rguments of Benjamin Franklin, Pennsylvania's representative in London. Repeal was accompanied by the Declaratory Act, which stated the right of the British government to pass acts legally binding on the colonists. Colonists reacted immediately, declaring that the Stamp Act was an attempt to raise money in the colonies without the approval of colonial legislatures. Resistance to the act was demonstrated through debates in the colonial legislatures, written documents (including legislative resolves, prints, and songs), and mob/crowd actions such as tarring and feathering tax collectors. -www.history.com Residents of England, whose tax rates were much higher than those in the colonies, strongly accepted the passage of the Stamp Act. Violent reactions to the Stamp Act began to occur throughout the colonies. A mob in Boston hung the stamp distributor, then beheaded him and "stamped" it to pieces before shattering the windows of his home, destroying his furniture, and tearing out the paneling. The stamp distributor in Newport, Rhode Island, also lost his home. In October of 1765, representatives of nine colonies met in New York City as the Stamp Act Congress. There, the colonists agreed on the general theory that Parliament lacked authority to impose taxes on the colonies and to deny individuals a jury trial. The colonists' resistance to the Stamp Act was successful, and the measure became increasingly unstoppable. In March of 1766 Parliament revoked the Stamp Act, although the Parliament had complete legislative authority over the colonies. The colonists were grateful for the repeal of the Stamp Act and were eager to mend their relations with the mother country. The British wanted the colonists to pay the greater part of the cost of royal government in the colonies, whereas the colonists resisted royal taxation and limits on self-government. This clash led to mistrust. A series of incidents that took place ...
