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The Founders of Canterbury

C. B. Adderley, Esq

page 56

C. B. Adderley, Esq.

My Dear Sir,

—I have a long letter from Godley, who desires that I will write to you in case anything should occur to me in the way of suggestion with respect to the Canterbury Charter.

He says that Lord Grey's objection is likely to be the jealousy and aspirations of other colonies. Verily, other colonies will be envious and importunate, if the government of Canterbury should be local and applicable to other colonies. But if it resembled the old government of Maryland and Pennsylvania, it would not be applicable to other colonies. If Lord Grey will give a charter, constituting, as the charters of Penn and Baltimore did, a subordinate monarchy, with representative institutions, other colonies will not ask for that. It may be asked for by new colonizing bodies, wishing to found a colony; but the old colonies will deem it inapplicable to them; aud though they may envy Canterbury its possession, and regret that their governments were not founded originally on that plan, they will not ask for a form of government of which an essential condition is an eminent English family holding in perpetual succession the office of subordinate and merely local sovereign.

The proposal of this form of government, therefore, is not open to Lord Grey's supposed objection: and it would be by far the best form of government for Canterbury and colonizing objects.