The captains of his majesty's navy, indeed, or any other commissioned officers, appointed by the board of admiralty, may inquire into the condition of the forts and garrisons, and report their observations to that board.
The German decree added that, as the British admiralty had ordered the use of neutral flags by English ships in time of distress, neutral vessels would be in danger of destruction if found in the forbidden area.
He grew closer to Sam Adams and James Otis; and when he refused the governor's appointment to the lucrative post in the admiralty court, he was acknowledged by the people of Boston as a patriot (albeit a stuffy one).