During the last week of December 3,000 Palatines were allowed to board the ships that would carry them, at long last, to America. Their perseverance had paid off. Once on board the ships, however, all they did was wait; again.
Governor
Hunter, in an effort to protect his own interests in this venture, felt it was
necessary to have a contract that clearly spelled out the conditions of this
arrangement. He wanted to be sure that
the Palatines had no doubt about their responsibility to pay back the British
Government for their transportation and support. The Board of Trade drafted a contract that
was eventually approved by the Attorney General. The Palatines were not invited to participate
in this process.
The
overcrowded ships sat off the southern coast of England as winter eventually
gave way to spring. After four months of
intolerable living conditions aboard the ships, the Palatines heard the terms
of their contract as it was read to them.
As this was one more step in moving forward, they didn’t question the
contract. They also didn’t sign it.
In the
middle of April 1710, fourteen months after many of the Palatines had walked
away from their homes, they finally set sail for America.
Reference: “Becoming German” by Phillip Otterness
No comments:
Post a Comment