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the records show that among his earliest reforms were laws strictly forbidding any one to supply powder or arms to the Indians.

Andros was unfortunate in coming to Massachusetts at a period of transition, when no man in his position would have been welcome. A writer of the last century well says: "At the time Andros was governor of New England, the people were zealous republicans and bigoted independents, having banished those of other religions. Among such people it must have been difficult for a gentleman of Andros's education and principles both in religion and politics to please them." His office was far more difficult than that of his successors, for the English Revolution of 1688 taught the later monarchs a lesson which kept them from imitating the oppressive policy of the Stuarts.

Smarting under the loss of their charter, the people blamed the royal governor for the wrongs they suffered, unable to see or to remember that he was in no wise responsible for the downfall of their self-government, toward which events had been tending for fifty years. It is certainly no evidence of tyranny on his part that his view of the royal authority was diametrically opposite to theirs. Neither did his acceptance of the position nor his obedience to the king's commands evidence any unfriendliness to the colony. Had he been given the opportunity, he would have proved himself as eager for the welfare of the people as he had been in New York. On taking possession of the government, he declared his desire to promote the public good. He organized the government according to the provisions of his commission, which vested all the power in the governor and a council. The extent of the powers thus conferred, as well as the absence of any provision for an Assembly, alarmed the people. They drew up a petition to the king to grant an Assembly, but it was unsuccessful. Andros was not responsible for its failure. He believed in giving the people the privilege of popular representation, but he had learned the uselessness of advising James to adopt such a policy.

Andros has been repeatedly accused of exceeding the powers conferred on him by his commission; but in truth he was far from using them to their full extent. He was instructed to tolerate no printing press; he had the power to lay taxes at his own discretion with the consent of a majority of the council, and to make laws and appoint judges and other officers at will. But he made no attempt to suppress the printing press; he levied no higher taxes than had been levied under the colonial government, except when the Indian wars made it necessary, and then he allowed the towns to choose their own assessors. Save that no General Court was held, the government remained very much the same. The old laws remained in force; many of the former officers were retained. The most zealous partisans resigned their offices; but it is improbable that Andros turned any honest man out of office.

The charge brought against him of altering the old forms of government resolves itself largely into the introduction of the form of oath in use in England,- swearing on the Bible, which to the Puritans was an idolatrous custom, for which they had substituted lifting the hand. Their refusal to observe the English custom seemed to the governor an excuse to disobey a reasonable command. It was one of the many cases in which each party looked at the matter from an entirely different standpoint. The question of quitrents was another instance. The king and his ministers held that, with the annulment of the charter, the territory of Massachusetts reverted to the crown. It became a question of asserting the prerogative of the king and forcing Massachusetts to acknowledge her dependence on the crown; consequently, it was eagerly pressed by James,, whose ruling desire was to bring all his dominions under his absolute control. Andros believed in the principle, as did the other adherents of the Stuarts; but he is no more to be blamed than the lawyers and judges who gave their verdicts accordingly.

To test the principle, it was announced that all titles to lands were null and void; that the right of purchase from the Indi

ans, which the colonists asserted secured their titles to their property, was worthless; but, by petitioning for new patents, their titles would be confirmed on reasonable terms. Naturally, the people were bitterly opposed to the measure. To apply for new titles would be yielding a principle dearer than life to them. Increase Mather was sent to lay their grievances before the king; but his mission was in vain. Andros was not acting in opposi tion to the royal will. In the end, many yielded to the pressure and applied for quitrents. Writs of intrusion were passed upon a few persons who refused to petition for patents, in order to assert the king's right; but they were only brought against the most prominent men, who were well able to contest the point, not against poor people. The more important the position of the contestant, the more emphatically would his defeat establish the right of the crown. It has been complained that exorbitant fees were extorted for quitrents, and that Andros benefited by them; but it must be remembered that the table of fees was fixed by the council, that they varied with the values of estates, and were not in Andros's hands. If West and Randolph were dishonest and exceeded their lawful rates, Andros was no gainer, and was not responsible for their deeds. It cannot, I think, be proved that he was guilty of wilful oppression or injustice in this or any instance during his governorship in New England. He was simply the executor of the Stuart policy. What appeared grievously unjust and tyrannical to the Puritan colonists would seem perfectly just and legal to the English officer and courtier.

One of the greatest grievances which the loss of the charter entailed upon the people was the removal of the power of taxation from the town-meetings, in which it had been lodged for fifty years, to the governor and his council. It was not the amount of taxes they were required to pay at which the people rebelled; it was the principle of taxation without representation.

The country towns which preserved more of the uncompromising spirit of the Puritan founders than the commercial towns,

where it was weakened by the increasing influences of the moderate party, were most determined in their opposition. The people of Ipswich, led by their pastor, protested against the injustice of taxing them without their consent, and refused to pay taxes until they had petitioned the king for redress. Summary measures were necessary to prevent the spread of rebellion. The leaders of the movement were arrested, tried and fined. The judges who pronounced the sentence acted independently of Andros and were the condemned men's own countrymen. In rebelling against the king's authority as represented by his governor, these men had laid themselves open to the charge of treason, and set an example which, if unpunished, would be speedily followed. Andros was obliged to levy taxes for the support of the government, and to insist on their being paid; and to prevent all the towns from imitating the example of Ipswich, he had no alternative but to punish those who defied his authority.

