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End which we humbly hope will be Agreeable to your Lordship and
not lyable to the Objections made against the former Law.
If any of Our Clergy should endeavour to render this Act fruitless
and Ineffectual We hope all Attempts of that sort will be vain since
the Welfare of the people of this Province depends so much upon it.
And altho those Gentlemen should Object against One fourth part
of their Stipends being paid them in Grain We Conceive the Objec-
tion will appear unreasonable when its considered that the Grain to
be paid them will be worth as much Money as the Tobacco Allowed
for it would purchase without such a Law and that the Restraint laid
upon the Planters will render the Tobacco to be paid the Clergy of
more Value than what the whole without such restraint would be
And tho' we are determined to do nothing really Injurious to the
Clergy We apprehend it would be manifest Injustice to the People to
Prohibit their making Tobacco and at the same time compell them to
pay the full dues in that Commodity.
As we would Avoid all Just Occasion of Complaint we have fixed
the prices of Grain the very same that Creditors are Obliged to
Receive it at when they Execute their Debtors for Tobacco which they
cannot pay and this we think very just since it has been Experienced
for many years without Complaint made against it to the General
Assembly.
Our desires to Encourage good and Pious Clergy men to come
amongst us that by their Exemplary Piety Virtue and Truth might
appear Amiable has always prevented Attempts to divide any Parish
unless the Parish was of so large an Extent that rendred it Impos-
sible for any Clergyman to perform the necessary Dutys of his
Function And even then care has always been taken to leave the
Incumbent a larger allowance than any Clergyman in Virginia
Enjoys
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