Sawtell Esq’r. and Cap’t.  William Lawrance be Agiants In the affair or Either of them to wait upon the Great and Generial.  Cort:  to Vse their Best in Deauer to set off the Land as a fores’d so that the one half of y’e said New town may be made out of Groton and no:  more.

     Abstract Examined & Compaird of the town book of Record for Groton
     per

     Iona’t.  Sheple Town Clark

     Groton Decem’br:  24’th:  A:D:  1739

     [Massachusetts Archives, cxiv, 281.]

     Province of y’e Mass’tts Bay

     To His Excellency Jonathan Belcher Esq’r Governour &c To The Hon’d. 
     His Majesty’s Councill & House of Representatives in Gen’ll Court
     Assembled December 1739

Whereas some few of the Inhabitants of Groton & Dunstable have Joyned in their Petition to this Hon’d.  Court to be erected with Certain Lands into a Township as per their Petition entered the 12’th:  Curr. which prayer if granted will very much Effect y’e.  Quiet & Interest of the Inhabitants on the northerly part of Groton

Wherefore the Subscribers most Humbly begg leave To Remonstrate to y’or Excellency & Hon’rs. the great & Numerous Damages that we and many Others Shall Sustain if their Petition should be granted and would Humbly Shew

That the Contents of Groton is ab’t. forty Thousand Acres Good Land Sufficient & happily Situated for Two Townships, and have on or near Two Hundred & Sixty Familys Setled there with Large Accomodations for many more

That the land pray’d for Out of Groton Could it be Spared is in a very Incomodious place, & will render a Division of the remaining part of the town Impracticable & no ways Shorten the travel of the remotest Inhabit’nts.

That it will leave the town from the northeast and to the Southwest end at least fourteen miles and no possibillity for those ends to be Accomodated at any Other place which will render the Difficulties we have long Laboured under without Remidy

     That part of the lands Petitioned for (will when This Hon’d.  Court
     shall see meet to Divide us) be in & near the Middle of one of y’e. 
     Townships

And Altho the number of thirteen persons is there Sett forth to Petition. it is wrong and Delusive Severall of them gave no Consent to any Such thing And to compleat their Guile have entered the names of four persons who has no Interest in that part of the town viz Swallow Tucker Ames & Green

     That there is near Double the number On the Lands Petit’d. for and
     Setled amongst them who Declare Against their Proceedings, & here
     Signifie the Same

That many of us now are at Least Seven miles from Our meeting And the Only Encouragement to Settle there was the undeniable Accomodations to make An Other town without w’ch.  We Should by no means have undertaken

     That if this their Pet’n.  Should Succed—­Our hopes must
     Perish—­thay by no means benifitted—­& we put to all the Hardships
     Immaginable.