Allegiance is due to the King of Great Britain

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Saturday, August 27, 1774.

The Meeting met according to adjournment; and came to the following Resolutions, to wit:

We, his Majesty' s most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Deputies from the several Counties and Towns of the Province of North Carolina, impressed with the most sacred respect for the British Constitution, and resolved to maintain the succession of the House of Hanover, as by law established, and avowing our inviolable and unshaken fidelity to our Sovereign, and entertaining a sincere regard for our fellow-subjects in Great Britain, viewing with the utmost abhorrence every attempt which may tend to disturb the peace and good order of this Colony, or to shake the fidelity of his Majesty' s subjects resident here; but, at the same time conceiving it a duty which we owe to ourselves and posterity, in the present alarming state of British America, when our most essential rights are invaded by powers unwarrantably assumed by the Parliament of Great Britain, to declare our sentiments in the most publick manner, least silence should be construed as acquiescence, and that we patiently submit to the burthen which they have thought fit to impose upon us:

Resolved, That his Majesty George the Third is lawful and rightful King of Great Britain, and the Dominions thereunto belonging, and of this Province, as part thereof, and that we do bear faithful and true allegiance unto him as our lawful Sovereign; that we will to the utmost of our power maintain and defend the succession of the House of Hanover, as by law established, against the open or private attempts of any person or persons whatsoever.

Resolved, That we claim no more than the rights of Englishmen without diminution or abridgment; that it is our indispensable duty and will be our constant endeavour, to maintain those rights to the utmost of our power consistently with the loyalty which we owe Sovereign, and a sacred regard for the British Constitution.

Resolved, It is of the very essence of the British Constitution, that no subject should be taxed, but by his own consent, freely given by himself in person, or by his legal Representatives, and that any other than such a taxation is highly derogatory to the rights of a subject, and a gross violation of the Grand Charter of our liberties.

Resolved, That as the British subjects resident in North America, have not, nor can have, any representation in the Parliament of Great Britain, therefore any Act of Parliament imposing a tax upon them, is illegal and unconstitutional; that our Provincial Assemblies, the King by his Governours constituting one brand thereof, solely and exclusively possess that right.

Resolved, That the duties imposed by several Acts of the British Parliament upon tea and other articles, consumed in America, for the purpose of raising a revenue, are highly illegal and oppressive, and that the late exportation of tea by the East India Company, to different parts of America, was intended to give effect to one of the said Acts, and thereby establish a precedent highly dishonourable to America, and to obtain an implied assent to the powers which Great Britain had unwarrantably assumed, of levying a tax upon us without our consent.

Resolved, That the inhabitants of the Massachusetts Province have distinguished themselves in a manly support of the rights of America in general, and that the cause in which they now suffer is the cause of every honest American who deserves the blessings which the Constitution holds forth to them. That the grievances under which the town of Boston labours at present are the effect of a resentment levelled at them for having stood foremost in an opposition to measures which must eventually have involved all British America in a state of abject dependence and servitude.

The Act of Parliament, commonly called the Boston Port Act, as it tends to shut up the port of Boston, and thereby effectually destroy its trade, and deprive the merchants and manufacturers of a subsistence which they have hitherto procured by an honest industry; as it takes away the wharves, quays, and other property of many individuals by rendering it useless to them; and as the duration of this Act depends upon circumstances founded merely in opinion, and in their nature indeterminate, and thereby may make the miseries it carries with it even perpetual,

Resolved, Therefore, that it is the most cruel infringement

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Resolved, That the late Act of Parliament, for regulating the Police of that Province, is an infringement of the Charter right granted them by their Majesties King William and Queen Mary, and tends to lessen that sacred confidence which ought to be placed in the acts of Kings.

Resolved, That trial by Juries of the vicinity is the only lawful inquest that can pass upon the life of a British subject, and that it is a right handed down to us from the earliest ages; confirmed and sanctified by Magna Charta itself, that no freeman shall be taken and imprisoned, or dispossessed of his free tenement and liberties, or outlawed, or banished, on any wise hurt or injured, unless by the legal judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land, and therefore all who suffer otherwise are not victims to publick justice, but fall a sacrifice to the powers of tyranny and high-handed oppression.

