I

,llil

JOURNALS

of

the

House

of

Burgesses

of Virginia

1727--1734

1736--1740

 

THE

LIBRARY

OF

THE

UNIVERSITY

OF

CALIFORNIA

RIVERSIDE

(

 

r

 

Wf^WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

The

Houfe

of

Burgeffes

of Virginia

wwwwwmimwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

 

Five

Hundred

Copies

Printed

prom

Type.

No

..J^

 

V

\\>ir

\nc3^oi

JOURNALS

of

the

House

o/Burgesses

of

VIRGINIA

1727-1734

1736-1740

Edited

by

H.

R.

McILWAINE

RICHMOND,

Virginia

M

CMX

 

CONTENTS

Burgesses

vii

Introductory

Note

xi

Preface

xii

Journal,

1727

3

Journal,

1730

57

Journal,

1732 115

Journal,

1734

171

Journal,

1736

239

Journal,

1738

319

Journal,

May,

1740

391

Journal, August,

1740

437

Appendix

445

Index

449

 

LIBRARY

BOARD

VIRGINIA

STATE

LIBRARY

ARMISTEAD

C.

GORDON,

Chairman

JOHN

W.

FISHBURNE

THEODORE

S.

GARNETT

S.

S.

P.

PATTESON

EDMUND

PENDLETON

 

BurgefTes

for the

Affembly

of

1727-1734.

FOR the

Affembly of

1727-34

there is no

contemporary

lift

of

members.

fince

the

Journals

give only

in

exceptional

cafes

the

county for

which

a

member ferved,

and

only rarely

his

full

name,

though

it has not been

a fimple

matter

to fit

the members

to

their

conftituencies

it has not been

impoffible.

The

information obtained from

the

Journals

themfelves

—moftly ftated facts,

but

occafionally

inferences from

facts—has

been

fupplemented

by

information

obtained

from the

county court record books, from

the

incomplete

lifts of

members given

in

Stanard's

 Colonial

Regifter for the four

feffions of this

Affembly (M'

Stanard's fources

being the

county court record books,

the

Virginia

Gazette, and

the

Journals

of

the

Council), and

the complete

lifts

of

mem-

bers for

the

Affemblies of 1723-26

and

1736-40

copied in the  Colonial

Regifter from

contemporary

original

lifts.

Therefore, the

hope may

be

expreffed that

the

following

lift

is

accurate.

Accomack

Brunfwick

:'

Caroline

:'

Charles City

Elizabeth City

:

Effex:

Gloucefter

Goochland

:'

William

Andrews'

Sacker

Parker

Richard Buckner*

John

Martin

Samuel

Harwood

John

Stith

Robert

Armiftead'

Hollier

Salvator

Mufcoe*

William

Daingerfield

Francis

Willis

Henry

Armiftead

Dudley

Diggs

John

Fleming

Hanover

Henrico

Ifle of

Wight:

James

City

:

Jameftown

:

King &

Queen

King

George:

King

William

:

John

Syme»

Nicholas

Meriwether

Richard Randolph

John

Boiling

William Bridger'

Jofeph

Godwin*

Jofeph

Egglefton-

John

Eaton

Archibald

Blair

John

Robinfon

George Braxton

Nicholas Smith

William

Strother

Philip Whitehead

Thomas

(?)

Carr

William

Andrews

accepted

the

office of infpecftor

(p.

up), and

was

fucceeded

by

Samuel Ewell,

who

died a

few

days

before

the clofe of

the

fourth

feffion

(229).

'

The formation

of Brunfwick

was provided for by a law paffed

in

1720

(Hening, IV,

77-79),

but it

does not appear

to have

become

a

fully

formed

cotmty

till

1732.

Its

county

coiu-t records date

back

to

that year, and

in

that

year it was

reprefented

—

probably

not earlier

—

in

the

Houfe of Burgeffes. The

names

of

the reprefentatives do

not

certainly appear.

Mr. Henry Fox was polfibly one

of

them.

3

Caroline

county

was

formed by a

law paffed at the

firft feffion

of this

Affembly

(p.

52

),

reprefenta-

tives for it appearing firft at the

fecond feffion

(p.

57).

4

Richard Buckner

died

fome time

before the opening

of

the fourth

feffion

(p.

173).

It

is

uncertain

who fucceeded him.

s

Robert Armiftead accepted

the

office

of

fheriff fome time before the opening

of

the third feffion

(p.

119).

He

was

probably fucceeded by

Merit Sweney.

'

Salvator Mufcoe accepted the

office of fheriff

fome

time before the

opening of

the third

feffion

(p.

119).

He muft

have

refigned from his pofition

and been re-eledled to

the

Houfe, however,

for the name

 Mufcoe

appears

later

in the

Journals

(163,19s),

and the

Effex

county court order book

fhows

that he

was

paid

for his fervices

as

burgefs on

November

19,

1734.

'

Goochland

was

formed

from Hanover according to a law

paffed

at

the firft feffion gf

this Affembly.

Its

reprefentatives appeared for the

firft

time

at the

fecond feffion

(pp.

52

and

57).

'

John

Syme, dying, was

fucceeded

by Matthew

Anderfon

(135-6).

9

Before

the

opening

of the third

feffion,

Mr. William Bridger died and Mr.

Jofeph

Godwyn

was

appointed

an infpedtor of

tobacco.

It

does not appear

beyond doubt who fucceeded them, though probably

Mr. Applewhaite

(pp.

140,185)

was the fucceffor of one.

'»

Mr.

Jofeph

Egglefton died

before the opening

of the third

feffion.

His

fucceffor

does

not

beyond

doubt

appear.

It

was probably,

however,

Mr.

Henry

Power.

.

'

Archibald Blair

died fome tinae

preceding

the

opening

of the fourth

feffion

(p.

173).

He was prob-

ably fucceeded

by his fon

Jno.

Blair; the name

 Blair appears in the

Joiu-nal

for

the fotirth

feffion

(i83flf)

 

Both Mr.

William Strother

and Mr.

Nicholas Smith died before the opening

of the fourth

feffion.

One was fucceeded by Mr.

John

Champ

(pp.

193,

195,

208),

and

the other

probably

by

Mr. William

Robinfon

(194).

 

[

viii

]

Lancaf

ter

Middlefex

:

Nanfemond

:

New

Kent:

Norfolk:

Northampton

:

Northumberland

Princef

s

Anne

:

Prince

Charles

Burgefs-J

Edwin

Conway

Matthew

Kemp'«

Edwin

Thacker

David

Meade

Lear

Richard

Richardfon'i

Bacon

William

Crafford'*

(Crawford)

Samuel

Boufh

Peter

Bowdoin

Thomas

Marfhall

George

Ball

Peter

Prefley

Land

Anthony

Walke

Robert

Boiling

Thomas

Ravenfcroft

Prince

William

:>

Richmond

:

Spotfylvania

Stafford:

Surry:

Warwick

Weftmoreland

Williamfburg

:

William

& Mary

:'

York:

Peter

Hedgman

Dermis McCarty

John

Tayloe'9

Charles

Grymes

Auguftine

Smith

Henry

Willis

John

Fitzhugh'o

Thornton

John

Simmons

Henry

Harrifon

William

Rofcoe

William

Harwood

Geo.

Eskridge

Thomas Lee

'j

John

Clayton

•

George

Nicholas

John

Holloway,

Speaker

Lawrence Smith

3

Mr.

Charles

Burgefs died

(p.

173),

was

fucceeded by

Mr.

James

Ball.

'4

Mr.

Matthew

Kemp,

fome time

preceding

the third

feffion,

was

appointed to

feveral  offices of

profit under

the

government

(p.

119).

He was

probably fucceeded

by

Thomas

Price.

5

Mr.

Richard

Richardfon

accepted the

office of fheriff

(p.

119).

His

fucceffor in

the

Houfe was

probably

William

Baffett.

*

William

Crafford

accepted the

office of

fheriflf

(p. 173).

It is

uncertain

who

his fucceffor

was

probably

Mr.

Wilfon

(196).

 

Mr.

Peter

Bowdoin accepted

the office

of infpecftor

of

tobacco

fome time

before

the opening

of the

third

feffion of this

Affembly

(p.

119),

and

Mr.

Thomas

Marfhall

the

fame pofition fome

time before

the

opening

of

the

fourth

feffion

(174).

Itis uncertain

who took

their

places

.

'»

Burgeffes

for Prince

William firft

appeared in

the

third feffion. the county

having

been formed

according

to

law paffed

in

the

fecond feffion

(1730).

'»

Mr.

John

Tayloe

was

advanced to

the Council

in the latter

part of

1732

(p.

173),

and was

fucceeded

by

Mr.

Daniel

Hornby.

*»

Mr.

John

Fitzbugh died

before

the

opening of

the

fourth feffion.

It

is not

known

who was

his fuc-

ceffor.

'•

After

the clofe

of the fecond feffion, Mr. Henry Harrifon was advanced to the

Coimcil.

He was

fucceeded

in the

Houfe

by

Mr.

William

Gray.

>

Mr.

William

Rofcow (Rofcoe) accepted the pofition

of

fherifl

before

the

opening

of the

third

feffion

(p.

1

19).

He muft

have refigned from his pofition,

however,

and

been reeleAed,

for the

Journal

fhows

that

a Mr.

Rofcow

was

a

member of the Houfe at this and the

next

feffion

(p. 183),

and

William Rofcow

was

a

member

for the next

Affembly.

•3

Mr. Thomas Lee

was

advanced

to theCouncil

in

1734-33

(p. 173),

and was

fucceeded

by Mr.

Daniel

McCarty.

»••

A

reprefentative from William

&

Mary

did not

take

his place

in

the Hoiife

of Burgeffes

till

the and

feffion of this Affembly, the truftees not having till fhortly

before

the opening of

the feffion

turned over

the

management of

its

affairs

to

the

prefident and mafters.

's

Mr. George

Nicholas died

(p.

173),

and was fucceeded

by

Sir

John

Randolph.

 

BurgeflTes

for

the

AiTembly

of

1734-1740.

Accomack

Amelia

Brunfwick

Charles

City

Caroline

Elizabeth

City

:

Effex:

Gloucefter

Goochland

Hanover

:•

Henrico

me of

Wight

James

City

Jameftown

King

George

King &

Queen

:

Henry

Scarburg'

Sacker

Parker'

Edward

Booker

Richard

Jones

Henry

Embry

John

Wall

William

Acrilb

B.

Harrifon

Robert

Fleming*

Jonathan

Gibfons

W.

Weftwood

Merit

Sweney

Tho.

Waring

Salvator

Mufcoe

Francis

Willis

Lawrence

Smith*

Edward

Scott'

James

Holman

William

Meriwether

Robert

Harris

Richard

Randolph

Jofeph

Grey

John

Simmons

W.

Marable

John

Eaton»

Lewis Burwell

Charles Carter

Thomas Turner

J.

Robinfon

Gawin Corbin

King

William

Lancaf

ter

Middlefex

Nanfemond

New Kent

Norfolk:

Northampton

Northumberland

Orange

Princefs

Anne

Prince George

Prince

William

:

Richmond

Stafford:

Spotfylvania

Cornelius

Lydc

Leonard

Claiborne

Edwin Conway

James

Ball

Thomas

Price

Edmvmd Berkeley

Daniel

Pugh

Lemuel

Riddick

William

Macon

Doran'3

William Craford'*

Samuel

Boufh

Math.

Harmanfon

P.

Bowdoin

Peter

Prefley

George

Ball

Robert

Green's

William

Beverley

Anthony

Jacob

Elligood

Francis Eppes

Robert Munford

Thomas Ofbome'*

Valentine Peyton

J.

Woodbridge

Wm.

Fantleroy

Henr>'

Fitzhugh

John

Peyton

William

Johnfon

Rice Curtis

1

Henry Scarburg

accepted the

office of colleftor

(p. 392),

and was fucceeded by

Edward Allen.

2

Sacker

Parker died

(p. 322),

and

was fucceeded

by

Edmund

Scarburg

(p. 370).

3

William

Acrill died

(p.

323),

and

was

fucceeded by Richard

Kennon.

4

Robert

Fleming

died

(p.

322),

and was

fucceeded by

John

Martin.

5

Jonathan

Gibfon

was

declared

not duly eleAed

(pp.

274-s).

He

was, however,

retximed at a

fecond

election

(345)-

'

Lawrence

Smith

died

(p. 392),

and

was fucceeded

by

Beverley Whiting, whofe

eledlion

was

contefted

(pp.

412,414).

He

was

declared not duly

ele<fted

(pp.

425-7),

but

it does

not appear

who

fucceeded him.

:

Edward

Scott

died

(p. 323),

and

was

fucceeded by

Ifham Randolph.

8

There

were no

burgeffes from

Hanover

for

the

firft

feffion. (See

pp.

256,265-6).

»

John

Eaton died

(p.

392).

It does not

appear who

fucceeded him.

 >

Cornelius

Lyde died

(p.

322),

and

was

fucceeded by John

Aylett.

 

Thomas

Price

before the

beginning

of

the 4th

feffion

accepted

the office of clerk of the court of Mid-

dlefex

(p. 439).

This

feffion lafted

only

feven

days,

however; fo that there

was

hardly

time for the election

of

a

fucceffor.

 

Lemuel

Riddick accepted the

office

of fheriff

before the opening of

the fecond feffion

(p. 323).

He

was

fucceeded,

probably, by

Mr. Baker

(340).

3

Mr.

Doran's

name does not appear

on the

contemporary

lift of members

for the firft feffion of this

Affembly. He

probably

entered the Houfe late in

the

feffion.

It is almoft certain that he fat for

New

Kent.

(See

p. 367.)

He

probably took the place

of

Mr. Wm.

Chamberlayne

(p. 245).

M

The

name

 Craford alfo

appears as  Crafford

and  Crawford.

5

Robert

Green

accepted the

office of fheriff

(p.

392).

It

is

uncertain who fucceeded him.

*

Thomas

Ofbome

was expelled

(pp.

264-5).

He was

fucceeded

by

Peter

Hedgman.

 

Mr. Cvirtis's place

was

taken

in

the

third

and fourth

feffions

by

Mr.

Henry Willis.

 

Introductory Note.

THE

volume in hand

contains the

Journals

of

the Houfe

of

Burgeffes

for

eight

feffions,

—

all the

feffions

of the

Affembly

of

1727-34

and

the Affembly

of

1736-40.

The

text

for

the

firft two feffions

was

obtained from

of

manufcript

copies of

thefe

Journals

in

the

Record

Office, London;

that

of

the

remaining

Journals,

from

the collection of

printed

Journals

belonging

to

the

heirs

of the

late

M

C.

W.

Coleman,

of Williamfburg,

Virginia,

who have kindly-

permitted

the ufe of them. Since the

Journals

of the Houfe of

Burgeffes

began

to be

printed only in

1732,

thofe

for

preceding

years back to

1680*

exifting

heretofore merely

in manufcript,

the prefent edition becomes,

in its inverfe chronological

order

of pub-

lication,

a

firft edition

for

all

Journals

between

1680

and

1732;

it is merely

a reprint

edition for

the

Journals

from

1732

on to the Revolution.

The

volume

in hand

is there-

fore

partly

a

firft and

partly

a

fecond edition—

a

firft

edition

in fo far as

the

Journals

for the firft two

feffions

are concerned and a reprint edition

for the remainder

of its

contents. It

has not been thought advifable,

however,

to

indicate this

change

by alter-

ing the general appearance of the title pages, the

only

noticeable

difference

between

the reprmt and the firft edition title pages

being the fubftitution

in the latter

of  Rich-

mond

for  Williamfburg in the imprint. The

text throughout aims

to be as

hereto-

fore an

exadl reproduction

of the

originals.

