Memorial of Ebenezer Hazard

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To the Honourable the General Assembly of the Colony of CONNECTICUT, now convened at HARTFORD.

The Memorial of Ebenezer Hazard, of the City and Province of New-York, Bookseller and Stationer, as well in behalf of himself, as of those who now are, or hereafter may become his associates: Humbly showeth,

That Samuel Hazard, late of the City of Philadelphia, in the Province of Pennsylvania, Merchant, (father of your Memorialist,) actuated by motives truly benevolent, humane, and patriotick, projected a scheme for the settlement of a new Colony to the Westward of the said Province of Pennsylvania; — which Scheme was as follows, viz:

SCHEME for the Settlement of a new Colony to the Westward of PENNSYLVANIA; for the Enlargement of his Majesty' s Dominions in AMERICA; for the further Promotion of the Christian Religion among the INDIAN Natives, and for the more effectual securing them in his Majesty' s Alliance.

That humble application be made either to his Majesty or the General Assembly of Connecticut, or to both, as the case may require, for a grant of so much land as shall be necessary for the settlement of an ample Colony, to begin at the distance of one hundred miles Westward of the Western boundaries of Pennsylvania, and thence to extend one hundred miles to the Westward of the River Mississippi; and to be divided from Virginia and Carolina by the great chain of mountains that runs along the Continent from the Northeastern to the Southwestern parts of America.

That humble application be made to his Majesty for a Charter to erect said Territory into a separate Government, with the same privileges which the Colony of Connecticut enjoys, and for such supplies of arms and ammunition as may be necessary for the safety and defence of the settlers, and that his Majesty would also be pleased to take the said new Colony under his immediate protection.

That application be made to the Assemblies of the several British Colonies in North America to grant such supplies of money and provisions as may enable the settlers to secure the friendship of the Indian Natives, and support themselves and families till they are established in said Colony in peace and safety, and can support themselves by their own industry.

That at least twelve Reverend Ministers of the Gospel be engaged to remove to the said new Colony, with such numbers of their respective congregations as are willing to go along with them.

That every person from the age of fourteen and upward, (slaves excepted,) professing the Christian Religion, being Protestant subjects of the Crown of Great Britain, and that will move to said new Colony with the first settlers thereof, shall be entitled to a sufficient quantity of land for a good plantation, without any consideration money, and at the annual rent of a pepper corn; said plantation to contain at least three hundred acres, two hundred acres of which to be such land as is fit for tillage or meadow.

That every person under the age of fourteen years (slaves excepted) who removes to said Province with the first settlers thereof, as well as such children as shall be lawfully born to said first settlers in said Province, or in the way to it, shall be entitled to three hundred acres of land when they come to the age of twenty-one years, without any purchase money, at the annual quit-rent of two shillings for every hundred acres, the quit-rent arising from such lands to be applied to

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That every person who is entitled to any land in the Province shall be at liberty to take it up when they please, but when taken up shall be obliged to clear and fence at least fifteen acres, on every farm of three hundred acres, within five years after the appropriation of said land, and also to build a dwelling house of at least fifteen feet square, with a good chimney, on the premises within the said term, on pain of forfeiting said land. That the said plantations shall be laid out in townships, in such manner as will be most for the safety and convenience of the settlers.

That in order to prevent all jealousies and disputes about the choice of said plantations, they shall be divided by lot.

That as soon as possible, after a sufficient number of persons are engaged, a proper Charter obtained, and the necessary preparations are made for the support and protection of the settlers, a place of rendezvous shall be appointed, where they shall all meet, and from whence they shall proceed in a body to the new Colony; but that no place of rendezvous shall be appointed till at least two thousand persons, able to bear arms, are actually engaged to remove, exclusive of women and children.

That it be established as one of the fundamental laws of the Province, that Protestants of every denomination who profess the Christian Religion; believe the Divine authority of the Sacred Scriptures of the Old and New Testament; the doctrine of the Trinity of persons in the Unity of the Godhead, and whose lives and conversations are free from immorality and profaneness, shall be equally capable of serving in all posts of honour, trust, or profit, in the Government, notwithstanding the diversity of their religious principles in other respects. But that none of any denomination whatsoever who have been guilty of profaning the name of God, of lying, drunkenness, or any other of the grosser immoralities, either in their words or actions, shall be capable of holding any office in or under the Government, till at least one year after their conviction of such offence. The christianizing the Indian Natives, and bringing them to be good subjects, not only to the Crown of Great Britain, but to the King of all Kings, being one of the essential designs of the proposed new Colony, it is a matter of the utmost importance that these poor ignorant Heathen should not be prejudiced against the Christian Religion, by the bad lives of those in authority.

