Journal, October 1747: Volume 55

Journal, October 1747

Wednesday, October 14. Present:—Lord Monson, Mr. Plumer, Lord Dupplin.

New York.

The draught of a letter to his Grace the Duke of Newcastle, transmitting copies of two letters from Mr. Clinton, Governor of New York, ordered to be prepared by yesterday's minutes, was laid before the Board, agreed to, transcribed and signed.

Jamaica.

The draught of a letter to his Grace the Duke of Newcastle, transmitting the copy of one from Mr. Trelawney, Governor of Jamaica, as also a minute of Council, inclosed therein, ordered to be prepared by yesterday's minutes, was laid before the Board, agreed to, transcribed and signed.

South Carolina.

Read and Act, passed in the province of South Carolina in June last, entituled, An Act to impower two Justices and three Freeholders, or a majority of them, to determine in all Actions of Debt where the Matter in Dispute doth exceed Twenty Pounds Current Money, which is now equal to Four Pounds Proclamation Money, and is not more than Seventy five Pounds Current Money, which is equal to fifteen pounds Proclamation Money, which was received without any letter, and ordered the same to be sent to Mr. Lamb, for his opinion thereon, in point of law.

Tuesday, October 20. Present:—Lord Monson, Mr. Plumer.

Jamaica.

Read a letter from Mr. Trelawney, Governor of Jamaica, to the Board, dated the 14th of July, 1747, containing his reasons for the removal of Rose Fuller, Esquire, with a proposal for appointing a Chief Justice from England.

Read two letters from Mr. Trelawney, Governor of Jamaica, the first, dated August 9th, 1747, transmitting Naval Officer's lists of shipping that have entered and cleared there from September, 1743, to the 25th of June last. The other, dated the 22nd of

July, 1747, transmitting duplicates of the laws passed there in May, 1746, also minutes of Council and of Assembly.

Massachusets.

Read a letter from Mr. Willard, Secretary of the province of the Massachusets Bay, to the Secretary of this Board, dated at Boston, the 8th of June, 1747, transmitting the following publick papers, viz.:—
Minutes of Council, from March, 1745–6 to February, 1746–7.
Minutes of Assembly, from May, 1746, to February, 1746–7.
Nine Acts, passed at Boston, in November, 1746, and January and February following.

Ordered that the said Acts be sent to Mr. Lamb, for his opinion thereon, in point of law.

South Carolina.

Read a letter from Mr. Collecton, one of the Council in South Carolina, dated at Exmouth in Devonshire, the 29th of August, 1747, signifying his design to return to that province by the first safe conveyance, in answer to a letter from the Secretary of this Board upon the subject, mentioned in the minutes of the 6th of August last.

Read a petition of George Morley, Esquire, Provost Marshal of the province of South Carolina, and of James Wedderburn, Esquire, clerk of his Majesty's Court of Common Pleas in the said province, on behalf of themselves and others the officers and ministers of the said Court against an Act, passed there in June, 1747, impowering two Justices and three Freeholders to determine small Suits; and agreed to consider the same as soon as the Act, mentioned in said petition, shall be received from Mr. Lamb.

Read the four following reports from Mr. Lamb, viz.:—
New York.
Report upon eight Acts, passed in New York, in 1746. Dated September 24, 1747.
New Jersey.
Report upon an Act, passed in New Jersey, in 1745. Dated 24th September, 1747.
Antigua.
Report upon two Acts, passed in Antigua, 1746. Dated 24th September, 1747.
North Carolina.
Report upon an Act, passed in North Carolina, in 1746. Dated September 25th, 1747.

Jamaica.

At the request of Mr. Sharpe, agent for the Island of Jamaica, the Board took into consideration An Act, passed in the Island of Jamaica in 1746, entituled. An Act to intitle Anne Johnson, a free Mulatto Woman, the reputed daughter of John Johnson, of the Parish of St. Catherine's, Planter, late deceased, and her son Thomas Wightwick, to the same Right and Priviledges with English Subjects born of White Parents, and ordered a representation to his Majesty to be prepared for confirming the same.

Thursday, October 22. Present:—Mr. Plumer, Mr. Pitt, Lord Dupplin.

Jamaica.

The draught of a representation to his Majesty upon a private Act, passed in Jamaica, in May, 1746, ordered to be prepared by yesterday's minutes, was laid before the Board, agreed to, trascribed and signed.

Trade.

Malta.

The Board took into consideration the letter from the Duke of Newcastle, relating to the appointment of a consul at Malta, mentioned in the minutes of the 20th of August last, and ordered the Secretary to write to such of the merchants as trade to those parts, to desire their attendance at this Board on Tuesday next, at twelve o'clock, in order to have some discourse with them on the subject of the said letter.

Tuesday, October 27. Present:—Mr. Plumer, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Leveson Gower, Lord Dupplin.

Trade.

Malta.

Mr. Samuel Tatem.

Mr. Thomas Godfrey.

Mr. Longuet.

Mr. Hunter for Mr. Samuel Porteen.

The merchants attending, as desired by the minutes of Thursday last, the Board, after hearing what they had to say upon the subject of the Duke of Newcastle's letter, relating to the appointment of a consul at Malta, ordered the draught of a letter to his Grace the Duke of Newcastle thereupon to be prepared.

Virginia.

Read the petition of Beverley Randolph, Esquire, praying to have copies of any petition or representation that have been, or may be laid before the Board for their confirmation of two Acts, passed in Virginia, in 1699 and 1705, which related to the old Capitol there, lately burnt down, and that they may be heard at the Board against the same.

Agreed to take the said petition into the consideration, when any application shall be made for the confirmation of the said Acts.

Wednesday, October 28. Present:—Mr. Plumer, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Leveson Gower, Lord Dupplin.

New Hampshire.

The Right Honourable Henry Fox, Esquire, his Majesty's Secretary at War, being present, to whom and to this Board his Majesty had, by his Order in Council, dated 15th of January, 1746, been pleased to refer the memorial and petition of the Council of the province of New Hampshire, relating to the expences they have been at in assisting to take Cape Breton and its dependencies, and to direct them to meet and examine into the demands made by the said province in this affair, and to adjust and liquidate the same; The said Order, as likewise the account of the said expences, laid before the Board by the agent of the province, having been read, Mr. Tomlinson, agent for the said province, attending, he was called in, and after some time spent in consideration of said accounts, directions were given that the accounts and the vouchers for the same should be examined with the said agent, and laid before the Board at their next meeting.

New Hampshire.

Read a letter from Sir Dudley Ryder, his Majesty's Attorney General, dated 28th October, 1747, to the Secretary, desiring that all such papers in this office, as relate to the Assembly of the province of New Hampshire's refusing to admit the representatives of five new towns (chosen by his Majesty's writ) to vote in the choice of a Speaker, may be sent to him, to enable him to make his report upon that affair, referred to him by order of the Board, the 14th of January last.

Ordered that the Secretary do transmit to him such papers as can be found in this office, relative to the affair.