The Price of Loyalty: The Case of Benjamin Marston

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The Price of Loyality: The Case of Benjamin Marston.
Violet Mary-Ann Showers

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THE PRICE OF LOYALTY: THE CASE OF BENJAMIN MARSTON

A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of History

This thesis is accepted. Dean of Graduate Studies

Violet Mary-Ann Showers, B.A. (Hons.) U.S.L. 1979
THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW BRUNSWICK December, 1982
[copyright] Violet Mary-Ann Showers, 1982

ABSTRACT

One of the most hotly debated issues in Loyalist history is how much the American Loyalists suffered on account of their loyalty. Some scholars have stressed that all Loyalists were victims of the revolution, and incurred irreparable losses. There are others who hold that Loyalists were opportunists who greatly exaggerated their sufferings in order to obtain favours from the British Government, and to enhance their positions in their new homes. One way of providing an objective view is to move away from general studies and examine in detail cases of individuals or small groups. To this end, this thesis undertakes to trace the life of one American Loyalist after the outbreak of the revolution, in an attempt to show how much his life was affected because of the stand he took in the great conflict.

In many respects, Benjamin Marston (1730-1792) was a stereotype Loyalist: he was from one of the most renowned families of Massachusetts; was a Harvard graduate; and a land owner and prosperous merchant. Blessed with domestic happiness, wealth, and affluence, Benjamin Marston enjoyed a tranquil and comfortable life. This was brought to a dramatic close at the onset of the revolution, when it was discovered that he was a Loyalist. From 1775, when he fled Marblehead, Massachusetts, until his death in 1792, there was one distinct, continuous thread in his life -- the desire to restore his shattered fortunes. Everything he did was geared to this end. In his determination, he pursued a chequered career in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia as sea merchant, surveyor, sheriff, and scientist. But all to no avail, he did not attain his goal. He spent most of his remaining seventeen years, after his flight from Marblehead, overcoming one tragedy after another. His greatest asset was his optimistic nature. He accommodated all his problems with an unshaken hope for a bright future, usually flavoured with a sense of humour. This bright future was never to be, but the thought kept him going, and most probably, without it he would not have survived as long as he did.

This study relies heavily on primary sources, the most valuable of which is Marston's own diary. From 1775 to 1787, he recorded, very often in great depth, even the most minute event in his life, and those occurring around him. Fortunately, largely through the efforts of the late Rev. William 0. Raymond, a pioneer New Brunswick historian, this diary has been preserved intact. Equally detailed are Marston's letters to his relatives and friends, which have also proved very useful in the writing of this thesis. Marston's own accounts are supplemented by those of contem- poraries -- his relatives, friends, and superiors -- contained in various family manuscript collections and official letter books.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My thanks are due to the following people for their contribution to the preparation of this thesis: my supervisor, Prof. Wallace Brown, for his valuable suggestions and guidance; Mrs. Catherine Hilder of the Harriet Irving Library, for helping me locate some primary source material; Mrs. Olive Cameron of the University of New Brunswick Archives, for giving me permission to use the originals of Benjamin Marston's diary; and finally, the staffs of the Manuscript Division of the Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Museum Archives, the Provincial Archives of Nova Scotia, and the Public Archives of Canada, for the assistance they rendered during my research.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 1

Chapter I. THE "SACRIFICE" BEGINS, 1775-1783 13

II. CHIEF SURVEYOR OF SHELBURNE, 1783-1784 40

III. REFUGE IN NEW BRUNSWICK, 1785-1786 73

IV. THE LAST SEARCH FOR COMPENSATION 1787-1792 105

CONCLUSION 137

APPENDIXES I. ADDRESS OF THE INHABITANTS OF MARBLEHEAD TO GOV. HUTCHINSON 145

II. COMMISSIONER PEMBERTON'S NOTES ON BENJAMIN MARSTON'S CLAIM FOR COMPENSATION 147

III. POEM COMPOSED BY BENJAMIN MARSTON 151

BIBLIOGRAPHY 152

INTRODUCTION

"He that is not a supporter of the independent States of America, in the same degree that his religious and political principles would suffer him to support the government of any other country, of which he called himself a subject, is in the American sense of the word, A TORY; and that instant he endeavours to bring his Toryism into practice, he becomes A TRAITOR."¹ This was Thomas Paine's definition of a Loyalist. Like Paine, many rebels regarded Loyalists as cowardly criminals. Their crime was loyalty to the British Crown, for which they must pay the price. The revolutionaries saw to it that they did.

Harassment of those who, in one way or another indicated their opposition to the rebellion, began even before the declaration of independence. Mob action was the most common way of punishing Loyalists. The first serious mob action occurred as early as August 26, 1765, when Thomas Hutchinson, Chief Justice and Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, and his family were attacked. Although the Hutchinsons succeeded in fleeing from the supper table into the streets, the mob practically demolished the house, and much valuable property was destroyed or scattered. As news of this event became known, people of all political persuasions everywhere in the colonies were shocked at such "savageness unknown in a civilized country." As Bernard Bailyn points out, the mob of August 26, 1765, was the most violent seen in the entire course of the revolution.² it was, however, merely the first of a series.

The riots followed basically the same pattern -- the angry crowd rushed to the houses of the "traitors," and destroyed their property. Many victims were fortunate to escape without being caught. The less fortunate who fell into the hands of the crowd were subjected to all sorts of torture. Soon, the classic Whig treatment of those Tories who were caught became "Tarring and Feathering."³ It was the most inhuman punishment the revolutionaries inflicted on the Loyalists, and largely because of this fact, the British Government believed that there was no better proof of loyalty than enduring this punishment.⁴ The callous process of this punishment was described by a contemporary thus: The following is the Receipe for an effectual operation. First strip a Person naked, then heat the Tar until it is thin, and pour it upon the naked Flesh, or rub it over with a Tar Brush, quantum sufficit. After which, sprinkle decently upon the Tar, whilst it is yet warm, as many Feathers as will stick to it. Then hold a lighted Candle to the Feathers, and try to set it all on Fire; if it will burn, so much the better. But as the Experiment is often made in cold weather; it will not then succeed -- take also an Halter and put it round the Person's Neck, and then cart him the Rounds.⁵

Some punishments were usually the result of legislation or government action, although there was no unanimity on how the rebel governments should deal with the Tories. The treatment of the "traitors" varied according to time, place and circumstance. But one law common to all the States was that which required inhabitants to take oaths of allegiance to the new regime, faith in the revolution, and abjuration of George III. Those who refused to comply were penalized in various ways such as imprisonment, disfranchisement, withdrawal of legal rights, banishment and confiscation.

Thomas Jefferson recorded in his Notes on Virginia that "not a single execution for treason took place." But Jefferson's statement is wrong. There is ample evidence which shows that although the exact number of executions is not known, death constituted one of the rebel forms of punishment. There were, of course, the unofficial, mobbish lynchings. But some of the executions were legal. In January, 1777, Massachusetts passed an act which prescribed death as the punishment for "the crime of adhering to Great Britain." Pennsylvania had a "Black List" which contained the names of some 490 persons who were sentenced to death. However, in both these states, the death penalty was not always carried out, only a few Loyalists were actually led to the gallows.⁶

Although the rebel leaders were convinced that the traitors deserved to die, most, it seems, did not favour the idea of having them killed, perhaps because they were aware of the impact such a penalty would have on the revolutionary cause, especially on the opinion of outside observers. For example, George Washington in a letter to John Washington noted: With respect to the Tory, who was tried and executed by your order, though his crime was heinous enough to deserve the fate he met with, and though I am convinced you acted in the affair with a good intention, yet I cannot but wish it had not happened. . . . The temper of the Americans and the principles on which the present contest turns will not countenance proceedings of this nature.⁷

Rebel journalists were not as cautious as Washington: Whig newspapers of the period are full of accounts of executions -- a factor which has caused those scholars familiar with the sources to believe that the number of executions was indeed substantial.⁸ Whatever the exact number of executions, the important point here is that death was one of the ways in which Loyalists paid for their loyalty.

Like all conflicts of comparable magnitude, the American revolution caused a lot of mental strain. The group most susceptible to this was the Loyalists. For many, life after the outbreak of the revolution was unbearable; they had lost their property, been imprisoned, flogged, tarred and feathered, or forced to leave their homes and loved ones. Consequently, many became mad, died or committed suicide.⁹

Nevertheless, not all Loyalists ended their lives in tragedy. The degree of suffering varied. A few were fortunate enough to have been left practically undisturbed throughout the entire course of the revolution, in spite of their indicating some sort of loyalty to the Crown. This was what happened in the case of the Reverend John Tyler of Norwich, Connecticut. At the onset of the rebellion, he chose to close his church and continue holding services in his own home, rather than omit the prayer for the King. But he was not subjected to violence, imprisonment or any kind of molestation.¹⁰ Some Loyalists were smart enough to make arrangements for their property, so that after the war, they were able to easily re-possess them. One way of doing this was that used by Ward Chipman who signed over his real and personal property to his mother and sister. They were allowed to enjoy it throughout the war.¹¹

After the peace negotiations in November, 1782, instead of the promised end to confiscations and further suffering, there was ostracism, persecution, and new miseries for the Loyalists. This was especially true for New York, where until the end of the war, Loyalists had been active. Many of them decided to leave at the end of the war. Interestingly, while they were making arrangements to leave the United States, some Loyalists were planning to return to less violent areas like Connecticut, from where some happily reported that "the fierce spirit of Whigism was dead."¹² Some were glad to be back in their native land. But most of them did not return. Not that they were necessarily happier in exile; some Loyalists, until they died, did not quite adjust, and were regarded as strangers in their new homes. Ironically, this was particularly the case for those who remained in England.¹³ It is intriguing to note that some people benefited from their decision to remain loyal to Britain. This fact specifically applies to the black Loyalists. Unlike many of the white Loyalists, the blacks did not have anything to lose: they had little or no property to be confiscated; and separation from loved ones was painful, but was something that most of them were already accustomed to, given the mechanisms of slavery.¹⁴ Those slaves who ran away to join the British ranks were very willing to do so, being lured by Lord Dunmore's promise of freedom. They were not disappointed, because they began to reap the fruits of their loyalty almost immediately. To quote a runaway slave: "To escape the cruelty of my master, I determined to go to Charlestown and throw myself into the hands of the English. They received me readily and I began to feel the happiness of liberty, of which I knew nothing before."¹⁵ Unfortunately, when they got to Nova Scotia, their hopes soured as it dawned on them that liberty did not mean equality. Nevertheless, life in Nova Scotia, where they were paid -- although meagre sums -- for jobs they did, was certainly an improvement on their past life in the former colonies.

As for those who were later repatriated to Sierra Leone in 1792, they gained more than they had bargained for. Once in Sierra Leone, they preferred to call themselves Nova Scotians, and because of the preferential treatment which they received from the Directors in charge of the colony (who wanted to make them a model for future developments in Africa) they began to feel socially superior to the native Africans around them.¹⁶ The black Loyalists belong to a group often regarded as the losers of the American Revolution. But one wonders how much of a loser they were. After all, on account of their loyalty, they got what they desired most -- their freedom, something for which their counterparts in the United States had to wait another three generations.

The foregoing analysis is intended to bring out a very important point: that while it is reasonable to agree with scholars like Lorenzo Sabine and Claude Van Tyne who stress that the Loyalists suffered greatly because of their loyalty, we must not forget that the consequences of loyalty differed according to individual, group and circumstance. General studies are very valuable because of the range of issues which they encompass. Nonetheless, special case studies of groups or individuals are necessary to supplement these general studies. It is with this view in mind that I undertake the present study, which focuses on the life of an American Loyalist after the outbreak of the revolution, in order to determine the consequences of his decision to remain loyal.

Benjamin Marston, born on September 30, 1730, came from one of the renowned families of pre-revolutionary Massachusetts. His mother was a Winslow, a grand-daughter of one of the passengers on the celebrated Mayflower, which landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620. His father, a graduate of Harvard College, was one of the most prosperous merchants in Salem, Massachusetts. He was also a well known public figure. According to the Salem town records, "he was chosen representative to the general court in 1727, 28 and 29; he was High Sheriff of Essex until 1737; and was Justice of General Session and Common Pleas Courts." Upon his death in 1754, his wife and son inherited a large part of his estate including 170 acres of land in Manchester, New Hampshire, known as Marston farm. He also stipulated that part of his estate should be used for propagating the gospel among the Indians."¹⁷

Coming from such a family, there is little wonder that Benjamin Marston should spend the early part of his life in peace and comfort. He graduated from Harvard in 1749 with a law degree. After his graduation, he travelled extensively, visiting some other British colonies and some European countries.¹⁸ An important landmark in Marston's life is the year 1755, when he married Sarah Sweet of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Lured by the business prospects of that town,¹⁹ after his marriage, he decided to leave Salem and settle there. He entered into a lucrative business partnership with his brothers-in-law, Jeremiah Lee, and Robert Hooper, who was better known in Marblehead as King Hooper. Marston could not have wished for a better business partner; Hooper was certainly one of the wealthiest and most influential businessmen in Marblehead. In the 1750s and 60s, he held a virtual monopoly of the fishing industry of that town. It is recorded: "For awhile, he purchased all the fish brought into Marblehead, sent it to Balboa and other ports of Spain and received gold and silver in return, with which he purchased goods in England."²⁰

By the 1770s, through the influence of his brother-in-law, and by his own knack for business, Benjamin Marston had become a prosperous businessman in his own right. The most extensive research into Marston's life before the revolution, was done by the Reverend John Watson, a relative of Marston's. After a careful examination of the schedule of Marston's property, which he left in the possession of Watson's father, and some documents in the Marblehead town records, Watson concludes: By 1775 when he left this country, he was a very rich man; he owned a store in King Street and other stores and warehouses; and jointly with his partners -- who were his brothers-in-law -- several large ships, one of which was called the Salisbury and was in the London trade; besides other vessels. He owned a pleasant and commodious dwelling-house and much real estate and other property in Marblehead and elsewhere. He also owned a large and well-selected library, partly inherited from his father, and partly purchased for him in London.²¹

> In addition to the above, Marston himself mentioned in his claims for compensation that he owned a few Negro slaves.²²

The town records of Marblehead also show that Marston was a well-known public figure. He was appointed Moderator of town meetings fourteen times in the period 1765 to 1774. He was also a senior member of several committees which included the education committee, the committee for the relief of the poor, and the committee responsible for the construction of public buildings.²³

There is no doubt about the peaceful and prosperous life Benjamin Marston led before the rebellion. Indeed if some of his contemporaries in Marblehead had had the opportunity to write an epitaph on his gravestone, that epitaph might have been what Watson was told during his research: "he was considered by his friends and neighbours as a man of pure life and great integrity of character, active in business, energetic in public matters, hospitable and benevolent in private; and a great reader and scholar, fond of literary pursuits; and always occupying one of the most respectable positions in the society and greatly esteemed by all who knew him."²⁴

Benjamin Marston was enjoying his wealth and affluence in a sober and useful manner when the American Revolution broke out, and with it, an upheaval of all aspects of his hitherto well-led life.

Chapter I
THE "SACRIFICE" BEGINS 1775-1783

It is a year this day since I left M'hd, in which time I have seen more variety than in all my life before. I have lived in a town beseiged, on board ships -- both of war and others -- have lain in the woods, have been taken and now am in prison and not worth a groat. Oh what a sacrifice. -Benjamin Marston, 1776¹

By the dawn of the 1770s, the life of Benjamin Marston had begun to take a different turn. He was already suspected of being a Loyalist, and was beginning to feel the repercussions of his decision. His business was slowly falling as some of his townsmen began to boycott him; and frequent appointments to respectable town committees soon became for him, a thing of the past. It was quite clear that the heyday of Benjamin Marston in Marblehead was over.²

What exactly did Marston do to arouse the suspicion of his rebel townsmen? John Watson was the first researcher to suggest that Marston was an "active and outspoken" Loyalist.³ In more recent years, many other scholars have concurred with him.⁴ Unfortunately, there are no records which point to his contribution to the Loyalist cause. Unlike some Loyalists who frequently recalled their activities, Marston recorded many things in his diary, but never mentioned, not even once, his activities as a Loyalist. However, in his petition for compensation, he mentioned, for obvious reasons, that he declared his sentiments "freely and publicly in favour of the British government."⁵ It is reasonable to believe that he was in fact telling the truth. it seems that he ranked among the active Loyalists of Marblehead, and indeed Massachusetts. For one thing, he was among those Loyalists who were mentioned by name in the Banishment Act of that State. Secondly, judging from his frankness later when he became Surveyor of Shelburne, we can safely surmise that he was just as outspoken during the great debate.

Nevertheless, Marston did not prove to his townsmen that he was a Loyalist by his mouth, but by his pen -- in fact, by his mere signature. In May 1774, after enduring a substantial amount of persecution, Governor Thomas Hutchinson decided to leave the troubled colony of Massachusetts for England. On his departure, more than 200 merchants, lawyers and some other citizens of Boston, Salem and Marblehead presented him with addresses approving his administration, desiring his prosperity and expressing the wish that he would do something upon his arrival in England, to restore peace. Benjamin Marston was one out of thirty-three inhabitants of Marblehead who signed the address presented to the ex-governor from that town.⁶

As James Stark correctly points out, the importance of the addresses is out of all proportion to their apparent significance.⁷ Read today, they seem like normal farewell speeches, but for the patriots, they were clear signs of treason. The Addressers, as the signatories soon came to be known, were at once branded traitors.

What were the factors that might have prompted Marston's loyalty? Watson, who was a relative of Marston's, maintained that: "it was from no personal considerations; from no expectation of honours and rewards, or desire of rank and distinction, but simply from a deep conviction of duty, a clear sense of loyalty to the British Crown, that he gave up everything that was dear to him."⁸ But were Marston's motives that simple and selfless? Unfortunately, again, Marston himself did not clearly point out what influenced him the most to cling to Britain. We can only speculate.

Marston, like many of his kind, was conservative. He could not bear to see the old order change because he felt more comfortable within a system he was familiar with than one that might turn out to be chaotic. He had every reason to desire the continuation of the old order; after all, it was a system in which he thrived. Portions of the address to Hutchinson testify to this. In that document, the addressers lamented the fact that with the governor's departure, their prosperity was in jeopardy: this is the only way we now have of expressing to you our entire approbation of your public conduct during the time you have presided in this province and of making you a return of our sincere and hearty thanks for the ready assistance which you have at all times afforded us, when applied to in matters which affected our navigation and commerce . . . . We cannot omit the opportunity of returning you in a particular manner our most sincere thanks for your patronizing our cause in the matter of entering and clearing the fishing vessels at the custom-house and making the fishermen pay hospital money; we believe, it is owing to your representation of the matter that we are hitherto free from that burden.

Thus, among other considerations, for these favours, the addressers were sad to see Hutchinson leave, and close at his heels, a system which to a great extent, had worked to their advantage. We must not forget that Marston was one of these addressers.

There is no doubt that his choice was partly based on the odds. Until Yorktown, Marston like other Loyalists, was convinced that the rebels could not win. Britain was the most powerful nation in the world, her navy, the supreme commander of the sea. In 1776, Marston noted: What a miserable figure must such a new raised raw undisciplined, unprovided body of people make [the rebel army] when opposed to experienced veteran troops well provided with everything necessary to live in the field, and commanded by officers of a general who has acquired the knowledge and skill in the art of war by long service and by being engaged against the best troops in the world. Their infatuation is beyond all example -- God have mercy upon them and open their eyes.⁹

He also had a poor opinion of the leaders of the rebellion. They were mere puppets who did not have the experience and ability of the policy makers in the British administration. When he heard that many essential commodities were scarce and expensive in the new States, he remarked: "the new order is so chaotic, and yet this miserably deceived people are made to believe they can support an independency."¹⁰ Indeed, that was how he felt from the beginning -- the rebellion was absolutely incapable of succeeding, and Britain was bound to regain control of her colonies. Thus, the desire to stick with the superior and more orderly side seems to have been an important factor in Marston's decision to remain loyal. However, it must be emphasized that with regards to his motives, we can only surmise.

The ink was hardly dry on the parchment before the persecution of the Addressers began. Somehow, a major attack on Marston did not occur until a little over a year after the "addressing" incident. However, it is very likely that he was molested in the intervening period, because according to the town records, he had begun to dispose of some of his property. On November 24, 1775, the mob, which by that time was quite common, directed its violence at him. The immediate cause of this attack is unknown. "The crowd destroyed some parts of his house, broke open his desks, embezzled his money and notes, and carried off some of his books and accounts."¹¹ Fortunately, he escaped, but not without some difficulty. It was a cold November night and he had to flee, taking nothing with him, not even sufficient clothing.¹² He travelled all night in an open boat, and later arrived in Boston where he joined other Loyalists who had been seeking refuge at the British garrison. His wife, possibly because of the strain caused by the attack on their house and the flight of her husband, died shortly after, in the summer of 1776. From the records available, it is evident that they did not have any children.

Meanwhile, Marston tried to build up a new life for himself. In a letter to his business associates, he mentioned that he had been able to collect about [pound sterling] 250 debts since he arrived in Boston, and that he was planning a voyage to the West Indies in order to buy some goods which he would sell to the British military officers on his return.¹³ But this plan, like so many of his plans in his remaining sixteen years, did not materialize. On March 17, 1776, General William Howe received orders to evacuate Boston immediately. This disastrous turn of events had come about very suddenly. The Tories, always confident that the well-equipped British battalions would easily rout the mobbish rebel forces, were flabbergasted and completely unprepared for the personal upheaval involved in the evacuation order. Over eleven hundred of them were forced to depart with the British forces. They were sent to Halifax, where their misfortunes continued. They were faced with two immediate problems. The first was accommodation. According to reports which reached George Washington from Halifax, "the soldiers were obliged to encamp, although the ground was covered with snow, and the Loyalists had to pay six dollars for sorry upper rooms and stowed in them, men, women, and children, as thick as the hair upon their heads."¹⁴ The second problem was unemployment. The refugees were uprooted to Halifax at a time when the town was ill-prepared for their arrival. Even the pre-Loyalists themselves were encountering serious difficulties in getting jobs.¹⁵

It is not known how Marston grappled with the first problem. He does not mention in his diary or any of his letters, where he lived on arriving in Halifax. The second problem did not exist for him. It was not his intention to seek government employment. He was determined that he would rebuild his career as a businessman.

Obviously, he still had the money he had collected in Boston, because within two months, he was a share-holder in a commercial venture. This time, his partners were Dr. John Prince of Halifax and George Ervin, an English merchant. They purchased a vessel, the Earl Percy, for the purpose of engaging in the West Indian trade. By the first week of June, 1776, they were ready to embark on the first voyage. Their timing was perfect, because General Howe had just been ordered to proceed from Halifax to New York with his army, so the Earl Percy was able to get the protection of the British fleet during the first and most dangerous part of the voyage. (This danger was the result of the activities of American privateers which plied the Atlantic coast.)

The voyage was uneventful, but very long. They arrived at Roseau, the capital of Dominica, after forty days. The length of the journey marred the results of the venture, because as Marston explained, by the time they got to their destination, a great part of their cargo, which was mainly fish, was unsuitable for the market. Consequently, they made an "indifferent sale."¹⁶ Nevertheless, they acquired enough money to purchase some goods for sale, when they got back to Halifax. But this was not to happen. An American privateer, the Eagle, captured the Earl Percy only a couple of hours before they were supposed to have anchored in the Halifax harbour. Given this circumstance, it is not difficult to imagine how annoying this event must have been for Marston and his colleagues.