That Protestants of every denomination who profess the Christian Religion, shall have the free and unlimited exercise of their religion, and shall be allowed to defend it, both from the pulpit and the press, so long as they remain peaceable members of civil society, and do not propagate principles inconsistent with the safety of the state.

That no member of the Church of Rome shall be able to hold any lands, or real estate, in the Province, nor be allowed to be owners of, or have any arms or ammunition in their possession, on any pretence whatsoever; nor shall any mass Houses or Popish Chapels be allowed in the Province.

That no person shall be obliged to pay any thing towards the support of a Minister of whose congregation he is not a member, or to a church to which he does not belong.

That the Indians shall, on all occasions, be treated with the utmost kindness, and every justifiable method taken to gain their friendship; and that whoever injures, cheats, or makes them drunk, shall be punished with peculiar severity.

That as soon as the Province is able to support Missionaries, and proper persons can be found to engage in the affair, a fund shall be settled for the purpose, and Missionaries sent among the neighbouring Indian Nations: that it shall, in all time coming, be esteemed as one of the first and most essential duties of the Legislature of the Province, by every proper method in their power, to endeavour to spread the light of the glorious Gospel among the Indians in America, even to its most Western bounds.

That as the conversion of the Indians is a thing much to be desired, from the weightiest considerations, both of a religious and political nature, and since the Colony, during its infancy, will be unable to provide the necessary funds for that purpose, some proper person or persons shall be sent to Europe, duly authorized from the Government, to ask assistance of such as desire to promote that great and good work.

To his Majesty George the Second, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, and so forth.

The humble Address of * * * * persons, Inhabitants of his Majesty' s Plantations in NORTH AMERICA.

May it please your Majesty:

We, the subscribers, being of the number of your Majesty' s most dutiful and loyal subjects, inhabiting the British Plantations in North America, beg leave, with the utmost humility, to approach your Majesty' s presence, by this token of our duty and regard, which we are encouraged to lay at the feet of our Sovereign, not only from the ideas we entertain of its being at all times agreeable to your Majesty to receive assurances of the loyalty and affection of your good subjects, but also from an apprehension that such proofs of sincere regard to the substantial interests of your Crown and Kingdoms, and thousands of your good people of America, as we have now to lay before your Majesty, will afford a more sold satisfaction (at a time when all your American Dominions are threatened either with present or future ruin) than the most pompous professions of duty and loyalty, unaccompanied with corresponding actions. Emboldened by tins confidence, we beg leave to assure your Majesty, that we behold with horrour and indignation the schemes which have long been secretly laid (and which our perfidious neighbours at length are openly executing) for the ruin and destruction of all your Majesty' s Dominions in America. We are affected with equal horrour and detestation at the prospect of that slavery to an arbitrary Prince and Popish church, which the completion of those schemes would necessarily bring upon us and our posterity; with a proportionable gratitude we behold your Majesty' s paternal care in sending fleets and armies for our protection when we are unable to protect ourselves, and when it is out of our power, without such aid, to prevent that misery that seems to be breaking in upon us like a flood, and

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And as the wise and seasonable measures which your Majesty, at a vast expense, has been pleased to take for the security of your American Dominions, affords the most unquestionable proofs of your Majesty' s regard for their safety, so we doubt not your Royal wisdom and penetration has discovered the necessity and importance of settling strong and numerous Colonies in the neighbourhood of the Ohio and Mississippi, as well for the securing those important parts of your Dominions, as for doing it in a manner the least burdensome and the most advantageous to your good subjects of Great Britain and America.

Our most humble prayer therefore is, that your Majesty will graciously be pleased to grant such countenance and assistance to the present scheme for settling a new Colony, as will be necessary for the encouragement of a people on whose fidelity your Majesty may with the utmost confidence rely, and who, at the same time, esteem themselves bound by the most sacred and indissoluble ties, to hand down the blessings of civil and religious liberty inviolate to their posterity. And will our gracious Sovereign be pleased to permit us to hope for that favour from his Royal benignity which our zeal for his service and our country' s cause inclines us with? Having cheerfully made a tender of our best service, what now remains is, to offer up our humble fervent prayers to Almighty God, the Sovereign Ruler of the universe, by whom Kings reign and Princes decree judgment, that he would be pleased to crown your Majesty' s arms with success, that your enemies may flee away and return no more; that your Majesty' s life may long be continued a blessing to your people, and full of happiness to yourself; that when death puts a period to your reign on earth, your Majesty may receive a crown of immortal glory, and that there never may be wanting one of your illustrious race to sway the British scepter in righteousness. These then may it please your Majesty are our wishes, and these shall be our prayers.

