Letters of Delegates to Congress: Volume 1 AUGUST 1774 - AUGUST 1775
Inhabitants of the Colonies

October 19-21? 1774
To the Inhabitants of the Colonies of Massachusetts Bay, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, The Counties of New Castle, Kent and Sussex on Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina,

Brethren,
We. the Delegates nominated and directed by the good People of the Colonies aforesaid, to meet at Philadelphia in the last Month of September, for the purposes respectively mentioned to Us by our Constituents, have in pursuance of the Trusts reposed in Us accord- ingly assembled, and taken into our most serious Consideration, the important Matters recommended to Us as Subjects of our Delibera- tions.
Our Resolutions thereupon have been (published) communicated to You, and need not here be repeated: But as (our Power was derived from You, and We are of consequence accountable to You) the Situation of public Affairs grows daily more and more alarming; and as it may be more satisfactory to You to receive Information from Us in a collective Body, than in any other Manner, of those Sentiments, that have been approved upon a full & free Consultation and Discussion in Common Council by the Representatives of so great a Part of America, We esteem ourselves indispensably obliged to add this Address to the Resolutions already published.
In every Case of intended Opposition by a People to their Rulers, or of one State to another, Duty to Almighty God the Creator (and Judge) of all Men and Nations, commands, that a strict and impartial Judgment be formed of all Measures leading to such Conse- quences, and of the Causes that may have provoked, or may in any degree excuse them; that, neither Affection on the one side, nor Re- sentment on the other, being permitted to confuse the Understanding, or to prejudice the Integrity of the interested, Reason may be enabled to take a dispassionate View of all (Transactions) Circumstances, and to settle the public Conduct on sure and solid Foundations of Wisdom & Justice.
From Counsels thus tempered and directed arise the best (Expectations) Hopes of Divine Favor, the firmest Encouragements to those concern'd, and the strongest Recommendations to the rest of Mankind.
Our Minds being deeply impress'd with a Sense of these Truths, We have diligently, deliberately, and calmly enquired into and con- sidered the Proceedings of the legislative and executive powers of Great Britain that have excited so much Uneasiness & apprehension in these Colonies, and also the Behaviour of the Colonies. Upon the whole, so extraordinary and important is the Evidence, that We are reduced of Necessity to the ungrateful alternative of keeping Silence, and betraying the Innocent, or of speaking, and censuring those We wish to revere. In making the Choice of those distressing Difficulties; We prefer the Course dictated by Honesty and a Regard for the Wellfare of our Country.
Soon after the (Accession of the present King, and the End of the last War, the Conduct of Parliament and Administration towards these Colonies began to change in a most remarkable Manner) Con- clusion of the last War, a memorable Change commenc'd in the (Conduct) Treatment of these Colonies. By a Statute made in the fourth Year of the present Reign, in a Time of profound peace, alledging the "Expediency of new provisions & Regulations for ex tending the Commerce between Great Britain and his Majesty's Do minions in America, and the Necessity of raising a Revenue in the said Dominions, for defraying the Expences of defending, protecting, and securing the same," the Commons of Great Britain undertook to give & grant to his Majesty many heavy Rates & Duties to be paid in these Colonies, the said Statute prescribing a great number of severe penalties & Forfeitures for enforcing its Observance. In two sections of this Act, a remarkable Distinction is made between the Subjects in Great Britain and those in the Colonies. By the one, the Penalties & forfeitures incurr'd there, are to be recovered in any of the King's Courts of Record at Westminster or in the Court of Exchequer in Scotland; and by the rest, the Penalties & Forfeitures incurr'd here, are to be recovered in any Court of Record or in any Court of Admiralty or Vice admiralty, at the Election of the Informer or prosecutor.
The Inhabitants of these Colonies full of Confidence in the Justice and Kindness of Great Britain had scarcely Time allowed them to receive and animadvert properly on the Nature of this Act, before another, well known by the Name of the Stamp Act, past in the fifth Year of this Reign, engaged their whole Attention. By this Statute Parliament in the most explicit manner exercis'd the new power of taxing these Colonies and extended the Jurisdiction of Courts of Admiralty & Vice admiralty in the Colonies, to Matters happening within the Body of a County, on Land, directing the multitude of Penalties & Forfeitures thereby (impos'd) inflicted to be recovered in the said Courts here, but making the Distinction before mentioned, as to Penalties & Forfeitures to be recovered elsewhere.(1)
In the same Year, by another Act another Tax was impos'd on these Colonies by the establishment of several new Fees, for the Customs.
