Chancery Court Proceedings, 1677. 499

    but afterwards Escaped and gott for England and in the meane Liber P C
    tyme the Def.t had Purchased of the Said William Hawley four
    hundred Acres of Land on the South side of S.t Ellen Creeke called
    Mathews hope and for the Same was to give to the Said William
    Hawly five Thousand pounds of Tobacco and payd in part thereof
    to the said W.m Hawley in his life tyme to the best of the Def.ts
    Remembrance about Three Thousand pounds of Tobacco after
    which troubles ariseing in the Country and the Def.t alsoe being
    in the service of the said Lord Prop.t and his Lordps Enemeys have-
    ing also taken the Countrij from his Lopps whereby also his
    Lord~s friends were looked on as trayto.rs to the then present
    Government the Def.t neglected to take an assureance from The
    said Hawleij for the said four hundred Acres of Land and shortly p. 113
    after goeing to the house of the Said Nicholas Guyther Mary wife
    of the said Nicholas told the Def.t the Said W.m Hawley lay very
    desperatly Sick and the Country being taken as aforesaid and her
    husband a Condemned man the said W.m Hawley was minded to
    Settle the Said Land according to his former premisses on her
    husband and as she should direct and shee knowing the Def.t to be
    Concerned in part of the said Land asked his advice which way the
    said W.m Hawley might Settle the Same to prevent a Seizure by
    the severn men the Def.t Sayth true it is he that did advise the said
    Mary that the best way was to have the said Hawley Settle the same
    on the Comp.lt being an infant of about a yeare old which would
    best secure the same to the said Nicholas and shortly after the said
    W.m Hawley dyed and the Defend.lt Comeing after to the said
    Gaythers house asked the Said Marij if the Said William Hawleij
    had settled the said Land as hee the def.lt had advised to which shee
    answered hee had and thereupon fetcht a paper Sealed upp and to
    the best of his Remembrance shee told him the same paper was
    the said W.m Hawleys last will where upon the Defend.t would
    have opened itt & read it but the said Mary hindered him Saying
    it should not be opened till her husband came into the Countrey
    but whether the same paper was W.m Hawleys will or not he
    knoweth not or that thereby the Comp.lt had anij title to the prem-
    isses and he denyed all Combinacon w.th any person to defeat the
    Comp.lt and he knows nothing of the said will or ever see the same
    or a Coppie thereof or read or heard the Same read or that the
    same was Supprest or Concealed or mislayd in the Rebellious tymes
    or whether thereby the premisses were devised to the Conip.lt nor
    any thing else in relacon to the said will then as aforesaid Sayth
    that after Hawleys death Nicholas Guyther was in possession of all
    the Premisses (Except what the said Hawley or Gwyther had sold
    before the death of the said Hawley for the Said Guyther had
    power from the Said Hawley in his life tyme to Sell the said land
    as the said Defend.t had often heard the Said Hawley owne) but