Correspondence of Governor Sharpe. 533

Letter engaged for he has not received any pecuniary Advan-
tages whatever, not a Shilling from any Person on whom I
have bestowed a Sheriffs Office or any other Civil Employ-
ment in the Province, & if M^r Calvert or any one else has sug-
gested to you such a Thing they have done him Injustice.
I have indeed heard that M^r Bladen while he was Governor
did often insist when he was bestowing Offices that the Per-
sons about to enjoy them should previously give a consider-
able Sum of Money or quantity of Tob^o to a Man who served
him in the double Capacity of Scribe & Valet, part of which it
is supposed was afterwards accounted for by the Valet to the
Master, but Believe me nothing of this sort has been trans-
acted during my Administration, however M^r Ridout being
then D Secretary by Virtue of my Commission did last Dec.
relinquish what I had till then allowed or given him as I have
already mentioned, & except his Board has nothing from me
at present for serving me in the Capacity of a private Secre-
tary. As this is really the Case it will be some Years before
he can save any considerable Sum tho he should continue to
enjoy the Office which he now holds under Lord Baltimore
together with the Surveyorship that you have been so kind as
to procure for him. That you may be better able to form
some Judgment of the Difficulties I am often laid under by
M^r Calverts Corresponding with others & seeming to coun-
tenance them I will take the Liberty to inclose You an Extract
of a Letter which I addressed to him the 19^th of April last on
the Subject of M^r Dulany's appointment, a Step which I doubt
not has encouraged the latter to hope that by going to Eng-
land & being in Company with His Ldp & M^r Calvert he shall
be able to carry many points & indeed it has been given
out by some of his Intimates that my Administration draws
towards a Conclusion Could M^r Calvert reap any Benefit from
lessening my Influence I should not complain but this I am
confident cannot be the Case, It must be for the Interest of
both His Ldp & him while I continue here to support my
Authority, but how is this done by letting the People see that
there is a Person or a Family in the Province whose Interest
at home is much greater than that of their Governor —
Having as I conceive by way of answer to the former part
of Your Letter wrote much more than You will read with any
degree of Satisfaction I shall in answer to the latter part of it
do no more than return You my sincere & hearty Thanks for
your great Assiduity & pains to get those Accounts past & to
obtain an order for Payment. I am glad you thought of
requesting the Lords of the Treasury to refer them to those
three Generals, as they must indeed have acted an extraordi-
nary Part if they had not thought the Claim just & reasonable