In the next Year, the Stamp-Act was repealed, not because it was founded on an erroneous principle, but as the repealing Act recites, because "the continuance thereof would be attended with many Inconveniences, and might be productive of Consequences greatly detrimental to the commercial Interests of (these Kingdoms) Great Britain."
In the same Year, and by the immediately following Act, it was "declared, that his Majesty in parliament, of Right had Power to bind the People of these Colonies by Statues in all Cases whatsoever."
In the same Year, another Act was past for imposing Rates & Duties payable in these Colonies. In this Statute the Commons avoiding the Terms of giving and granting, "humbly besought his Majesty, that it might be enacted" &c. But from a Declaration in the Preamble that the Rates & Duties (were declared to be) were "in Lieu" of several others granted by the Statute first before mentioned, for raising a Revenue, and from some other Expressions, it (plainly) appears, that these Duties were intended for that purpose.
In the next Year, 1767, an Act was made "to enable his Majesty to put the Customs and other Duties in America, under the Management of Commissioners" &c And the King thereupon erected the present expensive Board of Commissioners; (with power to enter & search Houses &c) for the express purpose "of carrying into Execution the several Laws relating to the Revenue & Trade in America."
The people of these Colonies, having after the Repeal of the Stamp Act; resign'd themselves to their antient unsuspecting Affections for their parent State, and anxious to avoid any Controversy with her, in Hopes of a favorable Alteration in Sentiments & Measures towards them, did not press their Objections against the above mention'd Statutes made subsequent to that Repeal.
Administration attributing to trifling Causes, a Conduct that really proceeded from generous Motives, were encouraged in the same Year, 1767, to make a bolder Experiment on the Patience of these Colonies.
By a Statute, commonly call'd the Glass, Paper & Tea Act, made fifteen months after the Repeal of the Stamp Act, the Commons of Great Britain, resumed their former Language & again undertook to "give and grant Rates of Duties to be paid in these Colonies," for the express purpose of "raising a Revenue, to defray the Charges of the Administration of Justice, the support of Civil Government, and defending the King's Dominions" on this Continent. The Penalties & Forfeitures incurr'd under this Statute are to be recovered in the same Manner, with those mentioned in the foregoing Acts.

To this Statute so naturally tending to disturb the Tranquility then universal throughout the Colonies, Parliament, in the same Session added another no less extraordinary.
Ever since the making the present Peace, a standing Army has been kept in these Colonies. From Respect for the Mother Country, the Innovation was not only (submitted) tolerated, but the provincial Legislatures generally, made Laws for supplying the Troops, in Conformity to the Acts of Parliament, called the Mutiny Acts, by Which the Modes of quartering & providing for the Troops in America, were directed.
The Assembly of the Province of New York, having passed an Act of this kind, but differing in some Articles, as they judg'd to be just & expedient, from the Directions of the Act of Parliament made in the fifth Year of this Reign, the House of Representatives of that Colony was prohibited by a Statute made in the Session last mentioned, from making any Bill, order, Resolution or Vote, except for adjourning or chusing a Speaker, until Provision should be made by the said Assembly for furnishing the Troops within that Province, not only with all such Necessaries as were required by the Statute which they were charged with disobeying; but also with such as were required by two other subsequent Statutes, which were declared to be in Force until the twenty fourth Day of March 1769.
These Statutes of the Year 1767, reviv'd the Apprehensions & Discontents that had entirely subsided on the Repeal of the Stamp Act, and Amidst (these Apprehensions and Discontents) the just Fears & Jealousies thereby occasioned, a Statute was made in the next Year, 1768, to establish Courts of Admiralty and vice admiralty on a new Model, expressly, for the End of more effectually recovering the Penalties and Forfeitures inflicted by Acts of Parliament framed for the purpose of raising a Revenue in America &c.
The immediate Tendency of these Statutes, is to subvert the Right of having a Share in Legislation, by rendering Assemblies useless; the right of property, by taking the Money of the Colonists without their Consent; the Right of Trials by Jury, by substituting in their Place Trials in Admiralty & Vice Admiralty Courts, where single Judges preside, holding their commissions during pleasure, (with Salaries payable out of the Effects condemned by themselves, in place of Trials by Jury) and unduely to influence the Courts of Common Law by render [ing] the Judges thereof totally dependant on the Crown for their Salaries.