The Earl Percy and its passengers were taken to Plymouth, Massachusetts, on the orders of the Captain of the privateer, Elijah Freeman Paine, who was anxious to show off his prize. Marston found himself, perhaps sooner than he expected, back among his relatives and friends. But it was a sad homecoming, not the type he had hoped for. He was a prisoner. The day after their arrival, he was brought before the Committee of Safety, which decided that he should be confined to jail. That night, as he sat in his cell, he decided to describe the members of the committee, in his diary. His description shows his anger and disappointment, but more importantly, it reflects how contemptuous and sarcastic he could be -- two traits which he frequently displayed: These are the men who sent me to jail: 1. "Deacon Tory," Chairman, a true Deacon. 2. Captain Weston; he owes his existence to the very people he is now insulting. His wig and head would fill a corn basket. 3. Deacon Diamond, a pious whining body. 4. Mr. Drew, a gentleman with a ragged jacket and I think, a leather apron. 5. * * * somebody I could not see, he sat in the dark and I forgot his name. 6. Silas Bartlett, a good sort of man, made a tool to serve the purpose of the occasion. 7. Mr. Mayhew, a simpering how-do-you-do-sorry-for-your loss kind of body. 8. D. Lorthrop, one that has been handsomely and kindly entertained in my house. He can do dirty work. 9. Mr. Crosswell, a youngish looking kind of body.

¹⁷

By this time, Marston's life had taken a dramatic turn. Until his flight from Marblehead, he was a man who did not know hardship. How did he cope with this unfamiliar phase in his life? While he was still in jail, he wrote a letter to Dr. Prince assuring him that he was happy and satisfied because he was in good health, and that that was what mattered the most to him.¹⁸ But in fact, he was very depressed. What bothered him most was the restriction on his movements. He first admitted his melancholy to himself when he recorded in his diary that his enemies would not allow him to go anywhere, not even to church services. He felt that by so doing, they were treating him as if he did not have a soul, or that going to church would not do him any good. He was so frustrated, that he added that he himself was convinced that indeed going to church would not save his soul.¹⁹ A few days later, he poured his heart (in an elegant style) to a friend, Stephen Sewall: Of my present situation; Quite unlike yours, who now at ease Can ramble wheresoe-er you please, In town or out, on foot or nag on, To church, to Burdick's or the Dragon; While I poor D____ I am here confined (A state which no way suits my mind) For being -- you all know the story. A sad incorrigable Tory.²⁰

In the same letter, he admitted that it would be a great comfort to him if he saw an old friend he could chat with. He also implored Sewall to go to a certain Tom in Marblehead, and collect some of his books, because he was beginning to feel that "his intellectual ability was languishing in jail."

The American Tories have left many accounts of the cruelty of the rebels. Nevertheless, there were many occasions when the rebels proved to be very lenient. For instance, the very Committee of Safety which Marston had so sarcastically described, agreed after only a few days, that he should be transferred to the house of his bail, his cousin William Watson. The committee explained that, left to the members alone, he would have been allowed complete freedom, but that it was the wish of the people that he should be put under house arrest. This explanation was unacceptable to Marston, who knew that he was not a marked Loyalist in Plymouth. Instead, he was convinced that the continuation of his captivity was the doing of only one person -- J -- W Esq. whom he claimed, wanted to "satisfy his malice and revenge." He was so domineering, that he easily got members of the committee to do whatever he recommended.²¹ This J -- W Esq. was undoubtedly one of Marston's relatives, James Warren, who was a prominent member of the Plymouth Committee of Correspondence. He was at loggerheads with his mother's Winslow relatives. The exact cause of this enmity is not known, but the records show that whenever he had the opportunity, Warren tried to hurt his relatives. Marston was not the only one who complained. For example, Sarah Winslow, sister of Edward Winslow, once referred to Warren as "the compleatest Devil that was ever suffered to live."²² Marston was justified for suspecting his estranged cousin of wickedly prolonging his sentence.

Whatever the real reasons for his house arrest, it is quite clear that he was satisfied with the results of the new arrangement. He wrote to Dr. Prince: "I am confined to a private house, with liberty of the yard and garden. I am in perfect health and in danger of growing too fat through idleness and good living."²³ The committee also granted him some amount of freedom of movement: he was allowed to attend church services. This was such a big thing to him that he observed: "The occurrences of my life are at present so unimportant, that going to meeting has become a remarkable transaction. So that I put it down this day, I went to meeting all day and heard the Revd. Mr. Brown preach about nothing."²⁴ Another sarcastic observation, but his life was so monotonous that even a boring preacher was more than welcome.

To add to his woes, he lost his fight for the Earl Percy. As soon as he was safely in his cousin's house, he sent a letter to the Registrar of the Maritime Boats office, claiming his vessel, which had been seized by Paine, the captain of the privateer. He was advised to appoint a lawyer and take the case to court. He got a Mr. Whitmore, with whom he made a convenient agreement, by which Whitmore should be paid his fees, only if his client won the case. Unfortunately even before the trial commenced, a judge ordered that the vessel should be sold at a public auction. Even the cargo, which was non-perishable, being rum and cocoa, was not returned to Marston. In one day, he lost all he owned. His partners also lost what they had put into the venture, but unlike him, they had other business concerns. He was crushed; but he did not try to question the judge's decision. Even if he had wanted to, he was in no position, because he was just a powerless Tory in the midst of rebels. Moreover, apparently, he was told that the judge's decision was an "accident." In a letter to Capt. Paine, he said: "But if it has been owing to unavoidable accident, I have not a word to say. I shall not prosecute that matter any further, I have now no other object in view, but to obtain my liberty and return to Nova Scotia as soon as I can. "²⁵

Throughout this unpleasant period in Plymouth, there was only one thing which helped to cheer Marston up -- his hopes for a bright future. In his mind, nothing lit the future brighter, than the inevitable doom of the rebellion. Still in confinement, he followed the conflict very closely. He did not hide his delight at the reports of chaos and hardship which reached him. He kept wondering why his "deluded countrymen" should continue to fail to see the trouble they were heading for, in spite of the fact that anarchy was evident. He recorded, presumably with some hope: Salt is now 10 shillings ster. per bushel; flour about 6 dollars per cwt; woolens and linnens are scarcely to be had. Bread corn has got to a price which was hardly ever known of in times of greatest dearth, and yet there was scarcely ever better crops.²⁶

As for the morale of the rebel army, there was no question that it was no match for the invincible British army. The rebels were also aware that they had a strong force to reckon with, so they solicited and obtained the assistance of the French. When Marston heard of this, he was evidently amused because nothing seemed more remote from reality: Nay, General Washington, who moves the puppets of this place, has the effontry to give out that a French fleet and Army will be over early in the spring. A fleet from France! There will be one from the moon as soon. Strange stupidity to expect assistance from that quarter, for can it be thought that any European power who has colonies in America would lend a helping hand to form an independent state here, so large as the British colonies would make it all united.²⁷

Sound reasoning, but he failed to take into account the intrigues of international politics. Ten years later, he turned to the same page of his diary and carefully squeezed in these words: "I find in this, I was much out of my guess." Indeed, he was wrong, but that kind of reasoning helped him more than he realized, during those bleak days of his first captivity. It helped to lift up his spirits and gave him some hope for the future.

After the sale of the Earl Percy, Marston became even more anxious to return to Nova Scotia and to the protection of British authority. There was however something else which kept luring him -- a lady, a certain Eliza C. from Windsor, whom he apparently met after he arrived in Halifax. Almost every day of the month of December 1776, he recorded in his diary, how desirous he was of seeing her again.

On December 18, without his requesting it, the committee decided that his movement around Plymouth was no longer restricted. Three months later, he was asked to go to Boston to await an exchange of prisoners. While there, he could not resist seeing his beloved Marblehead again, so he made a flying visit to that town. It was a painful visit, because he learnt that nearly all of his property had been confiscated. Nonetheless, he was lucky that he left unharmed, because under the Banishment Act, he was prohibited from ever setting foot on that town.

Finally, towards the end of March 1777, he was exchanged and allowed to return to Halifax. Much of the agony of the past six months was wiped out by the sight of his Eliza C.²⁸ But unfortunately, everything was not as delightful. For one thing, he was greatly appalled at the living conditions in Halifax. After much effort, he managed to get a "dingy" room in the house of a Mrs. Lloyd at one guinea per week.²⁹

By that time, Marston had begun to adjust to his new life. In fact, it seemed as if he was beginning to enjoy it. Only a few weeks after he arrived in Halifax, he wrote to Eliza: Eliza dearest maid farewell, From you I now must part, Leave you in Halifax to dwell And ply the seaman's art; And we a very different scene Around us shall survey, You beaus in red, in brown, in green I monsters of the sea.

Monstrous indeed were some of his voyages to the West Indies. On his second voyage, he set out for St. Kitts from St. John's, Newfoundland, with a cargo of fish, but he did not make it to his destination, because after a six hour chase, his vessel, the Polly was captured by a Yankee privateer, General Gates, and for the second time, he became a prisoner. On August 30, 1777, they arrived at Boston, and he was taken on board the guard ship. The next day, by some stroke of luck, he was taken to the house of an old friend, Samuel White, as a house prisoner, just as he was in the Watson house in Plymouth. Somehow, news of his captivity reached Marblehead, and some of his former townsmen decided that it was too risky to leave such a dangerous Tory at large. They wrote to the Boston Committee of Safety expressing their feelings. In response, the committee immediately ordered Marston back to the prison ship, where he spent ten days. He does not provide much detail about his second captivity. However, after his release he wrote: "I have learned that a man may enjoy himself in prison."³⁰ From this, we may conclude that he was not treated badly.

The experiences of the past months, if anything, only served to enhance his spirit of adventure. No sooner did he arrive in Halifax, before he started making plans to resume his activities in maritime commerce. In fact, it is very unlikely that he even bothered to seek any other kind of employment. The odds were in his favour; during that period there was a considerable flow of trade between Newfoundland and the West Indies, so he was easily employed as a super cargo by his former business partner, Dr. Prince, and a Halifax merchant, Mulberry Holmes, both of whom were very involved in the West Indian trade.

Between October 1778 and April 1782, Marston undertook about eight voyages, all of which were, to say the least, very hazardous. On one occasion he almost suffocated to death because of a fire on the deck of the ship.³¹ The sea was infested with prize-hungry Yankee privateers, who Marston noted, chased them during all their voyages. He and his crew ran out of luck on February 6, 1780, when they fell into the hands of the Ariel. Consequently, Marston became a prisoner for the third time in less than five years.³² It is quite clear from the entries in his diary that this third jail sentence was by far the most unpleasant. The prison, which this time was in Philadelphia, was very badly heated and its inmates were poorly fed. However, their problems were considerably alleviated by the generosity of the citizens of that area, particularly the Quakers, who took them "fresh meat, vegetables, fruits, milk, eggs and clothes."³³ Assistance also came for Marston from another source: an old friend, an Irishman, called Collins. As soon as Collins learned that his friend was in jail, he started to send him food. When he realized that the chances for a quick exchange of prisoners were slim, he decided to bail him. According to the new arrangement, he was granted parole and ordered to live in Collins' house in New York until an exchange was arranged.

The joy of getting out of the miserable jail, was slightly marred by the fact that when he arrived in New York, he was informed that their vessel and all its cargo had been auctioned. But fortunately for him, in spite of the difficulties he encountered in his voyages, he had been able to raise some money, with which he bought his own vessel, the Britannia. Another joyful aspect of his sojourn in New York was his brief reunion with some relatives and friends, among whom was one of his favourite cousins, Lieut. Col. Edward Winslow, then muster-master of the Loyalist troops.³⁴

The difficulty which confronted Marston during the last of his commercial voyages, greatly surpassed in seriousness any of the other problems he had encountered since his flight from Marblehead. The experiences were so grim, that it is a miracle that he survived at all. In view of this, it is appropriate to discuss that voyage in some depth.

In September 1781, Marston set out from Halifax in his newly acquired vessel, for Annapolis Royal. His spirits were dampened when he arrived at the neglected garrison town. The endurance of the inhabitants baffled him: the town lacked such facilities as candles and clean water, and the inhabitants were under constant threats of pillage and abuse from the raiding parties which plied their shores.³⁵ Nevertheless, for the sake of trade, Marston put up with the inconvenience. For about two months, he worked very hard, selling off the goods he brought with him, and packing his new cargo which was made up of grain, apples and cider. Finally, on December 1, he set out from Annapolis Royal for Halifax, pleased to be relieved of the miseries of living in that town. Moreover, he was departing with a huge cargo, which meant good business. But he did not know what was in store for him.

A winter gale was sweeping through the coast of Nova Scotia. The Britannia, weakened by its former days of whale chasing under its former owners, could not take the storm, and in no time, it started to leak. For several hours the crew labored fruitlessly to stop the leakage. Eventually, they decided that the vessel must be relieved of some of the weight, so overboard went the grain, apples and cider which Marston had so strenuously acquired. But even this sacrifice was to no avail; the storm consistently grew more severe, and some strong northeastern winds finally drove the vessel into ice near Cape Canso. As a result, Marston and his men found themselves trapped in an uninhabited region. They quickly recognized that the chances of being rescued were remote, so they abandoned the Britannia and attempted to cover the remaining 130 miles to Halifax on foot. By this time, Benjamin Marston was no longer the contented Harvard graduate and businessman he used to be; he was now an almost regular host to hardship and adventure. Nevertheless, the ordeal of the wreck was more than he could cope with.

Treking 130 miles in winter was a dreadful task which was not made any easier by an acute food shortage. Three days after they abandoned the Britannia, the men, particularly Marston, who was by far the oldest, began to feel very weak, having run out of food. Very reluctantly, they slaughtered Tiger, the "faithful" dog who was with them on that fateful voyage.³⁶ But the small amount of Tiger's flesh which he ate, was still not sufficient to revive Marston, so he decided that his men should continue the journey and leave him to die in the isolated Indian hut which they had just discovered. His men very unwillingly left him on December 28. Far too weak to move, he just lay quietly and watched as 1781 made its exit, hoping that he would follow. But even before the end of the year, he was rescued by a group of Indians, whom his men had met after they left him.³⁷

Until the middle of January, he lived with an Indian family who showed him much kindness. He proceeded from the Indian community to Country Harbour where he built himself a hut and tarried there until the end of February. From there he went to Chedabucto (now Guysboro) and stayed with an English family for a few weeks. Finally, towards the end of March, he boarded a crowded shallop which reached Halifax after a ten day journey.

After his third captivity, Benjamin Marston worked very hard to gather his shattering fortunes. But the wreck robbed him of all the fruits of his labour. He arrived in Halifax looking like "Robinson Crusoe," thin, ragged and almost penniless. In his hand, he held only one thing -- his journal, which itself is adequate testimony of the ordeal of the period, being stained, blotted and the ink pallid from freezing.

Possibly because of the vivid reminders of his last adventure at sea, Marston did not at once seek employment in maritime commerce. Instead, for the first time since arriving in Halifax from Boston, he made efforts to acquire a military position. In April, 1782, he sent two applications to New York requesting the position of muster-master of the provincial corps in Nova Scotia, because he was informed that the incumbent was planning to retire.³⁸ Unfortunately, his letters were not even answered. Nevertheless, in August of the same year, he performed some military services as a volunteer. Reports reached Halifax that year, that the fort at St. George's Island, in Halifax Harbour, was being threatened with an invasion. Therefore, for want of something to do, Marston joined other volunteers who accompanied the troops to defend the fort. However, it proved to be a false alarm. Marston was very happy for this, because as he explained, the whole expedition was a farce. For example, when the alarm went off, most of the men were not in their positions; the men were not supplied with sufficient provisions; and their weapons were too old. Therefore, Marston was convinced that if indeed there had been an attack, the fort would have fallen very easily.³⁹

Soon after his return from St. George's Island, Marston realized how precarious his very existence had become. For many days, he could not even buy food, because he only had one guinea which nobody would take because "there was a large slice of its edge cut off."⁴⁰ Most likely driven by desperation, he started to hunt for business offers again. For a while, the prospects looked good, but ended in two big disappointments. The first time, he was assured that he would be put in charge of a brig owned by his former employers, Prince and Holmes. However, these men were offered good money for the vessel, so even before Marston could start the job, they disposed of it. The second big disappointment came after Holmes had actually engaged him to go to Liverpool, England, to attend to some matters relating to a brig. Unfortunately, the people with whom he was supposed to have discussed the business, came to Halifax and that immediately ended the contract. All the same, Holmes was generous enough to give him some "odd job" for which he was very thankful, because it enabled him to get "a little pocket money."⁴¹ As 1782 slipped away, so did Marston's fortunes. Life was unbearably monotonous. He recorded: "My time lies very heavy on my hands -- having nothing to do. For employment -- I walk, when tired with that, write."⁴² It does not seem that he had any friends to keep him company, strangely enough, not even his Eliza. There is no indication of what might have happened to her, he just stopped mentioning her in his diary. His journal became his closest friend. Every single day of the last four months of that year, he recorded all kinds of details: all the ships which came and left; the progress of the war in the United States; how the prisoners were treated by both sides; the Halifax government and its shortcomings; prices of basic commodities; and even trivial occurrences like a quarrel between the wife of the governor and the wife of the naval commander.

No reader of his diary and correspondence can fail to see that throughout this period of woes, he remained optimistic. He once remarked: "I have one thing to always thank Heaven for, my hopes do not fail me."⁴³ Many people in that position might have died or fallen prey to some sort of mental ailment; but he survived. Probably what saw him through, was this philosophy which he maintained, he learnt to cling to: "Good Humour is a most effectual ingredient to human Happiness -- He who is prospered of it can not be quite wretched -- in the most untoward situation of human affairs -- in the most forlorn circumstances of life, a good humoured mind will find something to be pleased with -- something to be glad at -- it will ever take a pleasure in accommodating itself to its present circumstance."⁴⁴ Helpful as this philosophy might have been, it did not prevent him from looking back and yearning for the past. Many of his poems, particularly one which he wrote while he was stranded at Saint John, clearly reflect this.⁴⁵

In a most pitiful condition, he watched the new year, 1783, move towards the end of the first quarter. Writing to his sister Lucia, he said: "My life has changed so much, Heaven knows what is to become of me. For my own part, I can't guess how my present dark prospect will end, maybe my life will soon be like it was in M'hd."⁴⁶ Indeed he could not guess correctly, because if he had been able to, he would have known then, that his troubles had just begun.

Chapter II
CHIEF SURVEYOR OF SHELBURNE 1783-1784

The Chief Surveyor's job is a hard service and tho I make good wages, tis all earned -- the heat in the woods and the black flies are almost insupportable, and Shelburne is composed of such a mixed multitude that it will take me all the rest of my life to get myself well accommodated to their ways and habits of acting and thinking.

Benjamin Marston, 1783¹

As the revolutionary war came to a close, many of the displaced Loyalists became convinced that they would never be able to live among the triumphant rebels in their new republic. Instead, they preferred to settle elsewhere under King George. Accordingly, in 1781 some of them living in New York approached the governor of Nova Scotia, Sir Andrew Hammond, who suggested a pioneer settlement at Port Roseway on the northeast arm of the Bay of Fundy. About 120 heads of families got together and formed the Loyalist Association "for the purpose of moving and settling at Port Roseway." In 1782, with the firm support of Sir Guy Carleton, the associates sent two delegates, Joseph Pynchon and James Dole, to acquaint John Parr, the new governor of Nova Scotia, with their plans. Parr was even more enthusiastic than his predecessor. So cordial was the reception of the delegates by the governor and council, and so favourable were the statements regarding the natural resources of the region, that one of the delegates returned to New York filled with optimism and a determination to speed up the preparations for departure. His enthusiasm was so contagious that the membership of the association doubled within a short time. The associates had no misgivings whatsoever about their decision to leave: they were convinced that their arrival in Port Roseway would make significant changes in the history of Nova Scotia. To quote them: "Port Roseway would be transformed into an ornament in the province of Nova Scotia."²

The vanguard of the Loyalist influx arrived in Port Roseway harbour on May 4, 1783. In July, the governor visited the new settlement and much to the displeasure of the settlers, changed its name to Shelburne. They were displeased because the town was named after the British minister who had so unfairly dealt with the Loyalist question during the peace negotiations. Parr entertained great hopes for the settlement, convinced that one day it would be the most flourishing town in the whole province.3 The settlers themselves harboured similar hopes, and they tried very hard to make them a reality. Thus, within the remarkably short space of one year, the wilderness of Shelburne became a thriving city. Unfortunately, it declined just as rapidly.⁴ Benjamin Marston features prominently in this history of Shelburne because he occupied what is perhaps the most crucial position in any infant settlement, that of chief surveyor.

At the close of the war, Edward Winslow, formerly muster-master-general of the Loyalist forces in New York, came to Nova Scotia as the military secretary to Henry Fox, the commander in chief of the forces in that province. With such an honourable position, it is not surprising that unlike his cousin Marston, he did not encounter any major difficulty upon his arrival. In fact, by his own admission, the reception he got was far beyond his sanguine expectations. His influence with the governor was so tremendous that he happily claimed: "There's not a man from this quarter that presumes to solicit from head quarters without my recommendation."⁵

There is no indication of when Marston began to solicit his cousin's assistance in acquiring a job. But one thing is clear; he did not ask specifically for the job of surveyor, because when Winslow made an application on Marston's behalf, the latter did not even know.⁶ He was surprised when on April 21, 1783, he received a letter from the surveyor-general of Nova Scotia, Charles Morris, requesting him to leave Halifax for Port Roseway, at the head of a surveying team.⁷ He was given three assistants -- Messrs. Mason, Lyman and Tully. It is instructive to note that Marston never acquired a formal training in surveying, and at that time, had no experience. Such was the influence of Edward Winslow.

Winslow's patronage did not stop there. He also cajoled Parr into appointing Marston as one of five magistrates of the new settlement. Winslow claimed that his cousin was the chief magistrate, in his own words: "a kind of Governor-General."⁸ However, there is no evidence that the appointment was so prestigious. In any event, almost overnight, Marston who just a few months before was complaining of idleness, found his hands full.

It did not take him long to realize that the settlement he was employed to survey was a total wilderness. Nevertheless, he was impressed, noting that the site was not as bad as he had anticipated.⁹ The potential of the region seemed limitless. Within a day, he observed that the soil was very fertile, there was an abundance of cod fish and lumber, and the harbour was very good.¹⁰ The night after his arrival, he wrote to his sister and brother-in-law in the United States, telling them that he had found an ideal place to begin to gather the loose threads in his life. He would find time off his work and make good use of the resources of the region by engaging in commerce.¹¹ But, of course, by then he did not know what the work really involved, and he had not met the settlers. For these two factors, his work and the settlers were to be the two main sources of persistent misery throughout his fifteen month stay in Shelburne.

