Pages 364-382 
|  Pages 401-415
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| Pages 364-382
| Pages 401-415
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| CHAP. XXI. | ||
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| I. BE it enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That all tobacco which shall be due in the county of Lunenburg, for levies, quit-rents, secretary's, clerks, sherifs, surveyors, or other officers fees, shall be paid and discharged in inspectors notes, of Cabbin-Point, or any other warehouse above, on the south side of James river; and that an abatement or allowance out of the said quit-rents and officers fees, of thirty pounds of tobacco for every hundred, and so proportionably for a greater or lesser quantity, shall be made to the person paying the same, which he may retain in his own hands. | Public levies and fees in Lunenburg, how payable in tobacco. | |
| II. And be it further enacted, That all and every surveyor and surveyors of land of the said county of Lunenburg, shall be resident in their respective districts in the said county, during the time he or they shall continue in office, on penalty of forfeiting ten pounds sterling, for every month he or they shall reside out of the same, after the first day of October next; one moiety of which shall be to our sovereign lord the king, his heirs and successors, for and towards the better support of this government, and the contingent charges thereof, and the other moiety to him or them that will inform or sue for the same: To be recovered by action of debt, or information, in any court of record within this colony. | Surveyors of Lunenburg, to reside therein. |
| CHAP. XXII. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS divers inconveniencies attend the upper inhabitants of Brunswick county, by reason of their great distances from the court house, and other places, usually appointed for public meetings: | ||
| II. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That from and immediately after the first day of May next, the said county of Brunswick be divided, by a line to be run from the country line, where it crosses the Roanoke river, below the place called the Horse-Foard, to strike Nottoway river at the fork; and that part of the said county which lies below the said line, be erected into one distinct county, and retain the name of Brunswick; and all that other part thereof above the said line, be one other distinct county, and called by the name of the county of Lunenburg. And for the due administration of justice, | Brunswick county divided and Lunenburg formed. | |
| III. Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That after the said first day of May, a court for the said county of Lunenburg be constantly held by the justices thereof, on the first Monday in every month, in such manner as by the laws of this colony is provided, and shall be by their commission directed. | Court days. | |
| IV. And whereas, by reason of the situation of the parish of St. Andrew, in the said county of Brunswick, the minister and inhabitants do labour under divers inconveniences: For removal of which for the future, | ||
| V. Be it further enacted, That from and after the first day of May, the said parish of St. Andrew shall be divided into two parishes; that is to say, all that part of the said parish that lies in the county of Brunswick, shall hereafter be esteemed one distinct parish, and be called and known by the name of St. Andrew; and all that part of the said parish of St. Andrew which will be in the county of Lunenburg, shall be erected into one other distinct parish, and called and known | Parish of St. Andrew divided. Cumberland parish formed. |
| by the name of Cumberland. And for the better ordering of parochial affairs in the said parishes, | |
| VI. Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the vestry of the said parish of St. Andrew, as the same now stands entire and undivided, be, and they are hereby declared to be dissolved; and that the freeholders and housekeepers in the said parishes respectively, shall meet, at some convenient time and place, to be appointed and publickly advertised by the respective sherifs of the said counties of Brunswick and Lunenburg, before the first day of September next, and then and there elect twelve of the most able and discreet persons of their respective parishes; which persons so elected, having taken the oaths appointed to be taken by law, and subscribed to be conformable to the doctrine and discipline of the church of England, shall, to all intents and purposes, be deemed and taken to be the vestries of the said parishes respectively: Which said vestries are hereby impowered and made capable to take, receive, and hold any lands, tenements, or hereditaments, which shall be purchased or given as a glebe or glebes, for the use of the minister of each parish respectively, for the time being, for ever. | |
| VII. Provided always, That nothing herein contained, shall be construed to hinder the sheriff or collectors of the said county of Brunswick, and parish of St. Andrew, as they now stand entire and undivided, from making distress for any levies, fees, or other dues, which shall be due from the inhabitants of the said county and parish, after the said first day of May, in such manner, and not otherwise, as by law he or they might have done, if this act had never been made: Any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in any-wise, notwithstanding. | |
