1. Wee the Lords Proprietors have agreed that the eldest of the Lords Proptors and that was Proprietor the first of March one thousand six hundred sixty nine shall be Palatine.
2. But after the decease of them he that hath been longest a Proptor and hath paid the full proportion with the rest for settling the Province shall be Palatine but after the year One thousand seaven hundred and decease of those that were Proptors the first of March one thousand six hundred and sixty nine the eldest of the then Lords Proptors and who hath paid as aforesd shall be always Palatine.
3. It is also agreed that there shall be seaven other great offices erected viz: Admirall Chamberlin, Constable Chief Justice Chancellor High
Steward and Treasurer to be enjoyed by none but the Proptors and that upon the vacancy of any of these offices the eldest of those Proptors that was Proptor the first of March one thousand six hundred sixty nine shall have his choice and after the decease of those he that hath been longest a Proptor and hath pd his full proportion of money that hath been expended in the settlemt of the Province but after the year one thousand seaven hundred the eldest man of the then Lords Proptors and that hath payd his money as above shall then have his choice.4. The oldest of those Proptors that were soe the first of March one thousand six hundred and sixty nine that shall be in Carolina and hath payd his full proportion of the money expended by the Lords Proptors shall of course be the Palatines Deputy unless the Palatine and three more of the Lords Proptors shall otherwise direct under their hands and seales.
5. The Palatine is to name the Governor and the Admirall, the Marshall of the Admiralty, the Chamberlain, the Register of Births, and Marriages, the Constable the Marshall of the Regimts the Chief Justice the Register of Writeings and Contracts, the High Steward the Surveyor of Land, the Chancellor, the Serjeant at Armes attending the Chancery and upon any man's producing a Comission from any of the Lords Proptors under his hand and seale for any Office In that Proptors disposal you are to admitt the person so comissioned to the execution of the sayd office.
6. For as much as it is of great security to the Inhabitants of Carolina that no ill or unjust man be in so great a trust in the governt as a Proprietors Deputy any Deputy of a Lord Proptor howsoever constituted shall cease to be a Deputy when the Palatine and three more of the Lords Proptors shall under their hands and seales so order and direct.
7. For as much as it may be very mischievous to the Inhabitants of our Province to have any Governor Deputy or any Officer in the choice of the respective Proptors not in the power of the Palatine & Proptors to be removed when he shall act unjustly or contrary to law and to the oppression of the people or contrary to the peace or quiet or security of the Settlement any Govr whether one of the Lords Proptors or other is to cease to be Governor when ever the Palatine and three more of the Proptors shall under their hands and seales signify it to be their pleasure and so direct or when any six of the Proptors or their Guardians if under age shall under their hands and seales soe direct, altho' the Palatine be not one of them.
8. Upon the death of any of the Lords Proprs you are not to admitt any person to any office that was in that Proptors disposeall who is dead
by vertue of a Comission from another Proptor until the Palatine and three more of the Lords Proptors have certified under their hands and seales that such Propr hath right to and is admitted unto the place of that Proptor who is deceasd and had dureing his life time power of disposeing of the sayd place.9. Wee have alsoe agreed that each of the Lords Proptors shall nominate or apoint a Deputy under his hand and seale to be recorded in the Secretary's office in Carolina.
10. The Lords Proptors Deputys are to be your Councill.
If it shall happen that any of the Lords Proprs Deputys shall by death or departure out of Carolina cease to be a Deputy that there may not be a failure in the Govert for want of a due number of Proptors Deputys You our Governor and the rest of our Deputys who are soe by Deputation under the hand and seale of the Proprietors are by majority of votes given by ballot to choose a person to be a Deputy for that Proprietor whose Deputy is dead or departed the Province who shall continue to be a Deputy and have the same power as our other Deputy unless in electeing Deputys untill that Proptor shall under his hand and seale have apointed another Deputy.
11. You our sd Governor are by and with the consent of any three or more of our Deputys testifyed by their signeing the Comission and where wee ourselves have not apointed or shall not apoint a person or persons for the sd office to constitute a Chief Judge by the name of a Sheriff with four Justices for the tryall of causes in any of the Countys that have fifty freeholders qualifyed to serve on Juryes wch Sheriff and Justices are to take an oath if free to swear for the due administration of Justice.
12. Untill any County have a Court erected in it the causes of the inhabitants of that County shall be tryed in that County that lyes next to them and where a County Court is already appointed and the Inhabitants of such County may serve as Jurymen untill a Court be erected in the next County where they reside.
13. All processes and actions to be tryed in the County Courts and pleas &c. shall be entred and Records kept of them by the Clearke of that County Court where the Action is to be tryed the Clearkes of the respective County Courts shall be appointed by the Chief Judge or sheriff wch Clearkes are to be sworne for the due Execution of his office and give security by his owne bond.
