Scharf, J. Thomas, ed. History of Westchester County, New York, including Morrisania, Kings Bridge, and West Farms, which have been annexed to New York City, Vol. I. Philadelphia: L.E. Preston & Co., 1886.
4798 passages
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own enactments had been duly observed : it was also true, however, that they were obnoxious to "a few "of the Inhabitants," and, therefore, without an accusation, without a hearing, without a shadow of authority, even in the elastic law of the Congress, the expressed will of the Company was disregarded and the pretended principles of the Revolution were thrown aside, by the …
In a community, such as that which constituted Colonial We.stchester-county, which was already known and distinguished because of its consistent conservatism and, therefore, because of its backwardness in promoting the cause of the Rebellion, such a tyrannical exercise of political authority as had been seen in connection with the Election of Militia Officers, at Yonkers, by …
We have determined ' him to be disigualified for a Commission, nut only because at the time " of his signing the AmiciiiUim he declared it to be an involuntary act, but "also bocaiise he lias spoke most contemptuously ol the Provincial Con- " greas. .\nil in order that the other Officers in the Company may have "a chance of promotion, which cannot be dune acconling to the …
The first to respond to the call of the Provincial Congress, by the election of its Militia Officers, was the Borough Town of Westchester, where, on the twenty-fourth of August, John Oakley was elected to the command of the local Company, * with Nicholas Berrian, for its First Lieutenant ; ^ Isaac Leggett, for its Second Lieutenant ; and Frederic Philipse Stevenson, for its …
* Historical Mamiscripts relating to the War of the SevohUion: Military Hetums, xxvi., 234. The following list of the names of those, from West Farms and the Manor of Fordham, who were summoned to meet at Westchester ; who petitioned for the organization of the new Company ; and who were its members, when it was organized, may properly find a place in this narrative. It was …
In the Manor of Cortlandt, there were eight Districts or Beats, which appear to have been the same, in their several territorial limits, as those under the former arrangement ; and these elected the following Officers for the respective Companies: The District formerly commanded by Francis Lent elected James Kronkhyte, for its Captain ; Abraham Lamb, for its First Lieutenant …
The District formerly commanded by David Montros declined to make a new Election ; and its Officers under the former arrangement appear to have been retained and to have received new Commissions. The District formerly commanded by Ebenezer Theall elected Andrew Brown, for its Captain ; Samuel Haight, for its First Lieutenant;* John Chrissey Miller, for its Second Lieutenant …
0 John Drake did not sign the Association until the day of the Election. ' Joshua Drake did not sign the Association until the day of the Election. He was subsequently made an Ensign in the Continental Service ; but soon became tired and resigned, and brought influences to bear in order to secure a Lieutenancy in the same service, in which latter operation, however, he does …
The District formerly commanded by Joseph Strang ' elected John Hyatt, for its Captain ; ^ John Drake, for its First Lieutenant; ' Obediah I'urdy, for its Second Lieutenant; and Joseph Horton, for its Ensign.'' The eight Com]>anie8, in the Manor of Cortlandt, whicli were thus reorganized and re-ottieered, were known as the North Hattalion of Westchester-county, of which, soon …
In April, 1770, C'lileb Hobliy, who wiis said to have been a " Gentle- "inan," received a Coniniission from the C'ontineiitiil Congress, as FirRt Lieutenant in "the Firet Regiment of New York Forre.s," {Hixloiinil .1/.i//iis<T(j>/.«, etc. : Milil'irii IMimis, xxvii., liH) ; atiil he appears to have joined the Seventh, or Captain Hait's, Company, {HMmiinl Maniiscripls, etc …
■ Pierre Van Corllanilt was sul>sei|uently a niend>er of the Second Provincial (.'ongre.-*", 177.'>-i!, and Chairman of its Committee of Safety, January ami February, 177t; ; a member of the Thiiil Provincial Congress, 177ii; of the Fourth Provincial Congress, 177li; of the Convention of the Slate of New York, 177t;-7 ; of the First Council ot Sjifety, 1777, of w hicli lie was …
" Isaac Norton was a member of the County Committee, from the Manor of Cortlandt, 177ti-'7. >s Stephen Sneden represented the Town of Ea-stchester, in the County Committee, 1776-7. tenant ; " Daniel Sebring, for its Second Lieutenant; " and William Pinkney, for its Ensign.'' For some reason which is not now known, a new iOlection was held in the following March, when Thomas …
The East Company elected David Davids, for its Captain : Benjamin Vermilyea, for its First Lieutenant; Gilbert Dean, for its Second Lieutenant ; and Gabriel Reguaw, \_Eequa for its Ensign. '' Captain-elect Davids appears to have declined the proffered office ; and, at a subsequent Election, the Company elected Benjamin Vermilyea, for its Captain ; Gilbert Dean, for its First …
1- Joseph Drake was a member of the Firstand Second Provincial Congresses, by the former of whom he was made Colonel of the First Westchester-county Regiment, {Uinlorical Manuscript*, etc. : MUilnnj Keturns xxvi., 1:5 ) '8 A very interesting .Vflidavit, made by Lieutenant Willis, on the sixth of .Vugtist, 177(>, illustrative of the unpopularity of Colonel John Thomas, Junior …
The Beat or District of Yonkers made its election of Officers, agreeably to the provisions of the Congress's enactments ; but the result was not satisfactory to Frederic Van Cortlandt and others, who had been rejected by the Company ; and, through their influence in the Provincial Committee of Safety and Provincial Congress, the Commissions were withheld from the …
The Tarrytown Company originally elected Abraham Storm, for its Captain;* George Combs, for its First Lieutenant;^ Joseph Appleby, for its Second Lieutenant; and Nathaniel Underbill, for its Ensign ; but all of these, except Lieutenant Combs, having declined the honors and responsibilities of offices, a new Election was held, and Gload Requa* was chosen in the place of …
Israel Honeywell, Junior, was said to have been a member of the County Committee, representinj; the Manor of Philipsborough, 177G-'7 ; and, in 1777-'8 and 1778-'9, he w,is Sivid to have represented Westchestercounty in the Assembly of the State. It is not impossible that, in some instances, these references have become mi.xed. 2 See jjages 278, 27'J ante. Jlit^lorical …
Gershom Sherwood, for its Second Lieutenant ; ' and George Mouson, for its Third Lieutenant.'" The six Companies on the Manor of Philipsborough, and those at Westchester, previously referred to, at Eastcliester, and at New Rochelle and the Manor of Pelham, all of them reorganized and re-officered as thus described, were known as the South Battalion of Westchester-county, of …
