1838] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



713 



injj be pniil (five thousand pounds of tobacco out 

 of the publicjue levie." — p. 487. 



The exportation of hides, iron and wool, was 

 ibrbidden under heavy penalties at this session. 

 The exportation of mates and sheep had been 

 forbidden some time previous. It is surprising 

 how long a time was required, and through what 

 a course of Io.'Js and itijurious experiments, for our 

 ancestors, and the rest of the world, to learn the 

 truth of the simple maxim of political economy, that 

 to encourage the production of commodities, it is 

 best not to restrict their sale, or circumscribe their 

 market. 



Two more silk laws were passed at tlie session 

 of 1658—9. 



"Whereas the act for mulberrie trees seemes 

 rather troublesome and burthensome then any 

 waies advnntafreous to the country, It is hereby 

 enacted, That the said act lor planting mulberrie 

 trees shall be repealed and made void." — p. 520. 



" For inrouraerement to the makeing of silke, 

 ft is enacted, That whosoever shall make ffifiie 

 pound of wound silke shall receive from the pub- 

 lique as a reward of his dillirrence tenn thousand 

 pounds of tobacco, Provided he prove it to be all 

 of his owne makeing." — p. 521. 



Additional penaltie? were imposed at this session 

 to prevent the "ground-leaves " of tobacco being 

 sold. The prohibition of the exportation of hides 

 and old iron was repealed. 



The preamble, or recital of reasons, for the 

 "Act for suppressing Quakers," passed 1659 — 60, 

 is curious, and characteristic of the age. 



" Whereas there is an vnreasonable and turbu- 

 lent sort of people, coinonly called Quakers, who 

 contrary to the law do dayly gather together vnio 

 them vnlaw'll Assemblies and congregations of 

 people teaching and publishing, lies, miracles, 

 false visions, prophecies and doctrines, which 

 have inHuence vpon the comunities of men both 

 ecclesiasticail and civil endeavouring and attemp- 

 ing thereby to destroy reliirion, lawes, comunities 

 and all bonds of civil societie, leaveing it arbitra- 

 rie to everie vaine and vitious person whether men 

 shall be sale, lawes established, offenders punish- 

 ed, and Governours rule, hereby disturbing the 

 publique peace and just interest, to prevent and 

 restraine which mischief, It is eiiacted,'" &c. — 

 p. 532. 



The following brief entries are some of the 

 " Extracts from the minutes of the proceedings of 

 the Governor and Council of Virginia, " at an 

 earlier time of the colony. 



''Bee. 16th, 16.31. 



Because Edw. Grymes lay with Alice West 

 he gives security not to marry any woman till 

 further order from the Governour and Council. 



March 25th, 1630. Tho: Tindall to be pillory'd 

 2 hours for giving my L'd. Baltimore the lye & 

 threatning to knock him down. 



6th 8br. 1631. The first informer of any slan- 

 derous reports of Governour or Council were to 

 have the fine; this day one was whipt and lost his 

 fine for concealing si;ch a slander." — p. 551—2. 

 Vol. VI.-90 



"1 Feb. 1632. Two maids got with child at 

 sea, ordered to be sent back again." — p. 552. 



"Stephen Reekes put in pillory 2 hours with a 

 paper on his head expressing his offence, fined 

 £50 sterling and imprisoned during pleasure for 

 saying that hia majesty was at confession with 

 the L'd. of Canterbury. 



Robert Sweet to do penance in church accord- 

 ing to laws of England, for getting a negroe wo- 

 man with child and the woman whipt." — p. 652. 



At the session of 1660, the first after the re- 

 storation of the royal authority, under Charles II, 

 among a medley of numerous orders of the 

 " Grand Assemblie " are the followinnr : 



"Ordered that by reason of the vnconcionable 

 rates, smiths do exact on the inhabitants of this 

 countrey for theire worke, that the countie courts 

 have power to regulate their accompts." — p. 11. 



"Ordered that the horse way over Powatan 

 swamp to James-Cittie be at Mr. Hunts mill and 

 that he be allowed out of the levie nextyeare fRve 

 thousand, ffive hundred pounds of tobacco for re- 

 pairing and maintaining the same for eight yeares 

 except the county of James-Cittie before the tenth 

 of fTebruary will vndertake the same on the same 

 tearmes." — p. 12. 



The last enactment, humble as was its object, 

 may perhaps be considered as the first step taken 

 by the government of Virginia to promote what in 

 these times has been improperly termed "internal 

 improvements" — or, correctly speaking, that one 

 important branch of the internal improvement of 

 the country, which is found in the construction of 

 roads, canals, and other facilities for transportation 

 and trade. It is greatly to be desired that the go- 

 vernment would learn, and act upon, the truth, 

 that to increase the products of the earth by wise 

 legislation is still more necessary and profitable 

 than merely to facilitate their passage to market. 

 On this head, our legislators of the present day 

 might profit by the example of their less enlight- 

 ened predecessors; as, for example, in the next 

 following order for defraying the expense of the 

 first attempt to produce a new and valuable com- 

 modity. In this and sundry other such efforts, 

 our ancestors were right in the principle, but their 

 measures for encouragement of production gene- 

 rally failed, because the mode was faulty. 



"Ordered that Daniel Dawen for his experiment 

 of salte have his charges defrayed in towne out of 

 the publique levie and bee exempted out of the 

 Accomacke levie also." — p. 12. 



The "rights of man" were not as yet well un- 

 derstood, or guarded very scrupulously. The "or- 

 dinarie sort of people" were not treated with much 

 respect in those old times. 



"Ordered that the honourable the governour 

 have power to presse tenne men of the ordinarie 

 sort of^ people, allowing each man two thousand 

 pounds of tobacco per annum for theire services 

 and to employ them toward the building of astate- 

 houee." — p. 13. 



