putting it into the ground, which was always done with great proceffions of friars and other religious, who confecrated the walk to that purpofe; but, confidering the Spanish policy in concealing the way of making cochineal, curing vanillas, and managing their other profitable productions in the Indies, not hitherto with all the induftry of their envious. neighbours difcovered, together with the ill fuccefs the English have to this time in their cocoa walks, as the negroes have foretold, I am of opinion that, under the ceremonics of religion, the Spaniards hid from their flaves fome neceffary fecret in its planting; and I am fo the more, for that it is no native plant of Jamaica, but firft brought thither from the Carracas, a remote province at the bottom of the island, fea, or gulph, of Honduras, from whence perhaps they from time to time revived their plants, with the private way of fetting and cultivating of them. I fubmit this conjecture of mine to your lordship's confideration, and fhall proceed to acquaint your lordship that, befides the aforefaid commodities, which I conclude as lafting as their usefulness, there may alfo in time arife great profit by hides to the Englith, as formerly did to the Spaniards; and I have known fir Thomas Lynch account his favanna lands in that country, of which he hath a great quantity, a furer intereft there than his plantations though confiderable, by reafon of the great number of beafts that may be bred upon them. them. The next thing, my lord, I fhall take notice of is the government of that place, which his majefty has been pleased to manage hitherto by a governor poffeffed as to the execution part of all powers ecclefiaftical, civil, military, and marinary, affifted by twelve councilors, who being appointed here without his advice, he is in fome cafes reftrained. Thefe, in time of their petty parliaments, called affemblies, fupply the place of a houfe of lords as to the legiflative part, but are no court of judicature nor of appeal, neither then or at other time; and though their power be not much, yet by the title they hold their places, which is an immediate nomination from his majefty, either in the governor's patents or by particular figns, they have a confiderable influence over the people, and can almoft with impunity, if not well pleased, vex and disturb the governor in most things he attempts or does; fo that before your lordship takes out your warrant for your patent, nothing is more neceffary to be confidered than the men to be appointed of your council; for being not of your own choice, nor fuch as can piece in one intereft for the king's and your lordship's fervice, you will find yourself always made uneafy by them; but, being fuch as you may for principles confide in, you will find every thing befides facile. I pray

pardon

pardon me, my lord, if I prefume to go further, and fay that it is abfolutely neceffary they thould, as is practicable, be all of one intereft, fo it is truly fo that they be not of fome men's intereft that have governed there already; of whom, in the first place, fir Thomas Modyford's people are to be avoided moft, not that he has many there, being a man fo univerfally hated, that coming back in full cry with my lord Vaughan to that ifland, a fuppofed triumpher over the court here and their governor's undoubted prime counfellor, if not governor, yet he could not, upon his attempting it, get himfelf elected affembly man in any one precinct, fo much are his immoralities known and dreaded by the islanders. This though true may feem ftrange, when we fuppofed him here to have fo great an intereft that a revolt of the islanders for him might be feared at his return thither, which is a thing has often been fuggefted and believed. The occafion of this opinion was a petition fent to his majefty, fubfcribed by most of the confiderable men of the island, for his return to them as governor, when he lay in the tower charged and truly guilty of divers capital misdemeanors, as fome papers I have by me will make appear, befides great fums of money which he did and doth owe to his majefty; but the petition was neither procured nor figned by his intercft nor for the love of him, but at another's requeft, and in oppofition to fir Thomas Lynch, who for difcouraging privateering was at his first arrival there very odious to them all; and I cannot forbear letting your lordship know, before I leave this point, that fir Thomas Modyford's advice has been the cause of all or moft of the diflikes and hatred that have attended my lord Vaughan, both here and there. He first put him upon mercenary tricks of felling his fervants and his own honour together, then of running to Cape de Verd and employing a floop of his majesty to interlope for negroes, contrary to his folemn promifes to his royal highnefs and the African company; and his underhand joining with others to interlope from Holland, to the advantage of fir Thomas Modyford, and not of himself, who, by fuch infinuations and advices as he thought propereft for my lord's nature, got into him, pretending to furnish him with houfe-room, meat, drink, and fruit; but, when he had gained his point thereby, and found that my lord grew hated there and flighted here, then he charged him with a bill of fome thoufand of pounds for fuch petty conveniencies, at moft exceffive rates, having got his money before hand into the cuftody of his fon, Charles Modyford, whom, by falfe pretences and promifes, he had procured to be made by my lord his fole agent, trustee, and tactor, here; the doing of which, as

well

.

well as all other things, he advised not my lord of, and has thereupon taken from him the chief-juftice's place of the island, which I do verily believe he could not have put into a worfe man's hands; for, befides his declared and avowed antimonarchial principles, he is the openeft atheist and most profest immoral liver in the world, as your lordship will foon difcover if ever you have to do with him; fo that I am confident it would be neceffary for your lordship not only to be careful, to avoid mixing with him, but likewife to get fome particular inftructions to call him to account there for his former actions, whereby your lordship will make him more yours than all the obligations in the world can do, for he dare profefs himfelf an avowed enemy to all gratitude and other laws of humanity. I fhall make mention in the next place of the lower houfe of affembly, which confifts of about thirty-fix members, elected by the freeholders of the feveral towns and precincts, two for each; and thefe, as much as they can, ftrive to imitate our English houfe of commons, and when they are not in humour can be as troublefome; for the revenues of the ind being to be raifed by their act, they are fo jealous that they will lay no taxes but from two years to two years, becaufe an inftruction hath hi therto been given to the governors, and indeed is made a kind of funda mental policy here, to keep a hand over them, that their laws, of what nature foever, fhould laft no longer than that time, except ratified under his majesty's great feal and fent back. This point is worth your lordship's ferious confideration, and may admit of alterations; for, inftead of keep❤ ing the people in due obedience, it is the main fpur to difloyalty. Some laws, in my opinion, being abfolutely neceffary in all communities to be fundamental and no ways fubject to accidental diffolution or change,as to inftance only in few: firft, fuch as require obedience to the fovereign authority; next, thofe that refpect poffeffion, fucceffion, or inheri◄ tance; and lastly, fuch as have a regard to the ordinary fupport of the government and the defence of the whole against foreign or domeftic difturbances; but in all thefe is Jamaica wholly defective, and confequently very fubject to troubles and mutations. This might eafily be remedied, if fome laws were firft confidered of here that might provide for all thote feveral heads, and be fent thither under the great feal, to be the founda❤ tion of their government, and guides to their proceedings in their affemblies. Without fome fuch way, that place may foon have the like convulfion as Virginia hath lately had; for, let us confider the time that fir Thomas Modyford governed there, being about five years, during three of thofe that place had no laws at all, he having held but one aflembly,

