Pages 199-225 
|  Pages 250-266
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| Pages 199-225
| Pages 250-266
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| CHAP. XXVI. | |||
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[Chan. Rev. p. 45.] | ||
| I. WHEREAS the perpetuation of property in certain families, by means of gifts made to them in fee taille, is contrary to good policy, tends to deceive fair traders, who give a credit on the visible possession of such estates, discourages the holder thereof from taking care and improving the same, and sometimes does injury to the morals of youth, by rendering them independent of and disobedient to their parents; and whereas the former method of docking such estates taille by special act of assembly, formed for every particular case, employed very much of the time of the legislature, and the same, as well as the method of defeating such estates, when of small value, was burthensome to the publick, and also to individuals: | Preamble. | ||
| II. Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That any person who now hath, or hereafter may have, any estate in fee taille, general or special, in any lands or slaves in possession, or in the use or trust of any lands or slaves in possession, or who now is or hereafter may be entitled to any such estate taille in reversion or remainder, after the determination of any estate for life or lives, or of any lesser estate, whether such estate taille hath been or shall be created by deed, will, act of assembly, or by any other ways or means, shall from henceforth, or from the commencement of such estate taille, stand ipso facto seized, possessed, or entitled of, in, or to such lands or slaves, or sue in lands or slaves, so held or to be held as aforesaid, in possession, reversion, or remainder, in full and absolute fee simple, in like manner as if such deed, will, act of assembly, or other instrument, had conveyed the same to him in fee simple; any words, limitations, or conditions, in the said deed, will, act of assembly, or other instrument, to the contrary notwithstanding. | Tenants in taille, to hold their estates in fee-simple. | ||
| III. Saving to all and every person and persons, bodies politick and corporate, other than the issue in taille, and those in reversion and remainder, all such | Saving certain rights. |
| right, title, interest, and estate, claim, and demand, as they, every, or any of them, could or might claim if this act had never been made; and saving also to such issue in taille, and to those in reversion and remainder, any right or title which they may have acquired by their own contract for good and valuable consideration actually and bona fide paid or performed. | ||
 CHAP. XXVII. | ||
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| FOR fixing the places of holding courts for the counties of Stafford and King George, Be it enacted, by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the justices to be named in the commission of the peace for the said counties of Stafford and King George respectively shall meet for the said county of Stafford at the courthouse of the said county, on the second Monday in February next, and for the said county of King George at the courthouse of the said county, on the first Thursday in February next; and having taken the oath required by an ordinance of convention, and administered the oath of office to, and taken bonds, according to law, of the respective counties, at, or as near the centre thereof, as the situation and convenience of the respective counties will admit of, and shall thenceforth proceed to erect the necessary publick buildings for such counties at such places respectively, and shall also appoint such places for holding courts, until such buildings shall be completed, as they shall think fit. | Places for holding courts, in Stafford and King George how fixed. | |
| Provided always, That the appointments of the places for holding courts, for either of the counties aforesaid, shall not be made unless a majority of the justices for such counties be present, where such majority shall |
| have been prevented from attending by bad weather, or accidental rise of water courses; and in all such cases, the appointment aforesaid shall be postponed until the then next court days, and so on from court day to court day until such obstacles shall be removed. | ||
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the courts of the said counties shall have power to adjourn themselves to such places as they shall appoint; and after the publick buildings aforesaid shall be erected for the said counties, at the places to be appointed as aforesaid, the courts for the said counties shall thenceforth be held at such places. | ||
| CHAP. XXVIII. | ||
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| WHEREAS the vestry of the parish of Westover, in the county of Charles City, did some years ago purchase a tract of land, and cause to be erected thereon proper houses for lodging, maintaining, and employing such poor people as were upon the parish, which, from experience, hath been found burthensome, and not to answer the purposes thereby intended: | Vestry of Westover parish, in Charles City authorised to sell their lands; on which poorhouse erected. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That the vestry of the said parish of Westover be, and they are hereby empowered to sell and dispose of the said tract of land, with the appurtenances, for the best price that can be had for the same; and that they, or a majority of them, shall convey the said land to the purchaser in fee simple, and apply the money arising from the sale thereof for and towards the supporting the poor of the said parish. |
| CHAP. XXIX. An act for altering the place of holding courts in the county of Halifax. | |
