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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Letter from [John] Pownall to William Tryon
Pownall, John, 1724-1796
July 02, 1764
Volume 06, Pages 1049-1050

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[B. P. R. O. North Carolina. B. T. Vol. 23. P. 235.]
Letter from Mr. Pownall to Wm Tryon Esqre Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina

Whitehall 2 July 1764.

Sir,

The Lords Commissioners for Trade and Plantations find upon examination of the laws of North Carolina passed in Decr 1762. for establishing superior and inferior Courts of Justice and Judicature and for regulating Orphans Estates that they are free from the Objections upon which former Laws for the same purposes were repealed and therefore their Lordships recommend it to you to endeavour to procure a Law for giving them such duration and establishing such Salaries upon the Chief Justice and Associate Judges as that the Courts of Judicature may have that Stability and Support which is essentially necessary to their efficacy and Dignity.

The Law relating to the distribution of Intestates Estates having provided, that one third of an Intestate's Estate shall go to the Wife and the rest in equal proportions to the Children without including the legal Representatives of any Children that may happen to be dead, it is in this respect contrary to the Act of the 22nd and 23rd of Charles the second from which the other Regulations appear to have been taken and therefore their Lordships have been under the necessity of proposing it shall be repealed.

The Act for making Provision for an Orthodox Clergy, passed in 1762. appearing to be liable to the Objections upon which a former Law of the same kind was repealed, which Objections you will find stated in the annexed Report of the Board of Trade upon it, their Lordships cannot advise it's confirmation, but as the general purport of it appears to be commendable and beneficial, they recommend it to you to endeavour to get it re-enacted free from those Objections.

The annexed Extract of their Lordships Journal of the 13th December 1763. will mark out to you their Lordships Sentiments and Resolution upon the application of the Province in respect to the Disposal of the money appropriated in the Tax Act of 1754. for erecting Schools and for other pious purposes and their Lordships desire it may be understood that they cannot recede from that Opinion, nor on any account advise his Majesty to alter the Instruction which fixes the Quorum of the Assembly to be fifteen.

Their Lordships particularly recommend to you to co-operate with

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the Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina in carrying into effectual Execution the Orders given by his Majesty for establishing a temporary Boundary Line between the two Provinces and their Lordships wish to receive from you as soon as possible, your opinion of what will be a proper final Boundary.

Their Lordships further wish to receive from you an account of what Proceedings have been had and measures taken for ascertaining the line of Partition between the Lands belonging to the Crown and those set off to Earl Granville

These are all the points upon which I am directed to give you a memorandum in writing and I have only to add, that I am with great truth and the most sincere Wishes for your Success and Welfare

Sir, your most &c
T. POWNALL.


Additional Notes for Electronic Version: The letter is signed by T. Pownall. However John Pownall was the Secretary of the Board of Trade and is the most likely author of the letter. This letter enclosed Board of Trade minutes - See Related Documents.