" Gershom Sherwood represented the Manor of Philipsborough in the County Committee, 177C-'7. 1" George Morrison was the name of this oBiccr, (Hixloricid Mauvst rijits, etc.; Miscetl<ineiiiis Papers, x.xxv., G3.) " .loseph Drake was elected to the command of the Company of New Rochelle and Pelham Manor, (jxijc 281, ante ;) but, as he was, also, a member of the Provincial …
16 .Vbraliam Emmons, of Yonkers, was one of those, in the Yonkers Company, who had voted for Frederic Van Cortlandt for its Captain, and who had united with that gentleman, who was the defeated candidate, in disregarding the Election and securing the degnulation of John Cock, from the office to which he had been elected, -- (tiee paijes 278, 279, ante.) I'J Thus printed in the …
1" Gilbert Dusenberry was promoted to the First Lieutenancy of the Company, at the second Election for ofticere, in January, 177C. llLsfnrieal Manuscripts, etc. : MilUnrij Hetnrus, xxvii., 23C. 21 John Thomas, evidently a very young man, but one of the officeholding Thomas family. He was probably the second son of John Thomas, Junior, who was, at that time, a member of the …
The District which included the northern portion of Northcastle was so entirely opposed to the Rebellion that " there were not persons sufficient in num- " bers who had signed the Annocintion to make Offi- " cers of, so that nothing was done," in the form of an Election, during the Summer and Autumn of 1775 ; but an attempt was made to organize the Company, in the following …
The District which included the eastern portion of Bedford elected Lewis McDonald, for its Captain; James Miller, for its First Lieutenant ; ' Henry Lord, for its Second Lieutenant; and Jesse Miller, for its Ensign. The District which included the western j)ortion of Bedford elected Eli Seeley, for its Captain ; Heze- > Benoni Piatt was a member of tbe first County Committee …
' James Miller appears to have held offices, subsetiuently, in tbe New York Ucgiment^, coniuianded by Colonels Kit/.ema, tiansevoort, and Van C«>rtliindt ; but, inasmuch as there were several persons Itearing that name -- two, at the same time, in the same Regiment, bearing exactly opposite characters -- it is not, now, known which, if either, was the particular James Miller …
For some reason, the Captainelect and the Ensign-elect " did not take their Com- " missions;" and on the eighteenth of December, 1775, a new Election rasulted in the choice of Jesse Truesdale for Captain; Ezekiel Hawley, for First Lieutenant; Solomon Close, for Second Lieutenant ; and Elijah Dean, for Ensign.''' The Companies at Scarsdale White Plains and Brown's Point …
^0 Abijah Gilbert was a menil)er of the County Committee, from .Snloni, 177<l-'7 ; and lie rejirewnited Westcbester-counly in the .\ssenibly of the State, in 177'.i-'80, 17Sl-'2, 17S2-'3, 17S4, 17«4-'5, 17«(1, 17.SS, 17'.n, 1X(HP, iwiii-'iil, 1«02,18(«, 1»I4, and l»M-'5. 11 Tbwldeus Crane was api>ointed Sectind Major of the Ueginieut ; and be was succeeded by Lieutenant …
He was un|M)piilarii.s a Military Ollicer ; and sevenil Olticei's refused to serve under him, in August, 177ti, (IIMurieul Afuiiiiiu ripln, etc. : Mixcillaiiediia Papem, xxxix., 347.) He represented Weatcbester-coiiiity in the Assembly of Uie SUte, in 17K0-'l, 178l-'-2, 17»i-'3, 1784, 1784-'5, 17w;, 17.><7, 17S8, lTJi!-'3, 1S(K>-'1, 18U'2, 1803, 18l>4: lie was Sherift of (he …
The Company of Poundridge and Lower Salem -- which was called, also, " the First Company of Min- " ute-men of the County " -- elected, originally, Ebenezer Slason, to be its Captain ; Henry Slason, to be its First Lieutenant ; Ebenezer Scofield, to be its Second Lieutenant; and Daniel Waterberry, to be its Ensign ; but, subsequently, when Captain Slason was promoted, Henry …
Tompkins was a member of the first County Committee, elected in May, 177.5; a member of the Third and Fourth Provincial Congresses, of the Committee of Safety, and of the Council of Safety. He was a member of the Assembly of the State, 178l)-'l, 1781-'2, 178U, 1787, 1788, 17'.ll, 17y2 ; of the Board of Uegcnts of the University, 1787- 18118; and of the Constitutional …
Although it is said, positively, that he was also the Quarter master of this Regiment, it appears incredible that he was the |K'rst)n, and can be accounted for only by the profits whii h attended such an otfice and the well known proclivities of that family, in that direction, whereveran opportunity was presented. We prefer to believe that this Quartermaster's place was given …
With the exception of the two Companies in the Borough Town of Westchester anil at Yonkers, the elections of who.se Officers were separately reported, the list of Officers who were iiriijiinilli/ elected by the several Companies, as stated in the text, have been taken, generally without any change in the spelling of the proper names, even when known to haVe been erroneous …
Subsequently, "agreeable to the Demand made by "Colon' Drake to the Sub-Committee of Bedford," another Company of Minute-men was organized, in that Town, with Hezekiah Gray, for its Captain ; ' Cornelius Clark, for its First Lieutenant ; James Miller for its Second Lieutenant ; " and Isaac Titus, for its Ensign. A Company of nineteen men assembled at the White Plains and …
' Eli Seeley was originally elected to the command of the Company in the western part of the Town of Bedford, (Paye 283, uule.) *^ Jtnuutiils of the Provincial Coiujresv : (/orrenjjottdntce^ ii., 90. " TIezekiah Gray was originally the First Lieutenant in the Company in the western part of the Town of Bedfonl, of which Eli Seeley was the Captain, (Page 283, ante.) * James …
l"Captain James Varian was a member of the first County Committee, appointed in May, 1775, (Page 2.59, ante;) and First Lieutenant of the Scarsdale, White Plains, and Brown's Point (!ompany of Militia, of which Joshua Hatfield wsis the Captain, {Paije 283, ante.) " Lieutenant Samuel Craw ford was a mendier of the first County Committee, appointed in May, 1775, (Piye 259, ante …
expected from a com m unity in wliich the revolutionary party had scarcely a Corporal's Guard," except of those who were office-holders or office-seekers? -- but as soon as two Compauics had been organized, the County Committee "took the liberty, with all " submission, to recommend Samuel Drake, to be " Colonel ; ' Lewis Graham, to be Lieutenant-Colonel ; " Abraham Storm, to …
Heavy penalties wereimpo.sed on those who should fail to discharge all these re(iuireraent,s ; with levies on the properties of the delinquents, if they possessed property, or, in the absence of property, they were to be imprisoned " until sucli fine, together " with the charges, should be paid," which meant, at that time, an imprisonment in a cold Jail, without any other food …
He lived at Tarrytown. Klijah Miller was a resident andoneof the Snl>-committee of Northcastle. 'This statement is made on the authority of a Letter frotn CI ilhrrt Dnike, Clinirnmn of the Conntij Commillei; to IIik Proviiiriul CoiujreM, "White Plains, October 24th, 177.1." The Jonrtial of the I'roviticuil CoiM^rcw, (" Die Mercurii, 10 ho., A.M., October, 177.5,") shows the …
