tants of their respective towns and districts as, in their opinions, can best spare their arms or accoutrements, and to borrow or purchase the same for the use of said inhabitants so enlisted: and the selectmen are also directed to take a bill from such persons as shall sell their arms and accoutrements, in the name of this colony, and receipts from the soldiers to whom they shall cause them to be delivered, and render the same to the committee of supplies for this colony and each soldier, so supplied, shall pay for the use of such arms and accoutrements, out of his wages, the sum of six shillings: and if he does not return the said arms and accoutrements, there shall be deducted from his wages, at the time of making up the muster roll, the full value of said arms and accoutrements, as appraised by the selectmen, at the time of borrowing or purchasing the same; and it is strongly recommended to such inhabitants of the colony as the selectmen, as aforesaid, shall apply to for arms or accoutrements, that they supply the colony with the same. And, as many arms in this colony which are now useless may, by small repairs, be rendered fit for service, Resolved, that a sufficient number of armourers, not exceeding twenty, be appointed by the committee of safety, to mend and repair such arms as shall be brought to them by the soldiers enlisted into the Massachusetts army.

Ordered, That Mr. Webster, Major Fuller and Mr. Batchelder, be a committee to get this resolve published and dispersed. Adjourned till to-morrow morning, nine o'clock.

WEDNESDAY, May 10, 1775, A. M.

Ordered, That the committee appointed to confer with the committee of safety, upon the general state of the army, be directed particularly to confer with them on the propriety of removing the whole or part of the cannon and stores, now at Cambridge, further back into the country.

Resolved, That the general officers be, and are hereby directed, forthwith to call in all the soldiers who are already enlisted in the service of this colony, and that they give immediate orders to all the enlisted soldiers, and all others now in the camp at Cambridge and Roxbury, that they do not depart till the further orders of this Congress. A petition from the committees of correspondence, and the committees of inspection, for the town of Pownalborough, was preferred by Joseph Tinkham :

Ordered, That this petition lie on the table.

Ordered, That the resolve passed by this Congress the 23d ultimo, recommending to the selectmen of the several towns in this colo

ny, to furnish each non commissioned officer and "soldier with a blanket, be fairly copied by the secretary, and printed in a hand bill, and sent to the selectmen of the several towns and districts in the col

ony.

Ordered, That the petition from Pownalborough, just now read, be delivered to Mr. Joseph Tinkham, agreeable to his request.

Ordered, That Mr. Lothrop, Doct. Taylor and Doct. Holten, be a committee to take into consideration the proceedings of the town of Bristol, presented to this Congress by Mr. Thomas Bracket, in behalf of said town.

The committee appointed to bring in a resolve, recommending to the inhabitants of this colony to save their straw, reported; which report was read and accepted, and ordered to be copied, and sent to the printer of the Cambridge newspaper, and to the printer of the Worcester newspaper, for publication. It is as follows, viz.:

Whereas, it will be indispensably necessary that large quantities of straw be provided for the use of the army now forming for the defence and protection of this colony;

Therefore, Resolved, and it is hereby strongly recommended to all such inhabitants of this colony as have, or may have, of that article by them, that, as they regard the lives and health of their brethren, who engage in the service abovesaid, they take immediate care the same be preserved for the purpose above mentioned.

Ordered, That Capt. Foster, Mr. Lothrop and Mr. Pickering, be a committee to transcribe the depositions taken by a committee of this Congress, of the proceedings of the troops, under command of general Gage, the 19th ultimo, and that they transmit them to Mr. Hall, at Cambridge, to be published in a pamphlet, and that said committee agree with him for the expense of publication.

Ordered, That Col. Barrett attend the business to which he was yesday appointed, of inquiring into the truth or falsity of a paragraph, taken from a printed account of the action of the king's troops, on the 19th instant.

The committee appointed to consider some measures for securing the county records, reported; the report was read and accepted, and is as follows, viz. :

Resolved, That the committee appointed for each county, on the 12th of April last, be instructed to take proper measures for securing the records of their several counties where they are exposed.

The order of the day was moved for.

The committee appointed to consider on the expediency of establishing post offices, &c., reported; the report was recommitted, for the purpose of settling the rates of postage, and taking into consideration some method of establishing post offices. Mr. Hall, of Medford, and Mr. Cross, were added to the committee; also Mr. Batchelder, in the room of Mr. Dix.

Resolved, That the resolve for accepting the establishment for the train, which passed this Congress the 6th instant, be reconsidered, and that Col. Mandell, Capt. Baker, Doct. Taylor, Major Perley and Col. Coffin, be a committee to take into consideration the propriety of establishing a regiment of the train, and that they sit forthwith.

Ordered, That Col. Warren, Mr. Gerry and Col. Foster, be a committee to take into consideration a resolve of the committee of safety, recommending to this Congress to establish a court of inquiry.

Ordered, That Col. Richard Gridley be, and hereby is directed, forthwith to recommend to the committee of safety, for officers of the train of artillery, such persons as he thinks are qualified for that appointment.

On a complaint of the selectmen of the town of Worcester, against Samuel Paine and William Campbell, prisoners from that town, Ordered, that said prisoners be committed to the care of Capt. Brown, or such persons as he shall appoint, to be kept in custody till the further orders of this Congress.