These Statutes, not to mention many others exceedingly exceptionable, compared one with an other, will be found not only to form a regular System in which every part has great Force, but also a pertinacious Adherence to that System, for subjugating these Colonies, that are not and from local Circumstances cannot be represented in (Parliament) the House of Commons to the uncontrouled and unlimited Power of (Great Britain Parliament, in violation of their undoubted & accustomed Rights and Liberties, in contempt of their well known and grievous Afflictions, their humble and repeated Sup plications.
This Conduct must appear equally astonishing and unjustifiable, when it is considered, how unprovoked it has been by any Behaviour of these Colonies. From their first Settlement (to the Time of the Stamp Act) their bitterest Enemies never fix'd on any of them a Charge of Disloyalty to their Sovereign or of Disaffection to their Mother Country. In the Wars She has carried on, they have exerted themselves, whenever they were required, to give her assistance, & have rendered her Services, which she has publickly acknowledged to be extremely important. Their Fidelity, Duty, & Usefulness, during the last War, were frequently & affectionately confest by his late Majesty & the present King (and Parliament repeatedly made them Compensations for those heavy Expences and Exertions of those strenuous Efforts, which, consulting their zeal rather than their strength they had Most fully incurr'd).
The Reproaches of those who are most unfriendly to the Freedom of America, are principally urged against the province of Massachusetts Bay; but, how much without Cause, is proved by the following Declarations of a person, the Truth of whose Evidence in their Favor, will not be questioned.
Governor Bernard in his Speech on the 24th of April 1762, thus addresses the two Houses of Assembly--"The Unanimity & Dis patch, with which You have complied with the Requisitions of his Majesty require my particular Acknowledgement, and it gives Me additional Pleasure to observe, that You have therein acted under no other Influence than a due sense of your Duty, both as Members of a general Empire, and as the Body of a particular province."
In another Speech on the 27th of May in the same Year, he says --"Whatever shall be the Event of the War, it must be no small Satisfaction to us, that this province hath contributed its full share to the support of it. Every Thing that hath been required of it, hath been complied with; and the Execution of the powers committed to Me, for raising the provincial Troops, hath been as full and complete as the Grant of them. Never before were Regiments so easily levied, so well composed, and so early in the Field, as they have been this Year; the common people seemed to be animated with the Spirit of the General Court, and to vie with them in their Readiness to serve the King.
"The ample provision which has been already made, leaves Me nothing to ask for the immediate Service of the King." (2)
Such was the Conduct of the People of Massachusetts Bay, during the last War. As to their Behaviour before that Period, it ought not to have been forgot in Great Britain, that not only on every Occasion, they had constantly & chearfully complied with the frequent royal Requisitions--but that chiefly by their vigorous Efforts, Nova Scotia was subdued in 1710, and Louisburgh in 1745.
Foreign Quarrels being ended, and the domestic Disturbances that quickly succeeded on Account of the Stamp Act, being quieted by its Repeal, the Assembly of Massachusetts Bay transmitted an humble Address of Thanks to the King; and soon after pass'd a Bill for granting Compensation to the Sufferers in the Disorders occasioned by that Act.
These Circumstances and the following Extracts from Governor Bernard's Letters in 1768 to the Earl of Shelburne, Secretary of State, clearly shew, With what (respect) grateful Tenderness they strove to deposite in Oblivion the unhappy occasion of the late Discords, and with what respectful Reluctance they endeavoured to escape other Subjects of future Controversy. "The House (says the Governor) from the Time of opening the session to this Day, has shewn a Disposition to avoid all Dispute with Me; every thing having passed with as much Good humour as I could desire, except only their continuing to act in addressing the King, remonstrating to the Secretary of State, and employing a separate Agent. It is the importance of this Innovation, without any Wilfullness of my own, which induces me to make this Remonstrance, at a Time when I have a fair Prospect of having, in all other Business, nothing but good to say of the proceedings of this House." Jan 21.1768.(3)
"They have acted in all things, even in their Remonstrance, with temper & Moderation; they have avoided some subjects of Dispute, and have laid a Foundation for removing some Causes of former Altercation." Jan. 30. 1768.
