By the late-1760s, London had dusted off a law dating back to King Henry VIII that justified deporting a suspect in the Colonies to Britain for offenses committed in the Colonies. Bernard was told by his superior in London to provide specific evidence, not innuendo or hints. Hutchinson took testimony from witnesses claiming to have seen and/or heard Samuel Adams do traitorous things, including advocating armed insurrection. Very soon after the depositions occurred, the Journal reported them, and worse yet, the information gathered wasn’t close to being sufficient to arrest Adams or anyone else.
All the while, Adams was in his element writing, during a Golden Age for newspapers, able to turn the smallest grievance into the greatest insult. Adams intuitively understood that if he wanted to rally the people to the cause, the newspaper was his best weapon. The Gazette was the largest newspaper in MA, and at least eleven Colonial newspapers reprinted pieces from the Gazette. Adams asked the same question in many ways: Who is in control of our destiny?
During this time, Bernard was named the Baronet of Nettleham, and then he found out that instead of going to VA, he was to return to London. On 1 August 1769, Bernard quietly boarded a ship that was to take him to London, nine years after being posted in MA as governor. When the ship set sail, cannon in Boston boomed, bells tolled, and flags flew from rooftops. Due to the shifting winds, Bernard’s ship was slow to leave Boston Harbor and to move out from shore, so he had a prime view of the revelry celebrating his departure. Adams seemed to have proved his point, in that he had repeatedly stated that King George III would remove a governor of a colony that displeased the people. Due to the influence of the Journal, Bernard’s effigy was burned in New York City.
All the while, Adams was in his element writing, during a Golden Age for newspapers, able to turn the smallest grievance into the greatest insult. Adams intuitively understood that if he wanted to rally the people to the cause, the newspaper was his best weapon. The Gazette was the largest newspaper in MA, and at least eleven Colonial newspapers reprinted pieces from the Gazette. Adams asked the same question in many ways: Who is in control of our destiny?
During this time, Bernard was named the Baronet of Nettleham, and then he found out that instead of going to VA, he was to return to London. On 1 August 1769, Bernard quietly boarded a ship that was to take him to London, nine years after being posted in MA as governor. When the ship set sail, cannon in Boston boomed, bells tolled, and flags flew from rooftops. Due to the shifting winds, Bernard’s ship was slow to leave Boston Harbor and to move out from shore, so he had a prime view of the revelry celebrating his departure. Adams seemed to have proved his point, in that he had repeatedly stated that King George III would remove a governor of a colony that displeased the people. Due to the influence of the Journal, Bernard’s effigy was burned in New York City.
Hutchinson’s mistake, which may never have been apparent to him, was that he kept informing London of the nefarious activities of Adams and a few others, which led London to believe that only a few MA men were acting in opposition to Britain. For Adams, he knew he had to succeed in getting London to recognize the sanctity of Colonial liberties despite the distance/communications barrier of the Atlantic Ocean.
Economic resistance was effective in convincing Britain to repeal the Stamp Act, and the Non-Importation Agreement seemed to work against the Townshend Act. Adams basically hit the campaign trail, both in person and writing, extolling the virtues of self-reliance in order to reduce the Colonial dependence on British finished goods. The Colonies started to manufacture glass, pipe, and oil, and would soon manage without British paper.
However, support for non-importation severely waned towards the end of the Summer of 1769 as rumors circulated that some British duties would be eliminated. Adams kept insisting that non-importation needed to continue until all of the Townshend Act duties were removed, arguing that non-consumption was as effective as non-importation. Adams spearheaded an effort to have people go door-to-door in order to get as many Bostonians as possible to pledge their rejection of British goods from merchants that ignored non-importation. That pledge effort succeeded, in that not long after Bernard’s departure, the number of merchants in Boston that ignored non-importation was reduced from 25 to 7. Among the 7 holdouts were two sons of Hutchinson and a son of Bernard; ironically, that meant that those sons had to become in effect smugglers.
Economic resistance was effective in convincing Britain to repeal the Stamp Act, and the Non-Importation Agreement seemed to work against the Townshend Act. Adams basically hit the campaign trail, both in person and writing, extolling the virtues of self-reliance in order to reduce the Colonial dependence on British finished goods. The Colonies started to manufacture glass, pipe, and oil, and would soon manage without British paper.
However, support for non-importation severely waned towards the end of the Summer of 1769 as rumors circulated that some British duties would be eliminated. Adams kept insisting that non-importation needed to continue until all of the Townshend Act duties were removed, arguing that non-consumption was as effective as non-importation. Adams spearheaded an effort to have people go door-to-door in order to get as many Bostonians as possible to pledge their rejection of British goods from merchants that ignored non-importation. That pledge effort succeeded, in that not long after Bernard’s departure, the number of merchants in Boston that ignored non-importation was reduced from 25 to 7. Among the 7 holdouts were two sons of Hutchinson and a son of Bernard; ironically, that meant that those sons had to become in effect smugglers.
On 4 September 1769, the Gazette published the names of the 7 merchants who didn’t participate with non-importation, also featuring a lengthy diatribe from Otis. Shortly thereafter, Otis went to a known British/Tory coffeehouse, where he was confronted by John Robinson, who was a customs official. The end result of their verbal sparring was that both demanded satisfaction (challenging each other to a duel for the sake of honor), and Otis suggested they settle things elsewhere. On the way out the door, Otis was attacked by Robinson, Otis fought back, and the coffeehouse exploded into violence. Robinson ran away through a back door, while Otis was mercilessly pummeled.
