THE ENGLISH COLONIAL SYSTEM (1689-1763)
Before 1689 English colonial administration had been largely a personal
matter with the king. Royal control had been exercised through the Privy
Council assisted by advisory committees, boards and commissioners, after
1674 the most important of these bodies being the Lords of Trade.
Between 1689 and 1714 colonial administration underwent fundamental
changes both in theory and organization. By the end of the reign of Anne
it had become largely departmental and official rather than personal,
and Parliament had begun to take a somewhat larger hand in running
affairs than during the former period. The Board of Trade, a body
independent of the Privy Council, replaced the Lords of Trade in 1696
and for a time was the chief agency in the direction of colonial
affairs. It lacked executive authority but conducted routine business
and gathered information on which the Privy Council, Parliament, and the
departments of the treasury, admiralty, and war acted. Under the
Hanoverians the Secretary of State for the Southern Department became
the colonial minister and the Board of Trade lost much of its
importance. In America the principal agents of imperial control were the
royal governors, judges, customs officials, and naval and military
officers.
THE FIRST REORGANIZATION OF WILLIAM III
The system as William found it.--When William III ascended the throne,
the later Stuart colonial system had not been perfected. It had been
characterized by the principles that the authority of the crown should
be strengthened at the expense of the colonial legislatures, that
commerce should be regulated by the imperial administration, and that
larger governmental units should take the place of the multiplicity of
colonies. The colonial governments had gradually evolved toward a common
type, composed of governor and council representing the crown or
proprietor, and a legislature in which the council acted as an upper
house while the lower elective house represented the interests of the
colony.
Committee on trade and plantations.--William III at first adopted the
machinery of colonial administration as he found it, continuing the
committee of the privy council on trade and plantations, but he
appointed new members, including leading ministers from both the Whig
and Tory parties. The navigation laws were continued in force, and
Edward Randolph was retained as surveyor general of the customs.
Governmental changes in New England---In the colonies several changes
were introduced, the most striking being in New England. The idea of a
consolidated New England was abandoned. The charters of Rhode Island and
Connecticut were restored, and New Hampshire was established as a royal
province. In 1691 Massachusetts, Plymouth, Maine, and Acadia were
consolidated into the Province of Massachusetts Bay, but the immediate
reconquest of Acadia by the French made the new charter inoperative in
that region.
Massachusetts charter of 1691.--The form of government established in
the Province of Massachusetts Bay was a compromise between the old
independent form of earlier days and the type of the royal colony. The
charter provided for a governor, deputy-governor, and secretary, to be
appointed by the crown; a council of twenty-eight; and a lower house
composed of freeholders, elected by the people. The general court
composed of the governor, council, and lower house, was given the power,
after the last Wednesday in May, 1693, of selecting annually the members
of the council, at least eighteen of whom were to be from the old colony
of Massachusetts, four from New Plymouth, and three from Maine.
Legislation which met the approval of the governor was sent to the king
in council, who within three years of the passage of the act, could
disallow or nullify the colonial legislation. Laws not disallowed within
three years remained in force.
New York.--The Leisler rebellion in New York complicated the problem of
reorganization. Instead of Leisler being countenanced, New York, shorn
of New Jersey, was again made a royal colony, with a government composed
of governor, council, and elected assembly. Governor Henry Sloughter
arrived on March 19, 1691, and the first assembly met on April 9. It
promptly repealed the Duke's Laws, and voted that the revenues be made
payable to the receiver-general, a crown appointee, and that issuance of
funds be made by the governor's warrant, an action which made the
governor for the time being independent and paved the way for future
disputes. Sloughter died in July, 1691, and in August, 1692, Colonel
Benjamin Fletcher arrived to assume the governorship, Richard
Ingoldesby, an appointee of the council, having acted as governor in the
interim.
Virginia.--In Virginia the revolution was effected without violence.