Before Marston left Halifax, the Surveyor-General gave him instructions pertaining to his duties and a copy of the plan of the town, which had just been approved by the governor. According to the instructions, Marston, after consulting with representatives of the settlers, should choose the exact site and proceed to lay out the town. It should consist of five long parallel streets, crossed by others at right angles, each square containing several lots, so that each associate might be given a town and water lot, and also a fifty acre farm lot. With the supervision of the chief engineer, Lieut. Lawson, Marston was also required to lay out crown lands that were to be reserved for public buildings such as barracks, wharves and hospitals.¹²

That Marston was a versatile person cannot be denied. For example, he did not have any formal training or experience in navigation when he captained some vessels during his adventurous voyages to the West Indies. But in spite of this versatility, the difficulties he encountered in his work first started with his lack of experience. He was not ashamed to admit to Winslow how confused he was: "I'm almost dinn'd to death for Town lots and Water lots, for 50 acre and 500 acre lots. My head is so full of Triangles, Squares, Parallelograms, Trapezias, and Rhombidses that the corners do sometimes almost put my eyes out."¹³ In a similar manner, he explained to Lucia Watson that he would not be able to correspond with her as frequently as he used to, because he was "engaged in an unfamiliar job which was causing him much difficulty."¹⁴

If he ever thought that working on land, as opposed to the turbulent sea, meant an end to danger, he soon found out he was mistaken. On one occasion, he fell to the ground almost unconscious because of the heat and the black flies in the woods; he and the men in his surveying team were once chased by a female bear; and on three occasions, heavy rain trapped him in the woods all night causing him to feel some "terrible pain in his chest due to over-exposure."¹⁵

The early arrivals numbered over 2,000 white civilians, 1,000 blacks and 800 disbanded soldiers; and Marston was supposed to lay out lots for each. It became customary for him to return to his tent at the end of the day and find bundles of applications for land grants, waiting for him. This made him realize that his new job involved an impossible task, that of pleasing everybody.¹⁶ The settlers were not only many, they were also impatient, and among them, were many speculators. Within two months, Marston observed that many of the early arrivals were trying to acquire large tracts of land with a view of investing when the other groups of settlers arrived.¹⁷

Consequently, the Chief Surveyor's job became so demanding that Marston had to work every day (Sundays included) from dawn to dusk. He complained many times in his diary that the job prevented him from attending to his own personal business. For example, he started building a house for himself some time in the middle of 1783, but was unable to complete it before he left Shelburne.

The attitude of the Nova Scotia government, or rather Governor Parr alone, only helped to make the job even more difficult. Marston was always short of vital instruments and deputy surveyors. Charles Morris, his immediate boss, was fully aware of this. He explained to Marston that the chief surveyors of the other Loyalist settlements at Annapolis, Digby and Guysborough were experiencing the same problems, but as surveyor-general, he could do nothing to alleviate the situation because the governor had warned him not to spend any more money on new instruments or appointing deputy surveyors.¹⁸ The reason the governor gave for this, was that the government was "spending too much money on the Loyalists who in turn behaved as if because of their loyalty the government owed them everything."¹⁹ The governor was so irritated by this Loyalist attitude that it got to the point where he became reluctant to sign the statements of account approving the surveyors' salaries. He decided the people must pay the surveyors themselves for laying out their lands. Again Morris was convinced that the governor was not treating the surveyors fairly. But it seems that he was afraid to question the governor's action. Instead he wrote to Marston: I am really at a loss to know how to conduct myself. I think it would be advisable for you all to address the Governor, and that some of the principal people should join you in remonstrating in the best possible manner, showing that it is impossible for your continuing to carry on this business unless some monies are forwarded to pay you; that the bulk of the people are utterly unable to pay for the laying out of their land.²⁰

James Macdonald, one of Parr's biographers, claims that the Loyalists have not given full justice to John Parr for his ceaseless exertions during their arrival. He further claims that the governor "was an eminently practical man, willing to avail himself of the advice and experience of others especially his advisors."²¹ But in the present study of Marston's career in Shelburne, we discover evidence which points to the contrary. One of the things which bothered Marston most was the governor's persistent interference and obstinacy. In July, 1783, the governor sent a circular letter to Surveyors in which he declared: Nothing is intended to you, and these unfortunate refugees lately arrived in this province, but the greatest honour founded upon principles of justice with wishes to alleviate as much as is in our power the distress brought upon those people by their loyalty. At the same time, their agents or surveyors shall not point out to the Governor what shall be done, or what should have been done before they left New York.²²

Theoretically, Marston and Lawson, the chief engineer, were given the mandate to select and lay out Crown lands in Shelburne. In practice, however, it was the governor who chose most of the sites. As some letters in the Surveyor-General's Letterbook clearly show, there were many instances when Parr's choice of Crown lands interfered with those already laid out for the settlers. In such cases, the governor left everything to Marston, instructing him to apologize to the people concerned and find "becoming" solutions. In this way, the governor contributed to Marston's list of enemies.²³

The governor's interference was so blatant, that there were times when he boycotted Morris and Marston, and dealt directly with the deputy surveyors. For example, in February 1784, he asked one of Marston's deputies, Lyman, to lay out some land. It is not clear what exactly happened: whether he refused to do the work, or did not do it properly. The governor became so enraged that he immediately recommended that Morris should look into Lyman's activities and determine if he should be fired. Evidently, Morris did not think that Lyman was to blame, because he wrote to Marston: "I can assure you I have no idea of discharging so good a man as you represent Mr. Lyman to be. How the governor became prejudiced I know not."²⁴

Work problems -- his lack of experience, the inhospitable woods, and the governor's interference -- were child's play when compared with the problems he encountered with the settlers. It is very obvious to any reader of Marston's journal that nothing irritated him more about Shelburne than the settlers -- to be specific the poor whites, who were also the majority.

Before the refugees left New York, they were organized into sixteen companies with captains. As soon as they arrived, Marston in accordance with the instructions he had been given, settled on a town site after consulting with the captain of each company. But the choice was condemned by others as rough and uneven. So, ignoring Marston and their captains the settlers appointed three men from each company and a different location was chosen. We can here apply the cliché , "first impression goes a great way," because during this first encounter, Marston discovered in the settlers, a bad quality which he was to always associate with them. That quality was "a cur'sd Republican Town meeting spirit"²⁵

It took him an equally short time to notice that the bulk of them were uneducated, being mostly barbers, carpenters, tailors, shoemakers and mechanics. He recognized only a handful of respectable Marblehead men among them, who because of the rigors of refugee life were not looking as good as they used to.²⁶ The second batch of settlers were by far worse. In his own words: "These people are the very worst we've had yet. They seem to be the riff-raff of the whole."²⁷ These were mostly disbanded soldiers, usually a troublesome segment of any society.

The composition of the Shelburne settlers was a big disappointment to Marston. It is very likely that when he was told that he would be laying out land for "Loyalists," he expected to see people of his calibreHarvard graduates, professional men and affluent citizenspeople he could freely associate with. Contrary to this, he found himself in the midst of "an insignificant set whom propriety of conduct, chastity and decency of manners seem to be no part."²⁸

Under the circumstances, he led an unhappy life, refusing to join in the social life of the settlement. He once admitted that as much as he resented the rigorous demands of his job, he hated going home at the end of each day to a "lonesome solitary tabernacle."²⁹ But even this could not compel him to join the settlers in their festivities. The first celebration they organized was in honour of the King's birthday, on June 4. Marston admitted that he deliberately absented himself from the birthday ball, and not only that, he prayed and was happy that his prayers were answered, because it rained heavily that day thus terminating the festivities earlier than was planned.³⁰ A few weeks after, to commemorate St. John's day, the settlers organized two boxing matches. Marston was appalled, noting that there was no better proof of their baseness. Needless to say, he did not attend.³¹ Small dinner parties organized for visiting government officials, were the only social activities he took part in. Unfortunately, these were very rare.

At the Centre of this contempt he felt for the Shelburnites, was one big fear: it seemed as if the evils of the United States were catching up with him in exile. The settlers reminded him too much of the rebels at home, and this made him feel insecure. Their "cursd republican town meeting spirit" was reflected in almost everything that they did. On three occasions he recorded with apprehension that the settlers held meetings, the purposes of which he did not know. He did not put anything beyond them. That was why when a fire broke out only three weeks after the arrival of the first batch, he was convinced that it was not an accident: "I suspect that it was kindled on purpose, tis not improbable that may be the case. For the ignorance, stupidity, mercilessness of the bulk of the collection here is sufficient to produce such disastrous Event."³²

So worried was he about the rebellious attitude of the settlers that he wrote to his superior, Morris, pleading with him to do something in the way of controlling them.³³ Evidently, Morris felt that he was unduly worried, because in response, he merely said: "I must remind you of the old saying -- fret not thyself because of Evil doers."³⁴ But he could not stop fretting as he recalled: "This cur'sd Republican Town meeting spirit has been the ruin of us already [the revolution]. This spirit must be crushed by every means whatever or we shall be for rebellion soon."³⁵

How justifiable were his descriptions of the settlers? Did he in his anxiety exaggerate their bad qualities? Some historians are convinced that Marston was too severe in his description of the character and ability of the settlers.³⁶ Their criticism is valid to a certain extent. For example, one of the qualities which Marston made constant references to, was the laziness of most of the settlers. This was not quite true, because the spectacular growth of the town itself underscored how hard-working the settlers were. Furthermore, Marston contradicted himself when he wrote in his journal: "Attended a ball in honour of the Queen in a house which stand where 6 months ago was an almost impenetrable swamp. So great has been the exertions of the settlers in this new town."³⁷

Besides this, however, all the other observations seem to have been correct. For one thing, some contemporaries expressed the same views. There is no question that the majority of the settlers were uneducated and their ability left much to be desired. This was exactly the view expressed by Parr when he wrote to Lord Sidney: "The most liberal of the Loyalists would not go to Shelburne so that I had to make magistrates of men whom God Almighty never intended for the office."³⁸ The irony about this statement is that "our dear" Marston was one of the magistrates.

Similar but more severe observations were made by an anonymous contemporary in an article entitled "Shelburnian Manners."³⁹ In a nutshell, the article proposes that the Shelburne settlers were lazy, immoral, rowdy, extravagant and lacked a good foresight for business -- all characteristics which helped to ruin the once prosperous town. The "Shelburnian Manners" although definitely harsher, gives some weight to Marston's account because they both use many of the same adjectives describe the settlers.

We must, however, be careful how we draw parallels between the two because while the "Shelburnian Manners" denounced all the settlers, Marston saw it fit to make some exceptions and a few times, even tried rationally to account for the settlers' misconduct. He admitted that in many ways some of them were victims of circumstances. Many historians like Plimsoll Edwards have drawn attention to the fact that in assessing the character of the settlers, one must take into consideration the impact which the revolutionary war had upon them.⁴⁰ The war, just like any other, created vandals and frustrated beings out or reasonable men. Marston clearly made this point when he noted: Tis a task trying to humanity; for while one is firstly exasperated at the insolence and impatience of one sort of people they can't help -- they must feel for the distress of the sensible part -- who have come from easy situations to encounter all the hardships of a new plantation. They are upon the whole, a collection of very unfit characters but I must say, some grumble, some are pleased.⁴¹

From the second batch of settlers though, he could make no exception. As has already been pointed out, most of them were disbanded soldiers and their attitude was very unbecoming. Even Raymond, who feels Marston was harsh in his descriptions, agrees that the arrival of this group was an element of weakness in the founding of Shelburne.⁴²

There is no question that Marston believed the settlers were not so unruly as to be uncontrollable. In fact from his journal, he seems to suggest that some of them became worse in their new abode. For this, he blames the Nova Scotia government. Only a month after the planting of the settlement, he sympathetically noted: "The people here are suffering for a want of a civil establishment which to the shame of the government is most scandalously neglected."⁴³ There is evidence of two occasions when he tried to bring this deficiency to the notice of the Nova Scotia government.⁴⁴ But it is very likely that he did not get any response from Halifax.

The provincial administration's inefficiency began even before the arrival of the settlers, when the settlement was being planned. In the first place the administration did not undertake an extensive study of the area before recommending it so highly to the sanguine refugees. Secondly, adequate preparations were not made for their arrival: contrary to Parr's promises to them, no surveying was done, so that when they landed, all the settlers could see was wilderness.

Consisting of refugees from diverse locations, Shelburne needed a firm authority. On the contrary, civic matters were in a chaotic state. By the governor's own admission, the magistrates he appointed were not suited for the job. It is thus not surprising that there were frequent dissentions among the settlers especially over land, for which there was a big scramble. Entries in Marston's diary clearly reflect his frustration in trying to maintain order in land allotment. Many of the late arrivals could not get land, and in their desperation, some tried to dispossess the early arrivals -- particularly the Negroes -- of theirs.

The Negroes were one group of settlers whom Marston did not detest. He was so sympathetic towards them that it began to look as if he was favouring them against the poor whites. Upon the arrival of the free blacks, he saw to it that their land was laid out in their own quarters, Birchtown, a satellite of Shelburne. It lay on the northwest arm of the Bay of Fundy, about three miles from the main settlement. His first encounter with the free Negroes was vastly different from his first experience with their white counterparts: when he showed them the site for their town -- chosen by the governor -- they did not argue with him. He recorded: "Went up North West with Col. Bluck to show him the ground allotted for his people. They are well satisfied with it, they are a good lot."⁴⁵ Col. Stephen Bluck was an educated mulatto of "good reputation" who was put in charge of the free blacks.

The Birchtowners were organized into twenty-one companies, each under the command of a black captain, for the purpose of constructing public buildings, such as jails, barracks and jetties. Even though they were thus employed, Marston still employed them to help him in surveying. He did not hide the fact that he preferred them to the poor whites because "they work very hard and labour cheaply."⁴⁶

Besides cheap labour, it seems that Marston was genuinely in sympathy with them. How can we explain his attitude to this group? Ellen Wilson makes a valid suggestion when she points out that his sympathy might have been triggered by an experience he had at Santa Cruz during one of his adventurous journeys to the West Indies.⁴⁷ He was the horrified spectator of a slave auction. It affected him so much that he recorded the gruesome proceedings in detail in his journal and sadly concluded: Great God! What must be the feelings of a sensible human being to be torn from all that is reckoned valuable and dear, and to be condemned to the most servile drudgery and infamous uses without the least hope of relief. But as it is only Miss Yawyaw and Miss Pawpee, and the young gentlemen Messrs. Quashee and Quomino whose skins are black, whose hair stout and curled, whose noses flat and lips thick, we think there can be no great harm in it.⁴⁸

Although it is difficult to reconcile the above with the fact that Marston himself was the owner of a few Negro slaves in Marblehead, it is quite reasonable to imagine that this experience in Santa Cruz changed his outlook regarding slavery, and influenced his relationship with the settlers of Birchtown.

In any event, this relationship was not viewed kindly by the poor whites especially the disbanded soldiers many of whom were both landless and jobless. The situation came to a head in the summer of 1784. Before that time, in September of the previous year, Marston recorded that the "people" had taken it upon themselves to appoint a Mr. Sperling to survey their land, and that this man was encroaching on the black men's ground, a dirty job for which he was paid two dollars per head.⁴⁹ Evidently, he was able to check this menace, because he noted later on, that he had been able to retrieve some of the land for the Negroes.⁵⁰ But harassment of the blacks continued. On May 18, 1784, Marston recorded that things were getting out of control and that some people were opposed to the drawing of certain town lots in spite of the governor's orders. He then predicted: "Since this curs'd levelling spirit cannot be crushed, we shall be for rebellion very soon."⁵¹ What an accurate prediction: on July 26, the disbanded soldiers, in a manner reminiscent of the rebel mob, attacked the free Negroes, pulled down about twenty of their houses and drove some of them out of the town. Thus began the first racial riot in the history of Nova Scotia.

For Marston, the reason was quite simple: "it was an attempt by the unruly disbanded soldiers to drive the Negroes out of town because they labour cheaper than they will."⁵² He was right, the poor whites saw the free Negroes as an obstacle to their advancement. But they also saw the chief-surveyor as being just as much an obstacle himself. Therefore on the second day, they began to look for Marston. Fortunately, some of his friends got wind of this and advised him to go to the barracks; but he soon realized that he was not even safe there, so he decided to leave immediately for Halifax.

The story of his life at the outbreak of the revolution was being replayed: he fled Shelburne in the same way that he left Marblehead that fateful November night. After a tedious two day journey, he arrived safely in Halifax on the 29th. Later, he learnt from some loyal Shelburnites who visited Halifax, that he had been pursued as far as Point Carleton, and that if he had been found, the rioters had agreed that he was to be hung.⁵³

Meanwhile, the governor decided to go to Shelburne in order to placate the Shelburnites. By the time he got there, August 23, the riots had already subsided. The inhabitants turned out to receive him with a "feu de joy," at a colourful welcome ceremony.⁵⁴ The first task he executed upon his arrival was the formation of a special board to look into the riots and organize future land allocations. After one week of mostly wining and dining, he returned to Halifax.⁵⁵ Even before this visit to Shelburne, Parr had made up his mind as to what really caused the riots -- it was the inefficiency and dishonesty of the chief surveyor.⁵⁶ When Marston heard of this verdict, he was stunned. In his typical sarcastic manner he recorded: "To answer some purpose with his dear Shelburnites, he has been pleased to throw a great deal of blame on my conduct. But I have the satisfaction to know that the best people of that settlement are my friends -- and what a Rabble thinks of me is never my concern tho a Governor may be among them." Nevertheless, a week later, he sent a memorial to the governor requesting a public inquiry into his work and conduct. It galled him that the governor, without mentioning names or presenting any evidence, was asserting that "everybody" accused him of the most corrupt and partial conduct.⁵⁷

His application was treated with the utmost contempt. He was asked to see the governor in his office on September 18, at 12:00 noon in order to discuss his application. He arrived at the governor's office at the appointed time, only to be told that he had gone out. When Parr returned, several hours after, he refused to see him. Instead, he directed the secretary of the province to inform him that his application had been referred to the newly formed board at Shelburne. Marston saw this as a wicked denial of his desire to bring the matter to the people. He wanted to hear his accusers face to face.⁵⁸ It is doubtful whether this matter was ever brought to the notice of the board; because in the proceedings of the said board contained in the Port Roseway Records and the White Collection, there is no allusion whatsoever to any investigation into Marston's conduct. Thus, when a few weeks later, he was officially dismissed, that decision must have been taken single-handedly by John Parr.

Was the governor's action justified? Contrary to his claim, there is sufficient evidence that Marston was very efficient. As has already been pointed out, he spent most of his time surveying, scarcely having time for himself. It is, however, very likely that his inexperience at times rendered him inefficient. For example, as soon as Lieut. W. Booth arrived in Shelburne in 1789 he immediately noticed that the town was laid out by "an inefficient surveyor or an inexperienced one."⁵⁹

If anyone should know about Marston's work, it should be the surveyor-general. Thus it is very significant to note that Charles Morris never accused him of inefficiency. Instead he often commended him for his prompt surveying reports in spite of the persistent problems of inadequate instruments and insufficient deputy surveyors.

⁶⁰ True, there was a delay in land distribution and this was one of the main grievances expressed in the riots. But it was hardly Marston's fault. Lured by the attractive reports about Shelburne, the number of people who eventually settled that town was far more than was anticipated.⁶¹ To make matters worse, Marston's desperate pleas for assistants were unheeded. Most of the people in Shelburne attributed the delays largely to the shortage in deputy surveyors.⁶²

It would be a fallacy to concur with Parr that Marston was very partial in his distribution of land. For one thing, to a large extent he was a maverick; secondly, it is evident that he did not have any friends in Shelburne to whom he could render special favours. Two episodes which he related in his diary help to buttress this point. The first is best told in his own words: "A Capt. McLean has this evening sent me a green Turtle about 7 ft. [sic]. He is to have a house lot, but this will not blind my eyes, he must have the same chance as his neighbours who have no Turtle to send."⁶³ The second episode: A Capt. Christian was sent to Shelburne by the governor to discuss the laying out of lands for the blacks and some "decent" Loyalists the governor was expecting. As soon as Christian arrived, he invited Marston to join him on board the Cyclops, so that they could discuss after dinner. Marston, who was tired that evening, turned down the invitation, suggesting a breakfast meeting the next day. Of his response he recorded: "I just sent a verbal answer that I would see him at breakfast because I was too tired, too dirty, too hungry to sit down and write an answer to his billets. He may think me an odd fellow -- He is welcome to his opinion."⁶⁴

Favouritism and selfishness, ironically, were more associated with the governor. The settlers started accusing him of these as early as his first visit when he directed that 500 acres of land be reserved for him and his family.⁶⁵ The surveyor-general's letterbook confirms that there were many occasions when the governor requested special privileges for certain people. An outstanding example was when he directed Morris to inform Marston that as a consolation gesture from him, Marston should lay out 500 acres of land for the recently widowed Mrs. McNutt and her children; and that Marston must do this in such a way as not to draw the attention of other settlers who have equal rights.⁶⁶ Three years after he left Shelburne, Marston recalled that the governor had given two gentlemen a licence of occupation for some land, which afterwards he "shamefully and wickedly gave away to Justice Finucane who in turn was wicked and shameless enough to receive it."⁶⁷ However, we must be careful how we accept Marston's accusation, because by that time, he and the governor were practically enemies. But one thing is certain, Parr who blatantly denounced Marston as a "partial shark" was not himself exactly innocent.

Of Marston's honesty, there is no question. There is absolutely no evidence that he ever sold land to the people or that he reserved more for himself than he was entitled to. He left Shelburne the way he had come -- a poor man. We cannot rule out the fact that he might have shown more favour to some people than others; but it is certainly not half as bad as Parr portrayed it. We can say with much certainty, that Parr's explanation for the riots was myopic and inaccurate; Marston cannot be held solely responsible.

Unfortunately, save for Marston's diary, there are no detailed accounts of the disturbances. From the little there is, it is certain that the riots started as a racial quarrel. But they were in reality, the culmination of several grievances, most having emerged with the inception of the settlement.⁶⁸ Restlessness among the settlers started as soon as they realized that Shelburne did not conform to the attractive reports they were given prior to their arrival. Agriculture was a failure; the forests and swamps were impenetrable; the harbour, one of the prime attractions, was as beautiful as was indicated in the reports, but it became frozen in winter and remained in this condition for almost half of the year -- thus terminating whatever advantages might emanate from it. Conquering these limitations needed zeal and financial resources, both of which the settlers desperately lacked, having just come out of a war in which they were losers.

The Nova Scotia government, partly because of its own shortcomings and the unanticipated numbers of settlers, could not do anything to curb restlessness and lawlessness. The special board appointed after the riots discovered that next to the shortage of surveyors, the activities of speculators were responsible for the delays and other problems in land allocation.⁶⁹ The very same Marston whom Parr blamed for the disturbances, was among the first to point out this menace to the government.

One of the greatest problems emerged when the British government decided that as from May 1, 1784, supplies were to be withdrawn. As the Halifax Weekly Chronicle of April 6, 1784, reported, the settlers did not take this lightly; they were thrown into confusion because they knew that the King's bounty formed one of the backbones of the settlement.⁷⁰ With the assistance of General John Campbell, the commander in chief of the forces on the eastern coast, the British government agreed not to withdraw supplies abruptly, but to phase them out systematically. Although an extension was allowed, the fact that supplies were drastically reduced affected the town and its settlers considerably.