| WHEREAS it is represented to this general assembly, that the present situation of the courthouse in the county of Halifax is inconvenient to the inhabitants thereof, and ought to be removed to some other place, as near the centre as may be, and it appearing that there is a convenient situation for such courthouse, with the other necessary buildings, on the land of John Boram, and his is desirous that the said publick buildings should be erected thereon: | Courthouse &c. of Halifax county removed. |
| For remedy herein, Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That the justices of the said county of Halifax shall provide for building, as soon as may be, a courthouse, prison, pillory, and stocks, at some convenient place on the land of John Boram, lying on the south side of Banister river, in the said county; and that, after such buildings shall be completed, a court for the said county shall be constantly held at such place. | |
| And for the greater conveniency of the inhabitants in repairing to elections, Be it farther enacted by the authority aforesaid, That from and after the passing of this act all elections which by law are required to be held at the courthouse, and all courts martial shall be made and held at some convenient place on the lands of the said Boram, until such new courthouse shall be built, in the same manner as such elections and courts martial were by law directed to be made and held heretofore at the courthouse, any law or usage to the contrary notwithstanding. |
| CHAP. XXX. | ||
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| WHEREAS Peter Eppes, gentleman, was, by commission from the late governour, appointed sheriff of the county of Prince George, and having taken the oath directed to be taken by sheriffs by an ordinance of the last convention, hath continued to act in the said office until the twenty fifth day of October last past, when his authority ceased, according to the direction of the said ordinance, but before that time the said sheriff had received a warrant from the speaker of the house of delegates for the election of a delegate to serve for the said county, in the room of Peter Poythress, esq. who had resigned, and had appointed a day, and summoned the freeholders to make such election, since which it is become necessary to elect another member for the said county, in the room of Richard Bland, esq. deceased both which elections will be disappointed, as the said sheriff's authority is expired, and another cannot be qualified in time unless a speedy remedy is provided: | The late sheriff of Prince George authorised to hld an election for delegates, not withstanding his sheriffalty has expired. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That the said Peter Eppes, or his deputy, shall and may proceed to take the poll on the day already appointed for the election of one delegate, and to appoint the time for and to proceed to the election of another for the said county, and return the members respectively chosen, in the same manner as he might have done before the expiration of his said office. |
| CHAP. XXXI. | ||
| ||
| WHEREAS, by the burning of the borough of Norfolk, the courthouse of the county was destroyed, and the place where it stood will be much exposed to the attacks of the enemy in case they should return, which, together with the dispersed state of the inhabitants of the said county, hath prevented the rebuilding the said courthouse, by means whereof the justices of the said county have been hindered from holding courts at the usual place, and only one court hath been held for the said county since the court house was so burnt, and that not at the courthouse, and without a writ of adjournment, whereby doubts have arisen whether the said justices have power to build a temporary courthouse at any other place, and whether the proceedings of the court last held are valid: | Preamble, reciting the burning of Norfolk. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That it shall and may be lawful for the justices of the said county, after publick notice given, to meet and agree upon a proper place for erecting a temporary courthouse, and to appoint some person or persons to agree with an undertaker for performance of such work, and the expense thereof shall by the court of the said county be levied and assessed on the inhabitants thereof, in the same manner as other claims against the county are by law directed to be levied and assessed. | Justices of Norfolk authorised to erect a temporary court house. | |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the justices of the said county shall have full power and authority to hold courts at the courthouse so to be erected, and to hear and determine all matters cognizable before them; and until such courthouse can be erected, it shall and may be lawful for the said justices to hold courts for the said county at such convenient place as they shall appoint, and to hear and determine all matters cognizable before them without the formality | In the mean time may hold courts any where. |
| of a writ of adjournment, and shall have power to adjourn from the place so appointed to the said courthouse, when the same shall be erected, without suing out a writ of adjournment; any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in any wise notwithstanding. | |
| And be it farther enacted, That the sheriff of the said county shall cause publick notice to be given of the place appointed by the said justices for holding courts, until such courthouse shall be built. | Notice of place to be given by sheriff. |
| And be it farther enacted, That the proceedings of the court last held for the said county shall be, and they are hereby declared to be as valid, and of as full force, as if the said court had been held at the usual place. | Proceedings of court last held, declared valid. |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That it shall and may be lawful for the said justices, at the first or second court by them hereafter held, to appoint persons to take the list of tithables in the said county for this present year; and the persons so appointed shall give publick notice of their appointment, and shall attend at the place appointed, and make return of their respective list at the next court to be held for the said county after their appointment. | Court to appoint persons to take lists of tithables. |
