Council and of the Commons House of Assembly, That Capt. William A. D. 1722. Dry, Major Thomas Hepworth and Henry Howser, be and they are hereby appointed commissioners to put in execution the several powers and Commissioners authorities herein after mentioned, in such manner as by this Act is herein appointed. after directed and declared, and shall be called by the name of the Commissioners for reprinting the Paper Credit of this Province. to be issued II. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners shall have power, and they are hereby authorized, to print the sum of one hundred Bills of eredit and twenty thousand pounds in bills of credit, the lowest bill to be five to the amount shillings and the highest twenty pounds, to be used and disposed of in of £120,000. manner as is herein after directed. and numbered. III. And be it further enacted, That all the bills so to be printed and issued out by the commissioners aforesaid, by virtue of this Act, shall be To be indented indented, and the counterpart of the indenture kept in a book for that purpose to be provided by the said commissioners, and that each of the said bills shall be numbered, and the counterpart of each bill shall have the same number as the bill, to the intent that if any person shall suspect any of the said bills to be counterfeited, razed or altered, such person may compare the indenture of the said bill with the counterpart thereof; and the said commissioners are hereby required to lodge the said book of counterparts in the hands of the Treasurer of this Province, to be produced to any person that shall desire to compare any of the aforesaid bills therewith, without fee or reward; and the said bills and each and every of them shall also be signed and stamped with the seal of the said commissioners; and the said commissioners shall cause each of the said bills to be stamped with the value or denomination thereof; and shall take all such further and other necessary ways and means to prevent the said bills from being counterfeited, as they in their discretion shall think fit. IV. And be it further enacted, That all and every the aforesaid bills of credit, to be printed and issued out by virtue of this Act, shall be current Made current in all payments for the sum of money therein mentioned, and shall be in all payments. taken and deemed a good tender in law; and in case any person shall refuse to accept any of the said bills, being tendered in payment, that the person who shall have tendered the same may on any action brought for the sum so tendered, give such tender, refusal, and this Act, in evidence, on the general issue pleaded, which shall he taken and deemed as an absolute discharge of the said debt, and shall perpetually bar the plaintiff from recovering such sum so tendered as aforesaid. Penalty on re fusing them. V. And be it further enacted, That any person or persons whatsoever that shall counterfeit, raze or alter any of the bills so to be issued out by Penalty on virtue of this Act, or shall offer the same in payment, knowing the same to counterfeiting be counterfeited, razed or altered, and every person and persons that shall aid, assist, abet or procure the counterfeiting, razing or altering such bills, being thereof duly convicted, are hereby declared and deemed to be guilty of felony, and shall suffer death as felons without the benefit of clergy. called in. VI. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners shall, on or before the first day of December next, call in all the bills now outstanding, Outstanding and appoint so many days in every week for the calling in the same; that bills to be they enter in a book to be kept for that purpose the name of the person bringing in any bills, the sort, number and value of the bills delivered, in the presence of the party bringing the same, and that they put the bills so brought in on a file or bundle; and the said commissioners are hereby impowered to deliver unto the proprietor of the old bills, new bills, in A. D. 1722. value equal to the old bills, and shall in like manner enter the same in the presence of the party to whom they shall be delivered. And burnt. VII. And be it further enacted, That all the bills that shall be delivered to the said commissioners and filed or bundled, according to the directions of this Act, shall, on or before the fifteenth day of January next ensuing, be by the said commissioners burnt, in the presence of his Excellency the Governour or commander in chief for the time being, and any two memNo outstanding bers of his Majesty's honourable Council, and in the presence of the a legal tender. Speaker and of any five of the members of the Commons House of Assembly; and that after the said first day of December now next ensuing, none of the bills now outstanding shall be a lawful tender, or of value to any person or persons whatsoever. bills to be made VIII. And be it further enacted, That all and every the last mentioned Directions as to bills, that shall be issued out instead of the bills now outstanding, shall be cancelling this new emission. sunk and cancelled according to the several laws now in being, that is to say, the sum of eight thousand pounds, part thereof, pursuant to an Act entituled an Act for raising the sum of fifty-two thousand pounds, by stamping and establishing new Bills of Credit and putting the same out to interest, in order to call in and sink the former Bills of Credit, and thereby give a further encouragement to trade and commerce, ratified the fifth day of June, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and twelve; and the residue of the said bills to be sunk at four thousand per annum, pursuant to one other Act passed in the first sessions of this present General Assembly, entituled an Act for raising the sum of seventeen thousand two hundred and forty-eight pounds on lands and slaves, for defraying the charges of the several forts and garrisons, discharging the publick debts, and providing for the other emergencies and contingent charges of the Government. Disposition of the funds now to be raised. IX. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners shall pay the sum of forty thousand pounds into the hands of the publick Treasurer of this Province, to be by him paid in manner as is herein after directed; and any other sum that may remain in their hands after they have exchanged all the old bills of credit for new, shall likewise be paid into the hands of the said Treasurer of this Province; which said sum or sums of money be and the same is hereby appropriated towards the charge of the Government and the debts due by the publick, until the five and twentieth of September next, to be paid by the said Treasurer according to the several Acts and orders of the General Assembly. X. And whereas, it does appear, by the estimate of the publick debts Disposition of that are now due and will be due by the five and twentieth day of Septhe £40,000 by tember next, according to a schedule of the same hereunto annexed, that the Treasurer. the same amount to the sum of forty-nine thousand one hundred and thirty two pounds, and there being already provision made by cash in the hands of the Commissioners of the Tax, the Commissioners of the Indian affairs, and in the publick Treasury, by duties already received or which may be received by the said five and twentieth day of September next, for the payment and discharge of the sum of nine thousand one hundred and thirty two pounds, being part of the said sum of forty-nine thousand one hundred and thirty-two pounds; and there remaining the sum of forty thousand pounds to be provided for the discharge of the remaining part of the said debts-that the same may be done to effect, Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the Treasurer of this Province is hereby ordered and directed to pay out of the forty thousand pounds that shall be put into his hands by the said commissioners for reprinting the bills, and out of all and singular the publick moneys he shall receive by duties or otherways, (except the duties appropriated by law for building and finishing the brick A.D. 1722. Church in Charles City and Port,) the several sums of money mentioned in the said schedule of debts hereunto annexed, after the manner following, that is to say, all such debts as are due or will be due by virtue of any laws in force in this Province, are to be discharged and paid according to the directions of such laws: the article for payment for the heads of beasts of prey, is to be paid according to the method prescribed by the late law for that purpose; the article relating to repairs of Johnson's Fort, is to be paid upon certificate from his Excellency in council, from time to time, that they have passed and allowed the several accounts relating to those repairs; the articles for payment of any moneys mentioned to be due to any particular person in the said schedule, are to be paid to such persons, they giving a discharge to the said Treasurer for such sums; and for all other sums mentioned in the said schedule there shall be no money paid, on any of the said funds, though appropriated, but by an order or orders of the General Assembly: Provided also, that the one thousand pounds directed to be paid by the said schedule to Nicholas Trott, Esq. shall not be paid by the Treasurer to the said Nicholas Trott or to his use before his Majesty's royal pleasure and lycence shall be had and obtained for payment of the same; and that the said Nicholas Trott shall also deliver into the hands of the said Treasurer a fair transcript of the laws of this Province, by him compiled, and for the compiling of which the said one thousand pounds was agreed to be allowed him, before such payment; any thing in this Act or in any other Act, order or ordinance, to the contrary thereof in any wise notwithstanding: Provided also, that the fifteen hundred pounds directed to be paid by the annexed schedule to Joseph Boone, late Agent for this Province, shall not be paid by the said Treasurer to the said Joseph Boone or to his use before his Majesty's royal pleasure and lycence shall be obtained for the payment of the same. XI. And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the said publick Treasurer, or the publick Treasurer for the time being, shall upon Duty and pay no account or pretence whatsoever pay any sum or sums of money appro- Treasurer. of the publick priated by this Act, and specified in the schedule hereunto annexed, for any other use or purpose than as the same is directed to be paid as aforesaid, under penalty of forfeiting the penalties of the bonds given for the due performance of his office, and to be rendered uncapable of serving any longer in the said office; and the said publick Treasurer shall receive in lieu of all commissions and salaries in paying and receiving any publick money whatsoever, and as acting as commissary of the garrisons, after the rate of one thousand pounds per annum; any thing in the Duty Act, or in any other Act, law, usage or custom, to the contrary thereof notwithstanding; which salary is to commence from the first day of January last past. XII. And whereas, Joseph Massy has been agreed with by the General Assembly to print the said sum of one hundred and twenty thou- Directions for sand pounds, for the due performance of the same and to prevent as Bills of Credit printing the far as may be any counterfeiting the said bills, and that there may be no more printed than are appointed by the directions of this Act, Be it enacted, That there shall be but three copper plates engraven by the said Joseph Massy, each plate contayning four sorts of engravings