Resolved, That the Bill for altering the administration of justice, in certain criminal cases within the Province of Massachusetts Bay, as it empowers the Governours thereof to send to Great Britain for trial all persons who, in aid of his Majesty' s officers, shall commit any capital offence, is fraught with the highest injustice and partiality, and will tend to produce frequent bloodshed of the inhabitants, as this Act furnishes an opportunity to commit the most atrocious crimes with the greatest probability of impunity.

Resolved, That we will not directly or indirectly after the first day of January 1775, import from Great Britain any East India goods, or any merchandise whatever, medicines excepted, nor will we after that day import from the West Indies, or elsewhere, any East India or British goods or manufactures, nor will we purchase any such articles so imported of any person or persons whatsoever, except such as are now in the country, or may arrive on or before the first day of January, 1775.

Resolved, That unless American grievances are redressed before the first day of October, 1775, we will not after that day, directly or indirectly export tobacco, pitch, tar, turpentine, or any other article whatever to Great Britain, nor will we sell any such articles as we think can be exported to Great Britain with a prospect of gain, to any person or persons whatever, with a design of putting it in his or their power to export the same to Great Britain, either on our own, his or their account.

Resolved, That we will not import any slave or slaves, or purchase any slave or slaves, imported or brought into this Province by others, from any part of the world, after the first day of November next.

Resolved, That we will not use, nor suffer East India tea to be used in our families, after the tenth day of September next, and that we will consider all persons in this Province, not complying with this resolve, to be enemies to their country.

Resolved, That the venders of merchandise within this Province ought not take advantage of the resolves relating to non-importation in this Province, or elsewhere, but ought to sell their goods and merchandise, which they have, or may hereafter import, at the same rates they have been accustomed to sell them within three months last past.

Resolved, That the people of this Province, will break off all trade, commerce and dealing, and will not maintain any the least trade, dealing or commercial intercourse with any Colony on this Continent, or with any city or town, or with any individual in such Colony, city, or town, which shall refuse, decline, or neglect to adopt and carry into execution such general plan as shall be agreed to in the Continental Congress.

Resolved, That we approve of the proposal of a general Congress, to be held in the City of Philadelphia, on the 20th of September next, then and there to deliberate upon the present state of British America, and to take such measures as they may deem prudent to effect the purpose of describing with certainty the rights of Americans; repairing the breaches made in those rights; and for guarding them for the future from any such violations done under the sanction of publick authority.

Resolved, That William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, and Richard Caswell, Esquires, and every of them be Deputies to attend such Congress; and they are hereby invested

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Resolved, That they view the attempts made by the Minister upon the town of Boston, as a prelude to a general attack upon the rights of the other Colonies; and that upon the success of this depends in a great measure, the happiness of America, in its present race, and in posterity; and that therefore it becomes our duty to contribute in proportion to our abilities to ease the burthen imposed upon that town for their virtuous opposition to the Revenue Acts, that they may be enabled to persist in a prudent and manly opposition to the schemes of Parliament, and render its dangerous designs abortive.

Resolved, That liberty is the spirit of the British Constitution, and that it is the duty, and will be the endeavour of us as British Americans, to transmit this happy Constitution to our posterity in a stale, if possible, better than we found it; and that to suffer it to undergo a change which may impair that invaluable blessing, would be to disgrace those ancestors, who, at the expense of their blood, purchased those privileges which their degenerate posterity are too weak or too wicked to maintain inviolate.

Resolved, That at every future Provincial Meeting, when any division shall happen, the method to be observed, shall be to vote by the counties and towns (having a right to send Members to Assembly) that shall be represented at every such meeting; and it is recommended to the Deputies of the several counties that a Committee of five persons be chosen in each county, by such persons as accede to this Association, to take effectual care that these resolves be properly observed, and to correspond occasionally with the Provincial Committee of Correspondence of this Province.

Resolved, That each and every county in this Province raise, as speedily as possible, the sum of twenty pounds, Proclamation money, and pay the same into the hands of Richard Caswell, Esquire, to be by him equally divided among the Deputies appointed to attend the general Congress at Philadelphia, as a recompense for their trouble and expense in attending the said Congress.