Thus, by the middle of 1784, the problems the settlers were trying to grapple with were many. The delay in land allocation, a major problem itself, only served as a fertile ground for expressing the evils of the society; and Marston, caught in the centre, was made a scapegoat.⁷¹

After critically examining the records, one begins to suspect that there was some personal antagonism involved in Marston's dismissal. John Parr was a man who expected certain courtesies from his subordinates. For example, after only his first meeting with Parr, Joseph Pyncheon, one of the representatives of the New York Loyalist association, observed: "The governor who expects to be respected all the time, is tenacious of his own prerogatives and will not be dictated to by anyone, though he appears willing to accommodate everyone in his own way."⁷² Edward Winslow must have noticed this trait, because he deemed it necessary to caution Marston: Now my dear friend, I know you hate all mere matters of ceremony -- so do I -- but 'tis my maxim that when I can serve my country or my friends to make little sacrifices of my own feelings. When the governor arrives, wait on him -- offer your services -- tell him everything which tis necessary for him to know.⁷³

But Marston did not give much heed to his cousin's advice. He was always pointing out flaws to Morris and the governor. It was no secret that he challenged the views of the governor, as is evident in the words of Amos Botsford, agent and chief surveyor of Annapolis: "The governor makes difficult demands he expects us to fulfil. I hear that the Marblehead man in Shelburne does not listen to all he says."⁷⁴

In view of this, it is quite reasonable to imagine that the riots of July 1784 came as a God-sent opportunity for the governor to be relieved of so disrespectful an employee as Marston. On the other hand, it is possible as Raymond suggests, that Parr, being a man of hasty temper and apt to jump to conclusions without sufficient knowledge of the facts of the case, dismissed Marston out of expediency rather than justice or injustice.⁷⁵ Apparently, Marston himself spent a great deal of time pondering over his involvement in the Shelburne crisis. He wrote to the Watsons: "I can't understand why my work in Shelburne came to such a disastrous end."⁷⁶ Had he been more flexible in his dealings with the Shelburne populace, he might have saved himself much trouble. But he failed to do precisely what Winslow advised him -- to sacrifice his feelings. He would have saved himself the drudgery of the lonely evenings if he had, if even once in a while, joined the settlers in their social activities. After all, respectable officials from Halifax, including the governor, did not hesitate to mingle with the people in their celebrations. For example, Parr wrote to Lord Shelburne about his first visit to the settlement, how he joined the settlers in a ball which lasted until 5:00 a.m. Finally, perhaps if he had criticized the governor less frequently, the misunderstandings between the two of them might never have occurred.

Whatever the reasons for his exit in disgrace from Shelburne, one thing was certain: yet another experiment in rebuilding his life had failed.

Chapter III
REFUGE IN NEW BRUNSWICK 1785-1787

This province is to be divided and a new one erected on the western side of the bay of Fundy by the name of New Brunswick. If I can get some Employment in the new Government, I shall seek refuge and choose my residence there, as most of the New England refugees will be there & among them, my nearest and dearest friends.

Benjamin Marston, 1784¹

"A separate, exclusively Loyalist province governed by Loyalist leaders themselves." This was the only version of an earthly paradise as conceived by the prominent Loyalists who settled the St. John River valley.² They came with a determination to attain this earthly paradise.³ Finding sound reasons to do this was easy. For one thing, geography was in their favour: the area north of the Bay of Fundy was detached from the metropolis, Halifax, and in large measure self sufficient, because of the many rivers and harbours that it contained. However, it was the relationship between the Nova Scotia government and the Loyalist leaders, rather than geographical factors, which actually got the movement for partition off the ground.

The relationship between the Halifax government and the Loyalists north of the bay was hostile from the very beginning. The fear each group had of the other was the basis for this hostility. Parr and his officials were quick to sense that the Loyalist leaders of the St. John were powerful politically because of their strong connections in London and the British army.⁴ The Loyalist leaders on the other hand, anxious to enhance their personal political ambitions, realized that the Halifax clique would pose a serious obstacle. The governor exacerbated this hostility by deliberately pursuing a negative policy with respect to Loyalist affairs in that region.⁵ The governor's policy was no doubt geared to minimizing the influence of this unique group of Loyalists, but it resulted in a chaotic situation, much to his discredit. This more than any other factor, provided justification for the division of the province. As a result of the deft manoeuvering of men like Edward Winslow, Ward Chipman and Henry Fox, the Loyalist leaders were able to convince the British government that the circumstances underscored the fact that the province had become too big for Parr and his officials to handle successfully.⁶ In the summer of 1784, their dreams of an earthly paradise became a reality with the establishment of the province of New Brunswick.

While the struggle for partition ensued, Benjamin Marston was in Halifax, unemployed, and with ample time to review his activities in Nova Scotia since the evacuation of Boston. He arrived at the conclusion that he was wrong to have imagined that he could ever succeed in rebuilding his life by working and living in Halifax and Shelburne. A man could only succeed if he lived among people of his calibre, people he could identify with.⁷ The Shelburne crisis, apart from costing him his job, also deepened his sense of isolation. After the quarrel with Parr, he knew he had no chance of gaining government employment. Although his Watson cousins tried to talk him into returning to the United States, he was convinced that he was not yet ready to live among an "unruly and deluded set of people."⁸

Therefore, it was with great joy that he received news of the progress of the plans for the creation of a new province. The composition of the Loyalist leaders of that region was what attracted him the most: they were educated, respectable men, most of whom he had known in the late colonies and who were planning to establish the most "Gentlemanlike province on earth."⁹

Marston once again turned to his cousin and patron, Edward Winslow. Apparently, he had developed a liking for his new vocation, because he specifically asked Winslow to help him procure a job as surveyor in the new province. Fortunately, the Shelburne tragedy did not mar the relationship between the two cousins. In fact, Winslow was very sympathetic to Marston, convinced that he was unfairly treated. His view of the Shelburne episode was influenced by two factors: firstly, Gideon White, whose sense of judgement Winslow greatly respected, had written to him explaining how unfairly Marston had been treated;¹⁰ secondly, by that time, Winslow had little respect for Parr's administrative ability. He once referred to him as via man accustomed to dissipation, and as competent to the performance of the task assigned as a Spider would be to regulate the grand Manufactories at Manchester."¹¹ Convinced that his cousin was indeed an efficient surveyor, Winslow decided to ask the newly appointed surveyor-general, George Sproule, to consider Marston for a post as one of his deputies in the new province. Mean while, Winslow advised Marston to send another application to Sir John Wentworth, surveyor-general of the King's woods in North America. Winslow did not envisage any difficulty because both men -- Marston and Wentworth -- had known each other very well in Massachusetts.¹² Winslow was right; Marston was easily employed by Wentworth who felt that it was the "least he could do for such a good friend in need."¹³

Determined that he was not going to start the new year in Nova Scotia, Marston quickly set out for New Brunswick on December 7. He was overjoyed to be leaving: "bade my last farewell to N.S. -- I never knew that saying farewell can be so pleasant, but it is, when you are leaving troubled waters for a place of refuge."¹⁴ The journey was not easy: he had to travel on foot, horseback and canoe. Eventually, he arrived at the mouth of the Saint John on December 9.

The dawn of 1785 brought with it a new life for Benjamin Marston. After almost a decade, he once again had the opportunity to enjoy the pleasures of good society; at last he was willing to live a full social life. He took up residence with one of the most prominent citizens of the province, Ward Chipman, the solicitor general. The joys of his new life are clearly reflected in his journal where he carefully and happily recorded his social activities. On January 2, he dined with some dignitaries -- the governor, Thomas Carleton, Judge Putnam, and the Secretary of the province, Jonathan Odell.¹⁵ On the 18th, he attended a ball given by the governor in honour of the Queen's birthday. He recorded: "There were between 30 and 40 ladies, near 100 gentlemen. Although the gentlemen were of all sorts, the ladies were of the best families only."¹⁶ Only a month after, he was guest at another ball and supper given by Chipman in his house. Of this event Marston noted: "The company was magnificent -- the Governor and his Lady, the Chief Justice, several of the councillors and some more of the respectable chosen ones with their Ladies. Because of this good company we broke up about 4 in the morning."¹⁷ These accounts of his social life upon his arrival in New Brunswick are very significant, because they demonstrate the kind of person that Marston was, or more specifically, his disdain of the lower class. We must recall that when the settlers in Shelburne held their parties until the early hours of the morning, for Marston, it was a sign of indolence and baseness. But when he and his "type" did the same, he saw it as "good company."

The nature of his new job was also different from that which he performed in Shelburne. This time he was not responsible for assigning settlers to their land, but to seek the interest of the King. As far back as the reign of Queen Anne, parliament stipulated that all pine trees twenty-four inches or more in diameter were to be reserved for the Crown, for the use of the royal navy. In 1783, Sir John Wentworth, surveyor of the King's woods, now with his headquarters in Halifax, was instructed to reserve all the pine trees of the approved dimensions in the King's remaining provinces, whether they stood on public or private lands. Thus, as his deputy, Marston's duty was to see that these provisions were enforced in the new prowince. He was also required to survey and issue certificates of approval to the settlers, for land grants on Crown reserves.

Theoretically, Marston was solely answerable to his chief in Halifax, whose jurisdiction was totally independent of the new government. All of Wentworth's instructions emanated from the Lords of the Treasury and the Lords of the Admiralty in London. Wentworth used his position to wield enough power for himself and to vest considerable authority in his deputies who in many cases appeared to be challenging the authority of the governors.¹⁸ But no sooner did Marston arrive than he began to show signs of departure from this pattern. After only three months on the job, he wrote a lengthy letter to Carleton explaining that according to the conditions of his appointment, he was not entitled to a fixed salary or any benefits of office from Halifax. Instead, he had been instructed by Wentworth to take a reasonable fee from each person to whom he may issue a certificate for land grant on Crown reserves. Finding this to be at variance with the King's instruction that all grants of land to the Loyalists should be free, Marston felt that Wentworth was being unfair. In spite of this conviction, he left the final say to Carleton, indicating that he was willing to charge fees for his services only with "his Excellency's approbation and allowance."¹⁹ Marston's adherence to the King's orders was admirable; but at the same time, his action was a betrayal of his employer and a clear indication that he placed Wentworth's authority subordinate to Carleton's.

That same year, when the charter was being granted to the city of Saint John, Wentworth proposed that the most desirable sites for wharves and mast-ponds in the estuary of the river should be under his jurisdiction. But when the charter was eventually granted, the control of these areas was vested in the city. According to Wentworth, this was mostly Marston's fault because he "either negligently or deliberately failed to exert his authority."²⁰

Marston's lukewarm attitude towards his job can be best seen when a comparison is made between his tenure and that of his successor, William Paine. Wentworth's Letter Book contains only two letters from Marston which were of little significance. Contrary to this, the same Letter Book amply manifests that Paine, a doctor of medicine from Massachusetts, diligently and enthusiastically carried out his duties. He travelled extensively, seeking great timber bearing areas which could be reserved for the Crown. In many cases when he realized that the interests of Wentworth and the Navy Board were at stake, he successfully resisted execution of grants of land by the provincial government. He realized that the only way he could do his job efficiently was to be always ready to say no to the provincial government.²¹ It was precisely for this reason that Marston was so ineffective in the job: unlike his relationship with the Parr administration, in Saint John he refused to oppose the wishes of Carleton and his council.

How can this uncharacteristic attitude be explained? Unfortunately, unlike the Shelburne period, Marston made very few references in his diary to his job in Saint John. Nevertheless, two likely explanations can be offered. The first: that Marston in fact did not see anything to oppose the New Brunswick government for. He might have preferred control of the King's reserves to be under New Brunswick provincial jurisdiction. Secondly, it is very likely that recognizing that his continuous challenge of the Nova Scotia government contributed greatly to the loss of his job, he decided to concur with the New Brunswick government, so as to prevent a recurrence.

Whatever the reasons for his attitude, one thing was certain, the job was not lucrative. This was not the result of his lack of enthusiasm, because even the hardworking Paine had to leave Saint John for the United States because he could not make a decent living from his profession, and he was up to his head in debt.²² Solely on account of the bleak financial prospects, Marston decided to look for another job. After only six months, probably with Winslow's assistance, he was appointed Surrogate, deputy surveyor and sheriff of Northumberland County, the largest of the province's eight counties.

After a tedious two-week journey Marston arrived at Miramichi Point on July 9. By now, we know that for Marston, one of the most important elements of any settlement was its inhabitants. Little wonder then that the first thing he did was to study the type of people who were settled in the region. Unfortunately, once more he was in the midst of a poor and low class of people: The most of the people are illiterate and ignorant and much given to Drunkenness. They depend most of them upon the salmon fishery which being precarious they sometimes live poor enough. Necessity and the example of some few [incoming Loyalists] will as soon as the banks of the river are located, make them turn their attention to their lands. They want two things -- law to keep them in order, and Gospel, to give them some better ideas than they seem to have and to civilize their manners, which attendance on public worship would tend to promote.²³

There was a great deal of truth in this observation: because some other accounts clearly show that the people did "live in a primitive fashion and were remote from Educational and religious facilities."²⁴ However, Marston's disrespect for the Miramichi inhabitants was nothing near his abhorrence of the Shelburnites. While his diary for the Shelburne period is heavily weighed with criticism of the settlers, the Northumberland period carries only scant references to the settlers' shortcomings.

As Northumberland's first sheriff, Marston did a splendid job in trying to establish an orderly basis of local government. It was not an easy task, because until his arrival, there had been no clearly defined form of government in the area. There was no court house or any formal meeting place. Because of this deficiency, the first notice Marston had to display -- the Charter of the county -- had to be nailed to a conspicuous tree.²⁵ Land distribution, perhaps the most delicate issue in a developing settlement, was in utter disarray: since there was no set plan to guide the laying out of land, the amount of land held by the settlers varied widely, from 100,000 acres to 300.²⁶ Rule by the strongest arm had almost become the accepted system. There were certain individuals who, because of their wealth and services to the community, came to wield such influence as to be able to control some segments of the population. The most outstanding of these was William Davidson, a native of Scotland who in 1765 laid the foundation for an English-speaking settlement on the Miramichi, when with John Cort, another Scot, he applied for a grant of 100,000 acres of land from the Nova Scotia government. After this application was granted, Davidson went to New England and persuaded some colonists to come to the Miramichi. From then on, except for a few setbacks, things began to move smoothly for Davidson until the American revolutionary war broke out. The war resulted in a drastic curtailment of shipping to Nova Scotia. The Miramichi region was in turn to suffer from this, because it depended entirely on Halifax for supplies. The settlers were also pillaged several times by American privateers. To add to these woes, the Indians were instigated by rebel sympathizers to attack British settlers.²⁷ As a result of these problems, Davidson decided to leave with some settlers, for the settlement at Maugerville on the St. John River. At the close of the war, he returned to the Miramichi and found that the settlement was in a deplorable condition. At once he embarked on reconstruction. One of the things he did was supplying the settlers with provisions -- clothing, fishing gear and food -- a gesture which he claimed cost him over [pound sterling] 5,000.²⁸ Because of favours like this, Davidson was almost revered by a large sector of the population.

It is thus not difficult to understand why powerful settlers like Davidson resented the extension of control by the New Brunswick government, and the appointment of a total stranger as sheriff. It did not take Marston long to sense this resentment. He noted: The people in general are well pleased with the prospect of having Rule and Order established among them by the proper authority -- Some few of the oldest and first settlers excepted -- who looking upon their own way as their right have used it accordingly. To them every reformation appears a disturbance of their ancient rights and privileges and foreseeing that ruling by the strongest arm must give way to more legal authority, pretend to think that the country will then be no longer worth living in.

²⁹ But this discovery was not sufficient to discourage the ever sanguine Marston who, as W.F. Ganong rightly observes, "was a person of unusual positiveness of opinion of the future."³⁰

Swearing in the first justice of the peace was the very first task that Marston executed as sheriff. This was very important because as William Spray points out, justices of the peace were badly needed to insure a measure of justice and protection for the settlers in legal disputes, and to support the sheriff in his attempts to enforce the law. It was impossible for only one man to effectively introduce law and order into a hitherto lawless area like the Miramichi.³¹

In March, 1785, four months before Marston's arrival, the Miramichi settlers sent several memorials to the governor petitioning him to appoint John Wilson as a justice of peace, because they felt that there was no person "better adapted for that office than him, being an honest, just and impartial man."³² Wilson was a Loyalist who first settled in Maugerville before coming to the Miramichi with some of the first groups of Loyalists who settled that region. It is not clear under what criteria Marston appointed Wilson as the first justice of peace. However, it is certain that he was acting according to orders he received from the government in Saint John. The governor and council in turn must have been guided by the memorials received from some of the inhabitants. Nevertheless, a sector of the population reacted bitterly to the appointment. The new Loyalist settlers as well as Davidson and his friends were satisfied with it. But the "ancient and original inhabitants" opposed it largely on the basis that Wilson did not mingle with them enough for them to know his capabilities. They also accused him of cutting hay which "belonged" to them and offered to sell it to them.³³

This mixed reaction which met Wilson's appointment was just one expression of the antagonism which existed between the old settlers and the new ones. Resentment of the new settlers by the old ones was caused largely by the special treatment the new settlers seemed to be getting from the provincial government.³⁴ The opposition to Wilson's appointment was the first of a series of squabbles between the two groups in which Marston had to intervene. Fortunately, neither side attempted to lay much blame on him. On the contrary, in some of their petitions, the old settlers mentioned some of the steps taken by Sheriff Marston to reprimand the party at fault. There were a few occasions though, when he was suspected of taking sides.³⁵

After three weeks living in Miramichi Point, Marston realized that there was so much to be done in the way of introducing law and order into the area. Therefore, he carefully drew up a list of suggestions which he sent to Jonathan Odell.

Recognizing that a healthy economy usually makes a people less restive, he implored the New Brunswick government to improve the primitive method of fishing used in the Miramichi. This was very important because fishing was the mainstay of the economy. He also requested that something should be done to get the settlers to diversify this economy. Because of the heavy reliance on fishing, very little farming was done. Not much attention was given to this plea. Still recalling the activities of the Shelburnites, Marston was gravely concerned about the lawless state of the region. He pointed out to the government that the county needed more law enforcement officers. Furthermore, without a jail, he was unable to effectively isolate dangerous criminals. He therefore proposed that the government should build a military post with a Guard House. He was convinced that the mere construction of such a post would indicate how serious the government was about enforcing the law, and quickly scare potential criminals.³⁶

The request for a military post was not granted, but his effort was not totally in vain: only a month later three magistrates, Alexander Wishart, James Horton, and John Moody were appointed. It is very likely that these appointments were prompted by his suggestions.³⁷

To maintain law and order, Marston was convinced that the people needed something besides law enforcement officers: they needed religion. In his own words: The people of this river are very desirous of having a clergyman of good sense, and a good man would be a public blessing by his instructions among such an ignorant illiterate sett as the bulk of the people here are. The mere attendance upon public worship if but now and then would have some tendency to civilize and make them less licentious. If the Society for propagating the Gospel were to send a missionary hither, they never would perhaps better bestow their charity, for besides the good which an exemplary man might do in reforming the licentiousness of the people, he might if sent in time, prevent swadlers and sectaries getting any footing among them which would be to prevent an evil which it is not easy to cure.³⁸

This proposal begins to look like a paradox when one takes into consideration the fact that Marston himself was far from being a religious person. In his diary of over ten years, he recorded having attended church service only once -- when he was in jail and it was the only place that he was permitted to go. It is interesting to recall that Marston also recommended the Gospel for the Shelburne settlers. Thus, one begins to wonder what Marston must have believed were the functions of religion. No doubt, that it was most helpful for low class, uncouth people who needed to be redeemed from their baseness -- a cultural, civilizing force. But perhaps even more important, it played a political role by encouraging people to conform to law and order. Also, it is quite obvious that the "Gospel" that Marston was referring to here, was the established church, the Church of England. His plea that "sectaries" must be prevented from influencing the people, was just another way of saying, keep the unorthodox churches out. He was not alone in his thinking. In fact all the New Brunswick Loyalist leaders were members of the Church of England, which they tried very hard to see flourish, primarily because of its influence in engendering respect and obedience from the people -- two qualities which make for political stability.³⁹

To understand why these Loyalists looked up to the Church of England for this assistance, we must look back to the revolutionary era and see the role the churches played in the conflict. In 1776, Dissenters and Anglicans, already antagonists over the Bishop's controversy,⁴⁰ became inextricably entangled in the larger political dispute. After a synod meeting in New York that year, the Presbyterians sent out a pastoral letter declaring their favour of American liberty and approving the stamp act. This action automatically forced the Anglicans into a defence of British policy. By the end of the war, most of the Loyalists had formed an opinion about the influence of the two groups: they were convinced that if the activities of the Church of England in America had been better encouraged, the outbreak of rebellion would have been prevented.⁴¹ On the other hand, Presbyterians were "as averse to kings as they were in the days of Cromwell and they wanted to form a republican empire in America.⁴²

Thus, when Marston warned in his proposal that sectaries must be kept out so as to prevent an "evil which was not easy to cure," it is certain that he was reflecting on the American Revolution and the role the Presbyterians were supposed to have played. The government did not respond to his request; and perhaps much to his relief, Dissenters did not attempt to extend their activities to that area. In any event, his fears were uncalled for, because uncouth as the inhabitants were, they were not a rowdy lot.

The first provincial election in New Brunswick was a memorable event for its inhabitants. Although the storm-centre was in the city and county of Saint John, it was an exciting affair everywhere in the province. In Northumberland County, conducting the election is one of the most remembered duties that Marston performed as sheriff.

The franchise was extended to every adult male who had lived in the province for at least three months. There was no property qualification. The fact that blacks were not allowed to vote was the only restriction. In spite of this generosity, Carleton still hoped for a house of "worthy" members, men who would concur with decisions he had taken, and help to organize the province along the lines he had laid down.⁴³ But by that time, a violent party spirit had developed and Elias Hardy came forward as leader of an opposition that seemed poised to undo all of Carleton's work. Elias Hardy was an English lawyer who settled in New York. In New Brunswick, he began to encounter the wrath of the leading Loyalists when he was appointed by the N.S. government to promote the escheat of unsettled lands. Unfortunately, none of his writings exist today, but from the correspondence of Carleton and some other government officials, it is evident that he was a deadly government opponent.

