USA > Maryland > The history of Maryland : from its first settlement, in 1633, to the restoration, in 1660 ; with a copious introduction, and notes and illustrations > Part 110
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"The oath of a Councillor of State in Maryland.
I A. B. do swear that I will be true and faithful unto the right honble. Ceci- lius lord baron of Baltimore the true and absolute lord and proprietary of this province of Maryland and his heirs, and him or them and his and their rights, royal jurisdictions, and seignory all and every of them in to and over the said province and islands thereunto belonging will at all times defend and maintain to the utmost of my power and will never accept of nor execute any place office or employment within the said province any way concerning or relating to the government of our said province from any person or authority but by from or under a lawful authority derived or to be derived from time to time from his said lordship or his heirs lords and proprietaries of the said province under his or their hand and seal at arms, the peace and welfare of the people of this province I will ever procure as far as I can, I will aid and assist the administering and execution of justice in all things to my power, to none will I delay or deny right for fear favour or affection, I will to my best skill and according to my heart and conscience give good and faithful counsel to the said lord and proprietary and his heirs and to his and their lieutenant or chief governor of this province for the time being when thereunto I shall be called, I will keep secret all matters committed or revealed unto me or which shall be moved or debated secretly in council and faithfully declare my mind and opinion therein according to my heart and conscience and if any of the said treaties or councils shall touch any of the privy councillors of this province I will not reveal the same unto him so touched or concerned but will keep the same secret until such time as by con- sent of the lord proprietary or his lieutenant or chief governor here for the time being publication shall be made thereof, I will also as a councillor and as a jus- tice and commissioner for conservation of the peace of this province do equal right unto the poor and to the rich to the best of my understanding and judg- ment according to the laws from time to time in force within this province and în default thereof according to my best discretion, and generally in all things will do as a faithful councillor to the said lord proprietor, and I do further swear that I will not by myself nor any other person directly or indirectly trouble, mo- lest, or discountenance any person whatsoever in the said province professing to believe in Jesus Christ and in particular no Roman Catholick for or in respect of his or her religion nor in his or her free exercise thereof within the said pro- vince so as they be not unfaithful to his said lordship nor molest nor conspire against the civil government established here under him .- So help me God, and by the contents of this book."
[Taken from "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 199.]
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NOTE (LXIV.) p. 338. "Commission for Secretary in Maryland.
Cecilius absolute lord and proprietor, &c., Know ye that we reposing special trust and confidence in the wisdom diligence and fidelity of our trusty and well beloved Thomas Hatton gent. have constituted appointed and ordained and by these presents do constitute appoint and ordain him the said Thomas Hatton to be our secretary of our said province of Maryland, and we do by these presents appoint constitute and ordain the said Thomas Hatton as well to be our principal officer and keeper of the acts and proceedings of us and of our lieutenant gene- ral and council there for the time being and of and for the entering and record- ing of all grants by us or our heirs to be made of any lands or offices within our said province of Maryland, and for the probates, entring and recording of wills and inventories, and granting of letters of administration, and for the en- tring and recording of all other matters acts and things which by any instruc- tions laws or ordinances inade or given for or concerning our said province of Maryland shall or ought by the appointment of us or our heirs or by the ap- pointment of our lieutenant general or other chief governor there for the time being or otherwise to be entred and recorded to have and to hold execute and enjoy the said office and offices unto the said Thomas Hatton until we or our heirs shall signify our or their pleasure to the contrary and no longer. Given at Bath under our hand and seal at arms the twelfth day of August in the seven- teenth year of our dominion over the said province. Annoq. domi. 1648."
[Taken from "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 206.]
NOTE (LXV.) p. 338. " Commission for the Great Seal.