"I shall make such a prudent & proper use of this Letter, as I hope will perfectly restore the peace & tranquility of this province. for which purpose considerable steps have been made by the House of Representatives." Feb. 2.1768.
The Vindication of the Province of Massachusetts Bay contained in these Letters, will have the greater Force, if it be considered, that they were written several months after the fresh Alarm given to the Colonies, by the Statutes past in the preceding Year. In this Place, it seems proper to take notice of the Insinuation in one of these Statutes, that the Interference of Parliament was necessary, to provide for "defraying the Charge of the Administration of Justice, the support of Civil Government, and defending the King's Dominions in America. "
As to the two first Articles of Expence, every Colony had made such provision, as by their respective Assembly the best Judges on such Occasions, was thought expedient, & suitable to their several Circumstances. As to the last, it is well known to all men the least acquainted with American Affairs, that the Colonies established & have always defended themselves, & generally without the least assistance from Great Britain; and, that at the Time of her taxing them by the Statutes before mentioned, most of them were labouring under very heavy Debts contracted in the last War. So far were they from sparing their Money, when their Sovereign constitutionally ask'd their aids, that during the Course of that War, Parliament repeatedly made them Compensations for the Expences of those "Strenuous Efforts," which, consulting their Zeal rather than their Strength, they had cheerfully incurr'd.
Severe as the Acts of Parliament before mentioned are, yet the Conduct of Administration has been equally injurious, and irritating to these devoted Colonies.
(By an Order of the King, the Authority of) Under Pretence of governing them so many new Institutions so uniformly rigid & dan- gerous, have been introduc'd, as could have been expected only from incensed Masters, for collecting the Tribute or rather the Plunder of conquered Provinces.
By an Order of the King, the authority of the Commander in Chief, & under him, of the Brigadiers general, in time of Peace, is rendered supreme in all the civil Governments in America; and thus an uncontroulable military Power is vested in Officers not known to the Constitution of these Colonies.
A large Body of Troops & a considerable armament of ships of war, have been sent to assist in taking their Money without their consent. Expensive & oppressive Offices have been multiplied, and the Arts of Corruption industriously practised to divide & destroy.
The Judges of the Admiralty & Vice Admiralty Courts, are im powered to receive their Salaries from the Effects to be condemn'd by themselves; and in the Commission to the Managers of the Customs, they are not required to apply to the Civil Magestrate, for Writs of Assistants, before they break open & enter Houses. (Salaries have been granted by the Crown to) Judges of Courts of Common Law have been made entirely dependant on the Crown for their Commissions (during Pleasure) & Salaries (have been granted by the King out of Money levied upon the People without their Consent). A Court has been established at Rhode Island for the purpose of taking Colonists to England to be tried.
Humble & (dutiful) reasonable Petitions from the Representatives Of the People, have been frequently treated with Contempt; And Assemblies have been repeatedly and arbitrarily dissolved.
From (a single) some few Instances it will sufficiently appear, on what Justice those Dissolutions have been founded.

The Tranquility of the Colonies having been again disturb'd, as has been mentioned, by the Statutes of the Year 1767, the Earl of Hillsborough, Secretary of State, in a Letter to Governor Bernard, dated April 22d. 1768, censures the "presumption " of the House of Representatives, for "resolving upon a Measure of so inflammatory a Nature as that of writing to the other Colonies, on the subject of their intended Representations against some late Acts of Parliament:" then declares, that, "his Majesty considers this step as evidently tending to create unwarrantable Combinations, to excite an unjustifiable opposition to the constitutional Authority of parliament"--and after wards adds--"It is the King's Pleasure, that as soon as the General Court is again assembled, at the Time prescribed by the Charter, You should require of the House of Representatives, in his Majesty's Name, to rescind the Resolution which gave Birth to the circular Letter from the speaker, and to declare their Disapprobation of, and Dissent to that rash and hasty proceeding." "If the new Assembly should refuse to comply with his Majesty's reasonable Expectation, it is the King's Pleasure that You should immediately dissolve them."
This Letter being laid before the House, & the Resolutions not being rescinded according to Order, the assembly was dissolv'd. A Letter of a similar Nature was sent to other Governors, to procure Resolutions approving of the Conduct of the (House of) Represent- atives in Massachusetts Bay, to be rescinded also; & Houses of Rep- resentatives in other Colonies refusing to comply, Assemblies were dissolved.
