The greatest profit
arose from the sale of merchandise brought in the large
London ship Lady Gage, from which ?
arose from the sale of merchandise brought in the large
London ship Lady Gage, from which ?
Arthur Schlesinger - Colonial Merchants and the American Revolution
5 15s.
3d.
sterling as the profits of sales of im-
portations prior to February 1, 1775. 8 Late in January,
the committee at Providence auctioned off a quantity of
merchandise, valued at ? 1200 sterling, imported from
Liverpool by way of New York, and derived a profit of
? 16 6s. 1d. for the relief of Boston. 4 Particular attention
was given in Rhode Island to the regulations for the non-
exportation of sheep. In November, 1774, the Providence
committee exhorted obedience to these regulations; a few
days later they sent to Boston, as a gift, one hundred and
thirty-six sheep that had originally been intended for ex-
portation to the West Indies but which the town had bought
instead. 8 Until late in February, Newport would not even
1 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 651.
1 Pa. Journ. , Feb. 8, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, pp. 1098-1099.
14M. H. S. Colls. , vol. iv, p. 265.
4 Bos. Eve. Post, Feb. 20, 1775; Essex Gas. , Mch. 7,
? 4 M. H. S. Colls. , vol. iv, p. 154.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 486 THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
permit the shipment of sheep to associated provinces; then,
the Salem committee succeeded in pointing out the error
of this interpretation of the Association. 1
Providence facilitated the enforcement of the non-con-
sumption regulation by requiring all dealers to show a
certificate that the goods offered for sale conformed in
every way to the specifications of the Association. 2 On
March 2, 1775, the day after the total disuse of tea became
effective, the event was celebrated at Providence by a bon-
fire of three hundred pounds of tea that had been collected
from the inhabitants. 8 The situation in Rhode Island may
be summarized in the language of the Newport committee
to their Philadelphia brethren: "so far as we can learn,
the Association hath been strictly adhered to by the mer-
chants in this colony . . . " 4 Apparently little was done
to encourage manufacturing or to foster the simple life.
However, the graduating class at Rhode Island College in-
duced the college authorities to abandon the public com-
mencement exercises as out of harmony with Article viii. "
The chief problem in Connecticut was not that of non-
importation (for her imports came largely by way of Mas-
sachusetts and New York), but that of non-consumption.
The Norwich committee required all dealers to comply with
the regulation, which was rapidly becoming popular, of
vouching for the character of new stock by displaying cer-
tificates from whence the merchandise came. 3 An early
tendency was observable for prices to rise, due to the fact
1 Pickering Papers (M. H. S. Mss. ), vol. xxxiii, p. 122; vol. xxxix,
p. 100.
1R. I. Col. Recs. , vol. vii, pp. 285-287.
*4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 15.
4 Pa. Journ. , Feb. 8, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 1099.
1 Ibid. , vol. ii, pp. 93S-93&
? Conn. (Ja*. . Dec. 30. 1774.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 487
that the importers had sold to the Connecticut retailers at
an advance and the former could not easily be reached be-
cause of their residence in other provinces. On January 25,
1775, a joint meeting of committees of inspection of Hart-
ford County resolved that, even if the importers violated
the Association, the retailers should not be excused, and
that no better rule could be fixed regarding prices than Ar-
ticle ix of the Association. 1 A few days later the com-
mittee of inspection at Farmington in the same county ob-
tained from James Percival, a local dealer, a written con-
fession of his guilt in violating this regulation and a
promise to deposit his surplus profit with the committee for
use of the Boston unfortunate. 5 The same action with re-
spect to prices was taken by the counties of New Haven.
