Having leisure, I set down to inform you of the occurrances since my last—Our committee meet the 1st. inst. when an express arrivd, from mr Edwd Salter giving us account of a discovery that was made in Beaufort County by Mr Bayner & ^one of^ Capt. Respass's negro man unto Capt Thomas Respass, of an intended [in]surrection of the negroes against the white peopl[e] which was to be put into Execution that night, w[e] immediately sent of an express to Tarborough to alarm the Inhabitants there, We then proceeded to buissness & apointed upwards of one hundred men as Patrolers, & passd. a Resolve that any negroes that should be destroyd by ^them or^ any person in Company with them in Aprehending, should be paid for by a tax on the negroes in this County, we then seperated to sound the alarm thro: this County & to Aprehend the Suspected heads &c. By Night we had in custody & the Goal, Near forty under proper Guards, Sunday the Committee sett and proceeded to examine into the affair, and find it a deep laid, Horrid, Tragick, Plan, laid for distroying the Inhabitants of this Province without respect of persons age or sex by negro evidence it appears that Capt. Johnson of Whitehaven who hath just loaded his Brigg: with navall stores for that port in consort with Merrick, a negro man slave who formerly belongd. to Major Clark a Pilot at Okacock, but now to Capt. Nath Blinn of Bath Town propagated a [negro] [illegible]

The Contagion has spread beyond the Waters there [illegible] five Negroes, men & women were whipt this day by O[rder] Monday The Committee sat Orderd. several to be severe[ly] Whipt, & Sentenced several to receive 80 Lashes Each [illegible] both Ears Cropd; which was Executed in Presence of [the] Committee and a Great number of Spectators—in the afternoon we recd. by [express] from Coll. Blount acct. of [sixty] Negroes being in arms [along] the Line of Craven & Pitt; & prayd. assistance of Men & [amm]unition which we readily granted we posted Guards [upon] the Roads for several Miles that Night, Just as I got [home] came one of Mr Nelsons Sons from Pometo (near [illegible] Harlans Mill) & Informd. me of 250 Negroes that [had] been pursued for several da[ys] but none taken nor seen tho: they were several times fired at, had he been at Martinborough he wou'd have receivd. pay for his Negroes. On Tuesday we sent off Two Companies of Light Horse One to Lower & One to Upper Swifts Creek Bridg in Order ^to^ find from whence the report arose, & found the Author to be a Negro Wench of Will Taylers on Clayroot, with design to Kill her master & Mistress & Lay it upon those Negroes she has recd. Severe Correction, Since that we have remaind as Quiet as we could Expect from the Nature things, [We] Keep Taking. up Examing. & Scouging More or Less [every] day, from whatsoever part of the County they com[e] they all Confess Nearly the same thing—Vt. That t[hey] were one & all on the Night of the 8th. Instant to fall On [&] Destroy the family where they Lived then to proceed [from] House to House (Burning as they went [untill] [they] [a]rivd. in [the] Back Country where they were to be receivd. with Open Arms by a number of Persons there apointed & Armd. by Goverment for their Protection, & as a further reward they were to be settld. in a free Goverment of their [own] [illegible] Capt. Johnson its said was heard to say that he'd return in the fall & take Choice of the Plantations upon this river—But as it hath pleased God to discovr the Plot—It is of the Lords mercies that we are not consumed, Let us therefore Beseech him to continue our very present help in Every time of Need—I promisd. my self the pleasure of seeing some of my friends in Newbern this Week Notwithstandg the Prorogation, but Cannot get my family so composed as I could wish, to Leave them—

This week I exspect will Compleat our private Muster for making. Choice of their Captains &c On Monday next our Committee Meets to proceed to ^on that^ Business—We must find out some Plan to Circumvent the operation of the aforementiond accursed plan or we shall become an easy prey my Compliments to Collo. Caswell & all Enquirg friends