for four sorts of bills, that is to say, the first plate shall contain twenty pounds, fifteen pounds, twelve pounds, and eight pounds, of each of which sums there shall be but one thousand bills printed; and the second plate shall contain six pounds, four pounds, two pounds and A. D. 1723. one pound, of each of which sorts there shall be but two thousand bills printed; and the third plate shall contain ten shillings, seven shillings and six pence, six shillings and three pence, and five shillings bills, and of each of which sorts there shall be but twenty-seven thousand one hundred and thirty bills printed. XIII. And for the more certain performing of the premises, Be it Commissioners further enacted, That one of the said commissioners appointed by this to attend to the Act, weekly, in their turns, shall constantly attend the printing of the printing of the bills, said bills from day to day, from the commencement of the said work until the finishing thereof, and shall take special care that there be no more printed than are appointed by this Act, and shall as often as he adjourns, and also every night, lock up in a box appointed for that purpose, the said copper plates, and all the bills printed for the said time or day that he has attended as aforesaid. And to enter take an oath. XIV. And be it further enacted, That as well the said Joseph Massy as the said commissioners, and all other persons whatsoever required into bond and to execute any part of this Act, shall separately enter into bond in the Secretary's office, to his Majesty, for the use of this Province, in the sum of five thousand pounds, with condition for the true performance of the duties enjoined them by law, and shall also make oath before his Excellency the Governour or the commander in chief, in Council, to well and faithfully execute all and singular the powers and authorities given them by the directions of this law, which bonds and oaths shall be by them given and taken within ten days after the passing of this Act. Taxes to amount of £40,000 when to be raised. Allowance to the communis sioners and printer. Provision in case of death or refusal to act. XV. And be it further enacted, That the said sum of forty thousand pounds, so to be appropriated as aforesaid, shall be called in, sunk and cancelled, by virtue of eight general taxes, that is to say, the sum of five thousand pounds per annum; the first to be raised in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and thirty-eight; the second in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and thirty-nine; the third in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty; the fourth in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty-one; the fifth in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty. two; the sixth in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty-three; the seventh in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundren and forty-four; and the eighth in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty-five. And after the twenty-fifth day of March, which will be in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty-five, none of the bills to be raised and issued by virtue of this Act shall be a lawful tender or value to any person or persons whatsoever. XVI. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners for their pains, trouble and expences of themselves and clerks, and for all other charges, shall be allowed the sum of fifteen hundred pounds; and Joseph Massy, for making the plates, engraving the same, printing, stamping all the bills, finding paper for the same, and for all and all manner of charges about or concerning the printing and stamping the said bills, shall be allowed and paid the sum of fifteen hundred pounds, and shall follow all such orders as he shall from time to time receive from the commissioners hereby appointed. XVII. And be it further enacted, That if any of the said commissioners. shall dye, go off this Province, or refuse to act, that then it shall be lawful for his Excellency the Governour, or the commander in chief for the time being, by and with the advice of his Majesty's honourable Council, to appoint another commissioner in room of him so dead, gone off, or refusing A. D. 1722. to act, who shall so continue until the meeting of the General Assembly. JA. MOORE, Speaker. Council Chamber, Charles City and Port, February 23, 1722. Assented to by FR. NICHOLSON, Governour. NOTE.-Repealed by order of the Lords Justices in Council, in England, August 27, 1723; and see Act of February 15, 1723. AN ACT for authorizing the General Court in Charles City and Port to exercise several powers and priviledges allowed to the County and Precinct Courts in this Province, and some other Regulations. (Enacted in July Sessions, 1722, but dated from the Council Chamber of Charles City and Port, February 23, 1722. See last volume.) No. 473. AN ACT for establishing a Ferry over Santee River, and for vesting the No. 474. AN ORDINANCE of the General Assembly for appointing John No. 475. Croskeys Country Waiter. (Dated February 23, 1722. Original Act not now to be found.) AN ACT for the better ordering and governing of Slaves. (Enacted in the July Sessions of 1722, but dated from the Council Chamber, February 23, 1722. See last volume.) No. 476. AN ACT FOR GRANTING TO HIS MAJESTY A DUTY AND IMPOSITION No. 477. ON NEGROES, LIQUORS, AND OTHER GOODS AND MERCHANDIZES, FOR THE USE OF THE PUBLICK OF THIS PROVINCE. WHEREAS, it is absolutely necessary to raise a fund and make provision for defraying the charges and expenses of the Government, we therefore humbly pray his most sacred Majesty that it may be enacted, I. And be it enacted by his Excellency Francis Nicholson, Esq. Governour, by and with the advice and consent of his Majesty's honourable VOL. 1II.-25. |