PROCLAMATION BY GOV. CARY.

North Carolina, Ss. By the Honble Depty Govern'r & Councill. A PROCLAMATION.

Wherein the Rt. Honble Sr. Nathaniel Johnson by a Commission & Instrument directed to Honble Thomas Cary, Esq., hath Constituted & appointed him the sd Thomas Cary, Esq., Deputy Governr Lieutenant Generall & Vice Admirall of this Province.

To prevent all Failure in the Administration of Justice & that all processes in Law pleas & plaints of which nature soever may have their legall Course Wee Doe by this Proclamation Declare That all persons of Office & Trust within this Governmt shall continue in their respective Stations till the Honble Deputy Governr's pleasures be further known.

Given under the seal of the Colony the 21st day of March Anno Dmi 1704-5. Anno Quarto Anno Regina Angliecr. W. GLOVER.

THOS. CARY,
SAMUEL SWANN,
THOMAS POLLOCK.

AN ACT RELATING TO JUSTICES.

(Original in Court House at Edenton, N. C.)

An Act to Enforce Justices of the Severall Countys & Precinct Courts in this Governmt to take the oath & discharge their office in the Commission.

Be it enacted by his Excellency the Pallatine and the rest of the true & absolute Lords & proprietors by & with the advise and Consent of the present Grand Assembly & the Authority thereof And itt is hereby Enacted that what person soever shall be Commissionated Justice of the Peace for the General Court, County or Precinct Court in this Government and being sumoned by the Provost Marshall or Deputy or Deputys shall refuse to take the Oaths apointed by Law & act as Justice in any of the General, County or precinct Courts in this Governmt as aforesaid Itt shall be in the power of the Quorum of each & every respective General, County & Precinct Court to Impose & Lay a fine upon every person of the same Court to which ye sd partyes are Commissionated, refusing in manner aforesd such fine or penalty as they the Quoram of such of each & every respective Court aforesd shal think fitt & Convenient & them to committ to prison till the sd Fyne be payd or other Complyance made and if there be not a Quoram in any one of the sd Courts that shall accept of the Commission & take the Oaths aforesd itt shall be in the power of the Governor's Council for the time being to lay such Fyne or

penalty upon them as they shall think fitt & Convenient & Commit the sd person to prison untill paymt be made of the aforesd fyne or other Complyance.

(This paper is without date.)

NOTE FROM S. NORTEN TO THOMAS SNODEN,
ATTORNEY AT LAW.

Mr. Snoden-Pray come to me with all speed to Mr. Penrice's wth the Ritt for Members for Coratuck and what Pattions you have signed with Wm. Reed for gett nothing. I am waiting for you.

Yrs,

S. NORTEN. On the bottom of the paper appears the following: "Wm. Bell Entered all that Island Situate, lying and being in Coratuck County called or known by the name of Bell Island containing 530 acres or thereabouts. Wm. Bell entered a plantaiton scituate and being in Coratuck where John Bell now lives containing 300 acres."

S. Norten was Clk of the Court, and we presume was behind in his work for the Court, the members for Coratuck referred to the Members of the Assembly and "Pattions" to patents of land. The note is without date but was written about 1715.

PETITION FOR A CLERK FOR COROTUCK PRECINCT.

Corotuck, November ye 9th, 1706. Sr. Mr. Edward Taylor ye present Clark for this place hath deserted his office and with Drawn him self hence or other his private affairs to the greevance of ye people and great obstruction of Business to that office Relating, for Remedy where of Could not But think it our Duty to your Selfe and Precinct to offer ye Same to your Consideration, not Doubting your Rediness to Remove the Malady or Grevance by Deputing Som Capable descreat person to supply the present defect, and presuming not any person more capable hath yett offered, do with Submission Recommend Mr. Jos. Wicker to your thoughts, whome we believe a person quallified for the undertaking and suppose his preferment here in will give as Gencral Sattisfaction to the Inhabitants heare as in particuler it Doth to Sr.

Your Humbe Servts to Com'd,

JOHN BONNET,

THO. EANDEMERLER,
BEN. TULLE.

And Mr. Jos. Wicker got the apointment as Clerk of the Precinct Court.-(Editor.)

FROM THE GOVERNOR OF SOUTH CAROLINA TO THE GOVERNOR OF NORTH CAROLINA.

(Old Style).

May it please yr Honr.

Having not ye Conveniency of passage omediately to South Carolina I have made use of this way by Bermuda to dispatch to your honr ye Inclosed letter & Papers from ye Rt. Honble ye Lord of his Majestys Privy Councell relating to ye division & deliverance of his Majesty from a barbarous Conspiracy of Popish & Invasion from France for wch he issued proclamation for a publick Thanksgiving on ye 17th of June next, ye other letter concerning to his Majestyes Customs & an act past in Scotland having relation to a leter & Instructions from Comissr of his Majesties Customs wch is not come to hand but nevertheless I shall take all ye Care I can in that matter here is alsoe inclosed a letter from his Excel his Majesties Governr, &c., of Virginia, wherein your Hon may See wt claim it made to Crow Island & by Consequence to most of ye land on ye north of ye sound to wch we retained ye answer wch was all we could doe having not soe much as a Copy of their Lordships Grant in this Government to defend ourselves wth and our weakness in that matter is very well known in Virginia soe that I believe it will be very necessary yt their Lordship have Speedy acct of it.