Indeed, the required equipment, in specified form, of themselves, and their boys, and their hired help -- their well-tried Ibwling-pieces having been unavailable for that i)iirpose -- and the stated withdrawal of all of them from their farms, for drill, on frequent, specified days, no matter how necessary their presence, at home, might have been, were unduly burdensome on all …
" We your humble Pertisuei's Ceiitlemen are now warned To bear "arms In Defence of our Country truly Tt is the Native place of .some of "us wich Now Gentlemen may it please your onnei-s To take it in (aui ■ "sideration we are Controld more by poverty than By our own will we " must Now beg of your honners To take it in Consideration wtu'e yiiu " In our State of Poverty yon wold …
" Sopteniber !), 1775." With this menacing (laper Iwfore one, it is not difflcuU to make one's self believe that the " poor reptiles " hail really some thoughts of " biting," as Gouver»eur Morris had foreseen a few months previously. HISTORY OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY. sometimes with warrants of "impressment," nominally for the equipment of Regiments, in garrison or elsewhere …
It waited for no verified complaint : it made no pretence that a breach of any written Law or of any other enactment was necessary, to warrant an arrest: it received secret, e.v parte "information" as all which was needed to authorize the arrest, the confinement, and the infliction of punishment on its victims, not unfreiiuently xyithout a hearing or an examination: and it …
1 See, in the JounmU aud Currespmulence of tlie Congresn and in the HLilorU-al Mammripls relnlimj lo Hit: War «/ (/ic liei'iilutitm, preserved in the ollice of tlie Secretaiy of State, iit Alliaiiy, llip reci.rds aud paperb ill the several cases, among nthera, of Angus McDonald, I 'ai>taiii Patrick Sinclair, ('aptain .Tidiaii Cliristiaii Drewidz, John Jlorrell, Adam Patrick …
and unfounded persecution of an innocent man, to the contempt of the country and of the world.* It sat in secret judgment over those whom it bad arrested, in instances wherein it was, also, the only accuser ; ^ and it recognized the existence, in merely local selfconstituted " Committees," in the several Counties, of the same authority to arrest and to imprison those who were …
^ Reference is liere made to tho case of Timothy Doughty, of DuclieaacoYinty, in which the victim, heoause ho declined to sign the General Assortati/m -- tliere was no evidence whicli tlie Congress considered refij)ectftble, showing any other offence -- was sei/ed by Kghert Benson, whose niethodet at an Election have been noticed ; and sent to New York, without anij evidence …
Fifteen Mw77;//wt affidavits were subsequently sent to the f-ongress, and hkai>//j the rirtim^ when he wan {jiven a hearing; but their worthlessness was so evident that the Congress discharged Poughty, although, as stated, it would not permit him to have copies of the papers, nor even to rea*! them, {Junruals of thf <'oiiiniiU^-f »f Sa/Hfi, September 4th ; snnu-, Sei)tendier …
^Letter fr</in the Provincial Chugress to the Delegates for the Colony of New York, in the <'ontinentul Congress^ ** In PROVINCIAL Congress, Nkw- " York, June 28th, 1775." See, also, the Plan of Accommotlution, ailopted in advance and kept in constant readiness for inniicdinfr use, by the same Provincial Congress, "4 ho., P.M., Die Martis,.June 27th, 1775/' (sue poijes 27;i …
On the eleventh of August, a letter was received by the I'rovincial Congress, from the local Committee at Brookhaven, on Long Island, stating that certain j)ersons, named therein, were counteracting every " measure recommended for redress and grievances, ' "and o|)|)osing the measures of Congresses and Com- " mittees ; and that they declared they would furnish, " and that it …
" WiiEUKA.s attempts may be made to promote dis- " cord among the Inhabitants of this Colony, and to " assist and aid the Ministerial Army and Navy, in " their endeavours to carry into execution the cruel and "oppressive Acts of Parliament, against the Rights " and liberties of the Inhabitants of this Continent: " And as the immutable laws of self-defence and ' Tims priuteil …
" Resolv KD, That if any person or persons shall be "found guilty, before the Committee of any City "or County, of attempting, (after the date of this "Resolution,) to furnish the Ministerial Army or "Navy with Provisions or other necessaries, contrary "to the Resolutions of the Continental or of this " Congress ; ^ or of holding a correspondence, by letter "or otherwise, for …
Doctor McLean was authorized to supply the same ship, with Drugs ami Medicines, as he had previously done, (Jmirnnl nf the C'onniiilter of Siifet;/^ "Die Martis, '.I ho., .V.M., Septendier .jth, 1775.") On the twenty-ninth ^)f .lanuary, 177li, William .Mien had permission to go on board the .IsiVi, to measure the men for shoes, and to make and deliver a hundreil liaii"s, if so …
While the Provincial Congress was thus inonopoli/.ing the supplying of the men-of-war, it "was filled with the utmost anxiety ' when, during the Autumn of 1775, " small boats from (Queens and Westchester-coun- "ties" undertook to enter into the same business ; and "to [irevent .so "greata mischief," a small armed vessel was purclnisod, " to watch those "and other dangerous …
There were those, in the Provim-ial Congress, who were always ready to enjoy an advantage, in trade or elstswhere : there was a conunereial advantage, in victualing the ships, which those "(mtriots" preferreil to retain. Ilail the boatmen of Westchester and (Jueens counties, while bringing their surplus products to market, been wise enough to have consigneil their cargoes to …
"Resolved, That if any person or persons shall " be found guilty, before the Committee of any City or " County in this Colony, of having furnished the, "Ministerial Army or Navy (after the date of this "Resolution,) with Provisions or other necessaries, " contrary to any Resolution of the Continental or ol' " this Congress, such person or persons, so found " guilty thereof …
And that ever^ " such person or persons, who shall be Ibund guilty " of a second offence of the same kind, shall be ban- " ished from this Colony, for the term of seven years "from the time of such seco.'id conviction. "Although this Congress have a tender regard to " the freedom of Speech, the rights of Conscience, " antl j)ersonal Liberty, as far iis an indulgence in " these …
1 Charles Lee, the second in cominaml in tli* Continent.al Army, IihiI not, tlien, liiiil liis wt'll-deviscJ " P?>i)i " before (ipneral Howe; (ieiionil Saniuol IL Piirsons Imil not yet coinmenceJ the siipplv of information, ctnicerning projected military movements, etc., thnmgh Squire ■•Heron," to Sir Henry Clinton ; Israel Putnam had not yet led Robert R. Livinj^ton to …
"they shall be committed to close confinement, at " their respective expense.'' And, in case any of the " said Committees are unable to carry this or any " Resolution into execution, they are hereby directed " to ap[)ly to the next County Committee or command- "ing Officer of the Militia, or to the Congress or the " Committee of Safety of this Colony, for necessary …