In Northumberland, four candidates came forward to contest the two county seats. The notorious Elias Hardy, who was also Davidson's legal advisor, was one of them. The others were Davidson himself, George Leonard, and Stanton Hazard. George Leonard was a native of Plymouth who went to settle in Boston as a successful merchant and ship owner. Upon the evacuation of Boston, he was among refugees who sailed to Halifax with the British forces. He later went to Newport, Rhode Island, where he assisted the British troops, mainly by preying on rebel shipping off the island in order to supply the troops with provisions. After the war he was appointed as one of the Loyalist agents responsible for settling the refugees on the St. John River valley. Stanton Hazard was also a Loyalist agent. However, he does not seem to have pursued a remarkable career because references to him are very scant. These two were from Saint John and like Hardy, completely unknown to most of the inhabitants of the county. Sheriff Marston overtly showed his support for Leonard and Hazard, who were also the favourites of the hierarchy in Saint John. With these men, the government was assured of an enhancement of its policy, something for which Hardy and Davidson could not be relied on. Hardy and the following he had managed to gather in Saint John were against the government because the New Englanders who were also the minority (most of the settlers were from New York and the other middle colonies) were trying to form a distinct upper class and had succeeded in capturing "all the positions worth having" -- meaning positions in the government. It was thus the avowed intention of Hardy and his supporters to prevent government officials from obtaining seats in the Assembly. As for Davidson, he resented what he viewed as government's encroachment on Miramichi affairs. He felt that this interference was totally unnecessary: the settlement could exist conveniently without dealings with Saint John, since all the businessmen in the area looked to Halifax for encouragement rather than to the provincial capital which in reality had nothing to offer them.⁴⁴

At the end of the election, these adversaries emerged victorious, much to Marston's disappointment. Actually, it is surprising that he had anticipated otherwise. As has already been pointed out, Davidson's influence was tremendous. He used this to secure votes not only for himself, but for his friend Hardy as well. Another important factor is that the wide franchise meant that Davidson's workers were all eligible to vote. Later, Marston was able to see the situation more rationally, and as if to console himself noted: To-day held an election for two members to represent this County in General Assembly. Wm. Davidson, an inhabitant of this river, an ignorant, cunning fellow, but who has great influence over the people here, many of them holding land under him, and many others being tradesmen and laborers in his employ, was chosen for one, and by the same influence Elias Hardy, an attorney of no great reputation in his profession, was chosen for the other. This will disappoint some of my friends, who hoped that George Leonard and Capt. Hazard would have obtained the election, but twas impossible. They were unknown here and we who proposed and recommended them, were but strangers. 'Tis therefore no wonder we did not succeed against an artful man who had real influence and knew how to use it.⁴⁵

But obviously, the disparaging remarks about the two men were prejudiced and made out of pique. Davidson was not a university graduate, but was certainly fairly educated. The part he played in organizing the settlement is proof of his intelligence. There is no evidence of any scandal or shady deals in his business to point to his character as "a cunning fellow." As regards Hardy, he was by no means an attorney of no reputation. In fact, tradition has it that in his profession he was, in his day, without a peer.⁴⁶ Perhaps Marston would have been nearer the truth if he had suggested that Hardy was an opportunist, trying to use the people to topple a structure which he felt was blocking his path to privilege.

Marston must however be commended for conducting a fair and peaceful election. In spite of his overt support for two of the candidates, he did not resort to any impolitic means to secure their election. Such action was not completely absent from the election: for example, Sheriff William Oliver of Saint John County, through some highly questionable actions, assisted the government party to victory.⁴⁷ Furthermore, the outcome of the election did not put Marston off, he continued to perform his duties with the same zeal.

Entries in Marston's diary suggest that he was very hardworking in his surveying (he was also deputy surveyor), for example entries like the following: "Ran Donald's line, attempted to finish McLean's line, but the excessive heat overcame me; was unable to go on and with difficulty got back to our boat. I was so spent that I fell, and it was some time before I was able to recover myself."⁴⁸ Moreover, his diary indicates that his job still involved risks and hostility from disgruntled settlers. For example, he recorded: This day I was informed by an Elderly man, one of good character -- and his information was ushered in with the solemnity of an oath -- that if Stewart whom I have located next to Martin Lyons should fail of getting that lot, that my life will be in danger if I return to this River again.⁴⁹

Despite these remarkable entries, the standard of Marston's work as a surveyor had dropped. This is especially clear when one turns the pages of the same journal back to the Shelburne period, and makes a comparison of the two periods. This fact is further revealed in some other important sources. For example, part of a petition sent to Saint John by some Miramichi inhabitants reads: Benjamin Marston says he has been surveying land and locating Loyalists upon such land as had already been surveyed and laid out on the Miramichi from July 6 to September 24 and that he presented an account to George Sproule, but without details. He spent only 10 days making new surveys and-kept no particular account for locating persons on lands already surveyed. He had to hire a room for an office and he devoted all his time to that.

⁵⁰ But even more important is the chief surveyor's opinion. It is quite clear that George Sproule was dissatisfied with Marston's work. There is some correspondence in which he rebuked him for submitting late and vague reports. So displeased was Sproule with Marston's work that once he was forced to report him to the secretary of the province. Despite several reminders from Sproule, Marston failed to survey the region between the Grand Lake and the Miramichi River. Sproule was enraged over this particular survey because it was very important for "correcting and connecting the general plan of the province." Having convinced himself that Marston could not be relied on to do that survey, Sproule asked Odell to give him permission to hand over the responsibility to Israel Perley a "better" deputy surveyor who was about to leave for Miramichi to do some private surveying for Davidson.⁵¹ It is unnecessary to cast doubts on the validity of Sproule's criticism: unlike the unhappy relationship with Parr, the relationship between Marston and Sproule was cordial.

This time inexperience and obstructive settlers were not reasons for the flaws in Marston's work. The fact that he had to attend to other official duties being sheriff and surrogate, is one explanation. But perhaps a more important reason can be found in the fact that in the Miramichi Marston began to attend to his own personal matters, something his dedication to his work never gave him time for in Shelburne.

Only three days after his arrival, Marston wrote to Winslow telling him that he was determined to engage in some private business ventures in order to supplement the meagre salaries he would be getting from his government employment. Before that time, the two men had seriously discussed a business partnership, which would involve undertaking business transactions in New Brunswick for British merchants on commission. To this end, they contacted Lane and Co. of London. At one time, this company contemplated sending out goods to them for the value of [pound sterling] 400 or [pound sterling] 500. Marston urged Winslow to speed up this transaction because in spite of the "impolitic methods" used in fishing in the Miramichi, the prospects of that industry were so great that he was sure that goods received from Lane and Co. would be easily traded for large quantities of fish.⁵² Unfortunately, at the last moment, plans for the venture were dropped by the company because they decided to limit their trading activities.⁵³ Marston and his cousin never did do business together. It would seem that Winslow, perhaps because of his preoccupation with New Brunswick politics, was not as interested as Marston. From the letters, it is quite evident that most of the effort for a joint business came from Marston's side. However, by the end of the year Marston had found himself a business partner. He was Mark Delesderniers, an amiable Swiss settler, who seems to have been able to get along with almost everybody in the settlement.⁵⁴ Marston and his partner obtained goods from Halifax merchants, George DeBlois, Thomas Robie and Mulberry Holmes, which they sold to Indians and white settlers for furs and fish.⁵⁵ The goods were of a large variety, as the following list on one of the fly leaves of his diary shows: Memo. Goods to be sold: Hats; belts and gold buckles; silk; 2 guns; superfine blue and red broad cloth; silver lace; beads; red black and white round broaches; crucifixes; silver rings; and wine.

The quality of the goods were not always good. For example, he noted: I took off their hands, a parcel of old "shopkeepers" which they had had by them a long while and but for such an accident would probably have had still -- what I had of Holmes I am sure would. It was relies of a parcel of wines which had been in store, he knew not how long himself -- of all sorts and kinds which a Halifax pig would not have drank.⁵⁶

This business of trading as middlemen for Halifax merchants did not satisfy Marston and Delesderniers. Soon they came up with a much grander scheme. The Miramichi region was richly blessed with timber. When Sir John Wentworth visited that area for the first time he was so impressed that he remarked: "I have found on this river, the best Mast timber in British America, great quantities of which are on the Reservations. The pine timber for size, length and soundness exceeds any I ever saw in New England."⁵⁷ Predicting great prospects, Marston and his partner began to make plans to exploit this abundant and magnific6nt natural resource. The "Jack of all trade" that he was, Marston quickly drew up a plan for a saw mill. In February 1786, they attached this plan to a memorial which they sent to the governor and council requesting a grant of 500 acres at a strategic site, for the construction of the mill. To facilitate the transportation of the timber, they requested the land on the north side of the river. They also asked for a further grant of a lot situated at the mouth of a small river called Black River. They wanted this to serve as a grazing ground for the cattle which would be used to work the mill.⁵⁸

They were granted all the land they needed. In March, Marston went to Halifax to purchase large quantities of iron, and in July, construction began. This was a bold step, because at that time lumbering was still an infant industry in the province.⁵⁹ In the meantime, Marston tried to secure a market for their timber. He acquainted Winslow with his new venture and implored him to use his influence to get the government to sign a contract with them for the supply of masts.⁶⁰ There is, however, no indication that such a contract was ever made.

Once Marston became involved in the mill project, he began to seriously neglect his official duties. Inevitably, he had to make a choice between his business and his job as sheriff. The incentive to carry out his official duties was lacking because of the meagre salaries that he received. On his arrival at the Miramichi he remarked: "My appointments here will be a meer [sic] sound and not much more. The emoluments of them will never make it worth my while to remain here."⁶¹ In this disappointment, he was not alone; nearly all the Loyalist leaders were at that same time lamenting the appalling rewards of public office. It took Winslow a short time to realize that his appointment as surrogate general was meaningless because few people died in the new province and so there were no estates to probate; frustrated, Chipman noted that despite the governor's lavish praise for his work as solicitor general, he had not received one penny in compensation.⁶² The Loyalist leaders had to struggle against the "economics of the frontier" -- the wilderness and all the sacrifices they had to make to conquer it.⁶³

The choice was simple for Marston to make. In March he sent a memorial to Saint John: Being engaged in a plan of business which will wholly engage my time and attention, and will frequently occasion my being absent from the county of which you have done me the honour to appoint me sheriff, I humbly beg the favour of your Excellency and your Honours to permit me to resign that office. The necessary attention to my affairs and the proper attention to duties thereof being utterly incompatible.⁶⁴

However, he still retained his other positions as deputy surveyor and surrogate. But it does not seem that he gave serious attention to them, because as his diary clearly shows, he spent most of his time on the mill construction site.

On October 18, seven months after his resignation, he set out from Miramichi for Saint John, to present Sproule with some surveying reports and to purchase some equipment for the mill. As he journeyed, his spirits were buoyant: the sale of the goods received from Halifax was going on smoothly; the construction of the mill was making marked progress and soon he would begin to reap the fruits of a lucrative business. He was convinced that this time, his career as a successful businessman had been re-born.⁶⁵ But little did he know that his days in New Brunswick -- that land of refuge which he so willingly came to -- were numbered, and that he was destined never to see the Miramichi again.

Chapter IV
THE LAST SEARCH FOR COMPENSATION 1786-1792

I will say that I am determined to make a last attempt to get my compensation from Parliament, and hope that after I return from England my ramblings will be at an end, and that I shall be able to spend the rest of my life in the enjoyment of domestic tranquility.

Benjamin Marston, 1787 ¹

Peace between the United States and Great Britain became certain with the signing of the first draft of the Treaty of Paris on November 30, 1782. Two articles of this treaty related to the Loyalists. The fifth article stipulated that all persons, whether they had borne arms or not, should be free to go to any part of the United States for twelve months, unmolested, in the effort to obtain the restitution of their confiscated estates. Article VI, designed to protect the Loyalists from future confiscations and persecutions, stipulated that no persons should on account of the part taken in the war, be subjected to further loss or damage in their liberty or property. Protective as these articles might seem, the terms of the Paris treaty greatly dismayed the Loyalists, because the full enforcement of the provisions of Articles V and VI was left solely to Congress.²

From the onset, the disillusioned Loyalists were certain that the States would not carry out the conciliatory policy recommended by Congress as promised by the American commissioners at the peace negotiations. Their fears were vindicated as the States, disregarding the treaty, continued to persecute Loyalists.³ Thus fully convinced that the ambiguous terms of the treaty would never be enforced by the Americans, Loyalist refugees concluded that the only way they could obtain compensation for their losses was to convince the British government to assume full responsibility.

Most of the effort for this came from the Loyalist refugees living in England who in January 1783, organized themselves into a coherent pressure group. So effective were the activities of this group that it succeeded in getting the attention of the public; contributed to the fall of the Shelburne ministry; and most importantly, contributed in no mean measure to the passing of the Compensation Act by Parliament in July 1783.⁴ By this Act, a five-member commission was appointed, with the authority to investigate the Loyalists' claims in detail and to recommend appropriate compensation fees. March 25, 1784, was given as the deadline for submitting claims, because it was anticipated that the commissioners would complete their task within two years. However, it took an unforeseen six years.

The commissioners began hearing cases in October, 1783, in London. After almost two years deliberation, it became evident that in order to do justice to Loyalists living out of England, commissioners must be sent to British North America and the United States. Accordingly, by the new Compensation Act of 1785, Thomas Dundas and Jeremy Pemberton were assigned to Nova Scotia and Canada, and John Anstey, to the United States. These commissioners were given the same powers as their counterparts in England. In Canada, their work began on November 17, 1785, and lasted until 1789. Claims were heard in Halifax, Saint John, Quebec and Montreal, and six reports were compiled, showing that 1,401 claims were heard.⁵

Benjamin Marston was one of the Loyalists who presented their claims before Commissioner Pemberton in Halifax on May 2, 1786. Marston's memorial was typical of the standard format followed by the Loyalists in their quest for compensation.⁶ It began with the indispensable preamble declaring his unswerving allegiance to Great Britain. The commissioners subjected the claimants to an intense, searching scrutiny, to the extent that the Loyalists began to view the exercise as an inquest.⁷ Being aware of this, Marston appeared at his hearing, fully prepared. His claim was for [pound sterling] 476.28.8. As Pemberton's notes show, he produced adequate documentation, and a witness who attested to his loyalty, and the value of his property.⁸ Most probably because of this, he did not encounter much difficulty. Pemberton decided that he was to receive an unspecified amount as compensation fees. He also advised him to send a power of attorney to an agent in England, authorizing him to collect the money on his behalf.⁹

After this appearance before the claims commissioner, Marston gave little thought to his compensation money. With the exception of one letter which he wrote to John Watson shortly after his hearing, Marston did not mention this issue in his diary or letters. In fact, the draft of the letter giving power of attorney to a London agent, is incomplete.¹⁰ He was then preoccupied with his Miramichi business which was just getting off the ground.

At the end of December, 1786, Marston concluded all the business transactions which had taken him out of Miramichi in November that year.¹¹ But he postponed returning to Miramichi immediately because he wanted to wait for "the river to be strong enough to travel with safety."¹² After spending about one month with Edward Winslow in Fredericton, he decided to stop over at Portland Point and see his remaining Winslow relatives, on his way back to the Miramichi. (Edward Winslow's widowed mother, Hannah, and his sisters, Penelope and Sarah, were living at Portland Point, now a part of the city of Saint John.) This turned out to be a very fateful decision. He found the family in real distress. They were soon to face the commissioner in Saint John, and because they lacked all the required documents, were certain they would not receive anything from the British government. Filled with sympathy and a desperate urge to display his gratitude to the Winslows for all they had done for him, Marston immediately offered his services: To procure these [documentation] I am now going to New England, and expect to sail in a day or two. I hope I shall succeed. To be if only a mere instrument in procuring so essential a Good to so deserving a family will afford a man very comfortable reflections, let his other circumstances be as uncomfortable as they can.¹³

Abandoning his journey to the Miramichi, Marston at once sailed to Boston. There, he carried out his task so expeditiously that within two weeks he succeeded in getting all the relevant documents, which he promptly posted to Winslow. In addition to this, he also arranged for the passage of two of Winslow's former workmen to join him in New Brunswick.¹⁴

As he was getting ready to leave, an unfortunate incident, reminiscent of his previous visits to the United States, occurred. He was arrested and he had to spend a few hours in jail. The details of this incident are not very clear. However, it seems that Marston had agreed to stand as surety for one of his Marblehead townsmen who borrowed some money from a certain John Burman, another Marblehead man. When the debtor failed to pay, Burman at once arranged for the arrest of his surety, Marston. Fortunately, he did not have to stay long in jail. The matter was somehow resolved and he was promptly bailed by a Mr. Amary. This incident convinced him that his stay in the United States was always attended by ill-luck. So, as soon as he was released he wasted no time in returning to New Brunswick and "the protection of the British government."¹⁵

Upon his arrival in Saint John, the Winslows gladly informed him that they had begun to reap the fruits of his decision to go to New England. But this decision also had another significant effect which the Winslows did not notice: it diverted Marston's interest from other matters and he became very obsessed with the compensation issue. Instead of going back to Miramichi, he decided to discard the idea of appointing an agent, and go to England himself to collect the money.

This decision was somewhat erratic; he did not even have one tenth of the amount needed to pay his passage to England. But typically, he relentlessly strove towards what seemed like the impossible. He went to Winslow for assistance. Unfortunately the finances of his dedicated patron were at a low ebb. Without giving up, he went to Ward Chipman who at once agreed to lend him the money.¹⁶

Before he left Chipman's house, he decided to leave a chest containing his surveying instruments, maps, correspondence and his precious diary, in Chipman's care. By this, Marston performed one of the most valuable services he ever rendered to himself. Without those documents, a history of his life would have been highly deficient, even impossible.

He made his final exit from New Brunswick in August, 1786, leaving behind him much unfinished business: (1) the saw mill, although making steady progress, was still incomplete; (2) the fishing venture which he had just started, had to be terminated because he was not around to supervise his men;¹⁷ (3) the business as middleman for Halifax merchants was in utter disarray. A few months before he left Miramichi, he took some goods to be sold. Before he left, he had succeeded in selling [pound sterling] 95 worth of goods; the remaining [pound sterling] 107 worth of goods, he left in the charge of his partner, Mark Delesderniers. At the time of his departure, he did not have the slightest idea of what might have happened to these remaining goods. Furthermore, he owed the Halifax merchants an unspecified but substantial sum of money.¹⁸

He was so dead set on going to England that, without any hesitation, he turned down a business proposal from a certain Watson Edenton of North Carolina: "You must wait until whenever I return, because it is only then that I shall be better prepared to chalk out a plan."¹⁹ This was very uncharacteristic of Marston, who was always ready to jump at any business possibility.

In the light of the state of his affairs when he left for England, one is at once tempted to criticize him. Why would any sensible person leave such diverse business matters unattended, in pursuit of uncertainty? But we must not be hasty in passing judgements. Instead, an attempt must be made to understand the situation. In the f irst place, Marston did not view the promise of compensation as an uncertainty. He, like many other Loyalists, had great faith in the British government. Furthermore, he was expecting a handsome sum, something worth travelling all that distance for. He was almost certain that he would receive all the amount he had asked for, or at the worst, something very close to it: "I am going to London to receive the compensation made me by the commissioner (how much, I know not for they don't divulge). But I am sure it will be agreeable, and I will pay to your order in England, [pound sterling] 40 Ster. -- if my first dividend shall amount to [pound sterling] 300, then I think it can't be so little as that."²⁰ Perhaps more importantly, we must try to understand what compensation meant for Marston and indeed other Loyalists. For them, it was not a privilege, it was a right, the British government owed it to them. As Joseph Galloway puts it: "It is a debt of the highest and most inviolable nature, from which Parliament can never honourably and justly discharge itself, but by making adequate compensation; nor can the moral obligation to do it be by any means suspended, for a moment, but by national inability and insolvency."²¹ The Loyalists' thinking in this matter was different from that of William Pitt who explicitly pointed out that however strong their claims might be on the generosity of the nation, compensation should not be considered as a matter of right and strict justice.²²

It was as if that fateful visit to the Winslows in February, 1786, made Marston realize that he was failing to exercise his right. From then on, he would never be at peace with himself until the British government paid him back the price he paid for his loyalty. He suddenly seemed to notice a vacuum which could only be filled by compensation. For the first time since his flight from Marblehead, and the death of his wife, he contemplated remarrying: "When I return from England, I will be able to settle down, and I will ask Betty W. to be my female partner, that is if she is not yet married to the preacher."²³

Nevertheless, he was not so blinded by the desperate urge to be compensated as not to see the risks involved. The difficulty he encountered in procuring adequate funds to travel was sufficient indication that his life might be taking a precarious turn. But he quickly consoled himself: "So let the consequence be as it may, I have nothing to blame myself for."²⁴ In spite of this readiness for difficulty, he did not anticipate the grim consequences which attended his trip to England.

Marston expected to be in England for only a few months. Shortly after his arrival, the first installment of [pound sterling] 45 was given to him, and he was asked to wait for the balance. What was worse, the exact amount of this balance was not disclosed, and he had to wait for three agonizing years before he got it.²⁵

This experience was not unique to Marston. Delay in payments was one of the major sources of dissatisfaction for the Loyalists, on the compensation issue. This problem was mostly the fault of William Pitt who insisted that he must know the total amount his government would be expected to pay, before committing himself to pay the Loyalists in full. Reasonable as this desire was, it worked to the disadvantage of the claimants. A petition sent to Parliament in 1786 by the Loyalists' agents in London, described the repercussions Pitt's compensation policy was having on the Loyalists living in England: It is impossible to describe the poignant distress under which many of these persons now labour, and which must daily increase should the justice of Parliament be delayed until all claims are liquidated and reported; ten years have elapsed since many of them have been deprived of their fortunes and with their helpless families reduced from independent affluence to poverty and want; some of them now languishing in British jails; others indebted to their creditors, who have lent them money barely to support their existence and who, unless speedily relieved, must sink more than the value of their claims when received, and be in a worse condition than if they had never made them; others have already sunk under pressure and severity of their misfortunes; and others must, in all probability, soon meet the same melancholy fate, should the justice due them be longer postponed. But on the contrary, should provision be now made for payment of those whose claims have been settled and reported, it will not only relieve them of their distress, but give credit to others whose claims remain to be considered.²⁶

No sooner did Marston arrive in England, before he joined the ranks of these victims. He suddenly realized that he was trapped: the first installment given to him fell far short of what he had expected, so he did not even have enough money to pay his passage back to New Brunswick. The only alternative open to him was to wait for the balance. To do this, it was imperative that he find himself a means of livelihood, and this became his first problem.

Marston by himself did not have any influence in England. As always, he felt he could depend on Winslow's patronage in procuring a job. Unfortunately, this time, the tide had turned; Winslow's influence in England had begun to wane. After the end of the Fox-North Coalition, Winslow became little known among government officials.²⁷ However, he was still in contact with two influential men who could have been of some help to Marston -- Sir Brook Watson and Joshua Loring.²⁸ But Marston discovered that Watson was not as helpful as they had thought: "Brooky may be a good Factor in all matters to which percents are annexed, but as to anything thro mere friendship it. must not be expected." As for Joshua Loring, he was so ill that he had to stay in his house all the time. He died a few months after Marston's arrival.²⁹

Without Winslow's helping hand, the energetic Marston tried to fend for himself. On three occasions he was turned down at the last moment: (1) in the summer of 1788, through the recommendation of a Halifax merchant visiting London, he was employed as a companion for an English merchant going to St. John's, Newfoundland. Very suddenly, the merchant changed his mind and decided to go alone; (2) He was recommended again by the same Halifax merchant, to a company which was contemplating opening a fishing business at either Canso or Newfoundland. Because the company eventually decided on Newfoundland where they already had an agent, Marston was dropped; (3) He was recruited as a salesperson for an English company which was expecting a mast contract in New Brunswick. They did not get the contract, and the venture was abandoned.³⁰

Frustrated over these futile attempts to obtain employment, Marston decided to do his own private business. This time, it was Marston the lawyer turned scientist. This venture involved the invention of a navigational instrument which would be used to "determine the sun's altitude when the horizon is invisible." Using, as he claimed, sophisticated mathematical methods, he developed such an instrument. In 1789 when he completed it, his spirits were very high, and he referred to it as his "only hope." He gave it to an optician who promised to test it and promote its sale. Unfortunately, its effects are not known. It is, however, very unlikely that any substantial result emanated from the venture, because he stopped talking about it just as abruptly as he commenced the experiment.³¹

In the middle of 1790, he finally got a job as a "service man" in charge of a 100 ton steam boat which transported people within London. For this, he was paid only four guineas a month.³²

Job disappointments were nothing, compared to the blow he received when his compensation was finally settled. Instead of the [pound sterling] 476.28.8 that he filed for, he was given only [pound sterling] 105. This was paid in two installments -- [pound sterling] 45 on his arrival, and the remaining [pound sterling] 60, almost three years after. In the intervening period, he had to borrow money for subsistence. Consequently, when he eventually received the balance, he found out that he needed more than that amount ([pound sterling] 60) to settle his debts in England alone.³³ This underscored the futility of his trip to England. It meant that he was back where he started, in fact worse off, because he still owed Chipman the money for his passage to England, and he still could not afford to pay his way back.

