11. In 1696 New York was invaded by the French. But they were soon driven back by the English and Iroquois. Before a second invasion could be undertaken, King William's War was ended. In 1697 the Irish earl of Bellomont became governor. His administration was the happiest in the history of the colony. Massachusetts and New Hampshire were under his jurisdiction, but Connecticut and Rhode Island remained independent. 12. To Bellomont's administration belongs the story of Captain William Kidd, the pirate. A vessel was fitted out by a company of distinguished Englishmen to protect the commerce of Great Britain and to punish piracy. Governor Bellomont was one of the proprietors, and Kidd received a commission as captain. The ship sailed from England before Bellomont's departure for New York. Soon the news came that Kidd himself had turned pirate and become the terror of the seas. For two years he continued his career, then appeared publicly in the streets of Boston, was seized, sent to England, tried, convicted, and hanged. [Sidenote: =New York and New Jersey United.=] 13. In May of 1702 Bellomont was superseded by Lord Cornbury. A month previously the proprietors of New Jersey had surrendered their province to the English Crown. All obstacles being thus removed, the two colonies were formally united in one government under Cornbury. For thirty-six years the two provinces continued under the jurisdiction of a single governor. 14. In 1732, New York was troubled with a dispute about the freedom of the press. The liberal party of the province held that a public journal might criticise the acts of the administration. The aristocratic party opposed such liberty as dangerous to good government. Zenger, an editor who published criticisms on the governor, was seized and put in prison. Great excitement ensued. The people praised their champion. Andrew Hamilton, a lawyer of Philadelphia, went to New York to defend Zenger, who was brought to trial in July of 1735. The cause was heard, and the jury brought in a verdict of acquittal. The aldermen of New York, in order to testify their appreciation of Hamilton's services, made him a present of an elegant gold box, and the people were enthusiastic over their victory. [Sidenote: =The Negro Plot.=]