| VIII. And whereas, by one clause of an act of Assembly, made in the twelfth year of the reign of his present majesty, intituled, An act, to encourage settlements on the Southern boundary of this colony, it was enacted, That all and every person and persons whatsoever, who, within ten years after passing the said act, should import themselves into this colony, and settle upon Roanoke river, on the South branch of the same, above the fork thereof, and on the North branch of the said river, above the mouth of Little |
| Roanoke, otherwise called Lickinghole, including all the lands on all the said branches, and the lands lying between them, then deemed to be in the county of Brunswick, and parish of St. Andrew, should be exempted from the payment of public, county, and parish levies, until the expiration of the said ten years; which said clause those persons now pray may be repealed: | ||
| IX. Be it therefore enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the same so far as relates to such exemption, be repealed. | ||
| CHAP. XXIII. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS by an act passed at the last session of Assembly, it was enacted, That the vestry of the parish of St. Martin, should, and they were thereby impowered and required, to levy, upon the tithable persons of the said parish, as much money and tobacco as should be sufficient, to reimburse the parish of Fredericksville their proportionable part of four hundred and ninety six pounds, and ten thousand pounds of tobacco, for building a large brick church, before the division thereof: And whereas it now appears, that the vestry of the said parish of St. Martin, levied upon the tithable persons of the said parish, as the same then stood undivided, ninety four pounds more than the said four hundred and ninety six pounds, and ten thousand pounds of tobacco; and have made humble suit to this Assembly, to have their proportionable part of the same re-imbursed to them: | Parish of St. Martin to repay certain monies to parish of Fredericksville. | |
| II. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That the vestry of the said parish of St. Martin, shall, and they are hereby impowered and required, to levy, on the tithable persons of the said parish, as much tobacco as shall be sufficient to re-imburse the |
| inhabitants of the said parish of Fredericksville their proportionable part of the said ninety four pounds at the laying the next parish levy; and shall pay the same unto the vestry of the said parish of Fredericksville, for the time being, to be by them applied to the use of the said parish. | |
| CHAP. XXIV. An Act, for enlarging the power of the Sheriff of James City County. | |
| I. WHEREAS the court-house of the county of James City is so placed, that persons may easily evade being summoned to attend the court as jurors, unless the power of the sheriff of the said county be enlarged, and authority given him, to summon jurors, as well in that part of the city of Williamsburg, which lies in the county of York, as in James-City; to the great delay of justice in the court of the said county of James City: | |
| II. Be it therefore enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That from and after the passing this act, the sheriff of the said county of James-city, for the time being, and his under-sherifs, or deputies, and every of them, shall be, and they are hereby impowered and authorized, to summon jurors of the inhabitants of James-City, in all and every part of the city of Williamsburg, as well in that part that lies in York as in James-City, to serve on juries on the days appointed for holding courts in the said county of James-City: Any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in any wise, notwithstanding. | Sheriff of James city authorised to summon juries in any part of Williamsburg. |
| CHAP. XXV. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS the inhabitants of the several towns of Port Royal, in the county of Caroline, Newcastle, in the county of Hanover, and Suffolk, in the county of Nansemond, are in great danger of having their houses and effects burnt and consumed, by reason of many wooden chimnies, which are already erected and built, and are building and erecting, in the said towns; | Wooden nies not to be built, in the towns of Port Royal, Newcastle, or Suffolk: | |
| II. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That it shall not hereafter be lawful, for any person whatsoever, to erect or build, or cause to be erected and built in the said towns, any wooden chimney; neither shall it be lawful, for any person whatsoever, after the first day of May, in the year of our lord one thousand seven hundred and fifty, to make use of any wooden chimney already erected in the said towns; and that the owners or proprietors of all such wooden chimnies as now are in the said towns, shall, before the expiration of the time aforesaid, wholly destroy and disuse the same, or cause them to be pulled down; otherwise it shall be lawful for the sheriff of the said counties of Caroline, Hanover, and Nansemond, respectively, and they are hereby required, to cause all such wooden chimnies to be pulled down and demolished: And in like manner, it shall be lawful for the said sherifs, and they are hereby required, to cause to be pulled down and demolished, all other wooden chimnies, which shall be built or erected in the said towns, respectively, in breach of this act. | ||