And the Committee nearest to any per- " son who shall be so enlisted or liave taken up "arms against the Liberties of America are herebj' "directed to appoint some discreet person to take "the charge of the Instate, both real and personal, of " any such i)erson or persons; which person so ap- " pointed shall be invested with such Estate, and "render, on oath, a just and true …
^That particular feature of this enactment was intended to imiioverish the victim, if he possesseil property , or to leave him to be starved, if he had none ; and the barbarism of the jirovision an<l of those who framed it, was seen, sul>se<|uently, in the physical sufferings of .John O'Connor and Daviil I'nrdy ; and in those of the Berghs, the Dohbses, and Timothy Doughty …
" Precinct, or District where the offender shall have " been taken up ; and if, upon examination, the sus- " picion shall appear to the said Committee to be "groundless, that he be discharged: Provided, "also, that no person charged to be an offender " shall be tried upon any of the foregoing Resolves, " until the persons to be Judges of the offence be " first severally sworn …
It will be seen that, by this remarkable enactment, every person in the Colony was placed at the mercy of the local Committee of the County in which he lived ; that no one was permitted to disregard or to treat with disrespect either the " recommendations " or the " Resolutions " of Congresses or Committees, of either high or low degree, no matter with what disclaimers of …
1 Journal of Ihe Provincial Congrat, " 4 ho., P.M., September 1st, "1775." - Compare the disclaimers which accompanied the Astociatioiu which were sent out, for signatures, (joayet 270, 271, aiUe;) with tlie penalties which weresubsoqucntly iinposeU on those who had decUued to sign those Aisocialioiui, in the orders issued for their disarumment, (jiaije 288, <iM<e ,) in this …
they possessed a conceded interest; that no appeal from the judgment of such a local revolutionary tribunal, too often controlled by personal or family quarrels* or by ecclesiastical or neighborhood feuds or by foreign interferences, was provided for or allowed ; and that the dictates of his conscience and the oath of his office, if he held an office, as far as these sh(,uld …
History has failed to record, in the annals of any other community, another such instance of solemn mockery and of refined hypocrisy and of relentless personal and partisan bitterness as is seen in this enactment, framed and ordained and promulgated by men who pretended to so much of honor and intelligence, to so much of loyalty to the King and of regard for the Constitution …
Scarcely a homestead existed in Colonial Westchester-county, in which the unbridled despotism of a self-constituted Precinct or District or Town Committee did not display its ill-gotten, ill-regulated power, under the sanction of this enactment, protected and supported, whenever protection and support were needed to ensure entire success, by the local and the Continental …
Who, among historical students, does not know that one of the most virulent of those who persecuted the loyal and law abiding Colonists, in Colonial New York -- a very thinly disguised monarchist who was thus figuring as a most zealous republican -- had been largely prompted to play a part in the politics of the perio<l which was radically distasteful to himself, in order that …
merely incideDtal allusions, left among the well-concealed records of those times, to say nothing of those more startling evidences which went, unrecorded, into the graves of those who had been thus plundered and outraged, when the latter were carried to their last earthly homes, to show that the Drakes and the Thomases, the Odells and the Martlings, the Lockwoods and the …
in Connecticut, as ifl well known, were too nearly akin in scntiuient to the Towns in Westchester-county to have supplied rcftj^'cUihl^ men, for 6uch a questionable service ; and specimens of those of Connecticut who were so zealous in tlie support of the Rebellion, in New York, when there was no armed forces before them-- those, from that Colony were not 80 zealous, on the …
^ Isaac and Josiah Brown were arrested ; thrown into the Prison at the White Plains ; and subsequently released on condition that they should board with William Miller, Deputy Chairman of the County Committee, at their own expense, instead of at their own homes, ' Lyon Miller was First Lieutenant in the Harrison Precinct Company of Militia, reorganized under the enactment of …
Although the records do not mention the distinguishing title, if he had one, of the victim whose arrest and imprisonment and conditional release are mentioned in the note referred to, and, therefore, the untitled "Joshua Purdy'' has been connected with those records, there are circumstances which favor the impression that Captain Joshua was the person to whom they really …
There need be no surprise that that remarkable enactment and the activity in enforcing its provisions which was seen among those who favored the Rebellion and among those who desired the advantages which a general breaking down of those who opposed that Rebellion would probably ensure to them, in the expected and intended sequestrations and confiscations and sales of …
" Caleb Morgan w;is reported to the Provincial Congress, a second time : arrested ; and thrown into the Prison at the White Plains. 12 James Horton, Esq., was summoned before the " Committee of "Safety," as the County Committee called itself, in August, 1777; was unusually independent in his answers to that body ; and appears to have remained without further trouble. 13 …
I'Saumel Merrit was reported to the Provincial Congress, a second time ; arrested ; and thrown into the Prison at the Wiite Plains. '8 Edward Palmer was a resident of Cortlandt's Manor ; and was subsequently accused of enlisting men for the Royal .\rmy. There are some reasons for supposing that he was the young man who was so ostentatiously hung, as a spy, by the order of …
farmers of Westchestcr-county -- they would have been less than men, and unworthy of either respect or sympathy, had they remained passive spectators of what was then in progress, for the seizure of their persons, for the sequestration of their homes and of their estates, and for the impoverisliment of their aged parents, of their wives, and of their dependent children …
A lawless assault on the jiersons or the properties of the conservatives and the loyal, by the promptings of embittered human nature and the unwritten law of retaliation, was followed, sooner or later, by equally lawless assaults on the persons or on the families or on the properties of those, of the opposite party, who had been the original aggressors ; and, very seldom, on …
peculiarly noted for their unfaltering loyalty.- Early in September, 1775, before the passage of the enactment by the Provincial Congress, to which reference has been made, could have become generally known throughout that " border Town," Godfrey Haines, an unmarried man, was at the house of Daniel Purdy, in Rye; and, in conversation, he condemned the reorganization of the …