Had the conditions in Massachusetts been what they were in New York, Andros would undoubtedly have proved himself as efficient in promoting the welfare of the one colony as he had been in his government of the other. But he came to a people who had governed themselves for fifty years; who had a well-organized government, and resented any attempt at interference. He was able to effect but few reforms, but those are worthy of notice. He introduced the forms used in proving wills in the English spiritual courts into the probate courts here, where the methods had been very unsettled, and they continued in use to the time of the Revolution. He also caused the public records, which were scattered through the colony, to be brought to Boston and carefully arranged. in a suitable place. The movement awakened much opposition, as in many cases it necessitated long journeys to Boston to consult deeds or records; but we owe the preservation of the records. to the care and foresight of our first royal governor.

One of his early acts was to make a tour through the country which had been

placed under his authority. He first visited Rhode Island and Connecticut to demand their charters. Rhode Island surrendered her patent, and acknowledged his authority without any opposition. As Mr. Lodge says, under Andros she "sank into a new and complete quiet." His government was so far from being felt to be oppressive in Rhode Island, that the revolt which caused its overthrow was unwelcome to the people of that colony.

But Connecticut followed the example of Massachusetts and refused to yield her charter. Andros's attempt to retain it has been repeatedly cited as a convincing proof of his tyranny. But he was obliged to carry out the orders of the king, who had sent him to New England for that purpose. He was not responsible for the views of his master, who had unquestionably been prejudiced against the colony by the malicious misrepresentations of Randolph, who had made war upon the charters of Connecticut and Rhode Island, and had succeeded in obtaining writs of quo warranto against them. Randolph's insulting and aggressive behavior hardened the Connecticut authorities into a more determined opposition and made Andros's task more difficult. On reaching Hartford, the royal governor met the former governor and council of the colony, and laid his orders before them. They pretended to yield, and tradition tells although it is - a very questionable tradition how the charter was brought out, and how, by a skilful trick, it was abstracted from the room and safely hidden in the famous Charter Oak. But, for the time, the effect upon the colony was the same as if it had yielded. The colonial records were closed, and Andros took formal possession of the government. But in spite of her sturdy resistance to his authority, Andros did not interfere with the liberties of the colony, nor attempt to revenge himself upon her by a tyrannical exercise of his power, as would have been apt to be the case had he been the tyrant he has been pictured.

From Connecticut he proceeded northward, and journeyed through the settle

ments of Maine and New Hampshire, which suffered from constant attacks from the Indians. He established friendly relations with the sachems, and influenced them to call their warriors home and live quietly. He garrisoned the fort at Pemaquid, and left the country at peace when he returned to Boston.

There he found new honors awaiting him. It was James's design ultimately to consolidate all the local governments of America under one governor. As a step toward the accomplishment of this plan, New York and New Jersey were added to Andros's government. The first few months of 1688 the governor spent in Boston, arranging necessary details of administrations. Then he again travelled through the colonies, including New York and New Jersey, ascended the Hudson to hold a conference with the chiefs of the Five Nations, with whom he renewed the alliance he made with them while governor of New York, and attached them still more strongly to the English. The outbreak of Indian hostilities again in Maine and New Hampshire, largely caused by aggressive acts of the English traders, put a sudden end to his journey. He hurried back to raise troops for the relief of the distressed settlements, and took command himself. It was in November, and bitterly cold, the ground. covered with snow. The soldiers suffered much from cold and hunger during the long march through the forests. Their commander was bitterly reproached for undertaking the expedition; but even his enemies had to admit that he bore his fuil share of hardship. He remained in the north until spring, and taught the Indians such a wholesome fear of him that they did not dare to molest the settlement again while he was governor. His downfall was the precursor of one of the most terrible Indian wars that had ever swept over New England. He was busily engaged in building forts and making careful provisions for the safety of the settlers after his departure when reports reached him of the designs of William of Orange on England. He issued a proclamation from Pemaquid, urging the king's subjects to remain loyal to him and be ready to protect their coasts from

invasion, and hurried back to Boston, leaving the forts well garrisoned and Lieutenant-Governor Brockholst in com

mand.

He found Boston full of excitement. The merchants were in communication with Holland and England, and were fully informed of William's movements, while Mather wrote from London to prepare the patriots for the expected change. He hoped the downfall of the Stuarts would bring about the restoration of the charter. The people were agitated by these hopes and by various false rumors which were circulated by Andros's

enemies.

