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the General Court, in answer to mine of the 10th, 17th, and 28th of July. It gives me great Satisfaction to find that the General Court are pleased with my having been able to succeed so far as to obtain out of the £200,000 granted by parliament a stoppage of £10,000, to answer the Claims for the Winter service of the year 1759-60. It gives me the more Satisfaction when I recollect that this was a Claim which had been given up as desperate; and which the Treasury board in a former year1 (as appeared by the Letters) had refused to take any notice of. But I am not sensible that in any of my Letters I have said anything to warrant any sanguine hopes of my obtaining the whole of this £10,000, in opposition to the Agents of all the other provinces, who are putting in their claims to a part of it; and much less of obtaining the remainder of your charge by any other measures. It was with a more especial view to this contest, that I particularly wish'd to have my brother's Assistance; because I knew that the additional weight of his Interest might be of service to the province, without adding to the Expense of it. I have got Mr. Martin to find out General Amherst's Certificate, but you will recollect what were the Sentiments about the defects of said Certificate, express'd in the Letter of the 19th December, 1761, which gives an account of the first obtaining it. I shall do my utmost, however, to urge the authority of it, as far as it will go. But as the principal object of the advice contained in this Letter seems to be the recommending to me the procuring satisfaction for the remainder of the claim, and the petitioning first the Board of Treasury, and then the parliament for that purpose, I hope that I shall not incur the displeasure of the General Court, if I do not immediately follow their Directions.

1 In the margin is written "July, 1762."

As to the petitioning the Treasury to have any part of the provinces charges for the Winter 1759-60 deducted out of the compensation granted to all the Colonies for the Year 1761, I have before observed to you, in my Letters of the 17th of July, that it is not in the power of the Treasury to take the Money granted for one service, and give it to any other service, than that to which the bill had appropriated it.

And as to my petitioning Parliament, I am sorry to find that the General Court are not sufficiently informed of the Nature of such an Application. There is no one standing order of the house of Commons more strictly adhered to, than the order that no Petition for money can be received there, unless the proper officer of the Crown (which is commonly the Chancellor of the Exchequer or some Lord of the Treasury) stand up in his place, and signify to the house that his Majesty has been acquainted with that petition, and recommends to them the contents of it. Under these Circumstances the General Court will easily reflect how difficult a thing it will be to persuade a Lord of the Treasury to recommend our petition, first to his Majesty, and then to the house of Commons; when that petition must from the nature of it be founded on the supposition, that the Lord of the Treasury had not done us justice.

I might indeed alledge, as the Letter does, that the £10,000 stop'd is very inadequate to the Sum claim'd. But I fear that any Lord would tell me that the proportion which £10,000 bears to £29,000 is greater than that of £60,000 to £186,000. And that the annual parliamentary Grants have never much exceeded the proportion of one-half of the sum total of the several provinces' claims. You will consider, therefore, whether, when the other Colonies are content with the Compensation allotted them, of about the half of their Expences, it would not be showing the province in a

very disadvantageous Light to present a petition to parliament setting forth that we are content with nothing less than the whole of ours. On the other hand, after such a fruitless application, and attempting at more than we can support, whether there would not be just ground of apprehending, that the Board of Treasury might be disposed to allot us so much the less share of the £10,000, for our having thus publickly arraigned the Equity of their proceedings.

These are the reflections which unavoidably presented themselves upon reading the advice to petition parliament: and I thought it my duty to point out to the General Court the impropriety of such a measure.

Upon the whole, therefore, tho' I shall always pay the greatest deference to everything which is contained in your Letters; yet as I fear that the General Court must have been inadvertently misled into the Giving me this advice; I hope that they will acquit me of the want of respect, if I do not immediately petition parliament, but wait for their farther directions, before I take so hazardous and unwarrantable a step.

I have heard nothing since my last from the Treasury upon this Subject. But the Agents are to have a meeting upon it next Week. I have from the beginning said that the final determination must rest with the Lords of the Treasury. All which I can promise is, as far as my health will permit me, to pay the utmost attention to your Interest: And, as we now see that there can be no hope of a recovery by any after Game, to manage this first Game so much the more cautiously. I am, with the highest regard for the General Court, your most Obedient, Humble, Servant, JASPER MAUDUIT.

The Bill for lowering the Duty on French Molasses is put off till another Year.

Dr. 1762

ACCOUNT

Province of MASSACHUSETTS BAY WITH JASPer Mauduit, Agent 1 Gr.

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I. I.

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15.15.

next Year's Ac

146.10.1

57.748.16.1

I. I.

2. 2.

59.17.

29 To do. 14 Bills on Mr. Bollan 3157. -.

To do. Interest on ditto as

pr. Bill Acco't

30 To do. Door keepers of the
Treasury

To do. 174 Bills by H.
Gray, Esq. on Jasper
Mauduit from No. 1 to

174

To do. Chamber and Door

keepers at Plantation
Office

To do. Copys of Gen❜l.

Amherst Certificates

To do. Doorkeepers

To do. Paid Copies of
Papers at Plantation
Office

To Commission rec'g and
pay'g £57,602 at 1 per

103.18.7

I. I.

53820.

2. 2.

3. 3.

I. I.

3.13.6

count

April 25th, 1763.

Errors Excepted.

JASPR MAUDUIT

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HARRISON GRAY TO JASPER MAUDUIT

BOSTON, May 3d, 1763

SIR, -Our good friend Doc'r Mayhew tells me he has sent you by this Conveyance, his Observations on the Charter and Conduct of the Society for the propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts.1 The Doc'r has done himself great Honour by writing this piece. I think I never knew any performance of a Controversial nature meet with so general approbation and applause, excepting among some bigoted high Churchmen, who most sincerely Curse it. Gentlemen of the best sence and learning here, think that the Doctor's Arguments are conclusive. And I can't but think that it's being reprinted in London and dispersed among the Dissenters will be of eminent service to the dissenting Interest, they will no longer be gull'd out of their money to support Episcopacy in America.

The performance was sudden, and as the Doctor had several Avocations, and in his Correcting the press, the Main Argument being what chiefly engaged his Attention, he let several immaterial Errors escape his notice, and in page 54 he has mentioned Portsmouth and it should have been Newport, which you will be so good as to correct if it should have an impression with you. My Compliments to your Brother and believe me to be with the utmost sincerity, Your most Obedient Humble Servant, H. GRAY.

P. S. If the Doctor's observations should be reprinted will you be so good as to send me 50 Copies and I will with pleasure repay you.

[Memorandum,] H. Gray. May 3d, 1763. recd. June 16, 1763.

1 See next page.

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