Cecilius absolute lord and proprietary of the provinces of Maryland and Ava- lon lord baron of Baltimore, &c. to our trusty and well beloved lieutenant and council of our said province of Maryland to all the inhabitants of the same and all others whom it may concern, greeting, Whereas our great seal of the said province of Maryland was treacherously and violently taken away from thence by Richard Ingle or his complices in or about February anno domini one thou- sand six hundred and forty-four and hath been ever since so disposed of as it can- not be recovered again for us we do therefore hereby protest against all and every act and things whatsoever which hath been sealed therewith since the fourteenth of February anno domini one thousand six hundred forty and four or which shall at any time hereafter be sealed therewith as unlawful and not done by any legal authority from us and we do hereby declare all and every the said acts and things unlawful and null, but because it is necessary for the better go- vernment of our said province and satisfaction of the people there to have a seal of ours constantly remaining in the said province and appropriated thereunto and known to be our great seal of the same whereby divers public acts and grants of lands within the said province may be ratified and confirmed according to such directions, instructions, commissions, or warrants as we have or shall from time to time give under our hand and seal at arms for that purpose there- fore we have provided another new seal for our said province in the room and place of the other which was so taken away from thence as aforesaid which new seal we have committed to the custody of captain William Stone whom we have constituted as well our chancellor and keeper of the same as our lieutenant of the said province till we or our heirs shall signify our pleasure to the contrary the manner and form of the said new seal being this (vizt.) On the one side thereof is engraven our figure in complete armour on horseback with our sword drawn and our helmet on and a great plume of feathers affixed to it, the horse trappings furniture and caparison being adorned with the figure of our paternal
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coat of arms and underneath the horse a sea-shore engraven with certain flow- ers and grass growing upon it and this inscription about that side of the seal (vizt.) Cecilius absolutus dominus Terra Mariæ et Avalonia Baro de Balti- more and on the other or counter-side of the said seal is engraven a scutcheon wherein our paternal coat of arms to wit six peices impaled with a band dexter counterchanged quartered with another coat of arms belonging to our family vizt. a cross buttoned at each end (and also counterchanged) are engraven the whole scutcheon being supported with a fisherman on the one side and a plow- man on the other standing upon a scrowl wherein is engraven the motto of our paternal coat of arms, vizt. ffatti maschij parole Femini, next above the scutch- eon is engraven a count palatine's cap and over that a helmet with the crest of our paternal coat of arms on the top of it which crest is a ducal crown with two half bannerets set upright on it Behind the said scutcheon and supporters is en- graven a large mantle and this inscription is about that side of the seal vizt. Scuto bonœ Voluntatis tuc coronastinos the figure of the seal is round and it is of the same bigness that our former great seal was and cut in silver as the other was the impression of all which in wax is hereunto affixed it being somewhat different (though but little) from our said former great seal of the said province we do hereby declare the said new seal to be from henceforwards our great seal of the said province of Maryland and that we will have it so to be esteemed and reputed there till we or our heirs shall signify our or their pleasure to the con- trary. Given at Bath under our hand and our said new great seal of the said province, the 12th day of August in the 17th year of our dominion over the said province of Maryland Annog. domi. 1648."
[From "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 201.]
NOTE (LXVI.) p. 339. "Commission for Muster Master General.
Cecilius lord proprietor, &c., to our trusty and well beloved John Price, We considering that arms without the knowledge of the use of them are fruitless, and having an especial care of the safety and preservation of that our said province of Maryland have thought fit and necessary that the inhabitants thereof should be from time to time exercised and trained in the use of arms that so if occasion should require they may be the more ready and able to defend as well them- selves as us and our rights there and offend their and our enemies, and we bav- ing had good experience of your knowledge and great abilities in martial affairs and of your great fidelity unto us in that occasion of the late insurrection and rebellion in our said province which was begun there by that notorious villain Richard Ingle and his complices against our dear brother Leonard Calvert esqr. deceased our late lieutenant of the same and therein against us and our undoubt- ed rights and title there wherein and in divers other worthy actions you have manifested unto us and our colony there such singular fidelity courage wisdom industry and integrity as render you worthy and capable of the trust hereby in- tended by us to be reposed in you, wherefore We do by these presents constitute ordain and appoint you to be our muster master general of that our province of Maryland to have and to hold the said office of muster master general of our said province of Maryland with as ample fees vails regards profits commodities immunities and privileges as any muster master general of our said province hath or ought to have had in regard of his said office or as any muster master in Virginia of right now hath or enjoyeth or ought of right to have or enjoy by vir- tue of his said office till we or our heirs shall signify the contrary under our or their hand and seal at arms .- Given under our hand and greater seal at arms at Bath the 12th day of August in the 17th year of our dominion over the said province of Maryland Annoq. domi. 1648."
