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speak hath been hitherto considered as belonging to the
Town for a Publick Ship Yard being laid out in the Original
Plan for that purpose, many Ships have from time to time
been built & repaired thereon & One is but just launched
thence. If His Ldp can grant a Fee-simple therein It would
I suppose sell for a hundred & fifty or two hundred Pounds
sterling, but the Corporation may probably think them-
selves obliged to dispute the Right with any Person
obtaining Patent. This is the first Opportunity I have had
since they were printed of transmitting Copies with the Great
Seal appendant of All the Acts of Assembly that were made
at the last November Session & of a printed Copy of the
Journal of the Proceedings in the Lower House; With the
Laws I have inclosed Observations on some of them but few of
them are of such a Nature as to make any Remarks of mine
on them necessary. It having been represented to me that
upon the Death of a German who was possessed of some
Land in Frederick County & had not been naturalized an
indifferent Person had applied to the Land Office to Escheat
the said Land & take it away from the Family of the Deceased
I interfered so far as to forbid a Patent's issuing thereon untill
His Lordship should be advised thereof, imagining that as he
sometime ago was pleased to signify his Willingness to pass
an Act for Confirming to the Heirs of Aliens the Lands such
Aliens might die possessed of he would not countenance the
Depriving their Children of what would descend to them in
case such an Act had passed. The Reason such an Act did
not pass was that the Upper House thought its Benefits should
be extended to all Aliens alike while the Lower were for
restraining His Ldp's gracious Indulgence to the Children of
Protestant Aliens only, if His Ldp is still inclined to favour
Aliens & their Children he may certainly do so as well with-
out as with an Act for nothing more seems necessary than an
Instruction to the Judges of His Land Office to grant no
Patent nor Warrant to any Person whatever for Land become
or to become Escheat by the Death of an Alien other than to
him her or them who would have inherited the same had such
Alien dying seized been naturalized; His Ldp might also by
an Instruction to his Agent direct the usual Caution Money to
be paid by the Aliens Representative applying for an Escheat
Patent or that Patent of Confirmation should be granted with-
out the Payment of any Caution whatever. In Consequence
of Your telling .me that His Ldp having no Pre-dilection for
any of the Gentlemen I had recommended to fill up the Vacan-
cies in the Council left it to Myself to select which Two I
thought best qualified & most proper I should have immedi-
ately introduced to the Council Mr Robert Goldsborough the
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Letter Bk. IV
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