| III. And whereas it is represented, that a great number of hogs are raised, and suffered to go at large, in Newtown, in the county of Princess Anne, and the said town of Newcastle, to the great prejudice of the inhabitants thereof, Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the passing of | Hogs not to run at large in the towns of Newtown or Newcastle: |
| this act, it shall not be lawful for any person or persons, owners of any swine, to suffer the same to run or go at large, within the limits of the said towns of Newcastle and Newtown; and if any swine shall be found running or going at large, within the said limits, it shall be lawful for any person whatsoever, to kill and destroy every such swine so running at lurge. [large.] | |
| IV. Provided always, That such person shall not convert any such swine to his or their own use, but shall leave the same in the place where it was so killed, and give immediate notice to the owner thereof, if known, and if not, then such person shall immediately, inform the next justice of the peace thereof, who may order the same to the use of any poor person or persons he shall think fit. | |
| V. Provided always, That nothing herein contained, shall be construed, deemed, or taken, to forbid or hinder any person or persons from driving any swine to or thro' the said towns or limits thereof, in order to sell the same, or in their removal from one plantation to another. | |
| VI. And whereas allowing fairs to be kept in the said town of Newcastle, will be very commodious to the inhabitants of that part of this colony, Be it further enacted, That for the future, two fairs shall and may be annually kept and held, in the said town of Newcastle, on the first Tuesday in April, and the third Tuesday in November, in every year, each to continue for the space of two days, for the sale and vending of all manner of cattle, victuals, provisions, goods, wares, and merchandizes whatsoever; on which fair days, and two days next before, and two days next after each of the said fairs, all persons coming to, being at, or going from the same, together with their cattle, goods, wares, and merchandizes, shall be exempt and privileged, from all arrests, attachments, and executions whatsoever; except for capital offences, breaches of the peace, or for any controversies, suits and quarrels, that may arise and happen, during the said time; in which cases process may be immediately issued, and proceedings thereupon had, in the same manner as if this act had never been made: Any thing herein before contained to the contrary notwithstanding. | Fairs to be kept in Newcastle. |
| VII. Provided always, That nothing herein contained, shall be construed, deemed, or taken, to derogate |
| from, alter or infringe the royal power and prerogative of his majesty, his heirs and successors, of granting to any person or persons, body corporate or politic, the privilege of holding fairs or markets, in such manner as he or they, by his or their royal letters patent, or by his or their instructions, to the governor or commander in chief of this dominion, for the time being shall think fit. | |
| CHAP. XXVI. An Act, for raising a Public Levy; and other purposes therein mentioned. | |
| I. BE it enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That five pounds of tobacco be paid, by every tithable person within this dominion, for the defraying and payment of the public charge of the country, being the public levy, from the fourth day of September, one thousand seven hundred and forty four, to the twentieth day of February, one thousand seven hundred and forty five; and that it be paid by the collector of the several counties, to the several persons and counties respectively, to whom it is proportioned by this General Assembly: And if it shall happen that there shall be more tithables in any county than the present levy is laid on, then such county shall have credit for so much, to the use of the county; and if fewer tithables in any county, then such county shall bear the loss. | Taxes for 1745. |
| II. Provided always, That where any allowance is made in the book of proportions to any county, to be paid in the same county, no more per poll shall be collected from the tithables of such county, than will discharge the ballance, after such allowance shall be deducted; and that every county court shall regulate the levy accordingly. | |
| III. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the sheriff of every county shall, at the time of giving bond for the due collection and payment of the next county levy, also give bond and security, for the due collection and payment of the public levy, now laid and assessed. |
| IV. And whereas there is a ballance of eight thousand two hundred and eight pounds of tobacco, due to the public, which was levied on the counties of Elizabeth-City, Hanover, and Louisa, as appears by the book of proportions: | ||