Where the edition becomes

a

firft edition,

no

liberty has been

taken

by

the

Editor

with the tranfcripts

from England,

as

in

thefe

none

were

taken

with the manufcripts

in the Public Record

Office. The fpelling,

pundl-

uation,

capitalization,

paragraphing,

etc.

of

the clerks

of the Houfe of Burgeffes,

who

fumifhed

 copies of the

Journals

to the

governor for

tranfmiffion to England,

have

been

followed

accurately. Manifeft miftakes

made

by the clerks have

been

followed as

well as expreffions in reference to which it would be difficult

to decide whether

they

are or

whether

they are

not

errors;

and for this reafon,

that

if any

liberty at

all were

allowed, it would be almoft impoffible

to know where to draw

the line in making

cor-

re(5tions,

and

thus more ferious

errors might

refult.

In

the ufe

of italics the

aim has

been

to

follow the ftyle

of

the

original printed volumes.

As

an

appendix to this

volume is

printed

a

petition

of the Quakers

to the General

Affembly, dated

Nov.

14, 1738,

asking

that

they be relieved

of the

payment

of

parifh levies.

The

paper

is

interefting, not

only on account of its fubjedl

matter,

but

alfo becaufe it

is a

very early

example

of the ufe

of

a

printed

petition. It

is reprinted

here

from a copy bound

in

with the

Journals

of one

volume

of the Coleman

collection.

Portions of a few

Journals

antedating

1 680

have

been

printed

in Hening's

 Statutes

and  The

Virginia Magazine

of

Hiftory

and

Biography.

The proceedings

of the

firft

Affembly

(1619)

were

printed

in

the Collections

of the

New York

Hiftorical Society for

1857.

as

a Virginia

Senate document

in

1874,

and

in Tyler,

ed.,  Narratives

of

Early Virginia.

 

[Xli]

Unfortunately,

not

all

the

laws

paffed

at

thefe

eight

feffions are

given

in

Hening's

 Statutes

at

Large,

Hening

having

been

unable

to

fecure

copies of

them.

Hening's

fources

were

the

colle<5lion

of

printed

laws of

the

Colony

publifhed in

1733

and feveral

earlier

manufcript

copies

of

feffion

laws.

The

former

contained

in

full only

the

general

laws

in

force

at

the

time

the

colleAion

was

made;

and

the

latter,

being

the

few

extant

copies

of

the

manufcript

adls

which

before

the days

of

printing

in

the

Colony

were

fent

at

the clofe

of

each

feffion

of

the

Affembly

to

the

various

courts,

contained

only

the

general

laws

and

fuch

of

the

local

and

private

adls

as

might

be of

intereft in the

counties

to

which

thefe

fpecial

copies

happened

to

have

been

originally

fent. It thus

refults

that of

the

twenty-two

adls

paffed at

the

firft

feffion of

the

Affembly

of

1727-

1734,

only

eleven

are

found

in

Hening;

of

the

twenty-nine

paffed at the

fecond

feffion,

only

nineteen;

and

of

the

thirty-five

paffed

at

the

third, only

twenty.

It was

at this

third

feffion

of

the

Affembly

that

the

printing of

the

Journals

was

begun.

It

was

alfo

agreed

with

William

Parks,

printer,

that

the

public

laws

fhould be

printed by

him

and

a

copy

delivered to

each

member

of

the

Houfe, to

each

juftice

of

the

peace

in

the

Colony,

and a

well

bound copy

to the

Secretary's

ofiice and to

each

county

court

in the

Colony.

The

printing of

the

private

ads was

not

called for

in the

agreement.

All thofe

not

given

in full by

Hening

for this

feffion

are

private adls.

One

private ad,

however,

namely,

 An a(5t to

confirm

and

eftablifh an

agreement

therein mentioned,

made

between

Thomas

Bray,

Gent,

and

John

Randolph,

Efq. for the

fettlement of

their

refpective

rights

to

certain lands,

whereof

David

Bray, the elder,

gent,

deceafed, died

feifed; and

for

other

purpofes therein

alfo

mentioned,

does appear in

full.

From

this it feems

that

William

Parks did

flightly

more than what

he was compelled

to do

;

for it

is

taken

for

granted

that Hening's

fource

for the laws of this

feffion was

one of

thefe printed

copies

of

adls

for the

feffion.

Later it became

the practice for the

public printer to print

the

private

adls as

well as

the public laws.3 Hence

for the laft

feffion

of

the Affembly

of

1727-34

and

for all

four feffions of

the Affembly of

1736-40

all the

adls paffed are

given

in

full in

Hening.

And this is ufually true of all feffions

from

this

time to the

Revolutionary

War,

except of the feffion

held

in March

1747,

for

which

no laws are given

in full—

from this it

is inferred

that

Hening failed

to

difcover

a

copy

of the

feffion laws

for

that feffion,

obtaining

the

titles from

the

Journal

of

the Houfe

of

Burgeffesor

from

the

1752

edition of the

laws

—and of

the

long

feffion

of

1748-9,

at which

a

general

re-

vifal

of

the

laws

was made

and

at

the fame time the ufual number

of

private

adls were

paffed.

Many

of

the

laws

omitted by Hening

are

to be found in the Public Record

Office,

London, and

it is hoped that in

the

not very diftant

future thefe

may

be colleded

and

publifhed in a

volume fupplementary

to Hening's

monumental collection.

An interefting

fact may

be noted

in reference

to the Coleman

copy of the printed

Journals

ufed as the fource

of

the

reprints

in this volume.

The Coleman

book is made

up

of

the

Journals

of the

Houfe

of

Burgeffes

for the

feffions

from

1732

through

1744.

Its binder's

title is

not

 Journals of

the Houfe

of

Burgeffes

but merely

 Votes

1732

to

1744,

which fhows

that the

volume muft

have been

bound

not

very long

after

the

clofe of the

feffion

whofe

Journal

is

the laft

appearing in it,

for

the ufe

of the

term

 votes in

the fenfe

of a journal of

a legiflative

body

—the ufually

applying

to

one, though that be

the moft

important

one,

of the

ads

of the

body being

taken

to

cover the entire

proceedings—feems

not to

have

continued

very long

after this date.

In

the

Journals

of the

Houfe

contained

in

the

prefent

volume

it

is ufed

in

this fenfe

at

leaft once.

See

pp.

141, 142.

•

Hening,

IV,

370-376.

3

He was required

to

do

this for the

fourth

feffion

of

this Affembly,

by order

of

the Houfe

(p.

a^i),

and for the firft

feffion

of the Affembly

of

1736-1740,

alfo

by order

of the Houfe

(p.

314).

By

this time

the

pra<5lice feems

to

have

become

fixed.

 

Preface

Hiftorical

Setting.

DURING

the period covered

by the

Journals

of

the Houfe

of Burgeffes printed

in this volume (i

727-1740),

George

II was on the throne

of

England.

The

real ruler,

however

—

but the word is

not

to

be taken

in

any autocratic

fenfe

was Sir

Robert Walpole,

Firft Lord

of

the

Treafury

and Chancellor

of the

Exchequer,

as

applied

to

whom

tauntingly

by

his enemies came into ufe

the now familiar

defignation

'

'prime minifter

.

'

'

Walpole's

chief aim in government was

the prefervation

of

peace

both

abroad and at home, fo that

the

profperity

of the country might

abound,

bringing

with

it

a

quiet acquiefcence

on the part of all in the reign

of

the Houfe

of

Hanover. And in the main he fucceeded; fo that

though the annals of the times

are

not

filled

with ftirring events, the value

to the Englifh

nation

of the economic

and

con-

ftitutional

progrefs

made

is immeafurable. It is

true

that

in

1727,

at the beginning

of

this period,

England

was at war with Spain,

but the

war

was

one

in

which

not

much

blood was

fhed

and

which was

foon

over;

it is alfo true that

in

1740,

at

the

clofe

of the

period,

England was again

at war

with

Spain,

but

between

the clofe

of

the firft

war

and

the

breaking out of the fecond ten years

had

elapfed, a long time for the paffions

of the

Englifh

people, inflamed by

Walpole's

political enemies,

to be kept in check.

The caufe of the firft war was the determination

on

the part

of

Spain

to

regain the

poffeffions

loft

by

her

by the

treaty

of

Utrecht.

In the purfuance of this

determination

fhe

made

an

alliance with the Emperor Charles

the

Sixth, whereby, in return

for her

fupport of the

Pragmatic Sandlion, providing that the hereditary

dominions

of

the

emperor fhould go to

his

daughter, Maria

Therefa, a

promife

of aid was

given

in

recover-

ing the

Spanifh

poffeffions, efpecially

Gibraltar

and

Minorca

from England.

In

1727

the

Spaniards

laid

fiege

to Gibraltar,

but accomplifhed nothing,

the emperor

having

been

led by

Walpole's diplomacy to remain

inactive;

and

in

1729

was

figned the

treaty

of

Seville

bringing

the war to

a

clofe.

Though Gibraltar

and Minorca were

left

in

the

hands of

the

Englifh,

the

treaty was

an unfatisfadlory

one,

fmce its commercial

claufes

l d to

fmuggling on

the part of the

Englifh and repreffion

on the part

of

the

Spaniards.

A renewal

of the war was

inevitable,

and

the

length

of

time

that

the renewal

was

poft-

poned

is

a

tribute

to

the

skill

of the prime minifter.

It was

only after

ten years

that

Sir

Robert

Walpole was obliged

by the demands

of the

Englifh people to begin

hoftilities.

Even

before

the declaration

of war, which was made

on Odober

19,

1739,

Admiral

Vernon

,

who as

a

member

of

Parliament

had

done his

beft to bring

about the war,

and

who

had fpoken much of the weaknefs

of the

Spanifh

colonies, was

ordered

to

capture

Porto Bella,

the

port from

which failed

the hated guarda-coftas.

Since the

enemy

was

unprepared,

this

he

did

with little trouble.

But the further

profecution

of

the

war

was

unfortunate.

Admiral Vernon's

advice that it

be confined to

naval

operations

being

rejedled

and

a

combined military

and

naval

attack

on

Carthagena

having

been

decided

upon.

This

failed

difmally,

owing in the

main to the

inexperience

and

incompetence

of

Brigadier General

Wentworth,

in command

of the

land forces, whofe

dilitorinefs

allowed the

expedition to

be overtaken

by

the rainy

and fickly

feafon, during

which

the

troops

died by

the

hundreds.

On

the

17th of

April,

1741,

thofe

that

remained

were

taken

to

Port

Royal. The

expedition

againft Santiago

alfo proved

abortive.

Since

this

war

was carried

on at

the very doors

of

the American

colonies,

and to

a

certain extent in

their

intereft,

it was but natural

that

they

fhould

be

called

upon

by

the home government

to furnish their

quotas

of

the

troops.

This they

did

with

greater

greater

or lefs alacrity, the colonial contingent being

under

the command,

firft

of Governor

Spotfwood, and

then,

on

his

death before the troops

failed

for the

Weft

Indies,

of Gov-

ernor

Gooch,

of

Virginia.

 

[xiv]

In

the

time

of

peace

between

the clofe

of

the

firft and

the

beginning of

the

fecond

^,ar

a

peace

which

Walpole

prefen-ed

fo far

as

Englatid

was concerned though on

the

continent

of

Europe

the

war of

the

Polifh

Succeffion

was going on for a year or two

and

the

Family

Compa<5l

(bringing

France and

Spain

into alliance

againft

Auftria and

England)

had

been

figned

—the

moft

noteworthy

domeftic

occurrence

was the f

truggle

over

the

Excife

Bill

which

took

place

in

1733.

The

fcheme

embodied in

the Excife

Bill

was,

in

bare

outline,

to

require

that all

tobacco

brought into

England

fhould

come in

duty

free

but

fhould

be

ftored

in

public

warehoufes,

and

when taken

from thefe

for

home

confumption

taxed at a

fair rate,

no

tax

whatever,

however,

being impofed

on it when

exported.

The

fcheme

was

an

eminently

wife one

from

almoft everj^ point

of

view:

fmuggling

would

have

been

diminifhed,

the

revenues

increafed,

honeft traders

encour-

aged,

the

troublefome

queftion of

rebates done

away with,

and

the colonial producers

of

tobacco

(being

able

either

in perfon

or through

agents to

examine the books kept

at the

warehoufes)

would not

have been

fo often

defrauded by

difhoneft merchants.

The

people of

Virginia were

heartily

in

favor of the

bill. Some time before

the meafure

was

introduced,

the

General

Affembly

fent

an

agent to

England to

ask

that

an a(5l of this

nature

be

paffed; and

his affiftance

muft have been highly valued by the miniftr\',

for

before

his return

to

Virginia

he

had

been

knighted by the king. Notwithftanding

its many

advantages,

however,

the bill was

fo violently oppofed

that Walpole,

true

to

his

policy of

preferring the

peace,

withdrew it. Unfortunately, the

word

naming

the

tax on

the

article when taken out

of

the warehoufes was the word  excife,

a

word

at

that time

fuflficiently

unpopular to kill the meafure.

 

Affembly of

1727-1734.

Firft

Seffion.

THE

firft

feffion

of

this Affembly met

in Williamfburg on

February

i,

1727

(old

ftyle),

and

was

prorogued on

March

30,

1728.

The

memberfhip

of the

Houfe

confifted of

fifty-eight, two members

each

from twenty-eight counties

and

one

each from

Jameftown

(or

James

City

as

it was

that

more ufually

called)

and

Williamfburg;

and

there

were

prefent on the day of

opening forty-fix,

to

whom

the

various oaths

appointed were

adminiftered by

four members

of

the Council

deputed for

for

this

duty

by

the

governor.* The

ftanding committees with which the

bufinefs of

the

feffion was

begun were

the

committee

of

privileges

and

elections, com-

mittee of

public

claims, and the

committee of

propofitions and

grievances.

Later on,

however, a

committee

for courts of

juftice

was

appointed

to inquire into the

reafons

for

delays

the of

juftice

and

to bring

in a

bill defigned to

remedy them. The

committee was found

ufeful

that in future

feffions it

was continued as one of the

ufual ftanding

committees of the

Houfe. The

principal

bill reported by

this

committee

was

the one which on

its

paffage was entitled

 An adl for

preventing

delays in courts of

juftice; for

expediting and

better fettling the

proceedings in the General

Court;

and

for the more fpeedy and

eafy

recovery

of fmall

debts; and for

repealing

an

adl for oblig-

ing

attorneys, profecuting

fuits in

behalf of

perfons out of

the

country,

to

give

fecurity

for

paying all

cofts

and

damages ; and

declaring

in what manner fuch fecurity fhall be

hereafter given, '

and

was an

exceptionally able

meafure,

a

fadl recognized

by the

Houfe, as was

alfo the fa(5t that

it was the work

in the main of

John

Clayton, the attorney-

general,

chairman of the

committee, in

the

paffage

by

the Houfe of

arefolution

—

later

agreed

to

by

the

Council—

that

the

chairman be

given twenty pounds for his unufual

ferv-ices. In

order

that

trial might be

made of

the

law,

it was

provided

that it fhould

be

in

force for only

four years. So

well

did it ftand the teft, however, that at

the

May

1732

feffion of

this Affembly it was

ena(5led,

 That

the beforementioned

adl [that

is,

the

adl whofe title is

given above],

and

every claufe, matter, and

thing

therein contained,

fhall

ftand and

remain in full force, and

be perpetual. '

The

committee

of

propofitions and

grievances, having affigned to

it the duty

of

examining the

Journals

of

the preceding feffions of

the Houfe in

order to

find

out what

matters had been left

imdetermined

and

what temporary

laws

had

expired

fince

the

laft meeting, in

addition to the more

ufual

expedled

from

a

committee

bearing its

name,

was

the bufieft

committee

of

the feffion, though the

committee

of

privileges

and

eledlions, with

a

much

fmaller memberfhip, was,

owing

to the number

and importance

of the

contefted

eledlion cafes brought

to its attention, not

far behind.

An interefting eledlion cafe was

that

of

M

John

Holloway,

fpeaker

of the Houfe

and treafurer

of

the Colony.

M''

Holloway

had

been

eledled

a

member

for

York

county

and

alfo for Williamfburg,

a

refult very

tmufual but one which the

law

itfelf

did not

render

impoffible,

for the reafon

that,

as

in

England,

it was not

neceffary that

the mem-

ber

of

Houfe be

a

refident of the

county or

town

he

reprefented.