The news of the Prince's landing on the English coast and a copy of his proclamation were brought to Boston from Barbadoes by John Winslow. Fearing the effect of the news on the excited people, Andros required Winslow to surrender his papers. He refused, and was committed to prison until the excitement should be quieted. But in spite of this precaution, the tidings spread through the colony. The leaders waited until they could rely on the ultimate success of the Prince; then, on April 18, there was a great uprising of the people, totally unexpected by the governor or his officers. They were imprisoned, the fort and the English frigate in the harbor were captured and the last colonial magistrates were reinstated. The revolt was so skilfully conducted that the names of the leaders never transpired. Contrary to their expectations, William showed himself so decidedly opposed to popular independence that it would have been dangerous to divulge the secret.

As soon as William ascended the throne, he issued letters to the colonies commanding that their governments should remain unchanged until further orders. Mather managed to prevent a letter being sent to Massachusetts. Had it reached the colony, the plans of the leaders would have been overthrown and Andros would probably have remained in office under the new king.

A General Court was convened, which met in May and reorganized the old charter government. The magistrates of The magistrates of 1685 resumed their functions; but their

authority was weak. Andros and his officers were detained in prison, and their long confinement caused much discontent among a large proportion of the inhabitants. The garrisons in Maine and New Hampshire were recalled; and this was the signal for the recommencement of the Indians' attacks and the descent of pirates upon the Maine coast. It is stated in a letter written in 1689 that the imprudent act caused the loss of several thousand lives and the destruction for the time of the fisheries and the lumber trade.

The petitions of the prisoners which they contrived to send to the king - and of the Episcopalians and many others of the wealthy and influential class, as well as of the inhabitants of Maine who had good cause to regret Andros's overthrow, aroused the king in his behalf. An order was sent July 30 for the rendition of those still in prison, which, however, did not reach Boston till the end of the year. The prisoners were sent to England in February, 1690, after an imprisonment of ten months without a trial, - surely as tyrannical a proceeding as any of which the "tyrant" himself was guilty.

Two agents went with them to England to plead for the colony. A long list of charges, largely made up of idle rumors and very trivial tales, was laid before the council at the trial; but the accusers were unable to support their charges, and the prisoners were acquitted. Andros issued from this trial, as he had from the last, completely cleared. His report of his administration, which he presented to the council, is straightforward and clear, and in the absence of extravagant abuse of his enemies, affords a refreshing contrast to their reports and letters. Although just released from a long and unjust imprisonment, he abstains from any reflections upon them, except in the case of their imprudent recall of the troops. from Maine; he merely states the facts of his seizure and confinement in simple and moderate language.

One secret of William's success was his ability to recognize worth wherever it existed. Andros's loyalty to James, which was brought against him as a crime by

the colony, only recommended him the more to the king; and, as a mark of the royal trust and favor he was appointed governor of Virginia and Maryland in 1692, a more lucrative post than the governorship of New York and New England together.

He found Virginia suffering from the effects of the European war. Her commerce was interrupted; she was deprived of a market for her only staple, tobacco; all classes shared in the general depression. Andros applied himself vigorously to the improvement of the condition of the colony. He directed his attention to the encouragement of manufactures and of the cultivation of cotton; he put financial matters on a firmer basis; and in a short time the colony was in a prosperous and peaceful condition. He was deeply interested in the progress of William and Mary College, and recommended its encouragement to the Assembly. He governed so well that there is little material for history. No complaints were made nor grievances felt. By his interest in the public welfare, he won the people's esteem, and would have done much more for them had he not become involved in a quarrel with the commissary, Dr. Blair, who was the head of the Virginia church and of the college. Blair was a controversial Scotchman, who spent his life in opposing the royal governors. Andros was recalled, owing to the influence of the Bishop of London, who espoused his commissary's cause; but on his return to England, the king showed his undiminished confidence in him by conferring the governorship of Guernsey upon him. He also succeeded his father as bailiff of the island, an office which he held for the rest of his life. He died in 1713, at the age of seventy-six.

In reviewing Andros's long life, one is struck by the amount and variety of the

work he accomplished and by the censures he received. He served four monarchs in succession, and enjoyed the favor of all of them; yet he was not a man who spent his time at court, soliciting offices, not even his enemies accused him of that. Governor at different times of every royal province on the mainland of America, he exercised a larger influence than any other of the royal governors. He was the first to perceive the immense importance of winning the alliance of the powerful Five Nations; and it was due to his diplomacy and energy that their friendship was secured to the English. He was recalled from each government to which he was appointed on serious charges of dishonesty and tyranny, only to issue scathless from his examinations and receive promotion. He was never discouraged by the repeated injustice he suffered; his passion for work made him enter just as enthusiastically as ever into reforms and improvements in the next government to which he was sent. To quote from Mr. Whitmore's memoir of the royal governors: "We must class Andros among those statesmen, unwelcome but necessary, whose very virtues and abilities are detested in life, because they do so thoroughly their appointed work." He was set, especially in New England, to carry out a policy which was detested by the majority of the people. Into the merits or demerits of that policy it is not the purpose of this paper to enter. Its aim is simply to urge that the facts of history do not show that Andros was personally tyrannical and unprincipled as he has been represented in the common New England tradition, and its purpose will be accomplished if it leads any serious students of our history to feel that his character and administration, like Hutchinson's, are worthy of reexamination from another than the traditional point of view.

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