Front Cover
Paper book No. 14
Vol 3. Journal Fragments p 25-44.
copied irregularly.
[The preceding text was added in the handwriting of Charles Francis Adams]
compared.
[The preceding text was added in the handwriting of Charles Francis Adams]
Inside Front Cover
Page 1
Suffolk Sessions July
1766
Dus. [Dominus] Rex vs. Francis Keen, for
stealing Cask Molosses.
Dus. Rex vs. Mary Gardiner, for a
common Scold, Quarreller and Disturber of the Peace.
Sewal. Hawkins -- a common Scold is
punishable by putting into the Ducking Stool. Prosecutions rare,
tho the offence frequent.
Other Crimes, not prosecuted here, as forestalling, Regrating &c.
[Wescan?]. She gets
drunk sometimes, and then curses and swears at her Husband, all Night, for
several Nights together, and quarrells with her Neighbours.
Three Instances of Drunkeness prove a common Drunkard, 3 Acts of Barratry,
prove a common Barrator, 3 Instances of Desceit, will
prove a common Cheat. So 3 Instances of Brawling and Scolding to the common
Distrubance of the Neighbourhood, proves a
common Scold.
Page 2
Page 3
APRIL
4TH. 1767.
Suits generally Spring from Passion. Jones
vs. Bigelow, Cotton and Nye arose from
Ambition. Jones and Bigelow were Competitors
for Elections in the
Town of Weston, Cotton and
Nye were Rivals at
Sandwich. Such Rivals have no Friendship for each other. From
such Rivalries originate Quarrells
Contentions, Quarrells and Suits. Actions of
Defamation are the usual Fruits of such Competitions. What affection can there
be between two Rival Candidates for the Affections of a Town
Confidence of a Town. The famous Action of slander at
Worcester between Hopkins and
Ward, of
Rhode Island, Sprouted from the same Stock. There the Aim was at
the Confidence of the Colony.
Poor Nye of
Sandwich, seems dejected. I should suspect by his Concern that
Cotton gained Ground vs.
him. He seems to be hipp'd. It fretts and worries and mortifies him. He cant sleep a
Nights. His Health is infirm.
Cotton is insane, wild. His Proposal of giving
his House and Farm at
Sandwich to the Province, is a Proof of Insanity. He has
Relation that are poor. Jno. Cotton is now poor enough. He has
a Brother Josiah Cotton the Minister whom he procured to be
removed to
Woburn, and thereby to be ruin'd, who
is very poor, maintained by Charity. Roland was
Josiahs ruin; yet he did not choose to
give his Estate to Josiah. Besides his
Behaviour at
Boston upon that occasion, was wild. His sitting down at the
Council Table with his Hat on and Calling for his Deed and a Justice to
acknowledge it, when the Council was sitting.
Cottons Method of getting Papers Signed by
Members, in order to demolish poor Nye is
new. The Certificate from Murray and Foster
if genuine is a mean, scandalous Thing. It was mean in Murray
and Foster to sign that Paper. For one
[Representative] to give Another weapon to a
Constituent a Weapon to demolish another Rep., is ungentlemanlike.
Page 4
1767
APRIL 8TH. WEDNESDAY.
Mounted my Horse in a very Rainy Morning for
Barnstable leaving my Dear Brother Cranch and his family at my House where they arrived last
Night, and my Wife, all designing for
Weymouth this Afternoon to Keep the fast with my father
Smith and my Friend Tufts. Arrived at Dr. Tufts's,
where I found a fine Wild Goose on the Spit and Cramberries stewing in the Skillet for Dinner.
Tufts as soon as he heard that Cranch was at
Braintree determined to go over, and bring him and Wife and
Child and my Wife and Child over to dine upon wild Goose and
Cramberry Sause.
Proceeded without Baiting to Jacobs's where I dined. Lodged
at Howlands. Rode next day, baited at
Ellis's, dined at Newcombs and proceeded to
Barnstable, lodged at Howes's and feel myself
much better than I did when I came from Home. But I have had a very wet, cold,
dirty,disagreable journey of it. -- Now I am on
the stage and the scene is soon to open, what Part shall I act? -- The People
of the County I find are of opinion that Cotton will
worry Nye. But Nye must come off, with flying Colours.
Page 5
MAY [16], 1767. SATURDAY
NIGHT.
At Howlands in
Plymouth. Returned this day from
Barnstable. The Case of Cotton and
Nye at
Sandwich is remarkable. Cotton has
been driving his Interest. This driving of an Interest, seldom succeeds.
Jones of
Weston, by driving his, drove it all away.
[illegible] Where two Persons in a Town get into such a
Quarrell, [illegible] both must be
very unhappy - Reproaching each other to their faces, relating facts concerning
each other, to their Neighbours. These Relations
are denied, repeated, misrepresented, additional and fictitious Circumstances
put to them, Passions inflamed. Malice, Hatred, Envy, Pride fear, Rage,
Despair, all take their Turns.
