The Upper House 577

Just discharge of the Trust reposed in us intitles us to much
more useful Services, which it seems upon some Occasions,
Your House it self was not insensible of, seeing it is very
Justly affirmed in the same Message that you do not in the
least Doubt of our having the commonweale of this Province
as much at heart, when we Act as a Privy Council (or Council

U. H. J.

of State) as when we Act in Conjunction with your House &
therefore seeing that our office is of so much importance to
the publick Good of this province, we may very reasonably
expect a Reward for our Services upon all such Important
Occasions.
We must further Observe to you that whatever Esteem or
Value his Ldp shall please to put upon our Services, in Rela-
tion to our Continuance in the Office of Councellors, we must
entirely submit that to his Ldps Good -will and Pleasure.
However we are not willing to give up the Reward of our
Attendance, so long as we have already Acted in that Station,
being very well Assured that if the Value of the Reward were
Always to be measured by the worth of the Service, the
Members of our House would have as good a Plea for them-
selves as many other people of the world, that are paid for
their Services to the Country.
For if the Labourer according to the Divine Predication, be
worthy of his Hire we think ourselves Justly intituled to the
Allowances which we Claim, nor is it any way Satisfactory
to us that your House at this Time hath made it a Question
whether any thing be due to us or noe And if that there be
you very generously Thrust us upon his Ldps Grace, and leave
us there to be paid, According to the Value himself shall put
upon our Services. This Gent we must tell you, is not very
Agreeable to those hard Struggles w^ch our Constitution hath

p. 142

formerly had for Liberty and Property, But waving that
we think our Services deserve a more Certain Reward than to
depend upon the Absolute will of our Superior, not that this
House has any Cause to Suspect his Ldp's Generosity, w^ch is
particularly Eminent upon Sundry great Occasions; yet Gent :
we are loth to set an Ill President to future Ages, by making
a Complement of our Right, w^ch is not only founded in the
Common Law, and Consequently Common Right of our
Country, but hath been declared so by the Legislature of this
Province fifty two Years Ago, in an Act intituled an Act for
raising and providing a Support for the Lord Proprietary
in these words Viz. That as Governm^t is necessary for the
Conservation of all Societies the Charge of every Governm^t
without which it cannot possibly Subsist, ought to be born
by those whose Conservation depends upon the Governm^t for
and towards the defraving the many Great and necessary

37

p. 143