14. You are by and with the consent of our Deputys to apoint a Marshall to each County who is to execute all Writs and Executions Issuing from the sd Court.
15. All process Writs and Executions Issueing in Actions or Causes to be tried before yrself and our Deputys shall be served and executed by the Provost Marshall. All actions Pleas &c. to be tryed before yrself and our Deputys are to be entred by the Secretary by us apointed and records thereof kept by him.
16. Yourself and our Deputys are to hear and determine of Writs of Error from the Inferior County Courts and to be the Court of chancery untill wee shall otherwise direct.
17. You and our Deputy are to heare and determine all Causes Criminall and Judgemts thereon to give and execution to award according to Law and as often as yourself and any three or more of our Deputys shall think it fit
You are also hereby Impowered to grant Comissions to such other persons as yorself or any three or more of our Deputys shall think fit to heare and determine all Causes Criminall and Judgemts thereon to give and execution to award according to law.
18. And if it shall apeare to you that any person found guilty is a fit object of mercy you are by & with the consent of any three or more of our Deputys to stop execution and repreive the said person and then you are forthwith to send us a copy of the indictmt and an accot of the proofs against the said person and the reasons why you think him worthy of mercy.
19. What other Officer you our sd Governor and our Deputys shall find necessary for the better administration of justice and carryeing on the govermt and for wch office no person is before comissioned by us or provission made, you are with consent of our Deputy to grant Comissions for & in our name under the little seale apointed for the use of the govermt in Carolina to be in force untill it shall be otherwise directed by the Palatine and three more of the Lords Proptors under their hands and seales or a Comission by them granted to some other for the sd place under the great seal of the Province you are to grant no Comission but dureing pleasure only.
20. And whereas power is given unto us the Lords Proptors by vertue of our Letters Patents from the Crowne to make ordaine and enact and under our seales to publish lawes for the better govermt of the sd Province by and with the advice and consent and aprobation of the freemen of the sd Province or their delegates or the major part of them and in order thereunto to assemble them in such maner and forme as to us the Lords Proptors shall seem best you are with the consent of any three or more of our Deputyes when ever you shall thinke there is need of lawes
for the better and more peaceable govermt of the inhabitants of our Province in our names to Issue writs to the Sheriffs of the respective Countyes to choose twenty Delegates for the freemen of Carolina, viz five for Albemarle County five for Colleton County and five for Berkeley County and five for Craven County to meet and in such place and in such time as you and any three or more of our Deputys shall think fit to give their advice assent and aprobation to such Lawes as shall be thought reasonable to be enacted for the better Govermt peace and welfare of the sd Province always provided that the said laws be not repugnant to the Lawes of England.21. And that there may be no dispute about the bounds of Countys Wee have thought fit to apoint that the bounds of Albemarle County be from the great river called Albemarle River on Ryanoke River to Virginia, that the bounds of Craven County be from Sewee twenty three miles to the North East along the shore and from thence thirty five miles in a North west line into the land that the bounds of Berkly County be Sewee in the North East and so along the Sea to Stonoh river to the South west and thirty five miles back into the Land from the sea.
22. And that the bounds of Colleton County be Stonoh river on the Northwest and Combehee on the Southwest and thirty five miles into the land in a streight line from the Sea and where the rivers nominated for the Northeast & Southwest bounds of any County doe not extend full thirty five miles from the Sea in a streight line the bounds of the sd Countys are to be streight lines run from the heads of the sd rivers until it meet wth the Northwest bounds of the sd County wch is to be thirty five miles from the sea and no more.
23. The Countys farther up then thirty five miles from the Sea shall have the same rivers for their bounds If they run so farr up but if the rivers run not so farr then a line runeing Northwest shall be extended thirty five miles farther into the land then the Northwest bounds of the County next the Sea wch lines runeing Northwest shall be the Northeast and Southwest bounds of the sd County
24. And when any County shall make it appeare that by Grants registered in the Registers Office that there is in that County forty free holders you are then to issue Writs to the Sheriff of the sd County for the choosing of four Delegates to reprsent in the Assembly the freemen of that County and then you are to issue Writs to the forenamed Countys for the choice of four Delegates for each County onely.
25. And as other Countys come to be planted and make it apear there is forty free holders in the County you are to issue Writs in such Countys
for the choice of four Delegates also to reprsent them in the generall Assembly of the freemen of the Province and before any County have forty free holders so as to have Writs directed to it for the choice of Representatives for the County they reside in they are to give their votes for the choice of Delegates in the County next to them that is qualifyed to choose Delegates.26. At the same time that you issue Writs for the choice of Delegates for the County you are to send Writs in our names to each of the Landgraves and Cassiques of Carolina to convene and give their advice and consent in the passing of such lawes as shall be thought reasonable and the Landgraves & Cassiques are to sett together wth our Deputys.
