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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Letter from Robert Dinwiddie to Horatio Sharpe
Dinwiddie, Robert, 1693-1770
September 06, 1754
Volume 05, Pages 139-140

[Reprinted from Dinwiddie Papers. Vol. 1. P. 303.]
Governor Dinwiddie to Governor Sharpe.

Sept'r 6th, 1754.

Sir:

Y'r Kind favo. of the 20th Aug'st I rec'd, and sh'd have answer'd before this, but waited the result of our Assembly, w'ch I prorogu'd Yesterday after [their] doing Nothing to support the pres't Expedition. On y'r first meeting they appear'd greatly inclin'd to give a handsom[e] Supply; I press'd the absolute Necessity thereof with all the Int't I had, and they accordingly voted 20,000[£], w'ch gave me much Pleasure, but the Day after, on the third reading of the Bill, they loaded it with a rider for paying Payton Randolph, Esq'r, (the Person they sent Home to complain ag'st me,) 2,500[£]. As the Council had formerly rejected a resolve for y't Sum, they c'd not, in hon'r, pass this as a rider to a Money Bill for a Supply to His M'y, w'ch is inconstitutional, therefore rejected it. I took all the Pains in my Power to convince them of the irregularity of their Proceedings by acquainting them that the resolve for y't Sum, with their other resolves, lay now with the King and Council; it was therefore out of our Hands, and we c'd not meddle with it till we heard the Determinat'n of the Council thereon, but all the Argum'ts I c'd use, availed Nothing; they were obstinate, and by no means w'd send the Bill with't the rider to the Council, on w'ch I was oblig'd to prorogue them till the 17th of Oct'r, w'n I hope they will come in a better Temper, and before that Time I expect a King's Ship with Mr. Dobbs, Gov'r of No. Car., and by her I probably shall have Acc't of all the Affairs y't lie before the Council. The Plan of Operat's y't I proposed for this Fall, are entirely defeated:—1st. By the No. Car. Forces disbanding Themselves, w'ch was occasioned by a monstrous mismanagem't of them from the Beginning; they raised 12,000[£]. The Presid't of y't Colony gave the private Men 3s. Proclam'n Money per Day, and the Officers in Proportion, so that their Money was wholly expended before they joined the other Forces, and w'd serve no longer with't Assurance of the above Pay. This is monstrous ill conduct, and more so, because I wrote the Presid't the Establishm't of the Pay of our regim't. Next is the reduct'n of the No. of our Forces, those killed and Wounded unfit for Service, and desert'n, w'ch has reduced the Number

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to 150. If the [appropriation of the] 20,000[£] had pass'd, I fully intend'd to Augm't our regim't to eight Compa's of 70 Men each, w'ch with Officers wanted, w'd have made 600 Men, and, in course, made up the deficiency occasioned by the No. Car. People, but the Obstinacy of our Assembly have defeated my Intent's, and [I] am now perswaded y't no Expedit'n can be conducted here with dependence on American Assemblies. I have therefore wrote to y't Purpose Home and have propos'd a B. Act of Parliam't to compell the Subjects here to Obedience to His M'y's Com'ds, and to Protect Y'r Properties from the Insults of the French by proper Supplies and a vigorous resistance.