Lord Howard of Effingham continued in the governorship but remained in
England, Sir Francis Nicholson, who had been deposed in New York, being
sent out as governor in 1690. Though he resisted the calling of an
assembly, popular clamor forced his hand. A new capital city called
Williamsburg was immediately laid out.
The Jerseys.--No settled policy regarding the proprietary governments
was followed by William. Instead of attempting to readjust them after
some formulated plan, each colony was dealt with as an individual unit
with its own problem. In the Jerseys William restored the proprietors.
Little authority was exercised by them, however, until 1692, when Andrew
Hamilton was sent out as governor of both East and West New Jersey, a
distinct step toward consolidation into a single province.
Pennsylvania.--The marked favor with which James II looked upon Penn
placed the Pennsylvania proprietor under William's suspicion. Charges of
misgovernment on the part of Penn's appointees, bickerings in the colony
between the upper and lower counties, controversies among the Quakers,
claims of religious intolerance, and the set attitude of the Quakers
against war, made an accumulation of troubles for the proprietor. In
1692 he was deprived of his government, Benjamin Fletcher being sent
over as governor. Fletcher introduced the royal colony type of
government, selecting a council and summoning an elective assembly from
both the upper and lower counties. When Fletcher demanded appropriations
to assist in the war, the assembly proved factious, claiming that the
governor was violating the chartered rights of the colony. Fletcher was
unable to overcome the constitutional objections and withdrew to New
York, sending a deputy to the colony to represent him. Penn in the
meantime had been pressing his claims, and having succeeded in
convincing the king of his loyalty, in 1694 was restored to his rights.
Maryland.--The Catholicism of Baltimore placed him under the ban of the
government, in spite of the fact that he hastened to proclaim the new
sovereigns. A rebellion against the proprietor gave ample excuse for the
crown to take over the government of the colony. Baltimore was left in
possession of his territorial rights, retaining the quit-rents,
ownership of vacant lands, and his share of the customs, but the
government was taken from him. In 1692 Sir Lionel Copley came over as
royal governor, a council was selected from the anti-Baltimore party,
and an assembly was convened. The assembly established the Episcopal
church and divided the counties into parishes. Copley died in 1693, and
for a brief period Sir Edmund Andros was governor, but Francis Nicholson
soon succeeded him, and transferred the capital from St. Mary's to
Annapolis.
The Carolinas.--The proprietors of the Carolinas fared better. Though
there was much opposition to them in the colonies, they succeeded in
ingratiating themselves with William and were left in undisturbed
possession. In 1691 the Charleston and Albermarle districts were united
under a single government, Philip Ludwell, who in 1689 had been
appointed governor of the district north and east of Cape Fear, being
made governor of the whole of Carolina.
WILLIAM'S SECOND REORGANIZATION
The Board of Trade.--As the war progressed, the enforcement of the
navigation laws became more and more difficult; piracy and smuggling
increased, and the Dutch obtained a larger part of the carrying trade
than formerly. The complaints of English merchants were voiced in the
House of Commons, where an insistent minority demanded a reorganization
of the machinery of colonial administration and a revision of the
navigation laws. William was opposed to the creation of a new board by
parliament, considering that such action would be an encroachment upon
the prerogative of the crown. The parliamentary bill was dropped, and
in May, 1696, the king organized the Board of Commissioners for Trade
and Plantations. Instead of being a committee of the privy council, the
new board was an independent organization. It was composed of nominal
and real members. The nominal members were the chief officers of state
who seldom attended meetings. The working members of the board were
eight non-ministerial paid officials, among those first commissioned
being John Locke and William Blathwayt, the efficient secretary of the
old committee.
The board had general supervision of colonial trade and government,
gathered information, and reported on colonial affairs to the king or to
parliament. Instructions to royal governors were draughted by them and
they made nominations in cases of vacancy in the colonial service. They
examined colonial legislation with a view to its confirmation or
disallowance, listened to complaints, examined the accounts of the
colonial treasuries, and attended to many minor matters. The board was
in reality a clearing house for colonial administration; it examined,
reported, and recommended, but it could not execute. During the reigns
of William and Anne, its recommendations carried great weight, but its
importance gradually declined as the cabinet system developed.