| And be it farther enacted, That all masters or mistresses of families, and in case of their non-residence on the plantation, the overseer thereof, shall give in and deliver to the person appointed to take the list of tithables in the precinct where such master, mistress, or overseer, shall reside, a list of the names and number of all the tithable persons belonging to or abiding in his or her family at the time of making out such list, under the like penalties as is by law inflicted on persons failing to give in their list of tithables. | Lists, how given in. |
| And be it farther enacted, That the justices of the said court, and vestries of the parishes in the said county, shall lay their levies for the present agreeable to the list of tithables so to be taken. | Levies to be laid. |
| And whereas, by the destruction of the said borough, and the dispersed state of its inhabitants as aforesaid, it may be inconvenient that elections for the choice of a delegate to represent the same should be made in the said borough, Be it therefore enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That for all such future elections it shall and may be lawful for the mayor, or in case of his absence, or refusal to act, the senior alderman for the time being, clerk of the said borough court, or sheriff of the county of Norfolk, as the case may be, and they are | Elections in Norfolk, how to be held. |
| hereby authorised and required, to appoint some convenient time and place for such elections, and shall publish notice thereof, and proceed to the election of such delegate, in the same manner as is by law directed for the election of other delegates, and shall make return under the like regulations and penalties; any law, custom, ordinance, or usage, to the contrary thereof, notwithstanding. | |||
| CHAP. XXXII. | |||
|
[Chan. Rev. p. 46'] | ||
| I. WHEREAS it is represented to this present general assembly, that publick ferries, at the places hereafter mentioned, will be of great advantage to travellers and others: | |||
| II. Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That publick ferries be constantly kept at the following places, and the rates for passing the same shall be as follows, that is to say: From the land of David Brandon, in the county of Halifax, over Dan river, to the land of John Lawson, on the opposite shore, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the land of John Boyd, in the said county of Halifax, over Dan river, to the land of Patrick Boyd, on the opposite shore, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the land of Henry Trent, in the county of Amherst, over the Fluvannah river, to the land of Nicholas Davies, on the opposite shore, in the county of Bedford, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the point of the fork of the Rivannah and Fluvannah rivers, across the said Fluvannah, to the lands late the property of Philip Mayo, deceased, on the south side thereof, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the said point of fork across the said river, to the lands of Samuel Martin, | New ferries established. Rates for man and horse. |
| on the north side thereof, in the county of Albemarle, the price for a man two pence, and for a horse the same; from the lands of Samuel Martin, across the mouths of the two rivers Fluvannah and Rivannah, to the lands late the property of the said Philip Mayo, on the south side of the said Fluvannah, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the lands of William Cannon, across the said Fluvannah river, to the lands of Walter King, the price for a man three pence, and for a horse the same; from the lands of Jacob Bousman, across the Monongehela river, to the town of Pittsburg, the price for a man four pence halfpenny, and for a horse the same; from the publick landing at the town of Port Royal, in the county of Caroline, across Rappahannock river, to the lands of Francis Conway, the price for a man three pence three farthings, and for a horse the same, the keeping of which last mentioned ferry, and emoluments arising therefrom, are hereby given and granted to James Bowie the younger, his heirs or assigns, so long as he or they shall well and faithfully keep the same according to the directions of this act. | |
| III. Provided always, That the said James Bowie, his heirs or assigns, shall set over the said ferry all such foot passengers as may incline to cross without demanding or receiving any ferriage for the same. | Bowie's ferry at Port Royal, free for foot passengers. |
| IV. And for the transportation of wheel carriages, tobacco, cattle, and other beasts, at any of the places aforesaid, the ferry keeper may demand and take the following rates, that is to say: For every coach, chariot, or waggon, and the driver thereof, the same as for six horses; for every cart or four wheeled chaise and the driver thereof, the same as for four horses; for every two wheeled chaise, or chair, the same as for two horses; for every hogshead of tobacco as for one horse; for every head of neat cattle, as for one horse; for every sheep, goat, or lamb, one fifth part of the ferriage for one horse; and for every hog, one fourth part to the ferriage for one horse, according to the prices herein before settled at such ferries respectively, and no more. | Rates for carriages, &c. |
| V. And if any ferry keeper shall presume to demand or receive, from any person or persons whatsoever, any greater rates than is hereby allowed for the carriage or ferriage of any thing whatsoever, he or they, for every such offence, shall forfeit and pay to the party grieved the ferriages demanded or received, and ten shillings; | Penalty for exceeding legal rates. |
