lead of Moore, Harnett, Lillington, Lloyd and Ashe, in defiance of two armed vessels, the Viper and the Diligence, compelled the surrender of the vessels which had been seized, to the great disgust of the Governor. All these actions were open and undisguised, the people of the country assembling in arms under their chosen leaders, and compelling both the civil and the naval authorities to yield to their demands.
The same prompt and intrepid spirit showed itself throughout the whole struggle, which was just beginning in 1765. Nine years later this little community, hardly to be called a town, raised eight hundred pounds in a very short time in response to the appeal in behalf of Boston; and sent to that city a ship-load of supplies. Its Committee of Safety, whose minutes have been preserved from 1774 to 1776, when its function was superseded by the organization of the State under its Constitution, kept a very vigilant watch, and enforced most faithfully the recommendations of the Continental Congress. One day they are providing powder, preventing the importation of negroes, and compelling the reshipment of those brought in; and the next day they are
