ence; and also made known to Congress, that they had claims to the said territory;-And as Congress, on the 24th of September, 1779, did resolve and publish, that they would take upon themselves a final settlement of the disputes respecting the said Grants, provided the states concerned should agree thereto; (and, among other things, recommended that no State should exercise jurisdiction over any of the inhabitants of the said district, except such as should profess allegiance to, and confess the jurisdiction of the same) which was complied with by the States; And as sundry periods have elapsed, which Congress had appointed for a decision of the said matter in controversy, without any thing material being transacted on the subject, and as, notwithstanding the claim of New Hampshire to the whole of the Grants, the evident object of both States, by their agent at Congress, has of late been to establish a division at the river, contrary to the true interest of the inhabitants; as they would thereby be deprived of those advantages, in respect to commerce, and transactions of a public nature, which would naturally result from that union of the two sides of the river, which they had warrant to expect, and have right to demand, from the nature, tenor and circumstances of the grants which they hold:

And Whereas, a considerable part of the inhabitants on the said territory, having disavowed connection with any State already formed, have subsisted for some time without any regular form of government, and have been destitute of civil regulations, for want of which they are reduced to lamentable circumstances; and as they are thereby prevented in a great degree from performing that part in the present contest with Great Britain, which might otherwise reasonably be expected, and which might be of essential service in the grand dispute; And as the contiguity of the said grants to the Province of Canada, renders the inhabitants a frontier to the New England States; and as the Parliament of Great Britain have done what in them lies, towards annexing the greater part of the said territory to the Province of Canada, by the act commonly called the Quebec Bill, for the purpose of obtaining an establishment whereof, it is to be expected they will further employ their force, in attempting the reduction of the inhabitants, or destruction of them and their property: And as the British forces in conjunction

with their savage allies, have of late begun a new scene of devastation among us, by burning some of our towns, and carrying the peaceable inhabitants into captivity; and it is to be expected that great part of the said territory will be treated in the same manner, unless vigorous measures are taken to prevent them; and as there is no military force employed by the Continent, or any of the States for our defence-which renders an union without delay absolutely necessary, or great numbers will immediately abandon their habitations, which will give such advantage to the cause of Britain, and so open and extend this frontier, that a much greater force will then be necessary for its defence: And as nothing considerable can be done by the inhabitants of the said territory, tending to their own defence, until they are firmly united for that purpose, and in measures of gov

ernment:

This Convention, therefore, taking the aforesaid matters into their most serious consideration, and being duly authorized by their constituents, the inhabitants of the said territory, do hereby publish and declare that notwithstanding all the unjust measures which have been, or may be, taken to divide us, the right of union still remains to the inhabitants of said territory, which we are determined to maintain and support; and bind ourselves by the ties of virtue and honor, as we are already bound by the ties of interest, to unite in all such lawful measures as the majority of the representative body of the inhabitants of said territory, duly convened, or such as they may appoint under them, shall agree upon, to maintain and support a union of the inhabitants on the whole of said grants; holding ourselves in duty bound to abide the decisions of Congress on the subject, when the matter shall be properly stated before them, and their resolutions thereon be obtained.

As the primary object of this Convention is, that an union of the whole of the grants be formed and Consolidated upon principles that the majority think proper; and as a considerable part of the said Grants are represented in the State of Vermont ;

Resolved-That a Committee be chosen to confer with the said Assembly, at their next Session, on the subject of said union, and invite them to join in measures which may be most conducive to obtain the object proposed.

Resolved-That the proceedings of this Convention be laid before the several Towns on the Grants, for their approbation; recommending that those towns which concur in the measures, and have no representatives or delegates in this Convention, appoint members for that purpose; and that each and every town impower their members to join with the representatives of other towns on the Grants, who shall agree to unite together, in all such measures as shall be necessary for our internal regulations and defense.

Which declarations and resolutions having been repeatedly read and maturely considered, the question was put whether this Convention do agree with their Committee in their said report :—which was carried in the affirmative.

