Lord Dartmouth and the other gentlemen in England who were constituted, by Mr. Wheelock, a Board of Trust for the moneys collected in that country, by Messrs. Occom and Whitaker, seem to have thought this private incorporation amply sufficient for the security of these funds. In writing to Mr. Keen, in November, 1767, Mr. (now Dr.) Wheelock alludes to the fact that this gentleman had expressed an opinion that his successor should be "in all respects accountable to the present Trust." Although dissenting from this opinion, Dr. Wheelock seems to have been prudent and conciliatory in his intercourse with his worthy benefactors, wisely deeming it an object of primary importance to raise the requisite funds for his operations.
Messrs. Occom and Whitaker having fulfilled their mission abroad, and generous promises of aid having been made by Governor Wentworth, we find Dr. Wheelock, in October, 1768, writing to him as follows: "As soon as the place to fix the school shall have been determined to be in your Province, I will appoint your Excellency, or the Governor for the time being, to be a Trustee on this side the water till a legal incorporation may be obtained." This shows that Dr. Wheelock was not averse to a judicious admixture of the clerical and lay elements in the Board of Trust, although the Trustees named in his will, the germ of the charter, were clergymen.
The suggestion seems to have been most kindly received by Governor Wentworth. Dr. Wheelock now determined to avail himself of the aid of his firm and valuable friend, Rev. Dr. Langdon, of Portsmouth. A letter from him to this gentleman is as follows:
"Lebanon, April 7, 1769.
"Reverend and dear Sir—Yours by Captain Cushman is safe arrived, and I have considered the contents. And for several reasons I am of opinion that it will be best that the Trustees be the same for the present, as I have already appointed in my will, which I have made at the desire of the Trust in England, whose names were, with the will, some time ago transmitted to them. The affair is very delicate, and as such must be conducted, or it will disgust those worthy gentlemen, and overset all. Their sentiments of an incorporation have been differing from mine. They have insisted that I should conduct the whole affair without one, and that my successor should be nominated and appointed by my will. Experience, they think, has fully taught them that, by means of an incorporation, such designs become jobs, and are soon ruined thereby. They choose to hold the moneys collected there in their own hands for this purpose, and accordingly have publicly declared their Trust of the same under their hands and seals, and have disposed of it, as their wisdom directed, for the benefit of the school. I have, therefore, after much study and consultation in the affair, appointed two setts of Trustees, namely, those in England who have voluntarily condescended to make themselves so, to take care of whatever concerns the object in view on that side the water; and a sett in this vicinity, to take care of and perform whatever shall concern it on this side. I have appointed a successor, to take care of the school, etc., only till he shall be approved and confirmed by the concurrence of both setts of Trustees, or till they all agree in another, nominated by either and approved by both, each sett to have power to supply vacancies in their Trust, made by death or resignation, by the major vote of the survivors; something like this I conceive will be most agreeable to the Right Honorable, Honorable, and generous benefactors who have accepted the Trust in England, and I apprehend it will make the design popular and respectable.
"The Trustees here will hold and have the disposal of lands given in America for this use; and I apprehend it will be proper for his Majesty's Governor of the Province for the time being to be a Trustee, but at present I have not light enough to determine a propriety in making his Majesty himself one on this side the water.
"I have several reasons, which appear to me weighty, for having the body of the Trustees first incorporated in this vicinity.
"1. They will be at hand to conduct the affairs of the school, missionaries, schoolmasters, etc., till I can get settled in the wilderness, which will be impracticable, if they are at the distance of Portsmouth.
"2. Several of the Trustees talk of removing with me to settle in that vicinity; and if so, they may for a time act as a committee, till a sufficient number suitable for that Trust shall be settled (as you will observe will be expedient) near to the school.
"3. Till this be done, my connections will likely be such as will oblige me to make frequent visits to these parts, where we may have a full meeting of the Board without any expense.
"4. Gentlemen here have been so much concerned in Indian affairs, that I suppose it not to be immodest to say ceteris paribus, they are at present better qualified to act therein than those who will have to encounter a thousand dangers and difficulties before unthought of.
"5. By having the body corporate here, I can claim a valuable subscription of £400 or £500 for the use and support of the school, payable as soon as it becomes a body corporate, besides a tenement in this place, given for the same purpose.
"If the school should once be settled in those parts, it is likely population will proceed with much greater rapidity than ever, and the whole will be soon effected.
"I design to consult some gentlemen of the law relative to an incorporation, and get a rough draught made, with a view to save time if the School should be fixed in your Province. Please to discourse his Excellency of thoughts I have here suggested, and transmit such remarks as he shall please to make thereon. Please to commend my respects suitably to him, and accept the same yourself from, reverend and dear sir,
Your Friend and Brother, etc.,
"Eleazar Wheelock."
"Colonel Wyllis and Esquire Ledyard," of Hartford, were among Dr. Wheelock's legal advisers in 1768, and probably at this period.
June 7, 1769, we find Dr. Wheelock addressing Governor Wentworth as follows:
"I have been making some attempt to form a Charter, in which some proper respect may be shown to those generous benefactors in England who have condescended to patronize this school, and I want to be informed whether you think it consistent to make the Trust in England a distinct corporation, with power to hold real estate, etc., for the uses and purposes of this school."
But the impress of Governor Wentworth does not appear till a somewhat later period. August 22, 1769, Dr. Wheelock informs him that he is about to present him a "rough draught" of a Charter, for an "Academy," adding this somewhat significant postscript: "Sir, if you think proper to use the word College instead of Academy in the Charter, I shall be well pleased with it."
Dr. Wheelock's son-in-law, Mr. Alexander Phelps, and Rev. Dr. Whitaker seem to have been the principal agents to confer with Governor Wentworth in regard to the Charter.
October 18, 1769, he gives his views at length, in a letter to Dr. Wheelock, advising some amendments. Proposing some additions to the Board of Trust, he says: "The nomination of the Provincial officers I strongly recommend, though I do not insist upon. It was indeed resolved on my side that the Governor should be one" of the Board. "That I did not mention any other than the Governor can by no means be preclusive. Neither did I so intend it. The three Provincial officers will be a natural defense, honor and security to the institution."
The following letter indicates that Governor Wentworth had eminent legal counsel:
"Rev. Sir: I have had an opportunity of conferring with Colonel Phelps on the affair of the College proposed to be erected here. You'll find some alterations in the scheme and draft of the Charter; they are supposed to be amendments, and I think they, to say the least, will not be impediments. I cannot stay to enumerate them; the Charter will show them and the Colonel will be able to explain the grounds and reasons of them. I have spent some considerable time with the Governor to form the plan in such a manner as will make it most beneficial, and to prevail on him to make such concessions as would suit the gentlemen with you. I am apt to think the plan will be more serviceable as it now stands than as it was before.