May it please your Honr we have great reason to wish for yr Honrs arrival here, we have continued to adjourn ye Assembly by proclamation by reason of your honrs absence and ye ill use made of ye first adjournmt giving cause to believe yt ye like if not worse will be made of ye 2d & 3d, it is now adjourned to the 1st of October. Then it will be necessary for the Assembly to sett for discharging ye Publick Charge of the County and if your honr be not present or at best special instructions from ye Honor to satisfy ye Inhabitants, paticularly in ye assurance of their land. I doubt very much wee shall not be able to keep this Governmt in peace any longer for there does not want those that put ye people in fear that they shall not have patents for their land at all. Likewise I desire your Honr as a thing at this time very necessary to procure an authentic Copy of their Lordsps Grant if it be in South Carolina, ye public discourse that is in Virginia of this Country being in that Governmt ye country name yt ye foreign there give it may much animate all contented psons here upon expectatason of protection from thence. I desire your Honr alsoe if your Honr cant come to send full Instructions of ye qt rent in ye Comoditye of ye Country for price last settled viz of porke at one penny & tobacco 3 farthings p pound is soe ill taken that ye country will not continue it except yr Honr presence

here may prevail upon them. There doe appear great animosity in the Country already and If things will be worse, when, I crave leave once againe to your Honr to hasten your coming if possible ye peace of the Country very much depends upon it and ye Interest of ye proprietors much more I heartily pray for yr Honrs Health and Speedy arrival here and am yr Honrs

Humble & bounden Servt., The Governor to Gov. Archdale briefed on the back of the paper. It is neither signed nor dated, and does not say a word about the time between

LETTER TO SETH SOTHEL

Loving and kind friend Seth Sothel and Governor my kind love & remembrance unto thee. These are to desire thee to Enter for me four hundred and twenty acres of land adjoining to my head line and running along the Survey. Sir for my Mill and as thee didest. tell me that I need not be so hurry to by rites untell I had spoken againe with Thee therefoure I have bought none, hoping that thee will furnish me with cites and if thee doest I shall make thee satisfaction. So having no more to trouble thee withall I rest thy loving friend in the truth.

ROBERT WINDLEY.

This paper antedates 1689, as Seth Sothel died in that year.

ADDRESS FROM THE HOUSE OF BURGESSES TO THE GOVERNOR & COUNCIL.

To the Honble the Deputy Governor, Esq., & Councill:

May it please yor Honors House or Board which requires all messages sent from this house to ye Honors should be signed by the Speaker We humbly conceive to be an Evading of the Privileges of this House and being contrary to all former practices of this House which usually has been done by the Clerk of thy House wherefore we humbly address yor Honors that all message coming from this House may be signed as formerly. Sent by Capi. Sanders, Wm. Barrow.

Signed by Wm. Wilkinson, Speaker, Thomas Blount, John Blount, Edw'd Smithwick, John Ardene, Gabriel Newby, Isaac Willson, Caleb Calloway, Timothy Cleave, Samuel Nicholson, W. Barrow, Thos. Peirce, Thomas Symons, Jeremyah Symons, Caleb Bundy. Augtn Scarborough, Jno. Hawkins, Rich'd Sanderson, Thos. Tayler, Ben Tulle, Wm. Bateman, Richard Cominfort."

Without date but evidently about 1703, as it is signed by Col. Wm. Wilkinson as Speaker, and the succeeding paper is also signed in 1703 by Co. Wilkinson as Speaker of the House of Burgesses.

AN ACT REGULATING PAYMENT OF QUIT RENTS.

An Act to ascertain the manner of paying of Quit Rents which are or shall become Due to the true & absolute Lords Proprietors.

Be it Enacted by his Excellency the Pallatine and the rest of the true & absolute Lords Proprietors by & with the advise and Consent of this present Grand Assembly & the Authority thereof.

And it is hereby Enacted that the Quitt Rents of all the lands in this Government shall be made in these following commodityes to wit in Silver or good Merchantable Pork or Tallow att the Rate ascertained in the Act of Assembly; and be it further enacted that the Inhabitants of Each & Every precinct & County in this Government are & shall be hereby obliged to pay the aforesd Rents Due to the Lords Proprietors on or before the 10th day of December yearly in such place in Each & Every respective River in this Government as the Governor shall appoint.

In the upper house Read the first time & past, By order Friday ye 12th of November, 1703. Tho. Snoden, Cl. of ye Assembly. Saturday 13th. Read the first time in the house of Burgesses & past wth the Amendment desired as to the friends on the Backside. WM. WILKINSON, Speaker.

In the upper House read ye Second time & past with ye AmendBy order Monday ve 15th of November, 1703. Tho. Snoden Cl. of ye Assembly.

ment.

Endorsed on the back is the following:

This Bill read the second time in the House of Burgesses and past wth the Amendments aforesaid and wth this provided that this Bill shall Determine att the end of two years or the next Biennial Parliamt. By order of the House.

WM. WILKINSON, Speaker.

In the Upper House. Read the third time wth ye amendment and proviso, Friday ye 19th. By order, Thos. Snoden, Ck of ye Assembly.

Ordered to be Engrossed.

Friday 19. Read the third time & past wth Amendment & past by order of the House.

WM. WILKINSON, Speaker.