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440 Correspondence of Governor Sharpe.
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Letter Bk. III
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can have unless the Assembly thinks fit to give them by an
Act) the Assembly would not have proceeded such Lengths as
they have since gone, for as they found His Ldp too tenacious
(or rather Mr Calvert for the Lycences were to have been a
Perquisite to him) they on their Parts were determined to strip
him as far as should be found practicable, the violent Proceed-
ings of the Pensa Assembly countenanced & encouraged ours,
& His Ldp by ordering me to displace one of His Officers
(who indeed was no better than he should be) gave them a
Leader who together with a numerous Family of which he
was one spared no Pains to impose on the People & make
them jealous of all that were concerned in the Administration.
All those among us who had been either disgraced by the
Proprietary or his Ancestors, my Predecessors or myself, for
their Demerits.
All who had been in any manner baulked or disappointed
immediately joined the Cry & I believe several whose Duty
should have led them to act a different Part privately encour-
aged the Factions, the People in general being Levellers in
their Principles & impatient of Rule were easily persuaded to
think the worst of their Superiours in Authority, having no
Concern about the Reputation of the Province & being indif-
ferent whether the Inhabitants were thought Loyal or Rebel-
lious, thought their Representatives could not go too great
Lengths, nay they flattered themselves that they could bring
things into such Confusion as would render it absolutely nec-
essary & expedient for the Crown to assume the Governt
But after all what have the Malignants been able to do, when-
ever they have thought fit to attack me (which I conceive they
have done as often as they could find any Pretence) I may I
think without Vanity say they have been foiled or confuted,
nor have they in general come off better in the Contests they
have had with the Gentn of the Upper House & two of them
being dead the others are at length so jaded & dispirited that
I am persuaded they will not hold out much longer at least
that a Majority in the House will grow cool & that I shall at
length see the Proverb fulfilled which tells us that after a
Storm cometh a Calm. They have learnt from Experience
that I am not to be terrified nor enraged & if His Ldp will
only leave matters to my Management I flatter myself I shall
have it in my Power to serve him as well as myself & be able
to pass my time agreeably enough. I must confess I have
often repented that I quitted the 20th Regt to come to America
but as I cannot it seems now hope to get into the Army again
on a good Footing I shall endeavour to make the best of my
Condition & am in hopes that (if my Lord only does me
Common Justice I shall in a few years after the End of the
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