He undoubtedly knew that he was among those who entertained opinions and preferences which were similar in their character to those which he had declared ; but the latter may have been less willing to declare what they preferred and what their opinions were, concerning the doings of those who were, then, aspiring to the Government of the Colony -- he was, however, less …
Of Delilah, not an Israelite, we know that she betrayed her lover to his enemies, to the oppressors of his kindred and his people : of Eunice, an ignorant, unmarried woman ; unable to write her own name and, probably, unable to read what others had written-- just such a tool, indeed, as suited the purposes of such men as, then, manipulated her spitefullytold information …
Whatever incited her, however, the story of Godfrey's outspoken utterances was told by her, within three or four weeks from the day of his visit to Purdy's ; and, because he had evidently thus made himself obnoxious to the controlling faction, although he had not been previously regarded with suspicion, ^ the County Committee, with intemperate zeal, promptly proceeded to …
" Eunice Purdy, of Rye, in the said County, "Spinster, being duly sworn upon the Holy Evange- " lists of Almighty God, deposeth and saith that, on or " about the second of September instant, Godfrey " Hains was at Daniel Purdy's, at Rye, and in con- "versation, at that time, said he understood that the " Committee or Congress had made a law to oblige all " to train under them …
- This remark very clearly indicated that, when Gocifrey made these violent remarks, he was smarting from wrongs already inflicted on himself or on those who were dear to him, by those of the revolutionary faction in Westchester-county or by those, from Connecticut, under General Wooster or others, who had come into the County, for the support of the Rebellion. "as in the …
He was ordered to be disarmed ; but the judgment was returned unsatisfied, since he had concealed his ai"ms and ammunition ; and the Committee stated that it was highly improbable that they could be found. It was determined, however, that he was "a very dangerous man;" and, for its own peace sake as well as for its own safety, that very zealous Committee determined to send him …
Daniel Winter, Godfrey " Hains, a person who was accused and convicted, be- " fore us, of denying the authority and speaking con- "temptuously of the Congresses and the Committee '• of this County. He was ordered to be disarmed ; and, " upon examining him respecting his arms and am- " munition, he confessed that he has a gun, pistol, " sword, powder, and ball, but refused …
Winter and his prisoner and the guard who accompanied them left the White Plains early enough to reach the City before nine o'clock on the morning of the twentyninth of September, the day on which the letter was written;' and the first subject which was brought before the Committee of Saiety, there, at its morning session, in the City of New York, was the letter from the …
Paulding, a " Deputy for the said County, be requested to write a "letter to the said Committee, informing them that " it is the opinion of this Committee, that, agreeable "to the Resolutions of the Provincial Congress of this "Colony, the County Committees are altogether com- "petentfor punishing and confining persons guilty " of a breach of the said Resolutions or of either …
" his being rescued by persons inimical to the cause "of Liberty ;" and that body thereupon reconsidered its Order of the preceding day, and ordered " that the " said Godfrey Haines be committed to the Jail in this "City till the further order of this Committee or the " Provincial Congress of this Colony ; and into the Jail, in New York, Godfrey was accordingly ca.-t. without …
But, notwithstanding those animosities, his necessities compelled him to seek relief; and, on the fourth of October, the fifth day of his confinement, he united with his fellow-prisoners, in the following l\titlon, probably written by himself, addressed to the Provincial Congress, which had reassembled on the morning of that day : * "To the Honourable Provincial Congress …
Eight days after the Provincial Congress had received and read the Petition of Godfrey Haines and his fellow-prisoners, that body received the following Resolution from the Continental Congress, which probably served to intensify rather than to ameliorate the prevailing partisan animosities; and it was certainly not well-constituted for the relief of those who were already …
Appended to the copy of this Resolution wliich was laid before the Provincial Congress of New York, was a memorandum, not included in the official transcript of the Resolution, and without a signature, which was in these words : " To be kept as secret as " its nature will admit ;" and it was accompanied by extracts from letters which the Continental Congress had received from …
^Comimre the corresiwndence of Joseph Galloway aDdJauies Duane with the voDfiablu Lieutenant governor of New York, and the knowledge of the latter, concerning the secret doings of the Congress of 1774, which the former, members of the CongrcKs and pledged to secrecy, had coaimunicated to him, (pages 27, Xi, :i4, ante,) with this later instance of secret information and copies …
But, on the tenth of October, two days before the Provincial (jougress received it, Governor Tryon had received the information, "from uudoubted au '*thority from the City of Philadelphia," (^Governor Trijon to the Mayor of the CUij of Seic York, " New York, lO"" Oct. 1775 ; "; and his subsequent statement, that he was in correspondence with "the Fountain-head," (doveniur …
As the Delegates from New York, in Philadelphia, were well-informed, not only concerning the Kesolution but concerning the secret correspondence of the Continental Congress, which evidently formed a portion of the information which was comnuinicated to the Governor, there is reason for believing that the correspondent of the Governor was a member of that Delegation ; and the …
There is no record of the discharge of Godfrey Haines from the Jail, in the City of New York ; but, on the contrary, when the record of the proceedings of the Committee of Safety, on the morning of the twenty-ninth of Sej^teinber, when he was taken before that body by Daniel Winter and the guard who had brought him from the White Plains,* was laid before the Provincial …
Hastening to the wharf, on the East River, the starved fugitive, from whom all food and drink had been withheld for more than a week," he " impressed," if he did not steal, a boat ; and found refuge and food on board of official and personal leanings were toward the Livingstons rather than toward the rivals of the latter, the De Lancoys, who had previously occupied the nearest …
