The Upper House. 45

House for the Defence and Security of the Inhabitants who were
at that time exposed to the Ravages of a Savage Enemy, We are
of Opinion that such an Appropriation is not to be allowed nor
such Militia paid otherwise than is Particularly directed by the
Militia Law lest by consenting to their being paid in any other
manner we should seem to countenance the very Extraordinary
Resolves which the Lower House presumed in violation of Com-
mon sense to make when in the year 1758 they seemed to have
nothing so much at heart as to render this Province entirely de-
fenseless, tho your Excellencys Firmness and Resolution happily
frustrated their attempts besides the two Sums we. have Mentioned
there was £3,000 to be appropriated towards reimbursing those
Gentlemen who were put to some expence by providing Necessary's
for such of the Kings Forces as were in the year 1756, & 1757,
sent hither for Winter Quarters, but as there is still remaining in the
loan Office and in the Agents hands more than £2000, of the
Money that was granted here in 1756, for his Majesty's Service the
Persons most of whom are Gentlemen in this City who have Claims
on Account of Those Troops being quartered here may have been
Satisfied had an Act for granting the Sum of £15,000, being now
Passed since that Sum as hath been already hinted is Considerably
more than would on the Gentlemens own Calculation have been Suffi-

U. H. J.
Liber No. 36
April 24

cient to raise Cloathe and pay the 400 Men the[y] proposed to keep
up till 1.^st April next & to raise the 84 Recruits required as the
quota of this Province for the Regular Regiments as we do not
know on what Rule or principal the Gentlemen of the Lower House
could make a Calculation of the Sum that would be raised by such a
Bill as they offered us & must confess that for our own parts we are
unable to make any Estimate of the Value of all the real and personal
Estate in the Province, we shall only observe with repect to such part
of their' Message that tho we are inclined to believe that if the
assessors were to rate at its full Value all the property subjected
by that Bill to a Tax much more than even the whole Sum proposed
to be levied might be raised in One Year yet as so great a Latitude
is Left to the discretion & to the partiality of the Assessors it might
not be raised in several Years should they in their Valuations follow
the Practice of Assessors in a Neighbouring Government This great
uncertainty we cannot but consider as a very material Objection to
the Plan of the Bill & we are confident Leaving the Assessors so
much at large would create ill Blood and confusion among the
Inhabitants already on Account of the proposal of such a Bill
divided into parties in such a situation of things it would we think
have been carrying our Complasance rather too far to pass a Bill
so very exceptionable purely for the sake of making an experiment
or for Gratifying one part of the Inhabitants whatever the Es-
pousers of it may suggest of its being Similar to such as have been

p. 68