or they, is or may be rated; do find him, or themselves, aggrieved with such rating, and do, within ten days after, complain to any three of the assessors, that signed, or allowed his or their rate, who shall, within ten days after such complaint, particularly examine the person complaining, or any other person, touching the value of the complainant's real and personal estate; and thereupon the said assessors shall abate, defaulk, or increase the said assessments, according as complaints shall appear, either by the party's own attest, or proof of others.

And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That if any person be sued, for any thing done, in pursuance of this act, such person so sued, may plead the general issue, and give this act in special matter, in evidence; and if the plaintiff or prosecutor, shall be cast, the defendant shall recover treble damages: Provided always, That none shall be hereby punished, by virtue of this act, for any neglect or miscarriage in the execution thereof, but within one year after such offence: Provided also, and be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the several collectors shall gather and receive the respective sums assessed as aforesaid, in current money of this province, or for want thereof, in good merchantable country produce, at the current market price.

Note. From the sums raised by this tax of one penny in the pound, in cach county, as exhibited below, from the votes of assembly, may pretty nearly be estimated the value of all the private estates and property, at that time, in the province and territories, viz:

It will be seen by the above note of the sums raised in the different counties by taxation, that New Castle, Kent and Sussex, were at that time of much greater comparative importance in point of wealth, than they are at the present day.

By their own advice governor Fletcher dissolved the assembly, and departed for his government of New York, having first appointed William Markham his lieutenant-governor.

"During governor Fletcher's administration here, he appears to have been several times in the province, but never long at one time. He met the assembly again in the third month, 1694; and,

in a message to them, dated Philadelphia, May 23d 1694, he acquaints them,

"That he had been disappointed in meeting them sooner, according to his intention, and direction given for calling the assembly, by reason of being under a necessity to repair to Albany, on intimation given, that the five nation indians, which had been so long faithful to the English, were now debauched to the French interest, and entering into a league with the governor of Canada; which was a matter of the highest importance to the neighbouring colonies, and required his utmost abilities and application to pre

vent.

That he was come to lay the whole affair before them, assuring them, that their own indians here would be compelled to join the fatal confederacy.

That in consequence hereof, he had seen fourscore fine farms all deserted at Albany.

That the Jerseys had done more for the common defence than all the other adjacent provinces.

That he considered their principles, that they could not carry arms, nor levy money, to make war, though for their own defence, yet he hoped they would not refuse to feed the hungry and clothe the naked; that was, to supply the indian nations with such necessaries, as may influence their continued friendship to these pro

vinces.

Lastly, that he was ready, as far as in him lay, consistent with the rules of loyalty, and a just regard to liberty and property, to redress their grievances, if they had any."

During this, and the succeeding session, in September, this year, several laws were passed; which ends the administration of governor Fletcher."

In November 1693, William Penn, through the mediation of his friends, the lords Rochester, Ranelagh, Sidney and Sommers, the duke of Buckingham and Sir John Trenchard, was allowed to make his innocency appear; which he did so effectually, that he was not only acquitted of the charges against him, by which he had been deprived of the government of his own province, but had his government and all his rights restored, and confirmed by letters patent.

On the 24th October 1694, he appointed William Markham, lieutenant-governor of Pennsylvania and territories. Markham, on the 10th of September 1695, in pursuance of the authority vested in him by his commission from Penn, convened the assembly. Their names on the part of the lower counties were, for New Castle Joseph England, Valentine Hollingsworth, George Harland, Edward Gibbs, Henry Hollingsworth, Cornelius Empson; for Kent, John Betts, William Rodney, William Morton, Simon Irons, Daniel Brown, John Hilliard; for Sussex, John Stockley, Thomas Oldman, Joseph Booth, Henry Molleston, James Peterkill, Jonathan Bailey.

A majority of the members of the assembly were Quakers; and some difficulty appears to have existed about this time, between the assembly and governor, about raising money by taxation, for the support, in part, of the war against the indians in New York. The scruples of the Quakers against contributing to the support of war, going to such excess, as to induce them to withhold their aid even in defence of the country. They however, at length agreed to raise money to clothe the naked and feed the hungry, rendered thus destitute in consequence of the war. However, in 1697, they excused themselves from furnishing any further supplies, even for this purpose, on account as they alleged, of the infancy, poverty, and encumbered state of the colony.

The

"From about this time, till the arrival of the proprietary, in the latter part of the year 1699, the accounts of the public affairs appear defective, or not many of much importance now occur. province seems, at that time, to have enjoyed a state of great tranquility and prosperity, when compared with that of other countries; but, it cannot be supposed, without some of those difficulties, which always attend the settlement of new colonies, and generally affect some more than others, of those concerned, and, in proportion, cause uneasiness among them; from which it would be unreasonable, even, to expect an entire exemption, in the state of human affairs: and, as prosperity and success create envy, in malignant minds, so we find, in this province, that whatever was a little amiss, at any time, it was generally exaggerated, and its true state misrepresented, either by those who were natural enemies to its prosperity, or by discontented spirits, within it, both in early time and since: this appears, at least, in part, to have been the cause of depriving the proprietary of his government, in 1692; and of some part, of the royal requisitions, from such an infant, incumbered, and particularly circumstanced colony, both in early and latter times."

