might seem to require the looting of his ancestral mansion by a Boston
mob. In 1771, at the time of his accession to the governorship, Mr.
Hutchinson was therefore of opinion that "there must be an abridgment of
WHAT IS CALLED English liberty."

The liberty Thomas Hutchinson enjoyed least and desired most to have
abridged was the liberty of being governed, in that province where he
had formerly been happy in the competent discharge of official duties,
by a self-constituted and illegal popular government intrenched in the
town of Boston. In a letter which he wrote in 1765 but did not send, he
said:

"It will be some amusement to you to have a more circumstantial account
of the model of government among us. I will begin with the lowest
branch, partly legislative, partly executive. This consists of the
rabble of the town of Boston, headed by one Mackintosh, who, I, imagine,
you never heard of. He is a bold fellow, and as likely for a Masaniello
as you can well conceive. When there is occasion to burn or hang
effigies or pull down houses, these are employed; but since government
has been brought to a system, they are somewhat controlled by a superior
set consisting of the mastermasons, and carpenters, etc., of the town of
Boston. When anything of more importance is to be determined, as opening
the custom-house on any matter of trade, these are under the direction
of a committee of the merchants, Mr. Rowe at their head, then Molyneaux,
Soloman Davis, etc.: but all affairs of a general nature, opening of
the courts of law, etc., this is proper for a general meeting of the
inhabitants of Boston, where Otis, with his mob-high eloquence, prevails
in every motion, and the town first determine what is necessary to be
done, and then apply either to the Governor or Council, or resolve that
it is necessary for the General Court to correct it; and it would be a
very extraordinary resolve indeed that is not carried into execution."

This was in 1765. In 1770, the matter had ceased to be amusing, for
every year the model government was brought to a greater perfection,
so that at last the Town Meeting, prescriptively composed of certain
qualified voters and confined to the determination of strictly local
matters, had not only usurped all the functions of government in the
province, which was bad enough, but was completely under the thumb
of every Tom, Dick, and Harry who might wish to attend, which was
manifestly still worse. "There