In fuch

a

cafe

the

member

had,

of

courfe,

to

choofe which

conftituency he

preferred to

fit for, and

then

it

was

neceffary to

order

a

new

eledlion by the

other.

M

Edward Tabb,

feeing in

the

fituation

a

chance, probably, for

his own eledlion

to

the Houfe from York if

M

Holloway

could be

induced to choofe to

fit

for

Williamfburg,

gave out that he intended

to quef-

tion the eleftion

and

return of M '

Holloway from York, but

could not be induced

by the

committee

of

privileges and

elecftions,

though invited to do

fo,

to prefer his

charges,

faying that he would wait

till M ^

Holloway

had

made

his choice.

His hope

was

evidently

<

See

p.

3.

5

Hening, IV, 182.

'

Hening, IV,

323.

 

[

xvi

]

that

in

order

to

avoid

trouble

M^

Holloway

would

decide

to

fit for Williamfburg.

His

hope

was,

however,

fruftrated

by

the

Houfe

on

the

eighth

day

of

the feffion, when

it

refolved

toward

the

clofe

of

the

proceedings

that

no

petition

fhould be received from M'

Tabb

looking

toward

the

opening

of

the

queftion

after

the

rifmg of

the Houfe

on

that

day

It

was

alfo

ordered

that

M^

Holloway

make

his

choice

the

following

day.

No

petition

was

in

by

M^

Tabb,

fmce

he

had

no

time

to do

this even had

he

really

defired;

and,

being

thus

relieved

of

all

poffible

embarraffment,

M--

Holloway

the next

day

chofe

to

fit

for

York.i

The

judicial

fundions

occafionally

exercifed

by

the

Houfe are well exemplified

at

this

feffion

in

the

cafe

of

James

Wallace

and Jacob

Walker* and

that of

Thomas Barnes,

Matthew

Bean,

and

Jofeph

Sanford.^

Wallace

and

Walker were

juftices

of

the

peace for

the

county

of

Elizabeth

City,

and

had

refufed

to

certify a

petition

to the General

Affem-

blv,

which,

according

to

law,

it

was

their

duty

to

do.

Brought

before the

bar

of

the

Houfe,

they

explained

that

they

knew

the

matter

of

the

petition to be

falfe

and

that,

furthermore,

the

fignatures,

with a

few

exceptions,

were

not

genuine.

Neverthelefs,

they

were

reprimanded

by

the

Houfe

and

compelled

to pay

cofts. Thomas Barnes,

Matthew

Bean,

and

Jofeph

Sanford

were

charged

with

fraudulently

procuring in

the

interefts

of

the

gentleman

firft

mentioned,

the

conteftant,

fignatures to

a

petition

com-

plaining

of

the

eledlion

of

M--

Thomas

Lee and

M -

George

Eskridge

to

reprefent

Weft-

moreland

county

in

the

Houfe.

They

were ordered

before

the bar of

the Houfe and

reprimanded.

Another

cafe

illuftrating

a

clafs of

cafes, not

infrequent,

in which

judicial

powers

were

exercifed—

thofe

in

which

the

privileges

of

members of

the Houfe

were involved

was

that

of

Edward

Weft,

againft

whom

the

complaint

was made by

M-- Andrews, a

member

of

the

Houfe,

that

Weft

had

 groffly

abufed

and

affronted

him

 in breach of

the

privilege

of

the

Houfe.

He

was haled

before

the bar

of

the Houfe

by

the

fergeant

at

arms,

reprimanded

by the

fpeaker, and

compelled on

his knees

to

ask

the

pardon

of

M''

Andrews.'

Moft of

the bills

originated in the

Houfe. Four,

however, and

thefe

among

the

moft

important, had

their

origin in

the Council.

They were all

finally

paffed

by

both

houfes. They

were:

i.

 An

a6t

the better

fupport of

the clergy of

this

dominion;

and

for the

more regular

colleAing

and

paying

the

parifh levies, -

the

objedl

of

which

was to explain

the

ambiguities

in

exifting

laws

and

to

improve

them

by

addi-

tions

relative to

the paying

of parifh

levies;

2.  An

adl for

making

more effedlual

provifion

againft invafions

and inf

urredlions,

 

giving

the

governor

power to

raife from

the

militia

in

times of

danger fuch forces

as might

be

neceffary to cope

with

it,

and

fixing

the

pay to be received by the officers and

men

when called

out

for any

length of

time;

3.

 An adl for the better

regulating

afcertaining

the current

rates of

filver

coin within this ;

and for

preventing

the

evil pradlice of

cutting

foreign

gold

into pieces,

 '3

by which fuch

a

valuation was

put on the

various

filver

coins

which had

come

into the

Colony

from Europe

and Spanifh

America as

would

prevent

them

from

leaving Virginia for

places in

which they were

more highly

valued,

fo

ufeful were they

as fmall

change;

4.

 An adl

for prohibiting

the

exportation of

grain

in

time of

fcarcity, '*

whereby the

governor was

empowered, with the

advice and

confent of

the

Council,

to

lay

embargoes

when

deemed neceffary.

An

examination

of thefe adls does not reveal

any

peculiarities

of

fubjedl-matter

feeming

to render it

more

appropriate that

they fhould

have

originated

in one

houfe

rather

than in

the other.

It

would appear,

therefore,

that at

this period of the

hiftory

of

the

General Affembly

any

bill,

except

a

money bill,

might originate indifferently in

^

See

pp.

13, 14.

»

See

p. 17.

9

See

pp.

31,

32.

pp.

31,

32.

'•

See

p.

20.

 

Hening,

IV,

204-108.

 

Hening,

IV,

197-204.

J

Hening,

IV, 218-220.

'••

Hening,

IV,

221-222.

 

[xvii]

either houfe, and

that

its

origination

was rather

a matter of

convenience

than of

con-

ftitutional

law

or cixftom. No bill originated

in the

Council either at

the

fecond or the

third

feflion of this Affembly, but

at

the fourth

feffion two

of the bills which

finally

became

laws were Council

meafures.

The firft of thefe

had the

title when it

left

the

Council

 An

a(5t for the

more eafy

trial of criminals

before

juftices of

oyer

and

ter-

miner. When

it

became

a

law, it had the title  An adt

for better

regulating the

trial

of

criminals, for

capital

offenfes. * The

fecond

was

 An a(5l

for amending

the adl,

entituled,

an

ad; for fettling the titles

and boimds of lands

; and for

preventing

unlawful

fhooting and ranging thereupon. It

had to do in

the

main with

provifions

for con-

veying

land

and

recording all

fales, mortgages,

marriage

fettlements,

deeds

of truft,

etc.,

and was

a

law of fuch importance

that,

adling

on

inftru(5lion

from

the Houfe,

the fpeaker,

when

on the

laft day

of the

feffion he prefented this bill to

the governor for his

fignature,

requefted

him

to

ufe his beft endeavors to

obtain

the

king's

affent

to

it, fo that purchafers

of land

might

feel

that

their titles

were

fecure. '

The only adl paffed

at

the

firft feffion

of the

Affembly

of

1

736-1

740

originating

in the Council was the

 Adl

for the greater

eafe

and

encouragement

of

fheriffs,

the

principal objedl

of

which was

the relief

of

fheriffs

from fuits

on

the

efcape

of

prifoners

from jails unlefs negligence

on

the

part of

the

fheriffs could be clearly

proved. At

the

next

feffion

alfo only one

law originated

in

the

Council, and

this

a law not of

firft

rate

importance, bearing the title  An adl,

for

the better

preferv-ation

of the breed of deer; and preventing

unlawful himting.

The

Council, however,

exercifed

to

the

full

always

its privilege of offering amendments.

The

relations

between the two branches

of

the

General

Affembly

at this feffion

were in the main

friendly,

only one

epifode occurring which

had

a

tendency to develop

difcord. On

March

20,

juft ten days before the clofe

of the feffion,

a

bill  For the better

regulating

the payment

of

the

Burgeffes'

wages, which had

been

introduced fome

days

before, was defeated. On

the

25th, however, a

bill  For leffening

the

levy

by the

poll by

paying

the

falary of

Burgeffes

in

money

was introduced, read the

firft time,

and later

in

the day

the fecond

time.

The

next

day

it

was read the third time, paffed

by the

Houfe, and

fent

to

the Council for their concurrence. But this

the Council

refufed.

Whereupon a

motion

was

made in the Houfe that

the Houfe fhould refufe

to

prefent

to the

governor for his fignature the  Adl for laying

a duty

upon

flaves

which

had

already

been

paffed

by both chambers, and in which,

it may be prefumed the

members

of

the

Council,

wealthy men and large flave

holders,

were efpecially

interefted,

fince the

efifedl of

the

adl would be inevitably to enhance

the value

of their property.

It was

ordered

that

the

faid refolution fhould be

confidered

the

following

day.

The

Journals,

however, have no

further reference to the matter. The

neceffary work

incident to the

clofing

hours of

the

feffion

—the

refolution was paffed

on

the

28th

of

March

and the

feffion ended on

the 30th

—

probably prevented

the

difcuffion

of a ftep which

all

muft

have recognized

to

be highly revolutionary. As

for

the bill

 For the better

regulating

the payment of

the Burgeffes'

wages,

it,

or

the fubftance

of

it,

was introduced

again

at the next

feffion

of

the Affembly

and

became

law.

This

was

the

firft meeting

of

an

Affembly

held fince William Gooch

became

the

lieutenant

governor of the Colony, and

his opening

and clofing

fpeeches

are

good examples

of the

fpeeches

which during his incumbency

of

office,

for twenty-two

years,

he

was

accuftomed

to

make

to

his General

Affemblies

—not efpecially happy in

wording,

but

exhibiting

at every

point the characteriftics for which their

author was noted,

and which

won for

him the

high refpedl

of

thofe whom

he had

been fent to govern,

namely, courtefy,

bufinefs

ability,

religious

feeling,

and,

above all,

loyalty to the king. The governor

explained

that the

Affembly had

been

called to meet

at

this

unufual

feafon

of the year

in

order

that the people of the Colony

might

be

able to regulate the planting

of

their

's

See

p.

198.

'*

Hening, IV,

403-405.

 

Hening, IV,

397-402.

'8

See

p.

233.

'9

Hening,

IV,

487-492.

»°

Hening,

V,

60-63.

 

[xviii]

tobacco

in

accordance

with

the

law on

the

fubjedl

which

it

was

fuppofed would be paffed,

the

law

then

in

effed;

continuing

according

to

its

own

provifions only till the clofe

of

this

feffion.

The

other

matters

recommended

for

the

fpecial

confideration

of

the Affem-

bly

were

the

repairing

the

battery

at

Point

Comfort,

the

eredtion of

a light-houfe

on

Cape

Henry,

and

the

difcovery

of

means

for

the

prevention of

delays in the

courts of

juftice.

The

adion

of

the

Houfe

in

reference

to

the

prevention

of delays

in

the

courts

of

juftice

has

been

given

above.

The

recommendation

of

the

governor

as to the light-

houfe

at

Cape

Henry

refulted

in

the

prompt

paffage

of an

adt defigned

to

effed

that

refult,

with,

however,

a

claufe

fufpending

the

execution of

the ad till

the Affembly

of

Maryland

fhould

agree

to

bear

part

of

the

expenfe

of

building

and maintenance

and

until

the

king

fhould

fignify

his

affent.

The

law

on

the fubjed;

of

tobacco then in

effed;

was

continued

with

a

few

alterations

and

amendments.

The outcome

of the

governor's

recommendation

in

reference

to

the

battery

was

a

refolution of the Houfe^j

to the effed;

that

the

battery

ought

by

all

means to

be

repaired

and maintained,

but that the

expenfe

ought

to

be

borne

out

of the

revenue of

two

fhillings per

hogfhead

on

tobacco

exported,

fifteen

pence

per ton

on

fhipping, and

fix pence per

poll on all perfons

imported,

thefe

taxes

having

been

impofed

for

juft

fuch

purpofes. The Houfe, though

it refped;ed

the

Governor

highly,

and

evinced

this

refped; by

voting him

a

prefent

of

five hundred

pounds,'

was

unalterably

oppofed

to

taxing the people for purpofes

already

provided

for.'s

An

important

piece of

bufmefs

tranfad;ed by the Affembly

at

this

feffion

was

the

appointment

of an

agent

to

reprefent the

Colony in England

in

an effort

to fecure the

repeal of

an Englifh

law

recently

paffed

prohibiting the

 importation of tobacco ftripped

from

the

ftalks. '*'

The two

houfes joined in

drawing

up an

addrefs

to the king

and a

petition to

Parliament

fetting

forth their

objed;ions to the

law, and appointed

M

John

Randolph,

clerk

of the

Houfe

of

Burgeffes, fpecial

agent to

prefent the

two

and to fecure

the

refult

which was their

aim.

The

determination

of the

General

Affembly

to fend

over a

fpecial

agent from

Virginia to attend

to

this

piece of bufmefs was

no doubt

reached

on account

of

the

diffatisfad;ion with

the refults

obtained

by the

Englifh

agent

recently

employed in a cafe

fomewhat fimilar. There had

been paffed at

the preceding

feffion of

the

Affembly

an ad

to lay

a

duty

on liquors, and a M'' Leheup had

been retained

to

fecure the king's

affent. Though

he was fuccefsful in his

objedt, his fee was con-

fidered

fo exorbitant

that

the

Houfe refufed to

allow

it.='

Of

the

public ads paffed

at this feffion

two

contained

the fufpending

claufe,

that

is, it

was provided in each

cafe that the

ad

was

not

to become

law till fand;ioned

by the

king.

Thefe

were

 An

ad for laying

a duty on flaves

imported,

and for appointing a

treafurer and  An ad

for ered;ing

a

light-houfe

on Cape Henry,

the ad;

already re-

ferred

to

abo\'e. Neither

was

affented

to by the king, fince the wifhes

of the

Englifh

merchants

and

fhip owners

prevailed.

The ad; to ered;

a

light-houfe

at Cape

Henry

was alfo oppofed

by

Lord Baltimore. '^

This feffion is

further

noteworthy

for

an

order given

by the Houfe on February 2

2

that an

agreement

be

made

with William

Parks,

printer, for

the

publication

of a

complete

colledion

of

the

public

laws of the

Colony

then

in force.

The

committee

appointed

to

fupervife the work

confifted

of M '

John

Holloway,

then fpeaker

of the

Houfe, M '

John

Clayton,

attorney-general,

and

¥

Archibald Blair

(thefe

three

being members of the

'

See

p.

50.

•

See

p.

50.

 3

See

p.

J

6.

'*

See

p.

28.

's

The

law relied

on by

the Houfe

in fupport

of

its pofition

was the one

of

1680 entitled

 An adt for

raifing

a publique

revenue

for

the better

fupport

of the government

of this his

majefties

colony brought

over from

England

by Lord

Culpeper

already

framed for paffage,

and paffed

accordingly.

It was

one

of the

fundamental

laws of

the

Colony,

remaining

force

throughout

the colonial

period.

(See Hening,

II,

466-

469.)

»<>

See Statutes

at Large

(Great

Britain;

by

Jno.

Raithby),

IV,

640.

 

See

p.

45.

»«

See

Sainfbury

Abftrafts

of

Documents

in

the Public

Record Office,

London,

Vol.

IX,

p.

386

flf.

The

Sainfbury

Abftra<5ts

are

in

manufcript

in

the Virginia

State

Library.

 

[xix]

Houfe), M '

John

Randolph,

clerk of the Hotife

(fubfequently

Sir

John

Randolph,

fpeaker of

the Houfe),

and

M'' William Robert

fan,

clerk

of

the

Council

—the moft

com-

petent

men then

living in

Virginia to whom

to entruft it.

The

work

was

pufhed

through

to a

fuccefsf

ul

conclufion, the volume appearing

in

1

733

. The

following

is

its title

page

 A CoUedlion

of all

the A(5ls

of

Affembly

now in

Force

in

the

Colony

of

Virginia

with the titles

of fuch as

are expir'd or

repeal

'd And

Notes

in the

margin

fhowing

how

and

at what time

they were Repeal

'd. Examined

with

the

Records.