Fairfield and Litchfield. All these counties also directed
attention to the importance of improving sheep, raising flax
and encouraging manufactures. *
As Connecticut possessed no commercial metropolis,
special effort was made in that province to standardize the
practice of trying persons accused of transgressing the
Association in the several small river and coast towns. The
movement was set on foot, it would appear, at the meeting
of the committees of inspection of Hartford County on
January 25. In executing the Association, it was there
agreed that proceedings against an accused should be con-
ducted in an "open, candid and deliberate manner:" that
formal summons should be served upon him. containing the
nature of the charge, with an invitation to defend himself
before the committee at some time not sooner than six days
later; that witnesses and other evidence should be " openly,
fairly and fully heard;" and that no conviction should be
1 Conn. Cour. , Jan. 30, 1775.
1 Ibid. , Feb. 13, 1775.
'Ibid. , Feb. 27, 1775; Conn. Journ. , Mch. 8.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 488 THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
made " but upon the fullest, clearest and most convincing
proof. " * The same mode of procedure was adopted by the
counties of New Haven, Fairfield and Litchfield. 2
Trials of offenders by the committees of inspection bore
every evidence of being fair and impartial hearings, al-
though mistakes were occasionally made. In March three
men failed to appear before the Fairfield committee who
had been summoned to answer charges; and upon an ex
parte examination the committee held unanimously that the
accused were guilty of a breach of the Association and
should forfeit all commercial connections with the com-
munity. Five weeks later, two of the men came before the
committee, proved their innocence and were restored to
public favor. 5 At Guilford Captain Griffin appeared be-
fore the committee and demanded that his character be
cleared of the aspersions cast upon it by a letter from
Martinique, which had been printed in the Journal and
which accused him of having violated Article vii by taking
fourteen sheep to Martinique. After investigation the
committee decided that Griffin was not guilty and recom-
mended him to the favorable consideration of the . public. 4
In general, the view expressed by Thomas Mumford of
Groton to Silas Deane in October, 1775, may be accepted
as correct: "This Colony universally adheres to all the
Resolves of Congress. " 5 Even in Fairfield County, where,
it will be recalled, the greatest disaffection existed, the
principal towns were actively engaged in executing the
Association.
1 Conn. Cour. , Jan. 30, 1775.
* Ibid. , Feb. 27, 1775; Conn. Journ. , Mch. 8.
1 Conn. Gas. , Apr. 4, May 12, 1775.
4 N. Y. Gas. , Apr. 3, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 222.
? Conn. Hist. Soc. Colls. , vol. ii, p. 310. Vide also 4 Am. Arch. , vol.
ii, pp. 252-253.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 489
In New York province the responsibility of enforcing
the non-importation regulation rested with the Committee
of Sixty at the port of entry. However, the first occasion
for enforcement of the Association was the attempt of an
inconsiderate citizen to ship some sheep to the West Indies.
The shipment was prevented through the energy of a group
of inhabitants who acted without consulting the Committee
of " Fifty-One," then still in office. 1 A few days later the
distillers of the city signified their hearty approval of the
pending non-importation by resolving to distill no molasses
imported from the British West Indies or Dominica nor to
sell any rum for the purpose of carrying on the slave
traffic. 2 In the two months prior to February 1, 1775, the
Committee of Sixty showed a record of astonishing activ-
ity. Their official report testifies that they conducted auc-
tions for the sale of goods imported in twenty-one vessels,
as well as for the sale of a trunk of calicoes imported from
London by way of Philadelphia. 5 These cargoes were
made up of a variety of articles representing many quarters
of the globe and evidencing the colorful romance of colo-
nial commerce. A great deal of space was taken up in the
newspapers by announcements of sales.
The greatest profit
arose from the sale of merchandise brought in the large
London ship Lady Gage, from which ? 182 18s. was cleared
for Boston. In a number of cases the selling price covered
merely the first cost and charges. The total profits from all
sales amounted to ? 347 4s. 1d.
After February 1 the Sixty displayed equal diligence in
returning cargoes without breaking bulk. For the purpose
of facilitating this work a sub-committee was appointed to
supervise the arrival of all vessels. 4 The most difficult case
14 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 963; also N. Y. Journ. , Nov. 10, 1774.