27. With the advice and consent of our Deputys and the Landgraves and Cassiques and Delegates of the Freemen thus assembled or the major part of them you are to make ordaine and enact such lawes as shall be thought necessary for the better Govermt of our Province but to be ratifyed by yrself and three or more of our Deputys under their hands and seales in presence of the Landgraves & Cassiques & Delegates of the Countys before such acts be published or allowed to be lawes wch lawes soe past are to continue in force for two years & noe longer unless within that time they are ratifyed and confirmed under the hands and seales of the Palatine and three or more of the Lords Proprs themselves and by their order published in the Generall Assembly.
28. Any law soe past before it hath been ratifyed under the hands and seales of the Palatine himself and three more of the Lords Proprs themselves under their hands and seales and by their order published in the Generall Assembly of the Landgraves and Cassiques and Delegates for the Countys shall cease to be a law whenever the Palatyne and three more of the Lords Proprs signify their Dissent to it under their hands and seales.
29. You are constantly to transmitt to us all lawes past as soon as possible.
30. You our Governor are by and with the consent and advice of any three or more of our Deputys to adjourne prorogue and dissolve the Generall Assembly as often as you shall think it requisit so to doe.
31. Wee having long since thought fit to take all the Indians resideing within four hundred miles of Charles towne into our protection as Subjects to the Monarchy of England you are not to suffer any of them to be sent away from Carolina.
32. You our said Governor are to be Com̄ander of all the forces raised or to be raised within ye limits of ye Govermt over whom you are to place
officers and them remove at your pleasure and to cause the sayd forces to be duely exercised in armes and to doe all other things that to a Com̄ander in Chief doth belong.33. You our said Governor are to direct the meeting of our Deputys as often as you shall think fitt.
34. If you our sd Governor should happen to dye or depart the province or any other ways to be out of the Governmt and no person on the place Commissioned by the Palatine or us the Lords Proptors Our Will and pleasure is that the proprs Deputys who are made so under the hands and seales of the Proptors shall choose one of the Landgraves to be Governor. If any Landgrave be then in Carolina and against whom there is no objection and If there be any objection against the sd Landgraves being Governor they are to transmit the sd objection to us but If there be no Landgrave in Carolina against whom there is noe objection that then those our Deputys are hereby empowered to choose one of those our Deputys who is so by virtue of a Deputation under the hand and seale of a Proptor to be Governor untill another shall be apointed by the Palatine and If there be no Deputy who hath a Deputation under the hand and seale of a Proptor That then the Deputys may choose one of those Deputys put in by the Governor to be Governor as aforesaid.
35. You are to be very Carefull not to suffer any of the Inhabitants of our province to Comitt any acts of hostility against the Spanyards.
36. You are to suffer no fines to be layd on any one for misdemeanors by them comitted but to our vse the fines soe layd being our right.
37. You our sd Governor upon any misdemeanors comitted are by and with the consent of any three or more of our Deputys to suspend any Officer in Carolina put in by any of the Proptors except our Deputys and our Receiver Generall and place another to execute the sd Office in his roome untill our pleasure be knowne and while the said Office is executed by another he that so shall execute the sd Office is to keep an acco of the profits of the sd Office and be responsible to the party who is so suspended for the profits of the sd Office. If wee Ourselves shall think fit to restore him and soe direct and you are to send to vs the reason of such suspension that we ourselves may be enabled to judge If there be sufficient cause for yor so doing and what the sd party doth alledge for himself.
38. Any Officer put in by any of the Proptors If he execute the sd Office by a Deputy is to take such Deputy as you our Governor and our Deputys shall aprove of and no other.
39. You are to take all Imaginable care to see the acts of trade and navigation duely to be observed.
40. You are to vse yor vttmost endeavour to seize any Pyrats that shall come to Carolina and you are to prosecute all such as shall presume to trade with them or have any comerce with them contrary to law to all the vttmost rigor the law allowes.
41. In all other matters not limited or provided for by these our Instructions you our sd Governor are by and with the consent of any three or more of our Deputys to make such Orders from time to time for the peace and safety of the Government there as to you shall seem necessary and wee ourselves have power to do by vertue of our Charter from the Crown wch orders you are forthwith to transmit to vs with yor reasons for the makeing of them wch orders are to be in force untill wee shall under the hand and seale of the Palatine and three more of the Lords Proptors otherwise direct and no longer.
42. These Instructions shall be the Rules for proceedeings for any succeeding Governor as well as yorself and be put in Execution by him untill wee shall otherwayse direct.
43. Wee doe hereby repeale and make voyd all former Instructions for the Governmt of that part of our province that lyes south and west of Cape feare and all temporary lawes whatsoever these our Instructions being to be yor onely rule for the Governmt of the future untill wee shall otherwise direct but our powers and rules for granting land are not hereby revoaked but to remaine as they are Giuen vnder our hands and seales this eighth day of Novber one thousand six hundred and ninety one.