ommissioners, together with the
statements and pretensions of the Massachusetts Bay Court, the King
might have employed ships and soldiers to enforce his just and
reasonable commands, or have cancelled the Charter, as the conditions of
its continuance had not been fulfilled, and have established
Massachusetts Bay Plantation as a Royal colony; but he was advised to
adopt the milder and more forbearing course of giving them opportunity
of answering directly the complaints made against them, and of
justifying their acts and laws. He therefore, in the Royal letter given
above, dated April 6, 1666, required them within six months to send five
of their number to England to answer and to disprove if they could
complaints made against them, and to furnish proof of the professions
and statements they had made in their address and petition. They could
no longer evade or delay; they were brought face to face with the
authority of King and Parliament; they could adduce nothing but their
own assertions in their justification; facts were against their words;
they adopted their usual resource to evade all inquiry into their laws
and acts by pleading the immunity of their Charter, and refused to send
representatives to England. They wished the King to take their own words
alone as proofs of their loyalty to the Crown and equity to their
fellow-colonists. In place of sending representatives to England to meet
their accusers face to face and vindicate their acts, they sent two
large masts, thirty-four yards long, which they said they desired to
accompany with a thousand pounds sterling as a present to his Majesty,
but could get no one to lend them that sum, for the purpose of thus
expressing their good-will to the King, and of propitiating his favour.
Their language of adulation and profession was most abject, while they
implored the Royal clemency for refusing to obey the Royal commands.
Their records state that "11, 7mo., 1666, the General Court assembled on
account of a signification from his Majesty requiring the Council of
this colony to send five able and meet persons to make answer for
refusing jurisdiction to his Commissioners last year; whereof Mr.
Richard Bellingham and Mr. Hawthorne to be two of them, whom he
requires, on their allegiance, to come by first opportunity. The Court
met and agreed to spend the forenoon of the next day in prayer.

"12, 7mo., 1666. The Court met and sundry elders, and spent the forenoon
in prayer.