| to be recovered, with costs, before any justice of the peace of the county where such offence shall be committed. | |||
| VI. And where a ferry is by this act appointed on one side of a river, and none on the other side answerable thereto, it shall and may be lawful for the respective county courts to appoint an opposite ferry, and to allow the respective rates herein before directed, and such courts shall and may, and are hereby required to order and direct what boat or boats, and what number of hands, shall be kept at each ferry respectively; and every such ferry keeper shall enter into bond, in the manner directed by an act of assembly intituled "An act for the settlement and regulation of ferries, and for despatch of publick expresses," and shall be liable to the penalties thereby inflicted for any neglect or omission of their duty. | County courts may appoint opposite ferries, &c. | ||
| VII. And whereas the publick ferry from the land of William Roberts, across the Dan river, to the land of Henry Gaines, hath been found inconvenient: Be it therefore farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the said ferry shall henceforth be discontinued. | A ferry discontinued. | ||
| CHAP. XXXIII. | |||
|
[Chan. Rev. p. 46.] | ||
| I. WHEREAS it is found necessary that publick storehouses, for the reception of naval stores, be established at Cave's warehouse, near the head of Potowmack creek, in the county of Stafford, to be under the care and direction of such person as shall be appointed by the commissioners of the navy. | |||
| II. Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the
commonwealth of Virginia, That it shall and may be lawful for any two justices of peace in
the county of Stafford, and they are hereby required, to issue their precept to the sheriff of
the said county, commanding |
Publick storehouses established at Cave's warehouse, on
Potowmack creek, for reception of naval stores. |
| him to summon a jury of the neighbourhood, to meet the justices at the warehouses called Cave's, on such day as shall be appointed for that purpose, which jury, being sworn to do impartial justice on the occasion, shall view and examine one acre of land whereon the warehouses aforesaid stand, and value the same exclusive of the said warehouses. And the said justices shall certify and return the inquisition of the jury to the court of the said county, there to be recorded, and shall give to the proprietor of the land a certificate of the valuation, who shall thereupon receive from the treasurer of this commonwealth the amount thereof, deducting what such proprietor shall formerly have received from the publick for the use of the said land for a publick warehouse; and thereafter the said acre of land shall be vested in the governour of this commonwealth and his successours, for the use of the publick. And the commissioners to the navy, may either cause proper houses to be built thereon, at the publick expense, for the reception and safe keeping of the naval stores and materials for ship building, and appoint a proper person to take care of the houses and stores, or may let the said acre of land to any person or persons for the purposes of building and keeping such storehouses thereon, and contract with them for the receipt, safe keeping, and delivery of such stores and materials, as they shall judge most for the publick good; but, in either case, the person contracted with shall not interfere with the publick warehouses already built or to be built on the said acre of land for the reception of tobacco, or hinder the free egress to the same for delivering, inspecting, and carrying away tobacco. | Land vested in commonwealth. |
| CHAP. XXXIV. | ||
| ||
| WHEREAS certain lead mines in the county of Montgomery, formerly Fincastle, belonging to the hon. William Byrd, esq. and the estates of John Robinson and John Chiswell, esquires, have been for some time past worked on the publick account, to great advantage, and it is judged that the said works may be carried on to a still greater extent for the production of lead, so necessary at this time for the continent in general, as well as this country in particular: | Preamble, reciting that the lead mines had been worked by the public to great advantage. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That it shall and may be lawful for the goverour, or in case of his death, sickness, or necessary absence, the person who acts as president of the council, by and with the advice of the council, by hire or purchase, from time to time to engage so many slaves, servants, or others, and employ them at the said mines for making lead for the use of the publick, as they shall judge may be beneficially employed therein, to continue the persons so to be engated under the present or any other manager, as to them shall seem best, and to draw on the treasurer for all sums of money which may be necessary for the purpose aforesaid, which he is empowered and required to pay out of the publick money in his hands. | Governor authorised to extend the operations. | |
| And be it farther enacted, That the governour and council shall and may direct the sale of so much of the lead so to be made as can be spared from the necessary purposes of this commonwealth, in the first place to and for the use of the United States, or any sister state; or if they do not want to purchase the same, to any other person or persons willing to purchase, directing regular accounts as well of the disposition of the lead as the disbursments in making the same to be kept, and laid before the general assembly when required. | May dispose of surplus lead to U. States, or sister states. | |
| Provided always, and be it farther enacted, That a reasonable annual rent, to be settled between the governour and council and the proprietors, shall be paid | Compensation to proprietors, how settled. |