Dated at Philadelphia, July 24, 1755.

That the said Samuel Hazard, sensible of the claim of the Colony of Connecticut to the lands upon which we proposed settling a new Colony, made humble application to the Honourable the General Assembly of the said Colony of Connecticut for a release of their claim to the said lands. His Memorial, containing the application aforesaid, bears date May 8th, 1755, and is in the words following, viz:

To the Honourable General Assembly of the English Colony of Connecticut, in New England, in America, now sitting at Hartford, viz: Thursday, May 2, 1755:

The Memorial of Samuel Hazard, of the City of Philadelphia, in the Province of Pennsylvania, in America, Merchant: Humbly showeth,

That your Memorialist hath projected a scheme for the settlement of a new Colony to the Westward of Pennsylvania, a copy of which is hereunto annexed.

That he hath already engaged three thousand five hundred and eight persons, able to bear arms, to remove to the said new Colony, on the footing of said scheme, and does not in the least doubt of being able to procure ten thousand if it takes effect.

That among those already engaged are nine Reverend Ministers of the Gospel; a considerable number of persons who are in publick offices under the Governments of Pennsylvania and New-Jersey, as well as great numbers of persons of good estates, of the best characters for sobriety and religion in said Provinces, but more especially in the Province of Pennsylvania.

That it must be manifest to your Honours, and to every thinking person who has the slightest acquaintance with the state of the American Colonies, that it is of the last importance to their safety to have a new Colony settled in the country, which the present scheme proposes; and that such a settlement in the hands of a sober, prudent, and industrious people, who would treat the Indians in such a manner as both the rules of the Gospel, and good policy require, would (with the ordinary smiles of Providence) be attended with the happiest consequences to Great Britain and all the American Plantations.

That whoever will be at the pains to inform himself of the state and situation of that country, must be convinced, that if it be not seasonably settled, it will be impossible to secure it to the Crown of Great Britain, without running into an expense that would be an intolerable burden to the Nation or ruinous to the Plantations.

That as the designs of the French have long been obvious to every intelligent inquirer, so the fatal consequences of their destructive schemes are too horrid to be disregarded by any whose breasts are capable of those impressions which ought naturally to flow from a well-guided affection to their God, their King, their country, and the human species. Were your Memorialist to pursue the consequences of those schemes through all the scenes of blood, of rapine, and of violence, and through all the mazes of Popish errour and superstition, that they would naturally lead him, it would take up too much of your Honours' time, and be as disagreeable, as it would be tedious. Your Memorialist however, begs leave just to remind your Honours, that it is easy to demonstrate by rational arguments, that if the French are

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That as these consequences can by no means be prevented, without prodigious expense, and vast as well as numerous inconveniences, but by the settlement of a new Colony, so it is absolutely necessary to have such settlement made by a sober, prudent, and orderly people, who would treat the Indians in such a manner as would gain their affections, as well as of those whose fidelity to the King could safely be relied on; for that the great and important ends which ought principally to be regarded in settling a new Colony about the Ohio and Mississippi will not be answered either by a herd of banditti, or a Colony of foreigners, is obvious at first view. Your Memorialist therefore persuades himself that such schemes as would engage persons of the above character, will not be suffered to drop, and become abortive for want of that assistance which your Honourable Assembly alone can give.

That as this Colony cannot be supposed to have people enough to spare to settle such vast Territories as are included within the limits of their Charter, as your Memorialist conceives, that when your Honours have considered the character and dispositions of the various Southern Provinces, it will manifestly appear, that any considerable numbers of persons fit to be depended upon for their fidelity to the King, cannot be found among any of the various religious denominations which inhabit those Provinces, except the Church of England, the Presbyterians, the Quakers, and the Baptists.

That as the members of the Church of England in those Provinces have not shown a disposition to remove into the wilderness to settle new Colonies, but are principally obliged to Presbyterians to the Northward for any settlements that are made on the frontiers, even of their own Provinces, it will be in vain to expect them to settle the proposed Colony. Nor would it be more reasonable to expect the Quakers, who are principled against war, to remove and defend the country; and since the Baptists are but few in number, and by no means sufficient for the purpose, it remains that Presbyterians must settle that country, or it must be left exposed to the French.

