I duly received your High Mightinesses' letter dated 2S"' April, by Cornells Melyn, who has been, on his humble petition, graciously relieved by your High Mightinesses of the sentence pronounced against him by us and our council on the Fiscal's complaint, prosecution and proof. But the appellant to your High Mightinesses, meeting no party nor defence, the papers and documents in support of the sentence having been lost with the ship the Princess, we, therefore, thankfully acknowledge the prudence of your High Mightinesses, who have, with the one ear received the appellant in the case of appeal with inhibitory clause, and kept the other ear open for us. We have, therefore, pursuant to your High Mightinesses' resolutions and letters, allowed the exonerated appellant to enjoy, unmolested, undisturbed and in peace, the full effect of your High Mightinesses' despatch which we shall, also, ;

consequently, continue to obey until your High Mightinesses will proceed, with your accustomed wisdom, to the confirmation or reversal of the sentence, hoping to maintain the same before your High Mightinesses by conclusive arguments. Yet we would, nevertheless, desire, and would have been glad to see that with the annulling and untimely extinction of the (opposite) party, before he could have defended himself, party strifes had remained extinguished and annihilated. But Melyn, the aforesaid appellant, finding himself sustained by writ of mandamus in addition to your High Mightinesses' letters, hath, previous to his return, and constantly since, caused us no inconsiderable uneasiness and trouble, both by giving communication of those papers, and construing their tenor much more liberally than your High Mightinesses' intention and meaning justified. For, besides running through New England among the English people (who are not very friendly to us and our Nation here on account of old boundary requisitions and claims) proclaiming and parading your High Mightinesses' aforesaid writ of mandamus and public letters, and His Serene Highness' passports, even before they were communicated to us, to the scandal of both and to our disparagement, he greatly discredited the Hon'''' Company to the English, as if it were bankrupt, and in no repute with your He reported, also, among other things, in order High Mightinesses. to render this government odious among the English (as letters of advice and the declaration of passengers state), that he was empowered by your High Mightinesses to send me a prisoner Vol.