| to them for the use of the said mines; and that if the said proprietors shall incline to work the same themselves, and will engage to deliver, for the use of the publick, one hundred tuns of lead annually, at the price of thirty three pounds six shillings and eight pence per tun, that then, and from thenceforth, the governour and council shall have no power to continue any hands thereon, or intermeddle therewith, so long as the proprietors shall continue to perform such contract. | ||
| CHAP. XXXV. | ||
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| WHEREAS it is represented to this present general assembly, that the vestries of the parish of St. James, in the county of Mecklenburg, and of the parish of Amherst, in the county of Amherst, laid the levy of their respective parishes for the year one thousand seven hundred and seventy five in money, without giving the people the alternative of paying the same in tobacco, according to the directions of an act of assembly intituled 'An act to prevent the exorbitant exactions of the collectors of the county and parish levies:' | Parishes of St. James & Amherst, to fix the rate at which the levies may be paid in tobacco. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That the vestries of the parish of St. James, and of the parish of Amherst, shall, and they are hereby required to meet at some convenient place in their several parishes by the third day of February next, then and there to fix a rate at which the people of the said parishes shall pay their levies in tobacco. |
| CHAP. XXXVI. | ||
| ||
| WHEREAS it is represented to this present general assembly, that the land in York county formerly purchased for the use of a Vineyard for manufacturing wine, pursuant to an act of assembly passed in the year one thousand seven hundred and sixty nine, intituled 'An act for encouraging the making wine,' is unfit for that purpose, and that the said land, and the slaves who were likewise purchased pursuant to the said act thereon under the management of Mr. Andrew Estave, are become useless, and of no advantage to the publick: | Lands and slaves, in York, purchased for making wine under the direction of Andrew Estave, to be sold. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That Nathaniel Burwell, Benjamin Powell, and John Burwell, gentlemen, or any two of them, be, and they are hereby constituted and appointed commissioners to dispose of the said land and slaves on behalf of the publick; and that the said land, with its appurtenances, and the said slaves, with their increase, be, and the same are hereby vested in the said commissioners, in trust: Nevertheless, that the said commissioners, or any two of them, shall, by deeds of bargain and sale, sell and convey the said land, with the appurtenances, and the said slaves, with their increase, for the best price that can be got for the same, to any person or persons who shall be willing to purchase the said land and slaves, to hold to such purchaser or purchasers, his or their heirs or assigns, for ever. | ||
| And be it farther enacted, That the money arising by the sales of the said land and slaves shall be by the said commissioners paid into the publick treasury, to be appropriated for and towards the contingent charges of government; and that the said commissioners do render a just and true account of such sales to the next general assembly. |
| CHAP. XXXVII. | ||
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| WHEREAS, in pursuance of an act passed at a general assembly begun at James City the sixteenth day of April one thousand six hundred and ninety one, intituled 'An act for ports, &c.' the court of the county of Isle of Wight did purchase of Joseph Bridger fifty acres of land at the mouth of Pagan creek, in the said county, and caused the same to be laid out in a town or port, called by the name of Patesfield, which was vested in trustees, and sundry lots in the said town were by the said trustees sold and conveyed to several purchasers; but the said purchasers soon finding that the said town would not answer the purpose for which it was intended, it being a remote part of the county, and very inconvenient for trade, many of them neglected to improve their lots, others who had built on them removed out of the said town, and many of the lots still remain unsold, and the said town, as such, is now entirely useless to the publick or the said county, and the inhabitants of the said county of Isle of Wight have petitioned this general assembly for an act to vest the lots and streets unsold in trustees, to be sold for the benefit of the said county: | Preamble, reciting establishment of town of Patesfield, in Isle of Wight under the Act for Ports &c. and its partial abandonment. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That such of the lots and streets in the said town of Patesfield as have not been sold and disposed of by the trustees of the said town, and such others as have become forfeited for want of improvement, be, and the same are hereby vested in Brewer Godwin, Richard Hardy, and Henry Pitt, gentlemen, in fee simple, in trust, to be by them sold, as soon as it may conveniently be done, to the highest bidder, and conveyed to the purchaser or purchasers thereof, their heirs and assigns. | Lots unsold and forfeited for non-improvement vested in trustees to be sold. | |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the said trustees shall, as soon as the said sale shall be completed, return an account thereof, and pay the | Proceeds to be paid to county of Isle of Wight |
| money arising therefrom to the court of the county of Isle of Wight, to be by them applied to the use of the county; saving to this state, and to all and every other person and persons, bodies politick and corporate, 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. | |
| CHAP. XXXVIII. An act for dividing the county of Pittsylvania into two distinct counties. | |
