AFFAIRS IN NEW YORK IN 1780.
Proclamation by General Robertson on assuming the Govern-
ment in 1780-Civil law to be restored and the Courts
opened-Joy of the people-Instead of so doing, he creates
by proclamation, military "Courts of Police" on Long
Island, in the City, and on Staten Island-Appoints their
Judges, called "Superintendents," and other officials-Em-
powers them to try causes of all kinds, personal, real, crim-
inal, and mixed, without a jury, upon "principles of equity
and justice," without any appeal-Plan of the King's offi-
cers, Smith and Elliot, to recall the Rev. Dr. Rodgers from
the Americans and open the New Brick Presbyterian Meet-
ing-House, then a hospital-Gen. Robertson, the Governor,
promises his aid-They apply to Sir Henry Clinton for per-
mission-Dr. Booth, Superintendent of Hospitals, protests
against it, unless another building equally suited for a hos-
pital be provided-Character and conduct of Dr. Rodgers-
Gov. Tryon having vigorously quelled the insurrection of the
Regulators against lawyers in North Carolina, they all take
the oath of allegiance-These people all Scotch Presbyteri-
ans-They refuse to break their oaths and take arms against
the King at the request of Congress-Dr. Rodgers and
Dr. Caldwell, Presbyterian clergymen, sent by Congress to
change their decision-The extraordinary methods they
adopted, and their success-Judge Ludlow, the senior
Judge of the Supreme Court, angry at the appointment of
William Smith over his head as Chief Justice-Made Mas-
ter of the Rolls, and also Superintendent of the Long Isl-
and Court of Police as a compensation-Other lucrative
powers vested in him as Superintendent of Police-The
profits divided between Robertson, Elliot, and Ludlow-
Ludlow attainted, and after the war made Chief Justice of
New Brunswick-Order of Governor Robertson to seize
"rebel estates" within the British lines-Philip John Living-
ston appointed Manager of "rebel estates," at £200 sterling
a year with one of the estates at Hellgate rent free-Or-
ders the Sheriffs to send him lists of such estates in all the
counties within the lines-Causes of the creation of
the Courts of Police, and the office of Livingston, never
made public-Known only to the British officials and
commanders-Of the nine Judges of these four military
Courts of Police, only two know anything of law-What
would have been the effect of restoring the civil government
and the regular Courts-All powers of government, ministe-
rial, judicial, and executive, vested in these illegal and arbi-
trary Courts-Ludlow's extraordinary declaration regarding
their establishment...
[See Editor's Notes, I., II., III., IV., V.]
AFFAIRS ON LONG ISLAND IN 1780.
Robertson's Proclamation ordering wood cut and hay fur-
nished utterly disregarded-The policies of crushing the
rebellion by proclamation and by force contrasted-Had
Cromwell's precedent at Drogheda been adopted at Fort
Washington in 1776, it would have ended the matter-
Lt. Col. John Antill tried and dismissed from the Army
for embezzling the stores of the Crown - Restored in
four months-Governor Robertson congratulates Antill's
brother-in-law on this restoration-Despotic and arbitrary
acts of the Courts of Police-Two Whigs of Oyster
Bay, named Young, make counterfeit Continental money
in 1776, to pay their debts to Loyalists - The Hunting-
ton Committee arrest them by order of the Provincial Con-
vention-Imprisoned in New York till Howe landed on
Long Island in August-Then sent to Lichfield jail, whence
they escape and return to Long Island - They sue the
Huntington Committee and two members of the Conven-
tion, who had all renewed their allegiance, for damages in
the New York Court of Police-Get judgment, and collect
their demand on execution against the Committeemen-
Clinton permits Rhode Island Refugees to erect a fort at
St. George's Manor-Complaints of their depredations to
the British officials proving useless, the inhabitants send
to Major Talmadge, of Connecticut, for relief-Talmadge
crosses the Sound, surprises the fort, and takes them all
prisoners, except a few who were absent....
SEIZURE AND DISPOSITION OF "REBEL ESTATES" WITHIN THE
LINES BY PHILIP JOHN LIVINGSTON, THEIR BRITISH "MAN-
AGER," THROUGH THE "COURTS OF POLICE."