1 Ibid. , Nov. 10, 1774.
1 Ibid. , Apr. 27, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii. pp. 342-343.
4 AT. Y. Journ. , Feb. 2, 1775.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 490
THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
of enforcement proved to be that of a vessel that arrived on
the second day of the new dispensation. This was the ship
James, commanded by Captain Watson and bringing a
cargo of coal and drygoods from Glasgow. The captain
was promptly warned by the sub-committee not to enter at
the custom house and not to delay in departing with his
cargo unbroken. But the loyalists were determined to
make this a trial of strength; and although the consignees
refused to appeal to the authorities for aid, they obtained
the not unwilling ear of Captain Watson and employed men
to go aboard and bring the colors ashore with a view to
raising a posse to assist in landing the goods. A great mob
assembled on the shore; and the captain, much alarmed,
dropped down about four miles below the city, where he
remained several days attended by a boat containing repre-
sentatives of the committee. On Thursday evening, the
ninth, the ship reappeared in the harbor escorted by an
officer and some men belonging to the royal vessel King-
Usher, which had just come on the scene. The people again
assembled in great numbers, seized the captain who was
lodging in town, and paraded him about the streets until
he was glad to flee to the man-of-war. After two days of
sober reflection he prepared to depart with his ship, but was
now ordered to desist by an overzealous lieutenant from the
Kingfisher. Again the people collected; and the captain of
the Kingfisher, hearing of the unauthorized act of the lieu-
tenant, permitted the departure of the James. That vessel
was watched far beyond Sandy Hook, as she swept out to
sea. by the committee's boat. 1
The vigilance of the Sixty was again tested later in the
month upon the arrival of the Beulah from London. After
lying at anchor for almost three weeks in an effort to elude
1N. Y. Journ. , Feb. 9, 16, 1775; Pa. Jourt1. , Feb. 8; Colden, Letter
Books, vol. ii, p. 389.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES
49 1
the watchfulness of the committee's boat, the vessel fell
down to Sandy Hook to await a favorable wind for the
return voyage. After two days' delay, she put to sea.
Word quickly reached the Sixty that, under shelter of dark-
ness, a boat from Elizabethtown, New Jersey, had taken off
some goods while the ship lingered at the Hook. Investi-
gation was at once undertaken by the Elizabethtown com-
mittee, and the truth of the case was being ferreted out
when Robert and John Murray, merchants of New York,
appeared before the Sixty and confessed that they were the
principals in the affair. The return of the Beulah with an
unbroken cargo meant great financial loss to them, but it is
evident that they feared the blast of the boycott even more
greatly. They made a sworn statement of the goods that
had been landed and promised to re-ship them in seven
days' time. Finally, to propitiate public feeling, they sub-
scribed ? 200 for the repair of the hospital, recently dam-
aged by fire. The Sixty published these facts without com-
ment; and the Elizabethtown committee proscribed John
Murray, and his son-in-law of that town -- the actual par-
ticipants in the affair -- as violators of the Association. 1
The Sixty exhibited less concern about the advancing of
prices. While the First Continental Congress was yet in
session, the old " Fifty-One" had taken cognizance of the
discontent arising from " the exorbitant price to which sun-
dry articles of goods, particularly some of the necessaries
of life," had advanced in anticipation of non-importation:
and they had induced a meeting of importers at the Ex-
change to agree to maintain prices at the usual level, dis-
courage engrossing, and to boycott retailers who acted con-
1 N. Y. Journ. , Feb. 23, Mch. 9, 23, Apr. 6, 1775. The son-in-law
was restored to public favor, after public contrition, by act of the
New Jersey provincial congress, Oct. 24, 1775. 4 Am. Arch. , vol. iii.
p. 1232. For the later history of the Murrays, vide infra, p. 565 and n. 1.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
492
trariwise. 1 Nevertheless, by January, claims were made in
the leading loyalist organ that prices had actually risen.