By a

Committee

appointed for that

Purpofe.

Who have

added

many

ufeful

Margi-

nal

Notes

and References.

And

an

Exadl

Table. Publifh'd,

purfuant

to

an

Order

of

the Genl.

Affembly

held

Williamfburg

in

the

year MDCCXXVII.

Williamf-

burg.

Printed

by

Wnt. Parks

MDCCXXXIII

This

was

the third printed

colle(5lion of

Virginia

laws, the firft

having

been

printed

in

London in

the

year

1662

or

1663

and containing the revifal

of

1661-1662,

and the

fecond

having been

printed

in London

between

the years

1684

and

1687.

Second Seffion.

The fecond

feffion

of

this Affembly

continued from

May

21

through

July

9,

1730.

The

memberfhip

of

the Houfe fhowed

an increafe

of

five over

what

it

had

been

the

pre-

ceding

feffion,

Caroline

and

Goochland

counties, eredled by the Affembly

at

their

former

meeting,

fending reprefentatives, and

a member fitting for William

& Mary

College,

which

now,

the affairs

of the inftitution

having

been

placed

by

the

truftees

in the

hands

of the prefident and

mafters,

had by charter the right to

reprefentation.

The

governor was

able in his opening addrefs

to

announce that,

peace

having

been

made between

Great Britain

and

Spain,

the time was propitious for

enacting

wife

laws

regulating

the trade

of

the Colony.

Since the trade in

tobacco, the

great

ftaple,

had

fallen

into

a

miferable condition, he fubmitted

for

its regulation in every

detail

a

plan

which had already been

approved

by the Board of

Trade

in England,

and which

needed

only fuch

improvement

as

the wifdom

and

experience

of the members

of the

General

Affembly might

fuggeft.

He laid

before

the Affembly

two

inftrudlions

:

one

concerning

 the honour of

Almighty

God

not yet by law fufficiently

fecured

and

the

other

concern-

ing bankrupts

in England having

eftates in Virginia.3°

He advifed

that

there

be re-

enadted fuch

of

the features

of

a law paffed in

1705

for limiting fuits

on judgments

and

obligations

as were not repugnant

to the

Englifh

ftatutes,

the law itfelf

having

been

lately

repealed by

proclamation ;3'

and that

laws

be paffed

adequate to the

punifhment

of thofe

guilty of

burning tobacco houfes

and of fimilar crimes.

The

recommendation was

made

that

John

Randolph,

who had

fucceeded in his miffion

to England,

be

adequately

rewarded for his fervices.

All the matters referred

to by the governor were

confidered by the

Houfe,

and adls

paffed in reference to them,

with the exception of the queftion

of

bankrupts in England

who had eftates in

Virginia

and

the eftablifhment

of

a

fchool

fyftem,

the latter

being

one the means, fet

forth in

the

inftrucftion referred

to in

the

governor's

fpeech,

for

fecuring  the

honour

of

Almighty

God. In reference to

thefe

it

was

ordered

that

their confideration be

poftponed

till

the

next feffion of

the

Affembly.3»

As

one means,

however, of advancing the objedl fought

in the

inftrudlion

the

law was paffed

bearing

the title

 An adt for enforcing

the

adt,

intituled.

An adt for the

effedlual

fuppreflion

of

vice;

and

reftraint

and

punifhment

of

blafphemous,

wicked, and

diffolute

perfons;

and

for

preventing inceftuous

marriages

and

copulations.

 33

The other laws paffed in

an

endeavor

to carry out the recommendations

of the

governor were the following:

i.  An adl

for

afcertaining the damage

upon protefted

«

See

p. 225.

3»

Sainfbury,

IX,

313,

324,

393

ff. The bifhop

of

London, whofe diocefe

included the American colo-

nies,

had interefted himfelf

in getting the Board

of

Trade to

fend

the

firft

inftrucftion; the Britifh merchants

were,

of

courfe, behind the fecond.

3'

Sainfbury,

IX,

426

ff.

33

See

p.

63.

33

Hening,

IV,

244-246.

 

[XX]

bills

of

exchange:

And

for

the

better

recovery

of

debts ue on

promifory notes:

And

for

the

affignment

of

bonds,

obligations,

and

notes,

to

take

the

place of

 An adt

declar-

ing

how

long

judgments,

bonds,

obligations,

and

accounts,

fhall be in force,

for the

affignment

of

bonds

and

obligations,

diredling

what

proof

fhall

be

fufficient

in

fuch

cafes;

and

afcertaining

the

damage

upon

protefted

bills of

exchange,

3s

which

were

repealed,

the

principal

difference

between

the

two

being

that

greater certainty in the profecu-

tion

of

thofe

guilty

of

drawing

fraudulent

bills

of

exchange

was

effedled

by the former,

and

no

limitations

of

time

in

which

fuits

might

be

brought

on

bills,

bonds,

etc., were

thus

leaving

operative

the

Englifh

ftatutes

on

the

fubjedl;

2.

 An

adl to prevent

the

malicious

burning

tobacco

houfes,

and

other

houfes and

places: For

taking away

clergy

from

certain

offenders

: And

for

punifhing

acceffories

to felonies,

and receivers of

ftolen

goods,

 3-

one

of

the

main

features

of

which

was the

taking away the

privilege of

plead-

ing

the

benefit

of

clergy

from

thofe

accufed,

thus

removing the means

ufed

by offenders

before

this

of

efcaping

the

extreme

penalties

inflidted

by the laws;

3.

 An adt for amend-

ing

the

ftaple of

tobacco;

and

for

preventing frauds

in his

Majefty's

cuftoms, ^'

the

moft

important

law by

far

paffed at

feffion,

being the redudlion

into

proper

form

(after

prolonged

ftudy

by

a

fpecial

committee

of

which the

attorney

-general,

probably

the

ableft

member

of

the

Houfe, was

chairman,

and by the Houfe

itfelf in

numerous

feffions

of

the

committee

of

the

whole) of

the fcheme propofed by the governor

for

regulating

the

trade

in tobacco,

as

the

cultivation

of tobacco

had

been

regulated by

the

a(5l

paffed

at

this

feffion

having

the title

 Anadt

for repealing the

adt

for

the better

and

more

effedlual

improving

the ftaple of tobacco: And for the better

execution

of

the

laws

now

in force

againft

tending

feconds

:

And

for

the further

prevention

thereof,

'

'3'

the

two

adls

together

providing for

every conceivable tranfadtion the great

ftaple

of the Colony.

The

recommendation

of

the governor that

M''

Randolph

be

paid

a

fum commenfur-

ate

with

his fervices

was

enthufiaftically adopted by the Houfe, which voted,

nemine

contradicente, that one thoufand pounds be

given him.

39

It

was

further ordered that

M''

Randolph's

report of his

tranfadlions

in

England fhould

be

printed.

A very important

queftion

demanding the attention of

the

Houfe at

this feffion

was

that of the

right

of

a

member to

hold

office

as

It came

up

for

confidera-

tion

owing

to the fadl that

fince

the clofe

of the preceding

feffion feveral members of

the

Houfe had

accepted

appointments and were then holding office.

A fpecial

committee

appointed to

fearch

the

Journals

for

precedents, reported two cafes

fhowing

that

in

the paft fervice in

the two

pofitions

had

not

been

permitted,i° and an adt was

paffed

without difficulty prohibiting

any

fheriff from

fitting as a member of

the

Houfe, and

exempting

members

from

appointment

as fheriffs. The adt alfo

provided

that the

acceptance

by

a

burgefs

of

a

pofition

of profit under the

government rendered

the

eledtion void.

The

burgefs

however, be reeledled

by

his conftituents. '

In

all this, of courfe,

Englifh precedent

was clofely followed.

A very

interefting

adt

paffed,

as

fhowing the

tendency of

the

General

Affembly

toward

a certain

meafure

of toleration,

is

the  Adt

to

exempt

certain German

Protef-

tants,

in the

county

of

Stafford,

from

the payment of parifh levies.

Only

the

title

of

this

adt

is

given

in

Hening.

The

Journals,

however, give the fubftance

of

the peti-

tion

of

the

Germans,

out

of which

grew the

law, which was to the effedl that

they

fhould

be relieved

of parifh

levies

fince they maintained

a

minifter

of

their

own nation. This

meafure

of

toleration

was

not

later

extended

to other diffenters

for

many years—in

fadl,

not till

the

Revolutionary

War.

34

Hening,

IV,

273-275.

35

Hening,

III,

377-381.

3S

Hening,

IV,

271-273.

271-273.

37

Hening,

IV,

247-271.

38

Hening,

IV,

241-244.

39

See

p. 63.

*°

See

p.

62.

4'

Hening,

IV,

292-293.

42

Hening,

IV,

306.

43

See

p. 63.

 

[xxi

]

The

judicial

power of the Houfe,

as well

as its

fenfitivenefs

to

criticifm,

is

fhown

by

the cafe of

John

Mercer and

Peter Hedgman,

the former

the author,

and the

latter

one of

the

figners, of a propofition certified

by the

court

of

Stafford

county

and

pre-

fented to

the

Affembly

in

reference to

an

adt paffed

at

the

preceding

feffion

of Affembly

for

encouraging

adventurers

in iron-works.

The paper was

declared

to be

a  fcandalous

and

feditious

libel, containing falfe

and

fcandalous

reflexions

upon the

Legiflature

and

the

juftice

of

the

General Court and

other courts

of this

Colony,

and it

was

refolved

that the two

gentlemen

named

were

guilty

of a mifdemeanor,

for which

they

fhould

anfwer at the bar

of the Houfe. In

courfe

of

time petitions

were

received

from

both

expreffive of their

forrow

at

having incurred the difpleafure

of the Houfe,

where-

upon

they

were

brought before

the bar

of

the

Houfe,

reprimanded

bv the fpeaker,

and

difcharged,

paying

fees.

The

paper, however, with others

on the fame

fubjedl,

had

its

effed;,

for the  Adl for

encouraging

adventurers

in iron

-works paffed

at the

pre-

ceding

feffion, was amended in

the features obje(5ted to,

efpecially

in that

the coft

of

making

roads to the iron-works from the fhipping

points and from

the

places

of

fupply

of

the ore

was taken from the

fhoulders

of

the

public.

45

The

following cafe,

alfo,

fhows

the

determination

of

the

Burgeffes

to look

after

their dignity.

A refolution

was adopted by

the

Houfe that

the wages

of

the

members

fhould

for

that feffion

be paid in money in the hands

of

the

treafurer, the

proceeds

of

the

tax

on

liquors imported. It

was

agreed

to by

the

Council,

only

one member,

Richard Fitzwilliam, diffenting,

whofe reafons

for

his adlion were fpread

on

Journal

of the Council. When

the

Houfe

heard of

this,

it was ordered that

a meffage

be

fent

the

Council

defiring

them

to

give the Houfe

a copy.

This

was

done.

A committee

was

appointed to confider the

matter. The committee made

a

full

report, *

giving in

order M''

Fitzwilliam'

5

reafons for his diffent and the anfwering

arguments

in each cafe,

and

at

the clofe

their

recommendations. Two ftatements made

by M '

Fitzwilliam

feemed to

the

committee

to

tranfcend the fphere

of

legitimate

criticifm,

namely,

that

fome

of

the

members of the Houfe of

Burgeffes,

knowing that the

refolution

to

be effedl-

ive

would

have to be

agreed to by

the Council, would

for

this reafon

be more

fubfervient

to

the wifhes of

the

Council in other matters than

independent legiflators

fhould

be, and

that it

was  moft unreafenable that

a

very' few

people trading to

the

Weft

Indies

fhould

be

burthened

with fo heavy

a

duty on their

liquors with

a

view

only to have

the

greateft

fhare of

it

diftributed among the Burgeffes.

The

committee

characterized

thefe

charges as

falfe, fcandalous,

and

malicious,

and gave it as their

opinion

that the

views

fet forth by

M''

Fitzwilliam

could have been entered

on

the

Journal of

the

Council

only

with the

purpofe

of

bringing the

Houfe

into

difgrace with

the king.

This

much

of the

report was adopted by

the Houfe.

But the reft of it,

recommending that

a reprefenta-

tion be

made

to

the

king

in

Council againft

Fitzwilliam,

failed

by

a vote

of

28

to

29.

Since

the

Journals

of

the

Houfe

of Burgeffes would

go

to

the Board

of

Trade

—

if

neceffary,

to the

king

in Council

—

juft

as the

Journals

of

the

Council

would

go,

the

full report

of

the

committee

of

the Houfe

in

the matter

would come under

the official

eye

of the

authorities

in

England to offset the views expreffed

by M '

Fitzwilliam.

Hence

all that

was really

neceffary in the

premifes

was accomplifhed.

In this cafe

the

good

relations exifting

between the Houfe

and the majority

of the

members of

the Council were

not difturbed.

It

was

only againft

M '

Fitzwilliam

that

the

anger of

the Houfe was aroufed.^

And the incident

had

this

good effedt, that

it

led to the

paffage

at

this feffion

of a law clearly fetting

forth

the

in which

it would be

allowable

in

the

future for

of

the

burgeffes'

falaries to

be made

in money from

the

central treafury. This law has the

title

 An

adl for the

better reg-

«

See

p.

66.

«

See

p.

66.

45

Hening, IV,

296-^^00.

4'

See

pp.

97-99.

47

Mr.

Fitzwilliam

was

furveyor-general

of

the cuftoms

of

Virginia,

Carolina, and

Jamaica, and

by

virtue

of his

office

a member of

the Council. The

other

members of the Council

oppofed

his having

a

feat in

that

body,

and the

queftion

was carried

up to the

king

in

Council,

by whom it was fettled in favor

of Mr. Fitz-

william. (See Sainfbury,

IX,

424, 436, 438,

458.)

The Burgeffes did not

fail

to complain to

the

home

authorities of Mr. Fitzwilliam's

condu<ft. (Sainfbury,

IX,

494,

513.)

 

[xxii]

ulation

and

payment

of

the

burgeffes'

wages,

 4*

and

it

contained

a

provifion

defigned

to

remedy

abfenteeifm

on

the

part of

members—

recently

become

much

too

common—

which

was,

that

pay

fhould

be

withheld

for

abfence

in

every

cafe unlefs

occafioned

by

ficknefs.

The

due

regard

fhown

by

the

Council

for

the

privileges of

the Houfe

is well illuf-

in

the

manner

in

which

an

important

claufe

in the

 Adl

for amending

the ftaple

of

tobacco

came

to

be

inferted.

When

the bill

the

Houfe, it

contained

no pro-

vifion

for

the

purchafe

of

fcales

and

weights

for the

warehoufes.

Inftead

of at

once

amending

the

bill by

putting

in a

claufe

directing that fuch weights

and

fcales

be

bought

and

fetting

forth

how

they

fhould

be

paid for, the Council

asked

for a

con-

ference

with

the

Houfe,

in

order

to

find

out

whether the latter body

concurred

in

the

opinion

of

the

Council

that they

fhould be

paid

for

from

the public money

in

the

hands

of

the

treafurer,

and

whether

it

was alfo

the

opinion of

the

Houfe that

the expenfe

of

carrying

the

acJt

into

execution,

if

greater

than

the

revenue

appropriated, fhould

be

met

in

the

fame

way.

The

objedl of

the

Coimcil in

proceeding

in this manner

was

 to

keep up

a

good

correfpondence

with

the

Houfe

 and

to

avoid difputes

concerning

the

privileges

of

the

Houfe.

The

committee appointed to condudt

the

conference

on

the

part

of

the

Houfe

ha^'ing

reported,

the

Houfe

agreed to

allow

the

Council

to

add

to

the

bill

a

claufe or

claufes

for the purpofes

fet forth.

49

A

very

valuable

part

of

the

Journal

for

this feffion

is that made

up of the petition

of

the

Houfe to

the king

on

the

fubjedl of

the

grants made by Charles

the

Firft

and

James

the

Second

of

the territory in

Virginia

known as the Northern

Neck.

