And to say truth, O strange mistake! Wee thought one Common happy fate Would both these Laws attend, And money stand poor Portsmouth Friend. But your Excellence approved That the Courts should be removed, And the poor Ready money Act Was into Breeches pocket clapt Till pleasure of his Majesty Be known to your Excellency, Since which three Years are gon & past, And yet this Act doth hang an Arse. This House hath also often, too, Made Estimate exact & true Of province Debts, as well as Creditt, (And being in debt have never paid it). Into the Treasury wee voted That what was due should be transported, For to pay of the claims of Many, Tho’ wee design’d not to pay any; Which being sent down Non concur’d, A written Message did Afford, (And by the way a strange one, too). [An explanation here seems necessary, beyond the possibilities of a foot-note. March 6, 1732–3, the House passed a bill for emitting £20,000 in paper money. The province was much in debt on account of Indian warfare, repairing and maintaining fortifications, etc., and provision for payment of this debt had been made by heavy taxes to continue annually until 1742. But money was very scarce, and the House considered that the people would be unable to pay the taxes laid upon them for the want of a proper medium. Therefore this £20,000 was to be placed in the hands of a committee, to be loaned to the people at 5% interest for sixteen years, and the principal of each loan was to be paid at the rate of 25% each year for the four years next following the term of sixteen years for which the loan was made. And for the supply of the treasury for the time before the first interest payment was due, a further sum of £1,000 was to be issued. The council, however, was unanimous in refusing to concur with the House on this bill. The House attempted to bring about a compromise by reducing the loan term to eight years and by other changes in the original bill, but was not successful, the Governor claiming that the approval of such a bill would be contrary to his instructions.