Assembly Proceedings, April—May 1682. 279

That whereas Your Lordship in the year of Our Lord 1669
did Sett forth Your Lordships Proclamation Commanding
that Convenient Places in evey County within this Province
should be laid out for Towns for the encouragem^t of Trade
within this Province, upon which Proclamation one William
Berry of Battle Creek in Calvert County did apply himself to
your Lordship & humbly besought Your Lordship that Twenty
Acres of Land part of a Tract of Land Belonging to him the
said William att Battle Creek aforesaid might be appointed
for Town land for that part of the said County, and did then
promise to your Lordship that he would Convey and Settle
the Same as your Lordship should Direct for the use and to
the intent aforesaid, Whereupon Your Lordship did by a War-
rant under your hand and Seal Command Charles Boteler the
then Deputy Surveyor of the said County to Survey and lay
out Such Land as W^m Berry should bestow for the use of the
County to the intent aforesaid as by the said Warrant here-
unto Annexed more at large appeareth, which Command of
your Lordships being performed by the said Deputy Surveyor
in the presence and by the Advice of the said William Berry,
Severall Inhabitants of the said County being thereto encour-
aged by your Lordship and in Confidence of the Performance
of the said promise of William Berry made as aforesaid did
Build & Erect Several Dwelling houses and Store houses
upon the said Twenty Acres of Land and from that time have
continually Resided there, and also the Commissioners of the
said County finding the said Town Land to be in the Centre
of the said County, and the most Convenient place for holding
the Courts for the said County, did order and appoint the
Court house and Prison to be Built upon the said Land which
being finished to the Charge of the said County Two hundred
thousand pounds of Tobacco, and the said William Berry now
finding the said Land to be much improved as well by the
Buildings aforesaid as also that the Creek aforesaid is grown

U. H. Journal
1659-98

a Considerable place of Trade by reason of the great Resort
of the Inhabitants of the said County to the Same, and Covet-
ing the Improvements made thereupon as well by the County
in General as by the Particular Inhabitants, having been often
thereunto Moved as well by Your Lordship as others therein
Concerned hath and doth utterly Deny to make any Tittle or
give any Assurance of the said Land to the use aforesaid, to
the Manifest Damage of the whole County, and to the ruin of
Severall Persons who have Spent their Estates in Settling
themselves there
Therefore your Petitioners humbly pray Your Lordship and
the Upper and Lower houses of this Present Assembly, that
the said Twenty Acres of Land may be so Settled by Some

p. 406