That as your Memorialist has already engaged so great a number of Presbyterians to remove, if this scheme takes effect, so he humbly conceives, that if they, and such others as he can still engage, are not suitably and seasonably encouraged, it will be in vain to attempt to settle Colonies from among them.

That as this Colony cannot settle those lands themselves, so your Memorialist is far from supposing that they will suffer their claims to hinder the settlement of that country by others, at a time when the safety and wellbeing of all the British Plantations in America, and even of Great Britain itself, is so highly interested in such settlements, and this be apprehends there is great reason to fear will in fact be the case if this Assembly does not at this present session transfer or relinquish their right to that country, in such a manner as will remove all obstacles to their claim out of the way of the present scheme; for as your Memorialist has already been at great expense of money and time to bring the scheme thus far to maturity, he shall (notwithstanding the success he has had in engaging three thousand five hundred and eight persons to remove,) hardly judge it consistent with the duties he owes either to them or his own family, to proceed any further in the affair, if he does not now succeed in his petition to this Honourable Assembly; and as he must spend the remainder of his days in this important service if the scheme goes on, so the thoughts of leaving his children, with many thousands of others, liable to disputes about every inch of ground that they possess, after having purchased it with the peril of their lives, would be such an objection both to them and him, as will hardly be got over. Nor will it be amiss to inform your Honours, that if those who are now willing to settle that country are once discouraged, and the spirit which at this time prevails among them is lost, it will be no easy task to revive it again.

That however arguments of a religious nature are esteemed in some places, your Memorialist presumes it will be no transgression to lay some stress upon them before this Honourable Assembly. He therefore begs leave to say, that as the Charter of this Colony expressly declares, that his Majesty' s principal design in the Grant made to them, was the conversion of the Indians to Christianity, so your Honours will easily see that this scheme duly executed, would have a happy tendency to answer that important end; nor can your Memorialist help entertaining some distant hopes that it would be one mean at least (however small) of preparing the way for carrying the pure Religion of the Gospel, free from Popish superstition and Pagan idolatry, to the ends of the American Earth; for, surely the time will come, when God' s name shall be great among the Heathen, from the rising of the sun to the going down thereof.

That as the mightiest arguments, both of a religious and political nature, might with the greatest truth and justice be urged in favour of the present scheme, go your Memorialist persuades himself that the inclinations of this Honourable Assembly to serve the real and important interests of their King and country, and to promote the best good of mankind, will be instead of a thousand arguments to excite them to it.

That as your Memorialist really means to do an important service to King and country, and to posterity by his scheme, so he is cheerfully willing that your Honours should take any measure they please to guard against the abuse of any right that they may grant to the country proposed to be settled, so as it does not prevent or hinder the important designs which the scheme proposes; nor does he desire that right on any other terms than that of his bona fide procuring the actual settlement of at least three thousand persons, able to bear arms, (or even a greater number) in that country, within any reasonable term that shall be limited and appointed for that purpose.

Your Memorialist therefore humbly prays that this Honourable Assembly will be pleased to transfer or relinquish their right to the lands mentioned in the scheme hereunto annexed, in such manner as shall be necessary for carrying said scheme into execution, or to so much of it as shall be absolutely necessary for answering the ends proposed by said scheme. And your Memorialist, as in duty bound, shall ever pray.

Dated at Hartford, May 8, 1755.

SAMUEL HAZARD.

That the said General Assembly of the Colony of Connecticut, having taken the matter into their serious consideration,

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At a Meeting of the General Assembly of the Governour and Company of the Colony of Connecticut, holden at Hartford, on the second Thursday of May, 1755.

