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Show 266 ACTS RELATING Part II. Sea. XI. Yet it has been boldly allertcd in the houfe " That this fact was neither true "nor pgfli‘é/e:" "that Mr. Grenville " never could have propofed that the Co: " lonies {hould tax theml‘elvcs on requi- " fition :" --- " that the colony-agents " had no general powers to confent to " fuch a propolalz" " that they had no " he had it in inflruftion from the afi'embly of the " colony he lived in, to allure the minillcry, that " as they always [Jud done, {0 they {hould always *‘ think it their duty to grant fuel) aids to the " crown as were finial/c to their rhea/[flanges min} " nH/z‘tz'tr, whenever called upon for the purpofe " in the ufual conflitutional manner." he had communicated that And that To THE Commas, 267 " time to confult their alTemblies for par" ticular powers *6." It is clear, however, that he did make the propofal ; that the colonies had time to be confulted: that they were confulted : that fome of them ablblutely rejected the propofal: the others would give no precife anfwer to it. I will not pay a worfe compliment to a member of the Houfe of Commons than he paid to his brother members. From any common writer thele mifreprefentations might have been fuppofed to be ," circulated abroad with a "id/lgfldflf 2'72- " inflruélion to the " minilter before the llamp aét was brought in." So then there is another authority to prove that the colonies were apprifcd ofthe defign of the minit'lry to obtain a larger revenue from America; that fome propol‘al bad been made them aboutraif- ing that revenue in their own arll‘emblies. And that thofe who called themfelves well afifled co- lonies pait no vote, no refolution about it, offered no {pecific fum, prop0{ed no medium of fixing the proportion they {hould bear of the public burthen= ." tmtz'on‘; but I (472720! attribute a malig- " nam‘ intention to him who laid the fame ~" thing in the houfe 1'." Upon this refufal of the colonies the (Stamp AC‘: was paired. \Vhile it was depending, petitions were prefented againl't it by four of the colonies. Thefe petitions, for the firfl time, but kept only to general terms, which fecured no- thing to England, obliged themfelves to nothing. u £11115: *-‘ See Burke's Speech, p. 53. t 1b. 9. 53! called |