of land affairs, at an occasional interference by the legislature, I shall add, under this head, a few passages from the journals of the upper house of assembly, to shew the nature of this interference, and the sense of the house upon the points that were brought before it ¾ " An act touching taking up of land, passed at a session commencing the 5th September, 1642.     " Where, any one entreth upon any land to be held of his lordship, or taketh out warrant for such land in any certain place, he shall enter into rent the next Chrismas following, except the right saved to adventurors by condition of plantation, and if the surveyor be found in delay after his warrant delivered to him he shall be liable to the party to the value of the rent till he hath returned his survey, and the secretary shall be liable in like manner for delay of drawing the patent after the survey returned and warrant for drawing of it.     " Every one claiming title to any land in certain to be holden of his lordship may demand his claim to be entered upon record, and such entry shall bar all ensuing grants of the same land till the claim be tried.     " Warrants for laying out of land (without any certain place assigned) delivered to the surveyor shall bind the surveyor to lay the lands out according to the order as the warrants were delivered to him upon pain of recompence to the party greived (except he have other instructions to the contrary, from or under the lord proprietary.)     " Upon the back side of every pattent, or in a schedule annexed before it be put to the seal, the surveyor being thereunto demanded by the party interested, shall describe the plott of the grant, with all the bounds named upon the grant, and a seal and compass it by which bounds the grant shall be interpreted and judged after.     " This act to endure for three years from this present day."     ASSEMBLY PROCEEDINGS, 1st book, fol. 293. ¾ " Concerning Rights of Land.     " The assembly perceiving by the conditions of plantacon, which are imposed upon the inhabitants of this province of the lord Baltemore, and by his proclamation directed to his officers here, that none can hold any land of his lordship without violation of the liberty of his conscience, which he binds to take an oath, inconsistent with the laws of England now in force, and published, and so contrary to their engagement to his highness the lord protector and the commonwealth of