WILLIAMS' CASE.—3 BLAND. 205

three story stone mill, saw-mill, miller's dwelling-house and out-
houses, a two story stone store-house, together with all other build-
ings and improvements thereunto belonging; and. by the most
competent evidence they could procure, ascertained the real value
of the said property, taking into consideration the quality, location
and improvement^ thereof, and all the advantages and disadvan-
tages attending the same, to be thirty-nine thousand dollars, or
seventy-five dollars per acre. That they had also proceeded to
examine and value a tract of woodland containing one hundred
and seventy acres, more or less, situate in what is generally known

* by the name of The Hills, and about two miles from Ceres-
ville, which land had been reserved for the use of the said 188
farm, to be worth two thousand five hundred and twenty-five dol-
lars, or fifteen dollars per acre. To account for the apparent differ-
ence in value of the above mentioned tracts of land they observe,
that this latter tract was only valuable for the wood thereon; that
it was without improvements, and most valueless for all purposes of
cultivation.

The commissioners further reported, that after full and mature
consideration of every thing connected with the property; and the
infant owners thereof, they were decidedly of opinion and so deter-
mined, that a sale of said farm and improvements thereon, and the
one hundred and seventy acres of woodland in The Hills, would be
to the interest and advantage of the infants; and they submitted
the following reasons upon which they had principally founded
their opinion and judgment.

First. They considered the location of Ceresville unfortunate as
regards roads and water-courses; and, they thought, shewed dis-
tinctly and strongly how necessary it was, that it should be under
the management of a vigilant, industrious and keen-eyed proprie-
tor. If this be the fact, which none can doubt who know the prop-
erty, it consequently followed, that it must be an unprofitable estate
to the infants who then owned it; and who must depend upon ten-
ants to exercise that care and attention which it required. Ceres-
ville was bounded on one side by the River Monocacy, and nearly
so on the opposite one by Israel's Creek; these streams, when over-
charged with water, were extremely rapid, and often very destruc-
tive to fences on their margins. This farm had suffered very con-

siderably by such overflowings within the last fifteen months.
Again two of the most public roads in the county passed, at nearly
right angles, through the farm, inviting trespass at every step, often
subjecting the owner to loss; and always to the heavj and annual
expense of keeping in repair a long line of fences on each side of
those roads, in a country where the proper materials for making
them were known to be very costly.

Secondly. The mills were liable to many of the objections against
their tenure, by the infants, to which the farm was subject; and,