piracie, desiring ye Gor & Council to satisfie ym about y claus yrof prohibiting trading to Madegascar: The Gor desired a Conference wt yr house to morrow-morning, about ye sd clause. Adjourned to 8th instant. [8th February, 1699–700. Att a Council held att philadelphia die Jovis, 8th February, 1699– 700. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror. & Gor. et ysdem ut antea. The Gor desired the secrie to acquaint the ass. yt hee & Council waited for ym, to Conferr about ye Claus of y act agt piracie, prohibiting trade wt Madagascar & Nataall. The house of ass. appeared, wt whom a Conference was had about trading to Madagascar & Nataall. It was Resolved yt it should be prohibited for three years. Adjourned to 9th instant. [9th February, 1699–700. Att a Council Held att philad. die Veneris, 9th instant. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror. & Gor, et ysdem, ut antea. The ass. by Anthony Morris & Isaac Norris, 2 of yr members, sent to ye Gor and Council two Laws for their assent. Adjourned to 10th instant. [10th February, 1699-700. Att a Council Held_att philadelphia die Sabbathi, 10th Febry, 1699-700. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror & Gor, et ysdem ut antea. The pror & Gor desired Wm. Biles & Jno. Hill to acquaint yo ass. yt hee & Council waited for ym, who returned answer yt they wold attend him speedily. The ass. appearing, The pror & Gor told ym yt yesterday hee had received from ym two bills which had past yr house, wch hee desired the secrie to read over three times distinctlie. Afterwards they wer by the Gor & Council assented to, viz: The first entituled, An act agt pirats & privateers: The other an act for preventing frauds & abuses in trade wtin ye province of pennsilvania & Counties annexed; and did underwrite each bill in these words-viz: philad. 10th 12th mo., 1699–700. This Bill being 3 times read was assented to by me, Wm. Penn, Locus privati Sigili provinciæ. Therafter the pror & Gor proposed to ye Council & ass. yt hee intended to call y next genrll ass. according to Charter, att the usual & annual time; To which the members of ass. by the Speaker, de clared yr satisfaction therewith. Then y pror & Gor ask't the ass. whether they had anie other bussines for him att this time, who anThen he said, Gentl, you are dissolved, & I hereby dis swered no. solve you. They thank't the Gor & departed. The end of the 7th ss. of Council & Assembly. MINUTES OF COUNCIL, Anno Ri. Rs. Gulielmi Terty Angliæ, &c., Undecimo, for promulgaon. [30th March, 1700. Att a Council Held at philadelphia Die Sabbathi, 30th day of March, 1700. PRESENT: THe Honble WM. PENN, Absolute pror & Gor in Chief of y° province of Pennsilvania & y territories yrto belonging. In respect yt there appeared onlie Saml Carpenter, Edwd Shippen & Gr. Owen, returned as repsentatives in Council by y Sheriff of philadelphia, David Lloyd, Caleb pussey & Jno. Simcoke returned as such by y Sheriff of Chester, The pror & Gor. Adjourned to 1st April, 1700. [1st Aprill, 1700. Att a Council Held at philadelphia die Lunæ, 1st April, 1700. WM. PENN, pror & Gor. PRESENT: The Sheriff of y° Countie of Bucks His return of repsentatives in Council was produced, qrby it appeared yt ther wer elected Joseph Growdon for 3, Wm. Biles for 2, & Richd Hough for one years. The Sheriff of philadelphia Countie his Like return was produced, qrby it appeared yt ther wer elected Saml Carpenter for 3, Edward Shippen for 2, & Griffith Owen for one year. The Sheriff of Chester Countie his Like return was produced, qrby itt appeared David Lloyd for 3, Caleb pussey for 2, & Jno. Simcoke, for one year. The Sheriff of Newcastle Countie his Like return was produced, qrby itt appeared that ther wer elected Richd. Halliwell for 3, John Donaldson for 2, & Jasper Yeates for one year. The Sheriff of kent Countie his Like return was produced, qrby itt appeared that there wer elected Jno Walker for 3, Henry Molleston for two, & Thomas Bedwell for one year. The