| V. Be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the sheriff of each of the said counties of Elizabeth-City, Hanover, and Louisa, shall sell the respective sums of tobacco levied in his county, as a depositum, for the use of the public, to the highest bidder, at the court of each county respectively, in the month of June next after receipt of the same; and pay the money arising from such sale, to the treasurer of Virginia, to be by him accounted for to the next session of Assembly. | ||
| CHAP. XXVII. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS a tract or parcel of land, containing sixteen hundred acres, or thereabouts, lying and being in the parish of Hungars, in the county of Northampton, was given and devised by one Charlton, for the use of the minister or incumbent of the said parish, for the time being, besides which, the vestry of the said parish had appropriated eighty seven acres of land for a glebe to that parish; and the said sixteen hundred acres of land, so as aforesaid given by the said Charlton, being a sufficient provision for the incumbent of the said parish, for the time being, especially if some slaves were annexed to the same: And the said eighty seven acres of land being of little or no value to the incumbent, it would be more for his benefit, if the same might be sold, and the purchase-money applyed to the buying of slaves, to be annexed to the said donation of sixteen hundred acres of land: | Glebe lands in Hungars parish in the county of Northampton, vested in trustees to be sold. | |
| II. Be it therefore enacted, by the Lieutenant Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the |
| same, That the said eighty seven acres of land, with the appurtenances, be, and are hereby vested in Matthew Harmanson, Littleton Eyre, and John Kendall, gentlemen, of the said parish of Hungars, in the county of Hungars, in the county of Northampton, in trust: That they, or any two of them, shall sell, and, by deeds of bargain and sale, convey, for the best price that can be got for the same, the said eighty seven acres of land, with the appurtenances, by such description as they shall think fit and necessary, to any person or persons who shall be willing to purchase the same, to hold to such purchaser or purchasers, in fee simple; and when the same shall be sold and conveyed, the said trustees shall account with the vestry of the said parish of Hungars, who shall receive the purchase-money, in trust, for the applying the same in the purchase of slaves, three of which to be young females, to be annexed to the said sixteen hundred acres of land, for the use of the incumbent, for the time being, for ever: Which said slaves, together with their future increase, so as aforesaid to be annexed, shall be deemed and taken to be in lieu and full satisfaction, of and for any glebe the vestry of the said parish of Hungars ought to purchase or provide for the minister or incumbent thereof: Any law, usage, or custom, to the contrary, notwithstanding. | |
| III. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the vestry of the said parish of Hungars, for the time being, shall be, and are hereby impowered and required, to build, upon the said sixteen hundred acres of land, such glebe house, and other necessary houses and conveniences, upon the same, for the use of the minister or incumbent of the said parish, as are and ought by law to be built and made upon glebe lands: Any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary, notwithstanding. | |
| IV. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successors, and to all and every other person or persons, bodies politic or corporate, their respective heirs and successors, other than the minister or incumbent of the said parish, for the time being all right, title, estate, interest, claim, and demand, as they, every, or any of them should or might have had or claimed, if this act had never been made. |
| CHAP. XXVIII. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS George Eskridge, late of the county of Westmoreland, gentleman, deceased, was, in his life time, seised and possessed of divers tracts of land, a large number of slaves, and a considerable personal estate; and being so seised and possessed, made his last will and testament, in writing, bearing date the twenty seventh day of October, one thousand seven hundred and thirty five, whereby, among other specific devises and legacies, he gave and devised unto his son William Eskridge, and the heirs of his body lawfully begotten, a tract or parcel of land, lying and being in the parish of Cople, in the said county of Westmoreland, containing seven hundred acres, or thereabouts, and also ten slaves, to be annexed to, and go and descend with the said land, in tail; and all the rest and residue of his estate, after the payment of his debts, he gave to be equally divided amongst his children then living, as in the said will is more fully contained; | George Eskridge authorised to sell certain lands, in Westmoreland. | |
