=135. The Boston “Tea Party.”=—It was in Boston, however, that the most vigorous action was taken. A large cargo had arrived in December of 1773, but the people would not allow it to be landed. The vessel no doubt would have returned to England, but the colonial officers refused to give the clearance papers required of all vessels before sailing. If the cargo was not landed within twenty days after its arrival, the custom-house officers were authorized by law to seize and land it by force. It was evident that the tea must be destroyed, or its landing could not be prevented except by open resistance. On the nineteenth day a town meeting of six or seven thousand persons met in and about the Old South Meetinghouse to decide what course to pursue. During the evening, in accordance with a general understanding, a great crowd went down to the wharf to see what would occur. When they were assembled, a small company of men, dressed as Indians, quietly rowed out to the ships, broke open more than three hundred chests of tea, and poured the contents into the harbor. NEW LEGISLATION AND OPPOSITION. =136. The “Five Acts of 1774.”=—This defiant action, though applauded in all parts of the colonies, filled the British government with indignation, and drove the ministers to the “Five Acts of 1774,” which by their unwise energy immediately precipitated the crisis. Four of these were directed against Massachusetts alone; the fifth affected all the colonies. The first of the five acts was the “Boston Port Bill.” It provided that no ships should be allowed to enter or depart from Boston Harbor until the tea that had been destroyed was paid for. This in effect put an end to the commerce of the city, and completely destroyed its prosperity. Gloucester was made the port of entry and Salem the seat of government. The second act was that for the “Impartial Administration of Justice in Massachusetts Bay,” which reflected upon the colony’s tribunals by providing for the trial in England or Nova Scotia of officials accused of murder committed in the discharge of their functions. The third was the “Massachusetts Bill,” which virtually took away the charter by vesting all power of appointment and removal exclusively in the governor appointed by the Crown. The fourth was an act which provided for the quartering of troops on the people, thus establishing the means of enforcing new laws. The fifth was the “Quebec Act,” of which the most offensive feature was the one providing that all the British territory west of the Alleghanies and north of the Ohio should henceforth be regarded as a part of Canada. As this territory was claimed by the colonies, the act was regarded as a gross infringement of their rights. The Quebec Act also gave the Roman Catholic religion throughout Canada the stamp of official recognition.