Introduction. Ivii

general voting in the negative (p. 344), because Governor Sharpe had declared
in advance that he would refuse to agree to the continuance of this monetary
ratio in the new Tobacco Inspection law now being considered in the Lower
House, on the grounds that the ratios overvalued tobacco in terms of gold and
silver coins, and were contrary to those established in Great Britain, and that he
had been instructed by the Crown not to approve any bills that did not con-
form to the British ratios (pp. 245-247). The college bill passed the Lower
House on October 28 by a vote of twenty-one to nineteen (pp. 346-347).

The Upper House did not act upon the college bill until nearly three weeks
had elapsed after it had been passed by the Lower House and sent to the upper
chamber. On November 16 it took a slap at the Lower House by resolving
that further considerations of the bill be postponed until January 10, 1764,
when it knew full well that the Assembly would have adjourned long before
that date (p. 259). Two days later the Lower House sent a message to the
upper chamber, ignoring this action of the upper chamber, in which it declared
that "It being now three Weeks Since we Sent you the Bill for establishing
a College or Seminary of Learning, in this Province, we cannot doubt but
your Honours have duly Considered it, and are come to some Resolution
thereon if any Amendments to that Bill are by you thought Expedient, as the
Session has already ran to a great Length, and the Approaching Season will
become very disagreeable to our Sitting here". The Lower House then asked
immediate consideration of the bill, not only because the establishment of a
college was a matter of great importance, but because the act regulating and
taxing ordinaries was about to expire by time limitation, and that proper
regulation of ordinary keepers was necessary to the welfare of the Province
(PP- 377"378, 381). This resulted in an exchange of other messages between
the two houses, each succeeding message showing increasing bitterness. The
Upper House replied on November 19 that it was satisfied that the establish-
ment of a college would be productive of many advantages, but as the bill before
it was in "so many respects imperfect and very exceptional", that its considera-
tion now would be productive of extending the session to an unreasonable
extent. It therefore declined to return the bill until the whole affair could be
more maturely considered, but if, however, the Lower House considered that
the want of a law to regulate and preserve order in public-houses would be
the cause of great inconvenience, a short bill for that purpose could easily be
framed and at once passed (p. 382). It is of course obvious that the use of
licenses derived from ordinaries for the support of the college was the real
reason for opposing the bill. The question of the ratio of specie to the value
of tobacco no longer entered, as the Lower House had by this time receded
from the position it had taken in this matter when it agreed to the passage
of the new Tobacco Inspection law (pp. lix-lx).

In reply the Lower House on November 22, sent an indignant message to
the upper chamber. It opened with the rather mild statement that the differences
between the two houses might have been adjusted had the Upper House shown
any disposition to do so. It then asked for the immediate return of the bill
which it appears the Upper House had retained, and declared that "As it has
never been a practice till lately in some Instances introduced by your Honours