These Mandates spoke a Language, to which the Ears of English subjects had for several Generations been strangers. The Nature of Assemblies implies a power & Right of Deliberation. But these Commands proscribing the Exercise of Judgment on the propriety of the Requisitions made, left to the Assemblies only the Election between the dictated Submission or the threatened Punishment: A Punishment too (inflicted for) founded on no other Act, than such, as is deem'd innocent even in Slaves--that of agreeing in Petitions for Redress of Grievances that equally affect all.
The hostile & unjustifiable Invasion of the Town of Boston, soon followed these Events in the same Year; tho that Town, the province in which it is situated, & all the Colonies, from Abhorrance of a Contest with their Parent State, permitted the Execution even of those Statutes, against which they so unanimously were complaining, remonstrating, and supplicating.
Administration, (eager) determined to Subdue a Spirit of Freedom, which English Ministers should have rejoiced to cherish, (adopted the insidious Measure of combining) entered into a monopolising Combination with the East India Company, to send to this Continent vast Quantities of Tea, an Article on which Duties were laid by a Statute, that in a particular Manner attack'd the Liberties of America & which therefore the Inhabitants of these Colonies had resolv'd not to import. The Cargo sent to South Carolina (& New York) was stored, & not allowed to be sold. Those sent to Philadel- phia, & New York, were not permitted to be landed. That sent to Boston, was destroyed by persons unknown, because the Government there, would not suffer it to be returned.
On the Intelligence of these Transactions arriving in Great Britain, the public spirited Town last mentioned, was singled out for Destruction & it was determined, that the Province it belongs to, should partake of its Fate. In the last session of Parliament therefore, were past the acts for shutting up the Port of Boston, indemnifying the "Murderers" of Inhabitants of Massachusetts Bay, and changing their chartered Constitution of (that Province) Government. To enforce the Acts, that Province is again invaded by a Fleet & Army.
To mention these outrageous proceedings, is sufficiently to explain them. For tho it is pretended that the Province of Massachusetts Bay has been particularly disrespectful to Great Britain, Yet in truth the Behaviour of the People in other Colonies has been an equal "Opposition to the Authority of Parliament." No Step, however, has been taken against any of those Colonies. This artful behaviour conceals several Designs. It is expected, that the province of Massachusetts Bay will be (transported) iritated into some violent Actions, that may displease the rest of the Continent, or that may (be exaggerated to justify to) induce the People of Great Britain, to approve meditated Vengeance of an imprudent exasperated Ministry.
If the unexampled Temper of that province shall disappoint this part of the Plan, it is hoped, the other Colonies will be so far intimidated, as to desert their (fellow sufferers) Brethren suffering in a Common Cause, and thus disunited, all may be subdued.
To promote these (truly horrid Designs, Machinations,) Designs, another Measure has been pursued. In the Session of Parliament last mentioned, an Act was passed, for changing the Government of Quebec, abolishing the Assembly & trials by Jury, restoring the French Laws, establishing the Roman Catholic Religion, & extending the Limits, of that province so as to comprehend those vast Regions that lye adjoining to the northernly and westernly Boundaries of these Colonies.
The authors of this arbitrary Arrangement flatter themselves, that the Inhabitants depriv'd of Liberty, & (enflamed by) artfully pro- voked against those of another Religion, will be proper Instruments for assisting in the oppressing of such as differ from them in Government & in Faith.
From the Detail of Facts herein before recited, as well as from authentic Intelligence receiv'd, it is clear beyond a Doubt, that a Resolution is form'd, & is now carrying into Execution, to extinguish the Freedom of these Colonies, (and reducing them into) by subjecting them to a despotic Government.
At this unhappy Period, We have been authorized and directed to meet & consult together, for the Wellfare of our common Country. We accepted the important Trust with Diffidence but have endea- voured to discharge it with Integrity. Tho the (present) State of these Colonies would certainly justify other Measures, than We have advised, yet weighty Reasons determined us to prefer those which we have adopted.