[From "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 203.]
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NOTE (LXVII.) p. 340.
"Commission for Commander of the Isle of Kent.
"Cecilius Lord Proprietor, &c. to our trusty and well-beloved Robert Vaughan gent. Whereas we have found you very faithful and well-deserving of us upon the occasion and insurrection and rebellion in our said province of Maryland begun and fomented by that notorious and ungrateful villain Richard Ingle and his complices against our dear brother Leonard Calvert esq'r. deceased our late governor of the said province and our undoubted right and title to the govern- ment of the same wherein you have manifested to the satisfaction of us and our colony there such fidelity courage wisdom industry and integrity as render you capable and worthy of the trust hereby by us intended to be reposed in you, wherefore we do by these presents authorise constitute and appoint you to be commander of the island of Kent within our said province and the inhabitants thereof and also grant unto you all such fees perquisites and profits as are be- longing to the said place and office of commander of the said island to have and to hold the said place and office and fees perquisites and profits aforesaid till we or our heirs shall signify our or their pleasure to the contrary under our or their hand and seal at arms, and we do further grant hereby unto you full power and authority to elect and choose any six or more able and sufficient men inhabitants of the said island as you in your discretion shall think fit with whom you shall advise and consult in all matters of importance whom we do appoint shall be authorised commissioners for that purpose under the great seal of our said pro- vince and to call a court or courts as often as there shall be cause and in the said courts to award in our name all manner of process hold pleas and finally to hear and determine all causes and actions whatsoever civil happening and arising between any the inhabitants of the said island not exceeding in damage or de- mand the value of ten pounds sterling as also to hear and finally to determine all matters and offences whatsoever criminal happening and committed within the said island which may be heard and determined by any justice of the peace in England in their courts of session not extending to life or member, and we do further authorise you to do use and execute all and all manner of jurisdiction and authority whatsoever for the conservation of the peace within the said island as any justice of peace in England may or ought to do by virtue of his commission for the peace and further to elect and appoint all necessary officers for the execution of justice and conservation of the peace there with allowance of such fees as are usually belonging to the same or the like officers in Virginia and to do all other things and acts which shall be necessary for the execution of the power and jurisdiction hereby committed unto you .- Given under our hand and greater seal at arms at Bath the 12th day of August in the 17th year of our dominion over the said province of Maryland Annoq. Dom. 1648."
[From "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 205.]
(NOTE (LXVIII.) p. 340.
"Commission to the Governor and Council in Maryland, [accompanied with certain Laws to be passed by the Assembly. ]
Cecilius absolute lord and proprietor of the provinces of Maryland and Avalon lord baron of Baltimore, &c. to our trusty and well beloved William Stone esqr. our lieutenant of our said province of Maryland and to all our councillors and to our freemen or their deputies in our general assembly within that province, greeting, Whereas we are informed that divers laws were enacted in our said province in our name by captain Edward Hill with the consent of our freemen or their deputies or the major part of them concerned in one or more general assemblies there in the time when he the said capt. Hill was our pretended lieu-