| WHEREAS it is represented to this present general assembly, by sundry inhabitants of the county of Pittsylvania, that from the great extent of the county, and their remote situation from the courthouse, they are subject to great inconveniences, and they have petitioned this general assembly for a division of the said county: | Pittsylvania county divided & Henry formed. |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That from and after the last day of December next ensuing the said county of Pittsylvania be divided into two counties, by a line beginning at the mouth of Blackwater, on Staunton river, and running parallel with the line of Halifax county till it strikes the country line, and that all that part of the said county which lies to the westward of the said line shall be one distinct county, and called and known by the name of Henry, and that all the other part thereof which lies to the eastward of the said line shall be one other distinct county, and retain the name of Pittsylvania. | Boundaries. |
| And for the administration of justice in the said county of Henry, Be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That after the said last day of December a court for the said county of Henry be held by the justices thereof upon the third Monday in every month, in such manner as by the laws of this state is provided, and shall be by their commissions directed. | Court days. |
| Provided always, That nothing herein contained shall be construed to hinder the sheriff or collectors of the said county of Pittsylvania, as the same now stands entire and undivided, from collecting and making distress for any publick dues or officers fees which shall remain unpaid by the inhabitants of Henry county at the time of its taking place, but such sheriff or collector shall have the same power to collect or distrain for the said dues and fees, and shall be answerable for them in the same manner, as if this act had never been made; any law, usage, or custom, to the contrary thereof, in any wise notwithstanding. | ||
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the court of the said county of Pittsylvania shall have jurisdiction of all actions and suits, both in law and equity, which shall be depending before them at the time the said division shall take place, and shall and may try and determine all such actions and suits, and issue process and award execution against the body or estate of the defendant or defendants in any such action or suit, in the same manner as if this act had never been made; any law, usage, or custom, to the contrary thereof, notwithstanding. | ||
| CHAP. XXXIX. | ||
| ||
| FOR fixing the places of holding courts in [for] the counties of Pittsylvania and Henry, Be it enacted, by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That the justices to be named in the commission of the peace for the said counties of Pittsylvania and Henry, respectively, shall meet for the said county of Pittsylvania at the house of Richard Farthing, in the said county, on the fourth Thursday in January next, and for the said county of Henry at the house of John Rowlands, on the third Monday in January next, and having taken | Courthouses of Pittsylvania & Henry, how established. |
| the oath required by an ordinance of convention, and administered the oath of office to, and taken bonds according to law of, the respective sheriffs of each of the said courts, may proceed to appoint and qualify a clerk, and to fix upon places for holding courts in their respective counties; at or as near the centre thereof as the situation and convenience of the respective counties will admit of, and shall thenceforth proceed to erect the necessary publick buildings for such counties at such places respectively, and shall also appoint such places for holding courts, until such buildings shall be completed, as they shall think fit. | |
| Provided always, That the appointments of the places for holding courts, and of clerks, for either of the counties aforesaid, shall not be made unless a majority of the justices for such counties be present, where such majority shall have been prevented from attending by bad weather or accidental rise of water courses; and in all such cases the appointment aforesaid shall be postponed until the then next court days, and so on from court day to court day, until such obstacles shall be removed. | |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the courts of the said counties shall have power to adjourn themselves to such places as they shall appoint; and after the publick buildings aforesaid shall be erected for the said counties, at the places to be appointed as aforesaid, the courts for the said counties shall thenceforth be held at such places. | |
| And be it farther enacted, That in all elections to be made for senators to serve in general assembly, the counties of Pittsylvania, Bedford, and Henry, shall be one district. |
| CHAP. XL. | ||
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| WHEREAS the present situation of the counties of Stafford and King George is found to be very inconvenient to the inhabitants of those counties, in respect to their necessary attendance at their respective county courts and general musters, and they have petitioned that a more convenient boundary may be laid off between them: | Preamble. | |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That from and after the first day of January next the said counties of Stafford and King George shall be altered and bounded in the following manner, that is to say: Beginning at the mouth of Muddy creek, on the river Rappahanock, and running up the said creek, and the northwest branch thereof, to a small red oak, maple and persimon trees, at or near the head of the said branch, and between the plantations of Thomas and James Jones, thence north seventy one degrees east twenty five poles to a spring, said to be the head spring of Whipsewaughson creek, thence down the said creek to Potowmack creek, thence down Potowmack creek to Potowmack river, and thence down the said river, pursuing the old bounds of Stafford and King George, until it strikes Rappahanock river, thence up the said river to the beginning, and those parts of the said counties of Stafford and King George, shall be the lower county, and known by the name of King George; and for the upper county, beginning at the mouth of Potowmack creek, and running up the river Potowmack, and along the old bounds of Stafford and King George, until it strikes the river Rappahanock, thence down the river Rappahanock to the mouth of Muddy creek, the beginning of the dividing line, thence along the dividing line to the beginning, and those parts of the said counties of Stafford and King George within the said boundaries, to be known by the name of Stafford. | Boundaries of counties of Stafford & King George altered. |
| Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be construed to hinder the sheriffs or collectors of the said counties of Stafford and King George, as the same now stand, from collecting and making distress for any publick dues and officers fees which shall remain unpaid by the inhabitants of the said counties of Stafford and King George, at the time the said alteration shall take place, but such sheriffs and collectors shall have the same power to collect and distrain for the said dues and fees, and shall be answerable for them in the same manner, as if this act had never been made; any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in any wise notwithstanding. | |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the courts of the said counties of Stafford and King George, respectively, shall have jurisdiction over all actions and suits, both in law and equity, which shall be depending before them at the time the said alteration shall take place, and may try and determine all such actions and suits, and issue process and award execution against the body or estate of the defendant or defendants in any such action or suit, in the same manner as if this act had never been made; any law, custom, or usage, to the contrary thereof, in any wise notwithstanding. | |
| CHAP. XLI. An act to establish Auditors of publick accounts. | |
| FOR the regular settlement of all publick accounts: Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, and it is hereby enacted by the authority of the same, That three commissioners or auditors, be chosen by joint ballot of both houses of Assembly; and the said commissioners or any two of them, having before the governour taken the oath of fidelity to the commonwealth, and also an oath well and truly to execute the duties of their said office, shall have full | Auditors of public accounts, appointed. |
| power and authority, and they are hereby required, from time to time, to examine, state, and settle all accounts which shall be presented to them against the publick for services in or supplies to the army or navy, of the militia when drawn into actual service, and all other demands authorised by law, and to administer oaths when necessary for their satisfaction in the course of such examination, all which accounts shall be so stated as distinctly to show the particular nature of the expense, and when examined and passed shall be certified by two of the said commissioners, who shall enter an alphabetical list of all the accounts so examined and passed, containing the date of the certificate, the name of the claimant, and the balance stated to be due, and shall preserve and keep in alphabetical order all vouchers produced to them in support of such accounts, to the end that the same may be occasionally recurred to with more ease and convenience. And the treasurer of this commonwealth is authorised and required to pay all money so certified to be due to any person or persons, keeping regular and distinct accounts thereof, so as to show the amount of each head of expense; and he shall moreover keep such distinct accounts of all salaries and annuities by him paid to the officers of government, and others, pursuant to any law or resolution of the general assembly, to the end that the annual publick expense may be clearly and distinctly viewed. | Their powers and duties. To state and settle accounts against the state, in relation to the army & navy, &c. |
| And be it farther enacted, That the said commissioners, or two of them, shall in like manner examine, state, and settle the accounts rendered by sheriffs and other collectors of the taxes and duties imposed by law, and certify the same to the treasury, to enable him to receive such taxes or duties, of which receipts the treasurer shall also keep distinct accounts, to show the annual produce of each tax or duty. And each of the said commissioners shall be allowed after the rate of two hundred pounds per annum for his services, to be paid in equal quarterly payments during the term of one year, and from thence to the end of the next session of assembly. | Also, accounts with sheriffs. Their salaries. |
| And be it farther enacted, That if either of the said commissioners shall die, refuse, or be unable to act, the governour, with the advice of the council, shall appoint another fit and able person in his room, who shall have the same power, and be entitled to the like reward, as | Vacancies, how supplied. |
| if he had been chosen as before directed, until the meeting of the general assembly. | |
| CHAP. XLII. An act for establishing a town at the Warm Springs in the county of Berkeley. | |
| WHEREAS it hath been represented to this general assembly, that the laying off fifty acres of land in lots and streets for a town at the Warm Springs, in the county of Berkeley, will be of great utility, by encouraging the purchasers thereof to build convenient houses for accommodating numbers of infirm persons, who frequent those springs yearly, for the recovery of their health: | Preamble. |
