Correspondence of Governor Sharpe. 395

rogatives the Establishing of an Episcopate here may perhaps
eventually interfere, for tho by the Scheme the Bishop is not
to interfere in Civil Matters & is only to make a Tour from
time to time in order to confirm & ordain it might be ques-
tion'd whether all his Successors will be satisfied without some
greater Share of power & Influence than that alone will give
them. It having been hinted to me since I begun to write
this Letter that in the first place M^r Garth is to petition the
Crown for an Order to this purport that the Lower House be
permitted to appoint & support an Agent by a Tax to be
imposed for that purpose I take the liberty lest you should
not have taken Notice thereof to point out to you a Message
which the Upper House on the 16^th of Decem^r 1765 sent to
the Lower on the Subject of an Agents Bill then returned
with a Negative as it may perhaps furnish you with Heads for
a Counter Petition if you think it a proper measure to pre-
sent one.

Letter Bk. IV

[Hughes to Sharpe.]

Worcester Parish June 10^th 1767
May it please your Excellency,
I have the pleasure to inform you, that the prejudice con-
ceiv'd against me are worn off, & the people brought to a
juster sense of Subordination & Dependance on lawful
Authority. Their notions of a Right to chuse a minister
were as high, as erroneous, & on my arrival I was told I shoud
probably hear something disagreeable from some of the
Inhabitants on that Head. I thought it adviseable to cure
their mistakes, & in my first Sermon I layd down the Origin
& nature of my office in the fullest manner I coud, & their
Subsequent duty, the Subordination necessary to the Support
of the church of Christ, the mutual Dependance that shoud
subsist between the various Members of the Community, &
the indespensible necessity all men lay under, to submit to
Lawful Authority. From that hour I met with kindness &
Civility, & on the last Sunday I had the greatest Congrega-
tion (as I am told) that ever was seen here & very near two
hun^d Communicants. Their dislike to me (they pretend) arose
from my not writing to the Vestry, but to the Rev. M^r Rosse
to inform them of my appointment to this cure, & my desiring
him to preach on week days, & perform the Occasional dutys.
He was not a favourite of M^r M^cClenegans, & of consequence
woud not be agreeable here ; nor coud the person who shoud
employ him be acceptable, from this, they gave out that I
coud not preach, that I was attached only to the Rum bottle,

& that a pint was my uoual Consumption in time of Divine

Service. This I found was the Reason of the Liberality of

Original.