There was a " 'layered' arrangement extending from the British Crown and Parliament through royal officials resident in the colonies [called governors], to colonial assemblies and down to local units of administration . . ." [5] . This type of system had never been experienced in England. English citizens had always had only the local magistrates, Parliament, and their monarch. It was evident to these citizens just who had absolute authority over them. The colonists, however, were having their own "out of sight, out of mind" experience. They could not see authority over them past the governor, if they could see it extending that far. "The colonies were [clearly] not a normal part of the British structure . . ."[6] . They were not included in any day-to-day discussions in Parliament, and if any laws affecting the colonists did change, it would take them a minimum of three weeks to reach the shore of their continent across the ocean. On the flip side, when the Americans did know of laws regarding trade and taxes, it was not uncommon for them to smuggle the goods to avoid paying any taxes that may have been attached to the products. England winked at this avoidance, if they even knew about it, for so long that the colonies began to see "the colonial assemblies . . . as bodies parallel to the House of commons . . ."[7] . This attitude was clearly a threat to England's relationship with her colonies. Edmund Burke, a Whig in Parliament, pointed out that any quick and definite taxing of the colonies after having allowed them to govern themselves for so long would cause a great many objections from the colonists. Burke supported the fact that Parliament certainly had the right to tax the colonies, but he "preferred a slow and steady conduct by England toward the colonies"[8] . This would probably have been the best method to convince the colonies that they were subject to the powers of parliament, but easing the colonies back into accepting an...
