Proceedings of the Council of Mary land, 1676-81. 253

cient Laws to restrain & punish such evil lives, & to oblige
men to live at least like Christians though not of the same
profession, If the Laws be full enough herein Wee do desire
your Lo^p to take care that they may be put in Execution & if
any Law be defecteve or wanting herein, that the defect may
be supplyed, by such new Laws as the Occasion requires.
Wee are likewise informed of another particular from when-
ever Wee have reason to beleeve, that this disorderly & wicked
kind of living of the Inhabitants proceeds in a great measure;
w^ch is that there is no custom establisht allowance for the
Ministers of the Gospell whereby able, Sober & Learned men
might be invited to go over to instruct them, & especially in
the Protestant Religion according to the Church of England,
w^ch is the cause that there is a great want of able Ministers
there. As Wee know how fit & necessary it is, to have that
want Supplyed, as Wee likewise think it very convenient that
it should be done without Imposing any burden upon the
Inhabitants other than that they are willing freely to Settle for
the Support of their Ministers. In order whereunto Wee
desire that your Lo^p will write to the Governour and Councell
of Maryland, to Send Over an acco^t hither w^th as much speed
as may be; How many Ministers of the Protestant Religion
according to the Church of England are now w^thin the s^d Plantacon
& what Settlements and allowances they respectively have;
And to the end they may be Supplyed w^th Ministers where
they are wanted Wee desire yo^r Lo^p to direct the s^d Govern^r
& Councell to take an acco^t of all the Protestant Families there
& the value of their respective plantacons, & then considering
their Situations in respect of distance one from the other to
see how many Congregations they may make up, that so they
may be accordingly Supplyed w^th Ministers, And this being
done Wee desire your Lo^p to give direction to the s^d Govern^r &
Councell to inquire what each respective Congregation will be
freely willing to Settle for the Maintenance of an able Minister,
And when the s^d persons shall have agreed upon such Certain
allowances as afores^d, that then the upon the desire of the s^d
persons s^d Govern^r & Councell doe endeavour to have the
same Enacted into a Law as is practised in other his Ma^tt
plantacons. And of this whole matter wee desire to have an
account w^th as much speed as conveniently may be.
Wee would likewise be glad to have an account how matters
of Religion stand as to the dissenters from the Church of Eng-
land, That is to say what Number of Ministers or Teachers,
they respectively have, & what settlement or provision they
have made for them, & in Gen^ll Wee would willingly have
an account of the Number of the Planters in Maryland & of
what persuasion they are in matters of Religion, & the number
of each persession respectively. All w^ch we recomend to your

P. R. O.

Colonial
Papers.
B. B.