Whitehall, July 29th 1756.
Sir,
We have received your letters to Us dated the 26th of December and the 25th of March last and have laid before his Majesty in a representation what you say in the last part of these with respect to the defenceless state of the Province and the expediency of erecting a Fort and fortifying the Harbour at Cape Look-out, but we apprehend nothing further can be done in this matter untill we receive from you an answer to our Secretary's Letter of the 7th of November last, directing you to transmit a Plan and Estimate of such a Fort as you shall think necessary.
The other material points in your last letter are the desire you express of having Instructions with respect to the reissuing the Bills of Credit left to the disposal of the Crown and which you say had been applyed to the raising the Companys sent to the Northward and with respect to the manner in which those Companys are to be paid and cloathed when out of the Province.
As to the first of these points, We must observe that the reissuing paper Bills of Credit instead of cancelling them according to the tenor of the Law by which they were first emitted has been much complained of and been productive of great abuses insomuch that it was thought proper in the Law passed here to restrain Paper Money in the New England Governments, to have a particular provision with regard to this practice, but if the situation of the Colonys is such, that His Majesty's Service cannot be carried on without either reissuing what Paper Money has been already emitted or creating new We should think the first of these the more eligible method provided the Fund for canceling them is continued and the period is not extended to an unreasonable length.
As to the pay, cloathing and other contingent expences attending the Company's raised in North Carolina, when engaged in Service to the Northward, we are sensible of the difficulty which must attend the
defraying of this by the people of that Province on Account of the Paper Money not being current or of any value in the other Colonies and therefore we can only recommend to you to acquaint the Earl of Loudoun with the true State of the case, who by having the whole direction of these matters, will be thereby enabled to take such measures as shall appear to him to be proper.We shall impatiently expect your answer to Our letter of the 6th of August last, till when it will be impossible for Us to give any further Instructions with regard to the fixing the seat of Government or any of the other points, upon which our sentiments are so fully explained in that Letter.