| II. And whereas the said testator, at the time of his death, was considerably indebted to several persons in Great-Britain, and this colony, much more than the value of his personal estate amounted to, all which hath been long since administred and spent in the payment of his said debts; and the several devisees and legatees have been compelled to pay large sums of money, in proportion to the respective devises and legacies to them given in the said will, and particularly the said William Eskridge, one of the devisees, did not only pay several sums of money in part of his proportion of the said debts, but also suffered some part of the slaves so annexed to the tract of land to him given, as aforesaid, to be taken in execution, and sold for payment thereof; and for the payment of some other part of the said debts, the said William Eskridge took up money, upon interest. |
| III. And whereas the said William Eskridge is since dead, leaving issue George Eskridge, his eldest son, and heir at law, since whose death, the said George Eskridge, the grandson, hath been also compelled to pay, and engage to pay other sums of money, in part of his proportion of the debts of the said testator; and actions and suits are now daily brought, to subject the remaining part of the estate of the said testator, in the hands of his devisees, and their representatives, to the payment of debts due from him, the said George Eskridge, the grandson; his proportion of which, together with what sums have been paid, and engaged to be paid, by his said father William Eskridge, and himself, will amount to the full value of the slaves so annexed to the tract of land, given to the said William Eskridge, as aforesaid; which said slaves are liable to be taken in execution for the payment thereof: | |
| IV. And whereas the said tract of land will become of little or no value to the said George Eskridge, the grandson, and unimprovable in case the said slaves shall be taken in execution, and sold, for payment of the said debts; and the said George Eskridge, the grandson, is willing that part of the said tract of land should be disposed of, for payment of the said debts, so that the said slaves may be reserved for the improvement and cultivation of the residue of the said land, and go and descend with the same: | |
| V. And whereas notice hath been published three Sundays successively, in the several parish churches where the said tract of land doth lie, that application would be made, by the said George Eskridge, the grandson, to this General Assembly, for leave to sell and dispose of the said tract of land, or some part thereof, pursuant to your majesty's instructions: Therefore, for enabling the said George Eskridge to pay his proportionable part of the debts of his said grandfather, and to the end the slaves so as aforesaid annexed to the said land, may be preserved to the said George Eskridge, the grandson, and the heirs of his body, in cultivating the remaining part thereof; | |
| VI. May it please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said George Eskridge, that it |
| may be enacted, And be it enacted, by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority of the same, That from and after the passing of this act, it shall and may be lawful to and for the said George Eskridge, the grandson, and in case of his death his executors or administrators, and he and they are hereby severally impowered, to sell, to any person or persons who shall be willing to purchase the same, any part of the said tract of seven hundred acres of land, not exceeding three hundred and fifty acres; and that the said George Eskridge, the grandson, or in case of his death, his executors or administrators, shall and may, and he and they are further impowered, to make and execute all deeds and conveyances, necessary in the law, for assuring unto any purchaser or purchasers, a good estate, in fee simple, in the part of the said tract of land so to be sold: And such purchaser and purchasers, by virtue of such deeds and conveyances, shall, for ever after, peaceably and quietly hold and enjoy the said lands so respectively by them purchased, to them, and their heirs, for ever; and the money paid by such purchaser or purchasers, shall be applied towards the payment and discharge of the said George Eskridge, the grandson, his proportionable part of the debts of the said testator, and reimbursing him what money hath already been advanced by him, or his said father William Eskridge. | |
| VII. And be it further enacted, That the remaining part of the said slaves unsold, together with all their future increase, shall continue annexed to, and go an descend with the residue of the said tract of land, in fee tail, according to the limitations in the will of the said testator. | |
| VIII. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, and unto all and every other person or persons, bodies politic or corporate, their heirs and successors, other than the persons claiming under the last will and testament of the said George Eskridge, deceased, their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, all such right, title, interest, claim, and demand whatsoever, of, in, and to any part of the said land herein before described, as they, or any of them had, should, or might have had, if this act had never been made. |
| IX. Provided always, That the execution of this act shall be suspended, until his majesty's approbation thereof shall be obtained. | ||
