the Latitudes and Longitudes of the most considerable places in it; have those Latitudes and Longitudes been settled by good observations, or only by common computations; and from whence are the Longitudes computed?

Answer. The Province of Pennsylvania is situated on the River Delaware, in North America, lying (agreeable to the Royal Charter) from the beginning of the 40th to the beginning of the 43d degree of Latitude; and in Longitude computed West, from Greenwich, from 75 to 80 degrees. The nature of the country is various, being in many places much broken with hills, mountains, and barrens, but this is compensated by a proportionable number of fertile vallies and plains, watered by the noble Rivers the Delaware, the Susquehannah, part of the Alleghany or Ohio, and the numerous branches, streams, and springs that empty themselves into these three great Rivers, The soil, where good, (which is a large proportion of the whole) is well adapted to the raising Wheat and all other sorts of grain raised in England, besides some others, such as Indian Corn, &c, suitable to our more Southern Latitude. The climate is salubrious, differing little from European climates in the same Latitude, excepting in this, that the Winter colds are something more intense from the vast extent of country to the Northwestward; but the purity of the air during the cold season, which seldom lasts above two months, compensates for its keenness. The City of Philadelphia, situated near the conflux of Delaware and one of its chief branches, the Schuylkill, is the most considerable Town in the Province, or, indeed, in North America. The State House of this City lies in North Latitude 39° 56' 53"; its Longitude, from the Royal Observatory, at Greenwich, computed West 75° 8' 45"; or, in time, 5 hours and 35 seconds. This Latitude and Longitude were both fixed by accurate astronomical observations, at the Transit of Venus, 1769. Some of the County Towns are considerable places, as Lancaster and York, the chief Towns of the Counties that go by their names; Reading, the chief Town of Series; and Carlisle, the chief Town of Cumberland. But their Latitudes and Longitudes are not yet fixed by any accurate observations.

Easton, the chief Town of Northampton County, situated at the conflux of the main branch of the Delaware, and the Lehigh Branch, lies in Latitude 40° 43' 10", and about the same Longitude as Philadelphia.

The conflux of the Popauchton, and Mohock Branches of the Delaware, lies in Latitude 41° 56' 30". And about eight miles higher than this, on the Mohock Branch, is fixed, by accurate, astronomical observations, the beginning of the 43d degree of Latitude, through which the boundary line of New-York and Pennsylvania passes. Sunbury, the County Town of Northumberland, situated at the conflux of the East and West Branches of the Susquehannah, lies in Latitude 40° 48'17".

Wyoming, on the East Branch of the Susquehannah, (where some intruders, from Connecticut, have forcibly seated themselves, under pretence of extending their Colony to the South Sea,) is situated in Latitude 41° 14' 17".

Fort Pitt, at the conflux of the Ohio and Monongahela Rivers, lies in Latitude 40° 26' 22"; and its Longitude, West from Greenwich, 79' 59' 0". This has been accurately ascertained, and leaves Fort Pitt undoubtedly about six miles within our Western boundary, as that part of the Delaware, which lies in the Latitude of Fort Pitt, is three miles forty-seven chains East of Philadelphia.

The Light House, on Cape Henlopen, at the entrance of Delaware Bay, is situated in Latitude 38° 47' 8"; its Longitude, West from Greenwich, 75° 5' 18".

2. What are the reputed boundaries; and are any parts thereof disputed; What parts, and by whom?

Answer. The boundaries of Pennsylvania, as described in the Royal Charter, by King Charles the Second, to William Penn, the first founder of the Province, are as follows: "All that tract or part of land in America, with the Islands therein contained, as the same is bounded on the East by Delaware River, from twelve miles distance Northward of New-Castle Town, unto the three and fortieth degree of Northern Latitude, if the said River doth extend so far Northward; but if the said River shall not extend so far Northward, then by the said River so far as it doth extend, and from the head of the said River the Eastern bounds are to be determined by a meridian line to be drawn from the head of the said River unto the forty-third degree. The said land to extend, Westward, five degrees in Longitude, to be computed from the said Eastern bounds; and the said lands to be bounded on the North by the beginning of the three and fortieth degree of Northern Latitude, and on the South by a circle drawn at twelve miles distance from New-Castle Northward and Westward unto the beginning of the fortieth degree of Northern Latitude, and then by a straight line Westward to the limits of Longitude above mentioned."

There was a serious contention between the Proprietaries of Maryland and Pennsylvania concerning the boundaries and extent of their Provinces, from the time of the original grant of Pennsylvania, till the year 1732, when they entered into Articles of Agreement for the settlement and establishment of their boundaries, by which it was agreed that a due North line should be drawn from the tangent point of the twelve miles circle of New-Castle, so far only until it should come unto the same Latitude as fifteen English Statute miles due South of the most Southern part of the City of Philadelphia, and that a due East and West line should be run in manner following: To begin at the Northern point or end of the said due South and North line, and should from thence run due West across Susquehannah River to the utmost extent, of the Province of Pennsylvania, which said East and West line was to be the lines of division between Maryland and Pennsylvania. And these lines are established as the boundaries between them by a Decree in Chancery, in England, after a long, tedious, and expensive suit, instituted in that Court by the Proprietaries of Pennsylvania against the Proprietary of Maryland, for a specifick performance of those Articles. In the year 1760 another Agreement was made between the Proprietaries of these two Provinces, reciting and ratifying the Agreement of 1732, and the Decree aforesaid, and this latter Agreement was also established by a Decree in Chancery. These lines have been run and marked by Commissioners on both sides, in consequence of the several Agreements and Decrees, and at the joint Petition of the Proprietaries of each Province, the Agreements and Decrees, and the execution of them, were ratified by his Majesty, in Council, on the 11th day of January, 1769, so that those divisional lines thus established, and the Charter bounds of Pennsylvania, so far as the Province of Maryland does not interfere, according to the Agreements and Decrees aforesaid, may be said, at this day, to be the reputed bounds of Pennsylvania, which, however, are considerably short of the intention of the original grant, which appears by the Minutes of Council at the time of the Grant, and from the expressions of the Grant itself, to have been an extent of three degrees of Latitude and five of Longitude, from which the Province of Maryland takes off about fifty miles in Latitude, in the full extent of Maryland, from East to West. A claim has lately been made by the Colony of Connecticut to a part of Pennsylvania, which they have not ascertained with any degree of precision, but allege they have a right to at least the whole forty-second degree of North Latitude, in breadth, to extend the whole Longitude of the Province of Pennsylvania. No other part of Pennsylvania is disputed, that I know of, except that Lord Dunmore, as Governour of Virginia, hath lately taken possession of Pittsburgh, and claims the country as far Eastward as the Laurel Hill, which, in many places, is at least fifty miles within the Charter bounds of Pennsylvania.

3. What is the size and extent of the Province; the number of acres supposed to be contained therein; what part thereof is cultivated and improved, and under what titles do the inhabitants hold their possession?

Answer. The extent of the Province is mentioned in the answer to the first question, viz: Three degrees of Latitude by five of Longitude, as it should be by Charter, which contains fifty-four thousand nine hundred and twelve square miles, or thirty-five millions one hundred and forty-three thousand six hundred and eighty acres. But the prior grant to Lord Baltimore having been determined to interfere with the grant to Mr. Penn, the Southern boundary of Pennsylvania, so far West as Maryland extends, has been settled in Chancery at fifteen miles South of Philadelphia, viz: in Latitude 39° 43' 42". By this settlement Pennsylvania loses