Page:History of the University of Pennsylvania - Montgomery (1900).djvu/231

In the month following he visits Virginia with Col. Hunter his associate postmaster general, from whence he did not return home until early in June. His attendance at the meeting of the Trustees this month was his first for the year. He was immediately afterwards in New York. And in November he was again drawn North by the restlessness of the Indians, with whom a conference was held at Easton beginning on the 8th, when he and Fox and Masters, and Hughes, were delegates from the Assembly, and Dr. Peters and William Logan from the Council. His many absences of late brought some inconvenience to the Trustees, and at the meeting of 1 1 May, 1756, while he was in Virginia, the annual election recurring afforded the opportunity for electing Dr. Peters President for the ensuing year. Besides the June meeting, he attended those in September and December, and that of II January, 1757, but on 4 April following he set out on his first mission to England as representative of the Assembly and his immediate counsels were from that time lost to his fellow Trustees. At the time of Dr. Peters succession to the Presidency a minute was adopted as the Trustees apprehended that in Case of the Absence or Indisposition of their President they were not authorised to meet on Special Occasions, how much soever the Nature of the Case might require their immediate Attention, it was Resolved that in Case of the absence or Sickness of the President, the Senior Trustee shall be vested with all the powers of a President by Virtue of which he is to call special meetings and preside in them; which action freed them from the difficulties often arising in Franklin's absence. When Franklin's mission of 1757 was initiated the words of the Assembly's resolution of 28 January were that a Committee " be appointed to go Home to England on behalf of the People of this Province to solicit a Removal of the Grievances we labour under by Reason of Proprietary Instructions," and when Isaac Norris the Speaker and Benjamin Franklin were next day " requested to go," it was still "to go Home to England." The light of later days dims to our sight