Whereupon Resolved-That Dr. William Page, Daniel Jones, Esq. and Mr. Elijah Frink, of the County of Cheshire; Luke Knowlton, Micah Townsend and John Bridgman, Esq of the County of Cumberland; Colonel Peter Olcott, Noah White, Esq' and Captain John Strong, of the County of Gloucester; and Colonel Paine, Bezaleel Woodard, Esq and Mr. Davenport Phelps, of the County of Grafton, be a Committee to confer with the Assembly of Vermont, agreeable to the foregoing resolutions.

Resolved-That the proceedings of this Convention be printed, and one copy thereof transmitted to each town on the Grants; and that Major Day, Mr. Townsend, and Mr. Lovell be a Committee for that purpose.

Resolved-That this Convention do adjourn to meet at the meeting House in Cornish on the first Wednesday in February next, at one of the clock in the afternoon.

PROTEST OF A MINORITY OF THE Delegates.

In Convention, at Charlestown, Fanuary 18, 1781. We the subscribers, delegates from the several towns to which our names are affixed, wishing for and endeavouring to form a Union of the New Hampshire Grants on both sides of Connecticut River, and contented that they be annexed to New Hampshire, or be a separate State, as Congress may judge proper; but thinking ourselves not authorized by our Constituents to unite with the said Grants, in

the method resolved by the said Convention; and being of opinion that their proceedings have a tendency to weaken the reins of government-to retard the exertions of those who are engaged to oppose the public enemy to introduce irregularity and disorder in the County of Cheshire, and not conducive to the end proposed;-think it our duty to protest against the proceedings of said Convention.

Secret history of the Charlestown Convention, &c., by Ira Allen.

[Copied from Rec. Gov. & Coun. Ver., Vol. II, pp. 284, 285.]

The Governor and Council appointed Colonel Ira Allen to repair to Charlestown to meet that Convention, and to take such measures as his prudence should dictate, and which might be conducive to the interest of the State. Mr. Allen took credentials from Sunderland, as a member, to meet the Convention, from that town, agreeable to invitation before he arrived, the Convention had been in session two days, and had appointed a Committee to state the business of their meeting. Forty-three towns were represented in the Convention; twelve of those representatives were members of the Council and Assembly of New Hampshire.

*The editor has not been able to find the entire journal of the Charlestown Convention, nor the entire list of delegates to that Convention.-ED.

Mr. Allen did not take a seat as a member of the Convention, nor produce his credentials. At length the Committee reported to unite all the New Hampshire Grants to New Hampshire, which was adopted by a great majority, and went in fact to annihilate the State of Vermont. Mr. Allen informed some confidential persons, that the Governor, Council, and some other leading characters, on the west side of the Green Mountains, were for extending their claim of jurisdiction to the Mason line; and that if the Convention would take proper measures, the Legislature of Vermont would extend their claim at their adjourned term in February 1781; and that he was authorised to give such

assurance.

A motion was made and carried, to consider the report, and re-commit it to the committee, to be corrected and fitted for the Press, as it would be a matter of public notoriety, and to lay it again before the Convention next morning. The friends of New Hampshire, were much pleased with their success, and well enjoyed the night: but the scene changed the next morning, and the committee reversed their report, and reported to unite all the territory of New Hampshire, west of Mason's east line, extending to Connecticut river, with the State of Vermont; and which report was accepted by a great majority of the Convention, it being principally opposed by twelve members of the Council and Assembly of New Hampshire, who, thereupon, withdrew to remonstrate against the proceeding.

This bare-faced conduct of the members of the Legislature disclosed their intention at once, and furnished Vermont with fair pretensions to extend her jurisdiction on grounds of similar policy and self-preservation.

The Convention then appointed a Committee to confer with the Legislature of Vermont at their next term, and adjourned to meet at Cornish (only three miles from Windsor, the place of session of the Legislature of Vermont, agreeable to adjournment) on the same day with them.

On February 10th, the Committee informed the Assembly, then sitting at Windsor, that "the Convention of the New Hampshire towns, was desirous of being united with Vermont, in one separate independent Government, upon such principles as should be mutually thought the most equitable and