In the first place, it appeared to Us (an Action) a Conduct be coming the Character these Colonies have ever (uniformly) sustained, to perform even in the Face of the unnatural Distresses & imminent Dangers that surround them, every Act of Loyalty; and therefore, We were induced to offer once more to his Majesty, the Petitions of his faithful and oppressed subjects in America. Secondly, regarding with the tender affection which We knew to be so universal among our Countrymen, the People of the Kingdom, from which we derive our Original,(4) We could not (consent) forbear to regulate our Steps by an Expectation of (finding) receiving full (Satisfaction) Conviction, that the Colonists are equally dear to them. Between these provinces and that Body subsists the social Band, which We ardently wish never may be dissolv'd, and, which cannot be dissolved, untill their Minds shall become indisputably hostile, or their Inattention shall permit those who are thus hostile, to persist in prosecuting with the Powers of the Realm, the destructive Measures already operating against the Colonists; and in either Case, shall reduce the latter to such a situation, that they shall be compell'd to renounce every Regard, but that of Self preservation. Notwithstanding the Vehemence, with which Affairs have been impell'd they have not yet reach'd that fatal point. We (chuse not) do not incline to accelerate their Motion, already (alarmingly) suffici[ently] rapid. We have chosen a method of Opposition, that does not preclude a hearty Reconciliation with our Fellow Citizens on the other side of the Atlantic. We deeply deplore the urgent Necessity that presses Us to an immediate Interruption of our Commerce, that may prove injurious to them. We trust, that they will acquit Us of any unkind Intentions towards them, by reflecting, that, We subject ourselves to similar Inconveniences: that, We are (involved in such) driven by the Hands of Violence into unexperienced and unexpected public Convulsions: that, We are contending for Freedom, so often contended for by our Ancestors.
The People of England will soon have an Opportunity of declaring their Sentiments concerning our Cause. In their Piety, (Virtue,) generosity, & Good sense, we repose high Confidence, and cannot, upon a Review of past Events, be persuaded that they, the Defenders of true Religion, & the Assertors of the (Liberties of) Rights of Mankind, will take part against their affectionate protestant Colonists, in Favor of our open and their own secret Enemies whose Intrigues for several Years past, have been wholly exercis'd in Sapping the Foundations of civil & religious Liberty.
Another Reason that engaged Us to prefer the (present) commercial Mode of opposition, arose from an Assurance that this Mode will prove efficacious, if it be persisted in with Fidelity & Virtue; and that your Conduct will be influenc'd by these laudable Principles cannot be questioned. Your own Salvation, and that of your posterity now depends upon Yourselves. You have already shewn (a due sense of the Blessings for which You are strugglin[g]) that you entertain a proper sense of the Injuries offered to you, & a just sense of the Blessings You are striving to retain. Against the temporary Inconveniences You may suffer from a Stoppage of Trade, You will weigh in the opposite Ballance, the endless Miseries You & your Descendants must endure from an established arbitrary Power. You will not forget the (Glory) Honour of your Country, that must (inevitably) from your Behaviour take its title in the Estimation of the World, to Glory or to shame; and You will, with the deepest Attention reflect, that if the peaceable Mode of Opposition recommended by Us, be broken and rendered ineffectual, as your cruel & haughty Enemies, from a contemptuous Opinion of your Firmness, insolently predict will be the Case, You must inevitably be (compell[ed]) reduc'd to chuse, either a more dangerous Contest, or a final and infamous Submission.
(We cannot conclude this address) Motives thus cogent, arising from the emergency of your (Affairs) unhappy Condition, must excite your utmost Diligence & Zeal, to give all possible Strength & Energy to the Measures calculated for your Relief. But, We think our selves bound in Duty, to observe to You, that the schemes agitated against these Colonies have been conducted with such an Excess of Fury, that it appears probable to us, that some other Acts of violence may be committed in the approaching Winter or next Year. We judge it therefore prudent, that You should extend your Views to those Events that may happen and be in every Respect, as well prepared as You can be for every Contingency. Above all Things, we earnestly entreat You with Devotion of Spirit, Penitence of Heart, and Amendment of Life, to humble Yourselves and implore the (Assistance) Favor of Almighty God: & We fervently beseech his divine Goodness to take You into his gracious Protection.

MS (PHi). In the hand of John Dickinson. This 17-page draft, heavily interlined and containing numerous marginal notes that survived in the final memorial adopted October 21, is in the R. R. Logan Collection of Dickinson papers at Phi

OCTOBER 19, 1774

John Dickinson's Draft Memorial to the Inhabitants of the Colonies

(see illustrations). Although authorship of the "Memorial to the Inhabitants of the Colonies" has traditionally been assigned to Richard Henry Lee, this MS demonstrates that Dickinson was the author of the memorial that Congress approved.