Rec' from N York : "the best authority Nov 2 1775 W T." -- and it may have been sent to him by Egbert Duniont, as stated b}' Judge Jones and his commentator ; but, when it was siiid to have been received, the Governor had surely been on the Halifax or on the Ductless of Gordon, more than a fortnight. The name of the real author of that Memorandum, on which Governor Tryon is …
" Haines was tried and sentenced, at the White Plains, on the twentyeighth or twenty-ninth of September, when his sentence of starvation probably coii,menced to run. Six, if not seven, days afterwards, he petitioned for food, saying "he had not whereHithal to suport himself," his jailers, in the City of New Y'ork, doing nothing more than to read his Petition, and to place it …
During the succeeding December [1775], in company with " one Palmer " -- said to have been of Mamaroneck -- he loaded the Sloop Polii/ and xIh/j, which he had recently purchased from Isaac Gedney, with Beef, Pork, and other Provisions ; and, taking on board three quarter-casks of Madeira Wine, a package of Turnip.«, and other articles, all of them for General Howe, and other …
The savory reputation of the " wreckers " of that treacherous cosist, sometimes made more treacherous by reiison of the false lights displayed by those who lived there, will prepare the reader for the remainder of that sad story of adventure and of disaster -- the vessel does not appear to have gone to pieces ; and that and what remained of her cargo, after the "wreckers" had …
^ Examination of Gilbert Budd before the Provincial Congress -- Journal of the Provincial Congreu, "Die Veneris, 5 ho., P.M., November 3, " 177.1." ^A_fi<lavU of Philip Pinckney, November 1, 1775 -- page 301, post. the Sloop, were ordered to be sent, duly guarded, to the City of New York, and delivered to the Committee of Safety of that Colony. As may be foreseen, Godfrey …
Three days after Major Henderson and his prisoners reached New York, [Januar!/ 28, 1776,] "The Com- " mittee of Safety took into consideration the case of " Godfrey Haines, lately apprehended and sent here " by the Committee of Safety of New Jersey ; are of " opinion that his many and mischievous machina- " tions are so dangerous that he ought to be kei)t in " safe custody and …
"Ordered, That the said Godfrey Haines be sent, " manacled or fettered, under guard, to Ulster-county " Jail; and that Colonel McDougal be requested to " procure an Officer, with a proper Guard of the " Militia or Minute-men of this City, to guard the " said prisoner and the other prisoners heretofore " ordered to jail, to Kingston, in Ulster-county."** At the same time, a …
«The Coinmittoe made no mention of the fact that he had, then, been kept without food or water, a full week ; and that, siiu e his pniyer for food had been disregarded by the Provincial Congress, he wiw compelled either to force bis way out of the prisoner to starve, (vide pageWi, ante.) 'The only "evil practises " for which he had been condemned were "denying the authority …
The subsequent career of Godfrey Haines, as far as it is known, can be told in few words -- the severity of the treatment which he had received and which he continued to receive broke down his health ; and the Committee of Ulster-county was apjilied to, to permit him to be removed from his close confinement and to have " the liberty of the house," until he should have …
There were other arrests in Westchester-county similar to that of Godfrey Haines, one of which, that of Elijah Weeks, was followed by an attempt to rescue him, by an armed force, among the latter of whom were Isaac Gedney, Junior,^ William Nelson,* Joshua Boyea, Jo.^hua Ferris,'^ Bartholomew Haines,' Elijah Haines, William Haines, and Joiin Haines, the persons who made the …
s Joshua Ferris, a son of Caleb Ferris, was cue of those who went on board the Phunijr, when that ship went up the Hudson, in July, 1776, {Examination of Joshtta Ferris : Historical Manuscripts, etc. : MisceltaneoUg Papers, XXXV., 69, 85.) He, or another pcnson bearing the same name, wasapiisoner, intlieJail at the White Plains, in September, 177i;,at which time he petitioned …
Among those who were, also, arrested and thrown into prison, by the Committee of Westchester-county, under the provisions of the enactment of the Provincial Congress which is now under consideration, were Joshua Purdy, Caleb Morgan, John McCord, Gilbert Horton, Josiah Brown, Edmund Ward, Samuel Merrit, Philip Fowler, Gabriel Purdy, William Barker, Junior, John Besley, Isaac …
It was a short-sighted policy, also, even among those who were in rebellion, which inflicted penalties, especially such penalties as these, on those persons who continued, peacefullj', on their respective farms, quietly pursuing their daily labors, honestly respecting the Laws of the country, and consistently recognizing and honoring the Sovereignty of the King, whom even …
* The names of those who were arrested and imprisoned, which are named in the text, were copied from a single Petition for relief, {Historical Manuscripts, etc. : Petitions, x.xxiii.. 108) ; but there were many others. The names of^those farmere, in Salem, whose Farms, Stock, Tools, Crops, Household Furniture, etc., were thus seized and sold, were taken from the same …
It was loudly declared to have been the most ardent wish of even the most advanced advocate of rebellion, to have secured a reconciliation with the ilother Country and a restoration of harmony and good-will among the adverse parties throughout the several Colonies : ' how much more of wisdom there would have been displayed among those who had seized the reins of government …
1 "The thought that we might be driren to the sad neceaiity ot break- " ing our coniwtiiiii with Great Britain, exclusive of tin- carnage anri " destruction, which it was ea-sy to see luust attend llie separation, always " gave n>e a gri'at deal ot grief. And even no%v, I would cheerfully re- " tire fnim pulilic life, forever, renounce all chance for honors or "profits from …
While the excitement occasioned by the enactments of the Provincial Congress, authorizing local Committees to seize and imprison ami disarm and deprive of their estates those who should become obnoxious to those local demagogues and against whom, by fair means or l)y foul, an accusation of nnfrieiully thoughts or words against the Rebellion could possibly be trumped up, was at …
'" Whereas, a great number of the men enlisted in " the Continental Service, in this Colony, arc desti- " tutc of Arms, and in order to carry into execution "the Resolutions of the Continental Congress, it is " absolutely necessary to have those troops armed : "And WHEREAS, every method to hire or purchase "Anns, hitherto attempted, has failed to jjrocure a " sutficient number …
"Ordered, That the person or persons who shall " have the charge of the carrying this Resolution into " execution, in each County, shall direct all the Arms "that shall be so impressed, to be collected at some " place in the County where they are impressed, and " there valued and a|)praised by three indifferent men " of reputation of the County, any two of whom " agreeing …