Thus, coarse osnaburgs were said to have advanced a full
third in the hands of the wholesaler; the price of coarse
linens and Russia sheetings had increased also. 2 These
allegations may not have fairly represented the situation, or
else the committee may have thought it_yjaw. ige_to. supervise
the merchants too. -ClQseJxjQD- this-point. In any case the
Sixty paid no attention to the charges.
An obvious effort was made to simplify the standard of
living. When Mrs. Margaret Duane died early in January,
her remains were interred in accordance with the directions
of Article viii. 8 The London ship Lady Gage brought two
puppet shows to New York; and in the midst of their first
performances, a committee of citizens stopped the proceed-
ings and, while the audiences dispersed in much confusion,
secured the promise of the managers not to show again. 4
The project of establishing In^al manufacturers on some
systematic plan attracted little interest at first. When, how-
ever, some enterprising Philadelphians established a manu-
facturing company a few months later, the Sixty decided
to make use of the same plan, under the name "The New
York Society for employing the Industrious Poor and Pro-
moting Manufactory. " The object was to manufacture
woolens, linens, cottons and nails; but subscriptions for
stock failed to materialize, and it was not until January,
1776, that a partial trial of the scheme was made possible
by a subsidy granted by the committee of safety at New
York city. 6 This was too late to be of any practical use
because of the British occupancy of the city soon after.
1 N. Y. Gas. , Oct. 10, 1774; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 328.
*tf. Y. Gasetteer, Jan. 19, 26, Apr. 6, 1775.
*AT. Y. Gas. , Jan. 16, 1775. 4 N. Y. Journ. , Dec. 15, 1774.
*4 Am. Arch. , vol. iii, pp. 1263-1264, 1424-1426; C,'1txtituti,1nal Gas. ,
Jan. 27, 1776.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 493
Apart from the three rural counties of Albany, Ulster
and Suffolk, the outlying districts were not at this time
sufficiently organized to enforce the non-consumption reg-
ulations. It should be noted, however, that the energy and
intelligence of the Sixty at the metropolis reduced the im-
portance of such enforcement, inasmuch as foreign wares
seldom, if ever, penetrated that far. Probably the worst
infractions occurred in the matter of tea drinking after
March 1, when no tea either dutied or smuggled was to be
consumed. On April 7, Jacobus Low of Kingston in Ulster
County was proscribed by the Kingston committee as the
only dealer in town who would not refuse to sell tea. A
long and somewhat abusive controversy ensued; but at the
end of two months Low appeared before the committee and
made all the concessions they required. 1
Since the mercantile houses of New York city were the
feeders for the country stores of Connecticut and New Jer-
sey, the inviolability of the non-importation in the metrop-
olis was trebly important. That it was well kept the fore-
going incidents testify. A group of conservatives in
Dutchess and Westchester Counties sought to promote a
loyalist association for personal liberty, modeled on Briga-
dier Ruggles's association in Massachusetts; but it made no
headway. 2 Lieutenant Governor Colden, who had orig-
inally been skeptical of the success of the Continental Asso-
ciation, uttered a dependable judgment when he wrote on
March I: "the non importation association of the Con-
gress is ever rigidly maintained in this Place. " *
The spirit of the New Jersey associators has already been
suggested by the conduct of the Elizabethtown committee
1 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, pp. 298, 448, 548, 917.
1Ibid. , vol. i, p. 1164; N. Y. Gas. , Mch. 20, 1775.