Resolved, That the Moderator of this meeting, and in case of his death, Samuel Johnson, Esquire, be empowered, on any future occasion that may in his opinion require it, to convene the several Deputies of this Province, which now are or hereafter shall be chosen, at such time and place as he shall think proper; and in case of the death or absence of any Deputy, it is recommended that another be chosen in his stead.

Resolved, That the following be Instructions for the Deputies appointed to meet in general Congress on the part of this Colony, to wit:

That they express our sincere attachment to our most gracious Sovereign King George the Third, and our determined resolution to support his lawful authority in the Province; at the same time, that we cannot depart from a steady adherence to the first law of nature: a firm and resolute defence of our persons and properties against all unconstitutional encroachments whatsoever.

That they assert our right to all the privileges of British subjects, particularly that of paying no taxes or duties but with our own consent; and that the Legislature of this Province have the exclusive power of making laws to regulate our internal polity, subject to his Majesty' s disallowance.

That should the British Parliament continue to exercise the power of levying taxes and duties on the Colonies, and making laws to bind them in all cases whatsoever; such laws must be highly unconstitutional and oppressive to the inhabitants of British America, who have not, and from their local circumstances cannot have, a fair and equal representation in the British Parliament, and that these disadvantages must be greatly enhanced by the misrepresentation of designing men, inimical to the Colonies, the influence of whose reports cannot be guarded against, by reason of the distance of America from them, or as has been unhappily experienced in the case of the town of Boston, when the ears of Administration have been shut against every attempt to vindicate a people who claimed only the right of being heard in their own defence.

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That therefore until we obtain an explicit declaration and acknowledgment of our rights, we agree to stop all imports from Great Britain after the first day of January, 1775; and that we will not export any of our commodities to Great Britain after the first day of October, 1775.

That they concur with the Deputies or Delegates from the other Colonies, in such Regulations, Addresses, or Remonstrances, as may be deemed most probable to restore a lasting harmony and good understanding with Great Britain; a circumstance we most sincerely and ardently desire; and that they agree with the majority of them in all necessary measures for promoting a redress of such grievances as may come under their consideration.

Resolved, That the thanks of this meeting be given to the Honourable John Harvey, Esquire, Moderator, for his faithful exercise of that office, and the services he has thereby rendered to this Province, and the friends of America in general.

JOHN HARVEY, Moderator.

Richard Cogdell,
Samuel Spencer,
Lemuel Hatch,
William Thomson,
William Thomas,
Thomas Rutherford,
Sol˙ Perkins,
Roger Ormond,
Rd˙ Caswell,
Nathan Poyner,
Thomas Respess, Jr˙,
Wm˙ McKinnie,
Samuel Jarvis,
William Salter,
George Miller,
Samuel Johnston,
Walter Gibson,
Simon Bright,
Thomas Benbury,
William Person,
Tho˙ Gray,
Tho˙ Jones,
Green Hill,
Thomas Hicks,
Thomas Oldham,
R˙ Howe,
James Kenan,
Thomas Hunter,
Jno˙ Campbell,
William Dickson,
Farqd˙ Campbell,
James Coor,
Thomas Person,
Memucan Hunt,
Samuel Smith,
Rothias Latham,
Nicholas Long,
Willie Jones,
Needham Bryan,
Benjamin Williams,
Benjamin Patton,
John Ashe,
Will˙ Hooper,
Allen Jones,
Thomas Hart,
William Cray,
Ben˙ Harvey,
Andrew Knox,
Thomas Harvey,
J˙ Whedbee,
Joseph Jones,
Edward Everigin,
Joseph Reading,
John Simpson,
Edward Salter,
Will˙ Kennon,
Moses Winslow,
Samuel Young,
David Jenkins,
Robert Alexander,
Joseph Spruill,
Abner Nash,
J˙ Edwards,
Joseph Hewes,
Francis Clayton,
William Brown,
John Geddy,
Edward Smythwick,
Jeremiah Fraser.