viii Letter of Transmission.

House refused to yield and the bill was lost. Thus factiousness and an inde-
fensible parliamentary practice caused the province to fail to do her due part
in King George's War. In the discussion, the Lower House advanced the
extreme position that not only must money bills originate therein, but also
that amendments must not be made to such bills by the Lower House.

The usual joint committee examined the accounts of the Commissioners for
emitting bills of credit. On a few bills, the Houses managed to come together
and the reasons for the gubernatorial vetoes are rather obscure.

Gov. Bladen's address to the Lower House at the close of the session was
unusually long and bitter in tone. Not only did he take them to task for the
procedure in regard to the agent, but also for their acts in the contested elec-
tion cases, for their refusal to allow the yeas and nays to be called and for
improper procedure towards magistrates against whom complaints had been
made.

The Lower House consisted of fifty-four members, four from each of the
thirteen counties and two from Annapolis City. Col. Edward Sprigg, of
Prince George's County, was again chosen speaker and there were six com-
mittees appointed. As in previous sessions, some members served on more
than one committee and some on none. The Committee on Laws numbered
nine members; those on Elections and Privileges, on Aggrievances and Courts
of Justice, and on Arms and Ammunition of seven; those on Accounts and
Bills of Credit of five each. The claims of rights of Englishmen were spread
on the journal and it was speedily held to be a grievance that a poll tax of a
pound of tobacco was levied for the militia.

There were three contested elections. George Steuart was unseated as a
Delegate from Annapolis and Stephen Bordley was given the seat without a
record vote. The first division of the Session occurred on August 14, when
the House voted to tack a provision as to a Provincial Agent on the supply bill
for Louisbourg by vote of 30 to 18. The negative votes were cast by three
men from St. Mary's, two from Somerset, three from Dorchester, two from
Cecil, one from Baltimore, the two from Annapolis, one from Queen Anne's
and three from Worcester. We notice here as throughout the session that the
Lower Eastern Shore, St. Mary's, and Annapolis formed the chief part of
the Court Party, while Kent, Talbot, and Queen Anne's, Baltimore, Charles,
Calvert, and Prince George's represented the country party.

On August 23, occurred the second and third divisions. By a vote of 16 to
35, the House voted not to enlarge the jurisdiction of the county courts. The
minority consisted of three delegates from Anne Arundel, one from Charles,
one from Somerset, three from Talbot, two from Dorchester, one from Cecil,