176 MINUTES. [April 2, 



MS. copies of laws prior to 1700, in the possession of tlie 

 Society, was received. 



Dr. Hays stated, in connection with Judge Mitchell's letter, 

 that he had a few days ago incidentally called the attention of 

 Dr. Frederick D. Stone to a manuscript volume of laws of 

 the Province of Pennsylvania, passed prior to November, 

 1700, which had been presented to the Society in 1835, by 

 the late Joshua Francis Fisher, Esq. Dr. Stone at once recog- 

 nized that the volume might have a very important bearing 

 on the work of the Commission appointed in 1883 by the 

 State of Pennsylvania to examine and collate, and authorized 

 ■some years later to publish, the complete text of the Statutes 

 at Large of Pennsylvania from the foundation of the Prov- 

 ince, 1^82 to 1801, of which the second volume (the only one 

 yet issued) has just been presented to the Society by the Com- 

 mission. The principal reason why the Commissioners had 

 delayed the printing of the first volume was due to the fact 

 that certain laws, twelve in number, noted in the minutes of 

 the Provincial Council as having been passed prior to l^ovem- 

 ber, 1700, which date was adopted as the starting-point of 

 the second volume, could not be found. Official inquiries 

 made at Harrisburg, and at the Public Kecord office in Lon- 

 don, elicited replies that no such acts were in the possession 

 of the State or of the English Government. Fraitless search 

 was also made at West Chester, at N'ew Castle and at Dover, 

 as certihed copies of the acts, as passed, were then usually 

 sent to the clerks of the several counties. The Penn papers 

 and the early manuscripts in the collection of the Historical 

 Society of Pennsylvania Avere carefully examiiied in vain, and 

 the Secretary of the Commission, Mr. Charles K. Hildeburn, 

 personally made a thorouoli but fruitless search in the Public 

 Eecord Office in London for these missing laws. Of all this 

 Dr. Stone was fully aware, and he at once suggested that the 

 attention of the Commission be called to the volume shown 

 him. 



Mr. Justice Mitchell, the Chairman of the Commission, 

 and Secretary Hildeburn, upon being informed of the exist- 