How did he react to this calamity? Chipman was sure that he must have been "vexatiously disappointed."³⁴ Indeed, he was vexed; but not at the King or the British government as an entity. He attributed his failure to get the amount he requested to Pitt and those directly connected with compensation: What has brought us into this unpleasant situation deserves a better fate, and there is no doubt, but that it was the intention of Parliament to have offered essential relief to all sufferers. But those who were appointed the distributors of its benevolence have in very many instances defeated its design. The fact is, they are under the influence of a minister who looks upon the claims of the Loyalists rather unfavourably, because they are some obstacle in the way of his ambition, which is to put the National Debt in a train of being all fairly discharged in the course of the lives of the present Generation.

Besides Pitt's personal ambition, Marston was convinced that he and members of the claims commission were partial. To buttress this accusation, he sent Winslow a list of persons who were given substantial amounts, only because of their affiliation to influential people in the government and the claims commission.³⁵

His loyalty to the Crown remained unshaken. In the very letters that he wrote lamenting his failure to get the money due him, he also stressed how happy he was that the King had recovered from an alarming illness, to continue his reign. His admiration for the loyalty displayed by the King's subjects, was glaring: What a triumph to the good old King to have such sincere unequivocal demonstration of his People's hearty regard and affection. What is very remarkable is that among this immense crowd, which was several hours together in the great City, there was no Riot, Tumult, nor Disorder, not a window was broken, tho some few (Quakers) were nonsensical enough to refuse joining in the joyful exhibitions because it was Carnal Joy.³⁶

Although his disappointing compensation was not sufficient reason for him to renounce the King, it jolted him to the gravity of his predicament. It became clear that it would take a miracle to get him back to New Brunswick or the United States. At once, he began to take steps to wind up all unfinished business in those places. He wrote to Chipman, authorizing him to collect the key to his blue chest which he left in his care, from his cousin, Sarah Winslow. He instructed him to study the details of his Miramichi business accounts, and to get Delesderniers to account for the unsold goods. He said he wanted to be treated as an absconding debtor, so Chipman should use all the proceeds from the sale of those goods to pay off his debts to him (Chipman), and the Halifax merchants.³⁷

Chipman wrote to Delesderniers acquainting him with Marston's instructions. But the latter did not bother to reply, and Chipman did not pursue the matter further, because he claimed, he had been made to understand that Delesderniers was nothing more than "a slippery chap."³⁸ Chipman does not mention his source or provide evidence for his view of Delesdernier's character. Raymond, however, disagrees with Chipman, mainly because Delesderniers was recommended highly for the post of Sheriff of Northumberland County, which he assumed at the end of the tenure of Marston's successor.³⁹

More important than Delesdernier's supposedly shady character, Chipman felt that Marston had suffered enough. He decided to abandon all attempts to recover what Marston owed him.⁴⁰ Apparently the other creditors were not so understanding. Eventually, Chipman was forced to take steps. In 1794, two years after Marston's death, he asked permission from the governor and council to sell a tract of land in Miramichi belonging to Marston, in order to pay off his debts.⁴¹

New Brunswick had become Marston's home, and it was his ardent wish to join the other leading Loyalists in the development of that province. The impracticability of this became clear to him when he was given the second and last installment of his compensation money. At the same time, he wanted to be remembered in that province. Therefore, he sent cherry, peach and plum seeds to Winslow, imploring him to carefully cultivate them into what should be called "Marston's Row." He suspected that Winslow might not take him seriously, so to show the significance of this request, he declared: "You'll laugh at my vanity, but I have a vast desire to be remembered among you as a benefactor to N. Brunswick."⁴² In spite of this emphasis, as he had anticipated, Winslow did not take him seriously. There is no indication that he did anything to fulfil Marston's wish. But it must also be borne in mind that at that time, Winslow had many problems of his own to attend to. He was disappointed at not getting a position in the government, after all the effort he put into the founding of the province; he was plagued by continuous attacks of gout; was in serious debt; and quarreled with his sister Sarah.⁴³

Although Marston continued to reject his sister, Lucia's plea that he should return to New England, it is very likely that inwardly he was hoping that someday things would change and he would be able to settle down in his old home. For one thing, he did not make any attempt to liquidate what was left of his property. After his final compensation payment, he decided to do just that.

He drew up a detailed schedule of his property in New England, which he sent to his nephew Marston Watson in Marblehead. He instructed Watson to sell whatever was left of his property -- real estate, books, household items, china, and glassware. Henry Gallison and Co., the company he did most of his business with before he left Marblehead, still owed him some money. He implored Watson to try and collect this money from them. All the money acquired through the sale of his property and the collection of debts, should be used to pay off his own debts. Displaying how retentive his memory was, Marston listed all his creditors and how much he owed them, even the local butcher. He made it clear to his nephew that it was his sincere wish to have all his debts liquidated, but at the same time, hoped that there would still be some money left over, that could be sent to him in London. He was desperately in need of money.⁴⁴

This desperation notwithstanding, he was determined that certain items must not be sold under any circumstances. These were: a dish, with the Winslow arms engraved on the rim; a small 8 sq. [sic] mirror; and a large oaken chest. He attached so much sentiments to these because they were brought from England by his grandfather, Edward Winslow, on the celebrated Mayflower. Marston instructed that these items be sent to the Winslows of New Brunswick through Ward Chipman, and that they must ensure that they were preserved for posterity to see.⁴⁵ They never found their way to New Brunswick, but his wish that they should be preserved for posterity was partly fulfilled: the mirror and the chest became favourite family possessions of the Marstons and Watsons of Marblehead and Plymouth. As for the dish with the engraving, it was never located. It is possible that it was among the things looted by the mob which attacked his house in November, 1775.⁴⁶

Facing his predicament and winding up all relations with people and places that he loved must have been a painful exercise. Thus, one wonders how he pulled through. As we have already seen, Marston was very good at expressing his feelings, especially to himself, in his diary. Therefore, it is difficult to imagine that he gave up this habit during his stay in England. Unfortunately, none of his belongings after he left North America were ever located. Nevertheless, from some of the letters he wrote to his relatives and friends, we can be able to determine his feelings.

Marston was a seasoned victim of tragedies. He claimed that he did not care what happened to him; he became worried only when others were affected by his misfortunes. For example, in 1789, when Ward Chipman wrote to him telling him that he would be greatly pleased if he could try to repay some of his money, he replied: It adds greatly to the weight of my misfortunes to reflect that any one, especially a friend should be put to any inconveniences by them. While they terminated all in me, I cared little about them. A series of disappointments had inured me to adversity and had blunted its edge when the blow lighted upon me only; but it pierced my very soul to think of disadvantages arising to those who have made their friendly exertions to assist me and I begin to fear I shall not be able to prevent it.

⁴⁷

Fortunately, he still possessed his sanguine nature to cheer him up. In his typical optimistic and facetious manner, he wrote to Edward Winslow: My dear Ned, don't let misfortune depress your spirits. He who feeds the Moose and Caribou, the wild Ducks and Geese, the Shad, Gaspereaux, and Salmon, takes care of you and me also, and tho, we may be sometimes pinched, yet if we behave ourselves we shall be recompensed by an ample allowance of smart money. I don't say this to cultivate in you, any liking to misfortune, no -- fight, scratch, kick, bite, throw stones, do anything to her. I hate the very name of the Toad.⁴⁸

But underneath this calm, light-hearted spirit, was a gravely worried man. At this point, he was beginning to face the reality that he might never be able to recoup his shattered fortunes. The uncertainty of his life terrified him: by his own admission, hewas like the fictional Robinson Crusoe, moving from one unforeseen danger to the other.⁴⁹ His anxiety was clearly reflected in one of his letters to his nephew, in which he expressed perhaps the most pathetic sentiment he ever uttered about himself: "I am the only surviving brother of your Mother, who after a series of hardships, misfortunes and disappointments, for the space of near 16 years, has not, now that he has passed his 60th year, a place that he can command to lay his head."⁵⁰

Hard as he might have tried not to bear any grudge, there is no doubt that the hardships he endured in England caused him to change his opinion about that country. He bitterly complained to Winslow: "Americans used to call this country Home, but it has become a very cold home to us in general. The original connections and attachments are long since worn out and dissolved."⁵¹ After living in England for four years, he discovered that that country was "in most respects, vastly inferior to any other country he had seen and definitely, the worst prison he had ever been held up in."⁵²

This experience was not unique to Marston. Indeed most of the Loyalist exiles in Britain vented similar feelings. As Mary Beth Norton points out, it was easier for the younger Americans, those who had been brought to the British Isles as children by their refugee parents, to adapt to the English way of life. Their full acceptance into the society was made even easier as they married into English families. But for the older refugees, adapting was an ordeal. Thomas Hutchinson, even with all the connections he had, found England "a strange and callous world, and a dissolute world of statesmen who were drunk through the night." It was a country he could not understand, and one far below his expectations. Benjamin Thompson expressed the opinion of many of his fellow exiles when after searching in vain for a job, he remarked: "England is not a place for a Loyalist to make his way."⁵³

Marston found that out only a few months after his arrival. In nearly all his letters, he emphasized the fact that he was staying in England against his wish: "I am sincerely tired of England," he declared, "but how to get out of it is the question: without the means, tis impossible."⁵⁴

The means presented itself with the dawn of 1792. In January of that year, he was employed as surveyor by a company which was planning a settlement on the island of Bullom on the West Coast of Africa.⁵⁵ The details of how he got this job are unknown.

The Bullom Island Company was a break-away organization of the Sierra Leone Company, formed in 1791. Henry Hew Dalrymple, governor of the Bullom settlement, was the first governor appointed for the Sierra Leone colony. But he fell out with the members of the company, and he decided to found his own company and a colony 300 miles north of the original settlement. Unfortunately, this break-away company failed to register much success, in contrast to the parent body. In fact the Bullom settlement is little known in the history of Sierra Leone.

Merely to say that Marston was pleased to obtain this job would be an understatement; he was overjoyed: "I have at length waded thro the slough of Despond. I am now landed on the opposite side, and shall go on my way rejoicing."⁵⁶ No doubt, the overriding reason for this immense joy was the fact that at last he was afforded the opportunity to leave England.⁵⁷

The nature of the job was another significant reason. As much as Marston had wanted to rebuild his life, the upheavals of the past sixteen years had given him some amount of pleasure and had awakened in him the realization of an innate love for adventure. The challenges of his new job fascinated him. The thick jungle, wild animals, and savage inhabitants, stories of the "Dark Continent" so frequently told during that period, aroused his spirit of adventure. In his own words: No expedition could have hit my taste and humour more exactly than such an one as this promises to do. It is so much of the Robinson Crusoe kind, that I prefer it vastly to any employment of equal emolument and of a more regular kind that might have been offered me in this country . . . That rambling humour which was born with me -- and which has never yet been fully gratified -- being now unrestrained by any local connexions, will be yet prompting me to engage in adventures which will carry me to new scenes, especially while I have vigor of body and mind of fatigue and application.⁵⁸

He also saw the project as a crusade against slavery. It symbolized one of the many efforts "to cut off by the roots that most wicked traffic, the slave trade which all Flesh in this country are strongly setting their faces against." He was determined that he would do all in his power to spread the gospel, "Civilization" and legitimate commerce, so as to discourage the inhuman traffic of human beings. In this respect, Marston was influenced by the philanthropic fervour which engulfed Britain during that period.

His eagerness to be part of the crusade against slavery was also prompted by his desire to make up for "wrong" he did as a Loyalist. For the first time after seventeen years, Marston began to question the stand he took in the great revolution, to the extent that Marston, the Tory, began to view the issue like a rebel. No better evidence of this shift in thinking can be tendered, than the last letter he wrote to his relatives in the United States: There is not remaining the least resentment in my mind to the Country [U.S.A.] because the party whose side I took in the late great Revolution, did not succeed, for I am fully convinced it is better for the world that they have not. For it is the foundation -- the first step to what has since followed in France, and of many others yet in Embryo in the other European kingdoms, in almost all of which the fermentation is already begun, -- and it will proceed till all Usurpation, all Lording of one over many, both in Spirituals and Temporals, will be entirely wrot off and despumated, and man be left master of himself . . . To be aiding in bringing about such events, tho confined to the humble station of Surveyor of Lands, is more eligible, and in fact more meritorious than to be at the head of 100,000 disciplined cut-throats, murdering one's fellow creatures, to gratify the ambition, malice and avarice of some Great Scoundrel and Rascal, called King or Emperor.⁵⁹

The above statement naturally leads to one question, did Benjamin Marston regret that he was a Loyalist? At once, one is tempted to feel that the answer is simply, yes. But Marston himself denied this when in the same letter he added: "I don't mean by that to pay any compliments to the instigators of our American Revolution, although it has been of advantage to Mankind. I should as soon think of erecting monuments to Judas Iscariot, Pontius Pilate and the Jewish Sanhedrin, for betraying and crucifying the Lord of life because that event was so important and universally beneficial."

On the whole, Marston was confused. It was a confusion no doubt begotten of disappointments and hardships in a country for which he sacrificed a great deal.

His noble intentions notwithstanding, the abundant material benefits likely to emanate from the new job formed a basic source of attraction for the impoverished Marston. He was to receive a salary of [pound sterling] 60 per annum, plus subsistence. This was no great thing for him, because he was convinced that the company should have paid him more. But the generous amount of land that was given him was beyond his most sanguine expectations. He was entitled to 500 acres, free of charge. Other settlers had to pay [pound sterling] 30 for this. He was so excited about this that he began to speculate even before he saw the land: in a few years time, the land would be worth over [pound sterling] 500 and he would make enormous profits from the sale of some portions of it.

He was also convinced that he had been offered the opportunity to do business on a scale even grander than the Marblehead days. The company was going in full force to establish a reciprocal trade system. Raw materials would be sent from the African settlement to areas in Europe and North America, in return for manufactured goods. Although he was determined to perform his surveying job efficiently, Marston was sure that he would play a prominent and prosperous role in this commercial system.⁶⁰

April 14, 1792, was a great day for Marston: he made his final exit from England. There were 275 colonists, men, women and children, who boarded the Calypso for their new home in West Africa. After a long and tedious journey, during which they lost some of their numbers, they anchored off the island of Bullom, on June 5. Immediately, Marston began to see the difficulties involved in planting a settlement in an alien environment, difficulties which, in his excitement over the chance to escape from England, he had completely overlooked. Unpleasant encounters with the hostile natives, the inclement weather, and the deadly malaria fever, doomed the settlement from the start. So heavy was the toll of the malaria fever that within a short time, the settlement became a death row, vindicating the reputation of that region as the White Man's Grave.⁶¹

The past seventeen years Marston had spent fighting, and to his credit, conquering one tragedy after another. But this time, the ageing adventurer succumbed to the destructive malaria fever, and on August 10, 1792, he took his last breath in a rugged hut among strangers. Because of the disorganized condition of the settlement, Marston, like the other settlers who died, was buried in a cursory manner, in an unmarked grave. It is not impossible that the poetic and facetious Marston might, like his father, have prepared his own epitaph.⁶² But in the circumstance, it was not used.

In the short time that Marston lived in Bullom, he succeeded in making a good impression on his fellow colonists. For example, two days after his death, Capt. Philip Beaver, member of the settlement's legislative council, paid a moving tribute to Marston, in his journal. The sentiments expressed in this tribute are genuine, because as Beaver himself pointed out, he never saw Marston before the day they left England, and he did not expect any favours from the dead man's family, whom he did not even know.

In his tribute, Beaver recorded that in the short time he knew Marston, he discovered that he was an educated and intelligent man. In spite of these qualities, he was also a simple person. The manner in which Marston quietly and bravely accommodated his problems, baffled him. He never heard him rail against the King and England. For Beaver was positive that such a good and resourceful man would never have found himself in such a destitute position had it not been for his loyalty. He concluded: "Even though he did not die a rich man, he died a good man."⁶³

Meanwhile, Marston's relatives and friends in North America were ignorant of his tragic end. When Beaver published his journal as the African Memoranda, beneath the August 12, 1792 entry, which was the tribute to Marston, he appended a note expressing his wish that one day his book should find its way to Marblehead and that through destiny, one of Marston's relatives or friends should read it and thereby learn of his fate. Just as Beaver wished, it was in this manner that the Marstons and Watsons of Plymouth and Marblehead learnt of their cousin's death, but only two years after it had occurred.⁶⁴

The Watsons presumably passed on the tragic news to Chipman and the Winslows of New Brunswick. Winslow received this with mixed feelings: he was very sad that his cousin's life should terminate so tragically, and at the same time, was relieved that all those "trying days of suspense and hardship had finally come to an end."⁶⁵

The search for compensation and tranquility was over. When he left New Brunswick for England, Marston, even in his wildest imagination, could not have expected to set foot on the continent of Africa. However, he was right about one thing -- the search for compensation was bound to put an end to his ramblings. Unfortunately, these ramblings were brought to an end, in a sad manner he did not anticipate.

CONCLUSION

In a list of the twenty-one Loyalist leaders of New Brunswick, drawn up by a recent scholar, Benjamin Marston's column is unique: he was the only one without a "final place of settlement."¹ This very neatly sums up his fate after the outbreak of the revolution. As the preceding chapters amply demonstrate, he pursued a chequered, and often precarious career, all in the effort of mending his shattered fortunes. But he failed.

What was responsible for this failure? Until he took his last breath, Marston was convinced that he was not to be blamed for any of his misfortunes. He could stand on a pedestal and proclaim his agility and his willingness to work at all times: "When my ill-fate is considered, my friends nor Enemies (if I have any) will not think that I have been wanting in my exertions, they shall never have it to say that I am indolent and won't take business when tis offered. I am curs'd for being an incorrigible Tory."² Thus, for him, the answer was simple -- his failure was merely the inevitable price of loyalty.

Indeed his exertions, his efforts to achieve success were, as he said, never wanting. On some occasions they were thwarted by the cruel hand of fate: for example, when he lost all that he owned in the ship wreck off Cape Canso. However, to assert that his failure was inevitable because of his loyalty would be a fallacy. Ultimate failure was not a natural course followed by all Loyalists. We need not go far to find evidence for this. In New Brunswick were men like Ward Chipman, Jonathan Odell, Joshua Upham and Edward Winslow, who succeeded in recapturing some of the comforts of their previous life style. Admittedly, life was never the same for these men. Ward Chipman, for example, despite his success and affluence in the new province, lived in comparative poverty.³ As for Edward Winslow, the disparity between his life in Massachusetts and New Brunswick was very great. Finding it difficult to discard his previous lavish life style, Winslow unwittingly lived above his means, consequently finishing his days in debt and melancholy.⁴ Nevertheless, his case was nothing compared to Marston's tragedy. Unlike the latter, he at least had a "final place of settlement."

An historian once observed that biography is intended to re-make men, not to judge them. While acknowledging the validity of this observation, one cannot help but point out that Marston was partly responsible for his misfortunes. There were certain traits in his character which served him adversely: he lacked tact; was too rigid; and over-sanguine.

As has already been pointed out in Chapter III of the present study, his lack of tact and rigidity contributed in no mean measure to his calamity in Shelburne. It was that same rigidity which prevented him from going back to settle in the United States. It is possible that he might have attained success if he had gone back. Some Loyalists returned and found life even easier there than in their homes in exile. In Marston's case, as his last letter to the Watsons prove, even after confiscation he possessed more in New England than he ever did in Nova Scotia or New Brunswick. Furthermore, his sister, her husband and his other relatives there seemed fully prepared to help him re-settle in his former home. Marston himself was aware of these advantages, but by his own admission, there was only one reason that prevented him from returning -- the fact that he could not live among the "deluded rebels." So rigid was Marston that even the hardship in Nova Scotia could not make him thaw.

The tragedy in England was in some ways Marston's own creation. True enough, Loyalists regarded compensation as a right, but there were many Loyalists who claimed far more than he did, but did not make the trip to England. Many received their compensation through agents. Even his cousin, Edward Winslow, remained in New Brunswick and fought for his pension. What was worse, Marston did not even go back to the Miramichi (which he had unceremoniously left for over a year) to put his affairs in order. This illustrates his lack of tact and a gross irresponsibility.

It is hardly probable that he displayed such irresponsibility in Marblehead; because if he had, he would not have been the prosperous merchant that he was, or appointed to those respectable committees. From this emerges an intriguing contention: that it is in fact possible that the upheavals in his life following the outbreak of the revolution, disoriented him. From his letters and diary, it is quite clear that Marston was thankful for one thing, the fact that he was strong enough to accommodate his problems. Because he did not end up in a mad house, he was convinced that the probiems caused by the revolution had not taken a mental toll on him. But one wonders how accurate this is. Although he kept emphasizing how much he wanted to settle down, it is quite clear that he had developed a tendency to keep moving. Did this tendency have something to do with his decision to go to England? It was as if his spirit was gravely tormented, and the only way to get rid of this was to be mobile. Was that innate love for adventure which he spoke about before he left England, really an inborn passion or was it caused by the suffering he endured as a Loyalist?

To answer these questions, we can only surmise. We cannot determine exactly to what extent Marston was responsible for his misfortunes. But one thing is certain: in spite of the weaknesses in his character, in spite of the cruel intervention of destiny, his decision to remain loyal to the British Crown remains a very influential factor in the history of his life after 1775.

Like anybody, Marston was not without his faults. For example, many might brand him a snob because of his disdain of the lower class. But this was a classic Loyalist attitude. Loyalists carried an air of superiority wherever they went. In Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, they tried to impose their superiority over the pre-Loyalists; it was the same thing in the Bahamas; and also in Sierra Leone where the black Loyalists quickly drew a line of demarcation between themselves and the "uncouth" native Africans they met there. There was a similar discrimination within the Loyalist ranks. Contrary to the myth that Loyalists came from the upper strata of the American society, there was a large number of them from the lower classes. The Loyalist elite looked down on their less privileged counterparts. This was amply demonstrated in New Brunswick where the Loyalist elite tried to create an oligarchy, much to the displeasure of the rank and file.⁵ Marston appears unusual only because he recorded his feelings. In essence he was merely a typical Loyalist elite. In spite of this disdain of the lower class, Marston's sympathy for the blacks and his abhorrence of slavery were genuine. His argument against that inhuman institution was very constructive and worthy of praise.⁶ Like Thomas Jefferson, he was in this issue, ahead of his time.