Sheriff of ye Countie of Sussex his return of repsentatives was produced, qrby itt appeared yt yr wer elected Samll preston for 3, Jno Hill for 2, & Tho. ffenwick for one year. The abov returned psons, excepting those for kent Countie, appearing, subt. the Qualificaon following, viz: pennsilvania, 1st 2d mo., April, 1700,"We severallie & each of us for orselves, do sin "cerely promise & declare as solemlie as if wee took an oath, yt wee "will be true & faithfull to ye king & Crown of England, & to Wm. "Penn, pror & Gor of ye province of pennsilvania & territories yrto "belonging, & his heirs, according to ye Lres patent granted to him "by king Charles y 2d, undr ye great Seal of England," & took their places att ye board, and so yr wer John Simcoke · John Donaldson, Jasper Yeates, Tho. Fenwick. Then the pror & Gor said: "Friends, Tho' this be a Colonie of "19 years standing, & not inferiour to anie of its age, yet wee have "much to doe to establish its constituon & Courts of Justice; there "are in it some Laws obsolete, others hurtfull, others imperfect, yt "will need improvemt, & it will be requisit to make some new ones; "" wee cannot go to slow to make, or too fast to execute them when "made, & yt wt diligence & discretion, a few well made & duly exe(( cuted, will better ansr ye ends of governmt yn a greater bulk unexe"cuted. You friends are y people's choice & my Council; you'll see what Laws are fitt to be Left outt & what to be made, & you "wt mee, are to prepare & propose ym. I say this the rather becaus "of a false notion some have gott yt becaus you are my Council "yrfor you are not ye people's repsentatives. The ablest men have "always been chosen to be of y Council to prepare Laws, & ye As"sembly to consent to ym; wee are two bodies yet but One power, "the one prepares. y other consents. Friends, if in the Constituon "by Charter, there be anie thing yt jarrs, alter itt; if you want a "law for this or that, prepare itt; I advise you not to trifle wt go"vernt. I wish ther wer no need of anie, but since Crimes prevail govermt is made necessarie by man's degeneraon; Itt's not an end "but a means; hee yt thinks itt an end aims att profitt to make a "trade on't. He who thinks itt to be a means understands ye true "end of govermt. Friends, away wt all pties, & Look on yorselves "& what is good for all, as a bodie politick, first as undr yo king & "Crown of England, & next as undr me, by Lres patent from yt "Crown. Att ye Late election att philadelphia, I was grieved to "hear some make it a matter of religion; no its humane & moral re"lating to trade, traffique & publick good consisting in virtue & jus"tice; where these are maintained there is government indeed. "Study peace, & be att unitie ey ye good of all, & I desire to see "mine no otherwise than in ye publick's prosperitie. The last Ass. wee made 2 Laws, the one agt piracie, y other agt forbidden trade. "I hear they have not satt easie on ye backs of some, but I hope, wee haveing yrin been carefull of England, wee shall have thanks "for making ym before wee had orders so to do, and after so manie "calumnies & complaints wee have been Loaded with, I hope these "two Laws will in some degree wash us clean; what concerns my "self I also Leave wt you to Consider. I have now been 19 years "" yor pror & Governor, & have att my chairge maintained my deputie, "qrby I have much worsted my estate, & hope itt will be no wonder "to any to hear me make this Lection of itt. Some say I come to gett monie & be gone, phapps they that say so, wish itt so. I "hope I or mine shall be wt you, while I or they Live-The disas"ters of my absence have been mine as well as yours, & as I'm used "shall make suteable returns. I have latelie two packetts from "Whitehall, an original & a duplicate; also one to my Cosen "Markham, & two from Secrie Vernon, & am Comanded by ye Lords "Justices to make Laws agt piracie & illegal trade. I am glad wee "have prevented their Commands in doing it before they