Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 7.djvu/279

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1884.]

��The Boston Tea- Party.

��261

��Kentucky, and Tennessee, none ; In- diana, eleven lakes, and Illinois, eight, — all on northern water-shed. The Carolinas, Georgia, and Alabama have no reservoirs. Lagoons exist in the States bordering the Mississippi River and the Gulf, which are filled by the overflow of the rivers.

A consultation of any good atlas of

��our country will confirm these state- ments.

The two sections are thus contrasted. The Northern States have reason to be very thankful for their more equable system, for the motive power its reser- voirs furnish, and for exemption from disastrous floods, as well as from cyclones and tornadoes.

��THE BOSTON TEA-PARTY.

[This account of the Boston Tea-Party is taken, verbatim, from " The Boston Evening Post, Monday, December 20, 1773. Thomas and John Fleet, at the Heart and Crown, in Cornhill, Messi'rs Printers." It adds another-link'in'the chain of evidence to prove that the patriots were disguised as Indians. — Ed.]

��Having accidentally arrived at Bos- ton upon a visit to a Friend the evening before the meeting of the Body of the People on the 29th of November, curiosity, and the pressing invita- tions of my most kind host, induced me to attend the Meeting. I must con- fess that I was most agreeably, and I hope that I shall be forgiven by the People if I say so unexpectedly, enter- tained and instructed by the regular, reasonable and sensible conduct and expression of the People there collected, that I should rather have entertained an idea of being transported to the British senate than to an adventurous and promiscuous assembly of People of a remote Colony, were I not con- vinced by the genuine and uncorrupted integrity and manly hardihood of the Rhetoricians of that assembly that they were not yet cornipted by venality or debauched by luxury.

The conduct of that wise and consid- erate body, in their several transactions, evidently tended to preserve the prop- erty of the East India Company. I must confess I was very disagreeably affected with the conduct of Mr. Hutchinson, their pensioned Governor,

��on the succeeding day, who very un- seasonably, and, as I am informed, very arbitrarily (not having the sanction of law), framed and executed a mandate to disperse the People, which, in my oppinion, with a people less pru- dent and temperate would have cost him his head. The Force of that body was directed to effect the return of the Teas to Great Briton ; much argument was expended. Much entreaty was made use of to effect this desirable purpose. Mr. Rotch behaved, in my estimation, very unexceptionably ; his disposition was seemingly to comport with the desires of the People to convey the Teas to the original proprietors. The Consignees have behaved like Scoundrels in refusing to take the con- signment, or indemnify the owner of the ship which conveyed this detesta- ble commodity to this port. Every possible step was taken to preserve this property. The People being exaspera- ted with the conduct of the administra- tion in this affair, great pains were taken and much policy exerted to pro- cure a stated watch for this purpose.*

  • This watch consisted of 24 to 34 Men, who served

as volunteers 19 Days and 23 Hours.

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