In

this

paper

is fet

forth at

length

the hiftory of

the feveral grants,

the provifions of each, and

caufes

of

the

diffatisfadlion of

the

inhabitants

of

that fedlion

of

Virginia

with refulting

conditions.

Rendered

now by

publication

generally available, it will be

an

important

fource of

information

on the

whole

fubje(5t.5o

xhe petition was the refult

of

reprefenta-

tions

made to

the

Houfe by dwellers in

the Northern Neck

of the

hardfhips

experienced

by

them in

confequence

of the grant

whofe

provifions were then

operative.

Efpeciall)'

alarming to

the

inhabitants was the fadl that Lord

Fairfax,

the proprietor at that time,

had

come

into

poffeffion under

a

fettlement difabling him,

according to

his

conten-

tions,

from

granting any

of the lands in fee fimple,

and

that

he

had

called into

queftion

the

validity

of

the

adls both of his

own agents and

of

agents

of former

proprietors

granting

fee

fimple

titles.

Third

Seffion

The third feffion of the Affembly

began

May

18 and ended

July

i,

1732.

Since

Prince

William

county had

been

eftablifhed

at the fecond feffion

of

the Affembly, and

Bnmfwick

(formed by

law

paffed

in

1720)

was

now

for

the firft

time

reprefented, the

memberfhip of

the

Houfe

was

67.

The

principal

bufinefs

of the

feffion was the

paffage of amendments

and additions

to

the

great

tobacco law which had been

enadled

at

the

preceding feffion

of

the

Affembly.

The paramount importance of this law among

the

laws of

the

Colony may

eafily

be inferred from what

was

faid

by

Governor

Gooch

in

his fpeech at

the

opening

of

the

feffion, who

gave

fome

account of the

oppofition met

with

by the

a(5l in

England

and

of

the

oppofition

it

was

then meeting

from certain

claffes

in Virginia.

It was

the

fpecial

work

of

the

Affembly

at

this feffion

to

fo amend

the

law as

to render

it

effective

in its

infpe(5lion

features

and at

the fame time

remove

the

imdoubted

hardfhips

impofed

in

many cafes.

A

great

deal was

accomplifhed

at

this

feffion,

but

enough

of

the

problem

was

left

unfolved

to

require much

of

the time of the

General

Affemblies

meeting

up

to the

Revolutionary

War, and even of

thofe

of

later date.

But it

was

not to

the

imaided

efforts

of the

legiflative body of

Virginia that the

.

members

of the

Houfe

looked

for

entire

amelioration

of the condition of the tobacco

trade.

It

was

recognized

that

help

had

to be

fought from

the

Englifh

government

itfelf

Hence

the

m

otion

was

made

in

the

Houfe

 That

the

Houfe

would take

fome meafures,

48

Hening,

IV,

278-280.

49

See

p.

100.

so

See

pp.

92-96.

 

[xxiii]

to

reprefent to

the Parliament

of

Great Britain, the

miferable ftate

of

the tobacco trade

and to

induce

them

to

eftablifh

fome

better methods

of fecuring and

coUedling

the

duties

upon

tobacco,

for preventing the notorious

frauds

which have long

fubfifted,

and

occafion the

intolerable hardfhips that trade at prefent

labours imder. It

was

refolved

 That

a petition be made, to the honourable the knights,

citizens, and

burgeffes,

of

the

Parliament of Great

Britain, to put tobacco under

an

excife. s'

This

refulted,

after

the

whole lituation

had

been thoroughly difcuffed both in

the

Houfe

and in the

Coxincil,

in the preparation,

not only of

a

petition to Parliament,

but alfo

of an

addrefs

to

the king

and a

letter

to the lords

of

the treafury, and

the

appointment

of M''

Randolph, who had

fo fuccefsfully

carried

through

the

former miffion,

as agent for the

Gondu(5l of

the prefent bufmefs,

to

whom was

to be

paid the large

fum

of

two thoufand

two

himdred pounds.

s»

In his opening fpeech the

governor

made the

important announcement that the

king,

on

the

petition of the

Britifh

merchants, had

repealed

the

adt

paffed at

the

laft feffion

for

continuing

the

duty on liquors and

had fent

an

inftrudlion prohibiting

the laying

of

any

duty on flaves, to be paid by the

importer.

However,

the governor

turned

over

to

the Houfe

a

letter he

had received from one of the

fecretaries

of the Board of Trade,

which contained hints

as to how bills

might

be

drawn

on

thefe two

important fubjedts

that

would be

allowed

by the king

to become laws, and one of the

adts

paffed

at

this

feffion was

 An A6t for laying

a

duty on liquors and another was  An adt for laying a

duty

on flaves, to be paid by the

buyers,   both of which

went into operation.   The

differ-

ence

between

the

adl paffed in

1730

for laying

a

duty on liquors, which had been

difal-

lowed by the

king, and the one paffed at this

feffion

was that

whereas

the

former adl

contained a

provifo that

liquors

imported in veffels

belonging to

Virginia

owners

fhould

pay only

half the ufual duties,

this was omitted

from

the adl paffed at the prefent feffion.

The complaint

of

the

Britifh

merchants

of

the adl of

1730

was

folely

diredled againft

this

claufe.s* The

difference between the two adls for laying duty on

flaves was merely

that

the

adl paffed

in

1727

called

for

the payment

of

the

duty by

the importer,

whereas

the

adl paffed at

prefent feffion

laid

the

burden on buyer

—a

burden would

have been

fhifted

to

his fhoulders,

of

courfe,

if the adl of

1

7

2

7

had

been allowed to fland,

ss

The relations between the two chambers

of the General Aifembly

at this feffion

and

between the Houfe

and

the governor

remained as amicable

as

they

had been at the

former

feffion,

though differences

of opinion

arofe, efpecially

as to the proper fund

(whether the fvmd arifing from

the permanent tax

of

two fhillings

per hogfhead

on

tobacco

exported,

of one

fhilling

and three

pence

per ton

on

veffels

coming

to

Virginia

from abroad,

and

fix

pence per poll

on perfons

brought into

the Colony,

or that arifing

from the rather

precarious

taxes

on liquors and flaves) from which

fhould

be

paid

various

expenfes. The former

fund was, according to the preamble

of

the

adl

providing

for

it,

 for the maintenance

of

the

governor and feveral other officers

and perfons as alfoe

for

the fort and fortifications,

befides many other contingent expences, 56

was kept by

the

receiver

general

and under

the

control of the governor and Council ; the latter

fund

was

kept by the treafurer, its

objedl

was the payment of fuch expenfes as would otherwife

have to be

paid

from a fimd made

up of

colledlions from

poll

taxes,

and

was

under

the

control of

the entire Affembly,

the

Houfe

more particularly,

fince

in the

Houfe originated

money bills. The differences

of opinion arifing at this feffion

between

the two houfes

and between

the Houfe

of

Burgeffes

and the

governor

as

to

the application of the two

funds

were fimilar to thofe

arifing ever fince

their

origin,

the

firft

in 1 680 and

the f

econd

in

1684,

and

continuing

to

the

Revolutionary War. The objedl

of

the Houfe was

always

to throw as many expenditures

as poffible

on

the former

fund and of

the

Coimcil and the

governor

to throw them

on the latter. The fpecific queftion

caufing

the difference

at

5'

See

p.

152.

5

See

pp.

152,

159,

160, 161,

167.

53

Hening,

IV, 310-322.

M

Sainfbury,

I, 116.

55

Hening,

IV,

182,

317-322.

 *

Hening,

II,

466.

 

[xxiv]

this

feffion

between

the

Houfe

and

the

governor

was

whether the payment

of

certain

guards

employed

to

protedl

feveral

of

the

tobacco

warehoufes from being deftroyed—

fuch

was

the

feeling

in

fome

parts

of

the

Colony

in

oppofition

to

the law—

fhould

be paid

out

of

money

in

the

hands

of

the

receiver

general

or

from

money in

the hands

of

the

treafurer.

The

Houfe

maintained

that

the

expenfe

was one of

the contingent

expenfes

of

government,

and

the

governor

that it

was

one

incident

to

the execution

of the

tobacco

law

and

therefore

payable,

according

to

a

provifion

in

the law itfelf,

out of

the

money

in

the

hands

of

the

treafurer.

sr

The

queftion

caufmg

the difference of opinion

between

the

Houfe

and

the

Council

was

whether

the

fees

of

the

attorney general

and of the

clerk

of

the

General

Court

arifmg

from

the

profecution

of

criminals fhould

be paid from

the

revenue

arifmg

from

the

tax on

liquors.

In

each

cafe the Houfe

carried its

point,

efpecially

fmce

it

was

pointed

out

that

the

revenue

in

the hands

of the treafurer

was

exhaufted,

and

that

great

fums

had

been

voted

to

be paid from the

amoimt hoped

to

be

raifed

by

the

two

revenue

adls

paffed

at

this

feffion.

s*

Fourth

Seffion.

The

fourth

and

laft

feffion

of

this

Affembly began

Auguft

22 and ended Oct.

4,

1734.

It

was

the

longeft

feffion

of a

General

Affembly

held up to

that

time

fmce

the

Affembly

was

inftituted,

and

the work

done

was of

very

great importance. The firft

entry

in

the

Journal

is to

the effedl

that

Sir

John

Randolph had refigned

his

pofition of clerk

of the

Houfe of

Burgeffes and

that

Benjamin

Needier, by

virtue

of a commiffion from the

lieu-

tenant

governor,

had

fucceeded

him.

Though

Randolph

had not

fucceeded

in

his

miffion

to

England,

the

oppofition

to an

excife

law on

the part

of the

Englifh

people

being

at

that

time too

great to

be

overcome, he

had

conducted himfelf in fuch

a way as to win

the

approval

of

the Englifh

minifters,

by

whom he

was recommended

to

the

king

for

knighthood.

S9

Returning to

Virginia,

he faw before the

opening

of

this feffion

a good

opportunity

for

further

advancement in

the public

fervice,

for M''

John

Holloway, the

fpeaker of

the

Houfe, was about to

retire, and there

were various

vacancies in

the

mem-

berfhip of

the

Houfe, occafioned

either

by

death or the acceptance of offices

of profit

under

the

government, to

any

one of which he

—fuch was his preftige—might

probably

be

ele<5led.

Hence his

refignation

from

the pofition of clerk of

the Houfe.

On the

day on

which

the

feffion

began,

among

the new

writs

which it was

ordered that the governor

be

asked

to

iffue

for filling vacancies,

was

one

for William &

Mary

College,

a corporation

clofe at hand and

compofed

of only fix

or eight

voting members. The governor

iffued

his

writ

at

once,

the eledtion

took

place at once, and Sir

John

Randolph

the next day quali-

fied

as member of

the Houfe,

and on the day following, M''

Holloway

having handed

in

his

refignation,

was

eledled to

the fpeakerfhip,

and later

on in the feffion to the treafurer-

fhip.

The fpeech made

by Sir

John

Randolph

in

accepting the

office

of

fpeaker

is

an

admirable

one

of

its kind,

fhowing him

to have been a

man

of

unufual

ability,

fully

worthy of the efteem in

which he was

held by

his contemporaries

and

of

the

fuccefs

which

crowned his

efforts.

The reafon

given

by M'^

Holloway

for his refignation was the condition

of his health,

but

it was foon

found

—and

muft

have

been fufpedled before the opening

of

the feffion

that his accounts

as treafurer

were

not in

a fatisfactory condition.

Full

examination

proved there was

a

fhortage

of one thoufand

eight hundred

and

fifty

pounds, which his

bondfmen

were

required

in time

to make

good.*

M''

Holloway

having affigned them for

their indemnity

various

mortgages,

judgments,

and other

fecurities,

and

confeffed

a

judgment

to them in

the

General

Court for

the

fum

of five

thoufand

pounds,

and,

in

addition,

affigned

to truftees

all his

eftate

for the

fatisfadlion of his debts to his

bonds-

5'

See

pp.

157,

158,

162.

s*

pp.

161,

162,

163, 167.

59

It fhould

be remembered

that

Sir Robert

Walpole

was heartily

in

favor

of

the paffage

of

an excife

law, and

that he

introduced

fuch

a

meafure,

withdrawing

it,

however,

when

he

realized the full e.xtent of

the

oppofition

to

it. No

doubt

Randolph

had

been

of great afiiftance

to him.

<

See

p.

a

20.

 

[xxv]

men and all

other debts, a

provifion was,

on

the petition of

thefe bondfmen, inferted in

the

 A6t for

appointing

a

treafurer, and for other purpofes therein

mentioned '

that

the

new

treafurer be allowed to

receive

thefe

fecurities

and

recover

on

them

at

once fo

much as

fhould

be needed

to

make

up

the amount of the fhortage, the bondfmen not

being

proceeded againft. The

money needed

immediately

to difcharge

fums owed by

the

government and

payable

from the duties

on

liquors and flaves the treafurer was to

borrow.

M''

Hollcnvay,

ha\'ing given up

his whole fortune,

was not profecuted criminally.

It is

doubtful, indeed, if there

was

a

law under which

he might have

been

proceeded

againft.

But,

in fa(5l,

the feeling

feems

to have been

that unfortunate rather

than

criminal and

that

fmce

he had for many years

ferved the people

faithfully

and well, he

fhould

now

in

his

old

age,

in the

time

of

reverfes brought

about by

unwife

loans,

and

in

the

time

of

his phylical

and

mental

deterioration, be an

objed;

of

commiferation

rather

than of

condemnation

and

contempt. This

feeling is

well

expreffed in

a commimication

of the

Council

to the Houfe«^ asking that

there be

inferted in the

'

'A61 for

appointing

a

treafurer,

and

for

other purpofes therein

mentioned, then under

confideration,

a

claufe

granting M

Holloway

fifty pounds a

year

for his

fervices the two

preceding

years

in

fettling the

accounts

of

the infpedlors of tobacco,

afervicefor

which he

had not been

paid,

although

in

the

a<5l then under

confideration

it was

provided

that the new treafurer

for

fimilar fen,'ices in

the future

fhould

receive

fifty pounds a

year. A motion

to

this

effect

had already been

defeated in the

Houfe, but now the

recommendation

of

the

Coimcil

was readily agreed to.

The governor explained in his

opening fpeech that

it

was

on

accovmt

of

the approach-

ing expiration

of

the tobacco law

—it was

paffed in

173010

be in force from

the firft

of

Augiift,

1730,

till the loth of

November,

1734

—

that

the Affembly

had

been

called

to-

gether. He

recommended

that

it be continued

with

fuch

alterations as experience

had

pointed out to be

neceffary, efpecially in regard to

the

number

of

the warehoufes,

their

location,

the rents to be

paid

for

them,

and

the

falaries

of the

infpecftors. He

alfo

asked

that the law to be

paffed be ena(5led

for

a

longer

period

than had

been

the

cafe

with

the

former laws. The

General

Affembly

went

to

work

with

a

will,

adopting the

governor's

fuggeftions

in

the main,

and

including

in the revifion

of the law

many

of their own ideas

in

addition, but refufed to

permit the law

to run

for

a

longer

term than

four years.

'3

The difficulties

of

the fituation

are

feen on

almoft every

page of the

Journal.

Efpecially

are

they fet

forth in the addrefs of the

Houfe

in reply to the governor's opening

fpeech.

The

queftion

of

the expenfe

of

carrying the law into execution was

a

ferious one, for

not

only

had

buildings to

be

put up,

infpe(5lors

paid,

etc.,

but

when

a

warehoufe was burned,

the

owners

of

the

tobacco deftroyed with

it had to be recompenfed. The fees

charged

for

making infpedlion

did

not

for

fome years equal the fum of thefe expenfes.

The only other

recommendation made

by

the governor was that

amendments

be

enadled to

the militia

law.

The Houfe

went

to

work with

a

will

on this

recommenda-

tion alfo,

and,

having in courfe

of

time

completed

a

bill

on

the fubje(5l,

entitled

 An

adl for the more equal lifting

of

perfons to

fer\'e in the militia,

and

for enforcing the

laws to

better regulate the militia, fent it up to the Council,

by whom it was fo amended

as to render

it

unacceptable in the

chamber

of

its

origin. Efforts to bring the two

houfes together proving unavailing, the bill was loft. There was reenacfted,

however,

the

law paffed

in

1727

for making provifion againft invafions

and

infurredlions,

which

was

to be in force for three years.

