themselves and families by cultivation; nor do they know an instance of it, among all the said inhabitants. And farther, that the inhabitants in general think it hard, that they have not free titles to their lands, nor a scrap of writing, showing any title at all to their lands, which have cost them much labor to improve. And further, that the inhabitants in general of the said Ebenezer, are desirous of negroes. That they were called together to sign their said petition, and . many of them have been heard by us to say, that they would not have done it, but that our minister would have been angry with them, if they had refused to do so. That they would yet sign a petition for negroes, were it not that Mr. Boltzius, our minister, who exercises an arbitrary power over us, might make them very uneasy.

CHRISTOPHER ORTMAN.
JOHN MICHAEL RISER.
THOMAS BICHER.

Ebenezer, 20th Oct. 1741.

No. X.

From Augusta.

A List of such Traders, Men, and Horses, as come from other parts, and only pass through or by Augusta in their way to the Creek Nation.

A List of the Whole Inhabitants of the Township of Augusta, in Georgia.

A List of Traders, Men, and Horses, employed from Augusta, in the Chickasaw and Creek Trade.

Thomas Andrews, in Creek and Chickasaw Nations, 8

70

The day above-written, John Gardner, of Augusta, Indian trader, personally came and appeared before me, John Fallowfield, one of the bailiffs of the town of Savannah, and

made oath, that the said several accounts of traders, horses, and men, employed in the Creek and Chickasaw nations; and also the list of the white persons, men, women, and children, now living in the township of Augusta, are, to the best of the said deponent's knowledge, just and true; and that the persons residing in, and belonging to the fort of Augusta, are not contained in the said lists above, and on the other side of this paper written.

JOHN GARDNer.

Sworn the day and year above-written, at Savannah aforesaid.
JOHN FALLowfield.

No. XI.

From Augusta.

The deposition of Kennedy O'Brien, of Augusta, in the colony of Georgia, merchant, one of the first inhabitants of the said township, and a constant resident therein, ever since the first settlement thereof, who being duly sworn on the holy Evangelists of Almighty God, saith, That whereas he has been informed, that a representation has lately been made and transmitted to the honorable the trustees for establishing the said colony of Georgia, setting forth the flourishing state and condition of the said colony in general, and of the said township of Augusta in particular; and the said deponent, being willing to undeceive any, or all, who may be thereby induced to give credit to the said representation, doth voluntarily, and of his own accord, declare and maintain the following truths to be strictly just.

1. That there are not more than forty white men, inhabitants and residents of the said township of Augusta, save only the soldiers in garrison there, which are about fifteen or twenty more.

2. That all, or most of the corn that hath been made and raised there, hath been wrought and manufactured by negroes, belonging to the said inhabitants, and those opposite to them on the north side of the river in South Carolina.

3. That, at least, one third part of the corn reported to be raised in Augusta is raised in South Carolina, hard by the said township.

4. That there are not more than five hundred horses employed in the Indian trade, that resort to Augusta, although it is esteemed the key to the Creek, the Chickasaw, and the Cherokee nations; and that the most of those horses and persons employed about them, and interested and concerned in them, do as often go, to New Windsor in South Carolina to trade as to Augusta.

5. That there are now in Augusta but three trading houses, and those in a state of decay and languishing condition; and that through the ill regulation of the Indian trade.

And this deponent further saith, that no oil, wine, nor olives, hath ever been produced at Augusta, or hath ever been attempted to be raised or cultivated there, to the best of this deponent's knowledge. And further this deponent saith not.

Subscribed and sworn to before me, this 9th day of July, 1741.

JOHN PYE, Recorder.

KENNEDY O'BRIEN.

No. XII.

The deposition of Sir Richard Everard, Bart. who, being duly sworn, saith, that some time about the evening of (to the best of this deponent's memory) the tenth of this present month of July, he, this deponent, had some discourse with Mr. Samuel Mercer, of the town of Savannah, in the said province of Georgia, in the square of the said town; amongst other discourse this deponent asked the said Samuel Mercer, how he could join in swearing to, and signing a representation of the state of the colony, when the said representation contained many things, of the truth of which he could be no ways certain; and other things which were in themselves absolutely (as this deponent had been informed) false. The said Mercer said, that the number of men and horses at Augusta were easily to be accounted for, that I counted only the exact number of men and horses said to be there, which would not amount to near the numbers mentioned in the representation, but that he apprehended, that they had been counted every man and horse, as often as ever they went from, or came to Augusta, which would (he said) amount to

the numbers, mentioned to be in the representation. I told him, that they might have taken a shorter method of counting, and not wait the trouble of the traders coming down from the nation; that they had nothing more to do, but, to make Capt. Kent, commander of the fort of Augusta, to march his men in and out, as often as they pleased to count them, and they might make what numbers they thought necessary for the service of their cause at any time, or to that effect.. And this deponent saith, that to the best of his memory, this is the substance of the conversation he had at that time with the said Samuel Mercer. And he, this deponent, further saith, that on Monday the 13th of this instant, being in company with several gentlemen at the house of Peter Morrell, in the town of Savannah, in Georgia, John Ray, (who this deponent: was informed was) a subscriber and swearer to the abovementioned representation, being then and there, he was asked how he came to swear to and subscribe the said representation; after many weak and frivolous excuses and justifications, finding himself unable to defend the said action, he said, and swore by God, that the honorable the trustees owed him one hundred pounds sterling, and that he swore: to, and signed that representation, in hopes to get his money: from them, otherwise he never would have sworn to or signed. the same; adding, that he hoped to have his hundred pounds out of the ten thousand pounds said to be voted by the parliament for the support of Georgia.

Sworn before me, this 14th day of July, 1741.
JOHN FALLOWFIELD.

R. EVERARD.

Andrew Neilson, chief mate, and Thomas Conn, one of the mariners of the sloop Oglethorpe, belonging to St. Christophers, being duly sworn on the Holy Evangelist of Almighty God, jointly and severally make oath and say, that on or about the fourth day of May, one thousand seven hundred and thirty-nine, these deponents were taken up by a warrant; and by virtue thereof, brought before and ex