friends to be maintained through the winter, that they may be able to scalp and butcher us in the spring.

And as to the Moravian Indians,1 there are strong grounds at least to suspect their friendship, as it is known they carried on a correspondence with our enemies on the Great Island. We killed three Indians going from Bethlehem to the Great Island with blankets, ammunition, and provisions, which is an undeniable proof that the Moravian Indians were in confederacy with our open enemies. And we cannot but be filled with indignation to hear this action of ours painted in the most odious and detestable colours, as if we had inhumanly murdered our guides who preserved us from perishing in the woods, when we only killed three of our known enemies, who attempted to shoot us when we surprized them. And besides all this, we understand that one of these very Indians is proved by the oath of Stenton's widow, to be the very person that murdered her husband. How then comes it to pass that he alone, of all the Moravian Indians, should join with the enemy to murder that family? Or can it be supposed that any enemy Indians, contrary to their known custom of making war, should penetrate into the heart of a settled country to burn, plunder and murder the inhabitants, and not molest any houses in their return, or ever be seen or heard of? Or how can we account for it, that no ravages have been committed in Northampton County, since the removal of the Moravian Indians, when the Great Cove has been struck since? These things put it beyond doubt with us that the Indians now at Philadelphia are His Majesty's perfidious enemies, and therefore to protect and maintain them at the public expence, while our suffering brethren on the frontiers are almost destitute of the necessaries of life and are neglected by the public, is sufficient to make us mad with rage, and tempt us to do what nothing but the most violent necessity can vindicate. We humbly and earnestly pray, therefore, that those enemies of His Majesty may be removed as soon as possible out of the Province. 4. We humbly conceive that it is contrary to the maxims of good policy, and extreamely dangerous, to our frontiers, to

The Moravian Indians were an Algonkian tribe converted to Christianity, pacifism, and agriculture by German Moravian missionaries. Their pathetic attempts to keep neutral between their savage brethren and the backwoodsmen, and their eventual extermination by the latter, are described in Roosevelt's Winning of the West.

suffer any Indians of what tribe soever to live within the inhabited parts of this Province while we are engaged in an Indian war; as experience has taught us that they are all perfidious, and their claim to freedom and independency puts it in their power to act as spies, to entertain and give intelligence to our enemies, and to furnish them with provisions and warlike stores. To this fatal intercourse between our pretended friends and open enemies, we must ascribe the greatest of the ravages and murders that have been committed in the course of this and the last Indian war. We therefore pray that this grievance be taken under consideration and remedied.

5. We cannot help lamenting that no provision has been hitherto made, that such of our frontier inhabitants as have been wounded in defence of the Province, their lives and liberties, may be taken care of and cured of their wounds at the publick expence. We therefore pray that this grievance may be redressed.

6. In the late Indian war this Province, with others of His Majesty's Colonies, gave rewards for Indian scalps, to encourage the seeking them in their own country, as the most likely means of destroying or reducing them to reason; but no such encouragement has been given in this war, which has damped the spirits of many brave men who are willing to venture their lives in parties against the enemy. We therefore pray that public rewards may be proposed for Indian scalps, which may be adequate to the dangers attending enterprizes of this nature.

7. We daily lament that numbers of our nearest and dearest relatives are still in captivity among the savage heathen, to be trained up in all their ignorance and barbarity, or to be tortured to death with all the contrivances of Indian cruelty, for attempting to make their escape from bondage. We see they pay no regard to the many solemn promises which they have made to restore our friends who are in bondage amongst them. We therefore earnestly pray that no trade may hereafter be permitted to be carried on with them, until our brethren and relatives are brought home to us.

1

8. We complain that a certain Society 1 of people in this Province, in the late Indian war, and at several treaties held by the King's representatives, openly loaded the Indians with presents, and that J. P., a leader of the said Society, in defiance 1 The Society of Friends.

of all government, not only abetted our Indian enemies, but kept up a private intelligence with them, and publickly received from them a belt of wampum, as if he had been our Governor or authorized by the King to treat with his enemies. By this means the Indians have been taught to despise us as a weak and disunited people, and from this fatal source have arose many of our calamities under which we groan. We humbly pray therefore that this grievance may be redressed, and that no private subject be hereafter permitted to treat with, or carry on a correspondence with our enemies.

9. We cannot but observe with sorrow that Fort Augusta, which has been very expensive to this Province, has afforded us but little assistance during this or the last war. The men that were stationed at that place neither helped our distressed inhabitants to save their crops, nor did they attack our enemies in their towns, or patrole on our frontiers. We humbly request that proper measures may be taken to make that garrison more serviceable to us in our distress, if it can be done.

