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Cape Fear Brunswick March the 29th 1764

Revd. Sir,

I have had no letter from you since July the 15th. 1762 in answer to mine of the foregoing March, it will therefore be proper to return thanks to the Honble Society for their acceptance of my good wishes and Inclinations to Support the true Apostolic protestant Religion in this province, and to reform the Morals of the ill instructed Inhabitants; and further to thank them for their pious Zeal and due attention to promote true Religion on the reformation of their membrs, by procuring more pious Clergymen and Missionaries to come over and reside in this province

The Situation of affairs relating to the Church is some what different from what it was when I wrote last; Mr. McDowel the Missionary of this parish, died last November, of a lingring disorder, which has deprived us of a Clergyman; and Mr. Teale who I recommended last year, to be put into orders; finding upon his return that the parishioners of Wilmington in Newhanover County were devided; he thought he could be of no Service, and went to South Carolina where he was Immediately inducted into a Vacant parish, & is fixed happily there we have therefore only at present Six Clergymen in the province, four of which perform in their duty diligently, in the Towns of Edenton, Bath, Newbern, and Halifax; the three first being Missionaries, the other two Mr. Moir, and Miller, by all I can hear do not behave as Clergymen ought; Mr. Moir, who lives at a distance from me, as I am informed by Gentlemen in the Neighbourhood, has no parish [and] performs very little Casual Service; he has been Endeavouring to procure a Certificate of his good behaviour, but I am informed with very bad Success, from any men of Rank or Character; he [lives] upon a plantation penuriously, and inhospitably; and lays [illegible] his Salary as Missionary, in England to retire to and live u[pon] when he loses his Support as Missionary; his Character as I am infor[med] has allways been to stur up and make divisions in the Neighbour[hood] instead of promoting peace and love; having observ’d that he [illegible] a return to the Society, of great Number of Negroes and others bap[tized] by him; I inquired into it, and was informed by Gentlemen in his Neighbourhood, that they never heard of any Number baptized by [illegible] as to the other, Miller, who I had the misfortune to recommend to [be] ordained upon my first coming over, upon a petition of many Inhabitants in Rowan County; he has since changed from p[arish] to parish, under Strong Suspicion of living irregularly; these [illegible] are all we have to do duty in 29 Counties, or parishes; and this is Likely to be the Case where we have no Bishops or parsons with Episcapal powers to Visit the Clergy, and to Confirm, and Confer orders.

We have at present about 24000 white male Taxables, in this province, and Consequently near four times the Number of Souls, and above 10,000 Black male and female Taxables, and our Numbers daily increasing, with few or no schools for the Education of youth, and only a few Lay readers to Serve the Several Chappels Erected in the Several Counties; this is the reason of our Sloth, Indolence and Immoralities and occasions Numerous Sectuaries of all denominations, Except papists, having many Strollers, particularly anabaptists or dippers, there being so few qualify’d to give regular Baptism, when this is Considered, and the increasing British Empire on this Continent, I am Convinced that his Lordship of London will willingly part with a great a part of his Diocesse and Join in Soliciting to procure Bishops, and others with Episcapal powers to ordain and Visit the Clergy in the Several provinces on this Continent; and to Erect proper Schools for the Education of youth for a Succession of persons qualified to be put into orders; Since so few of good pious Characters can be perswaded to be Come Missionaries here, and few qualified are in Circumstances to be Sent over to receive orders in London. I after some Strugles, Since my last have got a better Bill for the maintenance of the Orthodox Clergy, by increasing their Income, until Glebes can be purchased for them; but Could not prevail with them to give up the parsonage to the Crown, and Bishop of London, and so have not the Nomination nor a right to Induct them regularly.

I have also in this last Session passed a much better Vestry Bill, wherein the incumbent is to be always one of the Vestry, and they have a power to raise Ten Shillings upon every Taxable person anually in Each County, to be applied to build Churches and Glebes ho[uses] and to purchase Glebes and also, to maintain Schoolmasters in Each Parish; so that they will have a Considerable sum in their power to raise, over and above what will maintain a Clergyman and Schoolmaster in Each County, most Counties having above 1000 Taxables and few under 800; besides which I have apply’d to the Lords of Trade to recommend it to his Majesty to allow a Considerable sum in paper Currency, now lying in the Treasurers hands, which had been first Issued in order to erect Churches and to purchase Glebes which had been borrow’d and apply’d to the Support of the publick Service, during the war and has since been repaid by the publick Taxes; which had no[t] been Issued at first until his Majestys pleasure was Known, that they may now be Re-issued and apply’d as first designed, to build Churches, and purchase Glebes, and to Erect publick building[s] we have also at present settled all affairs with the Catawba Indians and Ascertain’d their bounds; I had before recommended it to the Socie[ty] to have given an allowance, to a Schoolmaster to Settle among them and I would have added to his Salary during my Continuance in this Government; since which time the Nation by the small p[ox] has been reduced from 300 warriours to about Sixty, and as they a[re] now Settled in the middle of our Planters, I would recommend it [to] the Society to fix a missionary or Schoolmaster, who might a[lso] be Established for Mecklenburgh County, who are mostly now presbyterians, or Other Foreign Sectaries; and may be of great use in those back western Frontier Settlements; and hope you will also send us over a pious Clergyman to be missioner in this parish of Brunswick, in room of Mr. McDowel Deceased, a[nd] also a Clergyman for the Neighbouring County of Newhanov[er] at Wilmington; and afterwards as soon as Conveniently they Can to our other Counties; such who are likely to do their Duty, and, not barely to Come over for a maintenance.

I shall only further beg the prayers of the Honble Society that I may perform my duty in the station his Majesty has appointed me.

and am Revd Sir

your most Obedient

Huml Servt—

Arthur Dobbs

No. 27 North Carolina
A Letter from Arthur Dobbs, Esqr. Govr. of N. Carolina, dated Cape Fear Brunswick Mar 29 1764.

Read at a Committee
July 16. 1764.