Whereas, Samuel Hazard, of the City of Philadelphia, in the Province of Pennsylvania, Merchant, by his Petition or Memorial, preferred to the Governour and Company of this Colony, in the sessions of this present Assembly, hath shown that he hath projected a scheme for settling a new Colony within his Majesty' s Dominions, to begin at the distance of one hundred miles Westward of the Westerly boundaries of Pennsylvania, and thence extend one hundred miles to the Westward of Mississippi, and to be divided from Virginia and Carolina by the great chain of mountains that run along the Continent from the Northeast to the Southwest parts of America; and hath represented and set forth the ends and motives, as well as the general plan thereof; and that as it is apprehended the said country, or a considerable part thereof, is situate and comprehended within the ancient lines and boundaries of the grant made by the Royal Charter given by his late Majesty, King Charles the Second, to the Governour and Company of this Colony, in the year of our Lord 1602; so there may arise an objection against his proceeding in so important an undertaking, unless the same be removed; and therefore has petitioned this Assembly for a grant or release to him of such right or claim as is, or may be supposed to be vested in said Governour and Company, that he might without any objections from that quarter, make his humble applications to his Majesty for his Royal grant and favour in the premises for the end and purposes aforesaid, as by the said Memorial and Scheme thereto annexed. Reference being thereunto had, may more fully and at large appear.

Whereupon this Court having taken the matter into their serious consideration, and apprehending the settlement of a Colony in the country aforesaid, with such limits and boundaries as his Majesty shall think proper on the plan aforesaid, or in some measure agreeable thereto, for the investing and securing of the rights, properties, and privileges of the Settlers, will greatly promote his Majesty' s interest; secure his Dominions; and have a most happy tendency for the protection and defence of the British Plantations in America, and be an eminent means to win and invite the Natives of the country to the knowledge and obedience of the only true God and Saviour of mankind, and the Christian faith, and therein answer that which is expressed in the said Royal Charter to be tho principal end of this Plantation; therefore this Court do most humbly recommend the said Samuel Hazard, and those who may undertake with him in this great and important design, to his sacred Majesty' s gracious favour and notice; and if it may be consistent with his Royal wisdom and pleasure to order and direct the settlement of a Colony in the country, or part thereof; and grant unto said Petitioner, and those who shall engage therein, such lands, rights, privileges, and immunities as his Majesty shall be graciously pleased to determine for the purpose aforesaid,

This Court do declare their free consent thereunto; and for promoting so extensive and beneficent a design, do freely relinquish and give up to the said Samuel Hazard for himself, and in trust for those concerned, and to be engaged therein, all the right, claim, or challenge that is or may be made to such country, or territories as his Majesty shall judge proper to settle as aforesaid, by the Governour and Company aforesaid, or any from them, that no objection or obstruction may arise, be made, or suggested against so great a service for our King and country, on account of such claim or right, or by pretence or colour thereof.

Provided the Petitioner obtain his Majesty' s Royal Grant and order for settling the said Colony, and proceed therein, under, and according to such limitations, restrictions, and orders, as his Majesty shall be pleased to appoint.

That the said Samuel Hazard having obtained from the General Assembly the before recited release of their claim; and in confident dependence upon it, proceeded in the matter with a spirit becoming the importance of the undertaking; and at a very great expense of money and time, and with much trouble, procured the subscription of between four and five thousand persons, able to bear arms, some of whom were worth thousands, and great numbers of persons of the best character for sobriety and religion, among whom were fifteen ministers; and some "bore publick offices in Pennsylvania and New-Jersey;" all of whom agreed to remove with their families to the proposed Colony, and become settlers there, as your Honours' Memorialist collects from copies of his father' s Letters now in his possession.

That, as your Honours' Memorialist well remembers, the said Samuel Hazard had frequent meetings of Indians at his house, with whom he treated about the said country and territories.

That it appears from the said Samuel Hazard' s Letters, that he personally explored that part of the country proposed for the situation of the new Colony; that he had corresponded with some of the nobility, and with other persons

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That his death, in July, 1758, prevented his completing his design, and your Memorialist was left an infant, and his father' s associates without a guide sufficient to conduct so important an enterprise.

That your Honours' Memorialist proposes carrying into execution the Plan laid by his father, as nearly as the alteration of the times and circumstances of things will permit. He does not mean to trouble your Honours with a tedious repetition of the many and cogent arguments urged by his deceased father in his Memorial, in favour of such settlement; nor minutely to show how far the same reasons still operate respecting the prosecution of that design. These must be fresh in your Honours' memories, as the Petition and Plan annexed have been just now read in your hearing. He begs leave, however, just to observe, that they all remain in equal force at this day, that of making the proposed settlement a frontier against the French, only excepted; instead of which the cession of Territory West of the Mississippi, by the last Treaty of Peace, to the French, and the subsequent one made by them of the same territory, to the Crown of Spain, is worthy of serious consideration. He begs leave further to suggest, under this head, the peculiar necessities of the present times, as an additional reason for the immediate settlement of the Western lands. Many who are otherwise disposed, are thereby obliged to turn their attention to agriculture; and for these a proper provision is now more than ever become necessary; as the experience of the present day demonstrates that populous sea-port Towns cannot now, as formerly, afford employment to multitudes of industrious Mechanicks; and, instead of serving as a protection and defence for us, are used by the enemies of America as their most effectual engine at once to crush our manufactures and subvert our liberty.

