History of Fairfield County, Connecticut

" At u Town meeting of tho Inhabitants of the Town of Gr«>enwi«h< holden in tho Town House of said Gri>enwicli. on Monday the lOth l).t^ of Deci-niber, 1778, having made a choice of Bezaleel Brown for BI orator, and JattCK Fitch for Clerk, the meeting ailjuurue<l to the Mii-tiii. House, Thi^ meeting taking into serious cunsidenitlon the danger . distrt-sit of the inhabitants of this town, and the grt'at loiu and dimm. sustaliuMl by many of the giHid citizens theroof, occasiono<l chipfly b.t ' number of vile altandoned wretclK-s, who have gone uvvr t«> and joiii>". the common onemy of the Cnlted Stud's of Americ:i, MgtUm>t the laws of tills State, and the liberties and privileges of the p>od |M'nplo thervof. Thoreufion, it Is resolvi-d by this meeting, that it is, in their opinlJD, dangerous to the safety, liberties, Peace and giKnl Govi<niment of this town, that any iht^hi that hath gone over to, and Joint'd, aided, or a»- sisti'd the roninion *-iiemy of the I'tiilM States, or taken Pndection under thorn to r^nuiin In this town, or to return lo it or over be cnpable of ob- tAiuing any settlement In It. Ile^hdvi^nl, that it is the opinion of tbli meeting that tho authority and solM^^tmen t»ko all pro|>er and legal slop* to free the town of all such vilo Aliscreants. Further the town then votedfor Capt. Sylvftuup Mend to bo Barrack-Master for the year ensuing. For Mciwrs. Sylvanus 3lead, Isaac Howe, lleuben Rundall, Abraliom Mead, Josiah Ferris, Matthew Mtwl, E^lmuml Slead, to be tho Conunitteo of Safety." *' At a special town-meeting, etc., on tlie 12th day of August, 1783, the town voted for Benjamin Mead, E*i<j., to be their moderator,'* etc. GREENWICH. 373 "Tlif town t;ikin;j; iiitu consMeriiticii tlio 'listn-ss tu wliicli tin- iiihub- itntits wcri_' rt'iliiceii liy tlie war-ring ami plnink-i id^ of the t'nc-iiiy, iiml tilt; constantly quaitciing of trunps for tlie (IcfiMirc of tliis State in the tuwn during the hite war willi Great BritaJTi am) the great injury iloni* thereliy, and that it was brought to tlie town chiiing the course of a war nndertaken for the defence and security of the I'lunnion liheiiies of tlie State in which it was nnderstotid and expected that tin- wlnde body sluuild bear the extraordinary burden and whereas the General Assembly make a grant for the whoU- and make puynierit of a part of the damii^^cM done at Danbury accidentally thrown on any particular part and cnn.siiU'ring it is altogether just to ns, have thereupon agreed and voted that Hiiga- dier-General John Jlead be agent for the town to make use of »uch nieasurt's by nienioiial to tlie General Apsetnbly or otheiwise to oMain redress of the town giievances in this behalf and ft>r a repair of the damages to the sufferers occasioned by the war e\<'eptiiig to those siif- fercrswho are known to be inimical to the liherlies and independence of the United States of America. This meeting isadjonrned to next Free- man's meeting day in September to begin immediately aftii freeinan't* meeting is over." "At a meeting of the iTihabitant-s of the town of (Jreetiwich convenecl in town meeting September the ICth, 17s:i, The inhabitants resumed the consideration of tlie grievances jiartly <lisciissed at the preceding meeting and on reading a copy of the residve of the Honorable Gem-ral Asseuddy of this State on a memorial j)referred to Haid Assembly by the representatives of this town in May last, the Inhabitants thereby agree in the following propositions: ^"^ Finl, That the cotiinn.st-ion granted to tlie commiltei- decreed by saitl resolve does not rmpowi-r said committee to enter fully into the giiev- anccs complainei! of. and damages rlone to the inhabitants during the late war (not heretofore estinnited) as it extends only to lossi-s and dam- ages occasioned by the enemy but does reach the losses and damages oc- casioned by tliis being a garrison-town and its inhaldtants harassed and distressed by both iwirties, ** Second, That from the confidence that the inhabitants of this town have in the wisdom and justice of the Legislature of the State they are pereuaded that nothing but The misreiireseutations of some men either through ignorance of their real siiftering t^ir worse motives could have in- duced that Honorable body to appoint a contmittee with such limited powers 08 only warranted to eon^ider partUiUy a subject that ought in Justice and Kquity to be taken upon ahirgf-r st:ale, " Thirdly, That the biirden of a war can ied on for the General defence of a State whether occasioned by frienils or foes ouglit to be borne ;is eijual as possihle by the citizens at large and that unless the principle is adopted and applie<l to the sufferings of tlie inhabitants of the town they are so far from being on equal footing with the grt-ater part of their fel- hiw citizens in the State that the contrary must doom them to a specii-s of oppression iuconipatible