Correspondence of Gov. Horatio Sharpe, 1754-1765. 511

by the Superior Courts of Law here be adjudged, Extra
Judical not the Letter of the Law Enact'd all concern'd must
nicely steer to avoid the shoals & Sands that the ship splits

not on the Rock, the Channel seems clear hy the Lo. House

being convinced by M^r Pratts better reason in Opinion of
Law, inconsistant to Levy the Duty on Convicts, and taking
other means to repay the insufficiency of the Act for that
purpose. My Lord recomends your serious Considⁿ thereon
w^th the Advice of the Upper House. L^d Chief Justice Mans-
field's Observations sent & the opinion of M^r Pratt's Demon-
strates, that an Act of Parliam^t is Similar to a Diamond, not
to be touch'd, but by its own Power.

My Lord has rec^d a Let^r from John Jackson Esq^r of Ire-
land wherein he says " I understand that M^r Edw^d Mapother
is gone to England to treat with y^r Lord^p ab* an Estate
Grant'd by one of yo^r Lord^ps Predecessors to George Talbot
Esq^r Thirty two Thousand Acres of Land in Cecil County
in Maryland " He opposes the Treaty of the said Mapother,
says, Col. James Talbot made a Will in 1729 at Barcalona
in Spain, Left his Estates to His uncle Edw^d Crofton of
Longford, who made over by Deed to his son James Crofton,
Jam^s Crofton to his Children says that Mapother come to the
Deeds Relative to the Interest in Maryland by the Death of
an aunt of his, who died at his House & who Stole them
from her Brother James Crofton, that there are two Sons of
James Crofton now in his Majesty's Service in America &
that the Execut^rs of James Crofton intend to file a Bill ag^t
Mapother My Lord has not answ^d the Let^r a M^r Kelly w^th
another has been with Me, they seem'd by style the stamp of
Kilkeney, I can't Rehearse their Discourse of claim, in short
I told them that the late Lord Baltimore had Seisin by Law
the Estate in Maryland on forfeiture by Acts of Rebellion of
M^r Talbot in 1715 or 1716, that Persons claiming had filed a
Bill in Mary^ld to recover, that a copy of the Act of Rebellion
ag^t M^r Talbot certify'd by the Comiss^rs of forfiet'd Estates &
delivered to the Guardians of the present L^d Baltimore had
been sent to make good the late Lord's Seizure. Hah! by
my Soul says M^r Kelly, it will be difficult to prove it to be the
said M^r James Talbot the Person Guilty. "I told him the
Negative was with him & his friend that he was not, that I
was no Lawyer, however the Act of Rebellion was proof for
the Late Lords Seizure." By my Soul says he if then? it
belongs to the Crown I reply'd be it so, It belongs to L^d
Baltimore as of Right to him by forfeiture to his Charter,
he standing in Maryland in the Crowns shoes. After much
altercation I told them, I wo^d write to the Gov^r to know how