That your Memorialist has already considerable interest engaged towards making the proposed settlement, and apprehends, that adding such persons in this Colony as would join in the undertaking, to such of his father' s associates as still remain and are willing to proceed upon this business, he could, in a reasonable time, have two thousand actual settlers upon the land, which may now, with great propriety, be styled a vacuum domicilium, as it has no Christian or civilized inhabitants, and but very few even of the natives now remain there.

That your Honours' Memorialist apprehends his Majesty, considering what has been already done respecting this matter, and for political reasons, which it is unnecessary to mention at present, would be easily induced to grant liberty of erecting a new Colony to the Westward of Pennsylvania; but, as your Honours' Memorialist considered himself as under obligations to the Colony of Connecticut, for their kindness to his father, and thinks himself in honour bound to consult their interest as well as his own, he wishes not to be obliged to carry the matter to England; but proposes to your Honours a settlement under the claim and jurisdiction of the Colony of Connecticut, and humbly offers to your Honours' consideration the following conditions, viz:

1st. That whereas the Honourable General Assembly, at their meeting in May, 1755, released to your Memorialist' s father their claim to lands, beginning at the distance of one hundred miles Westward of the Westerly bounds of Pennsylvania, and thence to extend one hundred miles to the Westward of Mississippi. And whereas, by the last Treaty of Peace, the one hundred miles beyond the Mississippi, included in the aforesaid release, were ceded by the Crown of Great Britain to France; that, therefore, a release or quit-claim may be given by your Honours to your Memorialist and his associates, of the right of the Governour and Company to lands beginning at the Western boundary of Pennsylvania, and thence extending to the Mississippi.

3d. That your Honours' Memorialist and his associates, or their attorney, may have uninterrupted access to and

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3d. That the whole expense of defending the claim of this Colony to such lands as shall be granted to your Honours' Memorialist and his associates; and also the whole expense attending the exercise of jurisdiction in the proposed settlement, shall be defrayed by your Memorialist and his associates.

4th. That the purchase of the native right shall be made wholly at the expense of your Memorialist and his associates.

5th. That your Memorialist and his associates shall pay into the Publick Treasury of this Colony ten thousand pounds lawful money, in such annual payments as your Honours shall see meet to appoint; the first annual payment to be made within one year after the date of the grant or quit-claim.

Respecting a grant upon the conditions aforesaid, your Honours' Memorialist begs leave, with due submission, to suggest, that as it will not interfere with any preceding grant, either from the Crown of Great Britain or any of the Colonies, it of consequence cannot involve this Colony in any dispute or litigation of any kind whatever; and that as all expenses respecting the defence of the claim, the exercise of jurisdiction; and the purchase of the native right, will fall upon your Memorialist and his associates, the Colony Treasury cannot be impoverished by such a grant being made; but, on the contrary, will be much enriched by the ten thousand pounds to be paid into it, the income of which may serve to give additional support to the College at New-Haven, or the inferiour but important Seminaries throughout the Colony, or may greatly contribute to the publick emolument, in such other way as to your Honours' superiour wisdom may seem meet. More need not be added here, as your Honours will doubtless see the benign aspect the foregoing Plan has upon the interest of the Colony in general; and,

Your Memorialist, therefore, humbly prays your Honours for a release or quit-claim to him and his associates, of the right of the Governour and Company to the lands before mentioned, beginning at the Western boundary of Pennsylvania, and extending from thence to the River Mississippi, together with your Honours' right to the said River, upon the foregoing conditions; or, if your Honours should not approve of the conditions aforesaid, that a Committee of your Honourable Body may be appointed to confer with him, and the grant aforesaid be made upon such conditions as may be agreed to. And your Memorialist, as in duty bound, shall ever pray, &c.

EBEN˙ HAZARD.

Hartford, May 27, 1774.

In the Lower House, the question was put, whether the prayer of this Memorial should be granted, and resolved in the negative.

Test,
WM˙ WILLIAMS, Clerk.

In the Upper House, the question was put, whether the prayer of this Memorial should be granted, and resolved in the negative.

Test,

GEORGE WYLLYS, Secretary.