up our ports; alter our ancient, valuable Constitution; stop our fisheries, which the God of nature had given us in such plenty for our easy and cheap maintenance; seize our vessels, and stop our trade?

Such, gentlemen, are the real facts which you know Wood has been guilty of; and if from them you draw the conclusion that he was a friend to this Country; or if it was from other motives, I should be glad to have them in answer to this, through the channel of the newspapers, so that your conduct, which appears to be that of the Town, may appear to the world in its true, proper or improper light.

I am, Gentlemen, your humble servant,

TIMOTHY PARSONS.

Pownalborough, October 3, 1775.

TIMOTHY LANGDON TO THE PUBLICK.

Pownalborough, October 6, 1775.

As the dismissing a Committee of Inspection reflects disgrace on the Town that dismiss it, or the Committee dismissed, I desire you would publish the following state of facts relative to the dismissing the Committee of Inspection for the East Precinct of Pownalborough, that the publick may judge whether they were dismissed for good reasons or no:

Abiel Wood, of Pownalborough, having been guilty of many misdemeanours, and violated the Association, the Committee thought it their duty to publish him to the world as an enemy to his Country. A state of facts, relative to his conduct, was drawn up in May last, and laid on the table of the late Congress. The Committee thought it prudent to suspend the publishing his name in the papers, as he had sailed with his family for Nova-Scotia.

The Town of Pownalborough having been without a Committee of Correspondence till the 22d of June last, the inhabitants then assembled, and made choice of Thomas Rice, Esq., Messrs. Michael Sevey, John Decker, Jun., Edmond Bridge, and Obadiah Call, for that purpose.

Soon after the Committee of Correspondence was chosen, Mr. Wood returned from Nova-Scotia, and made application to the above gentlemen, whereupon they voted him a friend to his Country, though they knew that he had violated the Association by importing cordage, &c.; they also gave him a permit to go to Nova-Scotia, in direct violation of the Resolve of the American Congress in May last; they also published a piece in Messrs. Hall’s paper, declaring to the world that Mr. Wood was a friend to the Country.

The Committee of Inspection thought themselves aggrieved by the publication of the Committee of Correspondence, and sent a Petition to the General Court, with a state of facts; they also sent a state of facts relating to Mr. Wood’s conduct to the press. The General Court took the Petition of the Committee of Inspection into consideration, and passed the following Resolve:

“Resolved, That the facts alleged in the Petition of Timothy Langdon, and others, Committee of Inspection for the East Parish of the Town of Pownalborough, against Mr. Abiel Wood, respecting his conduct, were proper to be considered by the Committees of Inspection; and that from their representation they had sufficient evidence of the facts to deem him an enemy to his Country; arid that Committees of Inspection are the only bodies recommended by the Continental Congress to judge and determine respecting infringements of the Association of the Continental Congress; and that Committees of Correspondence are not authorized for that end; and that, from the representation made by the Committee of Inspection, this Court approve of their conduct. Sent up for concurrence:

“JAMES WARREN, Speaker.

“In Council read and concurred:

“Attest:

P. MORTON, Secretary pro tem.

“Consented to, by fifteen of the Council.”

Between the time of sending the Petition to Court, and the return of the General Court’s doings, Mr. Wood returned from his second trip to Nova-Scotia. He drew a Petition, which was signed by a number of the inhabitants, and sent it to the Selectmen for a Town-meeting to be called, to dismiss the Committee of Inspection. One of the Selectmen refused to grant a warrant for that purpose; two Selectmen signed it, and as it is in Mr. Wood’s hand-writing, and he may think me partial unless I publish it, I shall give the article to the publick.

1st. To choose a Moderator for said Town-meeting.

2d. To see if the Town approve of the proceedings of Ebenezer Whittier, Timothy Langdon, Timothy Parsons, or any of the Committee of Inspection on the East side of said Town.

3d. To see if the Town will dismiss the old, and choose a new Committee of Inspection on the East side of said Town.

The Town accordingly met on the 4th of September, but the Selectmen, either conscious they had done wrong in granting the warrant, or some other reasons best known to themselves, did not appear at the meeting. Mr. Wood’s party were at first thrown into confusion, and some of them went to the Selectman who would not sign the warrant and ordered him to the meeting, but he refused to go; they then returned to the meeting, and after consulting with one who thinks himself a judge of Jaw, they determined they could hold a meeting without the Selectmen, or either of them being present. They then (to their immortal honour be it spoken) made choice of a man for their moderator who at the last March meeting had the audacity to declare that he hoped before six months were at an end he should see half the Continent in fetters.

One of the Committee desired leave to read the above Resolve of the General Court, which being granted, and the Resolve read, Mr. Moderator and Mr. Wood assured the assembly they did not know the men who signed the Resolve, that they had nothing to do with them, and that the Resolve had nothing to do with the Town-meeting. They then passed the following votes, viz:

Voted, That they do not approve of the proceedings of the Committee of Inspection on the East side of the Town.

Voted, To dismiss the old, and choose a new Committee for the East side of said Town.

One of my brethren and myself moved, that the assembly would act consistently, and record the reasons for dismissing the Committee, but Mr. Moderator assured us there was no article in the warrant for that purpose.

After the assembly had dismissed the Committee of Inspection, Mr. Wood applied to the before-mentioned Committee of Correspondence, and they gave him liberty to take his sloop, which the Committee of Inspection had stopped for trading to Nova-Scotia; they also gave to him (or one Baker, who has been in the sloop trading to Nova-Scotia) a certificate of his being a friend to the Country, agreeable to the Resolve of the General Court, that he might go to Philadelphia for provisions, although they knew that, at the time of granting the certificate, Mr. Baker had a clearance for that sloop from Nova-Scotia for New-York. And it does appear by a deposition which is ready to be published, that Mr. Wood declared he would get a certificate from the Committee, and make use of it to get provisions, and trade to Nova-Scotia.

The above being facts, it is incumbent upon the Town of Pownalborough to give some reasons for their conduct, and upon the Committee of Correspondence to justify their proceedings to the world.

I am, Sir, your humble servant,

TIMOTHY LANGDON.

The Hague, August 18, 1775.

Their High Mightinesses the States-General have this day issued a Proclamation, of which the following is a translation:

PROCLAMATION.

The States-General of the United Provinces, to all who shall see, or hear these presents read, greeting:

Be it known, that as the reasons which induced us heretofore to prohibit the exportation of Ammunition to the English Colonies still subsist, we have again thought fit absolutely to prohibit, and we hereby absolutely do prohibit all exportation of Ammunition, Gunpowder, Guns and Shot, by ships belonging to the dominions of Great Britain, for the further term of a year, on pain, not only of confiscation