1 Letter Books, vol. ii, p. 389. Vide also ibid. , pp. 369-370, 373.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 494
THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
in the Murray affair. On December 6, 1774, Governor
Franklin informed the home government that: "Altho' the
Proceedings of the Congress are not altogether satisfactory
to many of the Inhabitants of the Colonies, yet there seems
at present little Reason to doubt but that the Terms of
Association will be generally carried into Execution, even
by those who dislike Parts of it.
portations prior to February 1, 1775. 8 Late in January,
the committee at Providence auctioned off a quantity of
merchandise, valued at ? 1200 sterling, imported from
Liverpool by way of New York, and derived a profit of
? 16 6s. 1d. for the relief of Boston. 4 Particular attention
was given in Rhode Island to the regulations for the non-
exportation of sheep. In November, 1774, the Providence
committee exhorted obedience to these regulations; a few
days later they sent to Boston, as a gift, one hundred and
thirty-six sheep that had originally been intended for ex-
portation to the West Indies but which the town had bought
instead. 8 Until late in February, Newport would not even
1 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 651.
1 Pa. Journ. , Feb. 8, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, pp. 1098-1099.
14M. H. S. Colls. , vol. iv, p. 265.
4 Bos. Eve. Post, Feb. 20, 1775; Essex Gas. , Mch. 7,
? 4 M. H. S. Colls. , vol. iv, p. 154.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 486 THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
permit the shipment of sheep to associated provinces; then,
the Salem committee succeeded in pointing out the error
of this interpretation of the Association. 1
Providence facilitated the enforcement of the non-con-
sumption regulation by requiring all dealers to show a
certificate that the goods offered for sale conformed in
every way to the specifications of the Association. 2 On
March 2, 1775, the day after the total disuse of tea became
effective, the event was celebrated at Providence by a bon-
fire of three hundred pounds of tea that had been collected
from the inhabitants. 8 The situation in Rhode Island may
be summarized in the language of the Newport committee
to their Philadelphia brethren: "so far as we can learn,
the Association hath been strictly adhered to by the mer-
chants in this colony . . . " 4 Apparently little was done
to encourage manufacturing or to foster the simple life.
However, the graduating class at Rhode Island College in-
duced the college authorities to abandon the public com-
mencement exercises as out of harmony with Article viii. "
The chief problem in Connecticut was not that of non-
importation (for her imports came largely by way of Mas-
sachusetts and New York), but that of non-consumption.
The Norwich committee required all dealers to comply with
the regulation, which was rapidly becoming popular, of
vouching for the character of new stock by displaying cer-
tificates from whence the merchandise came. 3 An early
tendency was observable for prices to rise, due to the fact
1 Pickering Papers (M. H. S. Mss. ), vol. xxxiii, p. 122; vol. xxxix,
p. 100.
1R. I. Col. Recs. , vol. vii, pp. 285-287.
*4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 15.
4 Pa. Journ. , Feb. 8, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 1099.
1 Ibid. , vol. ii, pp. 93S-93&
? Conn. (Ja*. . Dec. 30. 1774.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 487
that the importers had sold to the Connecticut retailers at
an advance and the former could not easily be reached be-
cause of their residence in other provinces. On January 25,
1775, a joint meeting of committees of inspection of Hart-
ford County resolved that, even if the importers violated
the Association, the retailers should not be excused, and
that no better rule could be fixed regarding prices than Ar-
ticle ix of the Association. 1 A few days later the com-
mittee of inspection at Farmington in the same county ob-
tained from James Percival, a local dealer, a written con-
fession of his guilt in violating this regulation and a
promise to deposit his surplus profit with the committee for
use of the Boston unfortunate. 5 The same action with re-
spect to prices was taken by the counties of New Haven.
