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Would reject independence if offered... Regarding representation in Parliament...



Item # 688491

April 04, 1768

THE BOSTON CHRONICLE, Massachusetts, April 4, 1768  Inside has most of a page taken up with a letter from the Speaker of the Mass. Assembly to one of the King's Secretaries of State, which includes: "...it seems to be conclusive that as those acts were made with the sole & express purpose of raising a revenue out of America, the subjects here are in those instances unfortunately deprived of the sold disposal of their property...The people of this Province would by no means be inclined to petition the parliament for a representation. Separated from the mother country by a mighty ocean...utterly impracticable that they should be equally represented there..." with much more great content.
This is followed by another equally interesting letter concerning relations between the American colonies & England which includes: "...So sensible are they of their happiness & safety in their union with & dependence upon the mother country that they would by no means be included to accept of an independency if offered to them..." & more. How times would change!
A brief back page item notes: "...brought an account of the death of the Reverend George Whitefield."
Included is an advertisement for the publishing of the: "Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies" with details, the famed work of John Dickinson which did much to establish colonial opposition to the English trade acts (see).
Eight pages, 8 1/2 by 10 1/4 inches, very nice, clean condition.

This newspaper published only briefly from December 21, 1767 until 1770. The publishers, John Mein and John Fleeming, were both from Scotland. The Chronicle was a Loyalist paper in the time before the American Revolution. In its second year, Mein printed names in the paper that accused some colonial merchants of breaking a British non-importation agreement. In response, Mein's name appeared on a list of merchants who violated the trade agreement. Mein retaliated by accusing the Merchants' Committee of using the non-importation agreement for illegal profiteering. The irritated readership ransacked the offices of the Chronicle, and ultimately, it ceased operations in 1770. (credit Wikipedia)

Category: The 1600's and 1700's