I 
138 . The Discoveries S e t t l e m en t s Book L 
fhali feem expedient, provided they are not repugnant to 
the Laws of Great Britain. This kind of Government, 
which, I believe, is more independent than that of any 
Colony belonging to any other Nation in the World, is 
enjoyed in its full Extent by the People who inhabit the 
Plantations of Conne^incut and Rhode IJland % but they 
make a very different Ufe of it •, for thofe of the firfr- 
mentioned Colony are very ftrift in Point of Religion, 
whereas thofe in Rhode JJland are the freeff in thatRefpect 
of any in the World ; for there are among them People 
of all Religions, or rather, of all thofe Sedts into which 
Proteftants are divided, but v/ithout the leaf!; Prejudice 
to their temporal Concerns, every Man being alike ca- 
pable of Magiftracy ; and with refped to anEftablifhed 
Church there is none, but each Body of Chriftians live 
according to their own Syftem, and chufe and pay their 
Minifters as they think fit. The great Colony of MaJTa- 
chufets.) is likewife a Charter-Government, but the Ap- 
pointment of the Governor, Lieutenant-Governor, Se- 
cretary, and all the Officers of the Admiralty, is vefted 
in the Crown. The People have not only the Choice of 
the Alfembly, but of the Council j upon which, how- 
ever, the Governor in his Turn has a Negative; and, by 
virtue of his Commiffion as Captain-General, has the 
Power of the Militia ; fo that here the fupreme Autho- 
rity refts neither in the Governor nor the People, but 
in them both, whenever they can agree to exert it. 
The Government of New Hanipjhire is entirely in the 
Hands of the Crown, in the fame Manner as that of 
Virginia.^ and other Colonies. 
The Capital of this Country is Bofion.) in the County 
of Suffolk., and within the Province of Maffachiifet pro- 
per : It is fituated in the Latitude of 42 Degrees 20 Mi- 
nutes North, and in 71 Degrees of Longitude Weft from 
London ; it ftands on a Peninfula about four Miles in 
Circumference, at the Bottom of a fine Bay of the Sea, 
at the Entrance whereof are feveral Rocks which appear 
above Water, and above a Dozen fmall Hands, fome of 
which are inhabited. There is but one fafe Channel to 
approach the Harbour, and that fo narrow that two Ships 
can fcarce fail through a-breaft ; but within the Harbour 
there is room enough for five hundred Sail to lie at An- 
chor. The Entrance is defended by the Caftle of Fort- 
JVilliam., on which are one hundred Guns mounted, 
twenty of which lie in a Platform, level with the Water, 
fo that it is fcarce poffible for an Enemy to pafs the 
Caftle ; and, to prevent Surprize, they have a Guard 
placed on one of the Rocks about two I.eagues diftant, 
on which alfo there ftands a little Houfe, from whence 
they make Signals to the Caftle when any Ships come 
near it: There is alfo a Battery of great Guns at each 
End of the Town, which commands the Harbour, to 
the Fire whereof any Enemy would be expofed if he 
fhould be fo fortunate as to pafs the Caftle. 
At the Bottom of the Bay there is a Pier near two 
thoufand Feet in I.ength, with Warehoufes for the Mer- 
chants on the North fide of it ; and Ships of the greateft 
Burden may come up clofe to the Pier and unload, with- 
out the Flelp of Boats. The greateft Part of the Town 
of Bofion lies in the Form of a Crefcent about the 
Harbour, the Country beyond rifing gradually, and 
affording a moft delightful Profpedl from the Sea : There 
are in it feveral Streets, not much inferior to the beft in 
London, the chief of which runs from the Pier up to their 
Town-houfe, or Guild-hall, a handfome Building, where 
are Walks for the Merchants, as on the Exchange ; and 
there alfo are the Council-Chamber, the Houfe of Repre- 
fentatives, and their Courts of Juftice, the Exchange, being 
furrounded with Bookfellers-ffiops, who have Trade 
enough to employ five Printing-preffes. There are ten 
Churches of all Denominations, of which fix are Independ- 
ents, the moft prevailing Party in New England. And the 
Number of Souls in the Town of that Perfuafion may be 
about fourteen or fifteen thoufand. TheEpifcopal Church is 
handfomelybuilt and adorned, and the Congregation faidto 
be about a thoufand in Number. Their Church Furniture, 
and fome Pieces of Plate, were given them by K. William and 
(ffMary, and their Organ by Fhomas Brattley, Efq; There 
is ahb in this Church a magnificent Seat for the Governor, 
who comes thither when he happens to be of the Church of 
England. Bofion is the moft flouriftiing Town for Trade 
in Englifio America^ and there are feveral hundred Sail of 
Ships, Brigantines, and other Veffels, annually load- 
ed here with Timber, Beef, Pork, Filffi, and other 
Commodities, for Europe, or American Hands : Their 
Merchants and Tradefmen are a polite fort of People, 
many of them having travelled into Europe, or converfed 
v/ith foreigners of feveral Nations at home: Their 
Houfes are elegantly furniffied, and their I’ables as well 
ferved as thofe of the Merchants and Tradefmen of Lon- 
don ; all manner of Provifions being as plentiful as in 
any Town in Old England. 