He was fondly remembered by his family who considered him something of a martyr. His nephew wrote: "We who bear his name are proud of it than if he had left rank and honor and large possessions. And I trust that I may with propriety express the opinion that few of those who embraced the cause of the Mother Country in those trying times, were led by more honorable, or disinterested motives, or are more deserving of respectful remembrance than Benjamin Marston of Marblehead."⁷

In Canada, he is important for his contribution to the study of the history of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, especially Shelburne. Nowhere is Marston's intelligence and literary ability better demonstrated than in his diary, where he recorded and analyzed events.⁸ He was also a talented artist. Unfortunately only one of his sketches has survived -- the sketch he made of Fort Howe (in Saint John) from the deck of his vessel, the Britannia. This is a significant piece, because it is the oldest existing sketch of Fort Howe. Marston's efforts have been amply rewarded by the fact that an enlarged copy of his sketch today hangs on one of the walls of the New Brunswick Museum. His diary, letters and poems form a very valuable source for Loyalist history.

Students of New Brunswick history are more familiar with prominent figures -- the founding fathers like Ward Chipman, Edward Winslow, and Jonathan Odell. Nevertheless, in the background, Marston also contributed immensely to the history of this province and Nova Scotia. We must agree, without any reservations, with William 0. Raymond that "a more chequered and remarkable career than that of Benjamin Marston, from the day he was forced to leave his pleasant abode in Marblehead until he died on the coast of Africa, seventeen years later, is rarely to be found in the pages of real life."⁹

Appendix I
ADDRESS OF THE INHABITANTS OF MARBLEHEAD TO GOV. HUTCHINSON.

Marblehead, May 25, 1774.

His Majesty having been pleased to appoint his Excellency the Hon. Thomas Gage, Esq., to be governor and commander-in-chief over this province, and you (as we are informed,) begin speedily to embark for Great Britain: We, the subscribers, merchants, traders, and others, inhabitants of Marblehead, beg leave to present you our valedictory address on this occasion; and as this is the only way we now have of expressing to you our entire approbation of your public conduct during the time you have presided in this province, and of making you a return of our most sincere and hearty thanks for the ready assistance which you have at all times afforded us, when applied to in matters which affected our navigation and commerce, we are induced from former experience of your goodness, to believe that you will freely indulge us in the pleasure of giving you this testimony of our sincere esteem and gratitude.

In your public administration, we are fully convinced that the general good was the mark which you have ever aimed at, and we can, sir, with pleasure assure you, that it is likewise the opinion of all dispassionate thinking men within the circle of our observation, notwithstanding many publications would have taught the world to think the contrary; and we beg leave to entreat you, that when you arrive at the court of Great Britain, you would there embrace every opportunity of moderating the resentment of the government against us, and use your best endeavors to have the unhappy dispute between Great Britain and this country brought to a just and equitable determination.

We cannot omit the opportunity of returning you in a particular manner our most sincere thanks for your patronizing our cause in the matter of entering and clearing the fishing vessels at the custom-house, and making the fishermen pay hospital money; we believe it is owing to your representation of the matter, that we are hitherto free from that burden.

We heartily wish you, sir, a safe and prosperous passage to Great Britain, and when you arrive there may you find such a reception as shall fully compensate for all the insults and indignities which have been offered you.

Henry Saunders, Richard Hinkly, Samuel Reed, John Lee, Robert Ambrose, Jonathan Glover, Richard Phillips, Isaac Mansfield, Joseph Bubler, Richard Stacy, Thomas Procter, John Fowle, Robert Hooper, 3d, John Gallison, John Prince, George McCall, Joseph Swasey, Nathan Bowen, Thomas Robie, John Stimson, John Webb, Joseph Lee, Thomas Lewis, Sweet Hooper, Robert Hooper, Jacob Fowle, John Pedrick, Richard Reed, Benjamin Marston,* Samuel White, Joseph Hooper, John Prentice,

Robert Hooper, Jr.

Appendix II
COMMISSIONER PEMBERTON'S NOTES ON BENJAMIN MARSTON'S CLAIM FOR COMPENSATION

Case of Benjn. Marsten, of Marblehead, Massachusetts.
Claimant sworn saith:
He is a native of America. Resided at Marblehead when Troubles began. From the first declared his sentiments freely & publicly in favour of Brit. Govert. Was one of the select men of the Town, & always ready to Execute the Laws in support of Brit. establish1d Government.

In Novr., 1775, went from Marblehead to Boston to join the Brit. Went as soon as he could in an open Boat which was accompanied with considerable Hazard. Continued with the Brit. at Boston & came with General How to this Province. Was once employed to Convey a spy who was going into the Enemy's Country. On coming into the Province had intended to go into the Military Line, but was disappointed on which he went to sea in a Mercht. vessel as super Cargo. Was taken Prisoner on his first voyage in 1776. Was carried into Plymouth, & kept prisoner 6 months, & treated with uncommon severity owing to the Principles which he was known to have entertained & profest.

Claimant was in Possession of an Estate at Marblehead, an house with buildings, Garden, orchard &c., containing about one acre.

Claimant lived upon it. Produces Deed of Conveyance from Rachel Majery to Claimt. of a Messuage in Marblehead Containing 2 acres of Land in Considn. [pound sterling] 450, dated 1760. Laid out as much more as the Purchase money in Repairs and additional Builds. Sold one acre for about [pound sterling] 225 Sterl.

Vals. the above estate at [pound sterling] 600 Ster.

0n Claimant's leaving Marblehead, it was taken Possession of by Committee. It has been since leased to one Marston Watson, Nephew to Claimt. There was no Mortgage or Incumbrance on this Estate.

A Store divided into two Tenements in King street, Marblehead. Produces Deed from Richd. Reed to Claimt. of a Tract of Land in King Street, Marblehead, with part of a Warehouse in Considn. [pound sterling] lOO, dated 1764. Produces Release from Robt. Hooper to Claimant of all his right in the aforesaid Premises in Considn. [pound sterling] 5, dated 1764. Richd. Hooper had an old mortgage.

Claimt. built a new store after the Purchase at [pound sterling] 150 lawful, divided into 2 Tenements, at [pound sterling] 6 Ster. per ann. Kept the other himself. Vals. the whole at [pound sterling] 13.10 Ster. per ann.

Vals. it at [pound sterling] 180 Ster.

Produces a private Letter from his Nephew, Marston Watson, at Marblehead, May, 1782, by which it appears that Claimant's personal Estate had been sold. The real Estate was then unsold, but 3 Commrs. had been appointed to take an acct. of Charges upon all Claimant's Estate. Letter says there would be probably little surplus. Claimant says he owed about [pound sterling] 550 Ster., of [pound sterling] 70 of which was due in London.

1-5 of a Farm commonly called Bootman's Farm. The whole farm consisted of 60 acres with 1-5 of the Stock. The farm had belonged to his wife. Claimt. & his Wife Conveyed this to Isaac Mansfield Jany.,1773, in order that he might reconvey the Premises to Claimant. This was the way by which married Women made Conveyances, answering the purpose of a Fine.

Produces Deed from Claimant & Wife to Isaac Mansfield, dated Jany. 9, 1773. Isaac Mansfield Conveyed the Premises to Claimant immediately after the former Deed was recorded but Claimt. has not this Deed at present.

Claimant & his Wife's Brors. & Sisters used to let this & the whole produce was a clear [pound sterling] 120 lawful Mon. amongst the five. It came to his Wife as her Share on the Death of an Elder Brother.

Produces Copy of Will of his Wife's Father, Joseph Sweet, dated 1744, devising to his Son, Joseph, a farm consisting 65 acres with buildings, stock, utensils, &c. Joseph Sweet, the Son, was in possession & died intestate without Children. 1-5 came to Claimt.'s Wife.

Vals. them at [pound sterling] 220 Ster.

Claimt. has not heard anything of the sale of this. Thinks a Brother & Sister of Claimt1s. Wife now living at Marblehead who are entitled to equal shares in it with Claimt1s. Wife.

1-5 of house in Marblehead, his Wife. Conveyed by Claimt. & Wife to Isaac Mansfield, in order to be Conveyed to Claimt. Produces Deed from Claimt. & Wife to Isaac Mansfield in 1772. Has not the Deed whereby Isaac Mansfield reconveyed. Had belonged to Joseph Sweet. Left to him by his Father's Will, and was Mrs. Marston's share on her Bror.'s death. The whole of this house let at [pound sterling] 16 per ann. Vals. his share at [pound sterling] 45 lawful. Knows nothing of the sale.

9 acres of pasture near Marblehead, Wife's Est. Produces Copy of Will of Joseph Sweet, dated 1744, giving to his Daugr. Sarah Sweet -- afterwards Claimt.'s Wife -- 3 Cows, Commonages in Marblehead in Tail. This Consisted of about 9 acres.

Produces Exemplification of Recovery in 1763, in order to cut off the entail, and Deed to land, the leases of Recovery by which the said Premises are declared to be Conveyed for use of Claimant & his Heirs.

Claimt. was in Possession of this. Has not heard of the sale. These Commonages were worth [pound sterling] 15 Ster. each. It was the Common Price.

Lost furniture & merchandise according to Inventory. Part left in Claimt.'s house at Marblehead. Part sent to different friends at different times in order to be secured. They were soon found out & have been seized & sold.

He had 3 Negroes. 2, a Woman & Child, were left at Mr. Bassets. Thinks they have been liberated by the State, but thinks they now live at Mr. Bassets. Worth [pound sterling] 55, the two.

Had a young man left him with a friend. He thinks he has been liberated. He went from the person with whom Claimt. left him. He afterwards went to sea & was lost. Worth [pound sterling] 25 lawful.

Was in Possession of all the different articles in Inventory & has lost them all, amounting with Negroes to [pound sterling] 451.18.8 lawful.

Adds in his Claim now [pound sterling] 25.10 Sterling for various articles of personal propert.y. The several articles found out by Commrs. & Sold.

Claims for rents from the fall of 1775.

Claimant now resides at City of St. Johns, New Brunswick.

Peter Fry, Wits:

Knew Claimant. Certainly a Loyalist, uniformly so. Knew he had a house at Marblehead. Remembers his building it. In 1777 there was an Execution on a Judgement against Claimant and an order to appraise this house, & set off part in satisfaction of this Debt. It was then appraised & Witness was one of the Commrs. who appraised it, but cannot perfectly recollect what it was appraised at. According to his present Judgement would vote it at [pound sterling] 500 Ster.

Claimt. had rendered himself obnoxious & Wits. does not think it probable that he should gain any benefit, from the Lease granted by Commrs. to his nephew.

Knew Claimt.'s Wife. Remembers her Brother Joseph. Died without Children. There were Cow Commonages in the Lands near Marblehead. Thinks them worth about [pound sterling] 12 Ster. each.

Knew that he had Negroes. Wits. thinks that those Negroes only were liberated who would take up arms. Does not remember any general act for liberating. His furniture was tolerably good. Cannot form any exact Judgement. Thinks it likely he might have had to the amount in his Inventory.

Revd. Mr. Weeks:

Knew Claimt. He was certainly a Loyalist. Knew his house at Marblehead. Remembers him in Possession of it. Remembers he had a Store. Remembers Claimant's Wife, Sarah Sweet.

Knew No. 3 Bartman's Farm. It belonged to several relations, of which Mrs. Marston was one. The family used to have a Dinner there every year. It was well stocked. Remembers he had Negroes. Remembers the Boy. His house was handsomely furnished. He had a pretty Library. He was a man of some education.

Appendix III
POEM COMPOSED BY BENJAMIN MARSTON

I'm almost sick and tired to death
with staying in this lonesome place,
Where every day presents itself
With just the same dull looking face.

0! had I but some kind fair Friend
With whom to chat the hours away,
I ne'er would care how blew the wind,
Nor tedious would I think my stay.

Ah! that was once my happy lot
When I with house and home was blest,
I'd then a fair companion got
With many female charms possest.

Yes, dearest Sally, thou wast fair,
Not only fair, but kind and good;
Sweetly together did we share
The blessings Heaven on us bestowed.

Nor scantily did Heaven shower down
Those gifts which render life a blessing,
But did our cup with mercies crown,
Nor let us feel what was distressing.

Till base Rebellion did display
Her banners fair with false pretence;
Then kindly Heaven took you away
From evils which have happened since.

And careless me, when I had lost
Of all my blessings far the best,
Did teach, and justly, at my cost,
The worth of what I once possessed.

'Tis often so -- we do not prize
The present good at its just rate,
But gone, we see with other eyes
What was its worth when 'tis too late.

Now one more verse, fair Ladies nine,
And there'll be one a piece for you,
'Tis the way I sometimes spend my time
When I have nothing else to do.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

section
Primary Sources

A. Manuscripts

Public Archives of Canada.
Botsford Papers.
-- -- -- .
Chipman Papers.
-- -- -- .
Port Roseway Records.
-- -- -- .
Shelburne Papers.
Provincial Archives of New Brunswick.
Records of New Brunswick Official Appointments.
-- -- -- .
Northumberland County Petitions.
-- -- -- .
George Sproule
,
Letter Book.
New Brunswick Museum Archives.
Davidson Papers.
Provincial Archives of Nova Scotia.
Lieut. W. Booth, Diary.
-- -- -- .
Charles Morris
,
Letter Book.
-- -- -- .
Wentworth Letters.
-- -- -- .
White Collection.
University of New Brunswick Archives.
Benjamin Marston
,
Diary.
-- -- -- .
Winslow Papers. B. Printed Sources

Joseph Berry, ed.,
"Ward Chipman's Diary: A Loyalist's Return to New England in 1783,"
Essex Institute Historical Collections, LXXXVII (1951), 214-241.
Morton and Penn Borden, ed.,
The American Tory
(Oxford, 1961).
Catherine Crary, ed.,
The Price of Loyalty: Tory Writings From the Revolutionary Era (New York, 1973).
Hugh Egerton, ed.,
The Royal Commission on the Losses and Services of American Loyalists 1783 to 1785(Oxford, 1915).
Peter Force, ed.,
American Archives, 5th. Ser., Vol. I (Washington, 1848-1853).
Alexander Fraser, ed.,
Second Report of the Bureau of Archives for the Province of Ontario(Toronto, 1905).
William Ganong, ed.,
"Historical-Geographical Documents relating to New Brunswick," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, II (1899-1905), 163-188; 358-438; III (1907-1914), 301-484.

Edward Jones
,
The Loyalists of Massachusetts, Their Memorials, Petitions and Claims (London, 1931).
William 0. Raymond, ed.,
The Winslow Papers (Boston 1972).

Leslie Upton
,
The United Empire Loyalists: Men and Myths (Toronto, 1967).    C. Newspapers

The Halifax Gazette, 1783-1784.

The Royal Saint John Gazette and Nova Scotia Intelligencia, 1784-1786.

section
   Secondary Works
   A. Books

John Alden
,
The American Revolution, 1775-1783 (New York, 1954).

David Alison
,
History of Nova Scotia (3 vols.; Halifax, 1916).

Bernard Bailyn
,
The Ordeal of Thomas Hutchinson (Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1974).

A.G. Bradley
,
Colonial Americans in Exile, Founders of British Canada (New York, 1932).

John Brebner
,
The Neutral Yankees of Nova Scotia (New York, 1957).

Wallace Brown
,
The Good Americans, The Loyalists in the American Revolution (New York, 1969).
-- -- -- ,
The King's Friends. The Composition and Motives of the American Loyalist Claimants
(Providence, 1965).

North Callahan
,
Flight from the Republic (New York, 1962).

Duncan Campbell
,
History of Nova Scotia (Montreal, 1873).

Donald Chidsey
,
The Loyalists. The Story of those Americans who Fought Against Independence (New York, 1973).

W.H. Davidson
,
An Account of the Life of William Davidson (Saint John, 1947).

Lewis Einstein
,
Divided Loyalties (London, 1933).

Peter Fisher
,
History of New Brunswick (Saint John, 1921).

Margaret Gilroy
,
Loyalists and Land Settlement in Nova Scotia (Halifax, 1937).

Thomas Haliburton
,
History of Nova Scotia (2 vols.; Halifax, 1829).

James Hannay
,
History of New Brunswick (Saint John, 1909).

Joseph Lawrence
,
Foot-prints; or Incidents in the Early History of New Brunswick (Saint John, 1883).
-- -- -- ,
The Judges of New Brunswick and Their Times(Saint John, 1907).

Arthur Lower
,
Canadians in the Making, a Social History of Canada (Toronto, 1958).

Solomon Lutnick
,
The American Revolution and the British Press 1775-1783 (Columbia, 1967).

William S. MacNutt
,
The Atlantic Provinces (Toronto, 1965).
-- -- -- ,
New Brunswick. A History 1784-1867 (Toronto, 1963).

Beamish Murdock
,
History of Nova Scotia (3 vols.; Halifax, 1867).

William H. Nelson
,
The American Tory

Mary Beth Norton
,
The British-Americans. The Loyalist Exiles in England, 1774-1789 (Boston, 1972).

Arthur Porter
,
Creoledom, A Study of the Development of Freetown Society (London, 1963).

William 0. Raymond
,
History of the River St. John (Saint John, 1905).

Egerton Ryerson
,
The Loyalists of America and Their Times (2 vols.; Toronto, 1880).

Lorenzo Sabine
,
Biographical Sketches of Loyalists of the American Revolution (2 vols.; New York, 1902).

Arthur M. Schlesinger
,
The Colonial Merchants and the American Revolution 1763-1776 (New York, 1957).

Paul Smith
,
Loyalists and Redcoats (Chapel Hill, 1964).

James Stark
,
The Loyalists of Massachusetts and the Other Side of the American Revolution (Boston, 1910).

Don Thompson
,
Men and Meridians. The History of Surveying and Mapping in Canada (Ottawa, 1966).

Leslie Upton
,
Revolutionary Versus Loyalist,(Waltham, Massachusetts, 1968).

Claude Van Tyne
,
The American Revolution 1776-1783(New York, 1905).
-- -- -- ,
The Loyalists in the American Revolution (New York, 1902).

James Walker
,
The Black Loyalists: The Search for a Promised Land in Nova Scotia and Sierra Leone, 1783-1870 (New York, 1976).

Ellen G. Wilson
,
The Loyal Blacks (New York, 1976).

Robin Winks
,
The Blacks in Canada; a History (Montreal, 1971).
Esmond Wright, ed.,
Causes and Consequences of the American Revolution (Chicago, 1966).

Esther C. Wright
,
The Loyalists of New Brunswick (Fredericton, 1955).
-- -- -- ,
The Miramichi (Sackville, 1944).

George Wrong
,
Canada and the American Revolution. The Disruption of the First British Empire (New York, 1935).    B. Articles

Mary Archibald
,
"Shelburne, Home of the Loyalists," The Loyalist Gazette, XVIII (1980), 6-8.

Phyllis Blakeley
,
"Boston King: A Negro Loyalist who Sought Refuge in Nova Scotia," Dalhousie Review, XXXXVIII (1968), 347-356.

Kent Britt
,
"The Loyalists," National Geographic (April, 1975), 510-512.

Wallace Brown
,
"Benjamin Marston, Loyalist," Dictionary of Canadian Biography, IV (1979).
-- -- -- ,
"The Loyalists and the American Revolution," History Today, XII (March, 1962), 149-157.

Arthur Eaton
,
"Chapters in the History of Halifax, Nova Scotia," Americana, XII (1918), 184-204.

Plimsoll Edwards
,
"The Shelburne that was and is not," Dalhousie Review, II (1922-23), 179-197.
-- -- -- ,
"Vicissitudes of a Loyalist City," Ibid., 313-328.

Margaret Ells
,
"Clearing Decks for Loyalists," Canadian Historical Association, Report of the Annual Meeting (1933), 43-58.
-- -- -- ,
"Loyalist Attitudes," Dalhousie Review, XV (1935), 320-339.

Marion Gilroy
,
"The Partition of Nova Scotia, 1784," The Canadian Historical Review, XIV (1933), 375-391.

Anne Harding
,
"The Port Roseway Debacle: Some American Loyalists in Nova Scotia," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, CXVII (1963), 3-18.

Frank Hersey
,
"Tar and Feathers: The Adventures of Captain John Malcolm," Publications of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts, XXXIV (1941), 429-473.

James Macdonald
,
"Memoir of Governor John Parr," Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society, XIV (1910), 41-78.

Neil McKinnon
,
"Nova Scotia Loyalists," Social History, IV (1969), 17-48.

David Owen
,
"Loyalist Shelburne," Canada Magazine, XXXVII (1969), 67-71.

William 0. Raymond
,
"Benjamin Marston of Marblehead, Loyalist, His Trials and Tribulations During the American Revolution," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, III (1907-1914), 79-112.
-- -- -- ,
"The Disbanded Soldiers at Shelburne,"
Ibid., 278-293.
-- -- -- ,
"The North Shore: Incidents in the Early History of Eastern and Northern New Brunswick," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, II (1899-1905), 81-134.
-- -- -- ,
"A Sketch of the Life and Administration of General Thomas Carleton. First Governor of New Brunswick." Ibid., 439-472.

Clarence Rife
,
"Edward Winslow Jr. Loyalist Pioneer," Report of the Canadian Historical Association (1928), 101-112.

Watson Smith
,
"The Loyalists at Shelburne," Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society, VI (1887-88), 53-91.

Moses C. Tyler
,
"The Party of the Loyalists of the American Revolution," American Historical Review, I (1895), 24-46.

Maud M. Vesey
,
"Benjamin Marston, Loyalist," New England Quarterly, XV (1942), 622-651.

John Watson
,
"The Marston Family of Salem Massachusetts," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXVII (1873), 390-403.    C. Theses

Ann Condon
,
"The Envy of the American States. The Settlement of the Loyalists in New Brunswick: Goals and Achievements" (Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, Harvard University, 1975).

Carle Duval
,
"Edward Winslow, Portrait of a Loyalist" (Unpublished M.A. Thesis, University of New Brunswick, 1960).

Marion Gilroy
,
"The Loyalist Experiment in New Brunswick" (Unpublished M.A. Thesis, University of Toronto, 1933).

Neil McKinnon
,
"The Loyalist Experience in Nova Scotia, 1783-1791" (Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis, Queens University, 1975).

Patricia Ryder
,
"Ward Chipman, United Empire Loyalist" (Unpublished M.A. Thesis, University of New Brunswick, 1958).

William A. Spray
,
"Early Northumberland County 1765-1825: A Study in Local Government" (Unpublished M.A. Thesis, University of New Brunswick, 1962).    CURRICULUM VITAE
   Candidate's full name: Violet Mary-Ann Iyabo Showers    Place and date of birth: Lagos, Nigeria, February 2, 1957    Permanent address: 38 Campbell Street, Freetown, Sierra Leone    Schools attended (with dates): Our Lady's Primary School Kaduna, Nigeria, 1962-1968
   St. Faith's Secondary School Kaduna, 1969-1971
   Methodist Girls' High School Freetown, 1971-1974
   Universities attended (with dates and degrees obtained): Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, 1974-1979 B.A. (Hons.)
   University of New Brunswick, 1981-1982
   NOTES FOR INTRODUCTION

1. Daniel Wheeler, ed., Life and Writings of Thomas Paine (New York, 1908), III, 8.

2. Bernard Bailyn, The Ordeal of Thomas Hutchinson (Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1974), XI.

3. Wallace Brown, The Good Americans, The Loyalists in the American Revolution (New York, 1969), 134.

4. Ibid., 116.

5. Ibid., 135.

6. Morton and Penn Borden, ed., The American Tory (New Jersey, 1972), 63; James Stark, The Loyalists of Massachusetts and the Other Side of the American Revolution (Boston, 1910), 58.