came.' Therafter, a motion being made by a member of Council, that they might have a new Charter: Then y pror & Gor ask't whether they thought the Charter was Living, dead or asleep; is it vacated by y act of Settlement, or in what state is itt. A member made ansr, that they never Look't on't to be void or dead, becaus att Gor Fletcher's coming, wee made a salvo of it in y° assemblie books, & another salvo of it in ye frame of govrmt, as to its fundamentalls, but ye Circumstantialls of itt as to time, place & number, & rotation, wee could not reassume. Our bussines now is to do good, ye Gor being here to confirm itt, & he having in his Charter, power to call us as bee pleases, ye manner is but circumstance, the meetting is essential; Letts take what's fitt & good both in y° charter & frame, & Lett's make a Constituon yt may be firm & Lasting to us & ours; This makes no breach on the old Laws, but will confirm what's reasonable, both in ym, ye charter & frame. Then the ye Gor said: The act of Settlmt served till I came; now I'm come, It Cannot bind me agt my owne act, the charter it being my grant, & the people my wittness by yr acceptaon of it, and tho' some violence cannot be resisted, yet when the violence is taken off, y° Charter returns, & how can it return but by writt. Therafter ye pror & Gor resolved ye whole members of Council into a grand Comittee, to meet hora tertia, p. m., to read y Charter & frame of governmt, & to keep what's good in either, to lay aside what's inconvenient & burdensome, & to add to both what may best suit y Comon good, & if you be under any doubt Ile solve itt & psent to mee what you do yrin to-morrow morning for my perusall. Adjourned to 2d April, 1700. [2d Aprill, 1700. Att a Council Held att philadelphia die Martis,, 2d Aprill, 1700. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror & Gor, et ysdem ut antea. Joseph Growdon, Chairman of ye grand Comittee appointed to inspect & puse ye charter, & frame, &c. made report yt they had pused both, & had made some alteraons in, diminutions from, & addions to both, wch wer read & had mark't outt ye ss. (but had not time to writ ym out fair,) & delivered ym to y° Gor for pusall. Then he desired yt all ye Laws from ye first settlemt of ye province might be read over by y secrie; accordinglie some of ym were. Adjourned to 3d instant. [3d Aprill, 1700. Att a Council held att Philadelphia die Mercury, 3d Aprill, 1700. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror. & Gor, et ysdem ut antea. The pror & Gor desired ye secrie to begin where hee Left in reading y Laws; accordinglie some more of ym wer read. Adjourned to 3 p. m. The pror & Go. desired yo secrie to begin qr hee Left A. M. in reading the Laws, & y rest wer read over by y secrie. Then y pror & Gor resolved all ye members of Councill into a grand Comittee, to meet to-morrow morning at 9, to read & consider ye sd Law, & to keep what was fitt, to Lay aside what was inconvenient, & add such new ones as they thought meett. Then hee proposed to ym y° necessitie of a Law for regulating Courts of Justice, & y please to be held there, provincial Courts & appealls, about ye marriages of negros, how to be punisht & tried, agt selling rum to ye Indians, To restrain sickly vessels from Landing yr passingers for some time, & for ye better observaon of y° Sabbath or Lord's day, & to make report to-morrow morning. Adjourned to 4th instant. [4th Aprill, 1700 Att a Council Held att philad. die Jovis 4th instant. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror & Gor, et ysdem ut antea. Joseph Growdon, chairman of sd Comittee, reported yt they had made some small progress in pusing ye Laws, but feared should not have time to go thorow all, being Long & tedious, but desired more time; wch was granted. Adjourned to 5th instant. [5th April, 1700. Att a Council Held att philad. die Veneris, 5th inst. PRESENT: WM. PENN, pror & Gor, et ysdem ut antea. Joseph Growdon, chairman aforsed, reported yt they found great |