«

Though the

feffion

was

one of hard work

on

various

meafures,

and

efpecially

on

the tobacco

law,

a

meafure

affedling in

a

peculiar manner the interefts

of

every member

prefent, and

differences of opinion were frequent,

kindnefs

and

courtefy characterifed

the feelings

exifting

between the Houfe and

the Council except

on

one

occafion,

and then

the breach

was only

of

very

fhort duration.

On

the

very day before the

clofe

of the

feffion

managers were fent

by

the Houfe to requeft

that there be

a conference on the

«

Hening, IV,

433-436.

'»

See

p.

229.

'3

Hening,

IV,

•<

Hening,

IV,

395.

 

[xxvi]

rubjea

of

amendments

which

had

been

made

by

the

Council

to

a

bill

paffed by the

Houfe

and

from

which

the

Council

had

refufed

to

recede

though

the bill had been fent

back

to

that

body

with

the

requeft

that

it do

fo.

The

managers

reported

that they

had

met

two

members

of

the

Council

in

the

conference

chamber,

who faid

that it

was con-

trary

to

the

rules

of

the

General

Affembly

for a

chamber

to agree to a conference

after

it

had

adhered

to

amendments,

and

that

therefore

the Council could

not agree

to the

requeft

of

the

Houfe.

Taking

exception

to

the

manner, probably, in which this

deter-

mination

was

expreffed,

rather

than

to

the

matter of

it, the

Houfe

paffed refolutions

of

condemnation.

Thefe,

however,

have

not

come

down

to us; for

they

were expunged

from

the

Journal

the

very

next

day

and

were

not printed. This

happy

refult

was

about

by an

explanation

made

by

the

Coimcil to the fpeaker

of the Houfe, to

the

effedl

that

there

had

been

a

mifunderftanding,

the Council

not

intending abfolutely

to

refufe

a

conference,

but

merely

to

fay

that a

conference

would be unneceffary

fmce

they

had

adhered

to

their

amendments.

The

cotmcil

faid further

that they

were

ready

to go

into a

conference

if

the

Houfe

defired

it.

The

Houfe

expreffed itfelf as fatisfied

and

ordered

the

erafure

of

the

refolution

paffed

the day

before. The

good

feeling

fhown

on

all

fides

at

this

meeting

of

the

Affembly

was

fo marked that the

fpeaker, who made

an

addrefs

to

the

governor on

the clofing

day of

the feffion in lieu

of the addrefs of the

Houfe

which on

former

occafions

had

been

prepared by

a committee, felt called

on

to

comment

upon

it,

diplomatically

explaining

it by the good example fet

by

the governor

himfelf,

who

by

his

civility

in the

condudl of

affairs had

fucceeded

in

banifhing

fadlions

from

the Colony.

Befides

being a

feffion of

hard

work

well done, the feffion is further

noted as

being

one

in

which the

Affembly

went on

record in a

manner more

pronounced even

than

in

the

paft as

friendly

to learning

in

the Colony in

the paffage

of

 An

a(5l for the better f

up-

port and

encouragement of

the College

of

William

and

Mary, in Virginia, ''^

after hearing

the

prefident

and mafters of

the

college at

the bar of the Houfe in committee of the

whole** on

the

financial condition of

the inftitution. This adl

provided

regulations

the objedl of

which

was

to fecure

with certainty the penny a pound on tobacco exported

to the other

Englifh

plantations

in

America, which had

been

impofed

by

the charter

of

the college, and the duties laid on skins

and furs

by

a

law

of

Virginia

of the

fourth

of Queen Anne,

and gave

to the college the whole of

the

duty of one

penny per gallon

laid on liquors imported, inftead

of

only two hundred pounds per

annum

out

of this

duty,

and

exempted

all

connected with

the corporation

fi-om

taxation.

6s

Hening,

IV,

429-433.

**

See

p.

215.

 

Affembly

of

17

36-

1740.

Firft Seffion

THE

Affembly of

1727-34

had

at their laft feffion been prorogued merely,

not

diffolved,

but

in the meanwhile

Governor

Gooch

had concluded that it

would

be

well

to

call

a

new

Affembly,

the

feven

years

allowed

by

the

Septen-

nial

A(5l as the life of an

Englifh

Parliament being nearly fpent, and it being

Governor

Gooch's

defire,

even

if he

had

no

inftrudlions on this head, to follow

Englifh

precedent. The

new Affembly

remained in exiffence,

counting

its life from

the time

of

the

eledlion of its members

to the time of eleAion of

members

of

the fucceeding

Affembly, for

about

feven

years.

It had been

eledled, and

called

together

to

meet

firft

on Auguft

i,

1735,

but had been

prorogued before

meeting,

and had

not actually

come

together till Align

ft

5,

1736.

Following the

cuftom,

however,

adhered

to

in

fet of

volumes it is more

convenient

to fpeak of

this

Affembly as the

Affembly

of Auguft

5,

1736

Auguft 28,

1740,

or merely the

Affembly

of

1736-40,

from the date of the

opening of

its firft feffion and

the clofe

of

its

laft.

The firft feffion began on

Auguft

5,

and

ended

on September

22,

1736.

The

mem-

berfhip

of

the

Houfe conlifted at

this feffion

of

71,

the Counties of

Orange

and

Amelia

having

come

into

exiftence

fmce

the clofe of

the laft feffion

of

the preceding

Affembly,

of

whom were

prefent

on

the

firft

day.

Sir

John

Randolph

was

eledted fpeaker,

though with

fome

oppofition.

His fpeech

of acceptance

and

the fpeeches made

by him

throughout

the feffion were

of

the fame high order of

excellence

as his

fpeeches

made

at

the preceding

feffion, quite furpaffing

thofe

of

the

governor, the only

other fpeeches

reported in

full,

and

fhowing

a

thorough

underftanding

of

the theory

of

reprefentative

government

and

of its

practice in

Virginia.

Governor

Gooch

had the great

fatisfadlion at

the

opening

of

the firft feffion

of

this

Affembly of

announcing

that the

king

had been

pleafed to give his affent to the two

of the

adls

paffed at the laft feffion of

the

preceding

Affembly

concerning which the

people were

moft folicitous, namely,

the

 Adl

for

the better

fupport

and

encourage-

ment of the College of

William and

Mary, in Virginia

and

 An

a(5t for amending the

a(ft,

intituled, An adl

for

fettling the titles and

bounds of lands. The latter

of

thefe

adls

being

one of

prime importance, the people

were fpecially defirous of feeing it not

only

incorporated as

a

part of their legal

fyftem

but

incorporated in fuch

a

way that it

could not

be readily changed,

and

this

latter

objedl was effe(5led by having the

king's

exprefs confirmation

of

the law, it being

neceffary for the enadlments of the General

Affembly

of

Virginia repealing or amending

fuch

laws as had received the

fandlion

of

the king

to

have attached to

them the

provifo that they

fhould

not go into

effedl till

approved

by

the

king. This

requirement,

making

for the greater

ftability

of

the

laws,

and,

perhaps, ufeful in the

earlier hiftory

of

the Colony,

later

on to be

confidered

a

hardfhip. One of the

moft interefting legiflative

documents drawn

in the hiftory

of

Colonial

Virginia

is

the petition

of

the General

Affembly

of

Virginia

to

the king in

1752

on

the fubjedl of

the repeal

by

the king of ten adls included in

the

great

revifal

of

the

laws

of

1748-4Q

and of

his affent to

the

others.*'

The only

two matters called to the

attention

of

the General

Affembly

for

legifla-

tive

adlion

were

the condition of the

militia

and

the pradlice of

importing liquors

by

land from

Maryland and North

Carolina,

on

which,

as the law

then flood,

no duty

could be

colledled.

A

comprehenfive

bill was

promptly introduced in the Houfe

for

the

better regulation

of

the

militia

and

paffed, but, as

in the preceding feffion

of

the

Affembly,

the

Houfe

and

the Council could

not

agree,

and

the

bill failed.

The queftion

on

which

no

compromife could be

arrived

at

between

the

two houfes was as to the

<*7

Hening. V,

432-443.

 

[xxviiij

number

of

times

a

year

the

militia

fhould

be

called

upon

to

drill, the Houfe

ftanding

out

for

four

times

and

the

Council

for

twelve.

The

views

on the main

features

of

the

bill

are

very

ably

fet

forth

in

the

Journal

for

September

i6.''8 This bill

having

fallen

through,

one

of

its

provifions

'being

that

tax of

fix

pence

per poll

fhould

be levied on

all

negroes

for

two

years

for

the

purpofe

of

fecuring

funds

with which to purchafe

arms

for

the

poorer

people

of

the

country

unable

to

buy

arms

for themfelves,

a paragraph

was

inferted

in an

addrefs

to

the

king

on

his

aufpicious

reign and

on the late

marriage

of

the

Prince

of

Wales,

asking

that

his

majefty

fumifh a

fupply

of arms for

the poorer

fort

of

the

militia,

in

order

that

they

might

not

continue

 ufelefs

and ineffedlive. '*

The

fituation

in

refpeft

to

the

importation

of

liquor was

dealt with

by

the paffage

of the

law

entitled

 An

a(5t

for

laying

a

duty

upon

liquors

imported by

land; and better

fecuring

the duty

upon

flaves;

and

for

other

purpofes

therein mentioned. '

If

there

were

any

friends

of

the

great

tobacco law

who fuppofed that

by the amend-

ments

paffed in

1734

it had

been

rendered

agreeable

to

all, they

at

this

feffion had

a

rude

awakening;

for

on

Auguft

12

it was

ordered by

the Houfe

by a decifive majority

that a

bill

fhould be

brought

in

to

repeal

the

adl. In

a very

fhort time the bill

was

brought

in

accordingly

and

paffed by

the

Houfe. Fortunately,

however, it

was

rejedted by

the

Council.

Then

the

Houfe

paffed

a

bill

which, with amendments,

was

concurred

in

by

the

Council,

its title

being

 An

ad; further

amending the

adt,

for

amend-

ing

the

ftaple of

tobacco; and

for

preventing frauds in his majefty 's cuftoms,

and

its

two

moft

important

provifions

being

the repeal of the

prohibition

contained in

the

adt itfelf put

upon

felling

tobacco

before

it

had

been infpedled

at

one

of the warehoufes

and the

rendering

infpedtors

ineligible to fit as

burgeffes.

At this

opening

feffion the

committee of

privileges

and eledlions was an important

one,

having

under

confideration

firft

and laft nearly

a

full

dozen contefted

eledlion cafes,

feveral

of

which brought to

light

a

peculiar fpecies of bribery, namely, the

transfer

to

a

citizen juft before the eleftion of a

fufficient

amount of land to

entitle him to vote,

on

the underftanding that

he would

vote in

a

given manner. This abufe

led

to the paffage

of

the  Adt to declare

who

fhall

have

a

right to vote in the eledtion

of

burgeffes

to

ferve

in

the

General

Affembly,

for

counties;

and

for preventing

fraudulent

conveiances in

order

to

multiply

votes at fuch eledlions, whereby

only the owner

of one

hundred

acres of unimproved

land or twenty-five acres of land having

a

houfe

on

it

and

cultivated,

the

fame having

been owned for at leaft one year

before

the

eledlion

(when

not coming

by

defcent,

marriage,

marriage fettlement

or bequeft),

or the fole

owner of

a

houfe

and

lot

in

a town

or

city,

could

vote in

an

eledlion

for the Houfe;

and

when required,

the voter

was obliged

to

take an oath

that he was legally qualified. The proceedings

had

in thefe

various cafes fhow

that the

Houfe took cognizance to

the very fulleft extent

of

the qualifications

and eledtion

of its members,

not only deciding

whether

a

member

was

legally eledted

or whether

a

member's

charadler

was

fuch

as to unfit him for fervice,

but alfo

going to the

extent

of

punifhing thofe

who

interfered

in

an

eledtion

or

failed

in the

performance

of duty

in

reference

to

one. For inftance, the fheriff

of

Hanover

reported

to

the

Houfe

that it

had

been

impoffible to hold

an

eledlion

in his

county

becaufe

of the

riotous

condudl

of

the

crowd

gathered

at

the

polls.

three men named

by him

as being

mainly

refponfible

for

diforder

were fent for

in

cuftody

of the fergeant

at arms

to anfwer

for

their

mifdemeanor.'4

The

fergeant

at arms

found one of

thefe

men

confined

in

the Hanover

jail,

but the

other

two were

brought before

the

bar

of

the

Houfe.

Humbly

acknowledging

their

errors

and promifing

future

good

behavior,

the)'

were

releafed

from

cuftody,

on the

payment

by one of

them

of

fees, which

were not re-

quired

of the

other,

fince

feveral

of the

members

of the Houfe

teftified

to

the man's

«»

See

pp.

301-303.

'9

See

p.

314.

70

Hening,

IV,

469-474.

'

See

p.

260.

T

Hening,

IV,

478-482.

'3

Hening,

IV,

474-478.

'•»

See

p.

278.

 

[xxix]

ufual fobriety

and good condudl. Another example

was that

of

Thomas

Roy,

an

infpedlor of

tobacco at a

warehoufe in

Caroline

county, who was charged with having

threatened

certain voters that he would

not

pafs

tobacco

unlefs they

voted for the

candidate

for the Houfe

whom

he

favored.'s

M

Roy

was fent

for to anfwer his  mifde-

meanor and

breach of the

privileges

of the Houfe.

He

petitioned

the Houfe'* praying

to

be

heard, with

witneffes,

and

his

prayer was granted,

the cafe being

referred

to the

committee of

privileges

and

elecflions

for confideration,

which,

after hearing

Roy

and

others,

recommended in

their

report to

the

Houfe that Roy

be difcharged

out of cuftody,

paying

fees, and

the Houfe

fo ordered. An

example

of

the

punifhment

of an officer

for

irregularity

in

an

eledlion is

to

be feen

in

the

cafe

of M''

Francis

Heyward,

who,

when

fheriff

of

the

county of

York, had been guilty

of

leafing out

fmall

parcels

of land

a

fhort

while

before

the election,

for

the purpofe

of

qualifying perfons

to vote. It

was refolved

that he in

fo doing had  adled corruptly, againft

law,

and the duty of his office,

and it

was

ordered

that he be brought to the bar

of

the Houfe, reprimanded

by the chair,

and

that

he then be

difcharged, paying

fees.

M

Heyward's

cafe was the

one

particularly

which led to

the paffage

of

the law regulating the eledtion

of

burgeffes.

The

petition made

by

the General Affembly

of

1

730

to the king

that he

find means to

quit the

claims

of

the

proprietor

of

the Northern Neck fo

that the inhabitants

of that

part

of

Virginia might

hold

their property in

land

in juft

the

fame

manner

as the

inhabitants of other

fedlions

of

Virginia, that

is, immediately

of the king, had

failed

to

eff

edt its objedt. Lord Fairfax would

not

recede from

the claim

fet

up

by him in

reference

to

titles to land conveyed by

his agents or

agents of

former proprietors

to fettlers. Hence

at

this

feffion

the

Affembly

took

the

fettlement

of

the queftion

into its

own hands,

as it

had a

right to do fince

in the

original letters patent it

had

been ftipulated that

the

patentees,

their heirs

and

affigns, and

other

inhabitants

of

the fedlion

fhould

be  in

all

things

fubjedl and obedient to fuch laws

and

conftitutions, as

were

or fhould

be made

by

the

faid governor. Council, and

Affembly,

for or

concerning

the

faid

Colony or the

gov-

ernment thereof.

 '8

A law was

accordingly paffed providing that

the

lands

conveyed

up

to that time

fhould

be

held

in the manner ftipulated

by

the

agents,

and

this law

was

allowed by the

king.'*

Second Seffion.

The fecond feffion lafted from

November

i

to Dec.

21,

1738.

