༤ ter, based upon the original grant of the Crown to the Plymouth Colony, and that he was desirous of having the rights of the two Colonies under their respective grants tested by due course of law. Upon a statement made by the Connecticut party to Counsellors in London, an opinion was obtained favorable to that Colony, and, encouraged by this advice, a new impulse was given to emigration to the Wyoming country by Connecticut families. In September, 1775, the matter was laid before the Continental Congress, and a committee of that body, to whom it was referred, decided in favor of the Connecticut claimants, giving to that State a tract of land in Pennsylvania nearly as large as the entire limits of the former. This decision was instantly rejected by the Assembly of Pennsylvania, and it remained an open question until 1802, when the Congress of the United States decided in favor of Pennsylvania, and it was forever put to rest. JAMES HAMILTON, President of the Council. Early in 1771 Governor Penn was called to England by the death of his father, Richard Penn, leaving the government of the Colony in the hands of the Council, of which James Hamilton was president, who thus for a third time became in effect Governor. The Council was forbidden by the fundamental law to approve any act of Assembly, so that no legislation was had during the period that the Colony was without a lieutenant governor. James Hamilton was born in the city of Philadelphia in 1710. He was possessed of a large landed estate, which gave him a personal interest in advancing the material welfare of the Colony. But in the discharge of his duties, he scrupulously adhered to the instructions of the Proprietors, which brought him in conflict with the popular party. His several administrations were marked by ability and firmness, and his personal bearing was that of one who felt the dignity of his position, and duly appreciated the respect which was due to the office. He never married. He died in the city of New York on the 14th of August, 1783, aged seventy-three. CHAPTER VIII. THOMAS AND JOHN PENN, PROPRIETORS, 1771-1776. ICHARD PENN, Lieutenant Governor, October, 1771, to August, 1773.-On the 17th of October, 1771, Richard, the second son of the late Richard Penn, arrived in the Colony, bearing the commission of Lieutenant Governor. Early in his administration his attention was called to the encroachments of the Susquehanna Company, and he conducted the negotiations as already detailed with singular moderation and judgment. At a point about six miles above Wyoming, the Christian Indians had built up quite a populous village called Wyalusing. It had a good number of respectable log houses with shingled roofs and glazed windows; a church, and schoolhouse; besides numerous huts and cabins of less pretentious appearance. Large tracts of meadow and upland had been cleared and enclosed. The site was pleasant, and the soil excellent for cultivation. Governor Penn had promised that no settlements should be made within five miles of their lands, and they were looking forward to a period of prosperity and quiet. These, with the Moravian Indians, had, with great difficulty, been preserved from the frenzy of the "Paxton Boys," and the dangers from this source had scarcely passed, when the encroachments of the Connecticut adventurers again excited alarm. The hostile demonstrations which followed so aroused their apprehensions, that, in 1773, they determined to move in a body to lands beyond the Ohio River, Abo, their representative before the Pennsylvania Assembly, saying, that, "Notwithstanding their sincere and unshaken attachment to the Government of the Province, as they were not expert at salving appearances, they could not but be afraid that their innocence and complexion would stand little chance against the suspicious insinuations that are, or may be conceived, and laid against them, from the indifferent neighborhood in which they lived. They thought it high time, therefore, that they should retire to some Indian country." The administration of Richard Penn only extended to a period of a little less than two years. His intercourse with the Assembly was of a kind and conciliatory character, in marked contrast with the intemperate contests maintained with that body by some of his predecessors. Differences arose; but they were discussed in a mild and manly way, and mutual concessions brought harmony. He was especially attentive to the commercial interests of the Colony, and during his administration a degree of unexampled prosperity prevailed. His commission was unexpectedly revoked in August, 1773, much to the regret of the people of the Colony and to himself. Richard Penn was born in England, in 1734. He married Miss Polly Masters, of Philadelphia. In person, he was of portly and commanding presence, of genial temper, a good liver, and inclined to sociality. Of all the Deputy Governors he was best fitted by nature and by education to win the approval of the popular will. On being superseded as Governor, he became a member of the Council and Naval Officer of the Colony. He was intimate with the members of the Continental Congress, whose confidence and esteem he gained by his liberal views, and when, in 1775, he returned to England, he was intrusted, in connection with Arthur Lee, with the last petition from the Colonies ever presented to the King. He was examined respecting American affairs at the bar of the House of Lords, and gave testimony so favorable to the Colonial cause, that he incurred the displeasure of the Peers, and drew forth a strong rebuke from the Ministers, Lord Lyttleton declaring, "With all the caution with which Mr. Penn guarded his expressions, he nevertheless |