The secretaries of state.--Of William's ministers, those to whom
colonial affairs were usually entrusted were the two secretaries of
state, one or the other attending to the work. Governors usually
corresponded directly with the secretaries. Questions which involved
foreign countries, questions of defence, Indian outbreaks, and
violations of the navigation acts were usually handled by the
secretaries without being referred to the Board of Trade.
The privy council.--The privy council continued to be the executive
center of the system. Recommendations which were read before it were
usually referred to a committee of the whole, and upon the decision of
this committee the council acted. As Dickerson says, "The whole
machinery ... for colonial administration included a Board of Trade to
investigate, gather facts, and make recommendations; a committee of the
Privy Council to act as a board of review and a court of appeals, both
administrative and legal; and the privy council, meeting with the king,
before which all final actions of importance were registered."
The Board of Trade and other departments of government.--The
commissioners of the customs worked in close touch with the Board of
Trade. The bodies were mutually helpful in collecting information. The
admiralty and the treasury were also necessarily in close touch with the
Board of Trade as was the Bishop of London. Many members of the Board of
Trade occupied seats in parliament and prepared bills which affected the
colonies. The board members also furnished information to parliament
concerning trade and colonial matters.
Evasion of the trade laws.--The earlier navigation laws had not been
thoroughly enforced. Most of the customs officials and some of the
governors exerted themselves to enforce the laws, and several ships were
fitted out to stop illicit traffic, but many of the officials were
negligent, and several of them no doubt profited by non-enforcement of
the laws. When arrests were made convictions proved difficult, for the
juries were in sympathy with the law-breakers. In 1693 a Scotch
commercial company was organized with the object of trading to India and
Africa. This alarmed the English East India and the Royal African
companies. The complaints of the customs officials and individual
merchants, when reinforced by these powerful corporations, resulted in
the passage of "An Act for preventing Frauds and regulating abuses in
the Plantation Trade," a law familiarly known as the Navigation Act of
1696.
Navigation Act of 1696.--The act provided that after March 25, 1698, no
goods should be imported into or exported from any English colony in
Asia, Africa, or America, or be carried from or to any colony, or
England, Wales, or Berwick-upon-Tweed, except in ships built by English
subjects and navigated by English masters, with three-fourths of the
crews English subjects. Exception was made of prizes condemned in the
admiralty courts, and, for three years, of ships which were under
contract to deliver supplies to the English navy. All ships engaged in
colonial trade were made subject to the same rules of search and the
same penalties for violations as prevailed in England. No vessel was
allowed to engage in colonial trade until one or more of the owners had
registered the vessel and taken a prescribed oath. The Lord Treasurer,
Commissioners of the Navy, and Commissioners of the Customs were allowed
to appoint customs officers for any place which they saw fit. Forfeiture
of vessel and cargo was the penalty for breach of the law, one-third of
the proceeds to go to the crown, one-third to the governor of the
colony, and one-third to the informant who brought the suit. Governors
or commanders-in-chief of the colonies were required to take oath to
enforce the acts of trade, under penalty of a fine of a thousand pounds
and removal from office. Naval officers in the customs service were
required to give ample security to the Commissioners of the Customs in
England. In order to secure convictions, the act provided that in cases
arising under the navigation laws, only natives of England, Ireland, or
persons born in the English colonies could serve on juries. Those having
land grants were forbidden to dispose of any lands to foreigners without
an order in council, and the crown reserved the right to approve the
nomination of governors in the proprietary colonies. Any colonial act at
variance with the navigation laws was declared null and void.
Woolen Act of 1698.--The frequent interruptions of trade during the War
of the English Succession caused the New Englanders to manufacture many
woolen goods. In order to retain a monopoly for English manufacturers,
in 1698 an act was passed forbidding the colonists to ship wool or
woolen products from one colony to another.