No other contemporary evidence bearing upon the authorship of this document has been found. As in the case of nearly all the public papers prepared in committees of Congress, the earliest known accounts pertaining to individual authorship date from the early 19th century. Thus until this collection of Dickinson's papers became available in 1969, historians were forced to rely upon accounts reconstructed from memory by Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and John Jay written during the years 1805 to 1823. It is of particular interest that most of these accounts have a common origin in an 1805 query William Wirt directed to Thomas Jefferson. In response to Wirt's plea for information on Patrick Henry, whose biography Wirt planned to write, Jefferson penned an account which covered some matters that transpired in September and October 1774, although he had not been a delegate to the first Congress. Wirt incorporated Jefferson's comments into his Sketches of the Life and Character of Patrick Henry (Philadelphia: James Webster, 1817), pp. 108 9, and until recent years these were frequently relied upon by students of the Revolution, notwithstanding the fact that Jefferson had obtained his information at second hand, and because of this stated that he ought not to be quoted on the subject of "the addresses prepared for Congress by Henry and Lee." PMHB, 34 (October 1910): 406. When John Adams read Wirt's study of Henry, he immediately wrote to Jay, questioning Wirt's account of the authorship of the various petitions and addresses of Congress. Jay's response, which was vague, apologetic in tone, and based chiefly on the printed journals of Congress, confirmed only that he was the author of the address to the people of Great Britain. William Jay, The Life of John Jay: with Selections from His Correspondence and Miscellaneous Papers, 2 vols. (New York: J. &c J. Harper, 1833), 2:378-84. But in an account he wrote in 1823 to the grandson of Richard Henry Lee, in answer to a question about Lee's role as a member of "the three leading committees appointed by the Congress of 1774," Jay was more explicit, although he again insisted that his recollection was "not distinct." "It was agreed, in the committee," Jay recalled, "that Mr. Lee should prepare a draught of the proposed memorial ["to the people of British America"], which was the first, both in order and importance; and that I should prepare a draught of the proposed address to the people of Great Britain, both of which were done accordingly. On the 18th October, the address to the people of Great Britain was reported to Congress.... On the 19th October, the committee reported a draught of a memorial to the inhabitants of the British colonies.... I have always believed that this memorial was written by Mr. Lee, nor have any reasons to doubt it, come to my knowledge." Richard H. Lee, Memoir of the Life of Richard Henry Lee . . ., 2 vols. (Philadelphia: H. C. Carey and I. Lea, 1825), 1:271.
That Dickinson did not take his seat in Congress until October 17 only deepens the mystery about when and under what circumstances this document came to be drafted. Since so little time was available to compose such a long draft, one might conclude that Dickinson immediately set to work on his version to offer as an alternate to the committee's original draft when it was reported and ordered to lie on the table October 19. As a consequence of the debate on the memorial on the 20th, he may then have been asked to complete his draft to rescue the delegates from an impasse. In any case, this was undoubtedly the document that was "gone through and debated by paragraphs" and approved the 21st. Whatever the exact circumstances, which must remain conjectural, and notwithstanding the fact that the journals indicate that Lee, Jay, and William Livingston were the sole members of the committee appointed to draft both the address to the people of Great Britain and the memorial to the people of British America, the testimony of this draft speaks clearly in behalf of Dickinson's authorship of the latter memorial. Whether he built his work upon the committee's reported draft or began fresh to compose an essentially new document cannot be determined, but it is possible that on this point there is a parallel to the joint contributions of Dickinson and Thomas Jefferson in drafting the "Declaration of the Causes and Necessity for Taking up Arms" the following July, for which see the suggestive comments of Julian P. Boyd in Jefferson, Papers (Boyd), 1:190-92.
1 The last 16 words of this sentence were omitted in the final version. JCC, 1:92.
2 This brief paragraph was omitted in the final version. JCC, I :94.
3 Footnoted and placed in the margin of MS, as were the dates added at the end of the following two paragraphs.
4 Thus in the MS and printed "original" in the early editions of Extracts from the Votes and Proceedings of the American Continental Congress, but the word "origin" was subsequently used in various 1774 printings of the Journal of the Proceedings of the Congress, Held at Philadelphia, September 5,1774.