Possibly, as they dislik'd my late
intimacy with the members of council, who had join'd the governors
in all the disputes about military preparations, with which the House
had long been harass'd, they might have been pleas'd if I would
voluntarily have left them; but they did not care to displace me
on account merely of my zeal for the association, and they could
not well give another reason.
Indeed I had some cause to believe that the defense of the country
was not disagreeable to any of them, provided they were not requir'd
to assist in it. And I found that a much greater number of them
than I could have imagined, tho' against offensive war, were clearly
for the defensive. Many pamphlets pro and con were publish'd
on the subject, and some by good Quakers, in favour of defense,
which I believe convinc'd most of their younger people.
A transaction in our fire company gave me some insight into their
prevailing sentiments. It had been propos'd that we should encourage
the scheme for building a battery by laying out the present stock,
then about sixty pounds, in tickets of the lottery. By our rules,
no money could be dispos'd of till the next meeting after the proposal.
The company consisted of thirty members, of which twenty-two
were Quakers, and eight only of other persuasions.
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