with the equitable maxims of h'gislatiun. " FoiiHlilij, That the inhabitants of this town do not entertain the most distant thought of an exemption from such part of the public burden iis they are able to bear but when they view the present alarming situa- tion of the town for want of resources occasioned by the check put U|Ktn their industry for years pjist and the powers of Providence on their labor in jiermilting their crops of wheat on which they chietly deiiended to b.; cut off this BCiison should they under these «ircumstances be calletl upon for a collection of tlieir full proportion of the state taxes they will be re- duced to such hardships as must terminate in uucomloi table iiiin to themselves and families; " Whereuptui it is agreed and voted by the said iuhabitaut.s that Itrig.- Gen, Mead the town agent do i)ur8ue siudi means by memoiials to the General At-sembly at the ensuing October session predicleil on the fore- going Sentiments or otherwise as he may judge most eligible for the purjwse of ol'taining redress of the grievances aforesaid by the apjKdnt- ment of a judicious committee invested with such i)()wer :ls the- com- plicftted distresses of this town eviilently require or in such other way as the Hononible Legislature may in their wisdom direct." It was also "Resolved by this meeting that it is their opinion tliat the selectmen do not take bonds of any pei-sun or i)pr8ons that have gone over to the eiiftuiy f<(r the purjiuse of making said person or jK-ixong inhidiitujits of this town, or giving him or them a residence therein." j On July 12, 1784, the people, having passed tlirough ' the troubles of tlie war, and now having some oppor- ' tunity to turn their attention to other topies, met and , preferred the following solemn charges against their minister, the Rev. Jonathan Murdoek. The original eo])y of these charges is in the jHissession of Val. Thomas A. Mead, and reads as follows: " niin-ra^. At a meeting of the Church uf Chiist, in the Wot Society, holden at the House of Mr. lienjamin I'eck, in said Society, on tlie VJtli day of July, n.s4. The said church VnUd, That the A.-.so< intion of the Western District, in Fairticdd (.'ouuty, be called to m.-et on the 'J.ind Teusday of August next, at the ln»us« of ('apt. John Hobby, in said So- ciety, at 12 o'clock, at noon, then an<l there to Kuijuire into all matter of Difference and Grievance Subsisting between Mr. Jonathan Munlock, the Tastor, and the Church of Christ in this phu e, and hi giv.- their pas- toral advice thereon; and that it was also Voted th:it Amos Mead atid lienjamin Mead, Estp-s., be a Comnuttee to call the ?aid Association and to hiy all matters .>f llifferencc and Grievance before them. " rur>uant to the al'ove said apjudntment take leave to offer the fol- low iiig matten* of fact as the cause of the Difference and (Ji ievances svib- sisting between the saiil Church atul the said Psistor, — viz. : "1st, with liespect to his the said Pastor's public performances as a Minister of the (iospel in this place. " 'Jd, with Respect to Ids conduct since he was settled in the Woi ke of theininistry in this place. " 1st, as to the first, it is the opinion of this chuicli tliat the said psis- torhath not followed tlie apostolick advice of Studying to nuike him- s. If approval. Rightly dividing the word of truth, etc.— for instance, in a discourse fnim the i;ith chapter of Luke and the 24th verse, 'Strive to enter in at the straight gate, for I say unto you that many will seek to enter in and shall not be able.' In which discourse he said that stiiving and seeking meant the sanu* thing, and attempted to prove it. In an- other sermon against opju'ession and high prices, he observed that it was the <rryiijg sin of the land, for which the judgments of tiod were on the land; and in the dose observed that everybody had gone into it. so that souu- nnist practice it, and couhl nut live without it. He has lately in two sermons attempted to desciiite Evangelical Repent:iuer, and did it in these wuuls, vi/,.. that it consisted in an unfeigned sorrow for sin A; sir;- cell- intention tu lor>ake it. There are marty others that might be mentioned. "2iuul. His genei-al mode of ju-oof has not been taken fiom the .S'-riji- ture or Itciison of things, IJut that he luis hejird so, that he believes it, and that he verily believes it. ";id. That he dwells on general heads and does not ile^.-nd into par - ticulai's, or adapt them to the Consciences of the heaieis; but st> lie- liveis himself that it hath been fretpiently observed by his hearers that a pel-son ndght be a Deist, & not be offended, but join with him. "SecoU'lIy, with Respect to his conduct since he was settled in tlie work of the mirdstry in this placf. " 1st. That soon after he was Installed in tins place he began b> enter into a multiplicity of Business, and wickedly neglected his study, and h;is ctuitiiiiu'd so to do to this time.