Beschreibung:

COLONIAL AMERICA - MANUSCRIPT] The Present State of the British Colonies in America, also known as The Hillsborough Colonial Returns. A circa 1773-75 manuscript of approximately 500 pp., being a fair copy in the hands of various clerks of responses to a circular letter sent by Lord Dartmouth to the governors of British colonies in America on 5 July 1773. The current manuscript contains the "returns" addressed to the "Heads of Enquiry" for twenty-two colonies in North America (Massachusetts-Bay, New Hampshire with a decorative copy of a cover letter by Governor John Wentworth Connecticut, New York with a decorative copy of a cover letter by Governor William Tryon, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Georgia, and West Florida); the Caribbean (Jamaica, Barbados, the Leeward Islands & Virgin Islands, Grenada, Curacao, Tobago, Dominica, St. Vincent, Bermuda, and Bahamas); and Canada (Nova Scotia, St. John-now Prince Edward Island). Contemporary vellum, the covers with a tooled border in gilt, the spine with gilt rules and a contemporary green morocco label reading "Present State of the British Colonies in America." 14 5/8 x 9 1/2 inches (37.5 x 24.5 cm). Many leaves watermarked, including a "Strasburg fleur-de-lis over the characters VDL," "VL" and others, these likely the Dutch firm Van der Ley. Contains several charts, several hand-ruled in red; a note in a contemporary hand on the front blank reports there were no returns from Quebec, Rhode Island, North & South Carolina, East Florida, and that of West Florida is incomplete. Most leaves with three vertical folds (once folded into quarters), some dust soiling in the Jamaica section suggesting other circulation, minor soiling and wear to the binding, internally quite clean, an extremely well preserved compilation of documents. Provenance: Wills Hill (1718-93), the Earl of Hillsborough and 1st Marquess of Downshire, First Lord of Trade (1763-72) and Secretary of State to the Colonies (1768-72); offered as part the Trumbull Papers (Sotheby's London, 14 December 1989) and sold by private treaty; shortly thereafter acquired by the current consignor. THERE IS LIKELY NO GREATER MANUSCRIPT IN PRIVATE OWNERSHIP PROVIDING AS DETAILED AN ACCOUNT OF THE ENGLISH COLONIAL GOVERNORS PERSPECTIVE OF THEIR COLONIES ON THE EVE OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. The circular issued by Lord Dartmouth to the governors took the form of a questionnaire of about twenty inquiries pertaining to the history, geography and population of each colony with a particular focus on navigable rivers, sources of revenue, illegal trade, relations with Indians, quantities of slaves, the extent of militias, and each colonies individual form of government, charter, and constitution. The result is a highly readable (in terms of being both legibly written and entertaining) journey through the history, present state, and cultural attitudes of these colonial entities as they saw themselves around 1775. For instance, in Governor Tryon's return for New York (at nearly 50 pages) there are fine descriptions of the Hudson River, border disputes with neighboring colonies, a history of the English takeover from the Dutch, and insight to the English perspective on the rights of Indians to sell their own land: "Purchases from the Indian Natives, as of their aboriginal right, have never been held to be a legal title in this Province, the maxim obtaining here as in England that the King is the fountain of all real property, and that from this source all titles are to be derived." The New York return also contains a copy of the 1726 document Surrender by the Five Nations of their Beaver hunting Country replete with the copied marks of the representatives of the Five Nations (pictured here). Given the presence of the English, French, Spanish, and Native Americans in America in the mid-18th century, it is no surprise that a large scale conflict had already erupted on the territorial fringes of the North American colonies, and in the Hillsboro