| CHAP. XXIX. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS Thomas Todd, late of the county of Gloucester, gentleman, was, in his life time, seised, in fee, of and in divers large tracts of land, and among others, of one certain tract or parcel of land in the said county, situate, lying and being near the north river bridge, containing six hundred acres, with the appurtenances; and being so thereof seised, did make his last will and testament, in writing, bearing date the fourth day of March, in the year of our lord one thousand seven hundred and twenty two, and thereby amongst other things, devised the same unto his grandson, Bernard Todd, the son of Richard Todd, and to the heirs male of his body lawfully to be begotten; and for want of such heirs male, then to his grandson William Todd, son of the said Richard, and to the heirs male of his body lawfully to be begotten; and for want of such heirs male, to the next son in his said son Richard's right line; and for want of such heirs male, in the right line of his said son Richard, then to the right heirs of his son William; and for want of such heirs male in the right line of his said son William, then to the right heirs of his son Philip; and for want of such heirs male in the right line of his said son Philip, then to his son Christopher, and to his heirs male, lawfully to be begotten; and for want of such heirs male of the bodies of any of his said sons, then to the heirs female of his said sons, each of them to inherit and take, as the heirs male of his said sons would have done, had there been any; and for want of issue of any of his said sons, then to his right heirs, forever: | Entail of certain lands in Gloucester, of the estate of Thomas Todd, docked. |
| And some time after the making the said will, the said Thomas Todd died, so seised, after whose death, and the death of his said grandsons Bernard and William Todd, without issue, Thomas Todd, eldest son and heir at law to William Todd, son and devisee of the said Thomas Todd, the testator, entered into the said land, and is thereof seised, in fee tail, by force of the remainder expressed in the said will. | |
| II. And whereas the said Thomas Todd, eldest son and heir at law, as aforesaid is also seised and possessed of divers other entailed lands, by virtue of the said will, and not being able to cultivate and improve the same, for want of Negroes: and whereas it will be greatly to the advantage not only of the said Thomas Todd, but all other persons claiming in reversion or remainder under the last will and testament of the said Thomas Todd, the grandfather, that the said six hundred acres of land, with the appurtenances, should be sold, and the monies arising thereby, applied in purchasing slaves, to be annexed to the other entailed lands, mentioned in the last will and testament of the said Thomas Todd, the gradfather: And forasmuch as notice has been given in the parish church wherein the said entailed land lies, that application would be made to this present General Assembly, to dock the entail of the said six hundred acres of land; | |
| III. May it please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said Thomas Todd, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and by the authority of the same, That the said six hundred acres of land, with the appurtenances, be, and are hereby vested in George Braxton, junior, Richard Tunstal, Mordecai Throgmorton, Benjamin Hubbard, and William Bird Richards, gentlemen, in trust; and they or any three of them, shall be, and are hereby authorised and enabled to sell and convey, to any person or persons willing to purchase the same, and for the best price that can be got, the said six hundred acres of land with the appurtenances, and to execute deeds or conveyances, necessary in the law, for assuring unto such purchaser or purchasers, a good estate in fee simple, in the said land so to be purchased; and such purchaser or purchasers shall afterwards, for ever peaceably and quietly have, hold, and enjoy the |
| land so purchased, to them, their heirs and assigns, for ever: | ||
| IV. And be it further enacted, That the monies arising by such sale, shall be, by the said trustees, laid out, as soon as conveniently may be, in the purchase of negro slaves, two thirds of the slaves to be female; which slaves so purchased, shall be forthwith placed and settled upon the residue of the lands of the said testator, so as aforesaid devised; and the said trustees shall deliver in the names and number of such slaves so to be placed and settled, with an account of the purchase money thereof, into the court of the said county of Gloucester, there to be recorded; and for ever afterwards, all the said slaves and their increase, shall be annexed to the remaining entailed lands, and shall pass in descent, remainder, and reversion, to such person and persons, and for such estate or estates, as the said remaining entailed lands shall or may pass and descend, by force of the said last will and testament of the said Thomas Todd, the grandfather. | ||
| V. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successors, and to all and every person and persons, bodies politic and corporate, their respective heirs and successors, other than the persons claiming under the last will and testament of the said Thomas Todd, the grandfather, all such right, title, estate, interest claim, and demand, as they, every, or any of them, should or might claim, if this act had never been made. | ||