Admiralty courts.--The Navigation Act of 1696 presupposed the
establishment of admiralty courts in the colonies. The continental
colonies were soon organized into two admiralty districts, New England,
New York, and after 1702 New Jersey comprising the northern, and the
rest the southern district. At a later period the districts were
subdivided. In these courts there were no juries, a fact which made the
admiralty courts exceedingly unpopular.
The Piracy Act.--Piracy had long existed, especially in the West Indies,
and though stringent measures were taken to suppress it, the black flag
still floated over many a pirate craft. Madagascar became a favorite
haven, and from its harbors went forth the sea rovers to prey upon the
East and West Indiamen. In many ports of the American colonies they were
able to dispose of their booty, while officials closed their eyes or
shared in the profits. Of the pirates of the period, the best known is
Captain Kidd, about whose name has clustered much of fable and romance.
The Navigation Act of 1696 made smuggling more difficult, and out and
out piracy increased greatly after the passage of the act. To protect
the merchant ships and make the navigation laws more effective, in 1700
an act was passed which provided that piracy and other felonies
committed on the high seas might be tried in special colonial courts
created by the crown.
The "Charter of Privileges" and the formation of Delaware.--Near the
close of the reign of William III the government of Pennsylvania was
changed. In 1701 in the hope of quieting dissension in Pennsylvania,
Penn consented to the "Charter of Privileges," which was passed by the
council and assembly. The proprietor continued to appoint the governor
and councillors, but the assembly was henceforth composed of four
representatives from each county who were elected by the freemen. The
assembly was allowed to elect its own officers and to initiate
legislation. Delaware was allowed to have its own assembly but remained
under the jurisdiction of the proprietor.
New Jersey.--The policy of bringing all the colonies to a common type
was evidenced by various attempts to send governors to the chartered and
proprietary colonies, but in the end the attempts were abandoned.
Various bills were introduced in parliament to make all the colonies
royal, but they failed except in the case of New Jersey. The position of
the proprietors in East and West New Jersey had always been precarious,
and in 1702 they surrendered their rights to the crown. The two colonies
were consolidated into the single colony of New Jersey, the royal type
of government being established, Governor Cornbury of New York being
commissioned as the first royal executive.
THE COLONIAL SYSTEM DURING THE REIGN OF ANNE
Cabinet development.--During the reign of Anne the cabinet system was
gradually evolving. The privy council continued as the legal advisory
body of the crown, but a small group of ministers, the forerunner of the
modern cabinet, was in control Colonial affairs were placed definitely
in the hands of the secretary of state for the southern department. The
Board of Trade continued, but as the cabinet system developed, it became
less important, the secretary of state for the southern department and
parliament gradually encroaching upon the activities of the board. The
union with Scotland in 1707 profoundly affected the commercial system,
for after the union the Scots were no longer excluded from colonial
commerce.
Commercial legislation.--In 1705 another important act of trade was
passed which added rice, molasses, and various naval stores to the fist
of enumerated articles which must be shipped to England. To offset these
new restrictions, bounties were to be given on naval stores produced in
the colonies and shipped to England and in 1707 colonial seamen were
exempted from impressment in the royal navy. During the reign of William
III the Bank of England was established and the financial system was
completely renovated. No definite money system had been established in
the colonies; Spanish coins were in common use, but they had no fixed
value, a condition which greatly hampered commerce. In 1707 parliament
passed an act which imposed penalties for taking foreign coins at a rate
above the legal ratio. The colonial post-office was also reorganized.
Before 1689 each colony had regulated its postal offices. In 1692 a
patent for twenty-one years was issued to Thomas Neale to establish
colonial post-offices; Neale's deputy, Andrew Hamilton of New Jersey,
obtained the support of several of the colonial governments in
establishing postal rates, but the arrangements were lacking in
uniformity. In 1710 parliament passed an act reorganizing the
post-office of the entire realm. In the colonies a post-office was to be
established in New York and at other convenient points in each of the
colonies on the continent and in each of the Leeward Isles.
