recommendations, leave inviolate in the Conventions, the Committees, and finally the People at large, the right of rejection or ratification; but though it be decreed by that august body that the punishment of death shall, in some cases, be inflicted, the people have not rejected any of their laws, nor even remonstrated against them. The reason of such general submission is, that the whole of their proceedings is calculated to promote the greatest good to be expected from the circumstances which occasion their resolves, and scarcely admit the delays attending more solemn forms.

The conduct of their constituents, in this instance, clearly shows what an unbounded confidence virtuous rulers may place in the sound judgment, integrity, and moderation of a free people.

Whatever the interested supporters of oligarchy may assert to the contrary, there is not, perhaps, one man, nor any set of men upon earth, who, without the special inspiration of the Almighty, could frame a constitution which, in all its parts, would be truly unexceptionable by the majority of the people for whom it might be intended. And should God bless any man, or any set of men, with such eminent gifts, that man or those men, having no separate interest to support in opposition to the general good, would fairly submit the work to the collective judgment of all the individuals who might be interested in its operation. These, it is probable, would, after due examination, unanimously concur in establishing that constitution. It would become their own joint work, as soon as the majority of them should have freely accepted it; and, by its having received their free assent, the only characteristick of the true lawfulness and legality that can be given to human institutions, it would be truly binding on the people.

Any other concurrence in the acts of legislation is illegal and tyrannical; it proceeds from the selfish principles of corrupt oligarchy; and should a system of laws appear, or even be good in every other respect, (which is scarcely admissible,) yet it would be imperfect. It could be lawfully binding on none but the legislators themselves, and must continue in that state of imperfection which disgraces the best laws now and then made in Governments established on oligarchic principles, and deprives them of true legality.

As such is the case with Great Britain herself, it is evident that her Parliament are so far from having a lawful claim to our obedience, that they have it not to that of their own constituents; that all our former laws have but a relative legality, and that not one of them is lawfully binding upon us, though even now, for the sake of common conveniency, the operation of most of them be, and ought to be, tolerated until a new system of Government shall have been freely ratified by the co-legislative power of the people—the sole lawful Legislature of this Colony. It would be an act of despotism to put it in force by any other means; which God avert! The people, it is true, might be awed or openly forced to obey; but they would abhor the tyranny and execrate the authors. They would justly think that they were no longer bound to submit than despotism could be maintained by the same violent or artful means which would have produced its existence.

But the free ratification of the people will not be sufficient to render the establishment lawful, unless they exercise, in its fulness, an uncontrolled power to alter the Constitution in the same manner that it shall have been received. This power necessarily involves that of every district occasionally to renew their Deputies to Committees and Congresses, when the majority of such district shall think fit; and therefore without the intervention of the Executive, or any other power foreign to the body of the respective electors. That right is so essential to our safety, that we firmly believe you will recommend to all your constituents immediately to exercise it, and never suffer its being wrested from them; otherwise the sensibility of our Delegates could not allow them to say that they hold their offices from the voluntary choice of a free people.

We likewise conceive that this measure will more effectually, and more speedily than any other, remove disaffected persons from all our councils, and give our publick proceedings a much greater weight than they have hitherto obtained amongst our neighbours.

We never did, as a body, nor ever will, assume any authority whatsoever in the publick “transactions of the present times.” Common sense teaches us that the absurdity of the claim would only destroy our usefulness as a body of “voluntary associators, who are warmly attached to the cause of liberty;” but that it would likewise, expose every one of us to deserved derision. At the same time, we assure your honourable House that, on all occasions, we will continue to testify our zeal in supporting the measures adopted by Congresses and Committees in the prosecution of their great object—the restoration of human rights in the United Colonies. And if, at any future time, the silence of the bodies in power gives us reason to conceive that our representations may be useful, we then will endeavour to discharge our duty with propriety, and rely on publick indulgence for any imperfection which cannot affect our uprightness. Signed by order of the Committee :

MALCOM MCEUEN, Chairman.

Mechanicks’ Hall, June 14, 1776.

ULSTER COUNTY COMMITTEE TO NEW-YORK CONGRESS.

In County-Committee, New-Paltz, June 14, 1776.

GENTLEMEN: Your much esteemed favour of the 31st ultimo we duly received, and note it covered to us copies of two credentials contradicting each other as to the powers our Delegates were to exercise when in Congress. At present it is out of our power to give the honourable Congress that satisfaction in this matter which they require and we sincerely desire to do. The reason is, our own County Committee is composed of two Members from each Precinct Committee, save Kingston, which claims the privilege of sending four. The Members of the Precinct Committees generally attend County Committee by rotation, for their ease and convenience; of course few of the Members that compose our County Committee give their attendance at the next such is our situation at present; having only Messrs. Schoonmaker and Robertson, from whom we can receive any information concerning this affair, and which we now transmit to the honourable Congress, together with sundry reasons delivered to this Committee by Colonel Johannes Hardenburgh, our late Chairman, why he signed two credentials, as before recited. This Committee do not think proper to make any remarks either on the reasons given them by Colonel Hardenburgh, or the account of matters given by Messrs. Schoonmaker and Robertson, as they submit both for the perusal of Congress; and have only now to add, for the information of the honourable Provincial Congress in New-York, that it is resolved and ordered in this Committee, by a unanimous vote thereof, that the credentials delivered to Matthew Cantine, Esq., one of our present Delegates—in which credentials the Deputies from this County to Provincial Congress are charged and commissioned to nominate George Clinton, Esq., and use their utmost influence to have him elected one of the Representatives for this Colony to the Continental Congress—be the credentials by which our Deputies in Provincial Congress are to be bound and regulate their conduct.

It gives us pain to reflect that anything transacted in this County should wear the appearance before the honourable Congress as though there was a division among the people, whereas the reverse is the case. We think we may be allowed to boast a little, not only of our unanimity in sentiment, but regularity in practice, ever since we were engaged in the grand contest, and that with as few exceptions as any County in this Province; therefore hope the honourable Congress will judge of this affair as an inadvertency in practice rather than a division among the people.

We have, gentlemen, the honour to be your most obedient and very humble servants.

By order of the Committee:

ROBERT BOYD, Jun., Chairman.

To the Honourable the Provincial Congress of the Colony of New-York.

Reasons given by Colonel JOHANNES HARDENBURGH, late Chairman of the County Convention, for returning two credentials to Provincial Congress, transacted at different times, but bearing the same date, pursuant to an order of the honourable the Provincial Congress, to wit :

First. The first credential given to the Delegates, signed by me, was pursuant to the order of the then County Committee,