of country, because both had discovered the same river or promontory; or because the extent of their respective claims was undetermined.

While the settlements in this vast uncultivated country were inconsiderable and scattered, and the trade of it confined to the bartering of a few trinkets for furs, the interfering of claims produced no important controversy among the settlers or the nations of Europe. But in proportion to the progress of population, and the growth of the Ame rican trade, the jealousies of the nations which had made early discoveries and settlements on this coast, were alarmed; ancient claims were revived; and each power took measures to extend and secure its own possessions at the expence of a rival.

By a treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, the English claimed a right of cutting logwood in the bay of Campeachy, in South America. In the exercise of this right, the Eng lish merchants had frequent opportunities of carrying on à contraband trade with the Spanish settlements on the continent. To remedy this evil, the Spaniards resolved to annihilate a claim, which, though often acknowledged, had never been clearly ascertained. To effect this design, they captured the English vessels, which they found along the Spanish coast, and many of the British subjects were doomed to work in the mines of Potosi.

Repeated severities of this kind produced a war between England and Spain, in 1739, which terminated in 1748, by the treaty of peace signed at Aix-la-Chapelle, by which restitution was made, on both sides, of all places taken during the war.

Peace, however, was of short duration. The French possessed Canada, and had made considerable settlements at Florida, claiming the country on both sides of the Mississippi, by right of discovery. To secure and extend their claims, they established a line of forts from Canada to' Florida. They had secured the important pass at Niagara, and erected a fort at the junction of the Allegany and Monongahela rivers, called fort du Quesne, the identical spot where the flourishing town of Pittsburgh now stands. They took pains to secure the friendship and assistance of the natives; encroachments were made tipon the English possessions, and mutual injuries succeeded. The disputes among the settlers in America, and the measures taken by the French to cómmand all the trade of the St. Lawrence river on the north, and of the Mississippi on the south, excited a jealousy in the English nation, which soon brok out in open war.

This war was carried on with various success. Of four expeditions undertaken in America against the French, only one succeeded; namely, that under general Monckton; who compelled the enemy to abandon Nova Scotia. General Johnson, with a detachment, failed in his attempt to take possession of Crown Point, on lake Champlain. General Shirley was likewise unsuccessful, in an expedi tion against fort Niagara; and general Braddock, when marching against fort du Quesne, and within six miles of the place, incautiously fell into an ambuscade of 400 men, chiefly Indians, where he was totally defeated, and himself mortally wounded. A part of his troops were saved by the prudence and valour of colonel Washington, afterwards president of the United States; who, with a body of American militia, covered the retreat of the regulars, and prevented them from being entirely cut off. But one decisive blow, which proved fatal to the interests of France in America, put an end to the war, in 1762. This was the defeat of the French army, and the capture of Quebec, by the brave general Wolfe. That hero was slain at the beginning of the action; and Montcalm, the French commander, likewise lost his life. This victory was soon followed by the surrender of Montreal to the British forces, and Canada has remained ever since in possession of England.

In 1763, a definitive treaty of peace was concluded at Paris between Great Britain, France, and Spain, by which the English ceded to the French several islands which they had taken from them in the West Indies; but were confirmed in the possession of all North America on this side the river Mississippi, except New Orleans, and a small district of the neighbouring country.

It will be proper here to observe, that there were four kinds of government established in the British American colonies:

The first was a charter government, by which the powers of legislation were vested in a governor, council, and assembly, chosen by the people; of this kind were the governments of Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The second was a proprietary government, in which the proprietor of the province was governor; although he generally resided abroad, and administered the govern ment by a deputy of his own appointment; the assembly only, being chosen by the people; such were the governments of Pennsylvania and Maryland, and originally of New Jersey and Carolina.

The third kind was that of royal government, where

the governor and council were appointed by the crown, and the assembly by the people; of this kind were the governments of New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey (after the year 1702,) Virginia, the Carolinas, after the resignation of the proprietors in 1728, and Georgia.

The fourth kind, was that of Massachusetts, which differed from all the rest. The governor was appointed by the king; so far it was a royal government; but the members of the council were elected by the representatives of the people. The governor, however, had a right to negative a certain number, but not to fill up the vacancies thus occasioned. This variety of governments created different degrees of dependence on the crown. In the royal government, to render a law valid, it was constitutionally required, that it should be ratified by the king; but the charter governments were empowered to enact laws, and no ratification by the king was necessary. It was only required, that such laws should not be contrary to the laws of England. The charter of Connecticut was express to this purpose.