Disallowance and appeals.--During the reigns of William III and Anne the
crown was constantly seeking to harmonize the colonial and home
governments, both in legislation and administration. The chief crown
instrument for achieving harmony was the right of royal disallowance of
colonial legislation. By 1692 it had been established in the royal
provinces and in Pennsylvania. In 1702 it was extended to New Jersey,
and at various times during the reign of Anne laws of chartered
colonies were disallowed, although such action was of doubtful legality.
The unity of the English court system was maintained by insistence that
cases involving individuals in the colonies might be appealed to the
privy council When the colonies attempted to restrict the right,
colonial legislation was disallowed.
Causes of friction.--The constitutional development in England which
followed the Revolution of 1688 was reflected in the colonies, where
each lower house was a miniature house of commons representing the will
of the enfranchised people, while the governors and proprietors were
considered as representatives of the royal will. Struggles between the
governor and assembly occurred in almost every colony, the most common
causes of quarrel being the control of elections and of the purse, and
appointments.
Control of elections and the purse.--In several of the colonies the
popular control of elections was maintained either by specific
statements in the charters or by legislative enactment. In Virginia the
burgesses in 1692 declared themselves the sole judges of the
qualifications of their members. The Massachusetts charter provided for
annual elections, and the same right was given to Pennsylvania in 1701.
Legislative acts in the Carolinas secured biennial elections. The most
potent factor in limiting the power of governors was the control of
taxation by the lower house. That money raised by direct taxation should
be disbursed by the representatives of the people was a growing idea.
The assemblies frequently fixed salaries, refused to provide for fixed
civil lists, specified how much should be drawn and spent, and limited
grants for governors to annual appropriations. Massachusetts was the
most insistent on her rights, but each of the colonies in one way or
another sought to curb the executive.
Appointments.--The appointment of administrative officers by the
assemblies became more and more frequent. The theory that the
representatives of the people should control taxation and disbursements
naturally led to the assertion of the right to appoint financial
officers, and by 1715 in most of the colonies the treasurer was
appointed by the assembly. The colonies also maintained agents in
England who guarded their interests.
THE COLONIAL SYSTEM UNDER THE WHIGS
Whig ascendency.--The peaceful establishment of George I on the English
throne marked the downfall of the Tory party. To keep England at peace
and at the same time to maintain the balance of power in Europe was the
difficult task which the Whig statesmen performed, in the main
successfully. To build up English industry and commerce on mercantilist
principles was the basis of the Whig economic system.
Establishment of the Cabinet system.--The statesmen who had placed a
Hanoverian on the throne did not propose to surrender the powers of
government. The king, ignorant of English speech and English politics,
soon learned that a Whig-made king was also a Whig-ruled king. During
the two previous reigns a small group of men within the privy council
had invariably directed affairs of state. This group had gradually come
to represent the majority in parliament, an arrangement which became a
definitely established principle, the ministerial group forming the
cabinet. From 1714 to 1721 no one man dominated, but the financial
crisis, brought about by the bursting of the South Sea Bubble, gave the
great financier, Robert Walpole, his opportunity. As First Lord of the
Treasury and Chancellor of the Exchequer, for twenty years he maintained
his leadership, the first of the prime ministers.
The Secretary of State for the Southern Department.--In the evolution of
the cabinet system the machinery of colonial government also changed.
Under the Whig regime the Board of Trade, which, since 1696 had been the
chief instrument of colonial control, soon became of secondary
importance, the Secretary of State for the Southern Department being
recognized as the responsible head of the colonial system. Until 1724 no
one held the office long enough to develop a colonial policy, but in
that year the Duke of Newcastle was appointed to the position, which he
held for twenty-four years. Newcastle is generally regarded as an
inefficient administrator, a politician who found the colonial system a
convenient place to reward supporters. In his hands was the power of
appointment of colonial governors and other important officials; many of
them proved to be excellent officials, but others were corrupt or
incapable. Jealous of his authority and fearful of entrusting power to
others, Newcastle attempted to attend to the mass of colonial business,
with the result that it was frequently neglected.