Great Power of the Courts of Police and of the Manager of
“rebel estates "-Instances of their tyranny-Rodman's
estate seized because one of the family of three was not
loyal-Case of Joseph Baldwin-of Daniel Pine's estate-
of Thomas Jackson-of the infant grandchildren of Henry
Holland-Samuel Jones and Thomas Jones, mortgagees in
possession of lands, before the Courts of Police were estab-
lished, turned out of their lands by Ludlow's remarkable
decision, that on the British army taking possession of
Long Island, the King ipso facto became seized of all
"rebel estates"-Discussion of the subject-John Willett's
case-Old Robert G. Livingston's lands on Long Island
and in New York seized because he lived in Dutchess
County, in spite of the efforts of his son, a captain in the
British service, to get possession in his father's name-
James Jauncey and Moses Franks, mortgagees of Eaton's
or Lloyd's Neck, refused possession of the land or preser-
vation of the timber, because the mortgagors, John Sloss
Hobart and George Grenal, had joined the Americans-
The Corporation of the City of New York defrauded and
robbed by the Courts of Police and the British officials and
Generals, and its revenues bestowed on favorites-Some
charters of corporations decided to be void by the Pro-
hibitory Act, and others not, and others in part-How the
creditors of the City suffered losses-Cases of John Shoals,
Miss Middleton, Benjamin Helme, Cornelia Ball, Andrew
Gautier, and John Thurman-Infamous treatment and im-
prisonment of the latter...
[See Editor's Notes, VII., VIII., IX., X., XI., XII.]
SUMPTUOUS PROVISION FOR BRITISH GENERALS AND OFFICIALS IN
NEW YORK DURING THE WAR.
Construction of the clause, "except such as should be wanted
for the particular service and use of his Majesty's Army,"
in the order appropriating "rebel estates to accommo-
date loyal refugees, for the emolument of British officers-
Sir Henry Clinton's town house, country-seat, and five farms
-Commissary Wier's town house and country-seat—Gov-
ernor Robertson, a Lieutenant-General, a manager of
City funds, and a partner in the firm of McAdam, Rhine-
lander & Co., given a country-seat and town house-Gen-
eral Birch has Samuel Verplank's house, a country-seat on
New York Island and another at Jamaica-How he subse-
quently got Samuel Pintard's house at Hempstead-Account
of Pintard-His residence at New Rochelle-Great loyalty
of the Huguenot people of that place-His house and farm
robbed by British troops, while he was acting with the British
army as a volunteer-Could get no redress-Buys a snug
place at Hempstead-Depredations of British troops cause
him to send his furniture to the Rev. Mr. Cutting's, and to
go with his family to Madeira-How Birch obtained the
house, and then the furniture-Birch in 1779 pulls down
and carries off a Quaker meeting-house, and a farm-house
of Judge Jones-Puts the windows of the last in a barn
and makes a barrack-The same year pulls down and
Mr. Hulens, of New Jersey, imprisoned for damning a town
major-James and Oliver de Lancey, of Westfarms, tried
and sentenced to two months' imprisonment for a quarrel
with Colonel Emmerick-A John Street freeholder flogged
with 300 lashes for striking a subaltern in a dispute Clin-
ton's approval of the sentence-How Micah Williams was
treated for kicking a negro whom he caught committing a
trespass-How Hicks, the tenant of Capt. John P. de
Lancey's house in Broadway above Trinity Church, kept as
a hotel, was turned out of possession without Capt. de
Lancey's leave, by General Patterson, at the request of
Commissary Loring, and Roubalet, one of his dependents,
put in-Ezekiel Robins imprisoned for keeping bad com-
pany-Fifty horses put into Isaac Lefferts's orchard while
the apples were in heaps for making cider-Wanton out-
rages on Polhemus and Okely-Judge Jones's horses and
wagons and servants forced by a quartermaster of dragoons
to drive sutlers' stores 100 miles to Southampton and stay
there three weeks at their own expense-Robbery of Leg-
gett's hogs-How Clinton's escort to Southampton in 1779
plundered the farms on the way-Robbery and murder of
Parmenas Jackson at Jerusalem in 1781-The outrage and
trouble inflicted on Colonel Richard Floyd through the
false charge of Charity French, a New England refugee..81-97
|