372 Assembly Proceedings, October 6-November 6, 1725.

L. H. J.

Means of Dispossessing the Indians of that little Remainder
of Plantable Land which is now left them.
It appears to this Comittee that Isaac Nicholls little Re-
garding the friendly Caution Given by those Commissioners
nor that the tract of Land of which he hath purchased a part
was Claimed by Maj^r Nicholas Sewall and a Nego [tia] tion
then on foot In both Houses of Assembly for the purchase
of the same at the publick Charge Made the purchase men-
tioned in his Case and partly by Intoxigating Liquors, and
partly by a Sume of Ready Cash deluded the Chiefs of those
Indians into a Sale of their Lands which said Sume of Money
with a Complaint of his Manner of bringing about the bar-
gain was Imediately brought by those Indian Chiefs unto
Philemon Lloyd Esq^r and by him directed to apply to the next
generall Assembly for their Relief.
It appears further to this Comittee that those Indian Chiefs
did apply themselves to the Legislature in Octo^r 1722 and laid
their Complaints together with the purchase Money they
had Rec^d from Isaac Nichols before the Governour and Upper
House of Assembly Whereupon a Message was sent to the
Lower House Importing that the Indians of the Eastern
Shore having made frequent Complaints of Injuries done

them cither by purchases made of their Lands when in Drink

or of Incroachments made by the English into their Bounds
and of such persons also who having Entered upon their

p. 74

Lands By Consent and upon Condition of paying Rent there-
fore have not Comply'd therewith so that the Indians on the
one Hand are Cheated of their Rents, and on the other Hand
with the Loss of their Lands, the first gives a great Deal of
Unnecessary Trouble to the Government, as the other will lay
us under a Necessity of purchasing more Lands for them
to make Corn upon.
We also observe the necessity which the two Houses of
Assembly found themselves to lye under of Relieving the
Indians against English Fraudulent Purchases to [be] the
Sole Motives and Inducements of the Act of Assembly Com-
plained of by. said Nichols whose willfull and Contemptious
proceedings in Relation to his purchase and small Improve-
ments made thereon deserved the Censure rather than Com-
passion of the Legislature who treated him with a grat Deale
of Tenderness by Restoring the purchase Money with a Small
Defalcation by his Indian Friends and advising him to Re-
linquish his Claim".
We of the Comittee do likewise find this Case of M^r Isaac
Nicholls to be attended with Sundry Aggrivating Circum-
stances first that the Indians, as they Informed the Governour