A late Writer tells us in relation to the Fortrefs 
before- mentioned, that it is a beautiful Caftle, by far 
the fineft Piece of Military Architefilure in Britijb 
America ; being a Quarry furrounded by a Covered- 
way, and joined with two Lines of Communication' to 
the Main Battery, as alfo a Line of Communication from 
the Main Gate to a Redoubt, to prevent any Enemies 
landing ; and the Battery is fituated fo near to the Chan- 
nel, as to hinder Ships coming up to the Town, which 
muft all come within Piftol-ffiot of it. In time of Peace 
there is but one Company on Duty in the Caftle ; but in 
time of War, there are five hundred able bodied Men, 
exempted from all other Military Duty, to attend the 
Service of the Caftle at an Hour’s Warning, when the 
Signal is given from the Night-houfe of the Approach 
of an Enemy. The Caftle thereupon makes a Signal to 
the Town, and if five Ships or more appear in time of 
War, the neighbouring Country is alarmed, by firing a 
Beacon. In this City commonly the Governor refides ; 
here the General Court and Aftembly meet, and almoft 
all the public Bufinefs of the Province is here tranfadted. 
The Number of Houfes is computed at four thoufand four 
hundred ; the Number of People, at about twenty-four 
thoufand ; and the Shipping of this Port is computed at 
between fix and feven hundred. There are, befides this, 
feveral great Towns and good Ports and a Multitude of 
fmall ones, in New England ; but I have not Room to 
enter into more particular Accounts. 
As to the Number of People Writers differ extreme- 
ly, and it is not eafy to know which is in the right ; but 
the following, about twenty Years ago, was faid to 
be the beft Authority, Nz. that in the Maffachufets 
Colony there were eighty thoufand Souls ; in that of 
Connekicut, thirty thoufand ; and in Rhode IJland, ten 
thoufand ; in the whole, one hundred and twenty thou- 
fand: But I am perfuaded that, at prefent, they amount 
to one hundred and fixty thoufand at leaft. 
The Commerce of thefe Colonies is very confiderable, 
and extends itfelf over ^\\ Afnerica, and into fome Parts of 
Europe ; they furniffi our Sugar Colonies with Fiffi, 
Cattle, Boards, Hoops, Pipe-ftaves, Bark, Skins, But- 
ter, Cheefe, Oil, Tallow, Corn, Apples, Turpentine, O’r. 
and this in fuch vaft Abundance, that it is computed the 
Ifland of Barbadoes alone, takes off to the Value of two 
hundred thoufand Pounds every Year ; they deal befides 
with the other Sugar Colonies, fometimes with the 
French, largely with the Spaniards, and they fhip off 
prodigious Quantities of Fifh, to Italy, Spain, and Por- 
tugal. They take from us all kinds of Mercery Goods ; 
Linnen, Stockings, Shoes, Sail-cloth, Cordage, Flaber- 
daffiery Ware, and a vaft many other Things ; in Re- 
turn they build a prodigious Number of Ships, and ex- 
port a vaft Quantity of Mafts, Plank, and Yards, for 
the Royal Navy ; Pitch, Tar, Turpentine, Skins, Furs, 
Oil, Whale-Fins, Logwood and other Commodities. 
The Obfervations made by the famous Si^JoJiah Child, 
in reference to this Colony, are very well worthy our 
Notice, as they will lead us to form the trueft Judgment 
poffible as to that important Point, what the Profit is 
which refults to this Kingdom, from our Plantations in 
New England ; upon which he reafons in the following 
Manner : “ ift. All our American Plantations, except 
“ the New England, produce Commodities of different 
“ Natures, as Sugar, Tobacco, Cocoa, Wool, Ginger, 
“ fundry Sorts of dying Woods, idc. Whereas AAy 
“ England produces generally the fame we have here, viz. 
“ Com 
