OF COLONIAL MARYLAND 37

revenues, the Commissary General, Clerks of the provincial and coun-
ty courts, the Attorney General, Sheriffs, Examiner, and Naval Offi-
cers as well as those having to do with the collection of quit rents.
Since this system represents the highest point of development in the
keeping of rent rolls and debt books it may be well to observe it in
some detail in Kilty's admirable analysis:

... There was a general rent roll keeper for each shore, whose
duty it was by a certain day in every year to make out, sign,
and deliver, the necessary debt books to the farmers or receivers
of the quit rents in each county of their respective shores. In
order that the rent rolls might be complete the judges of the
land office were bound to return to the keepers, annually a list
of all the lands patented within the twelve months immediately
preceding. Returns were also to be made to them by the com-
missary general, and register of the prerogative office, of all
alterations in the possession and title of lands, whether by
descent or devise, and the clerks of the provincial and county
courts were to make return of all alienations of land by them
recorded within the year, the substance of which returns was
to be added to the former entries: —the debt books contained
the names of all persons that possessed land within the coun-
ties for which they were respectively made, and the name and
quantity of every parcel of land, under what rent held, and
what quit rents each tenant was annually to pay for his land
whether he might hold one or more tracts: —the gross amount
of those debt books was to be reported by the keepers to the
proprietary's agent, and new and complete copies of the rentall
were to be prepared by them, and lodged with the clerk of the
revenue office.

The receivers were to return back, within a stated time,
annually, the debt books received by them for the preceding
year, accompanied by such observations as might tend to make,
the rent rolls more perfect, and with a probate that no quit
rents had been received which were not there, sta ted; that they
know of no tracts patented, improved, or occupied, but what
were there entered, and that the persons employed by them to
assist in the collection had taken a similar oath.

The rent roll keeper upon thus receiving back the debt books,
stated an account for each receiver, debiting him with the gross
amount of the debt book, and crediting him with all warranted
allowances, any disputes concerning which were to be submitted
to the revenue board, and distinct copies of these accounts
were to be furnished to the agent, and to the board.

The receivers were authorized to sue or distrain in his lord-
ship's name or their own. — On blank leaves, to be left in the
debt books, they were to note alienations happening after the