7. John Fitzpatrick, ed., The Writings of George Washington (Washington, D.C., 1931), IX, 6-7.

8. Brown, Good Americans, 138.

9. Ibid., 132; George Washington himself admitted that many Loyalists committed suicide; Fitzpatrick, ed., Writings of Washington, IX, 6; Bailyn's analysis of Hutchinson's life after the outbreak of the revolution is an adequate illustration of the kind of mental stress endured by some of the Loyalists.

10. James Shepard, The Episcopal Church and Early Ecclesiastical Laws of Connecticut (New Britain, 1908), 83.

11. Catherine Crary, ed., The Price of Loyalty, Tory Writings From the Revolutionary Era (New York, 1973), 433.

12. Ibid., 435-436.

13. See Mary Beth Norton, The British-Americans: The Loyalist Exiles in England, 1774-1789 (Boston, 1972.

14. Slave families were often separated as a result of sal or when the youths were sent out to other areas as apprentices to learn certain trades.

15. Phyllis Blakeley, "Boston King: A Negro Loyalist who Sought Refuge in Nova Scotia," Dalhousie Review, XXXXVIII (1968), 356.

16. Arthur Porter, Creoledom, A Study of the Development of Freetown Society (London, 1963), 33.

17. Stark, Loyalists of Massachusetts, 460.

18. Ibid.; John Watson, "The Marston Family of Salem Massachusetts," New England Historical and Genealogical Register and Antiquarian Journal, XXVII (1873), 390.

19. Although Marblehead was a fairly small town, it was well situated for fishing and commerce. In fact, during that time, it was regarded as the principal fishing port in all the colonies. Stark, Loyalists of Massachusetts, 221.

20. Stark, Loyalists of Massachusetts, 222.

21. Watson, "Marston Family," 391.

22. See Appendix II.

23. Watson, "Marston Family," 391.

24. Ibid.    NOTES FOR CHAPTER I

1. Benjamin Marston, Diary, November 24, 1776.

2. Watson, "Marston Family," 391.

3. Ibid.

4. E.g. Wallace Brown, "Benjamin Marston," Dictionary of Canadian Biography, IV (1979), 516; William 0. Raymond "Benjamin Marston of Marblehead, His Trials and Tribulations During the American Revolution," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, 111 (1907-14), 79-112; Maud Vesey, "Benjamin Marston, Loyalist," New England Quarterly, XV (1942), 622-651.

5. See Appendix II.

6. See Appendix I.

7. Stark, Loyalists of Massachusetts, 123.

8. Watson, "Marston Family," 403.

9. Marston, Diary, December 2, 1776.

10. Ibid.

11. Watson, "Marston Family," 392.

12. Marston to Robert Anderson & Co. of Gibraltar, Boston, February 17, 1776, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 79.

13. Ibid.

14. Peter Force, ed., American Archives, 5th. Ser. Vol. I (Washington, 1848-1853), 98.

15. Norton, British-Americans, 30-31.

16. Marston, Diary, September 19, 1776.

17. Ibid., September 19, 1776.

18. Marston to Dr. Prince, Plymouth, September 23, 1776, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 79.

19. Marston, Diary, October 13, 1776.

20. Marston to Stephen Sewall, Plymouth, October 15, 1776, Diary.

21. Marston, Diary, October 15, 1776.

22. Sarah Winslow to Marston, Halifax, November 29, 1783, William 0. Raymond, ed., The Winslow Papers (Boston, 1972), 152.

23. Marston to Dr. Prince, Plymouth, November 14, 1776, Diary.

24. Marston, Diary, October 20, 1776.

25. Marston to Capt. Elijah Paine, Plymouth, November 1776, Diary.

26. Marston, Diary, December 2, 1776.

27. Ibid.

28. Marston, Diary, March 9, 1777.

29. Ibid., March 20, 1777.

30. Ibid., September 18, 1777.

31. Ibid., June 20, 1780.

32. Ibid., February 6, 1780.

33. Ibid., March 1, 1780.

34. Ibid., April 8, 1781.

35. Ibid., November 5, 1781.

36. Ibid., December 28, 1781.

37. Ibid., December 30, 1781.

38. Marston to E.W. Reg, Halifax, April 16, 1782, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 79.

39. Marston, Diary, August, 1782.

40. Ibid., September 8, 1782.

41. Ibid., December 4, 1782.

42. Ibid., September 8, 1782.

43. Ibid., October 3, 1782.

44. Marston to John Watson, Halifax (undated, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 79.

45. See Appendix III.

46. Marston to Lucia Watson, Halifax, March 3, 1783, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 79.    NOTES FOR CHAPTER II

1. Marston, Diary, June 19, 1783.

2. Minutes of the Loyalist Association, New York, November 30, 1782, Port Roseway Records, Vol. 1.

3. Governor John Parr to Lord Shelburne, Shelburne, July 25, 1783, Shelburne Papers, Vol. 88.

4. See Plimsoll Edwards, "The Shelburne that was and is not," Dalhousie Review, II (1922-23), 179-197; "Vicissitudes of a Loyalist City," Dalhousie Review, II, 313-328; Anne Harding, "Port Roseway Debacle: Some American Loyalists in Nova Scotia," New England Historical and Genealogical Register, CXVII (1963), 3-18; Watson Smith, "The Loyalists at Shelburne," Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society, VI (1887-88), 53-91.

5. Edward Winslow to Ward Chipman, River St. John, July 7, 1783, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 98.

6. Ibid.

7. Marston, Diary, April 21, 1783.

8. Winslow to Chipman, July 7, 1783.

9. Marston, Diary, May 2, 1783.

10. Ibid., May 3, 1783.

11. Marston to Lucia and John Watson, Port Roseway, May 3, 1783, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

12. Surveyor-general's report, 1783, Charles Morris, Letter Book.

13. Marston to Winslow, Shelburne, February 6, 1784, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 164.

14. Marston to Lucia Watson, Shelburne, June 1783, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

15. Marston, Diary, May 6, 1783; May 17, 1783; September 12, 1783.

16. Marston, Diary, August 5, 1783.

17. Ibid., July 12, 1783.

18. Morris to Marston, Halifax, September 9, 1783, Morris, Letter Book.

19. Ibid., Parr to Lord Shelburne, Halifax, March 22, 1784, Shelburne Papers, Vol. 88.

20. Morris to Marston, July 5, 1784, Morris, Letter Book.

21. James Macdonald, "Memoir of Governor John Parr," Collections of the Nova Scotia Historical Society, XIV (1910), 46-47.

22. Parr to surveyors and agents of Loyalists, Halifax, July 12, 1783, Botsford Papers.

23. Morris, Letter Book, Passim.

24. Morris to Marston, May 21, 1784, ibid.

25. Marston, Diary, May 7, 1783.

26. Ibid., June 1, 1783.

27. Ibid., October 2, 1783.

28. Ibid., June 8, 1783.

29. Ibid., October 26, 1783.

30. Ibid., June 19, 1783.

31. Ibid., June 26, 1783.

32. Ibid., May 26, 1783.

33. Marston to Morris, Shelburne, July 12, 1783, Morris, Letter Book.

34. Morris to Marston, Halifax, July 20, 1783, Morris, Letter Book.

35. Marston, Diary, May 18, 1784.

36. For example, William 0. Raymond, "The Founding of Shelburne," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, 111 (1907-14), 229; Ellen Wilson, The Loyal Blacks (New York, 1976), 84; Edwards, "Shelburne," 185.

37. Marston, Diary, January 19, 1783.

38. Parr to Lord Sidney, Halifax, May 12, 1784, Shelburn Papers, Vol. 88.

39. It is not certain who was the author of this article although there is a great possibility that it was written by a Mr. Frazer. It is now part of the Port Roseway Records at the Public Archives of Canada.

40. Edwards, "Vicissitudes of a Loyalist City," 325.

41. Marston, Diary, July 24, 1783.

42. Raymond, "Founding of Shelburne," 242.

43. Marston, Diary, July 2, 1783.

44. Marston to Morris, August 1783; December 18, 1783, Morris, Letter Book.

45. Marston, Diary, August 28, 1783.

46. Ibid., September 14, 1783.

47. Wilson, Loyal Blacks, 93.

48. Marston, Diary, March 20, 1779.

49. Ibid., September 18, 1783.

50. Ibid., October 20, 1783.

51. Ibid., May 18, 1784.

52. Ibid., July 26, 1784.

53. Ibid., August 4, 1784.

54. The Royal Saint John Gazette and Nova Scotia Intelligencer, September 9, 1784, 5.

55. Ibid.

56. Parr to Lord Sidney, Halifax, August 13, 1784, Shelburne Papers, Vol. 88. In this letter, he referred to Marston as "a shark trying to prey upon the helpless settlers."

57. Marston, Diary, August 30, 1784.

58. Marston to Lucia and John Watson, Halifax, November 9, 1784, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

59. Lieut. W. Booth, Diary, August 22, 1789.

60. Morris to Marston, Halifax, August 13, 1783; September 9, 1783; July 5, 1784; Surveyor General's Report, 1783, Morris, Letter Book.

61. Parr to Lord Shelburne, Halifax, October 25, 1783, Shelburne Papers, Vol. 88; Edwards, "Shelburne," 187-188.

62. "Findings of the Board Appointed to Look into the Disturbances in Shelburne," August 1784, White Collection, Vol. 3.

63. Marston, Diary, August 9, 1783.

64. Ibid., August 26, 1783.

65. Parr to Lord Shelburne, Halifax, April 22, 1784, Shelburne Papers, Vol. 88.

66. Morris to Marston, Halifax, January 22, 1784, Morris, Letter Book.

67. Marston, Diary, July 1787.

68. James Walker, The Black Loyalists (New York, 1976), 49; Robin Winks, The Blacks In Canada: A History (Montreal, 1971), 38.

69. "Findings of the Shelburne Board," White Collection, Vol. 3.

70. Edwards, "Shelburne," 189.

71. Wilson, Loyal Blacks, 92.

72. Note from Joseph Pyncheon to the Associates. Minutes of the Port Roseway Loyalist Association, November 16, 1782, Port Roseway Records, Vol. 1.

73. Winslow to Marston, Halifax, May 30, 1783, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 85.

74. Amos Botsford to Charles Morris, Annapolis Royal, June 1783, Botsford Papers.

75. Raymond, "Founding of Shelburne," 271.

76. Marston to Lucia and John Watson, Halifax, November 9, 1784, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.    NOTES FOR CHAPTER III

1. Marston, Diary, August 4, 1784.

2. Ann Condon, "The Envy of the American States. The Settlement of the Loyalists in New Brunswick" (Ph.D. Thesis, Harvard University, 1975), 172.

3. William S. MacNutt, New Brunswick. A History: 1784-1867 (Toronto, 1963), 42; Esther C. Wright, The Loyalists of New Brunswick (Fredericton, 1955), 125-126.

4. Winslow to Ward Chipman, River St. John, July 7, 1783; Margaret Ells, "Loyalist Attitudes," Dalhousie Review, XV (1935), 332.

5. Condon, "Envy of the States," 184-186; Margaret Ells, "Clearing Decks for Loyalists," Canadian Historical Association, Report of the Annual Meeting (1933), 56-57.

6. Condon, "Envy of the States," 187-190; Marion Gilroy, "The Partition of Nova Scotia, 1784," The Canadian Historical Review, XIV (1933), 375.

7. Marston, Diary, August 4, 1784.

8. Marston to Lucia and John Watson, Halifax, September 23, 1784, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

9. Marston, Diary, August 5, 1784; Winslow assured Chipman that if they succeeded in creating a separate province, it would be the most gentlemanlike one, Winslow to Chipman, July 7, 1783.

10. Gideon White to Winslow, Shelburne, Septmeber 6, 1784, White Collection, Vol. 3; White was a native of Plymouth, Massachusetts, and a cousin of Winslow. He was a Loyalist, one of those who fought at the battle of Bunker Hill as a volunteer. After the war, he stayed briefly at Chedebucto, Guysborough before going to Shelburne where he became a leading citizen.

11. Winslow to Brook Watson, January 10, 1784, Winslow Papers, Mss. Vol. 3.

12. Winslow to Marston, Granville, November 24, 1784, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

13. Sir John Wentworth to Winslow, Halifax, November 10, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

14. Marston to Lucia Watson, Windsor, December 10, 1784, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

15. Marston, Diary, January 18, 1785.

16. Ibid., January 18, 1785.

17. Ibid., February 16, 1785.

18. MacNutt, New Brunswick, 74.

19. Marston to Governor Thomas Carleton, Parr, April 29, 1785, Records of New Brunswick Official Appointments.

20. Wentworth to William Paine, September 17, 1785, Wentworth Letters, Vol. 44.

21. Paine to Wentworth, Saint John, January 20, 1786, Wentworth Letters, Vol. 44; Marion Gilroy, "The Loyalist Experiment in New Brunswick" (M.A. Thesis, Univ. of Toronto, 1933), 38-39.

22. Paine to Wentworth, June 11, 1787, Wentworth Letters, Vol. 44.

23. Marston, Diary, July 18, 1785; The population was mixed -- Indians, Acadians, Scots and a handful of Loyalists.

24. William 0. Raymond, "The North Shore: Incidents in the Early History of Eastern and Northern New Brunswick," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, II (1899-1905), 98; William Arthur Spray, "Early Northumberland County 1765-1825: A Study in Local Government" (M.A. Thesis, Univ. of New Brunswick, 1962), 34.

25. Marston, Diary, July 18, 1785.

26. Spray, "Northumberland County," 28.

27. Ibid., 10.

28. W.H. Davidson, An Account of the Life of William Davidson (Saint John, 1947), 39.

29. Marston to Jonathan Odell, Miramichi Point, August 14 1785, William Ganong, ed., "Historical-Geographical Documents Relating to New Brunswick," Collections of the New Brunswick Historical Society, III, 335.

30. Ibid., 334.

31. Spray, "Northumberland County," 29.

32. Northumberland County Memorial, No. 55.

33. Northumberland County Memorial, No. 108.

34. Spray, "Northumberland County," 31; Wright, Loyalists, 24.

35. Spray, "Northumberland County," 31.

36. Marston to Odell, August 14, 1785, Ganong, ed., "Historical-Geographical Documents," 335.

37. Spray, "Northumberland County," 36.

38. Marston to Odell, August 14, 1785, Ganong, ed., "Historical-Geographical Documents," 335.

39. Condon, "Envy of the States," 310-311.

40. Anglicans were making plans to secure an American bishop, so that among other things, their ministers would no longer have to go to England to be ordained. The Dissenters fiercely opposed this mainly because they believed that the establishment of an American episcopate would somehow reduce their own power.

41. A.H. Hoyt, "The Reverend Thomas Bradbury Chandler, D.D., 1726-1790," New England Historical and Genealogical Register, XXVIII, 233.

42. William H. Nelson, The American Tory (Oxford, 1961), 17.

43. Gov. Carleton to Lord Sydney, Saint John, November 20, 1785.

44. MacNutt, New Brunswick, 63.

45. Marston, Diary, November 17, 1785.

46. Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 206.

47. MacNutt, New Brunswick, 61-62.

48. Marston, Diary, August 19, 1785.

49. Ibid., February 15, 1786.

50. Northumberland County Petitions, No. 7.

51. George Sproule to Odell, April 24, 1786, Sproule, Letter Book.

52. Marston to Winslow, Miramichi Point, July 17, 1785, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 309.

53. Marston learnt of this at an interview with Mr. Lane in Boston in April 1787.

54. Spray, "Northumberland County," 47.

55. Raymond, "North Shore," 108.

56. Marston to Thomas Robie, Saint John, December 1786, Diary.

57. Wentworth to Winslow, October 18, 1788; Unfortunately, much of the timber was destroyed in the great Miramichi fire of 1825.

58. Marston and Mark Delesderniers to the governor and council of the Province of New Brunswick, Miramichi Point, February 14, 1786, Northumberland County Petitions, No. 69; the plan which they mentioned, unfortunately, is not among the records.

59. Raymond, "North Shore," 105.

60. Marston to Winslow, Portland Point, March 11, 1786, reprinted in Raymond, "North Shore," 104.

61. Marston to Winslow, Miramichi Point, July 17, 1785, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 309.

62. Winslow to Marston, March 16, 1786, Winslow Papers Mss., Vol. 3; Chipman to Jonathan Sewall Jnr., April 9, 1792, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

63. Condon, "Envy of the States," 258.

64. Marston to the governor and council, Saint John, March 27, 1786, Northumberland County Petitions, No. 67.

65. Marston, Diary, October 29, 1786; Marston to Lucia Watson, Saint John, October 30, 1786, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.    NOTES FOR CHAPTER IV

1. Marston to John and Lucia Watson, Saint John, June 21, 1787, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

2. For details on the peace negotiations, see Richard Morris, The Peacemakers: The Great Powers and the American Independence (New York, 1965).

3. Crary, ed., Price of Loyalty, Chapt. II, passim; Egerton Ryerson, The Loyalists of America and Their Times (Vol. 2, Toronto, 1880), 159; Van Tyne, Loyalists, 287.

4. Norton, British-Americans, 185-192.

5. Alexander Frazer, ed., Ontario Bureau of Archives Report (Toronto, 1904), 20.

6. See Appendix II.

7. Norton, British-Americans, 202.

8. See Appendix II.

9. Marston to John Watson, Saint John, May 2, 1786, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

10. Marston, Diary, 1786.

11. See Chapt. III, p. 99.

12. Marston, Diary, January 10, 1787.

13. Ibid., February 8, 1786.

14. Ibid., April 9, 1786.

15. Ibid., May 13, 1787.

16. Marston to Winslow, New York, September 8, 1787, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 347.

17. Little is known of this fishing venture, because Marston mentioned it only once, in the letter to Robbie.

18. Marston to Mr. Thomas Robbie, Saint John, August, 1786, Diary.

19. Marston to Watson, Edenton, Saint John, June 28, 1787, Diary.

20. Marston to Robbie, August, 1786.

21. Joseph Galloway, The Claim of the American Loyalists, Reviewed and Maintained (London, 1788), 114.

22. William Pitt, Opening Address to the House of Commons, June 6, 1788.

23. Marston to John and Lucia Watson, Saint John, June 21, 1787, Chipman Papers, Vol. 78, No. 80.

24. Marston, Diary, July 22, 1787.

25. Marston to Chipman, London, March 2, 1791, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

26. Petition from Loyalist Agents to the British Parliament, 1786, reprinted in Ryerson, Loyalists and Their Times, Vol. 2, 171-172.

27. Carle Duval, "Edward Winslow, Portrait of a Loyalist," (M.A. Thesis, U.N.B., 1960), 86.

28. Sir Brook Watson was Commissary general to the British army serving in North America. After the revolutionary war, he went back to London where he was elected mayor of the city. Joshua Loring was a Loyalist and a prosperous Boston merchant. He went to settle in England after the war.

29. Marston to Edward Winslow, London, June 1, 1787, Winslow Papers, Mss., Vol. 6.

30. Marston to Ward Chipman, London, March 21, 1789, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

31. Ibid.; Marston to Winslow, London, March 17, 1790, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 375.

32. Marston to Chipman, London, March 2, 1791; Marston to Marston Watson, London, March 10, 1791, reprinted in Watson, "Marston Family," 397.

33. Marston to Chipman, London, March 21, 1789, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

34. Chipman to Edward Winslow, Saint John, May 3, 1794, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 410.

35. Marston to Winslow, London, November 21, 1789, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 372-373.

36. Ibid.

37. Marston to Ward Chipman, London, March 21, 1789, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

38. Chipman to Winslow, Saint John, May 13, 1794, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 410.

39. Raymond, "The North Shore," 109.

40. Chipman to Winslow, May 13, 1794.

41. Northumberland County Petitions, No. 497.

42. Marston to Winslow, London, March 17, 1790, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 376.

43. Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, passim.; Duval, "Edward Winslow," Chaps. IV and V, passim.

44. Marston to Marston Watson, London, March 10, 1791; Watson, "Marston Family," 397.

45. Ibid.

46. Watson, "Marston Family," 398.

47. Marston to Chipman, London, March 21, 1789, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

48. Marston to Winslow, London, March 17, 1790, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 377.

49. Marston to Winslow, London, April 3, 1791, reprinted in Raymond, "The Founding of Shelburne," 275.

50. Marston to Marston Watson, London, March 10, 1791, Watson, "Marston Family," 397.

51. Marston to Winslow, London, March 17, 1790, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 376.

52. Marston to Elizabeth Watson, London, March 19, 1792, Watson, "Marston Family," 399-400; Marston to Chipman, London, March 26, 1792, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 708.

53. Norton, British Americans, Chap. 8, passim; Bailyn, Hutchinson, Chap. VII, passim; Benjamin Thompson to Lord North, London, June 25, 1783.

54. Marston to Marston Watson, London, March 10, 1791, Watson, "Marston Family," 399.

55. Bullom is an island off the coast near Freetown, the capital of present day Sierra Leone.

56. Marston to Elizabeth Watson, London, March 19, 1792, Watson, "Marston Family," 399.

57. Ibid.; Marston to Chipman, London, March 26, 1792, Raymond, ed., Winslow Papers, 708.

58. Marston to Elizabeth Watson, London, March 9, 1792.

59. Ibid.

60. Ibid.; Marston to Chipman, London, March 26, 1792.

61. These details of the few months of the unsuccessful Bullom settlement are contained in Capt. Philip Beaver's African Memoranda, a large portion of which is reprinted in Watson, "Marston Family."

62. Marston's father displayed the same facetious quality of his son. The epitaph he wrote for himself reads: Col. Benjamin Marston lies here, who died [May 23rd being 57 years old] Art thou curious, Reader, to know What sort of a man he was? Wait till the Day of Final Retribution, And then, thou mayest be satisfied.

63. "Life and Services of Captain Philip Beaver, reprinted in Watson, "Marston Family," 402-403.

64. Watson, "Marston Family," 403.

65. Winslow to Sarah Winslow, Fredericton, August 14, 1794, Winslow Papers, Mss. Vol. 6.    NOTES FOR CONCLUSION

1. Condon, "Envy of the States," Appendix A, 401-403.

2. Marston to John Watson, Haliax, December 14, 1782, Chipman Papers, Vol. 3.

3. See Patricia Ryder, "Ward Chipman, United Empire Loyalist" (M.A. Thesis, U.N.B., 1958), Chap. II, passim.

4. Duval, "Edward Winslow," Chap. VI, passim.

5. See Chap. III of present study.

6. See Chap. II of present study.

7. Watson, "Marston Family," 403.

8. Some researchers have admitted that for certain events in the early history of Shelburne, they have to rely solely on Marston's diary. E.g., Wilson, Loyal Blacks; Walker, Black Loyalists; and Raymond, "The Founding of Shelburne."

9. Raymond, "The Founding of Shelburne," 277.

The Price of Loyalty: The Case of Benjamin Marston

ABSTRACT

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

Chapter I THE "SACRIFICE" BEGINS 1775-1783

Chapter II CHIEF SURVEYOR OF SHELBURNE 1783-1784

Chapter III REFUGE IN NEW BRUNSWICK 1785-1787

Chapter IV THE LAST SEARCH FOR COMPENSATION 1786-1792