stamp act, to which he affirmed that he was not particularly attached; but they remonstrated against this, and every kind of direct tax whatever, as a measure to which the colonists would never sub. mit. When it was known in America that such an act had passed, and was to be put into immediate operation, it arrested the attention of every class of people; it roused a spirit of resentment which menaced every man in power; and alienated the affections of the colonists from a country, to which they had hitherto looked with reverence as the land of their fathers. The friends of prerogative became peculiarly obnoxious, and in particular the crown governors. It was natural indeed to suppose that if the agents of the colonies had been consulted, that these immediate servants of the government must have had their share of influence. Bernard was of an arbitrary disposition, and had always been hostile to the freedom which was enjoyed in New England. Upon several occasions he had treated the people with contempt; the house of representatives with arrogance, and even the council with disrespect, though several of this body were his friends and favourites, and supported his measures, whenever they could do it without risquing the highest resentment of their constituents. The stamp act was repealed in 1766; this was a cause of great joy to the people; but the wiser statesmen in the plantations were still dissatisfied, for the very administration which had repealed this obnoxious act had passed another declaratory of the right of parliament to tax all parts of the empire; this was designed as a mere declaration and a salvo for the honour of parliament; but another ministry were not content with this. It was said to be necessary that there should be some acknowledgment or acquiescence at least on the part of America to this effect, or the act was nugatory and lifeless. Charles Townsend was employed to put a soul into it, which he did by bringing forward a duty upon oil and co lours, upon tea, &c. These taxes were to be levied in the colonies, and a board was constituted called the commissioners of the customs and placed in Boston Charles Paxton, a most odious creature of government, was one of the commissioners. He wrote to Great Britain and solicited that troops might be sent over for their protection. The governor also, was favourable to this scheme. Troops soon after arrived in 1768; this afforded a subject of controversy between the governor and the inhabitants of Boston, about providing quarters for them. The letters which he wrote to criminate the town, discover his temper, and his views. These were procured by the generous care of William Bollan, esq. through whom they presented their defence, in answer to the slanderous aspersions of the gov ernor, and at the same time acknowledged to Mr. Bollan the grateful sense they had of his services. From this time the newspapers were filled with sarcastick remarks upon the character and conduct of gov. B. with satirical descriptions of his domestick habits, and with essays upon law and government. in opposition to sentiments delivered by him. In one of his addresses to the council, he complained of a piece in the Boston Gazette, which ended with these lines, "And if such men are by God appointed, "The devil may be the Lord's annointed." Upon which the council resolved, that the piece was scandalous and blasphemous; which stimulated the writer to explain himself in a still more excep. tionable manner. In Feb. 1769, the house of representatives sent a circular letter to the other American colonies, which gave great offence to the governor. He demanded of the next general court that they should rescind the vote by which their predecessors had authorized this letter to be sent; this was refused, but 17 members out of 109 voting for it. In August, following, he dissolved the general court, finding them not subservient to his will. Upon which, votes were passed in most of the towns in the province, which were published in the newspapers, declaring him a traitor and an enemy to the country. His administration had now become so odious, burdensome, and vexatious; and there were such constant altercations between him and the general court, that it seemed necessary he should be removed from the government. A petition to the king was forwarded, to request this might be done, but it had no effect. He was in high favour at the court of Great Britain, where his administration was the subject of praise, and his services were rewarded with a title. He was now sir Francis Bernard, baronet of Nettleham, in Lincolnshire. He soon after obtained leave to return to England, and in the month of August, 1769, he sailed from Boston in the Rippon man of war; and never returned to the province. Gov. Bernard left but few friends in the place, where he passed ten years of his life. He was not calculated to gain the affections of the people; and such as had a political attachment to him, soon lost their regard, after he had laid down his authority. Such men never have those friendships which give a charm to social life. It is worthy of remark, that those of his own household were of the number who afforded amusement, by furnishing the most ridiculous representations of his parsimony, and domestick meanness. There were, however, some respectable traits in his character, and these ought to be mentioned. He was sober and temperate; had fine talents for conversation, if the subject pleased him. He had an extensive knowledge of books, and memory so strong as to be able to refer to particular passages, with greater facility than most men of erudition. He would sometimes boast that he could repeat the whole of the plays of Shakespeare. He was a friend to literature, and in terested himself greatly in favour of Harvard College, when Harvard Hall with the library and philosophick apparatus, were destroyed by fire. After which, he presented to it a considerable part of his own private library. The building which now bears the name of Harvard is a specimen of his taste in architecture; and while it was building, he would suffer not the least deviation, from his plan, to be made. He was a believer in the principles of christianity, which was the effect of study as well as education, and was regular in his attendance upon publick worship; attached to the church of England, but no bigot. When he resided in the country, he seldom rode to Boston upon the sabbath, but commonly attended service at the nearest congregational church, which was in Brookline, though his house was within the boundary of Roxbury. He gave also as a reason for this preference, that the preacher in Brookline was shorter in his services than most puritanical divines, and in particular than the Roxbury minister. After his return to England he printed several pamphlets, chiefly letters, or such as had the form of letters, to men in power, which contained his principles of law and policy while in America. He wrote several pieces of the elegiac kind in greek and latin, which are printed in a collection made at Cambridge after the death of George II. and the accession of the present monarch to the British throne. The collection is styled "Pietas et Gratulatio," &c. which was printed, in 1761, with a dedication to the king from the pen of lieut. gover nor Hutchinson. BLACKMAN ADAM, was a minister in Derbyshire, but came to New England with the early planters. He makes one of the first class, as Dr. Mather calls them; men who were in the actual exercise of their ministry when they left England. He was settled first at Guilford, then at Stratford, in Connecticut, and was so good a preacher, that the famous Hooker made a speech of this kind, "If he might have his choice, he would live and die under Mr. Blackman's ministry. The epitaph upon Melancton is applied to him by the author of the Magnalia. Book III. page 95. Cui niveus toto regnabat pectore candor ; Num Rogitus, quâ sit dictus ratione Melancton? BOLLAN WILLIAM, agent for Massachusetts at the court of Great Britain, was born in England and came over to Boston with Shirley, when he was appointed governor. In 1743, he married his excellency's second daughter, who died at the age of 25 years. She was a most amiable and accomplished lady. Mr. Bollan was a lawyer of eminence in his profession, and was advocate general, when he was chosen agent for the province, and sent to England to solicit the reimbursement of the charge in taking and securing Cape Breton. In obtaining this he discovered as much address as fidelity; he acted like a wise man, who would persevere till he gained his object. When the other agent was willing to compromise for a sum which would redeem the bills at their depreciated value, he set the matter in a clear light, and made it evident that the depreciation of the bills was as effectually a charge borne by the people as if the same proportion of bills had been drawn in by taxes; and refused any accommodation without the full value of the bills when issued "* Of his services in this business, and in all affairs of the province, the people were fully sensible, but he was not a man whom the general court of Massachusetts wished to keep in office. His relation to Shirley, his belonging to the episcopal church, and being an Englishman, created prejudices in the Mr. agent Bollan arrived in Boston, Sept. 19, 1740, with 653.000 ounces of silver and ten tons of copper: which makes 175,000 pounds sterling, granted for reimbursement of the Cape Breton expedition. Independent Advertiser, L |