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tenant or governor of the said province although the said captain Hill had never any lawful authority to act any thing there as our lieutenant or chief governor of that province nor for acting any thing else concerning that government in regard our dear brother Leonard Calvert esq. (lately deceased) by whom the said capt. Hill pretended to be constituted our lieutenant there had no authority from us to appoint or constitute any in that place under us there but only in case of his death or of his absence from thence and during such absence only or until we or our heirs should signify our or their pleasure to the contrary and was also limit- ed by our commission to him not to appoint or constitute any person in either of the aforesaid cases of death or absence to be our lieutenant or governor there unless such person were of our privy council there and residing within our said province at the time of such appointment or constitution which made the said captain Hill incapable of that place he being not then nor ever of our said coun- cil, and whereas we are informed that some of those laws so enacted as aforesaid are very prejudicial to our rights and royal jurisdictions in the said province and others of them inconvenient for our people there we do therefore for the reasons aforesaid hereby protest against all the said captain Edward Hill's proceedings in the quality of our lieutenant there as unlawful, and do hereby declare our dis- assent to all laws orders and ordinances whatsoever made or enacted by him or in our name as our lieutenant there in any general assembly or otherwise, and whereas we are informed that there have been at several times divers other laws enacted in our said province both before and after captain Hill's assumption and desertion of that pretended place of our lieutenant there by several others of our lawful lieutenants of the said province for the time being in our name to and with the consent and approbation of the freemen of our said province or their deputies or the major part of them which have been since found as we are in- formed too burthensome and inconvenient for the people there we therefore ten- dering their good more than our own have seriously considered of certain acts or laws hereunto annexed being sixteen in number and written in three sheets of parchment each sheet being signed by us and all three jointly together with these presents having the impression of our greater seal at arms affixed unto them which said acts or laws were proposed unto us for the good and quiet settlement of our colony and people in our said province and we finding them very fit to be enacted as laws there do hereby consent that our said lieutenant William Stone shall propose the said acts or laws hereunto annexed as aforesaid to a general assembly or assemblies of the freemen of our said province or their deputies and in case the said freemen or their deputies or the major part of them in any such general assembly within our said province shall within twelve months after the date hereof give their consent that all and every of the said acts or laws jointly contained in the said three sheets of parchment hereunto annexed shall be enact- ed for laws within our said province by us or our lieutenant there for the time being in our name in such manner and form as they are there written or drawn without any alteration addition or diminution to them or any of them, We do in that case and not otherwise hereby declare our assent also, that all and every of the said acts and laws may and shall be enacted, and we do in that case and not otherwise hereby enact them for laws within our said province and do also in that case and not otherwise declare our disassent to all and every law or laws which have been at any time heretofore enacted or shall be enacted for laws or ordinances in our name or otherwise within that our said [province] before the publishing of our commission there for the making and constituting of the said William Stone our lieutenant of our said province excepting nevertheless any act or acts law or laws whereby William Clayborne now or late of Virginia was or is by that or any other name attainted or condemned of any capital or other crime or crimes or misdemeanors all and every of which act or acts law or laws
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concerning any such attainder or condemnation of the said William Claybourne we will have still to continue in full force and virtue any thing herein to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding .- Given under our hand and greater seal at arms at Bath the 12th day of August in the seventeenth year of our dominion over the said province Anno Domi. 1648."
[From "Council Proceedings from 1636 to 1657," p. 209.]
NOTE (LXIX.) p. 342.
"A Commission annexed to the Conditions of Plantation, Anno 1648.
