The New Hampshire Gazette And Historical Chronicle

The following Dispute between Col. Moulton and Capt. Swett, we hope, will be carried on, to the Satisfaction of the Parties, and the Public, to whose Tribunal the Appeal is made: and likewise be of no Disadvantage to the Publishers, they having received Some Earnest of what shall accompany its Continuance, which is more convincing to them of its Necessity, than the publishing the nicest Piece of Criticism, or the most elaborate Performance, or politest Discourse, with the finest turn'd Periods could be without such an Earnest.

TO THE PUBLIC.

As Colonel Moulton hath industriously reported, that he hath offered the most compassionate Proposals to alleviate my present Misfortunes, and by his insinuating misrepresentations hath much exposed me to the Censure of the Public--I am bound in Justice to myself and my distressed Family to deny, that he has ever offered me any other Terms than such as are utterly inconsistent with the Principles of Honor or Friendship; and as a Specimen of his last and best offer ever made me, the following Letter which he wrote to Capt. Stoodley, to be communicated to me will suffice to convince the Public of his Artful and cautious Proposals for a Reconciliation.

Hampton, Dec. 7th 1767.

Capt. Stoodley,

Since I saw you last at your House, I have tho't much upon the bad Situation in which Capt. Swett is--I can truly say, I have no Inclination that he should remain in close Goal, notwithstanding his ill Treatment to me, both in Words and Actions. If there can be any Way found out to get him released--I have considered upon what you proposed with respect to letting him come out to try him, and see how he will behave, and if bad, I might immediately take and confine him again; you said you wou'd be bound for him, that he should not do me any Damage--If he would behave civilly I wou'd willingly consent he should come out of that doleful Place (the Prison) and let him go about his own Business, therefore I take this Opportunity to make the following Proposals, which are different from what I have heretofore made, namely, I don't insist upon any sort of an Acknowledgement from him--You said you was satisfied if he was to come out that he would behave properly as one Neighbour ought to behave to another--- therefore I reposing Trust and Confidence in your Belief in this particular, will consent that he may immediately be taken out of Goal, and not be held there on Account of the Execution which I have against him; for as I told you before, and so say now, I did not design ever to have asked or demanded any Thing of him or John Chace for the Ballance of the Execution by which Capt. Swett is now held in Goal, had he not interrupted and plagued me about the Mill which I was put in Possession of, which was the only Reason I had the Execution served. My other Proposal to you was, to give him a Discharge from the Execution he is now held in Goal for by me, provided he would quit Hampton from living in it. I now relinquish that Proviso, and say, that so long as he behaves well, I have no Objection to his living in Hampton Town or Hampton Falls, but this I must say, I shan't consent for him nor Family to live any longer in that House, or on that Place which was delivered to me by Execution, being the same House his Wife and Family now lives in; for if I was to consent to that, I think it would open a Door for further Disputes and Quarrels, therefore I would by no Means consent to that: but in Case he has no convenient House to move his Family in, I will consent he may move them into a good House of mine in Hampton Falls, about a Mile from the Meeting House, viz. the House that I bought of Benjamin Hillyard, Son of Benjamin Hillyard deceased, or if he don't like that, I will procure him some other House that shall be convenient for him and his Family, and will not ask him any Rent---This is what offers from

Sir, Your humble Servant,

Jonathan Moulton

N. B. If you please you may communicate this to Capt. Swett, or if you think best, to deliver the Substance of it by Word of Mouth: you will act your own Judgment upon it.

Before I make my observations on the foregoing Letter, I think it necessary to state the Grounds of our Disputes, and the Consequences resulting therefrom, very fatal to me and my injured Family.

Col. Moulton sued out a Writ of Damages against me, and one Mr. John Chace, for a supposed Burning his Barn and riotously assembling before his House, and putting him in Fear of his Life, and occasioning thereby great Expences to him in supporting a Watch, to defend him and his Substance.