| VI. Provided always, That the execution of this act shall be suspended, till his majesty's approbation thereof shall be obtained. | ||
| CHAP. XXX. | ||
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| I. WHEREAS John Smith, late of the parish of Petsworth, in the county of Gloucester, gentleman, deceased, was in his life time, seised, in fee | Entail of certain lands in Gloucester of |
| simple, of and in divers considerable tracts of land, and among others, of and in one certain tract or parcel, commonly called and known by the name of Cheescake, containing, by estimation, twelve hundred and fifty acres, lying and being in the said parish of Petsworth, and county of Gloucester; and being so thereof seised, by his last will and testament, in writing, bearing date the tenth day of May, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and thirty five, did give and devise the same, together with all the remainder and residue of his estate, real and personal, not before therein given or devised, unto Anne Alexander, during her natural life, and after her decease, unto Henry Willis, and his heirs; and in case he should die without heir, then to John Willis, his heirs or assigns, for ever, as by the said will, duly proved in the county court of Gloucester, may more at large appear, and died so seised; after whose death, and the death of the said Anne Alexander, the aforesaid Henry Willis entered into the premises, with the appurtenances, to him devised, and is now thereof seised. | the estate of John Smith, docked. |
| II. And whereas the said devised lands in the county of Gloucester, lie very remote from the other estate and place of abode of the said Henry Willis, so as to be inconvenient and of little benefit to him; and for want of a competent number of slaves thereon, the same must lie without cultivation or improvement, unless the said twelve hundred and fifty acres of land may be sold, and the monies arising thereby, applied in purchasing slaves, to be annexed to the residue of the lands devised to him, as aforesaid, which will be more beneficial to those claiming in reversion or remainder under the will aforesaid: And forasmuch as due notice has been published in the church of the said parish, that application would be made to this present General Assembly, to dock the entail of the said twelve hundred and fifty acres of land, called Cheescake, pursuant to your most majesty's instructions. | |
| III. May it please your most excellent majesty, at the humble suit of the said Henry Willis, that it may be enacted, And be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor, Council, and Burgesses, of this present General Assembly, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the said tract or parcel of land, with the |
| appurtenances, commonly called or known by the name of Cheescake, containing by estimation, twelve hundred and fifty acres, and being parcel of other lands so as aforesaid devised, by the last will and testament of the said John Smith, be, and is hereby vested in Francis Willis, John Lewis, Beverley Whiting, Francis Willis, junior, Samuel Buckner, and David Alexander, gentlemen, in trust; and they, or any four of them, shall be, and are hereby authorised and enabled, to sell and convey, to any person or persons willing to purchase the same, and for the best price that can be got, the said twelve hundred and fifty acres of land above described, either together or in parcels, and to execute deeds or conveyances necessary in the law, for assuring unto such purchaser or purchasers, a good estate, in fee-simple, in the lands so to be purchased; and such purchaser or purchasers shall afterwards, for ever, peaceably and quietly have, hold, and enjoy the land so purchased, to them, their heirs, and assigns, for ever. | |
| IV. And be it further enacted, That the monies arising by such sale, shall be, by the said trustees, laid out, as soon as conveniently may be, in the purchase of negro slaves, which shall be forthwith placed and settled upon the residue of the lands of the said testator, so as aforesaid devised; and the said trustees shall deliver in the names and number of such slaves so to be placed and settled, with an account of the purchase-money thereof, into the court of the said county of Gloucester, there to be recorded: and for ever afterwards, all the said slaves, and their increase, shall be annexed to the said last mentioned lands and premises, and shall pass in descent, remainder, and reversion, so long as they, or any of them, shall be living, with the said last mentioned lands, and for ever after shall, from time to time, vest in the person or persons claiming and holding the same, under the last will and testament of the said John Smith. | |
| V. Saving to the king's most excellent majesty, his heirs and successors, and to all and every other person and persons, bodies politic or corporate, their heirs and successors, other than the heirs of the said John Smith, and the persons claiming under his will, all such right, title, estate, interest, claim, and demand, as |
| they, or any of them, should or might claim, if this act had never been made. | |
| VI. Provided always, That the execution of this act shall be suspended, till his majesty's approbation thereof be first obtained. |
| Pages 364-382
| Pages 401-415
|