The Board of Trade.--The Board of Trade necessarily lost in power. When
the Whigs came in office, they made a clean sweep of the board. The new
members were usually friends of the ministers or indigent members of the
house of commons, most of whom were ignorant of colonial affairs. The
board became mainly an information bureau. At a later period, when
Newcastle became prime minister, it regained some of its former prestige
under the able leadership of Halifax.
The privy council.--During the reign of Anne the deliberative work of
the privy council had been transacted largely by a committee, the
council formally approving business settled in committee. This became
the uniform rule under George I. Petitions, complaints, and memorials
were, usually referred to the Board of Trade for investigation and
report, and then considered by a committee, of which the Secretary of
State for the Southern Department was invariably a member. Colonial laws
were also referred to the board for examination, while appeals were
usually handled by a committee of the council. The crown continued to
disallow colonial legislation, but exercised the right less frequently
under the first two Georges than under William and Anne.
Attitude toward colonial governments.--As compared with earlier periods,
little was done to reorganize colonial governments. Though plans for
doing away with the charters of Rhode Island and Connecticut were
frequently discussed, no action was taken, but in the proprietary
colonies changes occurred. In Maryland the Baltimore family was restored
to power, and in Pennsylvania the Penn family was confirmed in its
rights. In the Carolinas the colonists had grown weary of proprietary
neglect in defending the colonies against the Indians, Spanish, and
French. Revolutionary movements occurred which resulted in the overthrow
of proprietary power and in the complete separation of North and South
Carolina, a government of the royal type being established in each
colony.
Trade laws.--During the Walpole period the mercantilist economic
theories were still the basis of trade regulation. The colonies
continued to be looked upon as a base of supply for raw material. Their
industrial and commercial activities were not to interfere with those of
English manufacturers and shippers. To prevent smuggling, to provide for
the treasury, and at the same time foster the resources of the colonies,
were the difficult tasks of Walpole and his colleagues.
Naval stores.--The wars of William and Anne had caused a great demand
for naval stores, and their production in the colonies had been
encouraged. During that period England had drawn her greatest supply
from the Baltic countries. But the defeat of Sweden in her wars with
Russia meant a decline of English influence in the Baltic, and England
turned to the colonies for her ship supplies. In 1721 a new bounty act
was accordingly passed to encourage the colonial supply, and the best
hemp from the colonies was allowed to come into England free of duty.
Eight years later the bounties on pitch, turpentine, and tar were
somewhat lessened, the encouragement still being sufficient to give the
producers a decided advantage over their competitors, the Carolinas
being the principal gainers in the business. In 1731 the drawback on
unwrought hemp exported from England to the colonies was removed, an act
which also appears to have favored the colonial trade. The production of
hemp, however, did not flourish in America as did that of other naval
stores. In 1721 copper was placed upon the enumerated list, but every
effort to include iron was defeated until 1750. In line with the policy
of stimulating the production of naval stores was a provision that
timber from the colonies could be imported into England duty free, the
result being that New England became the source of supply for masts both
in the navy and the mercantile marine.
Furs and hats.--The fur business in the Atlantic seaboard colonies had
steadily declined, and the government wished to build it up. To
accomplish this beaver and other peltry were placed on the enumerated
list, but the duties payable in England were materially decreased. Much
of the beaver was used in the colonies in the manufacture of hats. As
this was an important English industry, in 1732 an act was passed which
stopped the exportation of hats from the colonies and restricted their
manufacture.
Rice.--The rice industry had been introduced in Carolina about 1688, and
found an important market in Portugal and Spain. Rice being placed on
the enumerated list in the reign of Anne, the colonies soon lost the
market. To rectify this, in 1730 Carolina was allowed to send rice
direct to countries south of Cape Finisterre. Five years later Georgia,
and somewhat later the West Indies, were allowed the same privilege.
American rice immediately regained its place in the trade of southern
Europe and also found a market in Holland and Germany.