The Action was commenced and prosecuted; at the Inferior Court, where we made no Defence, but gave up the Case; and defended it at the Superior Court, and there recovered our Costs; from which Judgment he appealed to the Governor and Council, where to my surprize he recovered against us jointly £253 Lawful Money Damages, for his Expences in defending his Person and Property, but acquitted us of the supposed Burning. It was Col. Moulton's Duty to put me under Bonds of the Peace if he imagined I meditated any Injury to him, and in that Case, he would have secured all the Province in his Favour against me, and if I could not have procured him Bondsmen, I must have been confined, so that as he did not avail himself of his legal Privileges at first, he should never have had any Benefit from those Laws which he had so slighted. Upon this Judgment he took out Execution, which when the Sheriff came to serve, and demanded of me to chuse a Person to apprize the Estate, which Moulton designed to extend. I told him I had no Estate, but offered my Person in Execution, which he refused, and said he must extend such Lands as Col. Moulton showed him as my Estate, and accordingly levied his Execution on the Estate which I had sold to one Mr. Pottle, and the same was valued at £142 Lawful Money, which is worth £300 at least-- He then got Security of Mr. Chace for £60, and now holds me in Prison for the Residue: thus it appears, supposing the Estate which he has served his Execution on, had really been my own, he seeks to oblige me to pay three Quarters of the whole supposed Damages he has recovered.--This is the Situation of our Dispute.

-I shall now take some Notice of the aforementioned Letter, and to save Time, I will pass by his precious Marks of Friendship, in releasing me from my present Confinement, as I esteem the Terms unworthy my own, much more the Public Notice: but shall only say, that Real Friendship is a Passion that does not belong to his Character. but if he thinks otherwise, I would recommend it to him to consider, it is dangerous to rely too much on our own Opinion, and that some Men, like False Glass, represent their Complexion better than Nature hath made it, and as they are not fond of discovering their own Deformities, their Interest too frequently suborns their Reason, and thereby makes them incapable of judging when they most expose themselves.--From the aforesaid State of Facts, its evident Col. Moulton has a plentiful Share of that Revenge, which he attributes to me, and has carried it to so great an height that he is now wretched uneasy, & afraid of a Return, even tho' he has the more immediate Object of it in close Confinement.

Thus Providence causes the Votaries of this Passion to be their own Executioners, and thus the Punishment falls upon themselves, either in Fact or Expectation; but now let me pray Col. Moulton to quiet his Fears, & compose himself to a conscientious Regard to the Duties we all owe to Mankind. and wherein either of us have done amiss, let us do so no more--And on my Part I will venture to fall a Sacrifice to the Indignation of the Public, a Tribunal I am now appealing to, and whose Censure I dread equal with Death, if ever I do him an Injury.

I never was or would be guilty of gratifying this Passion on my most obdurate Enemy, as I despise and abhor such Principles: but when Men fear where no fear is, and are daily under the stinging Remorse of Conscience, let them esteem this Fear the Chastisement of Heaven, and a loud Call for them to REPENT. Colonel Moulton offers me one of his Houses, if I will move my Family out of that they now live in at Hampton, and which belongs to Mr. Pottle, and that they shall live therein without Rent: How long? not a Word of that; but we have all the Reason in the World to suppose, that no sooner than we had got into his House, we should soon be ferreted out again: Can we expect otherwise from a Man whose tender Mercies we have experienced to be a Repetition of Cruelties. He writes, he never designed to take any more from Chace or myself if I had not opposed his using the Mill -- very good Reasons may be given therefor, he thought he had got an Estate for £142 from me which is worth £300, and £59 from Mr. Chace; so that he would take to himself the Credit of giving us £60 Lawful Money, when in fact he had already got from us near double the Execution against us. If ever Col. Moulton entertained a tender Thought for me or my distressed Family, I heartily thank him for it, but his Conduct to me in every Case convinces me to the contrary, especially since he has put another Family into the House with my Wife, on purpose to aggravate my Misfortune; I esteem all of a Piece, and I can with Truth say, I never received a Favour of him in my Life; nor did I ever do or design to do him an Injury since I knew him--thus much is evident,- he has ruined me and Family and I hope I may be the last--I neither expect or desire any Favour from him--I leave my Cause to the Supreme Disposer of all Things, and one who can best judge for my Innocence-- I now Challenge Colonel Moulton publickly to tell the real Offers he has ever made me, without concealing the Clogs with which such Offers were made-- I must leave him; and Charge him with ruining me and my Family.---

I am, the Public's Devoted humble Servant.

JONATHAN SWETT.