Adams’ version of the attack in the coffeehouse claimed that Robinson started the fracas, in cahoots with the British commissioners who wanted Otis out of the picture. While Adams’ version featured exaggerations and lies, it became the accepted account for most Bostonians. Otis was not the same man after the attack, having suffered a cracked skull, and he became mentally unstable; he became a liability to the Sons of Liberty and the other groups of which he was part.
The Gazette was the most popular newspaper in Boston in terms of subscriptions, but it was not the only newspaper in the city, there being five others. One of those other newspapers was the Chronicle, which was published by John Mein, and ardent Tory. The Chronicle labeled Hancock a fool, Adams as a psalm-singer, and Otis a muddle-head. Mein had few friends in Boston, since he had also attacked the 25 non-importation merchants; even Hutchinson thought Mein had gone too far.
Adams’ version of the attack in the coffeehouse claimed that Robinson started the fracas, in cahoots with the British commissioners who wanted Otis out of the picture. While Adams’ version featured exaggerations and lies, it became the accepted account for most Bostonians. Otis was not the same man after the attack, having suffered a cracked skull, and he became mentally unstable; he became a liability to the Sons of Liberty and the other groups of which he was part.
The Gazette was the most popular newspaper in Boston in terms of subscriptions, but it was not the only newspaper in the city, there being five others. One of those other newspapers was the Chronicle, which was published by John Mein, and ardent Tory. The Chronicle labeled Hancock a fool, Adams as a psalm-singer, and Otis a muddle-head. Mein had few friends in Boston, since he had also attacked the 25 non-importation merchants; even Hutchinson thought Mein had gone too far.
In Boston, it reached the point where men that resembled Mein were attacked in the streets and alleys, and soon Mein was attacked on King Street before sunset on a Saturday. Twenty or so men closed in on Mein, and he cocked his pistol and walked backwards, away from the mob, with the person that was accompanying him. From behind, Mein was hit by a shovel, but he was able to escape. Justifiably worried for his life, Mein sought refuge in a British guardhouse. A mob ransacked Mein’s home, and tarred-and-feathered a customs informer. An order spread throughout Boston to display lanterns from homes to show support/sympathy for Adams and his associates. Adams succeeded in getting a warrant for Mein’s arrest, and a sheriff to execute the warrant/arrest. However, the sheriff could not find Mein in the British guardhouse, since he had been hidden in the garret. After the search, Mein left the guardhouse in disguise to stay with a wealthy friend, and then a few weeks later he escaped Boston on a British warship.
With Main gone, many in Boston believed that Adams et al had gone too far, calling them “agonizing reptiles” and an “execrable set of scrawling miserables”. In his writings, Adams was bitter and cutting, but didn’t indulge in nearly as much name-calling, at least through early-1770. That being said, Adams set his sights on the Hutchinsons, the father and the two non-importations sons, calling them public enemies. Adams then wrote a retrospective of the 1760s, which was 34 pages long. In this account, Adams argued that Boston was in fine shape until 1765, when Bernard, Hutchinson, Robinson, the British revenue acts, and the arrival of British regulars all altered the liberty landscape in MA.
With Main gone, many in Boston believed that Adams et al had gone too far, calling them “agonizing reptiles” and an “execrable set of scrawling miserables”. In his writings, Adams was bitter and cutting, but didn’t indulge in nearly as much name-calling, at least through early-1770. That being said, Adams set his sights on the Hutchinsons, the father and the two non-importations sons, calling them public enemies. Adams then wrote a retrospective of the 1760s, which was 34 pages long. In this account, Adams argued that Boston was in fine shape until 1765, when Bernard, Hutchinson, Robinson, the British revenue acts, and the arrival of British regulars all altered the liberty landscape in MA.
Read out loud at a town meeting, Adams’ “An Appeal to the World” was unanimously accepted, and the MA House ordered its publication as a pamphlet. Hutchinson, by now the Acting Governor of MA, had trouble getting a copy of the pamphlet since it was held back until all the British-bound ships had left the harbor in order to delay Hutchinson from communicating to London what he thought of the pamphlet. When Hutchinson was able to read Adam’s pamphlet, he was shocked at its contents, arguments, and accusations.
The MA House agent in London made sure that 500 copies of the pamphlet were distributed to all members of Parliament, and in general, the pamphlet was well-received. In Boston, Adams kept up the pressure on Hutchinson in order to force him to withdraw the British regulars. Resentment against the redcoats kept building in Boston, and Adams edged his way towards taking the kind of action of which he hadn’t yet advocated, planned, or carried out; Samuel Adams was becoming more-and-more volatile . . .
The MA House agent in London made sure that 500 copies of the pamphlet were distributed to all members of Parliament, and in general, the pamphlet was well-received. In Boston, Adams kept up the pressure on Hutchinson in order to force him to withdraw the British regulars. Resentment against the redcoats kept building in Boston, and Adams edged his way towards taking the kind of action of which he hadn’t yet advocated, planned, or carried out; Samuel Adams was becoming more-and-more volatile . . .