The Molasses Act.--The great staple of the West Indies was sugar. In its
production the English Islands had surpassed the French colonies, a
condition which was due to the restrictive measures of the French
government. But in 1717 France adopted a liberal policy toward her
colonies and the production of sugar increased to such an extent that
the English sugar-producing islands experienced a financial depression.
The thrifty colonial traders from the mainland, especially from New
England, took advantage of the low price of French and Dutch sugar,
molasses, and rum. To bolster up the West Indian planters and to prevent
the trade with foreign colonies, in 1733 the Molasses Act was passed,
imposing prohibitory duties on molasses, sugar, and rum imported into
the continental colonies from other than English possessions. But in
spite of the act the trade continued, and but little effort was made to
enforce the law.
Constitutional principles.--During the period from 1714 to 1740 the
constitutional rights of the people in the colonies were defined more
clearly than before. In 1720 the principle was established that the
common law applied to the colonies as well as to England, but the
question of whether English statute law extended to the colonies was not
satisfactorily settled. The writ of habeas corpus was usually granted
under the common law. Progress was also made toward gaining the freedom
of the press. After a struggle in Massachusetts in 1721 the right of the
governor to censor books was abridged. In 1735 Zenger, a New York
publisher, was tried for libel. The court held that it should decide the
libellous nature of the statements made, and that the jury should
determine the fact of publication. Zenger's lawyer argued that the jury
must decide on whether or not the publication was libellous. On this
ground he won his suit, thereby greatly strengthening the power of the
press.
Increasing power of assemblies.--English colonial policy does not appear
to have aroused serious opposition. Each colony had its political
parties, but no question arose which welded together any group of
colonies, or of classes in various colonies. As in the earlier period
there were frequent quarrels between the assemblies and the governors,
control of finance being the most usual cause of friction. The governors
demanded fixed salaries, while the assemblies insisted on making
temporary grants. The assemblies also ignored the necessity of the
governor's warrant in drawing money, and insisted that the councils
should not amend money bills. In these controversies the governors were
usually bested, and by the close of the Walpole regime, the principle
was well defined that the assemblies should control the purse.
Paper money.--Closely allied to the question of control of taxation and
the governor's salary was that regarding the issuance of paper money. A
shortage of coin was usual, and the issuance of paper money was the
remedy by which the assemblies and banks attempted to provide a medium
of exchange. In general the governors opposed such issues as financially
unsound, but their actions were frequently misunderstood and were
considered tyrannous.
Friction between colonies.--The difficulties between the executives and
the assemblies might have developed into a general opposition to English
control had it not been for the quarrels between colonies over
boundaries and trade laws. Boundaries were based upon charters, which in
many cases were conflicting and almost every colony had chronic disputes
with its neighbors. The trade laws of one colony frequently
discriminated against its neighbors, the natural result being
retaliatory legislation. The English government was often called in as
umpire, but its decisions seldom met with the approval of both parties.
READINGS
Andrews, C.M., _The Colonial Period_, 128-154; Beer, G.L., "The
Commercial Policy of England toward the American Colonies," in Columbia
University, _Studies in History, Economics, and Public Law_, III, No.
2; Bingham, H., "Early History of the Scots Danen Company," in _The
Scottish Historical Review_, January, April, July, 1906; Briscoe, N.A.,
"The Economic Policy of Robert Walpole," in Columbia University,
_Studies in History, Economics, and Public Law_, XXVII, No. 1; Channing,
Edward, _History of the United States_, II, 217-281; Dickerson, O.M.,
_American Colonial Government, 1697-1765_; Egerton, H.E., _A Short
History of British Colonial Policy_, 114-152; Greene, E.B., _Provincial
America_, 166-207; _The Provincial Governor in the English Colonies of
North America_; Root, W.T., _The Relations of Pennsylvania with the
British Government, 1696-1765_; Pitman, Frank W., _The Development of
the British West Indies, 1700-1763_, pp. 127-333.