(Copy) To the Mayor, Aldermen and Common Council of the Borough of Norfolk in Common Hall assembled ー [September 30]
Gentlemen. I was an Eye Witness to a Party belonging to the Otter Sloop of War landing at the time and place you mention, and did see them bring off two of the Printers Servants, together with his Printing Utensils, and I do realy think they could not have rendered the Borough of Norfolk or the Country adjacent to it, a more essential Service than [to] deprive them of the means of poisining the minds of the People, and exciting in them a Spirit of Rebellion and Sedition, and by that means drawing inevitable ruin and destruction on themselves and Country.
As to the illegalety of the Act, some of you in this very Common Hall Assembled ought to blush when you make use of the expression, as you cannot but be Conscious that you have by every means in your power, totally subverted the Laws and Constitution, and have been the Aiders and Abettors in throwing off all Allegiance to that Majesty's Crown and Government to whom you profess yourselves faithfull Subjects. As to the Musquet Ball being fired into the Town, I believe there is not a Man in it that is not Satisfied it was an accident, and such a one as I hope will not happen again.
With regard to your having ever preserved the peace in your Town, there is very recent proof of the Contrary2
Your not repelling the insult (as you call it) or taking prissoners the small party that was on Shore, I impute to some other reason (from your Drums beating to Arms, during the greatest part of the time which the party was on Shore) than to your peaceable intentions.
As to your last requisition, I do assure you that every means in my power shall be employed, both with the Navy and Army, to preserve the peace good order and happiness of the Inhabitants of the Borough of Norfolk, so long as they behave themselves as Faithfull Subjects to His Majesty; and I expect at the same time, that, if an individual shall behave himself as your Printer has done by aspersing the Characters of His Majesty's Servants and others, in the most false and Scandalous manner, and being the instigator of Treason and Rebellion, and you do not take proper Steps to restrain such off enders, that you will not be surprised if the Military power interposes to prevent the tottall dissolution of all decencey, Order and good Government; But I promise you on my Honor, that, if the Printer will put himself and Servants under my protection, that they shall not meet with the least insult, and shall be permitted to print every occurrance that happens during these unhappy disputes between the Mother Country and her Colonies, he confining himself to truth, and representing matters in a fair Candid impartial manner on both sides; this I hope will convince you that I had nothing more in view, when I requested Captain [Matthew] Squire to Seize the Tipes, than, that the unhappy deluded Publick might no longer remain in the Dark concerning the present contest, but that they should be furnished with a fair representation of facts, which I know never would happen, if the Press was to remain under the Controul of its present Dictators.
