Assembly Proceedings, March — April 1671. 251

The Answer of Richard Tilghman to a certain paper of
Articles exhibitted from the Lower House against the said
Tilghman to the honourable the Upper House of Assembly as
high Sherriff of Talbott County
The first Article wherein the said Tilghman was Charged
for Levying and Exacting from the people of that County
more Tobacco than was due or Assessed by the publick and
his Lordships Comm^rs of that County this Respond^t saith that
the List of the publick and County Charge was sent by the Clerk
of the County to your Respond^t about the twentieth of No-
vember 1670 Signed under his hand Wherein the publick
Charge that your Respondent was to pay amounted to 32124^lb
tob^o the Sallary whereof is 321 2^lb in all 35336^lb. This Tobo
was to be Raised out of 776 Tythables of our County that it
was not Cast up p poll as by the List under the Clerks Test
may appear That it being late in the Year & your Respond?
sickly he was obliged to Cast it up at what p poll & so Enter
it in his Book that so his Undersherriff might go to receive
Tob^o Which he did in the presence of M^r Tho^s Hinson one of
our Comm^rs & M^r John Keely That at that time it was cast up
at 47^lb p poll but suddenly after by your Respond? alone found
to be only 46, & about 346 over Which he did immediately
certify to his under Sherriff and accordingly he did receive of
the people That your Respond^t after this did hear of some

U. H.

Journal
1659-98

noise that the Courseys had declared to the people that the
Levy was 44 p poll That in January Court they were about
Examining the List and found all the particulars true, the same
likewise cast up true but Concluded it to amount to no more
p poll than 44 I Entreated them to multiply the Tythables of
our County by 44 & if they found the whole Sum of tobacco
I was obliged by the List to pay included it was right other-
wise not Which they refusing to do I told them in the open
Court that is was possible there might be an Error but that it
was far from me to wrong the County, That it was well known
the Country last Yeare was indebted unto me by mistake 960^lb
tob? If your Respond^t did prove indebted to the County he
would Satisfy it in the next Levy for now his Books being
made up the Error if any were not being Considerable they
could not handsomely be altered
This being declared in open Court by your Respond? they
proceeded no further and none Contradicting they seemed
satisfyed, this M^r Woolman & Cap^t Lloyd can testify
To the second Article wherein the said Tilghma'n was taxed
for Contemning his Lordship's Comm^rs by replying to some
Persons thereof when demanded the reasons of the af^d Exact-
ion that it was the ignorance of the Comm^rs who could not
cast the Levy aright Your Respond^t saith that he never did

p. 184