Pietas in patriam the life of His Excellency Sir William Phips, Knt. late Captain…

It was yet further argued, That if an Act of Parliament should have Reversed the Judgment against the Massachuset-Charter, without a grant of some other Advantages, the whole Territory had been, on many Accounts, very miserably Incommoded: The Province of Main, with Hampshire would have been taken from them; and Plymouth would have been annexed unto New-York; so, that this Colony would have been squeezed into an Atom, and not only have been rendered Insignificant in it's Trade, but by having it's Militia also, which was vested in the King, taken away, it's Insignificancies would have become, out of measure, humbling; whereas now, instead of ⟨p. 60⟩seeing any Relief by Act of Parliament, they would have been put under a Governor, with a Commission, whereby ill Men, and the King's and Country's Enemies, might probably have crept into Opportunities to have done ten thousand ill Things, and have treated the best Men in the Land, after a very uncomfortable Manner.

It was yet further argued, That if an Act of Parliament should have Reversed the Judgment against the Massachuset-Charter, without a grant of some other Advantages, the whole Territory had been, on many Accounts, very miserably Incommoded: The Province of Main, with Hampshire would have been taken from them; and Plymouth would have been annexed unto New-York; so, that this Colony would have been squeezed into an Atom, and not only have been render'd Insignificant in it's Trade, but by having it's Militia also, which was vested in the King, taken away, it's Insignificancies would have become, out of measure, humbling; whereas now, instead of ⟨p. 60⟩seeing any Relief by Act of Parliament, they would have been put under a Governour, with a Commission, whereby ill Men, and the King's and Country's Enemies, might probably have crept into Opportunities to have done ten thousand ill Things, and have treated the best Men in the Land, after a very uncomfortable Manner.

It was lastly, argued, That by the New Charter very great Privileges were granted unto New-England; and, in some respects greater, than what they formerly enjoyed. The Colony is now made a Province, and their General Court, has, with the King's Approbation, as much Power, in New-England, as the King and Parliament have in England. They have all English Liberties, and can be touched by no Law, by no Tax, but of their own making. All the Liberties of their Holy Religion are for ever secured, and their Titles to their Lands, once, for want of some Forms of legal Conveyance, contested, are now confirmed unto them. If an ill Governor should happen to be imposed on them, what Hurt could he do to them? None, except they themselves pleased; for he cannot make one Counsellor, or one Judge, or one Justice, or one Sheriff to serve his Turn: Disadvantages enough, one would think, to discourage any ill Governor from desiring to be Stationed in those uneasy Regions. The People have a Negative upon all the Executive Part of the Civil Government, as well as the Legislative, which is a vast Privilege, enjoyed by no other Plantation in America, nor by Ireland, no, nor hitherto by England it self. Why should all of this Good be refused, or despised, because of somewhat not so Good attending it? The Despisers of so much Good, will certainly deserve a Censure, not unlike that of Causabon, upon some who did not value what that learned Man counted highly valuable, Vix illis optari quid. quam pejus potest, quam ut fatuitate sua fruantur: