APPENDIX. I. THE SUFFOLK RESOLVES. THE following document is copied from "The Essex Gazette," of the 20th of September, 1774: At a meeting of the delegates of every town and district in the county of Suffolk, on Tuesday, the 6th of September, at the house of Mr. Richard Woodward, of Dedham, and, by adjournment, at the house of Mr. Daniel Vose, of Milton, on Friday, the 9th instant, Joseph Palmer, Esq., being chosen moderator, and William Thompson, Esq., clerk, a committee was chosen to bring in a report to the convention; and the following, being several times read, and put paragraph by paragraph, was unanimously voted, viz: --- Whereas the power but not the justice, the vengeance but not the wisdom, of Great Britain, which of old persecuted, scourged and exiled our fugitive parents from their native shores, now pursues us, their guiltless children, with unrelenting severity; and whereas, this then savage and uncultivated desert was purchased by the toil and treasure, or acquired by the valor and blood, of those our venerable progenitors, who bequeathed to us the dear-bought inheritance, who consigned it to our care and protection, the most sacred obligations are upon us to transmit the glorious purchase, unfettered by power, unclogged with shackles, to our innocent and beloved offspring. On the fortitude, on the wisdom, and on the exertions of this important day is suspended the fate of this New World, and of unborn millions. If a boundless extent of continent, swarming with millions, will tamely submit to live, move, and have their being at the arbitrary will of a licentious minister, they [529] 67 basely yield to voluntary slavery; and future generations shall load their memories with incessant execrations. On the other hand, if we arrest the hand which would ransack our pockets; if we disarm the parricide who points the dagger to our bosoms; if we nobly defeat that fatal edict which proclaims a power to frame laws for us in all cases whatsoever, thereby entailing the endless and numberless curses of slavery upon us, our heirs and their heirs for ever; if we successfully resist that unparelleled usurpation of unconstitutional power, whereby our capital is robbed of the means of life; whereby the streets of Boston are thronged with military executioners; whereby our coasts are lined, and harbors crowded with ships of war; whereby the charter of the . colony, that sacred barrier against the encroachments of tyranny, is mutilated, and in effect annihilated; whereby a murderous law is framed to shelter villains from the hands of justice; whereby that unalienable and inestimable inheritance, which we derived from nature, the constitution of Britain, which was covenanted to us in the charter of the province, is totally wrecked, annulled and vacated, posterity will acknowledge that virtue which preserved them free and happy; and, while we enjoy the rewards and blessings of the faithful, the torrent of panegyric will roll down our reputations to that latest period, when the streams of time shall be absorbed in the abyss of eternity. Therefore we have resolved and do resolve, 1. That, whereas His Majesty George the Third is the rightful successor to the throne of Great Britain, and justly entitled to the allegiance of the British realm, and, agreeable to compact, of the English colonies in America, therefore we, the heirs and successors of the first planters of this colony, do cheerfully acknowledge the said George the Third to be our rightful sovereign, and that said covenant is the tenure and claim on which are founded our allegiance and submission. 2. That it is an indispensable duty which we owe to God, our country, ourselves, and posterity, by all lawful ways and means in our power, to maintain, defend, and preserve those civil and religious rights and liberties for which many of our fathers fought, bled, and died, and to hand them down entire to future generations. 3. That the late Acts of the British Parliament for blocking up the harbor of Boston, and for altering the established form of government in this colony, and for screening the most flagitious violators of the laws of the province from a legal trial, are gross infractions of those rights to which we are justly entitled by the laws of nature, the British Constitution, and the charter of the province. 4. That no obedience is due from this province to either or any part of the Acts above mentioned; but that they be rejected as the attempts of a wicked Administration to enslave America. 5. That so long as the justices of our superior courts of judicature, court of assize, and general goal delivery, and inferior courts of common pleas in this county, are appointed, or hold their places by any other tenure than that which the charter and the laws of the province direct, they must be considered as under undue influence, and are therefore unconstitutional officers, and as such no regard ought to be paid to them by the people of this county. 6. That if the justices of the superior court of judicature, court of assize, &c., justices of the court of common pleas, or of the general sessions of the peace, shall set and act during their present unqualified state, this county will support and bear harmless all sheriffs and their deputies, constables, jurors, and other officers, who shall refuse to carry into execution the orders of said courts. And, as far as is possible to prevent the inconveniencies that must attend the suspension of the courts of justice, we do earnestly recommend it to all creditors to exercise all reasonable and generous forbearance to their debtors, and to all debtors to discharge their just debts with all possible speed; and if any disputes concerning debts or trespasses should arise, which cannot be settled by the parties, we recommend it to them to submit all such causes to arbitration; and if the parties, or either of them, shall refuse so to do, they ought to be considered as co-operating with the enemies of this country. 7. That it be recommended to the collectors of taxes, constables and all other officers who have public moneys in their hands, to retain the same, and not to make any payment thereof to the province or county treasurers, until the civil government of the province is placed upon a constitutional foundation, or until it shall otherwise be ordered by the proposed Provincial Congress. 8. That the persons who have accepted seats at the Council Board by virtue of a mandamus from the King, in conformity to the late Act of the British Parliament, entitled, An Act for regulating the Government of the Massachusetts Bay, have acted in direct violation of the duty they owe to their country, and have thereby given great and just offence to this people. Therefore, Resolved, That this county do recommend it to all persons who have so highly offended by accepting said department, and have not already publicly resigned their seats at the Council Board, to make public |