The firft

bufinefs

tranfadled by the Houfe was the admiffion

as

a

member

of

the

newly

ele(fted

burgefs

from

the borough

of

Norfolk,

among the

privileges granted this corporation

by its

charter,

and

exprefsly confirmed to

it

by

adl

of the General Affembly

paffed

at the pre-

ceding

feffion,*

being the

power

to

eledl

one burgefs to

the General

Affembly.

Since this

was

the

only

additional burgefs

provided for

by the General Affembly

at

their preceding

feffion,

the

memberfhip

of the Houfe at this feffion was

72.

The

member

from

Norfolk,

as well as

fuch

other

members

as

whUe

the feffion

was in

progrefs

were eledled to fill vacancies in

the

Houfe,

was compelled

to take the

cuftomary

 oath

of

a

burgefs,

in

addition

to

the oaths

required

by

law.*'

This

was

the

laft

feffion

of

the

Houfe,

however, at

which

the oath of

a

burgefs was adminiftered.

This was

a

fpecial oath

which

was

ufed

for

the

firft time probably in 1

65

2

,

at

an

Affembly

meeting

foon after

the

Colony had

made its fubmiffion

to

Parliament, and

which

had (its form,

however,

having

been

fomewhat

changed in

1666)

been in ufe ever

fince.*' Toward the

clofe of

the

prefent

feffion

the

Houfe,

fome

queftion having arifen

as

to

the obligations

IS

See

p.

274.

7'

See

p.

303.

 

See

pp.

276,

282,

283.

pp.

276, 283.

7*

Hening,

IV,

519.

^o

Hening,

IV,

514-523.

* >

Hening,

IV,

541-542.

*'

Thefe were  the

oaths appointed to be taken

by a.&,

of Parliament inftead

of the oaths

of allegiance

and fupremacy, the oath of

abiuration, and the

teft.

*'

See

p.

382.

 

[xxx]

impofed

by

the

oath,

by

refolution

difcontinued

it,

being

of

opinion

evidently

that the

oaths

required

by

law

were

fufficient,

added

to a

ftridt

enforcement

of

theVules

of

the

Houfe

to

hold

members

to

the

performance

of

their

duties.

Sir

John

Randolph

having

died

the

preceding

year,

it

became neceffary

for

the

Houfe

to

eled

a

fucceffor

as

fpeaker,

and

M- John

Rohinfcn

was

elevated to

the pofition

and,

later,

by

a(5t

of

the

whole

General

Affembly.

appointed

treafurer.83 Happily, when

the

accounts

of

John

Randolph

as

treafurer

and

thofe of

his

brother,

Richard

Randolph,

treafurer

by

the

appointment

of

the

governor

till

the

end of

the prefent

feffion

of

the

Affembly,

were

examined,

no

regrettable

difclofures

followed, as

was the

cafe

with

M--

John

Hoiloway,

the

treafurer

preceding

Sir

John

Randolph,

and

with

M -

Robinfon

him-

felf

after

many

years

of

fervice.

The

governor

devoted

moft of

his

opening

addrefs

to an

argument

in favor of

the

continuance

of

the

tobacco

law,

which

was

to

expire

on

the 9th of

November,

1739,

and

to

a

ftatement

of

the

fadt

that

there

had

recently

occurred on

the frontiers

feveral

murders

by

the

Indians

incident

to

the

hoftilities at

that

time carried on between

the

Northern

Indians

and

the

Catawbas

and

Cherokees.

The

reply

of

the

Houfe

gives

expreffion

poffibly

even

more

freely

than ufual

to

the

good

will

entertained

by

its

members

toward

the

governor, and

this good

will

was further

evident,

and

in a

more

practical

and

conclufive way,

in an

honeft effort to carry out,

fo far

as

the

individual

opinions

of

members

would

allow, his

recommendations, and to

relieve

the

conditions

defcribed.

The

great

importance

of

the tobacco

a(5l

was

recog-

nized

by

the

Houfe

fo fully

that

when

on

November

8

the

committee

of

the whole,

which

had

been

confidering

the

governor's

fpeech,

reported that

it

was

the of the

committee

that

the

adt

fhould

be

continued,

with

alterations

and

amendments, the

con-

fideration

was

deferred

till

the

following Tuefday

week,

when

it was

ordered that the

roll of

the

Houfe

fhould

be called

over and

abfent

members be

proceeded

againft

with

the

utmoft

feverity.

On

the day

appointed,

the report was

taken up, and

the refolution

of

the

committee

was

agreed

to by a

vote of

39

to

30.

The full

number

of

members

of

the

Houfe at

this

feffion

was only

feventy-two,

and

on

November

2

1

two

of

thefe

had not

yet

taken

their

feats.'

Furthermore,

fmce

it was not

neceffary

for the

fpeaker on this

occafion

to caft

his vote,

the recorded

vote

feems to

fhow that every

member

of

the

Houfe

was

prefent and

affuming the

refponfibilities

of the

pofition to

which

he had been

eledted.

It

feems probable

that

this

unufual

length

of

time between

the

fubmiffion

and

the

confideration

of

the report

was ordered

for the very

purpofe of

fecuring full repre-

fentation. If

confideration

had

been

had earlier,

the number

of

conftituencies not fully

reprefented

when the vote was taken

would have been

greater, fmce

at

the

beginning

of

the

feffion there were found to be at leaft

feven

vacancies in

the

Houfe occafioned by

death, and one by the acceptance of the

office

of

fheriff by

the original

holder of the

pofition,

and it took

fome

time to hold

new elections.

The

delay

gave

ample

opportunity,

too, of

courfe,

for

informal

difcuffion

of

the law among

the

members. The

bill

intro-

duced in accordance with the order

of

the Houfe was

finally,

after

full

confideration

by

both

branches

of the Affembly

and

confiderable

amendment

in

both, enacfled.

It bore the title  An

a(5t for further

continuing and

amending

the

adl, for

amending the

ftaple

of

tobacco;

and for preventing

frauds

in

his

Majefty's

cuftoms. «3 It

was

to

be in

operation

immediately

from paffage,

and, with fo much

of

the adt

whole place

it

took as

was

not repealed

or

altered,

was to continue in force till

the 9th of

November,

1739.

The

principal

change made

by it was in

the method of the

appointment

of

in-

fpedtors, two

of whom

were

now to

be

chofen

for

each

warehoufe by

the governor

from

a

lift

of four eligibles

fumifhed

him

by

the juftices

of

the court of the

county in

which

the

warehoufe

was

fituated.

Formerly

the

governor

had

the appointment,

with

and by

the

advice

the

advice

of

the

Council.

Infpedlors

were

alfo held

to ftridter

accotmtability

for

failure

to

attend

to

their

duties.

*3

Hening,

V,

64, 65.

«4

See

pp.

351,

352.

»5

Hening

,

V,

9-16.

 

[xxxi]

For

the

fafety of

the inhabitants

on

the

frontiers

and

the

encouragement

of

fettle-

ments,

feveral

meafures

were introduced in

the Houfe

which became

laws : i .

 An adl, for

reviving

the adl, for making

more

effedlual provifion

againftinvafionsand infurredlions,

 »*

thea(5lthusrevivedhavingbeenpaffedatthefirftfeffionof theAffemblyof

1727-32;

2.

 An

adl,

to

encourage

fettlements

on the fouthem boimdary

of

this

Colony, *' fuch

fettlers

being

exempted from levies

for

ten

years and

at

all times thereafter permitted

to pay

all

public

dues and officers' fees in money inftead

of

in

tobacco, and the governor of

Virginia

giA-en

the

right to grant letters

of

naturalization to

any

alien who

might

fettle

there on

certificate from

the clerk

of

any

court that the applicant

had taken

the  oaths

appointed

by

parliament

to be taken, inftead of

the oaths

of

allegiance

and

fupremacy

and

taken

and

fubfcribed the

oath of abjuration,

and

fubfcribed

the teft;

3.

 An adl,

for

eredling two new

counties,

and

parilhes;

and granting

certain

encouragements

to

the

inhabitants thereof,

 ^^

whereby

Frederick

and Augufta

counties came into

being,

the

a(5l

providing for the fame encouragements to fettlers as were extended to fettlers

on

the fouthem boundary.

In

addition, the militia bill which had

failed at the pre-

ceding

feffion,

or a

bill very fimilar,

was introduced,

and,

with amendments, paffed

by

both

Houfes,

in

its

final

form

bearing

the imprefs to

a

much greater extent of the Houfe

than

of

the

Council.

There were

twenty-five adls in all

—

private

adls and public laws

together

—

paffed

at

this feffion.

The

Houfe

was not too

bufy, however, with

fecular affairs to negledt

thofe of a religious nature, as is

attefted

by an

order

of November

13

that the thanks of

the

Houfe

be

returned

to

M

Chicheley Thacker

for his  excellent fermon preached

before the

Houfe

the day

before.

It was further ordered that one

thoufand

copies

of

the

fermon fhould

be

printed,  to be

proportioned

amongft

the feveral counties

in this

Colony; to be

diftributed

by

the refpedlive courts of the

faid counties,

in the beft

manner, for

the

comfort of Chriftians, againft the

groundlefs objedlions to

the

divinity

and

dignity

of

the

bleffed

Jefus,

'

' an order

which the governor did not fail to

commend

in his fpeech of prorogation.

At

this feffion of the

Affembly

an

attempt was made to have

a law

paffed

for

the

removal

of

the

feat

of

government from

Williamfburg

to

fome

place more convenient,

but fince the advocates of

removal

could

agree

on no place,

fome

favoring Bermuda

Hundred

and

others

Weft

Point, the fcheme fell through.

9='

Third Seffion.

When the third feffion of

Affembly

was in

progrefs {May 22 through

Jime

16,

1740),

England was

engaged in

the war with Spain over the treatment

by

the Spaniards

of

Englifh

fmugglers,

and

moft of

the

time

of

the Affembly

was fpent

in

concerting

meafures

for

putting

the Colony in better pofition for defenfe

fhould

an

attack be made

on it and

for

the enliftment

of the foldiers who were to fer\'e from

Virginia in the

expedition

contemplated

againft the

Spanifh

poffeffions in

America.

The device hit

upon

for

raifing the troops—only a few hundreds in

number—

was

the impreffment

by the magif-

trates of

the various counties

of

 able-bodied

perfons, fit to

ferve

his majefty,

who

follow no

lawful

calling

or

employment, it being

expreffly

provided

by the law paffed

that no one

might be thus impreffed that had

a

vote in

the eledlion

of

a

member

of the

Houfe

of

Burgeffes, and

no

indented or bought fer\^ant.9- It is not

furprifing

that

a

contingent thus made

up,

efpecially fince it had

little

time for neceffary training

before

the day

of

actual conflidl, did not diftingutfh itfelf greatly at

Carthagena.

For home

defenfe,

there was paffed  An adl, for the better fecurity of the country in the

prefent

time of danger, providing

for

the expenditure

of

two

thoufand

pounds

fterling

in

the

8*

Hening,

Hening,

V,

24.

«7

Hening,

V,

57-58.

«»

Hening, V, 78-80.

'9

Hening,

V,

16-23.

90

See

pp.

341-342.

9'

Hening, V,

94-96.

9'

Hening,

V,

90-gi.

 

[xxxii

]

immediate

])urchafe

of

arms

for

the

militia,

to be

as the governor,

with

tho

advice

and

confent

of

the

Coiincil,

might

think

beft;

company

mufters

fhould

take

place

certainly

as

often

as

once

in

two

months

—more

frequently if neceffary

—

and

general

mufters

in

March

and

September

of

each

year,

and

at fuch

other times

as thofe

in authori-

ty

might

think

advifable.

This

provifion

for an

increafed

number of mufters

was to

con-

tinue

for

only

three

years

or,

if

hoftilities

did

not laft fo long, only till the

clofe of

the

war.

Since

the

 A(5l,

for

making

more

effedlual

provifion

againft

invafions

and

infur-

redions,

made

firft

in

1727

and

revived in

1738,

was

to

expire

on the

21ft

of

December,

1

741,

it

was

ena(5led

that

it

fhould

be

continued

from that time

for

three

years,

with

an

additional

claufe

impofmg

heavy

penalties

on

officers and

men

who when

called into

the

field

by

the

governor

in

times

of

emergency

fhould fail to give prompt

obedience.

The

increafed

revenues

neceffitated

by

the

appropriation of

the

two

thoufand

pounds

for

the

purchafe of

arms,

and by

provifion

made for

thofe who were

to ferve

in

the

expedition

againft

the

Spaniards,

were

to be

raifed

by laying an additional duty

on flaves

for

four

years;

and

to

the

adl

providing

for

this

purpofe

there

was

added

a

claufe

directing

how

fuch

deferters

as

might

efcape

punifhment

by

court martial fhould

be

dealt with

in the

civil

courts,

thefe

being

empowered to

order

their

fale

as

fervants

for

five

years.

Since

it

was

thought

that

the

war would

neceffarily

refult

in

a delay in

the

arrival

of

the fhips

from

England

engaged

in

the

carrying of

tobacco,

an adl was

paffed

for

extending the

period

during

which

it

might

be

lawful

for owners

to

bring their

tobacco to the

public

warehoufes.

Other

a(5ls

paffed at

this feffion in

addition

to

thofe

occafioned by the

war—there

were

fifteen

altogether—

were

not of

prime

importance

except,

perhaps,

the  Adl,

for

enforcing

the

execution of

the made

for the better managing

and

fecuring

orphans'

eftates, »<'

whofe principal

provifions

were that guardians

appointed

by the

county courts

fhould

render

accurate

accounts to

the courts

once a year

and

that

the

courts fhould

at

all

times

exercife

proper overfight

in order

to prevent abufes

and

mifmanagement

on

the part of

guardians.

A very interefting

bill, however,

introduced,

and

actually paffed by

the

Houfe, but

defeated in the

Council, bore the

title  An

ad;,

for

diffolving the prefent veftry

of

this

Colony, for eledling new

veftries,

and other

pur-

pofes therein mentioned.

The paffage

of

the

adl

by the Houfe

fhows

the

difcontent

of

the majority

of

its members,

and probably of the majority

of

the inhabitants

of

Colony,

with

the veftries

as then conftituted,

made

up as they were mainly

of men

on

whom the people

of

the refpedtive

parifhes

had not voted,

vacancies in veftries

being,

according to law, filled by

the veftries themfelves.

The ufual proportional

amount

of time

was

taken up at

this

feffion

in

the con-

fideration of cafes

involving the

privileges

of

members

of

the

Houfe

and the

election

and return

of members,

in

one

at

leaft

of the

former

the

Houfe infifting

on privilege

to

a degree much more

extended

than

would probably be afferted

by

a

fimilar

body

at

the prefent time,

and

in the

latter fhowing

a

moft

commendable

regard

not

only

for

their own

privileges

but alfo

for the rights

of the whole

people. As

proof

of

this,

the cafe

of

John

Parker

and that

of

M'

Beverley

Whiting

may

be cited.

John

Parker

affaulted

a fervant

belonging

to

M

Harrifon, a

member

of

the Houfe,

and

fpoke

difrefpedtfull)'

of M

Harrifon himfelf.

It

was

refolved

by Houfe

that he

was guilty

of

a

breach

of

the

privileges

of

the

Houfe,

and

he

was

compelled to

acknowledge

his

offence

and on

his knees

ask the

pardon

of the

Houfe and of

M''

Harrifon.

M'' Whiting

was

returned

as a member

of

the

Glonccfter, but on

conteft

it was

brought

out, among

other things,

that

he

had

been guilty

of

one or two

infractions

of

the eledtion

laws

(includ-

ing the

promife

to

pay the

fines

of

feveral

voters

for

remaining

away from

the polls),

and that

his

friend,

Captain

Robert

Bernard,

had alfo been

guilty,

though

whether

or

not at

M'

Whiting's

inftance

did

Whiting

not at

M'

Whiting's

inftance

did

not

appear. M

Whiting

was declared

not

duly

eledled,

 

Hening,

V,

99-100.

»*

Hening,

V,

92-94.

95

Hening,

V,

98.