In 1698 the members of assembly for New Nastle, were Adam Peterson, Edward Gibbs, John Grubb, Joseph England; for Kent, Richard Wilson, Robert Edmonds, Henry Moleston, William Moreton; for Sussex, Thomas Oldman, Jonathan Bailey, Luke Watson, jr., Cornelius Wiltbank.

In June 1699, William Penn, with his wife and family, took shipping for Philadelphia, where he arrived, after being nearly three months at sea. The yellow fever prevailed in the summer and fall of this year in Philadelphia, causing great mortality amongst the people. Thomas Story, in the journal of his life, speaking of it says: "Great was the majesty and hand of the Lord. great was the fear that fell upon all flesh; I saw no lofty, or airy countenance, nor heard any vain jesting, to move men to laughter; nor witty repartee to raise mirth; nor extravagant feasting to raise the lusts and desires of the flesh above measure; but every face gathered paleness, and many hearts were humbled, and counte

nances fallen and sunken, as such that waited, every moment, to be summoned to the bar, and numbered to the grave."

The proprietary and his family were received with great joy by the inhabitants of the province; which was increased by the knowledge that he had come with the intention of passing the remainder of his life among them. Soon after his arrival he met the assembly; much public business however does not appear to have been done. The next assembly was convened at Philadelphia, on the 10th March 1700, which was dissolved in the following month, and another convened at New Castle in October. At this session many important laws were passed, some of which may be found in the appendix to the first volume of Booth's edition of the Laws of Delaware. "The number of laws passed by the proprietary during his stay this time in the country, was one hundred; of which the major part were passed at New Castle." Most of these laws were, however, supplied by other enactments, previously to the publication of Booth's edition, and no trace of many of them can now be found.

"In the beginning of the 6th month 1701, the proprietary acquainted the assembly, "That the occasion of his calling them, at that time (though it was with reluctance, considering the season,) was to lay before them the king's letter, requiring three hundred and fifty pounds sterling from this government, towards the fortifications intended on the frontiers of New York, and though he might have something else to lay before them, yet he deferred all till they had considered this point.'

After considering and debating on the subject of this letter, the assembly excused themselves, at present, from complying with the said requisition by the following address to the proprietary, viz: 'To William Penn, proprietary and governor of Pennsylvania. The humble address of the assembly.

May it please the proprietary and governor,

We, the freemen of the province and territories, in assembly met, having perused the king's letter, requiring a contribution of three hundred and fifty pounds sterling, towards erecting of forts, on the frontiers of New York, &c. and having duly weighed and considered our duty and loyalty to our severeign, do humbly address and represent, that, by the reason of the infancy of this colony, and the great charge and cost, the inhabitants have hitherto been at, in the settlement thereof, and because of the late great sums of money, which have been assessed on the province and territories, by way of impost and taxes, besides the arrears of quit-rents, owing by the people, our present capacity will hardly admit of levying of money, at this time. And further, taking into consideration, that the adjacent provinces have hitherto (as far as we can understand) done nothing in this matter; we are, therefore, humbly of opinion, and accordingly move, that the further consideration of

the king's letter may be referred to another meeting of assembly, or until more emergent occasions shall require our further proceedings therein: in the meantime we earnestly desire the proprietary would candidly represent our conditions to the king, and assure him of our readiness (according to our abilities) to acquiesce with, and answer, his commands, so far as our religious persuasions will permit, as becomes loyal and faithful subjects so to do.'

Though the assembly, in this case, appeared not unwilling to contribute to the common defence, if the circumstances of the colony would have permitted; and the proprietary himself particularly further urged a compliance, in this matter, in his speech to the next following assembly; yet the nature of this letter and requisition, to such a young and infant colony, considering the principles, upon which it was primarily planted and founded, seems to indicate, that it was not without enemies, at court: for the pacific principles and motives, or views, of William Penn, and of the first and early adventurers, in general, under him, in their settling this wilderness, 'tis presumed, could not possibly be less known, at this time, to the administration at home, than they were before, to the persons in power, when the royal charter was granted by king Charles the second; from which knowledge of them it was impossible that any thing immediately, or directly, of a military nature could reasonably be expected in the settlement:—which charter expressly mentions, the motives for the said grant were,-A commendable desire of William Penn to enlarge our English empire, and promote such useful commodities as may be of benefit to us, and our dominions, and also to reduce the savage natives, by gentle and just manners, to the love of civil society, and christian religion;'--besides a debt, due from the government to his father, admiral Penn. Such motives as these, and not those of a military nature, were most certainly the chief inducement for the settlement of Pennsylvania, not only in the settlers themselves, together with the peaceable enjoyment of their religion, and civil liberties, but also in those, who made the grant;-if they properly knew to whom, and on what principles they made it; which it would be very absurd to deny:-as for the experiment, or consequence, of the operation of these principles, or motives, in the province, it will, in part, hereafter appear in this history.

The cultivation of peace and civilization, and of the articles of trade and commerce, in which the Quakers were known to excel, must be acknowledged to be no less important and necessary, to render a state happy and prosperous, than weapons of war, and fighting of battles; and these people were then, and have since been still more known, from experience, to practise, as well as profess, those ways and means, which excel the latter, so far as the prevention of an evil does the cure of it.

Moreover, since it is improbable, that people of this kind will ever be very numerous, if we judge of the future by what is past; but that war and its consequences, will be more likely to prevail