A. D. 1670. 555 



old ftandard of 1 1 ounces 2 pennyweight fine, and 1 8 pennyweight 

 allay, into 62/" by tale, viz. into crowns, half-crowns, {hillings, fix- 

 pences, groats, threepences, twopences, and pence, fine milled money. 

 The king's coufin, Prince Rupert, and feventeen other perfons of qua- 

 lity and diftindion, having, in the year 1669, fent out Captain New- 

 land to Hudfon's bay, where he fettled at Port-Nelfon ; and Captain 

 Gillam alfo returning, with fome fuccefs, in his proiped of a trade with 

 the favages in that bay, thofe noble adventurers obtained from the king 

 an incorporating charter, dated May 2, 1670, reciting, in fubftance, 

 that thole adventurers had, at their own great coll, undertaken an ex- 

 pedition to Hudfon's bay, in order to difcover a new paffige into the 

 South fea, and to find a trade for furs, minerals, &c. and having al- 

 ready made fuch difcoveries as encourage them to proceed farther in 

 their defign, by means whereof there may probably arife great ad- 

 vantage to us and our kingdoms : and we being defirous to promote 

 all endeavours for the public good, do, by thefe prefents, grant for 

 us, our heirs, and fucceflbrs, unto them, and fuch others as ftiall be 

 hereatter admitted into the laid fociety, to be tor ever one body-cor- 

 porate and politic, by the nam.e of The governor and company of ad- 

 venturers of England trading into Hudfon's bay, with perpetual fuc- 

 cellion, and to be capable of holding, receiving, and pofielTing, lands, 

 rents, &c.' (without limiting the value or extent thereof) ' and to 

 alienate the fame at pleafure. They may alfo fue and be fued, have 

 a common feal, fhall have a governor and feven other perfons, to be 

 called committees, to be annually eleded out of the proprietors, the 

 deputy-governor to be eleded out of the laid feven committees : a 

 governor and any three of the committees for the time being, fhall 

 have the direction of the voyages, and the provifion of the merchan- 

 dize and fhipping, and of the fales of the returns, as likewife of all 

 other bufinefs of this company : and they ihall take the ufual oath of 

 fidelity, as fhall alfo all perfons admitted to trade as freemen of this 

 company, who are to have the fole trade and commerce of and to all 

 the feas, ba)S, flraits, creeks, lakes, rivers, and founds, in whatfo- 

 ever latitude they fhall be *, that lye withiji the entrance of the 

 ftrait commonly called Hudfon's flraits, together with all the lands, 

 countries, and territories upon the coafls and confines of the faid 

 feas, flraits, bays, &c. which are not now actually poifefTed by any 

 of our fubjecls, or by the fubjeds of any other chriftian prince or 

 flate : together with the fifhing of all forts of fifh, of whales, flur- 

 geons, and all other royal fifhes, in the faid feas, bays, &c. together 

 with the royalty of the fea within their limits aforefaid ; as alfo all 

 mines-royal of gold, filver, gems, and pretious floncs, and that the 



* The king-, uncertain of th? pofition of places within this hay, prudently declines the fpecifica- 

 tion of any particular longitudes and latitudes in this charter. A, 



4 A 2 



