LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

      To the Maryland Historical Society:

          GENTLEMEN AND LADIES:

        This volume of the proceedings of the Provincial Court of Maryland, 1681-
      1684, is Volume LXX of the Archives of Maryland, and number 15 of the
      sub-series on the Maryland courts. It is the eleventh volume on the Provincial
      Court. It begins on April 26, 1681, and runs until October 30, 1683. The text
      printed here reproduces, as well as a good modern press can do it, pages 385-77 I
      of Liber W. C., now in the Hall of Records in Annapolis. Transcribing does
      not enter into the process at all: the text in these pages is set directly from
      photostats of the original. Thus there is one clear chance for errors which
      the Archives escapes. The handwriting of the seventeenth century is not
      that of the twentieth, but, with practice it can be read. The clerk of the Court,
      part of whose duty it was to take notes of the proceedings, and then later to
      write up the liber from his notes, might take chances with ordinary matters,
      but he was careful to write obscure material very clearly. When the justices
      or the parties felt offended by the failure of the clerk to put in something, they
      had not the least hesitation in saying so (post, p. 168). On March 6, 1681/2,
      it was “Ordered by the Court by and with the Consent of the Attorneys of
      both sides that the Depositions of the Plaintiffes Witnesses be taken in writeing
      and to be admitted as Evidence at the Tryall of the action. & the deft by his
      Attorney aforesaid doth admit of the award and bond in the same action :“
      (post, pp. 168-169) Had the clerk been failing to record the evidence? To be
      sure, in fairness to the clerk, his work for the Provincial Court was by no
      means all he had to do.

                               Respectfully submitted,

                      CHARLES A. BARKER,

                        Chairman of the
                                      Committee on publications
                                   RHODA M. DORSEY

                                   AUBREY C. LAND

                                   HAMILTON OWENS
                                   WILsON SMITH