and Mr. Crane, be a Committee to examine the Resolves of Congress that relate to the Committee of Supplies, to see what powers they are vested with, and report to the House.

A Petition of the Committee of Correspondence, Committee of Inspection, and Selectmen of the Town of Bridgewater,* relative to the conduct of one Ebenezer Keith, was read, and committed to Colonel Freeman, Colonel Norton, and Colonel Thompson.

The Committee appointed to prepare the form of a Precept, to be sent to the Town of Leominster, for the choice of a Member, &c., reported.

The form was amended and accepted, and recommitted, to have the form of a Return drawn thereon.

The Committee appointed to consider the Report of the Committee of Safety to the late Congress, relative to a new emission of Bills of Credit, reported; and four o’clock in the afternoon was assigned for the consideration of the Report.

The Committee appointed to bring in a Resolve empowering the Committee of Supplies at Ticonderoga to take care of the Medicines for the use of the Troops there, reported. Read and accepted.

As it appears to this House that very extravagant quantities of Medicines have been procured and sent to Dr. Jonas Fay, Surgeon in Colonel Easton’s Regiment at Ticonderoga, for the use of said Regiment: Therefore,

Resolved, That Messrs. Edwards and Brown, the Committee of Supplies for this Colony to said Regiment, be, and they are hereby empowered and directed to take a receipt of Dr. Fay for the whole of the said Medicine, and to endeavour that said Medicine be not embezzled, but discreetly used for said Regiment, and the overplus which shall not be thus necessarily expended, be safely kept for the use of this Colony.

In Council, July 29, 1775: Read and concurred.

A Petition of the Committee of Inspection for the East Precinct in the Town of Pownalborough, relative to the conduct of one Abiel Wood of that Town, was read and committed to Col. Sawyer, Capt. Morton, Mr. Wood, Col. Thompson, and Mr. Wheeler.

A Petition of a number of the Inhabitants of the Town of Pownalborough, setting forth several matters of objection against the choice and person of Mr. Thomas Rice, a member of this House from said Town, was read and committed to Col. Freeman, Capt. Gates, Mr. Derby, Col. Dwight, Mr. Pettingale, and Capt. Morton.

Afternoon.

Ordered, That ten o’clock, to-morrow morning, be assigned for the choice of a Treasurer and Receiver-General’ for this Colony, by joint ballot of the honourable Board and this House; and that Col. Bowers, Col. Sawyer, and Col. Freeman, be a Committee to inform the honourable Board of this assignment.

Ordered, That a Message be sent to the honourable Board, desiring them to send down the Account of Messrs. Sheppard and Hunt, if they have not already passed upon it.

Colonel Foster brought down the same accordingly.

Walter Spooner, Esq., came down from the honourable Board, and informed this House, that the Board had agreed to the assignment of ten o’clock, to-morrow morning, to join with this House in the choice of a Treasurer, by ballot.

Moses Gill, Esq., brought from the honourable Board a Petition of Luke Perkins,* of Stoughton, praying that he may be furnished with so much Powder as will be sufficient to prove the Arms, that he may, from time to time, make for the use of the Colony.

The Order of the Day was moved for, and the Report of the Committee for a new emission of Bills of Credit was accordingly taken into consideration.

Resolved, That the highest Bill in such an emission be forty Shillings, and the lowest one Shilling.

That One Hundred Thousand Pounds be the sum to be emitted, and that the Report be recommitted; and the Committee are instructed to report accordingly.

A Petition of a number of the Inhabitants of Waltham, praying the General Court to consider the objections therein made to the election of Jonas Dix, Esq., as a member of this House for said Town, was read; and the Petitioners had leave to withdraw their Petition.

The Committee appointed to examine Accounts and Muster-Roils, reported on the Roll of Captain Wright, Captain Stevens, and Captain Matthews.

The Report was recommitted, and the Committee instructed to inspect Colonel Arnold’s Commission and Instructions.

A Petition of the Committee of the Town of Bristol, in the County of Lincoln, praying that this House would recommend to the Continental Congress to grant permission to Mr. William Savage to ship one or more loads of Provisions from such places at the Southward and Westward, for the use of the distressed inhabitants of this Colony to the Eastward of Kennebeck, as may suit him, was read, and committed to Colonel Bowers, Mr. Cross, and Mr. Batchelder.

Major Hawley reported, agreeable to order, a Resolve on General Ward’s, Letter,

The consideration whereof was referred till to-morrow.

The Committee appointed to prepare the form of a Return on the Precept to be sent to the Town of Leominster, reported.

The Return was accepted; and the Speaker directed to sign a copy thereof, and send to said Town, and also one to each Town whose Members have been elected to the honourable Board.

Then the House adjourned till to-morrow, eight o’clock.

Friday, July 28, 1775.

Ordered, That the Rules and Orders of the House be fairly transcribed, and posted up in some convenient place in this House.

The Petition of Luke Perkins, of Stoughton, brought down yesterday from the honourable Board, was read, and thereupon:

Ordered, That the prayer of the said Petition be granted, and that the Committee of Supplies be, and they are hereby directed to supply the said Luke Perkins with six pounds of Powder for the purpose mentioned in said Petition.

Ordered, That Captain Brown, Mr. Dix, Col. Smith, Major Brooks, Major Johnson, Mr. Johnson, of Lynn, and Colonel McIntosh, be a Committee to procure immediately

*To the Honourable Speaker of the House of Representatives:

SIR: At a meeting of the Committee of Correspondence, of Inspection, and Selectmen of this Town, the conduct of one Ebenezer Keith was questioned, for his unfriendly and inimical attempts to injure the cause of Liberty, and subjugate his Country to slavery and ruin. The crimes he is guilty of are: signing an Association similar to Ruggles’s, and encouraging others, by carrying it about; treating the Committees with insult, when they repeatedly requested him to give them satisfaction therefor; abusing his own son for enlisting in the Army, for taking an oath to be true to his Country, and taking the Colony securities; calling him a Rebel, threatening to turn him out of his house, and disinherit him, if he remained in the Army; refused to give the Committees any assurance of his readiness to join his countrymen, in defence of the rights and liberties of America; said he knew no Congress; neither did choose to give any answers, notwithstanding the Resolve of Congress was read to him, which empowered the Committees to inquire into the principles and conduct of suspected persons. He has been disarmed for some time past, since which his barbarous treatment of his son has obliged the Committee to proceed thus further with him, and to bring him before them by force. He utterly refuses to give the least satisfaction, and the Committee have confined him until your Honour shall signify the directions that the honourable House of Representatives may give concerning said Keith, and which we hereby humbly request of them on this urgent occasion, as we find it difficult otherwise to put it out of his power to obstruct the measures that are taken for the common defence.

We are with great esteem, your most obedient and very humble servants. Per order:

RICHARD PERKINS, Chairman.

BRIDGEWATER, July 24, 1775.

P. S. Please to communicate the above to the honourable House of Representatives, and return an answer.

* To the Honourable the Council and House of Representatives for the Colony of the MASSACHUSETTS-BAY, now sitting at WATERTOWN:

Luke Perkins, of Stoughton, who is employed as a Manufacturer of Small-Arms for the said Colony, humbly sheweth, that he cannot procure a sufficient quantity of Powder in said Colony to prove the Arms he may, from time to time, make for the use of said Colony; therefore he prays the honourable Court will furnish him with so much Powder as will be sufficient for the purpose aforesaid. And as in duty bound, shall over pray.

LUKE PERKINS.

STOUGHTON, July 27, 1775.