Such was the state of the British colonies at the conclusion of the war in 1763. Their flourishing condition at this time was remarkable and striking. Their trade had prospered in the midst of all the difficulties and distresses of a war, in which they were so nearly and so immediately concerned. They were flushed with the uncommon prosperity that had attended their commerce and their military transactions. Hence they were ready for all kinds of undertakings, and saw no limits to their hopes and expectations. But no sooner was peace concluded, than the British parliament adopted the plan of taxing the colonies; and in justification of the attempt, declared, that the money to be raised, was to be applied towards defraying the expence of defending them in the late war. The first attempt to raise a revenue in America, appeared in the ever-memorable stamp-act, passed on the 22d of March, 1765; whereby it was enacted, that certain instruments in writing, as bills, bonds, &c. should not be valid in law, unless drawn on stamped paper, on which a duty had been paid.

As soon as this act was heard of in America, it raised a general alarm. The people were filled with apprehensions at an act which they believed to be an infringement of their constitutional rights. The news, and the act itself, first arrived at Boston, where the bells were muffled, and rung a funeral peal. The act was first hawked about the streets with a death's head affixed to

it, and styled "The Folly of England, and the Ruin of America;" and afterwards publicly burnt by the enraged populace. The stamps themselves were seized and destroyed; those who were to receive the stamp duties, were compelled to resign their offices; and such of the Americans as sided with government, had their houses plundered and burnt. The colonies also petitioned the king and parliament for a redress of the grievance.

Non-importation agreements were every where entered into; and it was even resolved to prevent the sale of any more British goods after the present year. American manufactures, though dearer, as well as inferior in quality to the British, were universally preferred. An association was entered into against eating of lamb, in order to promote the growth of wool; and the ladies with cheerfulness agreed to renounce the use of every species of ornament manufactured in Britain. Such a general and alarming confederacy, determined the British ministry to repeal some of the most obnoxious statutes; and accordingly, on the 18th of March, 1766, the stamp-act was repealed, to the universal joy of the Americans, and indeed to the general satisfaction of the English, whose manufactures had begun to suffer severely, in consequence of the American association against them. But now the trade between Great Britain and the colonies was renewed on the most liberal footing.

The parliament, however, by repealing this act, so odious to the people of America, by no means intended to relinquish the scheme of raising a revenue in the colonies, but merely to alter the mode. Accordingly, they passed an act, enjoining the Americans to furnish his majesty's troops with necessaries in their quarters; as a preliminary measure to other laws of a pecuniary nature. This act the colony of New York had refused to obey; and another act was now therefore passed, restraining the assembly of that province from making any laws, until they had complied with the terms of the first-mentioned statute. The Americans, on their side, expressed their dissatisfaction at this restraint, by coming to some severe resolutions against the importation of European, by which they, no doubt, meant British manufactures.

In 1767, the parliament passed an act, imposing a certain duty on glass, tea, paper, and painter's colours; articles which were in great demand, and not made in America. This act, as might reasonably have been expected, after what had passed, kindled the resentment of the colonists, and excited a general opposition to the

measure. They now came to a direct, as they had formerly done to an indirect resolution to discontinue the use of British commodities, until these duties should be repealed; to effect which, the assembly at Boston wrote circular letters to all the other assemblies, proposing a union of councils and measures. For this proceeding the Boston assembly was dissolved, and a new one convened; but this soon proved as refractory as the former, and was therefore in a little time likewise dissolved. The commissioners of the customs were so roughly handled by the populace, that they thought proper to leave the town, and retire to fort William, three miles from Boston. Indeed, the spirit of discontent had risen to such a height in that town, that two regiments of foot were ordered thither from Halifax, and as many from Ireland.

Parliament, however, thought it adviseable, in 1770, to take off the obnoxious taxes, with the exception of threepence a pound on tea. Nevertheless, this duty, however trifling, kept alive the jealousy of the Americans, and their opposition to parliamentary taxation continued to increase daily; but it will be easily conceived that the duty was not the sole, nor even principal cause of the opposition; it was the principle, which, once admitted, would have subjected the colonies to unlimited parliamentary taxation, without the privilege of being represented. The right, abstractedly considered, was denied'; and the slightest attempt to justify the claim by precedent, was uniformly resisted. Nor could the Americans be deceived as to the views of parliament; for the repeal of the stampact had been accompanied with an unequivocal declaration, that "the parliament had a right to make laws of sufficient validity to bind the colonies in all cases whatsoever."

The colonies, therefore, entered into measures for encouraging their own manufactures and home productions, and for retrenching the use of foreign superfluities, while the importation of tea was prohibited. In the royal and proprietary governments, and in Massachusetts, the governors and people were in a state of continual warfare. Assemblies were repeatedly called and suddenly dissolved; employing the time while sitting, in stating grievances and framing remonstrances. As if to inflame these discontents, an act of parliament was passed, ordaining, that the governors and judges should receive their salaries of the crown; thus rendering them independent on the provincial assemblies, and removeable only at the pleasure of the king. These proceedings, with many others