Untitled - the Digital Library of Georgia

GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS 215
view of conciliating the people of Georgia, but opposed humoring them
as to either land tenures or negroes.*
Rev. Samuel Smith was a graduate of Magdalen College, Oxford, and
he was the rector of All Hallows on the Wall. He was early impressed
with possibilities for good in the Georgia enterprise, and he preached
a sermon for'the special purpose of recommending the charity. In con
sequence of this .and other services, an application was made by the
trustees to the right honorable the lord high chancellor for some prefer
ment in or near London to be given to the Rev. Mri Smith "for the
great Service he has been of to the Trust.'' f Like Mr. L 'Apostre, he
seems to have been more faithful in attending meetings than promi
nent in his participation in them. He aided Vernon in securing the
interest of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge in the remov-
. ing of the Salzburgers from Germany to Georgia; and he was active in
all religious enterprises of the trust. $
Thomas Tower was one of Oglethorpe's closest friends among the
trustees,** and they were in thorough accord as to many matters of
importance in colonial affairs. Neither of them was willing to yield to
the clamors of the Georgians for better land tenures, the exchange of
bad lands for good, the traffic in rum, and the introduction of negroes.
Tower had been on the committee which framed the regulations for the
colonists,It and he had satisfied himself that they were suitable and
necessary; and he felt, as did Oglethorpe, that those complaining ought
to be entirely disregarded unless they were improving their lots the
best they could before making their complaints. Accordingly he op
posed more than any other trustee the various concessions that were
made to the people. $$
Tower was a good speaker in the House of Commons,*** and he was
a lawyer of ability. His legal services were the most valuable that he
rendered to the trustees. He was on nearly all committees that were
appointed to prepare laws, draw up instructions for magistrates in
Georgia, or to put papers into proper legal form.ttt In this respect
he was perhaps the "most active and able trustee. He also served the
trust at times by interviewing Sir Robert Walpole to get his approval
of measures desired by the friends of Georgia; in this capacity he was
effective, but he was unwilling to do much service of the sort. In fact
his close allegiance to the Walpole party greatly hampered him in his
usefulness to the Georgia trustees. In order to please Sir Robert Wal
pole, Tower was willing to surrender Georgia to the Spanish without
a serious fight to retain it. J-tJ To further please him, he undertook with
another trustee to defend the English title to Georgia, though the trus
tees as a whole very strongly disapproved of the measure, thinking that
*C. R. V: 378.
t C. E. II: 60.
t C. R. 1: 114, 209, as examples,
** Wright 143-144, 165.
ttO. R. I: 70.
n G. R. V: 217, 467.
*** Ibid., 117.
tttlbid., 390, 429, 599, as examples.
100.