Ordered, That the committee appointed to transcribe the depositions of the late proceedings of the king's troops, be directed to prepare a narrative thereof, as an introduction to the said depositions, which are ordered to be printed.

Adjourned to three o'clock, P. M.

[Afternoon.]

Ordered, That Mr. Gill, Col. Warren, Col. Gerrish, Mr. Dix and Doct. Perkins, be a committee to inquire into the complaint made by the selectmen of the town of Worcester, against Samuel Paine and William Campbell, and report to this Congress.

The consideration of the remonstrance to general Gage was resumed and [the same was] accepted, and ordered to be authenticated, and sent forward. It is as follows, viz. :

To His Excellency Gen. Gage:

SIR-This Congress have received frequent intelligence, that their brethren, the inhabitants of the town of Boston, have to contend, in their removal therefrom, with numerous delays and embarrassments,

contrary to the stipulation proposed and agreed to between your excellency and the selectmen of that town.

We think it our duty to remonstrate to your excellency, that, from the papers communicated to us by the said selectmen, it appeared, that the inhabitants were promised, upon surrendering their arms, that they should be permitted to leave the town, and carry with them their effects. The condition was immediately complied with, on the part of the people; since which, though a number of days have elapsed, but a very small proportion of the inhabitants have been allowed to take the benefit of your covenant.

We would not affront your excellency by the most distant insinuation, that you intended to deceive and disarm the people, by a cruel act of perfidy. A regard to your own character, as well as the fatal consequences which will necessarily result from the violation of your solemn treaties, must ||"suggest|| sufficient reasons, to deter a gentleman of your rank and station from so injurious a design. But your excellency must be sensible, that a delay of justice is a denial of it, and extremely oppressive to the people now held in duress.

This Congress, though not the original party in the treaty, have taken every step in their power to facilitate the measure, and, in the whole of their conduct, have endeavored to evidence a disposition to act upon the principles of humanity and good faith, and still indulge hopes, that the confidence of the inhabitants of Boston, in your excellency's honor and faithfulness, is not misplaced; and that, notwithstanding any disagreeable occurrences, naturally resulting from the confused state of the colony, which this Congress have discountenanced, and endeavored to rectify, your excellency will no longer suffer your treaty with a distressed people, who ought by no means to be affected thereby, to be further violated.

The committee appointed to take into consideration the expediency of establishing ||a regiment|| of the train, reported.

Part of the establishment reported was accepted; the consideration of the residue was referred to a future time.

Resolved, That the resolve which this Congress passed at Concord, the 13th ultimo, directing the committee of safety to engage a suitable number of persons, for forming six companies of the train, be so far reconsidered, as that it be, and hereby is Resolved, that the committee of safety be directed to engage a suitable number of persons, and form ten companies of the train, for the artillery already provided by this

a llbe.||

colony, to enter immediately on constant discipline, and be in readiness to enter the service of the colony; and that said committee be, and they are hereby empowered, to draw on the public treasury, for said companies, a suitable consideration for their services.

The petition of Timothy Langdon1 was read, and ordered to lie on the table till some of the eastern members should be present.

Ordered, That the secretary be directed, pursuant to a request of the committee of safety, to furnish them with copies of all such resolves as have passed the Congress in any ways relative to the duty enjoined them.

The secretary pro tempore represented to the Congress, that the multiplicity of the business of his office was such, as made it necessary that he should have some assistance; whereupon, Ordered, that Capt. Stone, of Oakham, assist him in that service.

The committee appointed to inquire into the state of the army, and to settle the appointment of the field officers, reported a letter from head quarters.

The committee appointed to inquire into the complaint of the selectmen of the town of Worcester, against Samuel Paine and William Campbell, reported; which report was accepted, and ordered to be transcribed, and delivered to Capt. Jonas Hubbard and Mr. Edward Crafts, who exhibited the above complaint, together with a printed resolve of Congress, lately passed, for disarming the disaffected inhabitants of the colony. The report is as follows, viz. :

The committee appointed to hear the complaints, exhibited by the selectmen of Worcester, against William Campbell and Samuel Paine, have attended that service, heard the parties, and beg leave to report, that we find the charges against them proved by depositions, and conceded by them; and that William Campbell has been guilty of leaving the town of Worcester without a permit from the selectmen, contrary to his own engagements: and that the said Samuel Paine has, in one instance, propagated reports with regard to our Massachusetts soldiers' rifling the house of Mr. Bradish, instead of the regular troops, and that those which were quartered in the colleges were lousy, and desert

(1) This petition represented, that the committee of safety, formed from ten towns in the county of Lincoln, after consultation, came to the determination, that the king's masts, in the dock yard at Georgetown, should not be removed or fitted for use, and received assurances from Edward Parry, Esq., who had procured the timber, that it should remain: that when the result of the delibe rations of the committee were known, Col. Samuel Thompson of Brunswick, with twenty armed men, seized Mr. Parry, and compelled him to give bonds, with the penalty of £2000, to abide in the town until the pleasure of Congress could be known, and exacted money for the refreshment of the captors and prayed that the bonds might be cancelled, and Mr. Parry discharged from false impris

onment.