Father and son, Uncle and Nephew, Neighbour and
Neighbour, Friend and Friend are all set together
by the Ears. My Clients have been the Sufferers in both these Representative
Causes. The Court was fixed in the
Sandwich Case. Cotton is not only a
Tory but a Relation of some of the Judges, Cushing
particularly. Cushing married a Cotton,
Sister of Jno. Cotton, the Register of Deeds at
Plymouth. Cushing was very bitter, he was not
for my arguing to the jury the Question whether the Words were Actionable or
not. He interrupted me - stopped me short, snapd me
up. --
"Keep to the Evidence -- keep to the Point -- dont ramble all
over the World to ecclesiastical Councils - dont misrepresent the
Evidence." This was his impartial Language. Oliver began
his Speech to the jury with --
"A Disposition to slander and Defamation, is the most cursed
Temper that ever the World was plagued with
Page 6
and I believe it is the Cause of the greatest Part of the
Calamities that Mankind
labour under." This was
the fair, candid, impartial Judge. They adjudged solemnly, that I should not
dispute to the Jury, whether the Words were actionable or not.
1767 MAY
[17] SUNDAY.
At
Plymouth, went to Mr. Robbins's Meeting in the
Morning,
[illegible] and sat with Mr. Hovey.
Dined with
Coll. Warren.
Went to Mr. Bacons Meeting in the Afternoon and
satt with
Coll. Warren. Drank Tea at my Lodgings.
Robbins preached upon doing the Will of God, and
Bacon on Peace, and Goodwill. Judge Cushing
was also at the Upper Meeting in the Morning and at the lower, in the
Afternoon. Cushing has the sly,
artfull, cunning -- Artifice and Cunning is the reigning
Characteristic in his face. The sly Sneer. -- My Landlady
Howland gives me a
melancholly
History of her Husbands Lawsuit, which lasted 20 Years, and brought him to
Poverty. She says that Cushings father in Law
Cotton, had an House on one
Lott of
Land that her Husband was Heir to
in Tail, and her
Husband was obliged to suffer a Common Recovery of that Lot and convey it to
Cotton before Cushing would give Judgment.
Saltonstall kept it 5 Years depending merely for his Opinion
and Cushing many Years more. So that the Case of
Roland Cotton last Week at
Barnstable is not the only Case in which
Cushing has at all Hazards supported the Interests of the
Cotton Family.
Page 7
The father of Judge
Cushings Wife, and Mr. Cotton the Register &c.
was a Man of Figure in this County, Register of Deeds, Clerk of the Court and
afterwards Judge -- an odd,
'tho a sensible
Man.
We shall see more of the cursed Cunning of this Cushing in
the Case of Dumb Tom the Pauper. It was a Trick of his. The
Secresy of the Removal was a Trick and Artifice of
his. And he is now about to Certiorari him into
Pembroke. He was first sent into Pembroke by secret Deviltry,
and now is to be sent there again by open Deviltry. But Memento -- Three judges
at
Barnstable were for dismissing an Appeal to them from
Marthas Vinyard because the Plaintiff had accepted of a bad Plea
or no Plea. They said it was the Plaintiffs fault that he had accepted such a
Plea. Now in the Case of
Scituate, was it not the Select
Mens fault that they had gone to Tryal without
a written Answer?
A Question I shall make is, whether dumb Toms gaining a
Settlement, at
Tiverton or
Bristol, has not annihilated his Settlement at
Pembroke?
[illegible] No Pauper has two Settlements
at once -- a new settlement destroys
the former an old one. He cant
have a Settlement at
Bristol and another at
Pembroke at the same Time. Now is it not
Scituates Duty to remove him to
Bristol? But how can they? -- But another Question is whether
the
secresy of the Removal, the Manifest Artifice
and Trick, to charge
Pembroke, shall not screen
Pembroke? A Collusion it was. If a Woman pregnant of a Bastard
Child is sent in the Night, private secretly into a Parish on Purpose that she
may be delivered there, the Parish shall not be charged -- for the Law will
protect Parishes from
Page 8
such Frauds.
Secresy never was more gross, nor fraud more manifest.
Sent in the Night, 18 months old, by the Mother and a Negro, to a Squaws
Wigwam, on purpose that it never might be suspected, but that it might be taken
for an Indian. The Imposition was infinite upon the Poor Squaw.
Spent the Evening at Mr. Hoveys, with Deacon
Foster and Dr. Thomas. The
Deacon was very silent. The
Dr. pretty sociable.
MONDAY
MORNING [18 MAY].
A fine Sun and Air.
Cushing at
Barnstable said to me -- happy is he whom other Mer Errors,
render wise. -- Otis by getting into the general Court, has
lost his Business. -- Felix quem faciunt aliena Pericula cautum -- other Mens
Dangers, Errors, Miscarriages, Mistakes, Misfortunes.
Page 9
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Inside Back Cover
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Back Cover
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