not a division on the passage of the bill! In the House of Lords it met with more opposition; a number of able speakers opposed it, but the court party prevailed. You may be surprised that there was not a Petition presented to the House sooner than there was; the Americans residing here waited for the body of merchants to take the lead, but they acted on this important occasion as in every other matter of this nature heretofore.

I suppose there will be a general Congress from the Colonies;—on their deliberations the fall or rise of your country will depend. You will undoubtedly form some resolutions, and strictly adhere to them, or give up the dispute and submit at once o English tyranny. A determination to stop the exports of your country, and not import any British manufactures, will in two years restore you to liberty, and draw poverty and ruin on the mother country.

I have enclosed you the Petition to the King, with the names of those who signed it.

Lord North made a motion in the House of Commons for leave to bring in a bill to regulate the government of the Massachusetts Bay, the substance of which, I understand, is to invest such powers in the Governor as to enable him to hear, determine, and turn out at pleasure; in fact, to be as arbitrary as he pleases.

If Boston acquiesces, the next step will probably be to punish Philadelphia for sending the tea back, and thus, by crushing each respectively, enforce a submission by the whole, to any tax Britain may please to impose.

May heaven protect you, and direct your resolutions to the happiness of your country—may you be free from the chains of slavery intended by a wicked and arbitrary Government.

MR. BOLLAN TO THE COMMITTEE.

Covent Garden, April 2, 1774.

GENTLEMEN: After being several times assured Jenkins would not take away his bag before Monday, my servant is now, after two, returned in great haste to let me know his bag might be taken away in a few hours, which obliges me to discontinue writing a letter of information at large, and in few words to inform you that after various difficulties my Petition to the House of Lords was presented, on which considerable debate ensued, and at length it was determined that I should be heard in support of my Petition, and was called in, and heard accordingly. That soon after the Bill passed to be enacted—that Lord North has not yet brought in his Bill for the better regulating of the7 government of the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, Sir North America, for which leave was given on the 28the ult—that after being at the offices of the two Houses of Parliament this morning, calling at the Secretary of State's office, I saw General Gage, who, in a few minutes, Mr. Pownall told me was Governor of Massachusetts Bay, or at least, would be appointed by the King to-morrow.

I am with the greatest respect for you, gentlemen, and the; other members of the Council, your most obedient and m6st humble servant,

W. BOLLAN.

The Hon. John Erving, Wm. Brattle, James Bowdoin, and James Pitts, Esqrs.

MR. BOLLAN TO THE COMMITTEE.

Covent Garden, April, 1774.

GENTLEMEN.: The present recess of the two Houses of Parliament, during the holidays, admits of resuming a more regular, though brief, relation of what has passed since the account given of what was done in the former part of the day on the 23d ult., by letter then despatched, but came an hour too late for Captain Scott. In the evening the House, after resolving themselves into a Committee, went through the Boston Bill, filled up the blanks, and made several amendments; and then, the Speaker resuming the chair, the same were reported, and ordered to be. engrossed, and to be read the third time the next day. At nine in the evening a gentleman belonging to the House of Commons, to my great concern, acquainted me with this precipitate proceeding, the mention whereof next morning to some of the principal members who were not down at die House, having reserved themselves, I suppose, for the third reading, so surprised them they could scarce credit the account I gave of the matter, but soon found it true.

My business was now to get my Petition presented in season, which was attended with some fresh difficulties; Sir Joseph Mawby was gone out of town, expecting the Bill would not be read the third time till Monday following, when he would be ready to present it. Some of the chief members in the House were more inclined to support than present the Petition. After various applications Mr. Alderman Crosby undertook to present it. He attended accordingly, shewed my Petition to the Speaker, and afterwards, in point of fairness, to Lord North, and other members of different inclinations, without any objection being made to it. After waiting a considerable time Lord North went out of the House, and I was soon informed the Boston Bill would not come on till next day, and presently Alderman Crosby coming out, told me what he had done, adding that he would stay and present it that evening, if opportunity offered. Afterwards, while I was stept out of the lobby through necessity, he left the House likewise. The next morning waiting upon him, he said the friends of the Petition were inclined to put off the presentation to that day, and that it had been objected that I was not Agent for the Council, upon which I shewed him my authorities, wherewith he was fully satisfied, appearing from the first well disposed to present and support the Petition; and before the third reading he offered it to the House, stated distinctly all the particulars of its contents, and added, that having seen my authority from the Council he was fully satisfied with it, and doubted not the House would be so likewise upon my producing the same; but the Ministry having no inclination that I should comet here, opposed the Petition's being brought up, and a debate thereupon ensuing the Alderman, as he told me, was well supported, but on a division of the House the Ministry had a great majority against me; and in the evening, after the merits of the Bill were debated, it passed.

The next day it had the first reading in the House of Lords, and was appointed to be read the second time on Monday. On Saturday morning I went to Lord Temple's, in hopes that he would be inclined to oppose the Bill. He being rode out, and his return uncertain before noon, I took the liberty to write to him, enclosing copies of my two Petitions, and praying the favour of leave to wait on him. In the afternoon his Lord-ship by a civil message, in writing, informed me he would receive me. On the next morning, at ten o'clock, when waiting on him, a free conference respecting the state of America began, and continued for an hour and more, wherein he discovered friendly sentiments towards the Colonies in several respects, but seemed to have a firm opinion of the unlimited authority of Parliament; granting indeed, at the same time, that no benefit could arise from exercising the power of taxation. He said he had of late declined attendance in Parliament, mentioning the state of his health as a reason for it; and I have since been told he has not been able to get over a hurt he received by a fall from his horse some time ago. In the evening before, by letter to Lord Camden I took the liberty after informing his Lordship of the proceedings in the House of Commons to lay before him an office copy of the amended Bill as it passed.

On Monday morning being solicitous to make the best preparation for presenting my Petition to the Lords, I first waited on Lord Stair, to whom, when an advocate in Scotland, his title lately descended from the famous Earl of Stair. When the affair of the Colonies was first moved in the Lords' House, pursuant to the King's message, he had espoused your cause, being the first, if I remember aright, who spoke in their behalf. He now appeared very friendly towards you; but on proposing to his Lordship to present my Petition, after observing he had particular reasons for not presenting it, he took notice that it was the proper office of the Secretary of State for the Colonies to present it. On my discovering, a doubt of the utility of this proceeding, he immediately mentioned the Duke of Richmond, as the most proper man in all respects. From his Lordship, who had frankly told me twice that if I could get no other person to present it, he would, I went directly down to the Duke's