Fairfield and Litchfield. All these counties also directed
attention to the importance of improving sheep, raising flax
and encouraging manufactures. *
As Connecticut possessed no commercial metropolis,
special effort was made in that province to standardize the
practice of trying persons accused of transgressing the
Association in the several small river and coast towns. The
movement was set on foot, it would appear, at the meeting
of the committees of inspection of Hartford County on
January 25. In executing the Association, it was there
agreed that proceedings against an accused should be con-
ducted in an "open, candid and deliberate manner:" that
formal summons should be served upon him. containing the
nature of the charge, with an invitation to defend himself
before the committee at some time not sooner than six days
later; that witnesses and other evidence should be " openly,
fairly and fully heard;" and that no conviction should be
1 Conn. Cour. , Jan. 30, 1775.
1 Ibid. , Feb. 13, 1775.
'Ibid. , Feb. 27, 1775; Conn. Journ. , Mch. 8.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 488 THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
made " but upon the fullest, clearest and most convincing
proof. " * The same mode of procedure was adopted by the
counties of New Haven, Fairfield and Litchfield. 2
Trials of offenders by the committees of inspection bore
every evidence of being fair and impartial hearings, al-
though mistakes were occasionally made. In March three
men failed to appear before the Fairfield committee who
had been summoned to answer charges; and upon an ex
parte examination the committee held unanimously that the
accused were guilty of a breach of the Association and
should forfeit all commercial connections with the com-
munity. Five weeks later, two of the men came before the
committee, proved their innocence and were restored to
public favor. 5 At Guilford Captain Griffin appeared be-
fore the committee and demanded that his character be
cleared of the aspersions cast upon it by a letter from
Martinique, which had been printed in the Journal and
which accused him of having violated Article vii by taking
fourteen sheep to Martinique. After investigation the
committee decided that Griffin was not guilty and recom-
mended him to the favorable consideration of the . public. 4
In general, the view expressed by Thomas Mumford of
Groton to Silas Deane in October, 1775, may be accepted
as correct: "This Colony universally adheres to all the
Resolves of Congress. " 5 Even in Fairfield County, where,
it will be recalled, the greatest disaffection existed, the
principal towns were actively engaged in executing the
Association.
1 Conn. Cour. , Jan. 30, 1775.
* Ibid. , Feb. 27, 1775; Conn. Journ. , Mch. 8.
1 Conn. Gas. , Apr. 4, May 12, 1775.
4 N. Y. Gas. , Apr. 3, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, p. 222.
? Conn. Hist. Soc. Colls. , vol. ii, p. 310. Vide also 4 Am. Arch. , vol.
ii, pp. 252-253.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 489
In New York province the responsibility of enforcing
the non-importation regulation rested with the Committee
of Sixty at the port of entry. However, the first occasion
for enforcement of the Association was the attempt of an
inconsiderate citizen to ship some sheep to the West Indies.
The shipment was prevented through the energy of a group
of inhabitants who acted without consulting the Committee
of " Fifty-One," then still in office. 1 A few days later the
distillers of the city signified their hearty approval of the
pending non-importation by resolving to distill no molasses
imported from the British West Indies or Dominica nor to
sell any rum for the purpose of carrying on the slave
traffic. 2 In the two months prior to February 1, 1775, the
Committee of Sixty showed a record of astonishing activ-
ity. Their official report testifies that they conducted auc-
tions for the sale of goods imported in twenty-one vessels,
as well as for the sale of a trunk of calicoes imported from
London by way of Philadelphia. 5 These cargoes were
made up of a variety of articles representing many quarters
of the globe and evidencing the colorful romance of colo-
nial commerce. A great deal of space was taken up in the
newspapers by announcements of sales.
The greatest profit
arose from the sale of merchandise brought in the large
London ship Lady Gage, from which ? 182 18s. was cleared
for Boston. In a number of cases the selling price covered
merely the first cost and charges. The total profits from all
sales amounted to ? 347 4s. 1d.
After February 1 the Sixty displayed equal diligence in
returning cargoes without breaking bulk. For the purpose
of facilitating this work a sub-committee was appointed to
supervise the arrival of all vessels. 4 The most difficult case
14 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 963; also N. Y. Journ. , Nov. 10, 1774.