"Cecilius, &c. to our trusty and well beloved William Stone esquire, our lieu- tenant of our province of Maryland, greeting, Whereas we have thought fit for divers reasons to revoke our former conditions of plantation for our said pro- vince of Maryland and to propose other conditions of plantation for the future within the said province which we send you herewith written in parchment under our hand and greater seal at arms bearing date the twentieth day of June last past and hereunto annexed, and whereas we have likewise herewith sent you certain draughts or forms of grants the one of a manor and the other of a freehold under our hand and greater seal at arms bearing date with these pre- sents, and have hereunto also annexed, which forms we would have observed and no other, mutatis mutandis et repletis replendis, in the granting of lands within the said province for the future by virtue of the said last conditions of plantation bearing date as aforesaid or by virtue of any other warrant hereafter under our hand and seal at arms for granting of lands there excepting where we shall by any such warrant give directions to the contrary. We do therefore declare hereby that we have and do hereby revoke from henceforward all former conditions of plantation for our said province of Maryland heretofore proposed by us so as we will not have any land in our said province hereafter granted from us to any person whatsoever by virtue of any of the said former conditions of plantation for or in respect of the transportation of any person or persons whatsoever into our said province from and after the date hereof, and we do will and require you to publish this our declaration in our said province with all con- venient speed to the end that all those whom it may concern may take notice thereof, and we do hereby authorise and require you till we or our heirs shall signify our or their pleasure to the contrary from time to time in our name and under our great seal of our said province to grant lands within our said province to all adventurers or planters to or within the same upon such terms and condi- tions as are expressed in the last conditions of plantation and according to the form of grants above mentioned and no otherwise without further and special warrant hereafter to be obtained for the same under our or our heirs hand and seal at arms : And whereas we are given to understand that as well divers Frenchmen as some people of other nations who by our former and also by these last conditions of plantation are not capable of having any lands within our said province are already seated or may hereafter with ours or you our lieutenant's leave there for the time being seat themselves in our said province We do hereby therefore authorise you to make any person or persons of French, Dutch, or Italian discent as you shall think fit and who are already planted or shall hereaf- ter come and plant in our said province capable of our said last conditions of plantation and do hereby give you power to grant lands thereupon within our said province unto them and every of them accordingly as well for and in re- . spect of themselves as for and in respect of any person or persons either of Bri- tish or Irish or of any other of the discents aforesaid which they or any of them and also which any other person of British or Irish discent shall hereafter with our or you our said lieutenant's leave transport into our said province in the same and in as ample manner and upon the same terms and provisoes as you are
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hereby or by our commission to you for the government of the said province authorised to grant any lands to any adventurer or planter of British or Irish discent within our said province, Provided always the demesnes of no mannor within our said province which already is or shall be hereafter set out and ap- pointed for our own particular use nor any part of our mannor of West St. Mary's lying upon or near St. George's river in our said province nor any other land within our said province which hath been or shall hereafter be granted to any other person or persons from us and is or shall be confiscated or escheated again unto us or our heirs shall be alienated or granted from us or our heirs by virtue hereof without our further and special warrant for the same to be hereafter ob- tained under the hand and seal at arms of us or our heirs any thing herein to the contrary notwithstanding .- Given at Bath under our hand and greater seal at arms the twentieth day of August Anno Domini 1648.
Conditions propounded by the Right Hon'ble Cecilius Lord Baron of Baltimore Lord and Proprietary of the Province of Maryland, &c., to such persons as shall go to plant in the province aforesaid which conditions are to continue in force till other conditions of plantation for the said province shall be published under his lordship or his heirs hand and seal at arms within the said province.
What persons soever being of British or Irish discent (except hereafter ex- cepted) shall at his own or friends charge cause to be transported into the pro- vince of Maryland from any other place himself or his deputy with any number of persons of the discent aforesaid and shall observe the conditions hereunder mentioned there shall be granted unto every such adventurer or planter for every twenty persons of the discent aforesaid which he shall so in any one year at his own or his friends charge cause to be transported from any other place thither a proportion of good land within the said province containing in quantity two thousand acres of English measure to be assigned and to lye all together in some one place within the said province every which said two thousand acres shall be erected into a manor and be conveyed by grant under the great seal of the said province to him his heirs and assigns respectively for ever with such royalties and priviledges as are most usually belonging unto mannors in England to be held by some honour of his said lordship or his heirs within his said province in eveage tenure rendering and paying yearly for the first seven years after the said grant unto his said lordship and his heirs for every such mannor at the two most usual feasts of the year (viz.) the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Michael the Archangell by even and eaquall portions of the rent of forty shillings sterling in silver or gold or the value thereof in such commodities as his said lordship and his heirs or his or their officer or officers appointed by him or them from time to time to collect and receive the same shall accept in discharge thereof and for the next fourteen years in lieu thereof forty bushell of wheat yearly as is now usually growing and used in England and according to English measure or six pounds sterling in silver or gold at the choice of his lordship and his heirs and after the said fourteen years in lieu thereof the twentieth part yearly of the annual yield and profitts of such mannor or in lieu thereof ten pounds sterling in silver or gold at the choice as aforesaid of his said lordship and his heirs for ever.
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