N.B. We are far from intending any reflection against the Commanding Officer stationed at Augusta, as we presume his conduct was always directed by those from whom he received `his orders.

SIGNED on behalf of ourselves, and by appointment of a great number of the frontier inhabitants.

February 13th, 1764.

MATTHEW SMITH.
JAMES GIBSON.

THE VIRGINIA RESOLVES ON THE STAMP ACT 30 May 1765

I. PATRICK HENRY'S SPEECH INTRODUCING THE

RESOLVES

(a) From the contemporary diary of a French traveller.1 May the 30th. Set out early from half-way house in the chair and broke fast at York, arived at Williamsburg at 12,

This diary, which was recently discovered in the Archives-Nationales, Paris, is printed in the American Historical Review, xxvi. 726-47 (1921). The writer has not been identified. Apparently he was an agent of the French Government, possibly the Chevalier d'Anne

mours.

where I saw three negroes hanging at the galous for haveing robed Mr. Waltho of 300 pounds. I went imediately to the Assembly which was seting, where I was entertained with very strong debates concerning dutys that the Parlement wants to lay on the American colonys, which they call or stile stamp dutys. Shortly after I came in, one of the members stood up and said he had read that in former times Tarquin and Julus had their Brutus, Charles had his Cromwell, and he did not doubt but some good American would stand up in favour of his Country; but (says he) in a more moderate manner, and was going to continue, when the Speaker of the House rose and, said he, the last that stood up had spoke traison, and was sorey to see that not one of the members of the House was loyal enough to stop him before he had gone so far. Upon which the same member stood up again (his name is Henery) and said that if he had afronted the Speaker or the House, he was ready to ask pardon, and he would shew his loyalty to His Majesty King George the third at the expence of the last drop of his blood; but what he had said must be attributed to the interest of his country's dying liberty which he had at heart, and the heat of passion might have lead him to have said something more than he intended;" but, again, if he said any thing wrong, he beged the Speaker and the House's pardon. Some other members stood up and backed him, on which that afaire was droped.

May the 31th. I returned to the Assembly to-day, and heard very hot debates stil about the stamp dutys. The whole House was for entering resolves on the records but they differed much with regard the contents or purport thereof.. Some were for shewing their resentment to the highest. One of the resolves that these proposed, was that any person that would offer to sustain that the Parlement of England had a right to impose or lay any tax or dutys whatsoever on the American colonys, without the consent of the inhabitants therof, should be looked upon as a traitor, and deemed an enemy to his country: there were some others to the same purpose, and the majority was for entring these resolves; upon which the Governor disolved the Assembly, which hinderd their proceeding.

(b) From a private letter from Virginia, dated 21 June

1765.1

Mr. has lately blazed out in the Assembly, where he compared to a Tarquin, a Caesar, a Charles the First, threatening him with a Brutus, or an Oliver Cromwell; yet Mr. was not sent to the Tower: but having prevailed to get some ridiculous violent Resolves passed, rode off in triumph.

(c) From John Burk's History of Virginia, 1805.2 'Caesar', said he, had his Brutus, Charles his Cromwell, and (pausing) George the third (here a cry of treason, treason was heard, supposed to issue from the chair, but with admirable presence of mind he proceeded) may profit by their examples. Sir, if this be treason', continued he, 'make the most of it.'

66

(d) From William Wirt's Life of Patrick Henry, 1817.3

It was in the midst of this magnificent debate, while he was descanting on the tyranny of the obnoxious Act, that he exclaimed, in a voice of thunder, and with the look of a god, 'Caesar had his Brutus-Charles the first, his Cromwelland George the third-(" Treason," cried the Speakertreason, treason ", echoed from every part of the House.— It was one of those trying moments which is decisive of character. Henry faltered not an instant; but rising to a loftier attitude, and fixing on the Speaker an eye of the most determined fire, he finished his sentence with the firmest emphasis) may profit by their example. If this be treason, make the most of it.'

I had frequently heard the above anecdote of the cry of treason, but with such variations of the concluding words, that I began to doubt whether the whole might not be fiction. With a view

1. Quoted in Amer. Hist. Rev., xxvi. 727, from the London Gazetteer, 13th August 1765. 2 iii. 309. Burk also gives a version of the entire speech, which Henry's biographers believe to be apocryphal. A manuscript History of Virginia by Edmund Randolph, written just before or just after Burk, gives the following version of Henry's retort: Treason, sir," exclaimed the Speaker; to which Mr. Henry instantly replied, and George the Third, may he never have either."'

Text from the second edition, Philadelphia, 1818, p. 65. The matter in smaller type is Wirt's foot-note. Both Tyler and Jefferson heard Henry's speech.