The Upper House. 125

Chamberlain we acquaint you that our Reasons for disapproving
the Report of the Conferees appointed for regulating Officers fees
are as follows.
First That the Regulation of fees proposed by the Conference
for the Services to be done by the several Officers are many of them
much less in Value than those contained in the Act made for that
purpose Anno 1725 and not sufficient for a Decent Support to the
several Officers for tho some few are advanced yet they are not in
proportion to those that are reduced
Secondly that Tobacco being now of much less Value than it
was in the year 1725 we are of Opinion that the fees of the several
Officers ought rather to be advanced than lessened especially con-
sidering that his Lordships reason for dissenting to the Act then
made was because he thought the fees too much reduced
Thirdly that as his Lordship did dissent to that Law because the
fees were too small we think it in vain to Enact another that makes
them less for we cannot but think he will for the same reason Re-
ject it & will be spending our time and the Countrys money to no
purpose
Fourthly We cannot concur with the Conferees in opinion that
if a Tobacco Law be made the People should have a Liberty of pay-
ing the whole fees with two thirds of the Tobacco made allowed
for it may happen that a Tobacco Law may be made and yet
the price of Tobacco not Advance in some years and we think it
time enough to lessen the Fees when the Price of Tobacco does
Advance.

U. H. J.

Thus having given you the chief Reasons that at present Occur
to us for not approving the Report of the Conferees we conclude
with Earnestly desiring that you will with us Consider the neces-
sity of a Law to regulate Officers fees and not insist upon making
such a one as we cannot expect will be Assented to but rather agree
to Conform as near as may be to the regulation made Anno 1719
with a Liberty to the people of paying money by a certain day to be
agreed on at one Penny p pound than suffer the Officers and Peo-
ple to be continually engaged in disputes without any Law to Gov-
ern themselves by.
If your House is inclinable to concur with what we propose we
desire A Committee of both Houses may be again appointed to con-
sider thereof and make a Report Accordingly
Signed p Order Geo. Plater Cl Up Ho.

Read the second time the Bill for Destroying Bears in Somerset
County and the Bill for laying out of Land and erecting a Town in

p. 357