Your Lordship will receive inclosed a list of the taxable persons of this province agreeable to the returns made by the respective county court clerks. As the returns made to me for the year 1765 are more complete than for the year 1766 I have given the preference to the former at present returning on the lists of taxables for that county for 1766 which made no return for the year 1765. This will represent to your Lordship very nearly what were the effective number of taxables in the year 1765 in this province.

These returns which are carried only to the total column, do not in the clerks returns distinguish the white and black taxables. [See ante pages 145 and 288.—Editor.]

I must assure your Lordship the obtaining the above returns has been attended with very considerable trouble, the executive branch of government having no control over the county court clerks. The inconveniency and impropriety attending the want of which power, I have stated in my letter to your Lordship bearing date the seventh of March 1767.