Minute-men and all others " that are friends to their country, to do their utmost " to stop all drovers of fat Cattle, Sheep, Hogs, Poul- " try, or any other Provisions whatsoever, and from "being drove or carried through either said Town or "Precincts, for the purpose aforesaid, without leave "of the said Committee," on the penalty of being deemed enemies to their country.*

In obedience to that local law, it appears that Jonathan Booth, a drover, while on his way to New York with a drove of Cattle, was detained at Bedford, by the Committee of that Town ; but, personally, he evidently pushed forward to the City of New York; and, on the twenty-fifth of January, 1776, he laid the subject before the Committee of Safety, which was then in ses^sion, and solicited its more powerful interposition. Very promptly, that body took the subject into consideration; and, without much, if any, discussion, the Committee "came to a "Resolution," which was delivered to the anxious drover, for his comfort and relief -- the Committee of Safety was not inclined to concur in the questionable theory of " patriotic" economy which was maintained by its subordinate Committee in Bedford; and, after having recited, in a Preamble, the facts and the Resolution which have been already presented, together with the additional declaration that " this "Committee, not doubting the good intentions of the "said Committee met at Poundridge, do nevertheless "conceive that the said Resolve has a manifest ten- "dency to distress, in the article of Provisions, the "inhabitants of this City and other friends to Liberty " whose business may call them thither," it therefore "Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Commit- "tee, that no Committee ofany City, Borough, Town, "or Precinct in this Colony ought to prevent any "such supplies of Provisions to this City as aforesaid, "unless they shall have due proof that such supplies " are intended to be furnished to persons engaged in