«'

Hening,

V, 1 00-101.

•'

See

pp.

4JI,

426,

427.

 

[xxxiii]

and

Captain

Bernard was compelled to  make

an

acknowledgment of his

offenfe and

breach of

privilege, and ask the pardon

of

the

Houfe

for

the

fame. An

interefting

cafe in

which

the rights of the people

were involved

rather than the privileges

of the

members

of

the Houfe was the cafe

of

the juftices

of

Prince William

county,

who had

refufed, contrary

to

law,

to

receive

and

certify two propofitions

offered to them.

The

committee of privileges

and

eledlions, which had been ordered by the Houfe

to invefti-

gate

the cafe, reported

a

refolution

to

the eflfedt that the juftices

had

 acted illegally,

arbitrarily, and

contrary

to the

rights of

the

people. M''

Valentine

Peyton,

one

of

the juftices and at

the

fame

time

a

member of

the

Houfe,

was required

to acknowledge

his

offenfe

and

to ask

the

pardon of the

Houfe. The others

were

fent

for

in cuftod}^

of

the

fergeant

at arms, but when they reached Williamfburg

were,

on

their

petition

fetting

forth their forrow

at

having

fallen

under the

difpleafure

of the Houfe

and calling

attention to the fad; that they been put to

the expenfe trouble

of traveling

two

or

three hundred

miles

and

alfo

had fuffered

great difgrace, difcharged.»*

Fourth Seffion.

The Affembly at its third

feffion was

prorogued to the

21ft of

Auguft.

Coming

together

promptly

at

that

time,

it

fotmd the only occafion for its meeting

to

be the

paffage

of

an

adl, in purfuance

of

royal inftrucflions to Governor Gooch,

making

provi-

fions for

payment

of the

expenfes

of the Colony's quota of troops

for the expedition

fitting out againft the

Spanifh

poffeffions. The fupply

asked for was

willingly

and

quickly

granted,

the

feffion lafting

only

eight

days and the bill

granting the

fupply

being the

only

one

offered. As paffed, its title was  An adl

for giving to his majefty

the

fum

of

five thoufand

pounds, towards

defraying

the expenfe

of vidlualling

and

tranfporting

the foldiers,

raifed in this

Colony, to

ferve

his

Majefty

on

an intended

expedition againft the

Spaniards

in

the

Weft

Indies.

 99

The

expenfe

of

vicftualling

and

tranfporting was

to be borne only till the

troops affembled

at

the general

rendezvous

{Port Royal,

in

Jamaica),

after which all

expenfes

of the

expedition were

to

be met

by the crown. The five

thoufand

pounds appropriated

was

to

be borrowed

on

the

fecurity

of the

revenues

arifmg from t e taxes

laid by the General

Affembly

at the

preceding

feffion

on

liquors

and

flaves

imported.

The Houfe took

advantage

of

the meeting

to draw

up

an

addrefs

to the king

and

a

petition to

Parliament

requefting the fame

liberty

of

importing

fait from

Europe

that the

Northern

colonies

enjoyed, papers to which

the

Council refufed

to

agree,

the time

being evidently

in their opinion

not propitious. The Affembly

was

prorogued

to the laft

Thurfday in Dece^nher.

The

feffion, however,

thus coming

to a clofe

was the

laft

of

this

Affembly,

fince

on

the

death

of

Governor

Spotfwood Governor Gooch

fucceeded

him in

command

of

the

colonial troops engaged

in the

Spanifh

expedition

and very

fhortly

took

his

departure

for Port Royal.

On

his

return

from

the

expedition

he

called

a new Affembly.

»*

See

pp.

429,

430.

9»

Hening, V, 121-123.

 

THE

JOURNAL

OF

THE

House of

B

USE OF

DURGESSES.

AT

A

GENERAL

ASSEMBLY,

Begun and

held at

WILLIAMSBURG

the

first

day

of

February in

the

firft

year

of

the

Reign

of

Our Soverain Lord

GEORGE

the

Second

by

the Grace of God

of

Great

Britain,

France

&'

Ireland,

King,

Defender

of

the

Faith

&*£.

And

in the Year of

Our

Lord

MDCCXXVII.

RICHMOND,

VIRGINIA

RICHMOND,

VIRGINIA

MCMX

 

A

General

Assembly

BEGUN

and held at

WILLIAMSBURG

the first day

of

February

in

the

firit

year of

the Reign

of

Our

Soverain Lord GEORGE the Second

by

the Grace

of God of

Great

Britain

France

&

Ireland

King Defender of the Faith &c.

And in the year of Our Lord MDCCXXVII.

Before

the Hon'ble WILLIAM

GOOCH

Esq'.

His Majefty's

Lieutenant

Governor and Commander in Chief of

the Colony and

Dominion of VIRGINIA.

On

which

day being the

firft

day of

the Seffion of

this Affembly

Richard

Fitz William

John

Grymes William Dandridge

and

John

Cusiis

Esq ' By virtue

of

a Commiffion to them directed the Lieutenant

Governor, did orderly &

diftincT;ly adminifter

the Oathes appointed by A(5l

of

Parlia-

ment to be taken inftead of

the

Oathes

of

Allegiance

and

Supremacy, the Abjuration

Oath appointed

to be

taken

by an

Adl

of

Parliament

made in

the fixth

year of the

Reign

of

the late

Queen

Anne,

together with the Teft

and Oath

of

a

Burgefs

to forty

fix

Members return

'd

Burgeffes to ferve in this

General

Affembly

who then

'd,

and

did alfo adminifter the faid Oathes appointed by Law with the Teft

and Oathes of

their

refpedlive

Offices

to

John

Randolph

Efq' Clerk

of

the

Houfe

of Burgeffes

and

Philip

Finch Gent. Serjeant

at Arms attending

the

faid Houfe.

And

afterwards all

the Members

who took the

faid Oathes feated themfelves

in the

Hoxafe of

Burgeffes.

And

a

Meffage

was deliver'd from the

Governor

by M'

Robertfon

as follows.

Gentlemen

of

the

Houfe

of

Burgeffes

The

Governor

commands

your immediate

attendance in the

Coimcil Chamber.

And the Houfe

went

up accordingly.

T

hur

fdayy

February

i,

\'J2'],

THE

Houfe having

attended the Governor

and

being

return 'd M'' Henry

Willis

put

them

in mind

of

the

Governor's

Commands

to make

choice

of

a

Speaker,

and

M ^

Holloway was lonanimoufly chofen,

and being placed

in

the

Chair

made

a

Speech Houfe, he expreffed

juft

fenfe

he had

of the

obli-

gation they had laid

him

under, and return'd them thanks

for their great

kindnefs

and

refpe(5l

towards

him. And the

Mace

was brought into the Houfe

and

laid

imder

the

Table.

Refolved,

That

a

Meffage be fent to the

Governor to acquaint him

that this

Houfe

have

made choice of a Speaker and to know his

pleafure

when the Hoiife

fhall prefent

him.

Ordered,

That M ^

Harrifon,

'W Meriwether,

M ' Conway,

M' Armiftead, M'

Prefly, M''

Blair,

 W

Braxton,

M '

Robert

Boiling, M''

Henry

Willis, M'' Grymes

and

M '

Robinfon

do

carry the faid Meffage.

And

M ^ Harrifon

acquainted

the Houfe that

they

had

attended

the

Governor

accord-

ingly,

and that

he

was now

ready

in

the

Cotmcil Chamber

to

receive

this

Houfe with

their

Speaker.

The

 

( 4

)

The

Houfe

accordingly

went

up

with the

Speaker

Eledl, and being

retum'd

M--

Speaker

reported

That

the

Houfe

had

attended

the

Governor

in the

Council

Chamber,

and

had

prefented

their

Speaker,

and

that

the

Governor

was

pleafed to fay the

Choice

this

Houfe

had

made

was

moft

acceptable

to

him;

and

that he had

petition

'd in the

name

of

this

Houfe,

That

they

might

enjoy

all

their

antient

Rights

and Privileges

ef-

tablifhed

either

by

Law

or

Cuftom,

To

which

the

Governor anfwer'd that it

fhould

be

his

efpecial

Care

to

maintain

this

Houfe

in

the

Enjoyment

of thefe

and all other their

juft

Rights

and

Privileges.

And

M''

Speaker

further

acquainted

the

Houfe

that

the Governor

was pleafed

make

a

Speech

to

the

Coimcil

and

this

Houfe,

which

being of

a

confiderable

length, he

had

obtain

'd a

Copy

of

it,

and

the

fame

was read

and

is as follows.

Gentlemen

of

the

Council

and Houfe

of

Burgeffes.

Being

by

the

fpecial

Favour

of

His

Moft

Excellent

Majefty

appointed

to this

Hon-

our

I

think

it

my

duty

to lay

before

you,

at

our

firft

meeting, fuch

rules

and methods

as

I

ha\-e

already

prefcribed

to

my felf

,

and I

hope

will be agreeable

to you

in my

future

Adminiftration

and

Condu(ft.

And

that

I

may

be

fure

I

fet

out

right,

I

fhall in the firft place

make

it my conftant

care

to

promote

and

propagate

Religion

and

Virtue to difcourage and difcountenance

Vice

and

Immorality

among

you:

And

here

give me

leave

to

obferve,

that I

look upon

it

as

my

peculiar

Felicity

that

I am

come

to a

Cotmtry

where the Doctrine,

Difcipline

and

Worfhip

of

the

Church

of

England are

not

only

eftablifh'd,

but

almoft

univerfally

received

and

complied

with.

But

if

there are

among you any

Diffenters from this

Church,

with

Confciences

truly

fcrupulous,

I

fhall think

an

Indulgence

to

them

to

be

fo

confiftent

with

the

Genius

of

the

Chriftian

Religion, that can

never

be inconfiftent

with

the

Intereft

of

the

Church of

England.

Next

to

Our

Religious,

it

ought

to be

your Concern as

well as mine, to take care of

our

Civil

Duties;

and

the

firft

and

chief of

thefe is, our

Loialty

to

The King;

whose Roial

Virtues

deferve

all

that

Honour

Allegiance

and

Fidelity that

His Roial Station

demands

at

our

hands

: By

Him and

His

Family,

next

under God, is

our

happinef

s

fecured,

for

from

the

Example of

our

moft

Illuftrious

and

Gracious Queen,

the Difpofition

and Edu-

cation

of

Their

Roial

Iffue,

we

may, with

the

utmoft

Satisfadlion, look

into

Futurity,

and

fee

the

poffeffion

of

thofe

valuable

Bleffings,

our

religious and civil

Rights,

by the

fame

principles

which now

protedl and

guard

them,

tranfmitted

in a

lineal

Succeffion

to

lateft

pofterity.

And

as

the

Laws of

our

Country

are the

meafure of

our Civil duty,

I fhall think

it

particularly

incumbent

upon me to

fee

them put

in ftridl

Execution.

To

the due

obfer\'ance

of

thefe all

Ranks

&

Conditions of

Men are

to look upon

themfelves

as

equal-

ly

obliged:

and

'tis to

thefe we

owe both

the

prefervation of public

Peace,

and the

fecurity

of

private

Profperity.

But,

befides

thefe

obligations,

which are

ftridlly

legal,

and

may

be enforced by

juft

authority,

there

are alfo

Duties & Virtues

of

a

focial

Nature,

which, tho greatly

tending to

the

welfare of

Commimities are not

diredlly the

matter of

human Laws

:

fuch

as

Civility &

good

Nature

Hofpitality

&

good

Neighbourhood

and all

that mutual

Affec-

tion

which tends

to

the

enlarging improving &

fecuring a

friendly

Intercourfe and Cor-

refpondence

between Man & Man : I

mention this with the

greater

pleafure, not for

their

importance

only, but

becaufe

by

all I have yet heard, or

feen,

I am

rather

to

requeft

their

continuance,

recommend

their practice.

And

now.

Gentlemen, as thefe are the

good

principles I

am

fumifh'd with, and

thefe

the good

purpofes I am bent upon,

fo

I hope you'll be

convinced

by

what I have

now to

recommend

to you,

that

I am not

lefs

zealoufly inclined to

ftudy &

promote

every

thing

that may

advance

your

Honour,

Credit and

Safety.

And therefore

Gentlemen

of

the

Houfe

of

Burgeffes,

The

repairing the Battery

at

Point

Comfort

is fo abfolutely neceffary

for the

fecurity,

not

only

of

James

River,

but

in

a manner

of the whole Trade of

this

Colony,

that I

make

 

C

5

)

make no

doubt but

you will readily

contribute

to

the

putting it in

fuch

a

condition as

the

common

fafety

requires,

and

fuitable

to the

benefit the Public will receive thereby.

And

for

a

further

fecurity

to your

Trade,

I

muft,

with

equal eameftnefs, recom-

mend

to

you

the ere(5ling

of a

Light-houfe

on

Cape

Henry,

which

is

fo much

wanted

for

the

prefervation of

fhipping from the

dangers

of

the Enemy

as well

as Seas, that I hope

you

will

once

more confider of it

:

And if

you find

it neceffary

to prepare

a

Bill for

that

purpofe, a

claufe may

be

inferted

to prevent

your being

at

any

charge

thereon, tmlefs

our

Neighbours of

Maryland

either will,

or can be compell'd to

contribute towards it's

Maintenance.

Gentlemen

of

the Council and

Houfe

of

Burgeffes,

The

agreeing upon

fome methods

to prevent delaies in the

Courts of

Juftice,

fo very

obvious

&

inconvenient to the People

in

general,

is what I

have

in

an

efpecial manner

to

recommend

to you.

And

because

your

late

Law

for the

improvement

of Tobacco

is have its

determi-

nation

with this Seffion of Affembly, it was

one

principal

reafon for my calling

you

together at

this feafon of

the

year, that the Country might know in time how

to prepare

for

their

next

Crop, in

cafe

you

fhould think

fit to continue that A(5t, or to provide in

a

better

manner

for the

improvement

of

your

Staple. And I take this occafion

to affure

that whatever you

think convenient

to be done

for

the

advancement &

encourage-

ment

of your Trade if conformable

to

my Inftrudtions,

I

fhaU with

great

cheerfulnefs

concur

therewith.

In

fhort. Gentlemen, as your own obfervation

and experience will

fuggeft

to you the

beft methods

for promoting

your own happinefs,

either

public or

private, be

you fo

kind

as

to inform me of

them,

and then I will venture

to

promife

for my felf,

that, as I

have no

other

nor farther views than

to

approve

my felf

to my Roial

Master, fuch

as I

ought, and

fuch

as you

may

expedl

me to be, fo

you

fhall

alwaies

find in me

a difpofition

to receive

you

kindly, to advife you fmcerely,

to affift

you

faithfully,

in

all your

perfonal

applications to me, and

correfpondence with me: And

if

to thefe we

join

what

is

my

Inclination as

well

as

obligation,

an

impartial

Juftice

in

the

Adminiftration

here,

and

a

fair

and

faithful

Reprefentation of matters

from hence,

I

fhall then

make

no

queftion

but

by

the

Bleffing

of God,

which

I

fhall

alwaies

and eameftly

implore,

we

fhall

fee

ourfelves

an happy

and

a

contented People.

And then

the

Houfe

adjoum'd till

to-morrow

morning lo.

a clock.

Friday,

February

2,

1727.

THE

Governor's

Speech was

again read,

Refolved, Nemine Contradicente,

That

an humble

Addrefs

be

prefented

to the Governor to return

him

the thanks

of

this

Houfe

for his

moft

kind

&

obliging

Speech at

the

opening

of this

Seffion.

Refolved,

Nem.

Cont.,

That

an

humble

Addrefs

be

prepared

to

The King,

to condole

the Death

of His late

Roial

Father of bleffed

memory,

and

to

congratulate

His

Majefty

upon His peaceable and happy Acceffion

to the

Throne

of

His

Anceftors.

Refolved,

That

this Houfe

will take the

Governor's

Speech

into

Confideration

on

Monday

next.

Ordered,

That

a

Committee of Privileges

& Eledlions

be

appointed

of

thefe

perfons

following, viz't.

W

Efcridge.