1 Ibid. , Nov. 10, 1774.
1 Ibid. , Apr. 27, 1775; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii. pp. 342-343.
4 AT. Y. Journ. , Feb. 2, 1775.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 490
THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
of enforcement proved to be that of a vessel that arrived on
the second day of the new dispensation. This was the ship
James, commanded by Captain Watson and bringing a
cargo of coal and drygoods from Glasgow. The captain
was promptly warned by the sub-committee not to enter at
the custom house and not to delay in departing with his
cargo unbroken. But the loyalists were determined to
make this a trial of strength; and although the consignees
refused to appeal to the authorities for aid, they obtained
the not unwilling ear of Captain Watson and employed men
to go aboard and bring the colors ashore with a view to
raising a posse to assist in landing the goods. A great mob
assembled on the shore; and the captain, much alarmed,
dropped down about four miles below the city, where he
remained several days attended by a boat containing repre-
sentatives of the committee. On Thursday evening, the
ninth, the ship reappeared in the harbor escorted by an
officer and some men belonging to the royal vessel King-
Usher, which had just come on the scene. The people again
assembled in great numbers, seized the captain who was
lodging in town, and paraded him about the streets until
he was glad to flee to the man-of-war. After two days of
sober reflection he prepared to depart with his ship, but was
now ordered to desist by an overzealous lieutenant from the
Kingfisher. Again the people collected; and the captain of
the Kingfisher, hearing of the unauthorized act of the lieu-
tenant, permitted the departure of the James. That vessel
was watched far beyond Sandy Hook, as she swept out to
sea. by the committee's boat. 1
The vigilance of the Sixty was again tested later in the
month upon the arrival of the Beulah from London. After
lying at anchor for almost three weeks in an effort to elude
1N. Y. Journ. , Feb. 9, 16, 1775; Pa. Jourt1. , Feb. 8; Colden, Letter
Books, vol. ii, p. 389.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES
49 1
the watchfulness of the committee's boat, the vessel fell
down to Sandy Hook to await a favorable wind for the
return voyage. After two days' delay, she put to sea.
Word quickly reached the Sixty that, under shelter of dark-
ness, a boat from Elizabethtown, New Jersey, had taken off
some goods while the ship lingered at the Hook. Investi-
gation was at once undertaken by the Elizabethtown com-
mittee, and the truth of the case was being ferreted out
when Robert and John Murray, merchants of New York,
appeared before the Sixty and confessed that they were the
principals in the affair. The return of the Beulah with an
unbroken cargo meant great financial loss to them, but it is
evident that they feared the blast of the boycott even more
greatly. They made a sworn statement of the goods that
had been landed and promised to re-ship them in seven
days' time. Finally, to propitiate public feeling, they sub-
scribed ? 200 for the repair of the hospital, recently dam-
aged by fire. The Sixty published these facts without com-
ment; and the Elizabethtown committee proscribed John
Murray, and his son-in-law of that town -- the actual par-
ticipants in the affair -- as violators of the Association. 1
The Sixty exhibited less concern about the advancing of
prices. While the First Continental Congress was yet in
session, the old " Fifty-One" had taken cognizance of the
discontent arising from " the exorbitant price to which sun-
dry articles of goods, particularly some of the necessaries
of life," had advanced in anticipation of non-importation:
and they had induced a meeting of importers at the Ex-
change to agree to maintain prices at the usual level, dis-
courage engrossing, and to boycott retailers who acted con-
1 N. Y. Journ. , Feb. 23, Mch. 9, 23, Apr. 6, 1775. The son-in-law
was restored to public favor, after public contrition, by act of the
New Jersey provincial congress, Oct. 24, 1775. 4 Am. Arch. , vol. iii.
p. 1232. For the later history of the Murrays, vide infra, p. 565 and n. 1.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
492
trariwise. 1 Nevertheless, by January, claims were made in
the leading loyalist organ that prices had actually risen.
Thus, coarse osnaburgs were said to have advanced a full
third in the hands of the wholesaler; the price of coarse
linens and Russia sheetings had increased also. 2 These
allegations may not have fairly represented the situation, or
else the committee may have thought it_yjaw. ige_to. supervise
the merchants too. -ClQseJxjQD- this-point. In any case the
Sixty paid no attention to the charges.
