Letters For History

March 7, 1774

Dear Madi,

I haven't written to you since before the "tea party". Man was that a sight! Tea was all over the harbor! You could probably scoop it up in a cup and drink it. It was a great show of rebellion to the British taxing us on everything we touched. However, due to the Boston Tea Party Britain is starting to crack a whip on us. Now to keep us in line they are creating something called the Coercive Acts. More like the "Intolerable Acts". Man, they are doing everything in their power to control us.

Today dad lost his job at the port. It was due to the new Boston Port Act. They closed the entire Boston Port from commerce, which means no loading or unloading of anything off the ships in the port of Boston. How terrible is that? Now we have to have our food and fuel brought in to us from Salem. Sure it isn't that far however it takes longer for us to get our goods. We also had to have our goods escorted to us by custom officers.

Apparently this Act was created due to the tea party. They are making us pay for all the tea that was dumped into the harbor. Every last little drop. Their idea is for us to pay it off with customs duties. That is why we have to have our goods escorted to us, and the reason they closed the harbor. It makes it easier for the customs officers to collect the duties.

Man, it is going to take us a while to collect all the money. It was no small amount of tea that was dumped into the harbor, as I said earlier it was all over the harbor. People are losing jobs left and right. Dad wasn't the only one who lost his job. All the merchants and porters lost their jobs due to the closing of the harbor. Now dad has to find another job, and that isn't going to be easy. Well I hope you have had more luck than us. How have you been?

Your Friend,

Ann

May 21, 1774

Dear Madi,

Dad still hasn't found a job. The port still hasn't opened back up either. Now new problems have arisen. The other day a British officer killed a man for arguing with him over something or other, (dad didn't tell me the whole situation thought it was appropriate for a young girl's ears). The officer was brought to trial; however, he chose to go back to England for his trial. This, if you haven't heard, is a right of his now with the new Administration of Justice Act. So he went to England for his trial, and was acquitted for it! That is really unfair! They should call the act the "murder act" for how many officers are getting away with murder! This has gotten out of hand. It is going to turn out like the Boston Massacre all over again. British soldiers are going to get away with killing innocent men again. Although I don't think the colonists should have been taunting the soldiers in the first place it wasn't right for the soldiers to fire their rifles at them. They should have gotten in trouble for their choice of using their rifles but they fled to the British courts. I am afraid they might go on a spree, killing anyone who chooses to go against them. I fear for my arrogant older brothers. Knowing them they will try to pick a fight.

Dad has been upset lately. In addition to his unemployment he has been complaining about the new Massachusetts Government Act. I personally do not know much about this act, but dad explained it a little to me. He said that it means the colonists are pretty much no longer in control of the colonies. He said that the Massachusetts Charter or 1691 was annulled, or suspended, and the people chosen to run the government were appointed by the crown instead of by the people. We also don't have town meetings as much anymore. Dad said we will only be having