and

and that at his firft coming; whofe laws, for two years, he tranfmitted here, pretending to have them ratified, but fo contrived that my lord Clarendon, their chancellor, fhould be the perfon fhould take care of doing it; which, being neglected, as it was not unlikely it would be amongft his greater concerns, fir Thomas made by that means his will his law, governing by that in his own breaft; and to this day they have had no proceedings of his during that time either ratified here or there. Another thing of pernicious confequence to that place, has been a law he at first introduced, and hath ever fince continued by thofe that get by it from two years to two years, which is, that all the laws in force in England are fo here too: A thing ridiculous in itself, and extremely troublefome in its confequence; for why fhould a mighty volume of itatutes, one half of which are either useless or vexatious to ourselves here, be at one time introduced there, where in an hundred years they cannot be confiderable enough in number to have occafion for the hundredth part of them. But this fir Thomas Modyford invented, that he might encourage a parcel of petty-foggers to let the people together by the cars, in the endless labyrinths of law, whilft he, having a fmattering therein more than the rest, might become the fole oracle to them and the whole colony. This, my lord, he did to encourage vexatious and troublefome proceedings, that the whole wealth of the island came into the hands of attornies and folicitors, and became fo grievous that the affembly, in fir Thomas Lynch's time, made a law that every man fhould plead his own caufe. This did rather hurt than good, for the lawyers fuppreffed, and the laws continuing. as voluminous as before, the cunningeft knave carried all before him; and, indeed, none but fuch as intended to cozen every body durft or did become adminiftrators to the dead, or guardians to children, fo that, perceiv➡ ing the wolves increase, they were forced to let go the tamer devourers the lawyers. My lord, this is worthy your lordship's confideration; and fuch ftatutes as might be adapted to the placmight be called out here, and ratified amongst the fundamental inftructions that are neceffary to be fent. under the great feal, for the perpetual governing of that country, by which means matters will be not fo intricate as they are now, nor the colony difcouraged by the litigioufnefs of knaves. Befides, my lord, if fome laws of the feveral kinds aforefaid were perpetuated, then might a governor act for the fervice of his majefty and good of the colony without fear, which he can never do till fome revenue for the neceffary fupport of himfelf be made perpetually; for, to be at the mercy of the rabble every two years for what fhall defray his expences, is a trouble not to be fupported

by a generous and great mind, and forces the governor upon little popular tricks to infinuate by, and gives difcontent here. My lord, I cannot chufe but think once more it is neceflary to be faid of this matter, though I confcfs too that which is here difcourfed by me may feem impertinent, fince it is likely your lordship has had better information concerning things from other hands than I am able to give; but nevertheless, since I have gone fo far, I will proceed to take further notice of the government there, which, according to inftructions from hence, hath a great if not too much conformity with the practice of this kingdom. There is firft a court of chancery, which is held by the keeper of the great feal of the ifland, who is at prefent the governor, and I fuppofe will ftill be fo. The proceedings there in equity are much of the nature of ours; but befides that the governor is by the keeping of the feal chancellor, he hath thereby the granting all lands with a fee belonging to it, as alfo the naturalizing all ftrangers, as well Jews as others, having for every Jew upon his naturalizing, I remember, one hundred and twenty pounds. He likewife thereby grants cure of fouls, administrations, guardianship of children, probate of wills, licenfes for marriages, and other matters ecclefiaitical. So much, my lord, in fhort, for the feal. The next court is that they call the grand court, which hath a chief-justice, affifted with three or four more other judges, at the pleasure of the governor; out of this court iffue all original writs and procefs, directed to the marshal-general or his deputics, who fupply the place of theriffs all over the ifland. This place fir Thomas Lynch hath by patent for life. The grand court hath all the jurifdiction executed here in the king's bench, common pleas, and exchequer, and is held by way of grand feffions or terms at the town of St. Jago de la Vega. Sir Thomas Modyford was chief-juftice, and his creatures his fellow-judges there, until of late, when my lord Vaughan dividing with him took the place away. The next court confiderable is one of common pleas, held at the town they called the Point, by judges certain, who can only hold plea under five pounds, receipt by writ of jufticiary, iffued from the chief-justice of the island. There are three other courts of the like nature with this. Besides thefe, there are quarter-feffions held in every precinct of the fame power with these in this kingdom, having cuftos rotulorum, clerk of the peace, &c. There is alfo, befides thefe common law courts, a court of admiralty held by one or more judges, wherein my lord Vaughan placed fir Henry Morgan, colonel Byndlofs, &c. which court exercise all power that the admiralty do here. These are all the ordinary courts of the island; but, upon

can

occafioną