An obvious effort was made to simplify the standard of
living. When Mrs. Margaret Duane died early in January,
her remains were interred in accordance with the directions
of Article viii. 8 The London ship Lady Gage brought two
puppet shows to New York; and in the midst of their first
performances, a committee of citizens stopped the proceed-
ings and, while the audiences dispersed in much confusion,
secured the promise of the managers not to show again. 4
The project of establishing In^al manufacturers on some
systematic plan attracted little interest at first. When, how-
ever, some enterprising Philadelphians established a manu-
facturing company a few months later, the Sixty decided
to make use of the same plan, under the name "The New
York Society for employing the Industrious Poor and Pro-
moting Manufactory. " The object was to manufacture
woolens, linens, cottons and nails; but subscriptions for
stock failed to materialize, and it was not until January,
1776, that a partial trial of the scheme was made possible
by a subsidy granted by the committee of safety at New
York city. 6 This was too late to be of any practical use
because of the British occupancy of the city soon after.
1 N. Y. Gas. , Oct. 10, 1774; also 4 Am. Arch. , vol. i, p. 328.
*tf. Y. Gasetteer, Jan. 19, 26, Apr. 6, 1775.
*AT. Y. Gas. , Jan. 16, 1775. 4 N. Y. Journ. , Dec. 15, 1774.
*4 Am. Arch. , vol. iii, pp. 1263-1264, 1424-1426; C,'1txtituti,1nal Gas. ,
Jan. 27, 1776.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? IN THE COMMERCIAL PROVINCES 493
Apart from the three rural counties of Albany, Ulster
and Suffolk, the outlying districts were not at this time
sufficiently organized to enforce the non-consumption reg-
ulations. It should be noted, however, that the energy and
intelligence of the Sixty at the metropolis reduced the im-
portance of such enforcement, inasmuch as foreign wares
seldom, if ever, penetrated that far. Probably the worst
infractions occurred in the matter of tea drinking after
March 1, when no tea either dutied or smuggled was to be
consumed. On April 7, Jacobus Low of Kingston in Ulster
County was proscribed by the Kingston committee as the
only dealer in town who would not refuse to sell tea. A
long and somewhat abusive controversy ensued; but at the
end of two months Low appeared before the committee and
made all the concessions they required. 1
Since the mercantile houses of New York city were the
feeders for the country stores of Connecticut and New Jer-
sey, the inviolability of the non-importation in the metrop-
olis was trebly important. That it was well kept the fore-
going incidents testify. A group of conservatives in
Dutchess and Westchester Counties sought to promote a
loyalist association for personal liberty, modeled on Briga-
dier Ruggles's association in Massachusetts; but it made no
headway. 2 Lieutenant Governor Colden, who had orig-
inally been skeptical of the success of the Continental Asso-
ciation, uttered a dependable judgment when he wrote on
March I: "the non importation association of the Con-
gress is ever rigidly maintained in this Place. " *
The spirit of the New Jersey associators has already been
suggested by the conduct of the Elizabethtown committee
1 4 Am. Arch. , vol. ii, pp. 298, 448, 548, 917.
1Ibid. , vol. i, p. 1164; N. Y. Gas. , Mch. 20, 1775.
1 Letter Books, vol. ii, p. 389. Vide also ibid. , pp. 369-370, 373.
? ? Generated for (University of Chicago) on 2014-08-19 01:37 GMT / http://hdl. handle. net/2027/mdp. 39015011480665 Public Domain, Google-digitized / http://www. hathitrust. org/access_use#pd-google
? 494
THE COLONIAL MERCHANTS: 1763-1776
in the Murray affair. On December 6, 1774, Governor
Franklin informed the home government that: "Altho' the
Proceedings of the Congress are not altogether satisfactory
to many of the Inhabitants of the Colonies, yet there seems
at present little Reason to doubt but that the Terms of
Association will be generally carried into Execution, even
by those who dislike Parts of it.