" Orhered, That a Certificate, specifying the value "and the mark of the Musket, Gun, or Firelock so " impressed, appraised, and marked, shall be signed " by the Aj)praisers and Impressers, which shall enti- " tie the owner thereof to receive the appraised value " from the Treasurer of tlie Provincial Congress oi " this Colony : Provided the same be not returned at " or before …
"Ordered, That the Cajjtairis of the respective "Companies of the Third Regiment of the troops of "this Colony, who are now in Sutlbik-county, be " authorized to carry these Resolutions into execu- " tion in Queens-county. That Colonel Lasher- l)c "requested to send two or more Companies of his " Battalion, to give such assistance in (Jueens-county " as may be necessary, at …
And that these Resolutions "be carried into execution, in every other County, by "the Chairman of the County Committee, with the "assistance of the Militia Ofticers, who are hereby "ordered to be aiding therein with such jtarts of the " Militia as each such Chairman shall think necessary. "And " Ordered, That the several i)ersons who shall be " disarmed by virtue of the above …
The real purpose of the Committee of Safety, in the adoption and publication of this Resolution and of these several Orders, was the entire disarmament of every one who, for any reason, had neglected or declined to sign the General As-soridfion ; and, lor that reason, every class of fire-arms, whether adapted to the uses of the Army or not, was included, in every instance, in …
It must have been peculiarly galling, among those who had been accustomed to hear of the " Rights of " Man " and of the " Constitutional Rights of English- "men " and all the other catchwords and maxims in the science of government -- generally true, in theory, although, i>ractically, they had been seized and cmployed bj' demagogues, in those instances, only for the …
Not an exception was made, no matter what reason there might have been for such an exception ; and everything which had a gun-lock on it, whether useful or useless for military purposes -- whether a young man's fowling-piece, with which he was wont to have a few hours' sport, when sriuirrels and robins abounded, or to have more serious work, when foxes and more formidable …
There was ample reason, under the circumstances which then existed, for obstructing the execution of tlic t^ommittee's Orders -- indeed, there was greater reason for concealing the objects whicli the military force was expected to seize and "impress," under the provisions of these Orders, than there had been for tlie concealment of the Bay Colony's military stores, at Concord …
We are told," the writer continued, " that the people have been collecting " together, and parading, in sundry places, armed, " and firing their Muskets, by way of bravado. On " the whole, had we the Battalion " [Lasher's} " we " believe we should be able to collect a very cousider- " able number of good Arms and support the honour ol " Congress ; but without it, shall not …
" While deaf to this call, Ihey would not he made to listen to the Orders "of a Committee or the Resolves of a Conjcress. If enemies, the sense *'of present danger, operating on the fii"st law of nature, would prompt "them to keep within their power, their only sure means of defem.'-. "In either case, the idea of taking away their arms, by a compulsory " impressment, had …
in other connections, that the men of that County, like those of (iueeus-county, armed themselves, and patroled the County, in large parties, to guard against surprises ; declaring their determination to defend themselves, and saying " that if any body came to " their houses to take away their Arms, they would " lire upon them." ' Itappears, also, that the declaration was …
^ Testimony of Colonel Gilbert Budd of Mmiiaroneelc^ before the I^orinrliil ( 'otitjrrns^ -- Jtnintal of tlie Prorineial OnnjrtHs^ " Die \*eneris, 10 h4». A.M.. " November !i, ITiri," {vide jnitje 302, ptmt.) * This contlict between those who were executing the Orders of the f'uininittee of Safety, for the tlisarmameiit of those who had not signed tlie and those, in …
I ■> See pages SKI, 282, 283, ante. I ''Oeneral Wottster and his connuand were encamped (»n property belonging to Arent Bussing, near Harlem, from the eighteenth of .lul>. preceding, {Jounml of Prorincial Co,iijr-ia, " Die Marti.s, !l ho., .\. M.. "July ISth, 177.'-..") ■ "General Wooster is at Harlem, with atwut 40<) men, which appear "to us to be unemployed," U.elliT from …
It is proper that notice shall he taken, in this connection, of the fact that the Provincial Congress, on the twenty-fourth of October, twenty days after that body had returned to its place and to its work and thirty-eight days after its Committee of Safety had adopted and published the Resolution and Orders, "relating to the impressment of Arms," wliich have been thus …
Philip Piiikney,' " (who had given very full information, to some of the " Committee, of the plot, and had offered to swear to " it, provided he was brought by the tJommitiee by " an ap])earance of force, and had engaged not to be " out of the way.) uj)on boing sent for, by some of tlie " guard attending the Cominittee, was not to be " found ; whereupon some of the Committee …
2 There is not the slightest mention of this evidently tricky Pliilip, in any of the conteinporiiry records with whicli we have any iicquaintance, except in this instance; and we snspect he was dial lo.valist, Philip, who fled to Nova Scotia, at tlie close of tlie War, of wlioni Bolton made mention. He was evidently well-fitted fi>r a "Cow-boy;" and, very probably, he was one …
" Pinkney may be sent for and critically examined, " by the Congress, respecting the above matter, and " with relation to Oars being made by the request of " Captain Vandeput;^ and, also, that William Davis, " (who was employed in making the Oars,) and Sarah " Williams, the wife of Isaac Williams, of Westchester, " may also be sent for and examined as witnesses, " respecting …
" We would also request, when the others are sent " for, that the before-mentioned Isaac Gedney, Junior, " and William Nelson, .Foshua Boyea, Joshua Ferris, " Bartholomew Ilains, Elijah Hains, William Hains, " and John Hains, be also taken and brought before " the Honourable Congress, for taking up arms to " rescue Elijah Weeks, who was brouglit before the " Committee upon a …
' "Jil.<tice Sutton" was the "William Sutton, Esij." who was one of thesigncisof the call for the Meeting at the White Plains, in April, 1775, as well as one who signed the Ih-claration and Protest, at the same jdace, against the proceedings of that Meeting, (cide puijm'Hij, 248, inUe.) lie was one of the King's Justices of the i'eace ; and one of those who were reported to …
" We would not have troubled the Congress about " apprehending the above-named persons, but that " we look upon ourselves, at present, too weak to do " it, without great danger ; ' and we beg leave to sub- " niit it, whether it be not neeessary, ibr the security " of many amongst us, as well as to prevent Provisions " being conveyed to tlie Ministerial Army, that a " Guard be …