| Be it therefore enacted by the General Assembly of the commonwealth of Virginia, That fifty acres of land adjoining the said springs, being part of a larger tract of land, the property of the right honourable Thomas lord Fairfax, or other person or persons holding the same by a grant or conveyance from him, be, and the same is hereby vested in Bryan Fairfax, Thomas Bryan Martin, Warner Washington, the reverend Charles Mynn Thruston, Robert Rutherford, Thomas Rutherford, Alexander White, Philip Pendleton, Samuel Washington, William Ellzey, Van Swearingen, Thomas Hite, James Edmundson, and James Nourse, gentlemen, trustees, to be by them, or any seven of them, laid out into lots of one quarter of an acre each, with convenient streets, which shall be, and the same is hereby established a town, by the name of Bath. | Town of Bath, at Warm Springs in Berkeley county established. |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That so soon as the said fifty acres of land shall be so laid off into lots and streets, the said trustees, or any seven of them, shall proceed to sell the said lots at publick auction for the best price that can be had, the time and place of which sale shall be previously advertised for three months in the Virginia Gazette, the purchasers to hold the said lots respectively subject to the condition | Lots, how sold, conveyed, and improved. |
| of building on each of the said lots a dwelling-house twelve feet square at least, to be finished fit for habitation within twelve months from the day of sale; and the said trustees, or any seven of them, shall, and they are hereby empowered to convey the said lots to the purchasers thereof in fee simple, subject to the condition aforesaid, and pay the money arising from the sale thereof to the said Thomas lord Fairfax, or the person or persons holding the same under him, his or their executors, administrators, or assigns. | |
| And be it farther enacted, That all the said Warm Srpings, except one large and convenient spring suitable for a bath, shall be, and the same are hereby vested in the said trustees, in trust, to and for the publick use and benefit, and for no other purpose whatsoever. | Warm Springs, except one, vested in the trustees. |
| Provided always, and be it farther enacted, That after the said lots and streets shall be laid out as aforesaid, such and so many of the lots, whereon any house or houses already built by the said Thomas lord Fairfax may happen to be, shall not be sold by the said trustees, but shall be and remain to the said lord Fairfax, or his grantees, his or their heirs or assigns, for ever; and it shall and may be lawful for all and every person or persons who may have built any houses upon the lands hereby directed to be laid off into a town, within six months after the same shall be so laid off, to remove or otherwise dispose of the said houses to their own use. | Rights of proprietors in houses already built, saved. |
| And be it farther enacted, That the said trustees, or the major part of them, shall have power from time to time to settle and determine all disputes concerning the bounds of the lots, and to settle and establish such rules and orders for the regular and orderly building of houses thereon as to them shall seem best and convenient; and that in case of the death, removal out of the country, or other legal disability, of any one or more of the trustees before named, it shall and may be lawful for the surviving or remaining trustees to elect and choose so many other persons in the room of those dead or disabled as shall make up the number fourteen, which trustees so chosen shall, to all intents and purposes, be vested with the same powers and authority as any other in this act particularly nominated and appointed. | Power of trustees, as to bounds, building, &c. |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That the purchasers of the lots in the said town, so soon as thy shall have built upon and saved the same according | Privileges of inhabitants. |
| to the conditions of their respective deeds of conveyance, shall then be entitled to, and have and enjoy, all the rights, privileges, and immunities, which the freeholders and inhabitants of other towns in this state not incorporated by charter hold and enjoy. | |
| And be it farther enacted, That if the purchaser of any lot shall fail to build thereon within the time before limited, the said trustees, or the major part of them, may thereupon enter into such lot, and may either sell the same again, and apply the money, or appropriate the lot, or part of it, towards accomodating such infirm persons as may resort to the said springs, and should be so poor as to be unable to accommodate themselves, and so in like manner, as often as any forfeiture shall occur, to the end that a fund may be established on the best foundation which such forfeitures will afford, together with any donations which may be made to the said trustees for aiding the same, to extend the benefit of the said waters to such poor infirm persons. | Effect of failure to improve lots. |
| And be it farther enacted, by the authority aforesaid, That it shall not be lawful for any person or persons, inhabitants of the said town of Bath, owners of any swine, to suffer the same to go at large in the limits of the said town; and if any swine belonging to any inhabitant of the said town shall be found running or going at large within the said limits, it shall and may be lawful for any person whatever to kill and destroy every such swine so running at large. | Swine not to run at large. |
| Provided always, That such person shall not convert any such swine to his or her own use, but shall leave the same where it shall be 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. | Proviso. |
| Provided also, That nothing herein contained shall be deemed or taken to hinder any person or persons from driving any swine to or through the said town, or limits thereof, in order to sell the same, or in their removal from one plantation to another. |
| Pages 199-225
| Pages 250-266
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