Vestry of pa rish of Saint

Anfie, in Es

sex county, dissolved.

An act for dissolving the Vestry of the Parish of St. Anne, in the county of Essex.

1. WHEREAS it hath been represented to this present general assembly, that the present vestry of the parish of Saint Anne in the county of Essex, have not been elected by the freeholders and house-keepers of the said parish, but as vacancies have happened therein they have been supplied by the vestrymen themselves: For remedy whereof,

II. Be it enacted, That the vestry of the said parish of Saint Anne be, and the same is hereby dissolved.

III. And be it further enacted, That the freeholders and house-keepers of the said parish of Saint Anne, shall, before the first day of May next, meet at some convenient time and place, to be appointed and publicly advertised by the sheriff of the said county of Essex, at least one month before such meeting, and then and there elect twelve of the most able and discreet persons, being freeholders and residents in the said parish, for Vestrymen, which vestrymen so elected, having in the court of the said county of Essex, taken the oaths prescribed by law, shall, to all intents and purposes, be deemed and taken to be the vestry of the said parish of Saint Anne.

IV. And be it further enacted, That the vestry of the said parish of Saint Anne, to be elected by virtue of this act, shall levy and assess upon the tithable persons of the said parish, all such sums of money and quantities of tobacco as ought to have been levied and assessed by the said vestry' Provided nevertheless, That notwithstanding any thing in this act contained, any suit or suits brought by or against the vestry or churchwardens of the said parish, and now depending, may be prosecuted in the same manner as if this act had never been made.

CHAP. XI.

An act to empower the justices of Greenbrier county to clear a waggon road from the Warm Springs in Augusta.

[Chap. CVI in original]

Court of

thorised to

Warm

1. BE it enacted by the General Assembly, That the justices of the county of Greenbrier, or a majority of Greenbrier them, shall have full power to appoint three or more County, auproper persons, who being first sworn, to view and clear a wagmark a way for a waggon road from the Warm gon road Springs in Augusta, to the Savanna; a report where- from the of being returned to, and approved of, by the said Springs, în court of Greenbrier, they, or a majority of them, are Augusta, to empowered to employ a person, or persons, to clear the Savanna, and open the same, agreeable to the said report, upon the best terms they can, and to levy the expense of clearing and opening the road upon the inhabitants of the said county at large, to be paid according to the value of their estates, agreeable to the assessment made in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty two, and be collected by the sheriff in the same manner as the public tax for the same year. Provided always, That the said inhabitants shall have the alternative of paying the said tax in money or clean merchantable hemp, to be delivered at the court-house of the said county, to such person as the sheriff or collector may appoint to receive it, according to the price of hemp at Richmond, allowing the deduction for carriage. And provided also, That no distress shall be made for the said tax before the first day of March, one thousand seven hundred and eighty four. All acts of assembly contrary to the purview of this act are hereby repealed,

[Ch. CVII

in original.]

CHAP. XII.

[Chan. Rev. An act for the recovery of arms and accoutrements belonging to the state.

p. 176.]

up to com

1. WHEREAS sundry arms and accoutrements belonging to the public are in the hands of individuals, who have neglected to return them to the proper officers; and it is necessary that such arms and accoutrements should be recovered as speedily as possible:

Arms, &c. II. Be it enacted, That the governor do, on the belonging to passing of this act, issue his proclamation, emoining the tate, 10 all persons having in their possession, any arms or acbe delivered coutrements whatsoever, belonging to the state, to demandants of liver them without delay to the lieutenant or commandregiments. ing officer of the county for the time being; and the sheriff of each county within his commonwealth, shall Proclama cause copies of the said proclamation, which shall be tion for that transmitted to him by the executive, to be fixed up in

purpose.

Penalty on those who

detain them.

County lieutenants to

the most public places in this county, and if after one month from such public notice having been given, any person possessing any such public arms or accontrements, shall be convicted of having failed to deliver them up as aforesaid, such person shall, upon every such conviction, be liable to the penalty of twenty pounds, to be recovered by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in any court of record within this commonwealth, one half of which penalty shall go to the informer, on conviction of the offender, and the other half shall be applied in aid of the county levy where such offender shall reside. And the lieutenant, or commanding officer of each county, shall return an ac- make returns from time to time, to the executive, of all count of arms and accoutrements so delivered to him, and also arms receiv. deliver them to the order of the executive, under the Penalty. penalty, if he fail in all or any part of this duty, of fifty pounds, to be recovered as aforesaid, and applied in diminution of the county levy. Provided always, That where muskets and bayonets have been by order of government placed in any county on eastern or western frontier for defence against incursions of the enemy, it shall be lawful for the lieutenant or commanding officer to return such muskets and bayonets to the militia, taking a receipt from each person for what shall be so returned.

ed

Saving as to arms placed on frontiers.

CHAP. XIII.

[Ch. CVIII in original.]

An act to amend the act for calling in Chan, Rev. and funding the paper money of p.177.]

this State.

I. WHEREAS the time limited by an act for calling in and funding the paper money of this State hath been found too short, aud many of the citizens have, from their remote situation, been precluded from an opportunity of sending their money to the public areasury: for remedy whereof,

See Nov. 1781, c. 13.

il. Be it enacted, That the treasurer shall be, and Further he is hereby authorized and required to receive the pa- t, for retime allow. ed, reper money issued by this state, and grant certificates turning and for the same in manner prescribed by the said recited funding paact, until the first day of June next, and no longer; per money. any law to the contrary thereof notwithstanding.

III. And be it further enacted, That any person State or conpossessed of, or holding any money emitted by con- tinental pa gress, or by this state, shall be at liberty to lay out per money, the same in the purchase of warrants for unappropria- ed for land ted lands, at the price now established by law, at any warrants, time before the said first day of June.

to be receiv.

CHAP. XIV.

An act to repeal the several acts of assembly respecting the commissioner of the war-office, and the commercial agent.

I. WHEREAS in these times of public distress it behoves the legislature to be as oeconomical as possible in the expenditure of public money:

[Chap. CIX in original.j

Duties of

commission.

II. Be it therefore enacted, That so much of the act er of war office, to be of general assembly, passed in the May session one performed thousand seven hundred and eighty, intituled "An act by executive

Books, &c. of commis

sioner of war and commercial a

to repeal an act establishing a board of war, and one other act establishing a board of trade, and authorizing the governor and council to appoint a commissioner of the navy, a commissioner of the war office, and a commercial agent, as relates to the appointment of a commissioner of the war office and a commercial agent," shall be, and the same is hereby repealed.— And also the act of general assembly passed in the May session, one thousand seven hundred and eighty one, intituled, "An act to regulate the department of the war office," is hereby also declared to be repealed, and henceforward the duties appertaining to the said commissioner of the war office's department, shall be exercised and performed by the executive, or such other public officers into whose line they may in the opinion of the governor and council more properly fall; any former act or acts of assembly to the contrary notwithstanding.

III. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioner of war and commercial agent, respectively, shall deliver to the governor and council, all books, papers, accounts, and vouchers in their possession, and gent, to be which may respect their departments; and also account for, and deliver to the order of the governor and council, all public property and effects in their hands.

delivered to executive.

CHAP. XV.

An act to indemnify certain persons in suppressing a conspiracy against this state.

I. WHEREAS divers evil disposed persons in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty, formed a conspiracy and did actually attempt to levy war against the commonwealth; and it is represented to the present general assembly, that William Preston, Robert Adams, junior, James Callaway, and Charles Lynch, and other faithful citizens, aided by detachments of volunteers from different parts of the state