92 Provincial Court Proceedings, 1678/9.

Liber N N

ought not, for that he saith that the words in the declaracon above
supposed to be said & published by him the said ffrancis Viz^t that
is to say I tell you that Tyte (inuendo the said George Tyte is a
cheating Rogue & a knave & a Rogue & cheates the Countrey with
false measures, he is in no wise thereof guilty & of this he putts
himselfe upon the Countrey And the plaintiffe also And for the
other words in the declaracofi above supposed to be spoken & pub-
lished viz^t inuendo I the said ffrancis Johnson will prove inuendo
the said George Tyte cheats the Countrey with false weights, the
said ffrancis saith the said George his action aforesaid ought not,
for that he saith that before the tyme in which itt is supposed him
the said ffrancis to haue spoken & published the said words in the
declaracon above specified of the said George Tyte, that is to say in
the yeare of our Lord, the said George Tyte did upon his own account
weigh & receive with his own stilliards accustomed to weigh tobacco
with several hogsheads of tobacco of severall persons in the County
of S^t Maryes, which being after weighed by others with Stilliards
tryed by the Standard weighed fifty pounds weight in the hogshead
more then they weighed by the said Georges Stilliards, whereof the
said ffrancis afterwards to witt the day & yeare in the declaracon
aforesaid did publish & say the words aforesaid as well itt was
lawfull for him, & this he is ready to averr whereupon he craves
judgem^t whether the said George his action aforesaid against him
ought to have. And the said George Tyte that by any thing before
by the said ffrancis alleadged the said George saith he ought not to
be barred because he saith that the said ffrancis of his owne proper
wrong & without any cause by him the said ffrancis aboue alleadged

p. 759

did speake of the said George the said English Words in the Declara-
con above specified that is to say I the said ffrancis will prove that
he (meaning the said George Tyte) cheats the Countrey with false
weights & measures, as the said George above against the said
ffrancis doth complaine And this he prayeth may be enquired of by
the Countrey And the said ffrancis also Therefore itt is comanded
the Sheriffe of S^t Maryes County that he cause to come here twelve
&c by whom &c and who neither &c to recognize &c because as well
&c Att which said twelfth day of March in the yeare aforesaid com-
eth as well the said plaintiffe as the said Defend^t by their Attorneys
aforesaid And the jurors impannelled being called likewise came
to witt John Addison, John Wynne, Thomas Potter, Edward Pynn,
Charles Hea, W^m Vaughan, Emanuell Ratcliffe, Joseph Edloe,
Thomas Courtney, Henry Smith, John Portswood & John Watson

who being elected tryed & sworne to say the truth in the p^rmisses

upon their Oaths doe say that the said ffrancis Johnson is not guilty
of speaking of the said George Tyte the said English words in the
declaracon above specified. Therefore itt is considered by the Court
here, that the said George take nothing by his writt, but be in mercy