" Personally appeared before me, James Horton, " Junior, one of His Majesty's Justices of the Peace " in and for said County, ' Philip Pinkney, of full age, " who deposeth and saitii, that on Wednesday, the "twenty-fifth day instant,'* being in company, he "heard one say that CJodfrey Haines was determined " to have satisfaction on some particular persons," and "that there was …
5 Micah Townsend was a member of the County Commitler of IVT'i-'O, and its Secretary : lie was i>ue of tlie ]Mimite-nien, at W hite IMains, in February, 1770 ; and he was in i-oniniand of a Company, in the following Summer. He evidently left Westchester-county, soon afterwards, as he wa-s in the .\sseinbly of the State, in 1779-'S(I, representing Cumlierlaiid-county. 'Anthony …
" Although the project of carrying Judge Thomas away from his home, in 1775, if such a project was really entertained, was not carried out ; a similar project, in 1777, was successful ; and he wiis carried to New York, as Haines had been, and thrown into jirisou, iu that City, as Uaiuea had been, {oide page* 292, 293, uri/tf,) and died there. " particular place, to receive him …
Budd Horton, who had evidently taken those papers to the Congress, should attend that body, at five o'clock, on the same afternoon.'-' At the appointed hour, those gentlemen made their appearance before the door of the Assembly Chamber, in the City Hall, in which the Congress was assembled in secret Session ; and when they were admitted into the Chamber, they were duly …
" Gilbert Budd, of Maniaroneck, says that the tories "are getting the upper hand of and threaten them, "daily, and have injured their private property, by " throwing down stone fences and cropping his horses' "tails and manes; that Piiilip Pinckney told him, " last Sunday, that he was in company, on the tweiity- " fifth of October last, with a man who told him tiiat " there …
t-The entire prostration of the Colonial (tovernment, in New York, and its entire helplessness Ui protect the Colonists from the outniges to which they were subjected by the promoters of the Kebellion, is nowhere more clearly seen than in this appearance of one of those who were in rebellion, l>efore one of the King's Justices of the Peace, to make an olticial aindavit …
Budd asked Pinekney if he knew^ " who those neighbours were ; he answered that one "of them was William Lounsberry - and one, Isaac " Gedney, Junr., and all Sutton's men, alluding to "some hired servants of Sutton's ; ' that Pinekney " said he came as a friend, and advised Mr. Budd to " keep out of the way, for that he did not think it safe " for him to sleep in his house, one …
The Congress appears to have been in one of it^ j temperate moods when that delegation from tlu chivalry of ( 'olonial Westchester-county, bearing th( missive from the Goinmittce of that County and it^ kindred Affidavit, approached its doors; and for that reason, unless it was because of the siiallovvness of the ! several accusations and re()ue.sts which were in the papers or …
- On tlie tweuty-ninth of .\ugust, ITTii, "one I.ounsl)erry of Westcliester '' County who had headed a party of ahoiit 14 Tories wsis killed by a I'er- '*son named Flood on his refusal to surrender himself Prisoner ; That in *'hi8 Pocket hook was found a O'tiuniission signed hy Genl. llow to " Major Rogers empowering him to raise a Battalion of Rangers with the "Rank of Lieut …
" We received a letter of the 1st inst., from the "Sub-committee of your County, relative to the " conduct of the people of Rye ; and the Congress "have directed me to recommend to your Com- "mittee to make an immediate and strict inquiry "into the matters to which the letter refers, and "to take the examinations on oath of the wit- "nesses; and if you find satisfactory …
"of the ('(Diiuiittee of Wtatchestcr-couiitij"'-' The suggestion which was made in this letter, that those of the revolutionary faction, in Westchestercdunty, whose safety was imperiled by the threats of their conservative and law-abiding neighbors, should go before the King's Magistrates and ask that the latter should be put under bonds to keep the peace towards the former …
* This remarkable suggestion, that those, in Westchester-county, who were in rebellion, and who were threatened with arrest by those of their neighboi-8 who were not in rebsllioii, should go before the King's Justices of the Peace, and ask that those loyal inhabitants who were inclined to support the Home and Colonial Governments and the Laws and to arrest those who Vicre n\ …
The Provincial Congress had continued in session, closely witiulrawn from the sight of its constituents, until the eighth of July,' when it ha<l taken a fortnight's rest, during which period a "Committee of "Safety " was left on duty, with large authority, loadminister tiu' affairs of the ne\\; organization.- On the twenty-sixth of July, it ha<l resumed its work, continuing it …
The dissolution of the first Provincial Congress, which occurred at about the close of the first halfyear of the entire and, as far as the Colonial and HometTOvernments were con ccriuxl, of tlieundisputetl, domination of the revolutionary faction of the purely aristocratic portion of the Colonial party of the Opposition and its plebean au.xiliaries, over the vastly greater …
• Joiiriinl «/ Ihe /Vorincii/ Cmiyrent, May 22, uiitU July 8, 1775. SJoiirti<i/<>/(Ae CinamUtee of Stifelii, July 11, uutil July 2.5, 1775. ' Joumul of Ihe ProeincuU Congrew, fiolu July 20, until Septcuilier 2, 1775. * Jotiriml of Ihe CommilUe of >^fil;i, from Seiili'iulwr I, \iMtit OctobiT 3, 1775. ' Jounfil of Ihe PrueituUil Cvngrem, from October 4, until Noveuibor 1, 1775 …
At that time, there was no lu-wspaper-press in the Colonies which was conducted with greater ability than Rivingtou's ^'ew-y'ork (iazefteer ; or Coiiiin fimt, Hudson's River, New-Jerfeii, find Quehcrk WreL-lij Adrertixer, which was published, weekly, by James Rivington, in the (]!ity of New York. It was a news- ])aper, in the proper sense of the word ; and it published the …
It was evidently determined, therefore, that James Rivington should be silenced; and that his only means for inflicting pain on the persons of those who favored the Rebellion should be taken from him. There was, also, at that time, no one, in the Colony of New York, who possessed greater intellectual and executive abilities combined with superior scholastic attainments, than …
He was learned, as was well-known : he was fearless in the declarations and support of his wellconsidered opinions, as was known to his neighbors and friends: that his convictions led him to support the conservative portion of the Opposition, led by his j friend, Isaac " Wilkins, is more than probable : that the same convictions led him to oppose, within the circle of his …
The political Parson, therefore, was very offensive to those of the revolutionary faction who were not his neighbors -- " in justice to the rebels of East and West " Chester, I must say," he wrote, in 1770, " that none ! " of them ever offered me any insult or attempted to do [ '■ me any injury that I know of" -- and it was evidently ' determined that he, also, like James …