4 Correspondence of Governor Sharpe.

Calvert
Papers.

siderable to the Middling sort of people, of whom the Lower
House is composed, & might gain a great Majority of that
House by being properly applyed amongst them, their
Brothers & Sons; besides Military Comissions & those of
Justice of the Peace without number, for others who may be
lead by their Vanity & fondness of making a figure & being
Vested with Power amongst their Neighbours. In order to
carry this Plan into Execution; it would be proper to Reduce
the Nomination of the New Sheriffs & Farmers of his Lord^ps
Quit-Rents (who generally hold their places for three years)
to one & the same year, & to the same time of that year, as
the Month of Nov^r for instance ; every new Representative of
the people too should be Elected about the same time by
which means, as their continuance is for 3 years their begin-
ning & End will be as those of the Sheriffs & Farmers
Offices ; upon the meeting of a New Assembly it can be no
difficult matter to insiniuate to one or two Members of each
County something concern^g the Sheriffs Comission, & to others
the Farming of the Quit-Rents, & the Deputy Comiss^rys &
Deputy Surveyors Comissions for themselves or their Rela-
tions as it may be thought to suit best, to be Entered upon as
soon as that Assembly expires, that is, at the End of three
years ; by this means they will be made at least cool & Mod-
erate, & by an hint at proper Intervals in case of Misbeha-
viour, they may & will be brought to Act as they ought, with-
out any great apprehension of lossing the People's favour on
another Election since as soon as they cease to be Assembly
Men, they commence Sheriffs Farmers &c^a And thus they will
be made to Earn these Comissions before they have them, &
they will be executing these Comissions for three years, while
others are in that House Earning the Succession. But in
order to acquire a Credit to such hints or proposals, they
should be Inviolably complyed with, unless for some palpable
Misbehaviour in the House, or during their several offices ; in
which last case they ought to be immediately removed &
granted to the then next in Desert ; for as at first obtaining
those Comissions should depend on their behaviour in that
House, so ought their continuance in their offices to depend on
their behaviour under their Comissions, that neither his Lord-
ship nor the Public may suffer by either a Negligent or
oppresive discharge of their Duty.
It may prehaps be objected; What, will you hazard his Lord-
ships Revenues to answer the purposes of Goverment ? to
which I answer, there will be no hazard of his Lordships Rev-
enues, for the present Farmers are of the Middling set of
People of whom the Lower House is composed, nay they are
now actually in the hands of the Sheriffs, of which Comission